Behringer has announced the Polykeys 61, a 61-key MIDI controller with a polyphonic aftertouch keybed and a target price of $199. According to Synth Anatomy and Synthtopia, the keyboard is also an open-source project, which could make it interesting well beyond its price.
What has been shown
The teaser describes a compact layout: pitch and mod wheels on the left, nine knobs and nine sliders, 16 pads on the right, a central display with buttons and transport controls, and a ribbon controller above the keys. Availability is still to be announced, and details such as an arpeggiator or sequencer have not been confirmed. The Behringer site does not yet list full specifications.
Polyphonic aftertouch is not the same as MPE
This is the key point for expressive players. Polyphonic aftertouch sends pressure per key, but on a single MIDI channel. It captures how hard you press each note after striking it, which is useful for swells, filter opening or vibrato on individual notes.
MPE goes further. It assigns each note its own channel so that pitch bend, slide (CC74) and pressure can all be controlled independently per note. A poly-aftertouch keybed on its own gives you one dimension of that: pressure.
The teaser coverage does not mention MPE support, so for now the Polykeys 61 should be considered a poly-aftertouch controller. That is still valuable. Many synths and plugins respond to polyphonic aftertouch directly, and a number of sound designers use it as a cheaper route to per-note dynamics.
Why open source could change things
Behringer has described the Polykeys 61 as an open-source project. If the firmware is published, the community may be able to add features, and it is not unreasonable to hope someone experiments with MPE-style channel handling. We have seen similar community work on other hardware, such as open firmware efforts around the LinnStrument. Whether Behringer's design will allow it is not yet known, so this remains a possibility, not a promise.
How it compares
At around $200, the Polykeys 61 would undercut most keyboards that offer per-key pressure. Dedicated MPE instruments sit in a different price tier: Expressive E's Osmose offers full MPE with a continuous-motion keybed, and the LinnStrument offers a grid-based MPE surface. Those instruments capture slide and pitch glide in ways a standard keybed cannot.
What to check before you buy
When the product ships, a few questions will decide whether it suits your rig:
- MPE mode: Does it offer any MPE output, even via firmware update?
- Aftertouch resolution: How smooth is the pressure response across the keybed?
- Plugin compatibility: Does your main synth read polyphonic aftertouch, or only channel aftertouch?
- DAW handling: Does your DAW preserve poly-aftertouch data when recording and editing?
The takeaway
The Polykeys 61 looks like a promising and inexpensive way to explore per-note pressure. Treat it as poly aftertouch, not MPE, until Behringer says otherwise. If you want full three-dimensional expression today, a dedicated MPE controller is still the safer route. If you mostly want more feel from a standard keyboard, this one is worth watching.