It’s very calm here

Yeah , as I said in my first post … 1.3 is definitely much better than it was before , but I still do have issues

NOT correct; this was actually one of my requests and with 1.2 onwards you can save a “project” that contains all 16 layouts.

Sure, but he said he wanted to be able to load them one by one, not in bulk

Ok, I have done some A/B comparison between Erae Touch and Linnstrument today. They feel different, hard to say which is “better” (I am more used to the Linnstrument touch).

Long story short - I think the unpredictability and consistency issues are now really gone for my device!

I would say the main differences of Erae Touch to Linnstrument (when just considering the use as a grid controller) would be:

  • slightly softer, more “squishy” surface on the ET, with the -20…200 mapping one still has to hit slightly harder to hear a ppp note than on Linnstrument (but it doesn’t feel so because the ET surface is a little softer). At 200 the loudest note needs a lot more force. (Can be adjusted at will though, 100 is the default). Linnstrument needs still considerably more minimal force to trigger at all than Morph or Eigenharp - these two can sense any touch, no matter how slight.
  • ET always quantizes with the current firmware, like the Roli Seaboard. Linnstrument can switch this off, so you can start at and target any continuous note, play microtonal and non-western scales etc.
  • Linnstrument has haptic cell boundaries (with ET one can more easily hit between cells and thus get double notes, particularly with the 2x2 layout - probably a matter of practise though)
  • the minimal distance between adjecant detectable touches is a little larger on the ET - so when playing two adjacent cells on the 2x2 layout there is a higher chance to only hear one sound. You have the same problem on Linnstrument though - if the fingers are more on the closeby halfes of the cells it will only trigger one note also. Inherent restriction of the technology I’d say (like with a bound clavichord)
  • I have the feeling that the Linnstrument might have a higher xy sensor resolution (could also be the effect of the always-on quantization on ET…)
  • Form factor is obviously different - the ET is higher (12 vs 8 2x2 cells), the (large) Linnstrument is wider (21 vs 24 cells)
  • For ET it is a little irritating that the cells at the very left (above and below the “notch”) are shown, but don’t react as expected - they are essentially less responsive copies of the adjacent cells to the right. (Not severe, one just needs to know that the really playable keybed starts at the next cell)

But all in all I’m quite pleased with the Erae Touch now regarding predictability and touch consistency. Hard to choose a definite winner, they both have their strengths. (Well, when adding the Morph to the competition it would still win the touch sensitivity competition by a huge margin, but it’s small - and unavailable. Erae team, please consider to license their sensor technology for the Erae2 - I think the result would just be SERIOUSLY awesome!)

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cool @NothanUmber

ok, so Ive taken the leap, reset my ET , firmware, and layouts.
so far seems, ok.
( I did reload my layouts, assuming Erae Lab will have done any necessary ‘conversions’)

btw: just for reference are you using pressure range as the ‘default’ (?) 0 to 100.

iirc, I did turn mine down a bit (-10?) but I think for now I’ll leave it as zero for now.
I guess there could be variations across units, about where this threshold can live.
so zero may be quite conservative, but its also the ‘fair’ way to use it.
(I do prefer a lighter touch but only if its reliable)

also, I think given you have got it to work,
I think im going to reset my own expectations etc…

Im going to try to assume 1.3 has fixed the issues… rather than think about the past.
and that perhaps now, I can find a play “style” that might work around issues I find.
i.e. if the surface reacts predictably, then I can workaround limitations.

so thats my hope for 1.3, not perfection necessarily , but predictability

anyway, Im going to try to give this a more ‘mid term’ go, over a few weeks,
so won’t make judgment till then … unless I find some glaring issue.


btw: thanks @keymanpal these projects are indeed great, and exactly what I was looking for.

though, one thing, I didn’t notice at first… ( * )
the push/pull works on selected layouts, and you can use CMD and SHIFT to select multiple.
therefore its as simple as :

  • select ALL with shift, then you can PULL all existing layouts from device, save them as a project.
  • load another project, again use SHIFT to select ALL, then PUSH all of them to device

its very cool, as you can now mix n’ match , either push/pull individual layouts, or all of them.

( * ) I missed this, and thought it was still only one layout, as editing a layout selects it, so only one gets pushed.

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Good to hear! Yes, I went down to -20 without obvious issues for now. I’m a little spoiled from the Morph touch - but e.g. a piano doesn’t react to arbitrarily light touches either (and different pianos react differently), so I guess once it’s set up as well as technically possible it’s a matter of getting used to what it is. Agreed, one evening isn’t really enough, for a profound judgement…

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ha ! good to know, thanks !

