controlla troll da world...

[kfw]

Does anyone know somewhere to order vintage looking knobs and buttons?

try jameco; everyone's on and on about mouser and digikey, but jameco, imoo, has the nicest ones. plus ebay; just type "knob" in and you'll eventually be routed to the section where people always sell bulk/surplus knobs. one of my project synth atrocities ended up with asian aftermarket "fender guitar knobs" on it... super cool... -k

ps.

https://www.jameco.com/webapp/wcs/store ... oryId=3545" onclick= "window.open(this.href);return false;

[user_1026]

if you got da $ then you should have a look at a lemur...

http://www.jazzmutant.com/index.php" onclick= "window.open(this.href);return false;

nuff said

[kfw]

if you got da $ then you should have a look at a lemur...

i was seriously considering it until i saw this:

http://hrmpf.com/wordpress/48/new-apple-patents/" onclick= "window.open(this.href);return false;

apple has the scratch to get something like that made at a much more reasonable price-point than jazzmutant ever will. granted; with the lemur you're not just paying for a touchscreen tablet pc, but a whole environment with proprietary software/gui/etc... but even still. if it's between paying $2500 for the absurdly beautiful lemur now or waiting 9-18 months for apple's dedicated sub-$500 ipod-like/tough multi-touch graphic display then, well... no contest.

[user_396]

i have the Lemur; unfortunately it is about to go back to cycling 74. it's just too sluggish for prime time IMO.

it will be awesome once they get this technology implemented in a robust way though.

rs

[kfw]

i have the Lemur; unfortunately it is about to go back to cycling 74. it's just too sluggish for prime time IMO.

it will be awesome once they get this technology implemented in a robust way though.

rs

wow! please elaborate here on your experiences with it... -k

[user_396]

i got it Friday before last. I use it ultimately with Ableton, but using PD as a bridge to handle all the control exchanges. So, the flow is like this:

Code: Select all

Lemur ------> PD ------> Apple IAC Driver ------> Ableton v5
        OSC       MIDI                     MIDI

i pretty much only play live, and pretty much the only sounds that get made, are ones that i physically cause (just like playing a trumpet, guitar, grand piano, etc.) so, the "action" of the thing would be very important. i'd need it to act like "a bunch of knobs" and like a "piano keyboard".

***

there are basically some little widgets that act like faders, and some that act like buttons. you can put as many as you want anywhere.

you can tweak the "physics" of any widget to make it "feel" like you want it to. so, the first thing i did was make the "physics" for everything as fast as possible, so that i could play it really fast and hard.

my basic test for responsiveness with the buttons, was to try to play basic melodies, with chords, on them. that way you could hear if lag, or funny things, were happening. (even if i'd never play Beethoven or Bach out with it, those are good acid tests for "musical" response.)

there are a few problems with the buttons. first, they respond slowly and they do not always trigger when they are hit. second, if one finger is touching two buttons at the same time, only the button with more "finger" on it will strike. makes the whole thing feel clunky.

also, it made me realize how important tactile feedback really is. the supremely-evolved piano keyboard, and even a group of cheap knobs, are just volumes more responsive right now.

i think this kind of unit could be very promising, but a lot of subtle "action" refinements will need to be made so that it's an "instrument" and not just a control peripheral.

hth, and anyone can post specific q's as well.
rs

[faster]

Franck Stofer (Sonore records dude) was in Seoul a year and a half ago with a prototype Lemur - he's friendswith the makers & they let him take it around to show off - and I messed with it a little before a show.

I don't know jack shit about controllers or midi or MAX or computer use in music at all, frankly, but I didn't like it anyway. Felt sluggish, felt "gimmicky," and the price is silly. I'd rather have a used car, or get my teeth fixed.

