ROLI have announced BLOCKS Dashboard is now available as an open beta release to all BLOCKS creators. Dashboard is a free, bundled application that integrates ROLI's new BLOCKS system - Lightpad Block, Live Block, and Loop Block - with leading digital audio workstations (DAWs) and plug-ins. Through BLOCKS Dashboard you can control Logic Pro, Ableton Live, and other software programs in a new, intuitive, faster way.
BLOCKS creators can download it today and start exploring a hugely exciting new side of the modular music creation system.
This is a beta version, so not all features are complete. In coming months more functions and more granular control of software programs will be added.
The videos below show how you can customize BLOCKS for your workflow when using four of the most popular DAWs: Logic Pro, GarageBand, Ableton Live, and Bitwig Studio.
As you can see from the videos, the Lightpad Block, Live Block and Loop Block become open-ended MIDI control surfaces through BLOCKS Dashboard. You can configure different display modes on the surface to control instruments and parameters within your favourite programs. The LED-illuminated Lightpad Block, for example, can become a bank of faders controlling a program’s effects — or a 2×2 or 4×4 drum pad controlling drums in your chosen synth.
ROLI say they will soon add capabilities for creating your own modes and controlling existing modes in more granular ways.
This new blog is presented by the team at Sound Technology Ltd, a leading distributor of musical instruments and pro audio equipment in the UK and ROI.
