5 of our most asked questions, answered!

Here at Monogram, we’re all about helping our users scratch their creativity itch and take their editing workflow to the next level. As our community grows, we wanted to answer some of our most asked questions by customers.

Without further ado, let’s dive in!

Does monogram work with all DAWs?

In short, yes! Monogram consoles are universally compatible with DAWs or plugins that support MIDI input. This includes software like Logic Pro, Cubase, Ableton, FL Studio, Reaper, Adobe Audition and many more. If you’re really curious, our support team is always available to answer additional questions you may have. Click here to send them a question!

How often do you make updates to the app integrations and are you working on any new Integrations?

At Monogram, we want to give our users as much power and control as the software we work with allows - after all we’re creatives ourselves and we know each workflow is different. We’re constantly working to improve user experience with Monogram hardware and software with the Monogram Creator App. We work very closely with teams at Adobe, Capture One and others to create integrations based on customer requests and feedback. Also, We’re always looking at adding new functionality as each app gains new updates to enhance and adapt to new workflows. We’ve recently introduced Upgrades that will provide our newest customers with the most up-to-date features that our partners are working on. And of course, we regularly release bug fixes and updates as needed.

Recently, in an effort to improve the workflow users have with apps they use on a regular basis outside of the creative space we released our Mini Console and integrated 6 of the most commonly requested everyday productivity apps; Zoom, Apple Music, Microsoft Teams, Google Chrome, Safari, and Spotify. As we continue to learn more about what our users are looking for, we add new integrations that we think would be beneficial to you. We already have a few in the works that we think you’ll be excited about!

If you would like to submit a request for a new integration, simply let our support team know and we’ll work as best we can with our software teams to implement it.

What is Monogram’s universal compatibility and limitations with some software?

Something we get asked about a lot is whether we have compatibility with softwares outside of the ones we have native integrations with. The short answer is yes. Native integrations are those in which we work directly with teams to develop (ie. Adobe) however as we mentioned above Creative Console also works as a universal MIDI device, which means it can be used to send standard MIDI messages to nearly any DAW or Plugin. We have customers using it successfully to control plugins/libraries like Spitfire, East/West, other Kontakt libraries within the highly inquired, Studio One and others.

Another popular application we get asked about is DaVinci Resolve. Our Monogram consoles work with Davinci Resolve by assigning all of your most-used Resolve shortcuts to dials, keys, and Orbiter. This is great for editing tasks like jogging, trimming, nudging, and setting the in/out points of your clips, for example. A lot more is possible too - basically everything that is supported by a Resolve shortcut can be assigned to a Monogram console.

However, we do not support Color Grading or Audio Mixing in Resolve at this time, and may never - but not for lack of interest. We would love to work with the team at DaVinci to provide a tool that is accessible, affordable, and customizable for color and audio.

We often work with companies directly or through an SDK to build a custom integration that hooks deep into the software itself (A native integration), which we find provides the best user experience. However, at this point we do not have access to connect to DaVinci’s software to enable access to control these features.

Unsure about whether or not we support the software you use or have any questions about it? Send us an email and we’ll let you know!

What are some of the limitations when using the console?

Limitations are inevitable, however we continue to work on improving each of them based on the number of requests we receive and the priority for our customers.

For starters, we have a specs requirement when it comes to the oldest version of MacOS that Monogram Creator can be used with. We have a legacy build of Monogram Creator available for download that supports use with older versions MacOS like 10.13 and 10.12.

MacOS versions earlier than 10.12 are not supported and this number gets updated to a newer version as we continue to update our latest specs and requirements. We of course would like to support every version of MacOS, however, it’s in our best interest to support customers by building and improving upon the latest versions. We recommend upgrading to the latest macOS supported by Monogram Creator so that you can receive the latest updates and features we come out with.

Another thing we often get asked about is whether or not two Monogram Cores can be used at the same time. As of now, Monogram Creator does not support the use of two Cores simultaneously. However, this doesn’t mean it never will. Keep your eye out to see if we implement this in the future.

Finally, when it comes to having Monogram Creator open while using your console, it’s not necessary to have the window open but it does need to be running in the background. We developed a preference setting so that the window itself can be closed and Monogram Creator will run in the background. Just go to Preferences > Window and enable “Close to System Tray” (Windows) or “Close to Menu Bar” (Mac), and hit done!

Are you going to release new modules or consoles in the future?

Of course! Improving our users' interaction with software is at the core of what we do at Monogram. We’ve had many requests for new modules and our R&D team is consistently testing, learning and iterating on new ideas to make interacting with software even more compelling. In fact, we just launched our first new color, Studio Charcoal.

Improving our users' interaction with software is at the core of what we do at Monogram and each module that currently exists at Monogram was born out of direct needs and functionality provided within creative workflows. Almost every module has a multitude of uses, for example; dial with a press, press and hold with buttons, a pressure sensitive disc and endless encoder on Orbiter, and many more.

Are you working on any other new products?

Improving human computer interactions is what excites us! In fact, we have a brand new product in the works and we’ll be providing more details later this year. We can’t give you any hints just yet but we think you’ll love it. Stay tuned!