PowerMate and Live: what can you do with it?

joshcarter · Post by **joshcarter** » Mon Jun 24, 2002 3:39 pm

Hi all,

I've been thinking about buying a Griffin PowerMate, and I saw the post in the "problems" forum saying it works great with OS X. My question: what can you do with it? I was thinking it might be worth $45 to have a system volume knob on my PowerBook, but if you can use it to control other things in Live, too, then I'm *really* interested.

Thanks!
-Josh

yon · Post by **yon** » Mon Jun 24, 2002 5:13 pm

Hi Josh,

I was thinking of picking one up.
What you are supposed to be able to do
is assign it to keys in your program.
Presumably you can do something like
assign it to keys controlling some
effect knob, and so use it to manipulate
that knob. Perhaps more complicated things
are possible.

I wonder if I could glue the thing to the top
of my powerbook?

yon

The Kooky Scientist · Post by **The Kooky Scientist** » Mon Jun 24, 2002 7:21 pm

Well, I've been using it extensively and tried to keep it a secret by letting only friends know about it. Hawtin picked one up right after he saw mine. It is very flashy looking and people ask me about it all the time.

Initially, it would crash Ableton Live. With version 1.5 it finally started working correctly. However, it also comes in handy as an instant crash device. Say you are playing for free for some promoter and the crowd is loving it, turn the PowerMate and crash the computer. Always good to leave the audience wanting more...... If it was a paid gig I just never touched the PowerMate and things went more smoothly.

For example I was using it as a roving controller to use the send knobs in Ableton Live. By programming it by setting key commands as Shift - arrow up when I turn the PowerMate right and Shift-arrow down turning left. All I have to do is click the mouse on any send knob in Ableton Live then turn the PowerMate. Nicer interface and a handy, cool looking device.

I use the Doepfer Pocket Fader for Fader levels.

I could also use it to smoothly increment Tempo since you can't do that via midi and could only do that using the mouse.

Now if Griffing Technoloy made a PowerMate, Mouse that you could point and click and then turn, then I'd really be happy.

Unfortunately, there seems to be a problem with getting the PowerMate to work right now with Live update 1.5.1

Now it is just my portable light show.

telepathic regards,
The Kooky Scientist

THX-1138 · Post by **THX-1138** » Tue Jun 25, 2002 6:09 am

i have one too........get one...its kinda kewl...

DOEPFER ROCKS!!!!

i've been using pocket fader for a long time...

best thing i ever did was trade it in for my regelwerk....

FrankH · Post by **FrankH** » Tue Jun 25, 2002 3:15 pm

Hi,

With Pocket Dial you get 16 of those updating knobs.
x 4 banks
x 16 midichannels
= 1024 knobs

I use ONE Pocket Dial for controling Live 24 tracks and 4 send tracks each with its own eq and fx. All in bank and channel layers on the Pocket Dial.
It's a new musical instrument

Keep in control

f