Thanks for the replies edmisik and Robert. Sorry, my post hasnt been very clear, since I have multiple wants and was moving goal posts. I don't consider the Maschine for a control surface but for having great pads, buying into the NI eco system (the Komplete crossgrade sale price) and with the Maschine+ announcement there are bunch of them on the used marked you can get one for like 350€. The suggestion with the ATOM is good, I took another look at it and the integration seems way deeper than I first expected.

Let’s take a look at the main key sector, as I’ve already explained before, it has two rows and two columns. The bottom key line is labeled 1/4, 1/8, 1/16, 1/32. this is for looping. And it has four knobs on the upper line. After getting a glance on it, we can just say it’s overall appearance is quite simple yet enough to solve its purpose with ease. It's an insulting disgrace. Pretty on the outside, terrible results if you are looking for any nuance, dynamics or sanity. Editor – As you might expect with a name like Editor, this mode allows you to edit your work right from the MIDI controller. Of course, you need to be using Studio One or Ableton to utilize this mode correctly, but it really helps to simplify the process. Instead of having to use a mouse or keyboard, you can cut out the middleman and use the ATOM SQ for all your editing needs.because the whole purpose of spending good money (on a controller) is to be able to use the product as it is promoted / marketed fully press and use your finger on the whole length of a pad / against the full pad just like on a piano key Load one up and play melodies with the pads, control native PreSonus instrument parameters with the knobs and options like octave select with the eight A-H buttons. Load up an Impact XT drum module and the pads become loop or hit triggers, the knobs select volume, pan etc and the buttons different banks of sounds. Most controls are, of course, re-assignable. Alive in Live This is especially common when you are playing held arpeggios or chordal top lines, where some fingers rest on their pads after hitting while one finger bounces around to different pads. It's also especially common on "weak" fingers such as the ring or pinky. I have an older Korg PadKontrol which sounds fine, and an Akai MPD232 which sounds fine, Even if PreSonus knew they were using low quality pad triggers, the fact that they won't even help us out with a (selectable) Double Trigger sensitivity filter (in Setup), means they have a complete disregard for real (paying) end users.

The unit is powered by USB and connects up to Studio One straight away – the latest version that is. Studio One 4 didn’t recognise it but the supplied 5 Artist did, as did the PreSonus Universal Control software. Performance and verdict

Atom, the bomb?

Removing velocity under 4% such as 3.9% (which is minimum it registers) makes you miss some of the notes as i stated. Intuitive and easy-to-use, ATOM is more than just an expressive MIDI pad controller: It's a production and performance controller as well. Use the velocity- and pressure-sensitive pads to play your virtual instruments live, with incredible expressiveness. Navigate your session without looking at the screen. Automate filter sweeps with four responsive knobs. Wherever inspiration takes you, ATOM lets you focus on the music. Moreover the pads themselves are not equally easy or hard to trigger, some of them trigger more easily and others seem to be much stubborn. Can you also confirm this ? I still think this is correctable for 99.9% of use cases with a firmware update that ignores note-ons within a certain time threshold. Assuming the Atom SQ keeps a buffer of timestamped events for inputs, something like: One final thing: I do wish to see a future Atom series controller with built-in MIDI output or with USB-to-MIDI capability allowing users to use those built-in chordal/arpeggiator features with external computer-less rigs. Doing so would create the next blazingly inspired device that can introduce the PreSonus workflow inside and outside the software.

anyone who finger drums: will have some (natural) bounce to their finger (and this could be part of it) This workaround isn't perfect, but it does make the SQ far more *usable* while we wait for a firmware update, if you're a "light touch" player and if you like to rest your fingers on the pads in between new hits. To me the big bonus of Atom SQ was the fact that in such a small form factor you can play SCALE only notes from a particular Scale, thus from 32 keys you were being able to play 4.5 and up to 6 octaves, depending on what scale you chose. It's taken me a couple weeks to get here, but after extensive studying I've narrowed down my choice to 3 devices for a Btiwig Pad Controller. Leaning in the direction of the Maschine or Launchpad...

Tech Specs

The very first thing that you are going to notice with this device is its layout. It has a litany of pads, buttons, and knobs. In fact, there are 32 velocity and pressure-sensitive pads, 16 buttons that can be assigned to different functions, and 8 rotary knobs that can be endlessly rotated. While this might seem a bit overwhelming at first, each of these components has been very carefully crafted to make them as useful as possible.