New Bela Gliss 1U Gives You A New Way To Control Your Modular Synthesizer
Mark Smith from the Bela development team let us know that they’ve introduced a new 1U format version of their Gliss module, which offers new ways to control your modular synth, and that they’ve released a free firmware update, which, among other things, bumps gesture recording time up to 150 seconds and adds adjustable slew rates for turning each touch into a user-defined envelope.
The new module is a 1U take on their Euro-format Gliss module. If you already own the Euro version, they are even offering the option to convert your Gliss module to 1U with a new touchplate.
Like the original version, the Gliss is a precise touch controller for modular synthesizers. It produces two high-resolution signals: one following your finger’s position, the other following touch size. These signals are available via two CV outputs, offering two distinct but related dimensions of control to route around your system.
Gestures can also be recorded for up to 150 seconds and then played back looped, triggered, clocked, and more, facilitating everything from touch-controlled, long-form modulation signals, to custom LFOs, envelopes and oscillators.
Gliss also has a mode for processing incoming audio and CV signals where you can scale, offset, clip and smooth it, expanding CV utility work into an interactive, performative domain, as well as a mode that offers 5 tunable notes that are playable as a keyboard or a step sequencer.
Gliss Firmware v2
The new firmware, which is standard now on new modules, expands on the power of the original Gliss module, with the following features:
- Slider + Touch input. This is a new touch control type for both Record and Control Modes that combines a position slider with a pressure-sensitive button, providing a new interface for expressive gestures and live modulation.
- Customizable slew rates. In Control Mode, you can now set custom attack and decay slew rates, providing user-adjustable curves up and down from your touch point. This means that you no longer need an envelope generator to control the rate at which your touches start and finish – you can set it all right within Gliss from 0-100 seconds.
- Extended gesture recording length. Record Mode now supports gestures up to 150 seconds in length for Loop, Trigger, Wavetable and Waveshaper playback, ideal for more detailed, evolving performances.
- Enhanced editing in Wavetable and Waveshaper playback. You can now trim the start and end points of your recorded gesture, opening the way to exploring the sound of smaller segments of the waveform. This unlocks new timbral possibilities when used as an oscillator and interesting interpolations between Waveshaper recordings.
- Improved voltage range options. A new ±1V preset is now available for video synth and modulation wheel applications, along with a color-coded UI to make seeing custom voltage ranges easy.
If you already own a Gliss, the new firmware is available as free update.
Gliss 1U is available now for $149. A Gliss 1U faceplate, which lets you convert existing Gliss modules to 1U, is also available for $45.
