#quneo updates

The developments at Keith McMillen industries never cease to amaze.  The bold move to put all of their efforts into a Kickstarter campaign rather than producing first and advertising second really paid off for them.  Looking back, it almost seems like a smarter move to let the musicians and DJ judge the value of a new item before even sending blueprints to a factory to get produced.  After the success of the QuNeo, they began working on a newer more advanced controller known as the QuNexus.  The QuNexus was built for those who wanted greater control over their midi devices.  With added control voltage and velocity sensitivity, it took the midi controller beyond a piece of hardware to activate cues and looper, rather, it could now take command over an analog synthesizer. Just because Keith McMillen has been developing new products as fast as they can be produced, it doesn’t mean that they’ve forgotten about their original designs.  The QuNeo is now getting an overhaul, adding wireless capability to the picture.  They’re calling it the QuNeo Rogue – and it really adds up to two real changed to the unit.  One, you no longer need wires, giving you a small range to roam about your DJ setup.  Second, you will now need batteries for your unit. http://djworx.com/kmi-update-quneo-rogue-and-qunexus/

In modern times, an electronic instrument is only as good as the software it runs on, meaning that the hardware by itself without instruction is basically useless.  The same can be said about electronic instruments that aren’t even digital – an analog synthesizer needs to have its instruments created by experimenting with components.  For software, it has to be taken beyond tinkering, since programming is based on learning a language rather than just trial and error.  For modern MIDI controllers, their functionality is really only limited by what they can be programmed to do, and these developers are holding all the keys to unlock our doors. [embed width="656"]http://youtu.be/X96dLJ8SL4k[/embed] The QuNeo is no longer the new kid on the block, but for what it’s worth there is still much to improve upon.  As a modular controller it can handle a number of tasks and can fill the role of anything from an electronic keyboard to a hardware drum machine.  The key is really in the programming and how well you can instruct and change MIDI messages.  Keith McMillen has recently introduced an enhanced notes package that gives the QuNeo alternative harmony and pitch functions as well as a slew of different musical scales.  There has also been changed made to the LED feedback.  http://www.synthtopia.com/content/2013/06/13/kmi-enhanced-note-mode-quneo/

The QuNeo has been out for a relatively long period of time now, and since then I’ve have seen performance videos showcasing the many different uses of the controller.  Some of the more unique videos showcased a person using it as the actual instrument itself.  Sometimes they would use three or four of them at a time and use it as if it was a homemade analog instrument.  Since the QuNeo was finally produced, Keith McMillen has also been working on a range of other products, mainly the QuNexus.  The QuNexus sort of picks up where the QuNeo left off, but this time was arranged to look more like a piano keyboard, than a range of buttons and knobs. There has also been work done to the device that allows it to on an iPad, without any additional wires or cables.  This means that the QuNeo can essentially be powered by and send signals to the same iPad it is connected to.  One thing that had to be worked on was the amount of power the tablet can actually send to the device.  This is rather important since the QuNeo uses control voltages in order to register the accurate attack of a pressed note. http://www.synthtopia.com/content/2013/07/16/kmi-quneo-now-with-ipad-mode/