Building your audio production setup can become challenging. There are so many great options to choose from. Universal Audio Digital products have long made some really impressive products that are kind of unique and special in their own way. They have created Luna, a digital audio workstation that is something special and different from other DAWs. But that means that they need a unique control surface to be compatible with this very special DAW.
Adding a Control Surface
As we have said many times, it is possible to create some great sounds with just the most basic of recording equipment. People have done awesome recordings with just their phones and some software. But when you have a deep love of sound, you want to find out some of the cool stuff that you can do with it.
I started to experiment with sound as a kid and I have never really stopped. Audio editing is just an adult way that I can still keep playing with sound and make it something that I really love. A digital audio workstation gives you the software to change things up and make in your own.
But there is no other DAW that is quite as unique as Luna. When Universal Audio released the product, it had many faults. There were many bugs but the company has worked on them and made it a lot better with time. Now it gives you many options that other DAWs don’t allow.
For example, Luna is built on a database. And that is why you won’t be able to find the save feature on this program since there isn’t one. It saves as you work and every change you make will be saved onto the database automatically. Meaning you never have to fear losing progress because a battery on a device dies.
It also means that all the changes you have ever made on the piece have been saved. You can undo it right up to the start of creating the piece. It gives you loads of options to choose from. If you combine a control station with this product it will give you even great options to edit your pieces.
But a product as unique as Luna is not compatible with all other control surfaces. You need an MCU control surface or it won’t work on Luna. You also need to make sure that the software is updated or it could stop working.
Since there are fewer control surfaces that work with Luna, you want one that is really strong. So, let’s look at some of the best options.
1. Behringer X-TOUCH
- What I Love: How versatile it is
- What I Dislike: How chunky it is
This control surface is a favorite and has been on a number of our favorite control surface lists. That is because it has quickly become a piece of equipment that many audio producers love. It is a versatile control surface that once again proves its worth by being compatible with Luna.
The X-Touch is easy to use but it still gives you plenty of options and it is very unlikely that there is a feature you need that can’t be found on this control surface. It has many different connection options and it also has many features that allow for smooth editing while using Luna. Since Luna does save everything, you can easily return to the previous version if you have made a mistake. But you won’t have to worry about that too much with the help of the X-Touch.
The buttons, motorized faders, and the knobs all combine well to give you all the control and versatility of a much more expensive control surface. That is why it is considered a professional piece and why many great producers use it.
It is a big control surface and not what anyone would think of when you think of something that is smooth and sleek, but its chunky frame is durable and gets the job done.
2. PreSonus Faderport
- What I Love: Simple and easy-to-use design
- What I Dislike: Fewer options
Now let’s go from a control surface that is packed with features, like the X-Touch to a relatively simple and straightforward control surface in the PreSonus Faderport. This is a control surface that is designed to be easy to use and simple to understand.
It doesn’t give you as many options as some other control surfaces, since there aren’t a lot of buttons, but the encoders are impressive. The single motorized fader is also easy to use. This entire system has been made with simplicity in mind for the intuitive producer. It gives you everything that you really need to create some impressive sounds, but to do it easily.
There aren’t a lot of options to choose from but it makes sense with this option since the PreSonus Faderport has been made to use with your computer keyboard. Some control surfaces are made to eliminate the use of the keyboard, but this one combines both elements instead. It is a really handy little control surface that is portable too.
You can also use other versions of the PreSonus Faderport with Luna since they are also compatible.
3. Icon Pro Audio Platform M+
- What I Love: Can build on it in the future
- What I Dislike: Takes some getting used to
This is a great control surface when you want a solid professional product that gives you many options. But you want the choice to be able to expand on this later on. The Icon Pro works with Luna and you can use it as a control surface on its own, but you can also add more Icon Pro Audio components later and create a bigger control surface.
The Icon Pro Audio Platform M+ gives you 8 channel faders along with a master fader that will give you plenty of great creative opportunities. Extra pieces will then be added if you need extra displays or connections and even more master faders.
This is a quality product that is more on the expensive side and that is another reason why it is a great bonus that you can buy a piece at a time. Not only does it give you the time to budget smaller pieces at a time, but it also gives you the time to get to know this control surface.
That is probably a really good thing since this control surface does take some getting used to. It is harder to use than some other options, but worth it when you eventually know the system well. When using Luna, you will have a lot of great options to take your productivity to new levels.
Combining a Great Control Surface with UAD Luna
Luna is an amazing digital audio workstation that has many unique features that you won’t find on any other DAW. It has options like undoing changes right back to the start when you first recorded the sound. It also saves your changes automatically on the database.
Luna might have had some bugs at the start but now it has become a great piece of audio editing and recording software to use in audio production. It does need an MCU control surface to be compatible, but there are some really great control surfaces that are Mackie compatible, you can find something that helps you create amazing pieces of sound.
