So ...what's the verdict on the novation SL

R.J.Dubya · Post by **R.J.Dubya** » Wed May 30, 2007 5:23 pm

The pads are pretty hard, but they cn be made to be as sensitive as you want. They can definitely be set to be way more sensitive than any other drum pads I've tried. They are pretty small though, so I don't really use them for drums. I stick to keys for that mainly (my O2).

A cool use for the drum pads are to set them to cc's. Then you can midi learn them to a parameter like a filter, and the velocity you strike them will send that value to the parameter. Pretty cool for step like rhythm effects. Try it on filters, reverb, distortion etc.

And I can't stress enough how much nicer it is when you've assigned buttons to be templates. In ableton automap, I've set one button as plug-in automap and one as template 1. In plug-in automap, I've got one set to ableton automap, and one to template 1. And on template 1, I've got one for plug-in automap, and one for ableton automap. So switching between ableton, plug-ins, and a custom midi learn template is instant. Later I might use the whole top row of buttons as permanent template assignments (1-6, plug-in, and ableton).

Tone Deft · Post by **Tone Deft** » Wed May 30, 2007 5:29 pm

R.J.Dubya wrote:And I can't stress enough how much nicer it is when you've assigned buttons to be templates.

WhatchutalkinboutWillis?

Tarekith · Post by **Tarekith** » Wed May 30, 2007 5:45 pm

I really need to get off my ass and program my SL37 one of these days...

Tone Deft · Post by **Tone Deft** » Wed May 30, 2007 5:49 pm

Tarekith wrote:I really need to get off my ass and program my SL37 one of these days...

I should read the manual.

kiwipicker · Post by **kiwipicker** » Wed May 30, 2007 5:59 pm

I have done what R.J is sayiing with the templates.
I must say though, I find the Novation Editor a big pain in me muff.
my novation bass station template doesn't work with my sl zero. anyone else have this problem? none of the contro0ls work with the au/vst.

i wish there was tutorial on using the editor. i know to do it onboard the sl itself, but I would like to organize my templates better, and erase the ones that come with it so I can fill it with my own in an easy fast way.
I find Korg's editor to be really good for the padkontrol.

maybe someone wants to make a tutorial on using the editor?

R.J.Dubya · Post by **R.J.Dubya** » Wed May 30, 2007 6:03 pm

Tone Deft wrote:
R.J.Dubya wrote:And I can't stress enough how much nicer it is when you've assigned buttons to be templates.
WhatchutalkinboutWillis?

I just mean how you can change any button you want to recall any template. You know, hit a button, hit edit, then turn the top left encoder where it says "control". Change that from 'cc' to 'template', then change the encoder that's a couple to the right under 'template' to whatever template number you want. Then save.

So on every one of my three most used templates (1,38,40), I have two buttons on the top right set aside at all times to instantly recall the other two. So I rarely have to use the fiddly template encoder.

Tone Deft · Post by **Tone Deft** » Wed May 30, 2007 6:10 pm

Damn, that must've been a new feature in the latest software, thanks mang! If it's not a new feature I'm still going into denial saying it's a new feature, kinda obvious if I'd done the requisite poking around.

kiwi - IMO the SL is really easy to hand edit, the only use for the editor is to edit the text. Did you use the automap server to make an automap version of the Bass Station plug-in?

R.J.Dubya · Post by **R.J.Dubya** » Wed May 30, 2007 6:25 pm

Tone Deft wrote:Damn, that must've been a new feature in the latest software, thanks mang! If it's not a new feature I'm still going into denial saying it's a new feature,..

I'm afraid you'll have to stay in denial then...

eyeknow · Post by **eyeknow** » Wed May 30, 2007 9:54 pm

Tone Deft wrote:
Tarekith wrote:I really need to get off my ass and program my SL37 one of these days...
I should read the manual.

there IS no manual.....er, at least not with the one I had. That was something that truely frustrated me. The "pamplet" that said "hey plug it in and it will be perfect" was wrong, there was no way to ask, and at that time I was one of the only ones who had one, so I could ask.

