Akai Announces APC40 – Ableton Live Controller
Akai has partnered with Ableton to create the APC40, a new control surface built exclusively for Ableton’s Live software.
Because Akai Professional and Ableton designed the APC40 for Live, you don’t need to map its controls to talk to the software. Just connect your laptop to the APC40 with its USB cable and you’re ready to go. The APC40 is class compliant, so you don’t even need to install drivers. And if you’re an advanced Live user, the APC40 gives you the ability to remap every one of its controls to suit your own style.
The APC40 features bidirectional communication between your computer and the controller. It can receive feedback from the software and display it on its clip matrix of 40 triggers and on LED rings surrounding each knob. The clip matrix gives you an instant view of clip status: what’s loaded, what’s playing, and what’s being recorded. Each state displays on the matrix in a different color so you can get a quick picture of clip state. You can shift your clip focus and get an overview of the clips you have loaded for your set. The APC40 has 16 knobs, each surrounded by a ring of LEDs. These LED rings make seeing your settings a breeze on dark stages, indicating the currently selected parameters’ values. This advanced visual feedback makes performing with the APC40 focused more on the music and less on squinting at the computer screen. In fact, you might even forget that the computer is there!
The APC40 is built with a rugged, metal chassis and slip-proof rubber detailing. Knobs and faders are solid and precise for pinpoint performance. It even features a high quality, replaceable crossfader.
The APC40 comes with a special edition of Ableton Live Lite so you can use it out of the box even if you’re new to Live. There’s also a free patch that upgrades full versions of Live so if you’re already a Live user, you can take full advantage of the APC40.
The APC40 has two banks of eight knobs. The first set controls Global parameters so you’ll always have instant access to your main sends, pans, and other essentials. The second bank of eight knobs is dynamically reassigned to the Track you select. You can control eight track parameters at a time, and as you switch channels, the Track knobs follow your focus. You also get special clip-status views and feedback that only the APC40’s matrix can display. The matrix is not limited to only 40 clips: you can scroll and shift, enabling access to an unlimited number of cells.
The APC40 has a wide range of controllers. The eight Global knobs can access four banks of controls; the eight Track knobs control nine different track parameters each. This gives you a massive total of 72 controllers that are dynamically reassigned. Channel faders, bus faders, and a crossfader give you smooth control of key values. You have even more control power with special controls including Tap Tempo, Tempo Nudge, record enables, solo/cues and two assignable footswitch inputs.
More information on the Akai APC40.
