I can say the pads on my AR mk2 are great much better than my push 2…
Soft and responsive to light velocity… test it for yourself but mine work really well
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If I may, I will add : it’s like any instrument, you have to practice, feel it and get used to it.
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I guess im going to have to! one thing i didnt like with other pads is if i apply hard pressure and kneed into the pad it would double or triple trigger sometimes when all i wanted was 1 hit… does that happen on AR’s?
It’s a beauty !! I really dig the new style 
ive not had any double hits
Me neither but I have just had my unit repaired because the some pads were accidentally triggering other pads in scene mode. It was under warranty so that was cool.
My new unit arrived, I exchanged it when my previous Rytm started having power issues, I paid $100 extra for a different color but, hopefully this Rytm has no power issues and no pad issues. All I need to do is paint the wood it’s sitting on and with my Novation Summit, Digitakt, and Moog semi-modular all black gear, my setup will be… ever so aesthetically pleasing.
I feel that when in step record mode the red number buttons are much softer, almost like a pink lemonade color.
It’s hard to tell if the colors between the AR and DT are “exact” but when not in bright light they’re close enough. If there’s a difference there, which there might be, it’s very subtle. Looks like the same rough surface, almost the exact same color.
It’s hard to explain and capture with a camera. But I just had a grey Rytm a week ago and I swear the reds were brighter and darker.
New box as well
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Sorry what do you mean for “the red number buttons are much softer”…
the colour intensity has been tweaked for the leds for the black version, the eyes open up a bit more when faced with a dark black surface, so the leds must have seemed apparently too bright in comparison, or maybe they just think it is cooler - but they’ve apparently had a tweak, it was the only noted change besides aesthetics … so not imagined, no idea how significant a tweak it is as you’d need two side by side to get a true feel
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It’s at least mildly significant since I noticed it the moment I used but I have sensitive eyes.
It is not a complaint and I absolutely view it as a positive for this color version, I think everything about it looks perfect. That, to me, is a lovely little touch. They could’ve just swapped boxes and made no tailored changes.
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it wouldn’t go amiss as a user option for the other boxes to tame the brightness a bit … one can dream, but at least there’s a precedent (unless it’s a different batch of components that are more restrained/efficient)
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How is the pads response?
It would be good to understand if they are improved on the black version compared to the grey.
I have the grey MK2 I rarely use the pads, I don’ t like them much- Maschine for example has amazing pads for step sequencing, finger drumming etc…
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They seem about the same.
These are not extremely stiff pads like an MPC. They are very sensitive and squishy as you must know, the sensitivity curve is hard to get used to.
I am no finger drummer, but with these pads I almost exclusively drum with 2 fingers… that is, my index finger with my middle finger supporting it from behind, sometimes my thumb supporting from the front. That lets me control velocity and aftertouch magnitudes better than one finger.
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This is what I thought - pads are the same- so basically the black version is a marketing move to boost sales of the analog machines, specially A4 mk2 which is on eBay and reverb at a good second hand price( £800-900).
Actually there are tons of A4mk2 used and nearly new…
I have bad luck with machines so having a 3 year warranty is fine by me.
I do want an A4MKII at some point, last bit of gear I currently want besides a Moog Matriarch Dark Series. I got my grey ARMKII at a discount and when I swapped it out for this one, they just charged me $100 extra, so I still got it at a discount. If I didn’t I don’t think I’d want to pay full price for it, I would’ve just had them repair my grey one.
Yeah it make sense,
My AR Mk2 gets wobbly on a flat desk when it is too cold or too hot- it is the metal chassis subject to temperature change.
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I have very bad OCD with my instruments but some things you just have to let go, otherwise I tend to feel imprisoned.
The Japanese call it wabi-sabi; hand crafted items are especially vulnerable, but we can learn to view “flaws” as a positives.
For instance there are anoles lizards alllll over Florida. But there’s one in particular that I feel connected to, I know for a fact it’s the same lizard because it’s missing an eye. She always hangs around eating bugs near the same spot. If it didn’t have that imperfection it’d be just another lizard to me, unidentifiable.
COVID has my brain fried, emotional connection to a one eyed lizard.
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It looks great 
Beautiful even the box, going to get the A4 MK2 with the modular it’s going to be fun !
Yeah with a DFAM, seems a nice marriage
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