EXPO03: Evolution's new controller...evolves

US It's got sliders, it's got knobs... lot's of 'em! 17/02/03

Risto in control

The ever-ready Risto Sampola from UK distributors Arbiter was on hand at the recent Sounds Expo show in Wembley, London to give us a quick peek at Evolution's latest addition to their growing family of nifty USB-MIDI controllers - the UC33. We briefly saw one at NAMM in Anaheim last month, and were suitably impressed. Apart from 9 illuminated faders and 24 rotary controllers, it has transport controls, a keypad and a memory function so you can save user presets. A feature pointed out to us was the ability of the UC-33 to control the onboard synth that lurks within all Creative Soundblaster cards. Apparently getting at the control parameters can be a bit of a nightmare as it uses NRPN data, but a preset on the UC-33 enables you get in and tweak to your heart’s content. Presets for several well-used software packages; lexan overlays, and a slew of other features makes it look an attractive option for getting to grips with your sequencer and soft-synths – we’ll be grabbing one for review, so watch this space, but in the meantime, you can watch Risto do his thing... For more information:

www.evolution.co.uk

www.arbiter.co.uk