My temperature just went up 3 degrees thinking about it......

lis102trants · Post by **lis102trants** » Wed May 30, 2007 10:09 pm

My god I just played around with Automap Universal today (I never touch it) and WOW this thing is sweet!! I've owned a SL37 for about 8 months now and man this Automap saves a helluva lot of my time

eyeknow · Post by **eyeknow** » Wed May 30, 2007 10:28 pm

AND! This is another confusion......I though the automap was there from day one......

Look, I'm not trying to be mr. negative, I just really don't get all this mapping/etc.....seems like the promise is different than the result 100% of the time....

So let me see if I'm even close to getting on the same page with this......the "new" automap does what the first one promised? And, there is now honest/simple compatibility with plugs/hosts/etc?

R.J.Dubya · Post by **R.J.Dubya** » Wed May 30, 2007 10:52 pm

eyeknow wrote:
Tone Deft wrote:
Tarekith wrote:I really need to get off my ass and program my SL37 one of these days...
I should read the manual.
there IS no manual.....er, at least not with the one I had. That was something that truely frustrated me. The "pamplet" that said "hey plug it in and it will be perfect" was wrong, there was no way to ask, and at that time I was one of the only ones who had one, so I could ask.

My temperature just went up 3 degrees thinking about it......

There is a short getting started guide, as well as an excellent 60 page full user manual, which told me everything I need to know about the SL, at there website for download in the documentation section here: http://www.novationmusic.com/downloads. ... =30&type=3

A universal automap guide also comes with the OS installer, explaining how to use automap with each supported host. This is also available on that same page.

Both the SL user manual and automap guide are essential reads. It only takes a couple hours to get the good stuff, and you'll save yourself a lot of trouble, and maybe discover some cool feature you otherwise never would have known about. Eyeknow, it might even convince you to give it another shot, now that you know there's a manual...

Tone Deft · Post by **Tone Deft** » Wed May 30, 2007 10:57 pm

Doing a clean install of the new OS from
http://www.novationmusic.com/files/ReMO ... er_3_1.zip
and following RJ's posts on what's where will get you there.

I was one of the first users here to get an SL, it automapped brilliantly, the latest release is an updated version.

R.J.Dubya · Post by **R.J.Dubya** » Wed May 30, 2007 11:11 pm

eyeknow wrote:AND! This is another confusion......I though the automap was there from day one......

Look, I'm not trying to be mr. negative, I just really don't get all this mapping/etc.....seems like the promise is different than the result 100% of the time....

So let me see if I'm even close to getting on the same page with this......the "new" automap does what the first one promised? And, there is now honest/simple compatibility with plugs/hosts/etc?

Ok, automapping was there from day one, however every host handled automapping differently for plug-ins. For example, ableton set aside the top encoders for plug-ins only. Logic had the whole thing for mixer control on one setting, and then a toggle to control the selected plug-in with the whole thing. Sometimes, plug-ins automapped well, but sometimes they were a mess, and there was just endless parameters in not such a logical way. Especially in ableton this could be bad, because it only had eight controls set aside for plug-ins, so that's a lot of pages for the complex ones. And you couldn't edit the layout of automapped controls. They went where they went.

The new 'universal automap' is designed speciafically to give you control of the layout of your plug-ins by setting aside a plug-in automap template which is different from the host automap template. Before, this didn't exist, all automapping was done in the host automap tamplate (now called 'mixer automap'). All the same functionality is retained in the mixer automap, and ableton has kept it's own as well. So now for complex plug-ins, or ones that you want to customize, you use a novation wrapped version of each plug-in, and the plug-in automap template.

So basically, the first one did what it said, it just wasn't ideal for many things. The new one makes it better, but it's an addition, not a change.

I was still pretty midi-phobic until I got the SL, and then it got way easier.

corygilbert · Post by **corygilbert** » Thu May 31, 2007 3:11 am

yup!

I can see how older users of the automap may be confused.
It is amazingly integreted, and useful.
It's not the "end all, be all"
but, it is superior to the previous versions,
not packeged well, but still, if one takes the time to learn what it can do.
for 300$, it's a steal.
IMO, a very useful and well worth the $, piece of kit,
regardless of pads etc.