Jambé by SensorPoint is described as “a new electronic percussion instrument, with unlimited versatility.” Jambé uses an iOS app for the programming and configuration of layouts and sounds.

Earlier this year, at NAMM 2016, the team and I were invited to a small industry gathering.  At the gathering we had a chance to put hands on a few products. One of the products was the Jambé.

This advanced yet elegant design is made possible by the rich industry and musical experience of the Jambé team. John Worthington created and implemented the Macintosh MIDI Manager. He was project leader for Apple QuickTime and one of the creators of the AIFF file format. Mark Bain was a pioneer in the use of MPEG technologies for media authoring and delivery for Hollywood studios, and was directly involved with the introduction of DVD authoring and HD media players. He has designed multiple new OEM products involving advanced semiconductor sensors, Apple’s iPad, electronic compasses, and computerized lighting controls.

#Jambe the most expressive pad controller ever no joke!

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The Jambé is an expressive electronic drum pad / percussive instrument. It can be played by hand like bongos or with sticks like drums. I think Jambé shines when played by hand. It allows for the most expressive experience that I’ve ever had with any drum pad of any size. The developers use what they call “advanced high-resolution pressure sensor technology” for the pads and sensors.

Jambé is very comfortable on the hands but it can take a beating rather well. The special thing is that even the slightest touch, light tap, brush or rub has some sort of favorable output.

Take a look at at this video for a bit a demonstration.

Learn more and order at getjambe.com

Daniel Berkman jamming on Jambé during NAMM 2016. Jambé, a new versatile and expressive electronic percussion instrument was previewed last year at Winter NAMM, and in a series of sneak peaks for leading members of the Los Angeles music industry community. Jambé returns to NAMM in 2016 unveiling a vastly more powerful sound engine and an online store ready to take pre-orders.

Percussionists, producers and music tech aficionados alike were incredibly enthusiastic about Jambé and the qualities that make it unique – portability, extensibility, and the deep expressive possibilities of advanced high-resolution pressure sensor technology. After in-depth consultation with top players, the decision was made to rebuild the software from the ground up to better enable Jambé to exploit the full potential of its hardware.

The result is an incredibly powerful sound engine architecture dubbed Sample Powered Matrix synthesis or SPX. The software was created with the idea that a single hand or stick strike on a Jambé pad maps to an incredibly powerful individual voice, each with advanced expression and sound design features including:

jambepsrExpanded Gestural Interpretation – normal percussive strike detection and MPE (Multi-touch Polyphonic Expression) style performance techniques, with sounds triggered or modified while a pad is held.

Extensive Synthesis Tools – 2 LFOs, 3 envelopes, 2 tracking generators, and 2 ring modulators per voice. Over 30 modulation sources and over 40 modulation destinations.

Natural Sonic Variations – 3 sample lists per voice with up to 8 samples per list.

Sample List Modes – sequentially trigger the samples in a list, allowing stroke variations or sequential patterns. Crossfade between samples using a modulation matrix and trigger samples simultaneously for chords.

Gestural Crossfade Between Sample Lists – creates effects like a closed slap or dead stroke without tying up multiple pads for an open and closed slap.

Massive Polyphony – with the ability to use number of voices playing as a modifier for more natural sound layering.

Unique Features – use the number of voices sounding as a modulation parameter. Enables sculpting the sound as more voices play. Perfect for adding special character to rolls, etc.

Like today’s musicians, Jambé lives in a connected world. Need a new sound for a last-minute gig? Professionally designed instruments can be purchased through your the iOS device. Working with DAWs or other sound modules? MIDI Output allows connection to a world of other musical gear. Play with your hands or sticks? Jambé supports both. Jambé will ship in the 2nd quarter of 2016 and is now available for pre-ordering online. The first 200 customers on the store at getjambe.com can place their Jambé pre-order to secure a place in line, and also receive a $200 discount!

For more information head over to getjambe.com

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