It really depends on what you want to do. For me, so far, the best combo is a Push 2 + a Midi Fighter Twister, I can tweak and play all I want and sound design is a breeze.
I have a a Perkons and I use ableton live. I want something to control a single synth within Live really well so that I can jam freely with the 2.
If you always want to use your hardware synths with Live, then Push 2 it is. It’s just the best. If you also want to jam with your hardware without Live, then the Launchpad pro mk3 has midi out and is also very good with Live.
I don’t want to use any hardware synth, I want a controller with tight integration with a vst!
But then you get the worst of both worlds, a hardware that is tightly integrated to a VST, not giving you the flexibility of ITB and not being an unit that is portable enough to play by itself.
In my hybrid setup I got a Faderfox PC12 to have a fuckton of knobs available, it sucks a bit to map it but I use it to control a lot of stuff in Bitwig/Ableton and my hardware as well (e.g.: map a 4x6 section to control performance macros on the A4/AR, a 4x3 to my pedals, a 4x3 for the OT, and the other 4x6 knobs to control VSTs).
Not sure if some controller with tight integration to a VST would have a market, maybe if it had support for a few very popular VSTs (Omnisphere, Serum, Pigments, etc.) in the same box it could be something of a niche product from some boutique manufacturer, apart from that I don’t see it working when thinking about the economics/finance of it 
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Push is super cool, just huge. May be worth waiting a few months to see if they release something new.
Of course if you are on a laptop you can embrace the freedom like I do. 90% of my work now is done with the trackpad and keyboard, no mouse or anything.
To tide you over, Novation launchpads and launchkeys are awesome, and integrate to ableton with zero effort. I have one that I paid around 90USD for. It has little drum pads and mappabale knobs plus a mini keyboard. I love it.
What you can also do during this time of waiting is just try making tracks with ableton stock effects and synths. If you end up loving that, then the Push will definitley be great for you. I personally use ableton synths for almost everything now except ROMpler type stuff like the Wavestation or Triton. And when I use those, I mainly make huge layers with multiples of them and write chord progressions with M4L sequencers. So I don’t really need a controller there.
The Push really shines once you master Ableton and are comfortable using all of it’s plugins for the majority of your work.
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What about the best option to have 8 endless encoders and some pads/keys with scale and chord mode?
I’ve thought about it occasionally - returning to Logic in order to produce more finished, polished and well-structured works. However, after over 45 years making music, the real pleasure I get from music is from jamming - either alone or with others - in direct contact with gear I like and keep working to master. My process is soooo simple - I capture anything worthy at the moment of conception into one of my BlackBoxes, with a view to live assembly later direct to stereo. I can still make albums that way - they have a ‘demo’ quality that I personally prefer, even if it includes a few warts and burps. YMMV.
Ultimately, it’s all about what you most enjoy and what you want out of music in the end. It’s way easier to work, rework, refine and perfect if you work in the box, but requires more discipline and vision and all that stuff. If you’re still young, you might still possess those things. 
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This. Exact same setup here. Hugely capable.
EDIT in case not clear… I mean Push 2 plus MIDI Fighter Twister.
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