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Control Blade


tagpass

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I'm a big fan of integration, and I'm all for the elimination of cable clutter in the studio, but come on now -- this thing is just silly:

 

controlblade25.png

 

"Thing" is the operative term here. It looks like something someone cobbled together in their garage. I'm not typically one to bash gear, as I believe that good use can be made of anything that generates any sort of tone, but something about this particular item is striking me as one of the most hideous and unnecessary frankensteins ever released.

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I don't understand why someone hasn't made something like a normal keyboard workstation the size of a normal keyboard! and simply added a monitor out and USB jacks.

 

Roland makes those V studios the size of a 909, why can't someone do it with a keyboard and not make it look like something that was hacked together in a garage?

 

I guess for it not to be, it's going to need to come from someone like korg or roland or yamaha and not someone that's sticking off the shelf components into a box..

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neo-brutalism at its most functional

 

I wouldn't touch it with a barge-pole, too ugly. But controllers, for the most part, ARE ugly, I believe. They suffer from a lack of curves, too many disparate controls, and too many layout choices. I'm watching the "plug an ipad into a keyboard" thing; that could be super functional and visually stunning. Just not yet.

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At least they took out the integrated qwerty keyboard this time, and made the screen tiltable. The 88-key looks sort of like the love child of an Oasys and Fusion ;) The pricing is interesting, smack in the middle of Kronos/XF territory. It could be a viable alternative to the Kronos in particular.

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The keybeds on the MusicComputing StudioBlade series are M-Audio Keystation 61es/88es, inexpensive keybeds:

http://www.m-audio.com/index.php?do=products.family&ID=USBkeyboardcontrollers

 

Given the looks of the keys on the new ControlBlade, I suspect the keybeds are M-Audio Axiom 25 and Axiom 61.

Here is the ControlBlade photo:

cb%20front.jpg

 

Here is a photo of the M-Audio Axiom 61:

Axiom61MKII-fnt[sl].jpg

 

 

Both OpenLabs and MusicComputing products seem catered for non-keyboardists -- producers, DJs.

 

As a keyboardist, I want the better, higher quality keybeds you find in pro keyboards from Yamaha, Korg, Roland, Kurzweil, etc.

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  • 2 months later...
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Okay, so it's ugly and the keybed isn't great. It seems like good bang for the buck. A strong i7 quadcore-based system with 8 gigs RAM, DVD burner, wi-fi, Windows 7, 61 note keyboard, preloaded with full version Studio One Pro DAW and around 5,000 preloaded sounds, plus the capacity to sample and run samples in the gigabytes of resolution as opposed to mere megabytes other workstations feature. All for around the price of a 88-key workstation. In addition, you can run video editing software, 3D animation programs, CAD programs, etc. What's wrong with that? Yeah, OpenLabs failed, but then, who could afford them? This is affordable. I'd like to audition one.

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it's based on an x-station

 

 

It looks like an x-station built into a wooden housing, with everything else simply plopped on top loosely. The only question is where is the PC guts? (in the housing?). If there's a PC tower needed here, but not visible in the pic, it's not that impressive -- Just some good carpentry.

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for sure. a friend and i have been doing some experiments with the mini-itx computers you can get now, not up to snuff for most audio tasks but they can certainly be used for other applications. i'm sure someone that knows more about them could make them a great softsynth platform, though.

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It does not bother me at all and I think if you were a song writer, solo artist, jingle guy, DJ or live performer, it would be alright. Can you rewire VST's though and is Pro One the only DAW that can be used. Not crazy about the Presonus interfaces either. This could be a good backing track machine or recording while traveling. I am surprised Roland has not tried something like this yet.

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  • 1 year later...
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We have been using a ControlBlade for several years, in all types of gigs and studio work. It is not a "Garage Monster," but rather a powerful, quality performance tool. The sound production is awesome and the video capabilities are over the top. We can run multiple touch screens and mix on the fly. This unit is flexible and adaptable, easily upgraded with TOTAL one-to-one support when needed. It is light, and easy to carry...great when there are no roadies to mess with your gear.

We heartily reccommend Music Computing and the ControlBlade...both more than meet our musical needs.For those of you who have never seen or used a ControlBlade...research first...then make a constructive contribution. If you are a doubter...try one out before you comment.

We are confident you will be blown away!

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