John Bowen Synth Design

by **stardust** » Tue Sep 02, 2008 9:02 am

Ok I agree. Having both the joystick and the pad for the different purposes makes sense.

Joystick for precision and quick defined changes.

Pad for the more expressive, fuzzy influence or intuitive control.

by **HUROLURA** » Mon Sep 01, 2008 1:36 pm

I have a novation X-Station providing both the touchpad and the joystick.

Though the joystick is more a Pitch + Mod tool, I kind of do not use them for the same use:
- joystick is a more obvious realtime control as you have some feedback from the joystick itself.
- touchpad is a smart additonnal controller more dedicated to experimental use for setting 2 midi controllers at the same time.

A more prophet VS type joystick would be great on the Solaris.

The greatest idea would be to have both, but one can also think about getting additionnal midi controllers to further expand the already rich set of realtime control provided with the Solaris.

Maybe providing an input for additionnal small devices would be great just like with the Ribbon controller. By the way, one can still rely on the old good midi trio for that purpose.

My 2 cents

by **SepticStudio** » Mon Sep 01, 2008 11:13 am

Spring action is not needed for the stick , but a nice big spot where the zero sweetspot is will be apreciated. Something like a exponential scale in stedd of lineair for instance towards the centre or something like that, so that centering the value is fast and easy. (also with in mind for future uses of the stick/pad)

by **scope4live** » Mon Sep 01, 2008 10:05 am

I am happy w/ either design. I too own a Ribbon from Kurzweil, the ancient Expressionmate, not the new software based model. It sets perfectly on my 88 note controller. I can assign it to Solaris channel(s) or wherever it need be. 4 zones allows flexibility live, and Bi-Directional glides like Herbie Hancock use to perform are very unique, so it ain't going anywhere. One more Ribbon surface will be awesome. That'll give me extra zones. Coolness.

I like the idea that the joystick won't default to zero ( center ), as long as it's a decent size. That little Buggar on the controller made by Fader Fox developers is totally unnacceptable for a synth !!

I have all the confidence in the world for Solaris's incredible sound and control.

Besides, The Needs Of The Many Outweigh The Needs Of The Few, Or The One.....................Spock..Star Trek IV.

by **urge** » Mon Sep 01, 2008 6:22 am

Maybe a little over the top but would it be possible to implement both ?
I prefer the stick as I said before but wouldn't mind having multiple options especially in a live setup. Mapping different variables to the different controllers would be awesome.

by **John Bowen** » Mon Sep 01, 2008 1:29 am

urge,

OK, I'll check into it!

Thanks, eveyone, for your feedback. Still awaiting updated pricing for the LuxPad, which will definitely have an impact on our decision. It seems the vote is pretty much split here between the two, although my personal mail feedback leans much more towards the joystick....

cheers,
john

by **urge** » Sun Aug 31, 2008 6:23 pm

I voted for the stick. If I wanted a touchpad I could always get one of those Korg pads. I too own a Neuron and find the sticks a great way to alter various functions. The ribbon isn't that difficult to obtain as far as I know.
Kurzweil is still selling them. I already own one and would likely get a second solely for the Solaris
Note to John: You might want to talk to someone at Kurzweil and order the ribbon in bulk;or at least 50

Make it a standard part of the Solaris and charge us for it. It's a much better user experience to have everything you need in the box rather than having a feature you can't implement due to a third party snafu.

by **stardust** » Sun Aug 31, 2008 11:13 am

I vote for a stick.

look at the size of the pad.
Have you ever tried to have precise mousing on a notebook pad ?

try to make a precise sweep with a pad on your notebook. You wont win.

I used the Hartmann Neuron joysticks and liked the for their precision and speed.
That is exactly what I dont expect from a touchpad.

The only where I saw that working is Lemur but on a 12" screen not a small pad.

my 2 cents

by **ScofieldKid** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 5:30 pm

I voted in favor of the LuxPad as well.

Seems like at a minimum we would get 1000-points-per-inch resolution.

