Erae Touch - All-around MIDI 2.0 controller?

[vurt]

sounds like they're definitely blagging it about not having a uk adapter then.

and yeah, usb power as it's connected anyway, seems a bit stupid not to use it.

[BONES]

Hey SLiC, has yours turned up yet?

[BONES]

I got an email from Embodme this morning with a link to new Firmware. I didn't have a chance to install it, let alone try it out, but I'll report back once I've put it through its paces tonight. From the email -

ERAE Firmware 1.2.5 Update:

- Fixed new Multi-touch column glitch issue

- Fixed Erae Touch MIDI TRS output lag

- Fixed intensity of some notes not returning to normal when released

[crawlingwind]

I had a problem with a button I set for sustain on / sustain off as a toggle. It was fine until an update killed it. It was an acknowledged bug. I’m hoping they fixed it with this update.

[SLiC]

Hey SLiC, has yours turned up yet?

It was posted Monday- turned up today (after paying DHL 140 quid), so just 2 days from France to UK once they posted it, hopefully they are over there backlog now!

First impressions are very favourable, seems to be built like a tank, just worked without setting anything up in Bigwig, had a quick play before updating/calibrating etc.. Sensitivity seems pretty good, though as with all of these things pushing hard enough to get a trigger and keep it at low velocity can be hard, but I think better than my Sensel (which I have now sold so can't do side by side)

I can see a ton of uses for this in my setup, I am a big fan of StrormDrums 3, this is a great rigger for that with drum sticks/mallets, I also have some good pan drum libraries etc, this will be great to set up a custom circular 'pan drum' style layout for with hand percussion- this was the primary reason I got it, but it also very useful for melodic MPE playing, size, scales and layouts make it more viable than the Sensel was...

Anyway- back to it, just going to update and try the app, I'll post a bit more when I have had a few hours with it!

PS- I am going for the drum stand mount I think as I have limited desk space and also want to use it with my Roland edrum kit, anyone goes that way yet?

[BONES]

Glad you're enjoying it and I bet you're glad you took a punt?

I installed the new firmware last night, turned the sensitivity way down to where it was when I got it and everything is perfect!! I love this thing! I hadn't set it up since band practise last week, waiting on the fix, so I am rediscovering it and now I am even more excited than when I first hooked it up.

SLiC made a good point about it working straight out of the box. I just plugged it in and it worked straight away. I still had to set it up as a controller in Studio One but that's a given. There was no driver installation and even Erae Lab doesn't need to be installed. You just copy the .exe file onto your drive and double-click to run it. (Use the right-click menu to pin it to Start and/or your Taskbar.)

[SLiC]

Glad you're enjoying it and I bet you're glad you took a punt?

Yes, very much so. I was going tom get the Nord Drum but this is much more versatile...connected to a suitable VST or hardware it can certainly fulfil the role of a Nord Drum but the fact that it can also be a 'keyboard' or a 'controller' (the 4 x/y controller page looks ideal for Zebra) is a massive bonus.

I could see some people getting a lot of use from this just as a configurable controller even if they have no interest in MPE.

I still plan to get an in line on off switch and drum get the Roland drum mount (something like https://www.thomann.de/gb/millenium_per ... _stand.htm)

I haven't dug in to setting up at all (haven't needed to and having too much fun!) but it looks very configurable, switching control suffices is very fast- you can have a different layout for each VST you use, it's the dream- dedicated different control layout for each VST ...I wonder if they will ever be able to make it swich surfaces automaticity if you such VSTs (I think MIDI 2 Was going to have something like that)

[BONES]

I could see some people getting a lot of use from this just as a configurable controller even if they have no interest in MPE.

That's basically me.

I still plan to get an in line on off switch and drum get the Roland drum mount (something like https://www.thomann.de/gb/millenium_per ... _stand.htm)

My bandmate has that sort of set-up for his Alesis drum thing. I'll probably end up getting something similar (hopefully in black, though). I'm not too fussed about the switch, it's easy enough to pull the plug, just a bit unprofessional feeling.

switching control suffices is very fast- you can have a different layout for each VST you use, it's the dream- dedicated different control layout for each VST

My plan is to have a different layout for each song, to save me having to make sure everything is in the correct octave, etc. I find that when I'm on stage I don't remember to do that stuff and it can be troublesome at times.

