As DJ Shadow’s tour snakes its way through the US, it seems as good a time as any to highlight a detail of our controllers. It might seem like an anachronism to some, but all our controllers have MIDI in and out plugs in them. Given that we emphasize computer control, and that so much of the electronic music world is centered on software, it’s probably true that a lot of those plugs never get used!

However, we include them (and added them to later revisions of the block) for the simple reason that it seems like a good idea. No doubt someone has a way of working that will need those plugs, and it just might save the day. We don’t necessarily have a scenario in mind, but we are mindful of the extremes, and conscious of music history.

The most unusual use came to our attention when Timo Preece (Bay Area Ableton Live guru) came up to me at the Maker Faire asking about the MIDI plugs. He was in the middle of helping DJ Shadow (along with producer Count) get his tour together on Ableton Live, and had a simple problem with a confounding solution. This was the need to have one controller control two laptops, the idea being that if one laptop failed during the set, the other would be doing the same thing and be in the same place, as it had been getting all the same performance data. Just flip some faders on the mixer, and the show goes on, no problem.

However, their first thought of a controller (starts with “A,” ends with “0″) only has one USB plug, leaving no way to mirror the data to the backup computer and carry on with the performance. But with the Ohm64, Timo realized the data could be sent from the USB to one computer, and then out the MIDI plug to the other computer. Problem totally solved. I had the pleasure of bringing an Ohm to the studio and see it all work for the first time.

I haven’t had the pleasure of seeing the tour, but from some clips (like this one) you can  see why they want to go the extra measure to make sure the show stays “ON.” It looks not only AWESOME, but also totally reliant on the balance of technology. Multiple video projectors, sync’ed directly to DJ Shadow’s set from Ableton, on a mind-blowing stage setup. I have a feeling people won’t accuse him of checking his mail on this one. Here’s the upcoming dates, hope you can all catch it when it comes to town!
Here’s a good interview with DJ Shadow.

Filed under:
news, uncategorized by Peter

While LividStep for Max for Live has been out for a while or so in beta, I’ve been making fixes and improvements and figuring out a good way to demonstrate it. Here’s one way! In this demo, I control Reason, Live, Max5, and CellDNA. This video mostly focuses on the setup process for using Step standalone, rather than all the cool features. Cool features are largely explained in the original video for Livid Step.

LividStep for Max for Live has been updated, too. The patch itself is much clearer, and uses more javascript. The interaction is a bit better, too, for the block and Ohm64.
You can download these files, including source code, from  our support page.
Enjoy!

Filed under:
uncategorized by Peter

A few months ago we announced our design your own controller contest, and we are very excited to share the results. It may sound a bit cliche to say “every entry was great” but really, it was. We received a lot of great designs and concepts, and we’ll share the best of them right here. I really wish we didn’t have to pick just one because more then one deserves the win, but we did say one winner, so here goes.

First Place : Anson Cheung’s Sandbox

Modular controller have been around for a little while now, notably the Mawzer, but Anson’s Sandbox really takes it to the next level by giving it a sleek enclosure and thoughtful layouts. The Sandbox also does a good job of utilizing all of the Brains capabilities. It is worth noting Emanuele Ponzio’s (aka APE) awesome BYOB SKULL entry. Ape’s entry does win for best name however! It was a close call between these two.

Second Place : Luke Andrew’s WhySynth Controller

Luke’s controller is a bit of a departure from the button, knob, and  slider combination, but its spirit is 100% in line with our philosophies here at Livid. Synth specific controllers and it is refreshing to see a controller that is so focused on one task.

Third Place : Mike Stacey’s Cocytus

We really like the originality in the design and layout of this controller. A lot of people come to us with their ideal layout, but quite frankly it’s usually too specific for the general public. This entry illustrates exactly why we created the contest in the first place, to show how our Builder series can be used to create a controller that you, its user, wants to play.

Here are some of the other notable mentions for the contest, it was great to see all these different concepts and designs over the past two months. I hope to see some of these brought to life!

Filed under:
uncategorized by Jay

Our very own product specialist Mike Abb shot a video recently of DJ/Producer Elliot Lipp explaining how he uses his Ohm64. Elliot’s live performance is centered around his Ohm64 and in this video he lets us in on some of his performance secrets using Ableton Live. After the tutorial there is a section of his live performance from a recent show in Austin, Texas that was filmed at Aces Lounge. What I particularly like about the performance video is how he uses the launchpad as a mouse of sorts for his live set.

Filed under:
uncategorized by Jay

After spending last weekend at the Maker Faire showing our controllers and Builder series, I talked to a LOT of people from a lot of different backgrounds. One guy wanted was looking deep into our Brain, mulling the possibility of converting the signals from the LED control to control mechanical actuators. A few other people liked the BYOB boards as a way to prototype things for projects that had nothing to do with using our Brain or MIDI or music. But I also talked to a lot of musicians who had feedback and general ideas about controllers, with thoughts about how those could be incorporated into our block and Ohm64. (There’s something about having all the circuits spread out on a table that makes people want to talk about what’s inside the box!) One of the more common questions we get about our controllers is “what about encoders?”*
There are definitely advantages to encoders in today’s software driven world. Encoders’ values can be updated and changed on the fly, adapting instantly to whatever software context you are in. It’s like getting a motorized fader, but without the large, fussy, expensive mechanism that a motorized fader requires. Plus, they have all those LEDs that make it seem more high tech!
But this flexibility comes at the cost of losing the feel of a pot’s definite position. For example, if you want to drop the low eq of a track for bar, it’s really helpful to have the tangible stop at the bottom – that wall gives your hand something to relate to and “get inside the mix.” It’s a subtle distinction, but it’s important.
When it comes down to it, it’s all about your experience with control. We design our controllers to give you the best feeling when controlling, and this is one reason we have rotary pots. However, the value of encoders is definitely not lost on us. Since I didn’t get to see all of you at Maker Faire, I’d love to hear your thoughts? What do you like best? How do you deal with the compromises that you have to make?

*Rotary pots output “absolute” values, and have a distinct physical start and end point. If you turn the knob to the center from the endpoint 90 degrees, the value will always be “42″. Encoders output “relative” values, and have no physical start and stop points – they are often referred to as “endless.” The value that comes from an encoder can be updated with a message to the controller, so if an encoder is turned 90 degrees, stopping at value “42,” a message could be sent that makes the encoder’s value “25″ so the next time you turn it to the right, it starts increasing from “25″ rather than “42″. For more information, visit the Wikipedia article.

Filed under:
uncategorized by Peter