Even though your software DAW can duplicate virtually every function of a large-format mixing console, you can work more creatively and productively by adding a control surface to your computer music studio.
Mackie Control Universal |
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| The Mackie Control Universal Pro connects to your computer via MIDI and offers faders, assignable knobs, and transport controls. |
What Is a Control Surface?
A control surface is quite simply a unit that provides faders, knobs, and buttons to control the functions of a software program. It’s common for control surfaces to feature transport controls (Play, Stop, Fast Forward, etc.), and some provide access to processing plug-ins inside the host software.
Roland V-Studio 700 |
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| The V-Studio 700 is a complete studio solution with powerful SONAR software firmly at its center. With it, you'll have all tools needed to record flawless audio, then smoothly tweak it to published perfection. |
Why Should I Consider Buying a Control Surface?
The advent of computer-based recording has been great for streamlining the amount of physical gear an engineer needs to record and mix a project. Until the last few years, mixing involved rigging up a console and its various outputs and inputs to a tape machine or DAT to perform fader moves and such. With a software DAW, virtually every function of a traditional console can be handled on-screen by drawing automation in or performing fader moves by dragging virtual faders with the mouse. But if you learned to mix on an analog console, you might not like the virtual route, thus a control surface is perfect, as it provides the familiar, hands-on feel of a mixer. Even if you didn’t hone your skills in the analog world, some engineers just prefer to use physical faders and knobs, as they feel it provides smoother fades and automation moves.
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M-Audio Axiom 61 |
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| The M-Audio Axiom 61 offers semi-weighted keys with aftertouch, plus nine faders and eight trigger pads. |
What Is a Keyboard Controller?
Way back in the 1980s, one of the original purposes of developing the MIDI specification was to allow live performers the ability to control the sounds of multiple synthesizers from a single keyboard. That concept has been a smashing success! Now, live performers, songwriters with laptops, studio musicians, sound designers, and others can all benefit from the flexibility a keyboard controller offers them.
Technically, a keyboard controller is a device with piano, organ, or synth-style keys, and usually a selection of knobs, buttons, and sliders. All of these transmit MIDI data to external sound modules (synthesizers), computer software synthesizers, or a hardware or software sequencer. Most keyboard controllers themselves have no internal sound-generating capability, but almost any keyboard synthesizer/workstation can act to control the sounds and parameters of other devices.
With a keyboard controller you can command virtually the entire range of modern music hardware and software. Many offer portability as well - they are compact enough to fit in your laptop computer bag. Most keyboard controllers connect to your computer via a USB cable. Many also provide an additional MIDI Out port to control external sound modules and other MIDI gear.
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