Nektar Aura - Beat Composer and DAW Controller, Metallic Grey

AURA, a powerful beat creation and performance instrument, is a MIDI pad controller with 16 hyper-sensitive RGB-illuminated pads that are great for finger drumming and trigger at the lightest touch. The pads on this MIDI pad controller are highly customizable, allowing users to tweak pad sensitivity to their needs and playing style by choosing one of 4 different velocity curves with adjustable bias parameter. Pad pressure is also assignable to Aftertouch, Pitch Bend, or other MIDI CCs, and users can set a dedicated MIDI channel for each pad, as well as route the MIDI In note to a different MIDI note.

AURA's on-board Pad Repeat engine is directly accessible, offering a dedicated on/off button and settings menu. Users can use Repeat to create rolls or other percussive lines that would be hard to play by hand, with highly customizable realtime parameters for groove and speed control. The first 6 RGB LED buttons above the display also allow users to switch repeat rates in real-time, enabling the creation of truly dynamic rolls by using pad pressure to control velocity while changing the repeat rates.

The on-board hardware step sequencer is a great tool for creative beat composition, with 16 Collections of 16 patterns each providing plenty of room for groove ideas. Each pattern (one per pad) has a total of up to 64 steps split across 4 parts, and parts may be triggered in any combination at any time, allowing for the creation of new variations intuitively. Realtime editing features, such as changing the Play Rate, dialing in a fixed Velocity and Accent Level Offset, setting a Length for the events, or adding Swing, are available down to the step level.

AURA's deep DAW integration allows users to select tracks, navigate projects, or control extended transport functions directly from the hardware, with Nektar's integration software taking care of all required setup tasks. In 'Internal' mode, AURA works as a self-contained programmable generic MIDI pad controller, with the ability to store pad and control assignments for the 16 pads, 8 pots, 7 switches, and 2 foot switch connections in one of 16 presets for instant recall.

One of AURA's standout features is its ability to control VST, VST3, and AU instrument and FX plugins directly from the hardware, with full feedback on the display. The included Nektarine plugin allows users to create kits with up to 16 different instrument plugins, 64 insert FX-plugins, and an additional 4 send FX, all playing on one track in the user's DAW. The powerful Nektarine browser provides a database for managing thousands of patches and kits, with customizable tags and sorting tools accessible directly from AURA.

In summary, AURA is a versatile and powerful beat creation and performance instrument that offers a seamless integration of hardware and software, allowing users to play, sequence, and control their plugins with ease, all while providing a highly customizable and engaging user experience.

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