# Your Favorite Peripherals!



## Greg (Apr 13, 2013)

What are some of your favorite or secret weapon peripheral devices? I'll start with a few of mine!

1. Griffin Powermate Knob:
http://store.griffintechnology.com/powermate

A simple, stylish, no frills knob that can be assigned to scroll, zoom, automate, control volume, start playback, ect.

2. V Control for Ipad:
http://www.neyrinck.com/v-control-pro

Amazing touch interface that uses a similar GUI to many hosts! Makes it very intuitive to use. + Hover bar to mount your Ipad: http://twelvesouth.com/products/hoverbar/

3. Razer BlackWidow Keyboard:
http://www.razerzone.com/gaming-keyboards-keypads/razer-blackwidow-tournament-edition/ (http://www.razerzone.com/gaming-keyboar ... t-edition/)

Super low footprint and much more tactile than most keyboards. If you're a gamer then it's a double whammy


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## Nick Batzdorf (Apr 13, 2013)

Apple Magic Trackpad with BetterTouchTool and Mobee Magic Numpad. But only with those two pieces of software, and only as a complement to the Magic Mouse, not as a pointing device.

(Actually, Mobee is also "hardware" - it has an overlay as well a software to make the trackpad a 10-key.)


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## Nick Batzdorf (Apr 13, 2013)

Trackpad (these are the global commands - I have others for Logic and PT):


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## Nick Batzdorf (Apr 13, 2013)

Mouse:


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## DocMidi657 (Apr 13, 2013)

Hey Gregg,

Can the Griffen Product be assigned to send CC1? If yes can that be done in their control software?

Dave


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## Ned Bouhalassa (Apr 13, 2013)

Mackie Big Knob, Korg MS-20ic USB controller, iPad as remote controller for Logic when tracking.


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## jamwerks (Apr 14, 2013)

Hey Nick, I'm amazed to read in your posts what the Apple magic mouse can do., maybe more than my expensive 5 button Wacom's !

Did you use multi-button mice before the Magic mouster? Miss anything? Trackpad looks cool also...

BTW, I'm using a Novation Zero SL MKII and very happy with it.


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## Ozymandias (Apr 14, 2013)

CM tenkeyless keyboard (MX red switches):
http://www.cmstorm.com/en/products/keyb ... rerapidred

It's surprising how much of a difference this has made to my working day. The keyboard I was using before now seems like a device of subtle torture.


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## gsilbers (Apr 14, 2013)

for me its the mighty mouse. the one with the small wheel. its amazing how fast i can navigate, zoom in o out, scroll etc but moving the small wheel and pressing a keyboard command. 

-fender mustang guitar midi controller. looks like a toy but great midi guitar. better than the ztar i had. 
even though that new guitar to midi software came out wich is better than the roland systems, i still like the mustang cause i can leave the buttons pressed for legato. i guess i can add a sus pedal to the regular guitar but the fenser is small and convinient. 

then there is the ipad. great while working on boring technical stuff and leave netflix rolling on complete series back to back.


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## EastWest Lurker (Apr 14, 2013)

Logitech Marble Mouse Trackball.


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## Brobdingnagian (Apr 14, 2013)

TC Electronics Level pilot and the ipad with Touch OSC.

http://www.tcelectronic.com/level-pilot/


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## JBZeon (Apr 14, 2013)

TC Level Pilot, Ipad with Lemur and just around the corner a 23" touch screen with custom butons to replace Ipad. Ipad will become a remote control and a fader box.


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## passenger57 (Apr 14, 2013)

I really like the 'iPsychic Studio' app where I can control my entire studio with only the power of my mind. Oh darn I thought this was 2030 already

Well for now my fav is this guy:
http://retail.contourdesign.com/?/products/23


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## Nick Batzdorf (Apr 14, 2013)

jamwerks:



> Did you use multi-button mice before the Magic mouster? Miss anything? Trackpad looks cool also.



I didn't use multi-button mice, but actually the Magic Mouse does have multiple "buttons" - it distinguishes between left and right clicks among many other things.

I've used standard Apple mouses from the beginning (but not their keyboards, by the way - in between the great ones, there was a period of several years when they were unusable).

Note that it's BetterTouchTool - a magnificent free program - that assigns all those command to gestures. There's a long list of commands and gestures you can set up, and they can be global or application-specific.

There's another free program that's similar, but I've forgotten its name...and it doesn't matter, because BTT is better.

What's interesting is that you remember all of them without any effort. One would thing it would get totally confusing, but not so.

And I still don't understand why so many people prefer pointing devices other than mouses. It's not that I can't use a trackball or trackpad for that, it's that it's so much more cumbersome to me.

