Embodme Erae 2 firmware 2.1 adds an expressive 256-step sequencer

Embodme, the French maker of the Erae 2 touch controller, has released version 2.1 of its software and firmware (2.1.0, followed by the 2.1.1 bug-fix release, at the end of October). The update is free and installs through the Erae Lab app. It adds what the surface most obviously lacked: a step sequencer that records not just notes but the pressure and gestures of each finger, plus custom scales, microtonal ones included. This article is based on Embodme’s official patch notes and the Erae 2 product page.

Who it is for

The Erae 2 is a programmable playing surface: in Erae Lab you draw keyboards, pads, faders or XY zones, and each element sends MIDI or control voltages. It supports MPE, the protocol that sends pitch, pressure and slide independently for every note (see our explainer on polyphonic aftertouch and MPE). Firmware 2.1 targets three kinds of player:

• modular users who want to sequence without a computer, using the unit’s CV/gate outputs;
• MPE players who want to capture their gestures (pressure, vibrato, slides) in an editable loop instead of replaying them;
• live performers who chain patterns without reaching for a mouse.

What firmware 2.1 adds

A sequencer for every element

Each layout gets eight patterns of up to 256 steps, on the Erae 2 and on the first-generation Erae Touch. Notes are drawn directly on the surface, then shaped on four lanes: note, pressure, slide and pitch. You can also record the X, Y and pressure gestures played on a keyboard element, and automate faders and buttons. The clock is internal or synced to the DAW, and patterns can be chained as subsequences. Live pattern changes either wait for the loop to end or jump straight away, as the official demo below shows.

Bounce Loop: from loop to pattern

The Erae 2 already had an eight-track looper. Bounce Loop turns a recorded loop into a sequencer pattern, so you can improvise first and fix individual notes afterwards. It bridges free playing and programming.

Custom and microtonal scales

Erae Lab’s Scale Manager builds scales for keyboard elements: equal divisions of the octave, free ratios, a root set as a note or a frequency, and Scala import and export (Scala being the standard file format for microtonal tunings). Custom scales require MPE mode and are exclusive to the Erae 2; the Erae Touch keeps to the built-in scales.

Everything else

• visual feedback for patterns holding notes, playheads and layouts playing in the background;
• editing shortcuts (hold Sequencer, Scale or Mapping, then touch an element);
• reworked spring faders with adjustable stiffness, drag, speed and bounce;
• one loop kept per layout across pattern changes and power cycles;
• fixes for CV output routing, pedals, MPE and firmware updating.

Embodme also adds a diagnostics setting (full, without identifiers by default, or off), with reports deleted after 180 days.

What it costs

The update is free. The Erae 2 sells for $950 in Embodme’s store, or $1,039 bundled with Erae Sound, the company’s own software synth. Embodme quotes 16,000 force sensors and 100 µm accuracy on the X and Y axes.

What it competes with

The Push 3 runs Ableton Live on board and remains the more coherent choice for anyone already working in it. The Erae 2 bets on a redrawable surface and built-in CV/gate outputs. The LinnStrument offers a proven grid layout, but that layout is fixed. What sets the Erae 2 apart is the redrawable surface and, from now on, gesture sequencing. To connect it to a modular system, our CV/Gate guide covers the basics.

The official demo

Embodme walks through the sequencer in a full video:

The firmware comes with the Erae Lab app on Embodme’s downloads page. More controllers and sequencers are in our Sequencers & Control section, and recent updates in Firmware Updates.