Chapter 7
DAW setup
Two-way control with LED feedback, recording the sequencer, and what owners use in each DAW.
Two-way control with LED feedback
Use the BCR-32 CTRL port for DAW control. Source: Official The LED rings can only follow the DAW if the DAW sends each parameter’s value back, so enable BCR-32 CTRL as both input and output in the DAW’s MIDI settings, and set the encoders to Absolute (Choosing an encoder mode).
Recording the sequencer in a DAW
To record or monitor the sequencer, route BCR-32 ZAQ into instrument tracks on the MIDI channels set in Global (encoders 42/44/46/48), and make sure each track’s output includes USB (41/43/45/47). Source: Official
To follow the DAW’s tempo, send the unit MIDI clock and set Global encoder 26 to USB. Otherwise leave it on Internal. See The Global menu.
Bitwig Studio
One owner wrote their own Bitwig controller script, with AI help, and describes the result in an updated Thomann review. Source: Press / owners
- Each row of eight encoders drives one of the first four plug-ins on the selected track.
- Pushing the first encoder of a row bypasses that plug-in.
- Switching to preset 2 moves the rows to plug-ins 5–8.
- They report that the LED rings reliably show the current values.
Ableton Live
An owner reports working LED feedback since the late-October firmware, using custom remote scripts. Source: Press / owners We found no published Ableton script for the BCR32.
Cubase
The community bcr32-studio editor (still in alpha) exports Cubase MIDI Remote scripts, alongside BCL import/export and SysEx export. Source: Press / owners
What isn’t supported yet
DrivenByMoss (version 26.6.5, 4 Sep 2026) doesn’t support the BCR32 or the BCR2000. There’s no official Bitwig extension or Ableton script either.
Some online write-ups suggest mapping all 32 encoders as one remote page with the top-row pushes as device bypass. No owner describes that exact setup. The Bitwig Studio layout — one row per plug-in, with each row’s first push as bypass — is the tested version.