Trade shows like NAMM are all built around the factor of WOW. Every booth, every vendor, every manufacturer subscribes to the same philosophy and everything done here is to induce the WOW reaction from people on the floor. It is usually done with intricate booth set-ups, loud music, bright lights, occasional celebrity appearances, and of course the ever-popular booth girls.
However, every once in a while you stumble across a booth that needs none of that, because the product itself is enough to draw out that all powerful, jaw drop reaction. Case in point at this years NAMM, the Euphonix MC Artist Series. With a booth that isn’t even on the showroom floor, (it’s almost hidden in its mezzanine location) you would think that visitors would be few and far between. But the dimly lit, uncharacteristically quite booth has seen a constant flow of people all eager to put there hands on the new products.
The Artist Series consists on the MC Mix and MC Control, two intuitive control surfaces for software on the Mac and PC. Now the important thing to note about that sentence is the use of the word “software.” Not DAW control, not Pro Tool or Logic, but software in general. They showed me interaction with Logic, Final Cut Pro, Soundtrack, ProTools, even Safari! Using their proprietary EuCon protocol, the control surfaces connect to any computer with an Ethernet port and automatically sets itself up to control whatever program you have open. A beautiful set of OLED screens across the top of the mix unit updates automatically to display what parameters you are currently controlling with little or sometimes no setup depending on the program. The protocol finds the parameters and maps them out for you.
Motorized faders jump up and down to recalled layouts and setups. Rotary encoders are assignable to everything from basic pan and send amount all the way up to virtual instrument parameter control and back again at the touch of a button. Literally every moment of the demo was an “Oh and check this out…” moment. And if all of that weren’t enough, the MC Control also boasts a huge touch screen controller area that is full of pre-mapped control and fully customizable soft buttons!
Now, if you are anything like me, you are already thinking to yourself, “$$$$$!” but then that is the best part. You get complete control over all your software, the touch screen, and motorized faders, all packaged in a beautifully designed unit, and not for the big price tag that you immediately expect. The Mix unit carries an street price of less than a grand! The MC control, less than $1500! The only thing that comes close to this kind of seamless integration that I know of would be the Digi 003 and even nearly double the price tag, it still doesn’t control Pro Tool to the extent that the MC Mix and MC Control drive every piece of supported software you can throw at it.
Congratulations Euphonix, you guys have seriously shown me the WOW.
Hey guys,
Here is a copy of the full press release from Euphonix regarding the Artist Series product release.
[Original Message]
Euphonix Announces MC Control and MC Mix Professional Control Surfaces for the Personal Studio
January 17th, 2008 –Palo Alto, CA – Euphonix, a world leader in large-format mixing consoles and controllers for over twenty years, has announced the MC Control and MC Mix professional control surfaces for its new Artist Series line of products that boasts revolutionary ergonomic, slim-line designs and brings the unparalleled speed, resolution and DAW integration of Euphonix’s high-end professional consoles to the personal studio. The MC Control and MC Mix easily integrate into any studio, fitting perfectly between a computer keyboard and screen, and up to four units can be connected to create a larger, integrated control surface.
The MC Control and MC Mix feature EuCon™, a high-speed control protocol developed by Euphonix that enables simultaneous control of multiple applications and even workstations over an Ethernet cable at 250 times the speed and eight times the resolution of MIDI. EuCon automatically detects whatever application is in the foreground and instantly sets the high-resolution touchscreen and OLED displays, motorized faders and arsenal of controls to match.
Euphonix has worked closely with the world’s leading software developers like Apple, Steinberg, MOTU and others to deeply integrate native EuCon support into their DAWs to provide high-resolution, high-speed control over almost all DAW functions for an unmatched editing and mixing experience. The MC Control and MC Mix also support the HUI and Mackie Control protocols for even greater flexibility, at a faster speed and higher resolution than any other controllers. The new Euphonix MC Mix will ship in late January 2008 and be available at authorized Euphonix retailers at an estimated street price of $999.99, while the MC Control will ship March 2008 and sell at an estimated street price $1499.99.
About Euphonix
Euphonix, a leading manufacturer of large-format digital audio consoles and controllers has provided customers worldwide with trusted broadcast, post, live sound and music production solutions for 20 years. Key products in the Pro Series line include Max Air, System 5 and S5 Fusion consoles as well as the System 5-MC and MC DAW controllers. The new Artist Series line includes the revolutionary MC Control and MC Mix controllers. Call +1 (650) 855-0400 or visit www.euphonix.com.