Roli: Equator 2 is here !

[LoveEnigma18]

Where can we find the Equator2 change log/history? I don't see any information about the 2.0.1 update which was released recently.

[Keith99]

I installed it and all the sounds via Roli connect but it keeps saying missing instrument, I seem to be missing the factory sounds, anyone know how to fix this?

[BONES]

Yeah, same problem I'm having, even though I have installed ALL of the content available through Roli Connect. and it's worse than I thought. I'd already put Equator 2 into a song but now it just plays a horrible sounding tone from a single oscillator, with the others all errored out. That makes me think it's a problem with the update because it worked fine for a few days.

It's the law, I'm afraid. Hardware certification, for safety and RF compliance, is country- or region-specific (one of many reasons why belonging to large trading blocs is a good idea... slow hand clap for the UK there). We're not allowed to ship to countries where the certification hasn't come through yet. I can try and find out how far off they think Australia is from being ready.

OK, that makes sense, especially for something as consumer-oriented as Lumi. I can wait. Thanks for the info and if you could maybe give us a ball-park idea of when it might happen, that would be great.

Yes I did definitely make sure of that! I’ve just been using a dry microfiber cloth these days, plus I keep them under a cover when not in use. Thanks.

My Seaboard is the one thing I don't keep under a cover because it's basically a single, rubber surface which makes it pretty much immune to dust or water from above. But if Decksaver were to make a cover for it, I'd definitely buy one.

Where can we find the Equator2 change log/history? I don't see any information about the 2.0.1 update which was released recently.

You really are a developer's worst nightmare. Why would you care about the changelog. What concerns me is that Equator 2 is busted now, something our Roli friend didn't seem to notice and I imagine is not in the change log.

[Keith99]

I opened one of the presets that set missing sounds and it lists a GUID along with a sound name, searched my whole HD and it is not there. The Samples directory is empty but presets are there

[BONES]

I think I discovered the problem - it's not just the content packs you need to install. In fact, I don't think you need to install those at all. What you need to install is the Equator 1 and Equator 2 library content, which you access by clicking on Equator 2 in Roli Connect to drop-down the install buttons for the library content. I had been clicking on the little drop-down arrow icon in the "Open" button but all that was giving me was an uninstall option. It's 5GB of stuff which I had definitely not found.

I think it would be a good idea for Roli to include that content in the list of stuff to install because when your "Not Installed" list is empty, you assume you have installed everything you need.

EDIT: Installing the library content has definitely fixed my problems.

[Friendly Noise]

Equator 2 is really a very different instrument. Maybe Roli should have introduced a slightly different look, so that people won’t think it’s just a refurbished version of Equator 1.

[Friendly Noise]

That’s why I prefer to say “negative pressure” instead of release velocity or lift. You can get only the same amount of lit as the amount of pressure you applied to the keys before.

Not necessarily. The way LIFT behaves depends on the expression curve. It can be set so that you can trigger LIFT without any pressure. My personal preference is to set LIFT in such a way that it is not triggered too easily, which means that this 'press & release' gesture has to be performed. To achieve this, my presets have a deep exponential curve, often with a specific reverse-Z shape (this is mostly when I trigger octaves via LIFT). But, it all depends on how you set up that expression curve. That's why they are so essential to have in MPE synths.

Big thanks for the explanation. Now I get how to make a better use of lift.

[Keith99]

I think I discovered the problem - it's not just the content packs you need to install. In fact, I don't think you need to install those at all. What you need to install is the Equator 1 and Equator 2 library content, which you access by clicking on Equator 2 in Roli Connect to drop-down the install buttons for the library content. I had been clicking on the little drop-down arrow icon in the "Open" button but all that was giving me was an uninstall option. It's 5GB of stuff which I had definitely not found.

I think it would be a good idea for Roli to include that content in the list of stuff to install because when your "Not Installed" list is empty, you assume you have installed everything you need.

EDIT: Installing the library content has definitely fixed my problems.

Brilliant Bones - thanks a lot. I had not noticed you could click on the name to get another list!

[himalaya]

That’s why I prefer to say “negative pressure” instead of release velocity or lift. You can get only the same amount of lit as the amount of pressure you applied to the keys before.

