Live Electro Performance with 10 controllers

Live Electro Performance with 10 controllers

Besides being a product specialist for companies such as Ableton or Teenage Engineering, Steve Baltes has been active for more than 25 years as a producer, remixer and DJ. He was involved in various projects such as the trance/progressive project Deep Voices, the synth-pop duo Arctic Sunrise and collaborations with pioneer Manuel Göttsching a name well known in the international electronic scene.
Here at Thomann, Steve took stage to present products within a live performance. Our PA department was spontaneously taken over, as the perfect place for this live improvisation. The central element of his setup is a laptop with Ableton Live 9.5 software, which is controlled by a variety of controllers and tools. Here is a list of the equipment used for this session:

 

Teenage Engineering OP-1Teenage Engineering OP-1
The OP-1 is housed in a robust aluminium chassis and boasts an innovative operating concept, which is perfectly supported by a high-contrast colour display. The menus are impressive and animated, inviting a fun experience to your experiments. Under the timelessly stylish hood lies the following creative machine: a synthesizer with 9 synthesiser engines, a drum-sampler, innovative effects, a 4-track-recorder and an inspiring sequencer module.

Dreadbox System GDreadbox G-System
The Eurorack System includes an alpha module, omikron module, lamda module, delta module, theta module, gamma module and a versatile 122 TE wide case including a passive cv splitter/multiplier, an active cv mixer, 4-channel audio mixer, 5 time attenuator and additional LFO. All Dreadbox Eurorack systems and modules are of very high quality and lovingly manufactured by hand in Greece.

Keith McMillen QunexusKeith McMillen Qunexus
QuNexus is a unique Mini-Controller, which has small elongated pads instead of keys. The 25 pads are arranged in a classic 2 octave keyboard layout, and senses both the force and exact position of the applied pressure (including polyphonic aftertouch) in processing information into the control data. Another feature is the possibility of cv/gate control, which makes the QuNexus extremely interesting to analog freaks in particular.

Dreadbox HadesDreadbox Hades
The youngest member of the dreadbox synthesizer family is named after Hades the Greek god of the underworld and accordingly is able to detect sub frequencies in sound material. Hades was developed especially to generate that powerful bass. 2 sub octaves assist 1 VCO including sawtooth, square and adjustable pulse width. Like its big brother Erebus, Hades has a total of 8 patch points (CV / Gate, LFO, VCO, VCF and VCA) for additional modulation capabilities and flexibility.

Dreadbox ErebusDreadbox Erebus
Under the fancy, handcrafted hood of Erebus lies 2 analog oscillators, which as well as pressure, adds a touch of darkness in character. No less than 14 patches to make the modular’s heart beat faster. Far exceeding the capabilities and sonic possibilities of other analogs in similar price range. An exceptional feature is the paraphony, allowing both oscillators to be played at a different pitch, transforming the Erebus into a two-voice synthesizer.

Ableton Push 2Ableton Push 2
Push 2 is a hardware tool for direct and intuitive music making, together with Ableton Live 9.5 software. This new second generation Push, gives users more features for song creation, meaning beats, melodies and chords can be played and programmed. The expanded sampling allows completely new ways to slice samples distributed on the pads, single drum hits or time-stretched samples.

DJ Techtools Midi Fighter 3DDJ Techtools Midi Fighter 3D
Innovative performance controller to trigger loops, samples, one shots, effects and more. All edges of the 16 ultra-robust arcade buttons are RGB lit. In addition there are 4 banks of controls and 6 freely assignable side buttons available. What’s remarkable is the extremely precise 3D control: Holding the Midi Fighter 3D turns on the X and/or Y-axis and by movement, controls any effect or parameters within the DJ or performance software control. Various movements enable changes to the illuminated colour settings of the individual buttons.

DJ Techtools Midi Fighter Twister blackDJ Techtools Midi Fighter Twister
The robust Midi Fighter Twister provides maximum control over all MIDI controllable parameters. It has 16 high quality, high resolution encoders with push switch, including an optical feedback and LED ring of 11 positions. All LED colours and functions are MIDI controllable and can be freely configured by the Midi Fighter Utility software. Also on board is an innovative step sequencer for Traktor Pro (or Ableton Live), which converts the DJ software in conjunction with the Remix Decks into a powerful groove production tool.

Livid DS-1Livid DS-1
DS1 is the perfect, portable solution for computer-based mixing, production and live performance. It works seamlessly with any software that supports MIDI and provides direct access to mixing, effects or instrument parameters. For perfect integration with popular DAW’s like Ableton Live, Bitwig Studio, Logic or DJ software like Traktor Pro, appropriate adjustments are available for download. Livid strictly uses high quality material.

Audient iD22Audient iD22
The ID22 is an uncompromising high-quality USB 2.0 audio interface with integrated monitor controller. It offers two classic Audient Class-A microphone preamps in impressive quality, as well as an excellent AD/DA converter with impressive depth and detail. The monitor controller includes a Mute/Dim Button and a large professional dome knob, which gives this desktop chassis, a precise and comfortable adjustment of the monitor volume, thus making external controller unnecessary.

Author’s gravatar
Lawrence started playing the electric guitar because of his passion for rock music. Back in the day he played in a metal band, but now plays more for himself.

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