Frequently Asked Questions

You can plug CMPSR into any device and play musical notes by moving the joystick. The buttons help you to play more intricate notes and chords.

Any device such as a laptop, tablet or phone with a music-making app on it. See our tutorial here (link needed)

You can plug CMPSR into any MIDI-enabled piece of software or hardware. Here are some examples (link needed)

MIDI stands for Music Instrument Digital Interface and is the language all music equipment has used to communicate since the 80s

The joystick is the main interface for playing musical notes. Each direction plays a note and you can play harder or softer depending on how fast you move the joystick. You can see our video here for joystick playing techniques. (link needed)

There is a button underneath CMPSR, near the connection point for USB C. Press once to turn it on and the LED on the top of the instrument near the joystick will turn green. To turn off, press and hold until you feel 3 x vibrations. After the long, third vibration, remove your finger and the device will power off.

That is up to you. It was initially designed with the buttons at the top and joystick at the bottom but many people preferred buttons at the bottom and joystick at the top so this is now the standard setting. You can select any of the main compass points to orientate the instrument to suit your style.

No, CMPSR has been designed as a portable hand-held or mounted instrument. The inner box that CMPSR ships in also turns into a handy desktop stand and avoids going to landfill, which is nice. So don’t throw it away and keep hold of it.

It depends on whether you are using the 1/ provided stand or 2/ RAM Mount.
1/Take all parts out of the box so you are left with just the foam and the cardboard outer layer. Fold the sides of the box flat and then follow the creases to fold each edge up into a triangle, giving you sideways support. Video here
2/ Firstly, screw the diamond base onto the underside of CMPSR. Then loosen the screw on the arm and place one end over the ball attached to the diamond base and the other end to the ball attached to the ToughClaw. Now, tighten slightly so the balls are not able to slide out. You can now use the two joints to get your CMPSR into a comfortable position and tighten the screw fully to prevent movement. Video Here (link needed).

Find the button underneath CMPSR which is close to the USB input and press it once. This will make the LED near the joystick flash blue to show Bluetooth is advertising. Ensure your device is discoverable (please refer to your device user manual if unsure) and connect/pair with CMPSR. Follow our user guide here (link needed).

CMPSR itself will work with any device that accepts MIDI, however, the firmware updating software and companion app currently only work with Mac OS 11 and 12.

Open the Digit Music app on your Mac and connect your CMPSR device via the provided USB cable. Select your device once connected and press upload new firmware navigate to the firmware update file you have downloaded and select to start updating.
IMPORTANT: Do not disconnect your device while updating

Composer – kuhm·pow·zuh

All major titles including Ableton, Logic X, Bitwig, Fruity Loops, Cubase, Protools, Soundtrap, Bandlab, Garageband

Using Bluetooth to send low latency MIDI. Press the button on the bottom of CMPSR to advertise and turn on Bluetooth discovery on your device. Follow our guide here. (link needed).

Plug one end of the USB C cable into cmpsr and the other end into your device. An adaptor may be required if your device does not accept USB C. Your device will recognise CMPSR and be able to receive MIDI.

The pads do many things but in the simplest mode, they allow you to play more than one note at a time with the joystick. Buttons 1 and 2 can be used to control your software, 3 is for sustain, 4 is for chord mode and 5&6 add flavour to the chords you are playing. Watch our quick start guide here. (link coming soon).

A haptic motor vibrates when activated and makes CMPSR vibrate too, like your mobile phone. This means we can let people know which buttons are pressed, or which octave they are in, without having to see the LED lights.

Yes, of course. Any programme that accepts MIDI can be controlled with CMPSR and it is especially good for live visuals and lighting control. You can also control Pioneer DJ software (coming soon). We have lots of exciting updates coming over the next 6 months so watch this space to see what you can do next.

Sleep mode means the battery will last for 3+ days while idle. When in full use, CMPSR can last up to 12 hours.

CMPSR interfaces with any MIDI-enabled instrument or sound source, meaning it can sound like any traditional or nontraditional instrument you want. It does not have sounds built directly into it.

Green means the instruments are powered on.
Red means the battery needs charging
Flashing Blue means the Bluetooth is being advertised
Solid Blue means Bluetooth is connected to a device (laptop, smartphone, tablet etc).