Last week, Keith McMillen Instruments introduced the QuNexus control keyboard – a new keyboard that offers MIDI, Control Voltage, OSC and USB connectivity, and polyphonic aftertouch.
One of the big questions many Synthtopia readers had about the QuNexus was what all this connectivity means in practical terms. Can you use the QuNexus to control your Eurorack synth? Can you use it as a MIDI to CV converter? Can it convert control voltages to MDI?
Apparently, yes to everything. KMI posted this illustration today that highlights the routing possibilities:
The key words are “Any Source can be routed to any Destination”. Some possibilities:
- QuNexus controller MIDI out to hardware synths via the MIDI Expander;
- QuNexus controller MIDI out to software synths on Windows, OS X or iPad, via USB;
- QuNexus controller to CV synths, via the 4 CV output jacks; and
- MIDI sequencer into QuNexus via the MIDI Expander, out to CV synths via the CV jacks.
You start to get the picture – the QuNexus is an ‘anything goes’ superfreak of a control keyboard.
The QuNexus is under development as a Kickstarter project, but it’s nearly completely funded already. See the project site for details.
Here’s the intro video for the QuNexus:
Check it out and let us know what you think!
I’ve always wished I could have a keyboard that felt like my Akai LPD8. That’s pretty much exactly what I was thinking.
Shared this with a analog modular friend on FB and he made sure to ask “But can it run without a computer?”
It can.
it would be nice if kmi’s recent controllers were also touch sensitive.
How is it not?
It’s impressive because it spans such a wide range of old & new tech- and like other gear from this company, it seems like they didn’t cut corners. Is it as rugged as their other gear? Also, could anyone guess how the velocity response is (as compared to playing, say, a micro (mikro) MIDI controller keyboard). — I understand that the ‘feel’ will be different, but is it possible to play expressively via the velocity response?
This is really interesting for people who exist in old school analogue AND newer digital worlds.
Any word on whether or not it’ll do v/Hz CV for Korg gear? That’d be fun if it did.
Korg or roland could have made a killing selling a cheap one but it seems like everyone wants to charge you an arm and a let for an external sequencer. They nailed it. I would buy one of these just to have a portable sequencer.
I don’t think it’s also a sequencer ..
sorry…wow!
It’s all about the CV to MIDI! This looks really interesting…
It’s all about the MIDI to CV!
Note how on a diagram there is nine buttons and on picture above there is eight. Looks like something was added!
Does anyone know what do these buttons do, by the way? (Minus pitchbend and octave selector.)
i guess you could map the QuNeo to the cv out of the QuNexus – this is very interesting
I’d love one or 2. Realy hope they raise enough cash.
They already did.
As someone else said, they had me at Polyphonic Aftertouch. 😉