Texas Edition Controllers for SXSW

March 14, 2011
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This week is SXSW week in Austin,TX. It is the time of the year when the music world converges on our little city. Every year we seem to get pulled into demos, speaking engagements, parties, events, or showcases. This year is no different. The company has several events and all of our guys have multiple events going on. 

I thought it would be fitting to do a limited Texas edition controller set. The wood choice for maximum Texas flavor? Mesquite of course. Although Ryan Anderson (the head of our circuit board department), insisted that the state tree of Texas is a Pecan, nothing says Texas like Mesquite.

 

Mesquite is an extremely hardy tree that grows in the arid parts of Texas where not too many other trees will. In fact, it grows so well that ranchers consider it a nuisance. Also called “Texas iron wood,” it is hard and very dimensionally stable. In the dry west Texas climate with poor soil quality, mesquite trees usually mature as a large shrub so the supply of lumber is plentiful with very small pieces that have plenty of “character”.

As the Livid wood monger, I make it my responsibility to personally select each piece. Most of the local mesquite lumber is two feet long and three inches wide – an ideal size for our wood end caps. I made a trip to the yard and dug through a pile to come up with some really nice choice pieces for this Texas edition.

The Limited Texas Edition Ohm64 and Block have extra thick “Texas sized” mesquite end caps, clear anodized aluminum body, white LED’s and a mesquite crossfader. We fabricated a new Texas star wood brand to designate this run of controllers. Everyone who has picked up one of these Texas edition controllers comments on how well made it feels; the density of the mesquite with a little extra weight is really nice and solid. We may take mesquite for granted here in Texas but for the rest of the world, it is an exotic wood.

These controllers will be with us at all of our SXSW events to check out if you are in Austin, TX. 

We will be making a limited run of this for a great deal only available this month. We will have one of them up at the Austin retailer, Switched On as long as we offer this model.

I have always loved working with mesquite especially for the aroma that it has while being cut and sanded, which is what makes for great Texas BBQ.  Hmmm….. I think I know what we will do with the scraps!

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SXSW Events

March 11, 2011

The South By Southwest Festival, (a.k.a  SXSW ) is a busy time here in Austin, Texas. If you haven’t been to it, it consists of a week of live music, film, and interactive (though the live music part is really the main attraction). Over 2000 bands play in six days in Austin, which is part of the reason we have the moniker “Live Music Capital of the World”. It’s not just bands either, we have DJs, electronic acts, and producers playing all over town.

This year for SXSW we are participating in a bunch of events around town, and have even made a limited Texas Mesquite model controller available until the the festival is over.

First we have teamed up with SwitchedON, Austin’s own vintage synth shop for a “Local Electronic Instruments Manufactures Meet and Greet” where our friend and Create Digital Music Editor Peter Kirn will be speaking. This is taking place at the Victory Grill across the street from SwitchedOn in downtown Austin. There will be a bunch of interesting makers and musicians there, plus I hear rumors of jello shots, so stop on by and say hi! If you can’t make it at least be sure to check out SwitchedON, they have amazing stuff and are a great bunch of people.

Wed. March 16th
4-7PMVictory Gril
l1104 E. 11th St.
Facebook Event Page

Next we are going to be demoing, performing, and probably drinking many Lone Star at the Bwomp x Glitch.FM Showcase on the 17th. This event is presented by Dubspot, Propellerheads, Native Instruments, and Ableton.  The evening features performances by Ill Gates, Mochipet, and many more. There will also be a bunch of giveaways including a controller or two from us, and a workshop by DJNSM from the Ableton Colorado crew. We be demoing Max4 Live, Traktor, Reason, Live, Arkaos, and Cell DNA with all of our controllers.

Thurs. March 17
1PM – 7PM
Deseo Centro Lounge
219 Congress Ave.
Facebook Event Page

If you are in town and can’t make it to either event, you can always drop us a line and maybe get a tour of our shop.

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Fusion TV Interview at SXSW

March 16, 2003

This video was shot by Fusion TV the first time I attended SXSW. I was a speaker on a panel called “Laptop Music”, which at the time was quite innovative. This was one of the first times I did a solo TV interview and It shows! Thank god the amazing old school radioness of the voiceover guy overshadows my performance. I love how he says Viditarrrrr… This video appeared on MTV2, ESPN, and some other college type stations.

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