A tad delayed, but today we start dishing out some awards for stuff in the last decade. Today, we start with Darren's more Ableton skewed thoughts.
While much of the industry keeps the drawbridge permanently closed, Ableton is opening its borders by publishing the complete MIDI spec for Push 2.
If you're going to use software, it's a safe bet that the hardware designed for it is going to be pretty hot. Such is the case with the Ableton Push. DJWORX teamster Darren E Cowley of Isotonik Studios impulse-bought one, but after the shortest play ended up boxing it up and putting it on to of a wardrobe to do house renovations. But having dug it out again, he sees what all the fuss is about. Here is his very detailed review, with a second opinion from Mark Settle.
Akai Pro brings pads, knobs, and faders together in the MPD226 and MPD232. Darren from Isotonik Studios uses his considerable experience to review them.
The Akai Pro APC40 is iconic. And now the sequel - the APC40 MKII - is here, and Isotonik's Darren E Cowley put his Ableton Live knowledge to good work.
While hardware still seems to be the preferred method of wrangling software in the DJ world, touch screens are continuing to make inroads into this area. touchAble has been a key player in this market, and with the freshly announced touchAble 3, a release focussed on taming the finer points of Ableton Live.