Why Karl has twelve encoders

The first Karl prototype had eight encoders. It felt calm on the bench and cramped on stage: a filter section alone takes five or six controls, and a page should hold a whole section with room for its envelope.

Twelve encoders in two rows of six match the screen above them, one tile per encoder. The eye goes from the value to the hand without counting.

Colors that mean something

Each section of a synth gets a color: oscillators, filter, envelopes. The tile on the screen and the ring around the encoder share it. In the dark, color is the fastest way to find the filter.