If work in any creative field at a high enough level, you know the value of learning hotkeys and key commands of the respective app or program in which you do your work in. Be it Photoshop, After Effects, Ableton, or whatever – knowing the key commands can increase the speed at which you work by multitudes.
And while many of us know the common ones (cmd + c to copy or cmd + s to save), all creative programs have a multitude of other more customized commands that many creators are blissfully unaware of. What a shame that is, as their best creative work might be being left on the table when so much of their attention is going to clicking on their actions and moves.
But Editors Keys solves all of these issues in one sleek and stylish device. We were sent a review unit of the Editors Keys, the Ableton version to be specific, to find out just how much one of their keyboards can improve your workflow and upgrade your studio.
So let’s dive in or head over to their website here to learn more for yourself…
What Are Editors Keys?
Editors Keys are simple, they are simple LED-lit keyboards that display all of your chosen app’s hotkeys in an easy-to-read format. No longer do you need to comb around YouTube or dig through your DAW’s manual to reference what combination of keystrokes does one small and minute little task. It’s a simple design, that is a pretty damn cool little game-changer.
Editors Keys makes unique keyboards for almost every different creative endeavor and app as well. So while I got the Ableton model, there are also versions for Premier, FL Studio, Logic, and pretty much any other program that you can imagine that benefits from knowing key commands.
And while they have only recently made the jump into full LED-lit keyboards, the company also has a handful of other awesome offers such as simple keyboard covers and other creator devices and resources.
What I Loved Most About Editors Keys For Ableton
I’ve been using this keyboard for about a month now, and I’ve come to really love it. But with a price tag of about $150, it’s okay to be skeptical about whether or not this keyboard is worth the investment. To help give you an insider’s perspective, here are a couple of my favorite things about this keyboard.
I Learned Things!
I’ve been a devoted Ableton user for the last decade. On top of that, having played RTS games like Starcraft 2 and Warcraft rather religiously all throughout my youth, I have a deeply engrained appreciation for knowing hotkeys and key commands in whatever program you’re using. And while I thought I had a solid understanding of the main key commands available in Ableton, this keyboard taught me how wrong I was…
Seeing every single key command mapped out directly beneath my fingertips (instead of buried deep in a user manual in a monotonous-to-read chart) opened my eyes to how much I was missing.
The Texture
Here’s something I did not expect to love about this keyboard when I first learn that Editors Keys was sending me one. But the keys and material that they print their custom commands on have a light and grainy texture to them that simply feels great under your fingers while you’re working.
As somebody who spends roughly half of their life typing and working on a keyboard, between my music productions and writing content for the website, this is an absolute blessing and is a sneaky benefit that I don’t think gets enough attention.
The Lights
This is another small flex that really made the difference, but this keyboard and its LEDs simply look awesome in the studio. I’m personally a big fan of producing in vibe-soaked low lighting, and the backlights of the keys are easy to read without drawing too much attention to themselves when you’re in the flow of producing.
Additional color layers help organize the different keys according to their function which helps locate what you’re looking for without breaking focus while also looking awesome against the LED lighting.
Is Editors Keys Worth It?
Having gotten my hands on this keyboard about a month ago and having now had plenty of time to get used to what it’s all about, I can honestly say that almost everyone who works in a consistent place would benefit from having a keyboard like this.
Learning the hotkeys and having a visual reference for them right where you’re typing is an absolute game changer. And while the keyboard can be a little pricey, ranging from around $75-$150, the amount of time you will save once you’ve committed some of the more nuanced key commands to muscle memory makes it easy to justify the price.
Will Vance is a professional music producer who has been involved in the industry for the better part of a decade and has been the managing editor at Magnetic Magazine since mid-2022. In that time period, he has published thousands of articles on music production, industry think pieces and educational articles about the music industry. Over the last decade as a professional music producer, Will Vance has also ran multiple successful and highly respected record labels in the industry, including Where The Heart Is Records as well as having launched a new label with a focus on community through Magnetic Magazine. When not running these labels or producing his own music, Vance is likely writing for other top industry sites like Waves or the Hyperbits Masterclass or working on his upcoming book on mindfulness in music production. On the rare chance he's not thinking about music production, he's probably running a game of Dungeons and Dragons with his friends which he has been the dungeon master for for many years.
