Preview: Livid BASE, Touch Sensitive Controller at an Attractive Price

Livid Instruments have evidently been busy working on a new controller for musicians. It's knob less... with touch sensitive pads, sliders and so much more! Welcome BASE.  

Oh boy! NAMM hasn't even started and Livid Instruments are already whetting the appetites of musicians and controllerists across the world with their newest product, BASE

Launch date is set at March 1st, 2013 at the very attractive price of $399 USD!

And to say I'm intrigued is an understatement... I'll be doing my best to get hands-on with this portable, touch sensitive (and knob-less) controller at NAMM very soon.

In the meantime, here's what the good people at Livid have to say about it... 


Introducing BASE

Introducing Base: a new foundation for all your creative productions. Combining the technology of drum machines and touch screens, Base merges pressure sensitive pads with touch faders, all brilliantly lit with full-color LEDs. The Base inspires beats, new melodies, instant sound tweaks, and invites control of just about anything that supports MIDI. Designed in an ultra sleek, high-quality aluminum body with no moving parts, it's the ultimate mix of ruggedness and portability.

Livid BASE 1


Adaptable

Base puts your fingers in the mix with 32 pressure and velocity sensitive pads, eight function buttons, nine capacitive touch faders, and eight capacitive touch buttons. Full RGB backlighting keeps you connected to your set and focused on control. An LED character display shows which of the ten presets you're using. Creative coders will be pleased to discover the characters are MIDI-controllable, too! The Base editor web application allows you to customize all its settings for your favorite DAW, VST, plugin, or application.


Designed to Travel  

No sliders to bend, no knobs to catch: under two pounds, less than an inch thick and a face that's probably smaller than your laptop (10.25”x11”x0.75”.), Base goes in and out of your bag from studio to show. A single USB cable powers the device with RGB back lights bright enough to see in daylight.

Livid BASE 2


Built to Last

Base is proudly engineered, and assembled in Livid's very own manufacturing facility in Austin, TX. Solid extruded aluminum, tight tolerances, and the assembler's signature with every product, you can have confidence in Livid's latest controller.


At Your Fingertips

With just enough controls to fill your hands, Base keeps you focused on playing your set. Velocity-sensitive pads give you expressive control for playing and pressure sensitive pads offer unique control of your effects. Low-profile pads sit in line with a soft rubber faceplate, allowing your fingers to glide over the buttons with ease, mixing the tactile feel of a real controller, and the unique possibilities of a touch screen. Touch-sensitive sliders can be used like a regular fader, but have the advantage of instant access to any value. The touch sliders also output a note when touched, which can be mapped to turn effects on and off only when the slider is active.

Livid BASE 3


Compatibility

Base is designed as an instrument to work with any software that supports MIDI. Whether creating beats or mixing visuals, our library of applications and presets is ever-growing. Base has some of the most sophisticated scripts available for Ableton Live, Max/MSP, Traktor, and more.


Pricing and Availability

Shipping March 1st, Base has a street price of $399 and is available for pre-order from lividinstruments.com and dealers worldwide.

 

About Livid Instruments

Livid Instruments crafts custom controllers in Austin, Texas. Founded in 2004, Livid offers a line of commercially available control surfaces and DIY products through dealers and distributors worldwide.

For more information on BASE visit the Livid Instruments site here.

Rounik is the Executive Editor for Ask.Audio & macProVideo. He's built a crack team of professional musicians and writers to create one of the most visited online resources for news, review, tutorials and interviews for modern musician and producer. As an Apple Certified Trainer for Logic Pro Rounik has taught teachers, professional... Read More

Discussion

Gary Hiebner
This controller looks amazing! Definitely next up on the wish list.
Rounik
at only $399, Livid BASE is on my shopping list!
lostinthesound
Interesting. I'm anxious to see how it stacks up to "Push," as I'm definitely intrigued by the demos and videos I've seen.

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