And if we are lucky, we would get some macro's, or a couple of modes out of the thing.

One thing to note: this thing might also produce pressure values. So we might get fine x/y + coarse pressure.

Looks like a winner to me. Having a button or macro, gesture, or button
that "centers" the pad, or selects the mode, only caveat I have.

by **seamonkey** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 8:53 am

I also favor the Fluxpad, to me it opens up the ability for creative options that a joystick cannot do. I love the joystick on my Wavestation but as jimmy said the fluxpad is this century plus it would eliminate the need to use an add-on ribbon controller.
I have a ribbon controller on my Prophecy and a touchpad on my Voyager and to me it's much more physically interacting than the joystick on my Wavestation but these are personal preferences and I understand what epoxy is saying.

jimmy I agree with you totally about John and this forum, it's exciting to be a part of this development and to be able to contribute ideas to be considered in it's design.

by **SepticStudio** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 12:17 am

I replied to John before seeing the Demo, my bad

On the Novation RemoteSL I hardly use the touchpad because of the things epoxy2600 wrote. Also I find it difficult to set a touchpad to centre X/Y=0

You will end up with 3,5 etc values instead of perfect zero.

But after seeing the demo, I switched, with the exclusion of a workable sweetspot (maybe programmable ) for the centre values.

That illumination could open a lot of future editing possiblities, because it is in fact a programmable display, if I understand it well.

So with the above said and the sweetpot centering added, I also go for the Lux pad, espcialy if the Solaris would , just like in that video, could have for instance lighted up on the edges/corners A/B/C/D or 1/2/3/4 for the VS synthesis en and fairlly large ring in centre (fitting my large fingertip

) On the 1/2/3/4 corner you could solo that voice/osc by tapping it, and maybe some sort of mute function aswell with an addtional shift knop

This BTW is the Korg Oasys Vector stick, just for comparison.
http://www.sweetwater.com/feature/korg/ ... _large.jpg

by **epoxy2600** » Fri Aug 29, 2008 9:03 pm

My opinion on the joystick vs. touchpad choice is I'd rather the Solaris have a joystick. I totally respect your points, but interestingly I favor the joystick for the same reasons you point out in favor for the pad! For example, in the dark I'd much rather be grabbing for a joystick and relying on the mechanical feedback of pushing/pulling/swirling it around to alter sound rather than trying delicately to tap or caress a tiny little pad surface, especially during an intense performance. I think it's less likely to accidentally let go of a joystick than you are to accidentally lift your finger off a pad. Think about accidentally double-clicking on a PC notebook touchpad when your finger slips causing a program to do something unwanted.

But to get back to the main function of the joystick vs. pad, which is vector control & realtime timbral control, the joystick to me just works so well. Given a choice I'd never retrofit my Prophet VS to swap the joystick for a touchpad. For me, it's almost sad to think how much of the magic of physically interacting with the VS sound would be lost.

-Howie

by **matocaster** » Fri Aug 29, 2008 8:38 pm

+1 Fluxpad. I used to have a Roland V-synth and this sounds similar to the Time Trip Pad on it. I would prefer this to the joystick and hard to find Kurzweil ribbon controller.

by **scope4live** » Fri Aug 29, 2008 7:14 pm

I practice and perform in the dark unless it's on my Acoustic. Many people will probably prefer a joystick since it has always been that way. That's cool too, but the Fluxpod is this century and can also double for wavedrawing and radical movements that a joystick would find difficult at best.

I like and choose the FluxPod. Besides, in the dark and onstage, the irradiated effect is so useful when all hands and eyes must rely on peripheral vision.

COUNT ME IN !!

This forum is so awesome as we all are involved in the design and build and sharing of ideas. Makes me proud to be a member.

I ask anyone here to show me another forum where the developer demos, builds, asks peoples opinions, and follows through on design features as eloquent as this..............I didn't think so.

FLUXPAD 4 JIMMYV.

John Bowen Synth Design

Fluxpad Rocks

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Fluxpad Rocks