There are still many situations in which cables have some advantages for control, as we saw in this week’s tutorial on iPad connections. But two separate crowd-funded projects are working on high-performance wireless solutions for music controllers. That could open up the chance for performers to move around, take advantage of tilt sensors and other location tools inside controllers, and work with gear in studio situations more flexibly.
Keith McMillen already has a track record using crowd funding to support projects – and they’ve been getting better at it. After the “3D” grid-and-ribbon QuNeo suffered production delays, the keyboard-style QuNexus shipped quickly to backers – and the QuNeo continued to mature as a product. Now, the QuNeo is getting an accessory called the Rogue (not to be confused with the Moog synth of the same name), an add-on that adds extended battery life and wireless connections.
The whole thing attaches via velcro, lasts 12 hours, and uses the 2.45GHz wireless band (not the crowded WiFi spectrum) to make connections. US$315-400 gets you the Rogue, with a QuNeo added in if you don’t already own one for $405-500.
Make a robot friend with Adafruit’s CRICKIT – A Creative Robotics & Interactive Construction Kit. It’s an add-on to our popular Circuit Playground Express, FEATHER and other platforms to make and program robots with CircuitPython, MakeCode, and Arduino. Start controlling motors, servos, solenoids. You also get signal pins, capacitive touch sensors, a NeoPixel driver and amplified speaker output. It complements & extends your boards so you can still use all the goodies on the microcontroller, now you have a robotics playground as well.
