CME’s “inspired by Behringer” SWIDI controller was a joke… but now it is real
Last week, CME told us that it was working on a Bluetooth MIDI keyboard/step sequencer – SWIDI – that was inspired by Behringer’s Swing, which itself is very similar to Arturia KeyStep. Now we discover that the whole thing was a wind-up, but now – as of 1 April – it is real.
Now they’ve updated their page with the heading “Rip-off or Kick-off?”, asking customers to decide the fate of the new controller.
Apparently SWIDI is now an actual thing – or “the joke that isn’t a joke about a clone of a clone that isn’t a clone,” as CME puts it – or rather it will be if 3,000 people register their interest to get a 50% discount during the presale. The target retail price is $79.
CME is calling SWIDI a “crowd creation project,” which means that it’s inviting feedback on what features it should have. You’ll be able to offer yours once you’ve registered.
Questions that the company is asking customers do decide include:
Do you want it to be wired or wireless?
Do you want CV/gate or USB ports?
Do you need polyAT? Do you require battery power or wireless charging?
Do you prefer wired or wireless?
All we know for sure is that the controller will feature CME’s WIDI technology, a highly configurable, low-latency wireless Bluetooth MIDI standard.
That’s assuming that SWIDI really does become a reality, at this point.
If you’re interested in sharing input on the development of the SWIDI, see the CME website.
