number if keys and key switching access

[ears22]

my question is about choosing how many keys in order to accommodate different keyswitch layouts.

Plugin developers often assign keyswitches to the lower octave or higher octaves (C0-C1 or C7-C8)

Because these keyswitches can often not be re-assigned to other keys, do I have to get an 88 key controller to have access to all keyswitches in real time?(without having to go back and overdub the keyswirch notes).

How do owners of 25, 49 and 61 key controllers get access to keyswitches assigned to keys outside the range of their keyboard?

Do they program, say, the keypads, to keyswitches? And if so, since different developers often have different keyswitch layouts (even from instrument to instrument in their own products collection) wouldn’t I need a different map for each instrument in my collection that has a different keyswitch layout? This seems cumbersome and time consuming… to have to write, store, retrieve a different map from computer to keyboard depending on what instrument I use. Suggestions welcome. Thnx!

 

[SeaGtGruff]

That is an interesting question, and it might come down to a combination of personal preference and whatever restrictions are imposed by your plugins.

Controllers that have fewer keys normally let you use octave shift buttons to shift the notes up or down a given number of octaves; the owner's manual for the controller should provide more details about its capabilities.

Even an 88-note keyboard needs to use octave shifting to cover the full 128-note range that MIDI allows.