Hello everyone,
I figured I’ll give my two cents here as the “it’s very calm here” post title resonated with me.
I put the Erae to the side for a bit to focus on other things. Now I’m back to really use it (after seeing what Jarre can do with it!!!).
Did the updates and noticed that the Erae lab on my daw pc doesn’t recognize the unit, unlike my laptop. Went on Embodme forum, posted and working on the issue currently. What I noticed, however, is how “dead” the forum is. That’s concerning to me, especially when comparing to devices I have where the community is booming.
Then I see this thread, and your post @thetechnobear resonated with me too!
I had my original unit returned (it was unplyable). This with the new updates fairs much better, and I need to use it more to see if I’m happy with the keys playing style part of the unit, with its potential bugs and stuff.
Regardless, this is after all a 700$ piece of equipment that I’m not sure warrants such a price when you consider the issues I have experienced personally, and so I’m considering parting with it to invest towards the Osmose down the road.
I’m torn; this has such potential, but as pointed out, it has been out for a while, and still feels…beta.

Lastly, and I think that’s perhaps the fundamental dealbreaker for me playing wise: I’m just not a fan of the pad rubber texture on my fingers!
I can’t imagine what it would feel like after playing 45 minutes on it, as it kinda burns if you use slide too much, there’s no 3D feel to separate the notes etc…
I might just have to figure out in the end if I want a drum pad/sliders controller, and learn to use it that way.

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Yes, the absence of reactions on their forum after several months is more than worrying.
In my case, since the main interest of this controller is its large continuous surface together WITH the pressure, and the sensitivity regularity problems are still unresolved, it stays in a corner, waiting for the team to wake up , or a miracle?
Regarding its abrasive surface, the little that I have used it has been with gloves: impossible for me to obtain sustained glides without my fingers catching. And each time, back on the Sensel Morph, what a relief and what a pleasure… and what a waste too.
Fortunately for other people, as a percussion pad it does better!

Yes, exact same for me about the texture…and the rest.

Yes, the Morph is such a breeze to play, despite its small size. And the fact it’s discontinued (sigh).

Has anyone had the chance to talk to the embodme team at Namm or Superbooth? Since the silence in the forum an lack of updates is ongoing, i am a bit worried, that they might drop the erae and focus more on the new super iris product. Maybe they shared some info with anyone in person?

I just saw their new SuperIRIS Touchless screen…I would prefer them pushing more updates ….

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I am afraid that the Erae Touch will follow the same way as the Sensel Morph, with even less updates. Very sad :frowning:

there were not present at Superbooth.

to get information about their development plans, you would be best asking via their website/forum/Facebook page.
frankly, they are much less likely to resond here, than directly.

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what a pity, really :frowning:

Ah ok, i saw videos from them at namm and asumed, they would go to superbooth as well.

I have a hard time reaching them via mail at the moment (that was the most reliable way to contact them in the past for me), thats why i thought, someone might have talked to them in person. i am going to keep trying.

yeah, I thought so too… I’d guess that some other plan clashed with Superbooth… and they didn’t really have anything new to show.
(someone mentioned to me that Moog had chosen to go to ADE instead of superbooth… so perhaps something like that)

looking at NAMM coverage, they looked to be focusing more on the custom controller / drum pad market … which kind of make sense, as I think the erae touch is better suited to that , given its sensitivity.
I guess looking on the bright side they do seem to be very actively push it at places like NAMM, even if not in the (mpe) direction Id prefer. so its not ‘dead’.

this has been on their site for quite a while now… feels very ‘blue sky’ to me, and a very different market, that I think they will struggle to get into. so id personally not worry on that front… at least for now.

yeah, number of updates has been disappointing.
however, I dont think its the same as the Morph… the Morph was highly dependent on the software and computer. the Erae is much more ‘standalone’.

also whilst it is disappointing in some areas (mpe sensitivity/ touch resolution) , as a more generic controller/drum pad it functions pretty well…

so… in many ways, I think its usable for many use-cases, so lack of further development is more about not fulfilling its potential (in mpe space) … rather than making it usable.

but, of course, thats a very personal summary, depending upon how you want/plan to use the erae… so some will be happy, other much less so.

but yeah, would have been nice to catch up with Embodme in person, to get a feel for if development has stopped, and where they feel they are (in terms of maturity/robust/completeness of the ET firmware)

honestly, at this stage, given lack of updates, Id not expect much more… and this is disappointing. but we dont know this is the case… and for sure, it’d be a welcome surprise to see an update.

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I’ve posted mine for sale on Reverb… If anyone is interested, not that this thread helps:)

As an added bug, my main PC refuses to see it in Erae lab, forcing me to use my laptop to work on presets.
I’ve tried everything, and embodme told me they didn’t know how to help. One more nail in the coffin.

My conclusion: the ET was one of those beta ware, which with other manufacturers (Vector synth comes to mind), turn into a rocket of a product through constantly engaging with its consumers.
ET on the other hand, went like a “petard mouillé” (wet fuse) as we would say in French, or at least from the initial use it was advertised to be.
That’s too bad…

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I may be interested. What is your “shop name”?