Ableton Forum

http://www.theverge.com/2015/10/6/94540 ... lease-date

The "twice as fast as a Macbook" might be a bit of hyperbole, but either way this is an impressive bit of kit.

Two USB 3.0 ports, which means it doesn't suffer from the only-one-goddamn-port problem that Apple's newest Macbook has.

If only it ran OSX. Windows doesn't feel as intuitive for music. And it's much more prone to security problems. But it's still tempting, given the light weight and move toward touchable music programs. Hopefully Ableton adds touch support at some point.

Kent_in_CO wrote:move toward touchable music programs.

I predict 3 things happening.

1. New or low tier DAWs already lacking features will jump on touch screen optimization in hopes it will help them climb the ladder faster.

2. Long established popular DAWs will take their sweet time implementing touch screen optimization.

3. Tech loving music producers will think touch screen optimization will take about 10 minutes of coding to implement.

Wait, 3 has already happened.

Hell, all three have happened : /

beats me wrote:

Kent_in_CO wrote:move toward touchable music programs.

I predict 3 things happening.

1. New or low tier DAWs already lacking features will jump on touch screen optimization in hopes it will help them climb the ladder faster.

2. Long established popular DAWs will take their sweet time implementing touch screen optimization.

3. Tech loving music producers will think touch screen optimization will take about 10 minutes of coding to implement.

Wait, 3 has already happened.

http://www.bitwig.com/en/bitwig_1_3.html

Today the full power of Bitwig Studio is literally at your fingertips. We’ve developed complete multi-touch functionality to quickly identify gestures for the most unique and intuitive workflow ever. If you’ve been waiting for the right moment to get your hands on Bitwig Studio, now is the time.


1.3 KEY FEATURES AT A GLANCE
Multi-Touch
Control multiple faders, knobs, and device displays at the same time. Multi-touch is limited only by the capabilities of the hardware on which Bitwig Studio is installed.

Bitwig's support for multi-touch is the first real step that makes me want to go review it. I have a Surface Pro 3 and a large touch screen at home. The ability to leverage touch is becoming critical to my choice of DAW. I use touch in Sonar a lot, and I'm constantly frustrated with having to duplicate Live controls using Max to create a touch environment.

I wonder if part of the delay is this isn’t considered a PRO need yet. Being able to dork around with tracks on your couch or a plane isn’t PRO (and can already be done with a regular laptop for the most part) and running a 48 track analog mixer entirely with a 12” tablet isn’t exactly ideal either.

BTW, Tim Cook recently said Apple isn’t planning to merge iOS and OSX anytime soon. That could hold development excitement back for years, whether you’re an Apple fanboy or hater. Microsoft needs to prove that their users are willing to drop the same amount of money on hardware as Apple people and as frequently.

x2 faster than 13inch macbook pro.
GG Tim Cook. You need Jobs.

http://www.bitwig.com/en/bitwig_1_3

Microsoft seem to be working with BITWIG on this, BITWIG have already release 1.3 beta with full multitouch support, I mean REAL support, whole new way of working and muiltitouch playing surfaces like linstrumewnt built in.... (this was days after 1.2 release brought a TON of free new functionality....where are you ABLETON?!)

I have to say: FINALLY!!!

Ever since the first tablets came out I was waiting for this product category: A laptop of which the screen turns into a stand alone tablet when disconnected.
With the OS allowing both modes to seemlessly integrate. Regarding the filesystem mostly, but even deeper integration would be very welcome of course.

I expected Apple would be the one to deliver on this promise first, but they got scooped by Microsoft
That's, to say the least, an interesting turn of events.
Kudos to Microsoft!

I would never in a thousand years return to Windows hell though, but I hope Apple will respond in kind. AND SOON!

Yeah, for competition

actually, detachables have been around for a little while... at least a couple of years. e.g. the thinkpad helix is 2013...

Sean_Clarke wrote:http://www.bitwig.com/en/bitwig_1_3

Live 10 has gotta be the biggest release, ever!

I really admire how Bitwig is siezing this opportunity to transform more and more into its own unique environment. They set a tone that said 'we'll do things we hoped Live could do', which essentially came off as seeming like a cheap imitation. They have introduced most of the unique features promised, and now with their touch integration, the layout is nearly unrecognizable, and unique/new. So I am happy that they are finding an identity.

One insane aspect of the Surface Book is how it can utilize the graphics card hidden in the keyboard when connected. People are trying to figure out how Microsoft pulled it off. You can connect and disconnect to the keyboard at will, without the computer needing to restart. And once connected, Boom, discrete graphics. No restart. 'It just works'.

Now they need developers making Real apps and Real touch integration in software. Or this shit will never take off.

yur2die4 wrote:I really admire how Bitwig is siezing this opportunity to transform more and more into its own unique environment. They set a tone that said 'we'll do things we hoped Live could do', which essentially came off as seeming like a cheap imitation. They have introduced most of the unique features promised, and now with their touch integration, the layout is nearly unrecognizable, and unique/new. So I am happy that they are finding an identity.

From what I’ve heard Bitwig still has some weirdness and some basic functions missing. But I guess “finally works as it should!” doesn’t move product or get people’s attention.

That's the thing though. By distancing their product from standard products, they can get away with dodging basic expected functionality and just claim it's how it is supposed to work.

I mean, there are plenty of features that people expect from Live which might be nice, but it seems that people are still finding ways to make music on it, despite it not having the same feature set as other 'daw's.

Just by looking at Bitwig being used in a touch-based manner, the layout and functions that it implements are pretty unique. Even when compared to the other places it borrows ideas from, Bitwig has those tweaked in a way that makes those concepts their own. The touch keyboard for instance could easily be compared to a number of other developers' usage, but they have it functioning to take advantage of vst3, they have it supporting pen input, it does not interfere with recording clips. The ability to relocate fx to the top of the screen is a minor detail, yet makes it much more flexible and easy to use in a touch environment. And they've gone above the call of duty with how their touch gesturing works as a kind of toolbox. It is a staple in reducing the necessity of a mouse.