[SLiC]

There is always something like this:

https://www.thomann.de/gb/km_12185.htm

Not sure it tilts though, there is this that seems to be the right size (the ERAE is 40.4)

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Projector-Lapt ... B01J82KE1U

(Edit- I just ordered the one from Amazon so I will let you know!)

[crawlingwind]

Did you get this figured out? A long press on the Select Layout button turns the lights off/on. Try it and see if that is a solution for you. It wasn’t there on the initial firmware, but added shortly after.

Right now I am feeling pretty disappointed. It's not very good. From the start: there's no on/off switch so you have to unplug the power to turn the lights off.

At lease a chap in line switch can sort that problem, something like

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Black-Inline-S ... 28&sr=8-14

[SLiC]

Did you get this figured out? A long press on the Select Layout button turns the lights off/on. Try it and see if that is a solution for you. It wasn’t there on the initial firmware, but added shortly after.

Ah, perfect thanks- soft on/off switch, I hadn't seen that

[BONES]

Well, you wouldn't, would you, because in all the videos, they "switch" it on by plugging it in. They are just very subtle about it so you don't noticce what they are really doing.

The good news is that it doesn't just turn the lights off, the pad stops responding, too, so it does seem to be a proper on/off switch. Thanks for the info!

There is always something like this: https://www.thomann.de/gb/km_12185.htm
Not sure it tilts though, there is this that seems to be the right size (the ERAE is 40.4)

I hve a couple of those, for my projector, and they are far too flimsy to use on stage. I had to buy a second one because the first got too wobbly after a couple of years. Drum stands are a lot more solid and I'll be getting mine from a drum shop, in person.

Anyway, another night, another problem. I've started getting those stuck notes others have experienced. It is easy enough to clear by pressing the layout button but that's not always helpful mid-song and it doesn't actually fix the problem, so next time you press in the same area, it comes back. It only happens in one very specific area of the pad so I turned the sensitivity up a bit and it seemed to go away. It was fine at first, it only started playing up after a couple of hours of use so it possibly means teh Erae Touch needs regular recalibration (off/on). Fingers crossed it doesn't come back.

[crawlingwind]

I have one area that gets stuck also. Same place always, but it doesn’t always happen. I haven’t really addressed it yet.

[crawlingwind]

The soft power button functionality did not exist yet at the time of some of their videos.

Well, you wouldn't, would you, because in all the videos, they "switch" it on by plugging it in. They are jsut very subtle about itso you don't noticce what they are really doing.

The good news is that it doesn't just turn the lights off, the pad stops responding, too, so it does seem to be a proper on/off switch. Thanks for the info!

There is always something like this: https://www.thomann.de/gb/km_12185.htm
Not sure it tilts though, there is this that seems to be the right size (the ERAE is 40.4)

I hve a couple of those, for my projector, and they are far too flimsy to use on stage. I had to buy a second one because the first got too wobbly after a couple of years. Drum stands are a lot more solid and I'll be getting mine from a drum shop, in person.

Anyway, another night, another problem. I've started getting those stuck notes others have experienced. It is easy enough to clear by pressing the layout button but that's not always helpful mid-song and it doesn't actually fix the problem, so next time you press in the same area, it comes back. It only happens in one very specific area of the pad so I turned the sensitivity up a bit and it seemed to go away. It was fine at first, it only started playing up after a couple of hours of use so it possibly means teh Erae Touch needs regular recalibration (off/on). Fingers crossed it doesn't come back.

[BONES]

I just found it a bit disingenuous that they referred to it as "switching on" when they were actually plugging it in. Honestly, how much would a physical power button have cost? I'd pay an extra $20 for one, no hesitation. Even at an extra $50 I'd probably go for it. But the soft button solution works just as well for me, so I'm happy with this solution. Thanks again for pointing it out to us.