Hand arm fatigue with mouse & pointer

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KeithPartridge

New member
Hey guys
I sometimes spend up to 16 hours behind my desktop editing. Does anyone know of a good ergonomic desktop DAW controller for Ableton and Reason... I'm using both rewired? Using the mouse & pointer is so time consuming and was figuring there's got to be another way.
Cheers
Keith
 
Not sure if will be better for you...but I use a trackball. It's a Logitech M570, wireless, and it has a couple of extra programmable buttons. So...you don't have to keep moving it around like a mouse...of course, it takes a bit getting use to the trackball, and moving it with your thumb...but I've been suing trackballs for almost 20 years now...and find them very comfortable.

Also...use your keyboard, and program as many keystrokes as your DAW allows.
I have my left hand on the keyboard and my right hand on the trackball...and I can do all kinds of moves in the DAW without really moving my hands around.

And...make sure they are at the right height for your arms/hands. That also means you need to have a good chair that is properly positioned for the desk. It should feel as comfortable as when you are driving your car.
 
Confirming Miro's advice. I have a trackball also and I use keyboard shortcuts a lot.

But!! 16 hours at the computer can't be good. Give yourself breaks. Get out of the chair and move around. Go for a walk. It's good for your arm, it's good for your circulation and definitely good for your mixes. Gets you away from the song for a little while and refreshes your ears.

Thought about moving this to the computer section, but I think this really is more about mixing than computers.
 
KeithPartridge said:
Hey guys
I sometimes spend up to 16 hours behind my desktop editing. Does anyone know of a good ergonomic desktop DAW controller for Ableton and Reason... I'm using both rewired? Using the mouse & pointer is so time consuming and was figuring there's got to be another way.
Cheers
Keith
Click to expand...

The Avid Artist control for commands and prompts or Push 2 for session view trigger. Launchpad will work if you can't afford a Push. You can also use an ipad with the Avid Eucon engine. Korg Nano Controllers work too.

I assume your doing more producing on Ableton than anything else. Ableton is terrible at mixing and notoriously bad at communicating with control surfaces. If you need to do extensive mixing, get a proper DAW. I have Ableton and every major DAW on the market. I love Ableton for creating and organizing massive banks of loops and ideas, but its terribly limited as soon as you go to the arrange space.
 
miroslav said:
I've been suing trackballs for almost 20 years now
Click to expand...

If they're so ergonomic, what do you have to sue them about?! :D

+1 to what Chili said about taking breaks.
Frequently spending that much time in front of a computer will drive you to an early grave, so make sure you're spending time walking around, getting real exercise, etc.

I also personally wear wrist braces (the cheap elastic ones from Walgreens or wherever) when working with the computer long-term.
 
If something hurts stop doing that thing. My wrist would ache using a normal mouse for more than 4 hours so I switched to a trackball (logitech M570) and don't have the issue anymore. Find a way you can work without pain, pain is bad.
 
Yeah...the Logitech M570 is great.

I've used their original Trackman Marble + trackballs going back to the late '90s...fellk in love with them as soon as i tried them out, and I must have at least 3-4 of them still...but, when I got to Win 7, the drivers just didn't cut it.
So that's when I found the M570...which has almost the same fit/feel as the old Marble + trackballs....and I love the wireless setup.

I also have a Logitech wireless keyboard and regular mouse, that came as a combo...I think it's the MK520 combo.
What's great about is that I can use that keyboard and mouse on a remote computer stand in the studio...but I only need the single receiver plugged in...so I have the M570 and the MK520 combo, all on one Logitech receiver.
At the DAW I use the M570 trackball and a Dell wired keyboard because it's very narrow/lean keyboard with straight edge rectangular shape (I hate those wavy keyboards).

So like, if I need to step away from the DAW/mix position...and go to an amp or my Hammond organ, etc...I can just use my remote wireless keyboard and mouse...and leave the trackball and wired keyboard in place.
They all work at the same time...of course, I only use one set at a time. :D
 
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