Intuitive Instruments Expressive MPE Controller Exquis Gets an Exciting Update

video uploads by Intuitive Instruments

This unique MPE MIDI controller just got a major update
video upload by Stephen McLeod

0:00 - Intro
2:26 - Build + Controls
3:26 - Connectivity
4:37 - Note Layout + Scales
7:43 - MPE + Polyphonic Aftertouch
9:00 - MPE Arpeggiator
9:52 - Standalone Mode
11:33 - Desktop App
13:48 - Final thoughts

YOU can play this instrument
video upload by barnabydixon

Press release follows:


Both firmware and software updates are free of charge.

The version 2 of the firmware and companion software introduces several new features and a com-plete graphic redesign, offering enhanced customization options for the keyboard.

Now featuring up to 32 scales and 8 notes layouts onboard

In addition to a wide selection of factory scales and layouts, users can design their own custom scales and note layouts using Exquis’ companion software. Each key can be assigned individual MIDI values and colors, with the configurations stored directly in the keyboard’s memory for standalone use as a MIDI MPE controller. These custom files can also be shared with the com-munity, fostering collaboration and creativity..

Customizable MIDI Messages and Sensitivity Curves

MIDI CC values for the four rotary, clickable encoders and action buttons are now fully editable via Exquis’ companion sof-tware and saved to the device’s memory for standalone operation. Additionally, users can fine-tune sensitivity curves for all expressive dimensions -velocity, X, Y, and Z axes- ensuring optimal control and responsiveness.

A Redesigned Graphical Interface

The Exquis companion software now features a completely redesigned graphical interface for quick and intuitive use. With its spontaneous workflow, users can compose simple songs in moments. Designed to transform Exquis into a standalone electronic instrument, the app combines an enhanced looper (11 tracks, 44 loops) with a simple sequencer (11 events) and is compatible with all AU, VST, and VST3 plugins, running seamlessly on macOS and Windows.

Adaptable to Any Configuration
One standout feature of the Exquis application is its ability to adapt to any note layout, saving it as a track parameter or even linking it to a plugin preset. This makes it possible to create hybrid instruments tailored to specific soundscapes, unlocking new creative possibilities.


250 Expressive Presets Optimized for Exquis

The update also includes 100 brand-new factory presets for the Vital and Decent Sampler free MPE plugins, complementing the refreshed 150 presets for the Surge XT free MPE plugin. All these presets are available directly within the Exquis app, ready to load in a single click, com-plete with optimized note layouts.

https://dualo.com/en/exquis/

Exquis + MPE Plugins Bundle

video uploads by Intuitive Instruments

Press release follows:

Exquis + MPE Plugins Bundle at a Reduced Price

Intuitive Instruments announces an extraordinary partnership with renowned developers of plugins optimized for the Exquis keyboard.

Exquis, winner of the 2023 MIDI Innovation Awards

Named «Best Hardware of the Year 2023» by a distinguished jury including Jean-Michel Jarre and Roger Linn, Exquis is an expressive and intuitive MPE controller. Each key provides independent gestural control over four dimensions: velocity, pressure, horizontal tilt, and vertical tilt.

Thanks to its MPE compatibility, Exquis enables seamless and natural interaction with virtual synthesizers, delivering pre-cise and dynamic gestural control. It becomes a direct extension of the artist’s creativity, allowing full exploitation of the plugins’ sonic potential with unprecedented freedom and spontaneity.

Renowned MPE Plugins Designed for Expressiveness

Intuitive Instruments offers an exclusive bundle of plugins, carefully selected for their synergy with Exquis’s expressive ca-pabilities:

Atoms (BABY Audio) : A synthesizer based on physical modeling, Atoms creates organic and unique sounds. Per-fect for crafting original soundscapes, it excels in productions requiring realistic and atmospheric textures. Baby Audio is especially known for its collaboration with YouTuber Andrew Huang. Demo: Exquis+Atoms

RANDOM (BEATSURFING) : Leveraging a neural network, RANDOM delivers unique sound design pos-sibilities. It includes various controls for navigating through distinctive sounds using synthesis and resonance systems, ideal for creating unpredictable sonic textures. RANDOM was ranked #2 in Andrew Huang’s Top 10 Plugins of 2023.

Abyss (Dawesome) : Abyss is an MPE synthesizer perfect for crafting evolving and immersive sounds. Ideal for composing rich textures, cinematic pads, and deep drones, it evolves under your fingertips on Exquis’s keys.

SOUNDBOX (Audiomodern) : A fully customizable MPE sampler, SOUNDBOX features a complete audio
editor, a vector engine, and effects. The bundle includes three exclusive sound packs: Voxmotive, Kromium, and Cosmo.

Formats and Compatibility

The plugins are available in standard formats (standalone, VST, VST3, AU, AAX), ensuring seamless compatibility with leading digital audio workstations (DAWs) on macOS and Windows.

Pricing and Availability
Intuitive Instruments offers two bundles including Exquis and one option without the keyboard:

Exquis Pure + 2 plug-ins of your choice: 359€ / $359

Exquis Deluxe + 2 plug-ins of your choice: 399€ / $399

2 plug-ins of your choice: 99€ / $99

These offers are available exclusively on the dualo.com website in limited quantities until December 31, 2024.