[p_ano]

using two knobs in tandem: 16,384 combinations. or using three: 2,097,152, etc... in max it's kind of arbitrary; for example in one of my synth patches the "actual" 128-step controller value that controls an oscillator's frequency is scaled exponentially between 0hz to 20khz by a factor that changes randomly every time max gets a new value from the knob! so the oscillators are never getting the same exact frequency twice...

...but then again there are times when you do in fact want exact "note" values, and that's when the 128-step hierarchy of midi becomes rather handy... you can always use one controller for "pitch", another for "fine", yet another for octaves or harmonics, etc...

i've tried most of these methods, and i'm still not satisfied. i think a more sensitive controller would be nice. do such things exist?

[p_ano]

my prayers have been answered!

From the Native Instruments site:

"Are you often constrained by the limitations and low resolution of conventional MIDI controllers?"

"The KORE system delivers a stunningly realistic 'analog feel'. As the controller uses incremental rather than absolute values, annoyingly large 'value jumps' as is the case with MIDI controllers are a thing of the past. As opposed to other incremental dials, the knobs on the KORE controller have 500 steps per revolution thus delivering an incredibly high resolution. The protocol is not restricted to the customary 127 steps MIDI resolution but allows the high resolution parameter values to be communicated directly between hardware and software via USB 2.0."



anyone fool around with this thing yet?

[user_415]

my prayers have been answered!

Our prayers combined maybe, heehee. I've been lusting for a continuous controller for some time, and the increased resolution is just icing on the cake. /me hearts NI.

Btw, I've also been greatly annoyed by the archaic MIDI protocol, especially since I tried to work with it on the coding level.

[flies]

it's rather straightforward to use a programs like Max to slew between MIDI controller values to prevent zippering, althouhg if you want to get the value between 55 and 56, you're obviously out of luck.

What are you doing where you want higher precision?

[Stephen]

This looks pretty cool: a modular controller where you can choose the layout and configuration.

http://www.mawzer.com/index.htm#" onclick= "window.open(this.href);return false;

[apfEID]

Kore looks great but NI are screwing the pooch by making it a dongle as well. Kore (the plug in environment) won't make any sound unless Kore (the hardware) is plugged in.

so if you make a track that uses Kore and want to edit it later without the Kore controller, you're effed.

[snailed]

So it's been a while since we've seen this thread. Have there been any updates in the MIDI controller world in the past 3 years?

A controller like the KORE would be nice, but I'm a bit skeptical of the included software. Can you use it as a straight input into max/msp and just not bother with their software? I like to have as few things running as possible, and I just don't think I'd be interested in running another piece of software with max/msp just to utilize a controller.

What about new stuff? I'm looking for something without a keyboard, with knobs and faders. Continuous knobs would be nice. Higher resolution than the standard MIDI resolution would be cool, but not necessary. I also have the Evolution UC-33, and it's just too flimsy / cheap feeling for me to really be comfortable with anymore - it's definitely on its last legs.

[horaflora]

I use my iPod touch, for which there are several programs for OSC manipulation... X/Y axis, accelerometer control, faders, toggles, dials... Very nice, especially considering the price (apps like free - 4.99) and what a versatile tool the iPod is - i use mine for mp3 playback, field recording, synthesis (great new "reactable" like modular synth called jasuto, and a cool one with lots of parameter linking available called noiseI.O), some mild processing (see rjdj) and am writing on it right now!

I consider buying a second one every now and then... Yes I do.

Ok!

[joe grimm]

Hi all,
I'm looking for a controller that has a ton of knobs, and basically nothing but knobs. A few switches would be okay too. But the more pots, the better. Ideas?

The closest thing I've seen so far is the behringer BCR2000... has 32 pots and some switches, and doesn't look too silly. But given behringer's rep, what other options are out there?

[jkudler]

i've been checking this thing out:
http://www.zzounds.com/item--EVOXSESSION

they are probably crappy, but they are really cheap. note that there's a newer version (x-session pro) that mimics a dj mixer, with faders. the original is easy to find on ebay.

-jesse