The Best Novations for the Money

"Best" is a bit of a trap word when a single brand covers three genuinely different product categories. Rather than force a false comparison between a controller and a standalone synthesizer, here's how the Novation range actually breaks down by what different musicians need — and where the smart money tends to go.

Best All-Round Novation Controller: Launchkey

If you want one piece of Novation hardware that covers keys, pads and knobs without over-specialising in any single direction, Launchkey remains the sensible default. It gives you a genuine playing surface alongside pad-based beat and clip work, and it's built specifically to sit comfortably alongside a DAW rather than fight against one.

Best Novation for Live, Grid-Based Performance: Launchpad

If your priority is triggering clips, samples and loops live rather than playing melodic lines, Launchpad is the more focused choice. It trades the keyboard entirely for a dedicated performance grid, which suits electronic performers and finger-drummers far better than a general-purpose controller ever could.

Best for Pure Parameter Control: Launch Control

Sometimes you don't want pads or keys at all — you just want proper, tactile knobs for mixing, plug-in automation or hardware tweaking. Launch Control strips everything else away and focuses purely on that job, which makes it the best pick if you already have a controller or keyboard and just need more hands-on control surface.

Best Dedicated Analogue Novation Synth: Bass Station II

For players who want a genuine, standalone sound source rather than another controller, Bass Station II is the obvious starting point — an analogue synthesizer built specifically around bass and lead sounds. It won't do everything, but what it does, it does with real character.

Best for Broader Sound Design: Peak or Summit

If Bass Station II feels too narrow for what you have in mind, Peak and Summit open things up considerably, offering polyphonic, more expansive synthesis for players who want to explore a much wider sonic palette rather than one specific flavour. Neither is a casual purchase, so this tier suits players who already know they want a dedicated hardware synth as a serious, long-term instrument rather than an experiment.

Best Portable, Screen-Free Workflow: Circuit Tracks or Circuit Rhythm

For genuinely standalone music-making with no laptop involved, it comes down to what you're building: Circuit Tracks for synth-based sequencing across two tracks, or Circuit Rhythm if sample manipulation and beat construction matter more to you than melodic synth parts.

What Value Actually Means Across This Range

Because these categories serve such different jobs, comparing prices directly across them doesn't tell you much. A controller and a standalone synthesizer aren't competing for the same money in any meaningful sense — they're solving entirely different problems. The better question is always whether the specific product does the specific job you need, not whether it's the cheapest thing with the Novation name on it.

Quick Comparison

Don't Buy for the Category You Wish You Used

A genuinely common expensive mistake: buying a standalone groovebox because the idea of screen-free production sounds appealing, when you actually spend all your time comfortably working inside a DAW already. Be honest about your actual habits rather than the workflow you aspire to, and the "best" choice usually becomes obvious fairly quickly. The reverse mistake happens too — producers who genuinely crave time away from a screen but talk themselves into "just" buying another controller because it feels like the safer, more familiar option. Neither habit serves you well long-term.

The Bottom Line

There's no single best Novation product, only the best fit for how you actually make music, and that's true across every corner of the range. Work out your Novation category from the table above, then read our complete buyer's guide for the practical checks before you commit. If you're brand new to all this, our beginner's guide is a gentler starting point.

Frequently Asked Questions