Obviously we're not all the same, because lots of people swear by trackballs. But I don't get it.


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## EastWest Lurker (Apr 14, 2013)

I prefer a trackball because a mouse (and a trackpad) is literally a drag.


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## Daryl (Apr 14, 2013)

My Violin and bow. 8) 

D


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## germancomponist (Apr 14, 2013)

Daryl @ Sun Apr 14 said:


> My Violin and bow. 8)
> 
> D



+++

 o-[][]-o


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## Nick Batzdorf (Apr 14, 2013)

Jay, can you imagine what the world would be like without friction?


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## EastWest Lurker (Apr 14, 2013)

Nick Batzdorf @ Sun Apr 14 said:


> Jay, can you imagine what the world would be like without friction?



I can't even imagine what this forum would be like without friction. :lol:


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## park bench (Apr 14, 2013)

^Win.^


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## Adrian Myers (Apr 14, 2013)

Ha, as soon as I saw the thread title, I was going to mention the Razer BlackWidow, but there it is in the first post!

Well, I'll support it anyway. I think it's one of the finest mechanicals available. I'm a programmer and I use this keyboard more than people use, like, shoes. Mechanical keyboards are definitely a worthwhile investment for anybody who is at a machine a lot.

Likewise, I'm also a fan of the Razer Deathadder Black. I know Razer is a gimmicky company, but these two peripherals are definitely not. The Deathadder has a very nice finish, good weight, a high profile, properly contoured rimless buttons, and no bizarre features or keypads or anything on it.

I never had a problem staying keyboard and mouse, no feeling that they kill my workflow (that's just general ineptitude that does it to me). So I stay simple but high quality.

Do pen and paper count as peripherals?


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## windshore (Apr 15, 2013)

TEControl!
and this Atlas mic stand
http://www.guitarcenter.com/Atlas-Sound ... gc?source=


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## EastWest Lurker (Apr 15, 2013)

Adrian Myers @ Sun Apr 14 said:


> Ha, as soon as I saw the thread title, I was going to mention the Razer BlackWidow, but there it is in the first post!
> 
> Well, I'll support it anyway. I think it's one of the finest mechanicals available. I'm a programmer and I use this keyboard more than people use, like, shoes. Mechanical keyboards are definitely a worthwhile investment for anybody who is at a machine a lot.
> 
> ...



Not Mac compatible though?


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## Adrian Myers (Apr 15, 2013)

Jay,

Good question! I wasn't sure, and it's confusing because they do say "PC with USB port" in one of the requirements blurbs. But it also states "Mac OS X (v10.6 to 10.8)" as a supported OS.

I think that's just for Synapse 2.0 (firmware updater and such) though. I'm not a big fan of always-on software like that so I just use the devices through generic interface drivers, since it's really the build quality that is appealing.

One thing to be aware of is that most editions of the keyboard come with Cherry MX Blue switches, which are considered the best for typing, but are also the second-loudest switch, behind only spring buckle switches. However, the "Stealth" editions use Brown switches, which are basically the same as Blue but quieter (although not silent).

I have an older Ultimate model, which uses the Blue switches. They're not really that loud, but I'd probably go for the Stealth option if I shared an office. Also, in normal operation, it isn't lit up like a christmas tree like it is in the pictures. It's perfectly sedate.

Regards,
-Adrian


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## Nick Batzdorf (Apr 15, 2013)

To my mind - and fingers - the current, low-profile Apple keyboard is laughably far ahead of any other keyboard ever produced. I'm really picky, in fact I used the old Apple Extended Keyboard II with a USB->ADB adapter for years.

But this one is far more comfortable to work on all day long, and it has the side benefit that typing on a laptop is no longer an adjustment (they used to slow me down). The strange thing is that the Apple keyboard didn't require any adjustment when I first tried it - it was great right away.


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## Nick Batzdorf (Apr 15, 2013)

Just to be clear, I'm not saying "my preference for pointing devices and keyboards is better than yours!"

It is, but I'm not saying that.


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## Adrian Myers (Apr 15, 2013)

Nick Batzdorf @ Mon Apr 15 said:


> It is, but I'm not saying that.


These are the words of an honest man.

Anyway yeah, these things are extremely personal. My wife also prefers paper-thin keyboards, and I just can't do it. One of the most prolific programmers I've ever met only uses Microsoft Natural erognomic keyboards, which to me are like typing on a live cat. To each their own!


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## EastWest Lurker (Apr 15, 2013)

Nick Batzdorf @ Mon Apr 15 said:


> To my mind - and fingers - the current, low-profile Apple keyboard is laughably far ahead of any other keyboard ever produced. I'm really picky, in fact I used the old Apple Extended Keyboard II with a USB->ADB adapter for years.
> 
> But this one is far more comfortable to work on all day long, and it has the side benefit that typing on a laptop is no longer an adjustment (they used to slow me down). The strange thing is that the Apple keyboard didn't require any adjustment when I first tried it - it was great right away.