SUPERBOOTH 2024: Intuitive Instruments - Exquis Expressive Controller

video upload by sonicstate

"At Superbooth 2024, Serguei from Intuitive Instruments showcased their latest improvements to Exquis *their expressive controller. *Exquis offers pressure, velocity, and positional sensitivity. Since NAMM, Intuitive Instruments has been working on a new firmware that includes improved sensitivity settings and note layouts based on user feedback. Besides the traditional hexagonal layout, they now offer options such as the harmonic table layout for chord playing and microtonal music enthusiasts. Users will soon be able to customize individual key values via the app, expanding the creative possibilities of the instrument.

Exquis is currently available for purchase on their website. offering a versatile performance tool that can be connected via USB, MIDI, or CV for compatibility with various setups. The built-in app acts as a plug-in host, allowing users to load VSTs, save presets, create tracks, and record loops directly from the keyboard.

Exquis Price: 299 Euros

https://dualo.com/en/"

NAMM 2024: Intuitive Instruments - Exquis - Sounds Only

video upload by sonicstate

"Jim Heywood of Earmonkey Music (check them out) gives us a demonstration of the Exquis exploring its key layout and showing off its MPE expressivity.
Exquis Price: 299 USD
https://dualo.com/en/exquis/"

NAMM 2024 - Intuitive Instruments - Exquis

video upload by sonicstate

"Sonic State caught up with Serguei from Intuitive Instruments at NAMM 2024 who showed us their latest innovation, the Exquis MPE Controller. Serguei explains that the Exquis is a highly expressive MIDI controller compatible with various software, synthesizers, and modular setups. The controller features a unique keyboard layout with a patented note arrangement, providing users with an intuitive and logical structure for playing semitones, thirds (major or minor), and scales. Serguei demonstrated the smooth and expressive capabilities of the keyboard, demonstrating pitch bends and expressive play.

Exquis Price 299 USD

https://dualo.com/en/exquis/"

Intuitive Instruments Exquis Hexagonal Keyboard

video uploads by dualo by Intuitive Instruments

Playlist:
Exquis - The smartest way to create expressive music
Loïc, accordeonist and du-touch player, is testing Exquis
Knarf, synthfluencer at LesSondiers.com testing Exquis

Currently on Kickstarter

"Making music is all about finding the right notes and assembling them in rhythm. But whatever the instrument, device or software, it still takes time and effort to master theory and technique.

At Intuitive Instruments, we have figured out a smarter way to play and compose today’s music, that makes it intuitive and logical for anyone.


Explore, have fun, surprise yourself, find inspiration. Above all, composing music is about emotion. Exquis provides an intuitive way to lead you to the right path, still allowing you to play out of it. No need to think: just choose a scale and follow its illuminated path.

Thanks to our patented layout, making chords is easy; Exquis puts notes that sound well together right next to one another. You’ll be amazed how harmony falls under your fingers.

Your notes, your chords, your music

Beginner, amateur or professional musicians, we all want to shorten the time between an idea and its execution. Exquis gives you the fastest access to the rules of harmony, so you can improvise with or without any theoretical background.

Then, thanks to Exquis’s unique and spontaneous creative workflow, just pick a sound, play, record your own loops and create a full song in minutes!

Expressivity at your fingertips

There is no need to play lots of notes when you can bring them to life. Exquis’s expressive keys are designed to be mastered in minutes while offering a huge potential for expert gestures. Inspired by the finesse of acoustic instruments, Exquis keys are both firm enough to play percussion and short notes with precision, and soft enough to modulate long notes with sensibility.

Sculpt your music with emotion; hit, press, and bend the keys independently thanks to the MIDI Polyphonic Expression protocol (MPE).

And in addition, use the 4 clickable potentiometers and the touch slider to increase the possibilities of sound and music control: effects, note/beat repeat,...

The Exquis multi-platform app is the perfect companion for the keyboard, as well as an autonomous MIDI-compatible DAW. Compose entire songs within seconds thanks to a unique workflow we have been perfecting for 15 years, which is approved today by thousands of musicians worldwide for its spontaneity and efficiency.

The app and the controller work in symbiosis to provide an easy and chronological music production logic. From left to right, pilot the essential actions with simple gestures, directly on the keyboard and/or in the app:

Settings : prepare your song (tempo, scale, default quantization…)
Sounds : pick a sound plugin and preset to create a new “track”
Record : record “clips” and preset the recording behavior (start condition, length, overdub)
Tracks : just like a director in an orchestra, decide which clips to launch and stop in real time
Scenes : save and launch states of your song (e.g: intro, verse, chorus…)
Play/Stop : play/stop your song, and select another project"

We designed the Exquis’s workflow by taking into consideration two temporalities: you can both play live safely and take your time to create in your bubble. Most usual actions only require handling the keyboard, whereas advanced actions taking more time like programming (clip/scene duration, follow actions…) are to be made via the app.

The interface of the app is designed following the same logic, turning your device into a customizable heads-up display and an alternative interface to all your actions, especially if you play with another MIDI controller.

In order to allow musicians to create new rhythms and moods, the Exquis app natively includes exclusive functionalities never seen in a DAW before. For example, as we were inspired by the workshops of Jacob Collier, the app provides an easy way to play with tuplets: uncommon beat divisions such as 1/5 or 1/7, useful to create grooves with a drunk feel."

See the kickstarter campaign for additional details.

NAMM 2022 - Intuitive Instruments Dualo

video upload by European Motion Picture Association

https://dualo.com

See the Dualo label below for more.