With NAMM fast approaching, it seems everyone is holding off on their big announcements until the conference gets underway next week. Luckily, we were still able to gather some useful odds and ends from the tech-related goings on this week—including a new line of Novation controllers, an update on the Moog synth teased last week, and an extensive look at Ableton Live 9.

First, in case you missed it:

– Earlier in the week, we posted a review of the next generation in Native Instrument’s Mashine line, the colorful sampler/contorller/workstation Maschine mkII. Read the full review here.

– Hyperdub affiliate and Hum + Buzz co-head Ikonika sat down with Resident Advisor to discuss the evolution of her production process and to show off a few of her favorite pieces housed in her West London studio. Read the full interview here.

Novation’s new line of controllers:

-Yesterday, Novation unveiled a new line of MIDI controllers called Launchkey, which—among many other features—are said to utilize the company’s own InControl software, allowing the keyboard’s hardware controls to seamlessly map and link to all major music applications without any customization. Each of the three different units ship with six velocity-sensitive pads, an assortment of knobs and faders, and either a 25, 49, or 61 note keyboard. While the controllers are not set to hit stores until around March/April, the full details on Launchkey can be found here.

More info on things coming from Moog and Ableton:

– Last week, we shared a teaser video from Moog in which synth pioneer Herb Deutsch explored the company’s newest, unnamed synth while it was still just a circuit board with keys. Now, Synthopia reports that the synth featured in that video is in fact the Sub Phatty, a completely analog synthesizer with 25 keys, 31 knobs, two oscillators, and one sub oscillator.

– Perhaps the most extensive video look at the new features of Ableton Live 9 appeared on the web this week from New Zealand-based instructor Tom Cosm. In the 40-plus minute video, Cosm covers a litany of fresh features in the new Ableton Live, such as the audio-to-MIDI functions, LFOs, envelope followers, the session record function, the new EQs and compressors, and much more.