It was a mixed week for expressive music technology. One established plugin gained per-note support, one well-known hardware brand ran into serious trouble, and two new controllers arrived with very different ideas about expression. Here is the round-up.
FabFilter Twin 3 update 3.10 brings MPE
According to Synth Anatomy, FabFilter has released update 3.10 for Twin 3, adding MPE support to the subtractive synth. Twin has long been admired for its modulation interface, so per-note pressure, slide and pitch bend are a natural fit.
If you own Twin 3, check the FabFilter site for the update and release notes. As with any new MPE implementation, test your pitch bend range first: a mismatch between controller and plugin is the most common cause of out-of-tune glides.
ROLI enters administration for the second time
The less welcome news: Synth Anatomy reports, citing The Times and Administrator UK, that ROLI has entered administration for the second time. The article says products on the ROLI site are out of stock and that customers report unshipped orders.
ROLI's Seaboard instruments helped popularise MPE, so this matters to the whole ecosystem. What it means in practice is not yet clear. If you have an order pending, contact your payment provider or retailer about your options, and avoid assuming the brand's software and support will continue unchanged. If you already own a Seaboard, keep a local copy of any installers and presets you rely on.
Behringer Polykeys 61: polyphonic aftertouch, open source
Behringer introduced the Polykeys 61, which Synth Anatomy describes as an open-source MIDI keyboard controller with polyphonic aftertouch. Polyphonic aftertouch gives you pressure for each key, which is a real step up from channel aftertouch.
It is important to note what this is not. Polyphonic aftertouch sends per-key pressure on a single channel. It does not give you per-note pitch bend or slide the way MPE does. For synths that map poly aftertouch, it can be a very affordable route to more expressive playing. For full MPE, you still want an MPE-capable controller such as an Expressive E Osmose or a LinnStrument.
Electra One Mk3 opens for pre-order
The Electra One Mk3 is a programmable MIDI controller with an 8-inch 1280x800 display, USB host, 5-pin MIDI and Ethernet for RTP MIDI, OSC and MIDI 2.0. Per Synth Anatomy, it is available for pre-order at 599€, with shipping starting in February 2027. MPE is not mentioned in the announcement, so treat it as a control surface for your rig rather than an expressive playing surface.
Open firmware keeps spreading
Several other launches carried a common thread: Behringer's BCR32 and Ignite, and Akai's MPC Sample and SampleKey, all lean on open or community firmware. None is billed as an MPE product, but community code is how many niche expressive features appear. Read more in our piece on open firmware and expressive players.
What to take away
- Software keeps moving toward MPE. More established synths are adding per-note support through free or paid updates.
- Hardware is less certain. Brand instability, as with ROLI, is a reminder to value open standards and documented behaviour over any single maker.
- Read the labels. Polyphonic aftertouch and MPE are different things, and so are controllers and control surfaces. Our guide What is MPE? explains the difference.
We will keep following these stories and report confirmed developments as they land. For official specifications, the MIDI Association remains the best reference.