I have trouble with it. A fair amount of the time it simply does not register keystrokes I type. This is the second one I have had with the same thing so I am open to an alternative. I was at Steve Porcaro's studio this morning and did not have this using his old MacAlly keyboard.


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## Nick Batzdorf (Apr 15, 2013)

> These are the words of an honest man.



They're the words of a man who's kidding. I should have put a .


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## Nick Batzdorf (Apr 15, 2013)

I guess you type very lightly, Jay.

The MacAlly is one of the best standard keyboards, though, at least the one I used to use. It was a good USB replacement when my KVM switch would't accept the ADB->USB adapter for the Extended Keyboard II.

Of course, I also don't use the KVM switch anymore either. 

And by the way, Bluetooth - now that I have it working properly on my Mac Pro - is the shizzle. Who needs wires.


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## NYC Composer (Apr 15, 2013)

Taylor 714 LTD, Martin D-16 k, any crappy piano and my mediocre voice. Add Irish whiskey and stir.


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## Letis (Apr 16, 2013)

pen & notebook. 
good old paper to put down ideas and short notations. 
after serveral computers , operationg systems and music softwares this is the only thing never lost data, needed no updates and always reminds me that music is not only bits & bytes 8)


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## Nick Batzdorf (Apr 16, 2013)

Okay, just to save the next few people the trouble of posting more of this:

My family.

My body.

The lights in my studio.

My horse.

My kingdom.

My interpretation of the original post as being "peripheral to the question I'm asking" rather than "VI-related peripheral."

Have I left out any important ones?


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## Adrian Myers (Apr 16, 2013)

Drugs.

Also, can I compose with your horse? There's epic and then there's "Yeah I wrote this mounted on horseback". Until somebody tames a giant octopus, that's pretty much it.


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## stonzthro (Apr 16, 2013)

Wait, you have a horse?!?


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## Nick Batzdorf (Apr 16, 2013)

A horse of course.


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## Revson (Apr 16, 2013)

Wacom Cintiq 21ux.


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## Giant_Shadow (Apr 17, 2013)

Listening to music through a McIntosh system. The biggest inspiration! If I talk to another composer who says he doesn't have time to listen to other music or give a piano lesson to young musician who doesn't know the Bealtes catalogue I will swear. (James Blake on at the time of editing this, Flying Lotus, Bonobo, on deck)

Art on the walls. how can anyone be creative with plain white walls.

my old school label maker

Lava lamp, Christmas lights, rope lights. Yah, learned it from Prince. : )

Photo's of inspirational people.

Dogs, there more loyal than the most loyal human being

Naps (the secret to life)

Walks are big around here too. Seems to clear the mind a bit for creativity and inspiration, then I come home and play Felt piano and ideas come flowing.


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## Greg (Apr 17, 2013)

Revson @ Tue Apr 16 said:


> Wacom Cintiq 21ux.



How do you incorporate this? Was looking at setting one up myself but I'd have to try it out first since the price is so high. It would be really awesome for drawing in automation! What do you mostly use yours for?


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## Nick Batzdorf (Apr 17, 2013)

Romantic walks on the beach, laughing with that special man, travel, shopping, evening gowns, occasionally jeans and a t-shirt and no panties, passion, working hard and playing hard.


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## redleicester (Apr 17, 2013)

My MC Pro and Jaffa cakes.


Not necessarily in that order.


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## minimidi (Apr 18, 2013)

windshore @ Mon Apr 15 said:


> TEControl!



+1. It's really fantastic. I love it.


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## antoniopandrade (Apr 18, 2013)

minimidi @ Thu Apr 18 said:


> windshore @ Mon Apr 15 said:
> 
> 
> > TEControl!
> ...



+2. Got mine a couple days ago and it's already my favorite way to input CC data.


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## EastWest Lurker (Apr 18, 2013)

+3.


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## stonzthro (Apr 18, 2013)

Oh my gosh Nick - you're killing me - too funny!

To add to the ACTUAL list of things that are hooked into my computer:

- Novation ZeRO - I have my ipad propped up in front of the sliders so I only have access to the knobs, and since they are rotary encoders this work great for Logic plugs. 

- iPad w/touchOSC

- Powermate - I use this solely for scrubbing by frame when dropping sounds into animations - so useful!


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## NYC Composer (Apr 19, 2013)

Nicky B- without him, I wouldn't be the man I am today. My god, those reviews!

(Wait- actually, I'm not the man I am today...hmm. Never mind.)


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