Not necessarily. The way LIFT behaves depends on the expression curve. It can be set so that you can trigger LIFT without any pressure. My personal preference is to set LIFT in such a way that it is not triggered too easily, which means that this 'press & release' gesture has to be performed. To achieve this, my presets have a deep exponential curve, often with a specific reverse-Z shape (this is mostly when I trigger octaves via LIFT). But, it all depends on how you set up that expression curve. That's why they are so essential to have in MPE synths.

Big thanks for the explanation. Now I get how to make a better use of lift.

I'm glad this helped. LIFT is a tough dimension to incorporate into a patch, or rather into one's playing style. Or if I put it another way, I guess it is easy to incorporate into a patch if you are designing it to your own needs and your particular playing style. But, a commercial preset (from the factory set) is a different beast, it has to appeal and be playable to a lot of people, and not just the sound designer. This is the challenge, which I feel is not won in many cases.

Here is an example of a preset that uses LIFT and makes it very evident. The LIFT gesture is performed towards the end of the video (this is an old video showing a preset from Equator1):



The LIFT-triggering playing technique in this example requires a very low velocity note-on gesture, so that the main dulcimer attack is not triggered, then a fast 'press & release' gesture triggers the FM sound assigned to LIFT.

[zvenx]

Everytime I see a video like this I realise at some point I need to get on board the MPE wagon.
Thanks, it allows one to be so so expressive.
rsp

[himalaya]

Everytime I see a video like this I realise at some point I need to get on board the MPE wagon.
Thanks, it allows one to be so so expressive.
rsp

You know how much I love those Minimoog Funk/Boogie bass sounds, right? I simply can't play them anymore on a normal midi keyboard. It's no longer satisfactory when compared to the fluidity of MPE expression. The way legato and pitch bend techniques can be accomplished with MPE/5D adds another layer of 'funk' that's totally addictive to me. I guess it is easy to do the same on a monophonic bass with pitch and mod wheels, but the way it's all under your fingertips on an MPE controller just feels much more natural and pleasurable to play.

[zvenx]

Yes I do.

You know my weakness with G.A.S.

I guess I should email you.. to ask you how close does the Lumi Keys Studio Edition come...
https://roli.com/products/blocks/lumi-k ... io-edition
rsp

[pdxindy]

Everytime I see a video like this I realise at some point I need to get on board the MPE wagon.
Thanks, it allows one to be so so expressive.
rsp

You know how much I love those Minimoog Funk/Boogie bass sounds, right? I simply can't play them anymore on a normal midi keyboard. It's no longer satisfactory when compared to the fluidity of MPE expression. The way legato and pitch bend techniques can be accomplished with MPE/5D adds another layer of 'funk' that's totally addictive to me. I guess it is easy to do the same on a monophonic bass with pitch and mod wheels, but the way it's all under your fingertips on an MPE controller just feels much more natural and pleasurable to play.

I use MPE for everything these days. I could never go back.

[zvenx]

What size keyboard do you have?
That is amount of keys.... I am not sure I could ever afford or justify more than 49 key and that would be hard for me to comfortably play polyphonic stuff on.
rsp

[Echoes in the Attic]

Everytime I see a video like this I realise at some point I need to get on board the MPE wagon.
Thanks, it allows one to be so so expressive.
rsp

You know how much I love those Minimoog Funk/Boogie bass sounds, right? I simply can't play them anymore on a normal midi keyboard. It's no longer satisfactory when compared to the fluidity of MPE expression. The way legato and pitch bend techniques can be accomplished with MPE/5D adds another layer of 'funk' that's totally addictive to me. I guess it is easy to do the same on a monophonic bass with pitch and mod wheels, but the way it's all under your fingertips on an MPE controller just feels much more natural and pleasurable to play.

I love how the FXpansion and Roli synths make good use of mpe even for mono sounds. It's something that is lost on many people still, including some mpe controller makers, that tracking overlapping notes separately for mono sounds is still super useful. It's not just normal midi in mono mode, but also allows bending one note while a different note cuts it off (not pent) for example, and keeps expressions separate for legato notes. And many (most) mpe synths can't handle this properly and mix the expressions up between notes. Even Roger Linn does not get this at all. He thinks MPE only makes sense when a sounds source is audibly polyphonic and that's not true. It's kind of like how a common playing technique with a mono synths is to hold one key and play another, or many others playing quickly over top, and the mono legato nature makes the notes alternate quickly without having to retrigger the held note. With mpe you can do this in mono mode but also pitch bend the held note and other expressions and it will maintain the expressions when it bounces back from a released note played over top. And you can still have in quantize on initial strike because it wasn't released.