Native Instruments has introduced The Finger, a $79 keyboard-controlled performance effects processor developed with electronic music artist Tim Exile of Warp Records.
Based on Reaktor 5, The Finger is designed to be a musical tool for sound mangling and live remixing in the studio and on stage.
“I’ve always been into the idea of playing electronics like you play acoustic instruments.” says Tim Exile, designer of The Finger. “I used to sit at the back of class at school tapping out jungle breaks and edits. That’s when I fell in love with my fingers. I want to go on sound adventures by finger alone.”
You can download a free EP of music by Tim Exile, created with The Finger, via The Now Wave.
Native Instruments The Finger
The Finger draws upon more than 40 high-quality effects algorithms, including real-time samplers, transformers, filters, gaters, delays, reverbs, distortion, wave shapers, ring modulation and many others, complete with advanced tempo-sync functionality.
The performance capabilities of The Finger result from the unique control concept, with every key on a connected MIDI keyboard representing a different effect type and setting. By playing the keyboard, individual effect algorithms are activated and consecutively combined into custom chains of up to six effect units at a time, similar to a continuously changing array of interconnected stomp box units.
This concept makes it possible to play The Finger like an instrument.
The Finger utilizes the free KORE PLAYER to operate both as a standalone effects software and as a plug-in within any host sequencer, and can also be used within the full-featured KORE 2 system. With two parameters per effect being controlled by velocity and modulation wheel, the eight Macro Controls of the KORE interface provide further sound tweaking options. Owners of REAKTOR 5 can also access an advanced user interface to set additional parameters and set up individual custom effects.
This looks to be (and functions nearly identically) to Sugar Bytes Artillery2 VST.
For the record, Artillery2 has a bit of added bells as it's been out for some time, but is over twice the price ($199).
It's definitely crowd pleasing to have this kind of accessibility of effects via a keyboard, adds a DJ-style 'trigger happy' sensibility to any style of performance too. Big fun but yeah i'm gonna say NI got the price point right.
might actually buy this one
I think it looks pretty interesting. Although, if you have Abletno Live, you could set this up something similar by using FX in racks and doing some MIDI mapping. The advantage of Finger is it's alerady been configured and could save you time if you were not as familiar with Live. Of course the down side of this is that it's another pieice of workflow if you already are using Live heaviliy.
The price is certainly right and makes it quite tempting.
Mark Mosher
Sugar Bytes Artillery, of which I'm a big fan — got it for $150 via a coupon — came to mind too. The idea is far from unique but implementations are rare, so it was inevitable KVRians drew many of the same conclusions. Some have also likened it to Sugar Bytes Effectrix, which can be played via keyboard, but has a very different layout and is meant to be more step-sequencery.
I think Tim Exile is very very clever, and if you read what he's been doing with Reaktor for the last stretch of years, it's no surprise this is a polished conclusion. Great that he did an EP to show it off — BUT, the reason I won't be getting this (yet) is because of one of the most limiting and disappointing oversights of Native Instruments' KORE player. It NEEDS to be multitimbral and the controller gets confused if you have multiple instances open [youtube Ee6j2_Y6u3Y http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ee6j2_Y6u3Y youtube]
@ torley
i've had multiple reaktor 5's open in Live, running both the same and different ensembles. So "The Finger" shouldn't be any different really – that's a limitation of the Kore player isn't it?
I'm thinking since I have Reaktor this might be more useful than Artillery2 as I can mod the FX.
@LutherBlissett I should clarify, my phrase "It NEEDS to be multitimbral" was amphibious. Rather, I meant there is no monotimbral, quick-loading instance of Kore. I'd simply like to access Kore sounds without all the added internal mixerage, I don't have a need for that.
I do have Reaktor as well but haven't done a lot with it — LutherBlissett, if you make a cool mod, I'd like to see/hear! 🙂
But Torley – we love it when your phrases are amphibious.
*ribbit*