By Troy A Smith

I am an online editor and a colorist. For about 20 years, I had been using a Wacom Tablet when editing in Avid Media Composer. When I began editing in Blackmagic Resolve, I gave up my beloved tablet and started using the mouse because I found myself needing to use the center roller on the mouse too often. I am not a fan of moving a mouse, it just lacks the precision of a pen. When I use Resolve on my MacBook Pro, I struggle even more. Although multi-touch gestures are useful in many applications, I still find moving through a timeline on my laptop cumbersome.

Enter the new TourBox Elite, a small external control surface with 14 buttons to push and three wheels to turn. Everything is customizable or programable with micros. If you are the type of person who loves keyboard shortcuts, you are going to love the TourBox Elite.

While TourBox is compatible with many applications (like Adobe’s Photoshop, Lightroom, Premiere, Apple Final Cut Pro and more), for this review, I am going to focus on using it with DaVinci Resolve on a MacBook Pro laptop. And while I cut and color, for this review, I’ll be wearing my editor’s hat.

First Impressions
As soon as I touched the TourBox Elite , I could feel the quality build of the controller. It does have some weight to it, but not too heavy and does not feel like cheap plastic. The buttons are springy and the wheel spin fluidly.

After unboxing it, I went to the TourBox’s website and downloaded the TourBox Console (for Mac or PC), which allowed me to customize the controller. There are also many templates and saved settings that other users have created. I uploaded my user settings, so click on DaVinci Resolve or check it out with the other uploaded presets.

Once I had my unit online, it was time to press buttons. I really liked the feel of the springy and reactive buttons. I am fond of is the “Haptic Feel” feature. You can feel the “clicks” when you rotate any of the three dials. There is a setting that allows you to hear audible “clicks” on the rotation and scroll wheels. If you prefer a smooth turn of the dials, it’s easy to turn the Haptic Feel off in the settings. You can even change the Haptic Feel and the speed of the wheel for individual commands. I prefer to hear the clicks because the sounds help me know how much of an adjustment I have made when spinning a wheel.

The TourBox is powered by two AA batteries which can last up to two months. There are two Bluetooth modes so you can use the TourBox Elite on two different computers. You can also attach your unit to your computer with a USB-C cable (which is an add-on item).

Settings and Customization
The customization may feel overwhelming because there are so many options and combinations to choose. Taking a step back and looking at the TourBox Counsole again, I found it intuitive. There are some presets already installed, and it is very easy to download a shared preset on TourBox’s website. I found the online user’s manual very helpful and there are short videos to explain many of the functions.

I admit, I probably spent too much time customizing my buttons. It feels like there are endless options for customization. I spent multiple days changing my presets and trying to find a good fit. My indecisiveness is a “me” problem and has nothing to do with TourBox. I’m grateful for all the available customizations, even if it did cause me decision fatigue.

Within the TourBox Console app you will find your application preset list, a diagram of the controller and icons of all the buttons and wheels. Press any button (or combination of buttons) on the controller and they will be highlighted on the diagram and in the button preset section. It is extremely easy to see what a button does in the console just by pressing it in the controller. Once you press any button (or combination of buttons), you have the option of changing what the button does just by clicking on the text in the button preset portion of the console. This is where all the decisions are made. I suggest having fun and playing around with all the options.

Think about what buttons or keystrokes you use the most and then try to find a way to map those commands. I focused on navigating through my timeline and basic editing functions like in and out, cut, insert cut and lift. One thing that can be annoying using DaVinci Resolve on a Mac is that Resolve likes to use the function keys (F9 and F10) to cut clips into the timeline. However, Macs like to use the functions keys to adjust brightness and volume (I know that can be turned off, but who wants to dig into the settings for that?). I really like being able to quickly mark an in and out and overcut or insert cut with a click of a button (or two). It made my editing life so much easier.

It is possible to have multiple presets for the same application. There is even a function called “Switch Preset” that can be mapped. This will allow you to switch your preset within the same application. For example, you could have a DaVinci Resolve editing preset and a DaVinci Resolve color preset. If you really want to go deep into programing the controller for all the pages in Resolve, you can. This feature also works in other applications.

There is one combination move that the TourBox Elite is unable to do in Resolve, which is adjusting the sliders in the Inspector tab. For example, you cannot click in the Zoom effect and use the wheel to zoom in and out of a clip. With a mouse, this move would be done by using a left mouse click and holding and dragging right or left. Using the Micro function in TourBox Console, you can program a left mouse click and hold. However, the mouse drag left or right is problematic. You can program a mouse move, but the X and Y axis must be predetermined. For me, this is the biggest downside to the TourBox Elite. It would be great to be able to just mouse click into any effect parameter and then use the left and right wheel to adjust the settings.

Now would be a good time to point out the TourBox Elite is not a replacement for a control panel. It is unable to adjust any of the sliders or color controls in the color page. It would be great if you could click into any of the color controls and be able to use the dial, knob or scroll functions. That does not mean that the TourBox Elite is not helpful in the Color Page of Resolve. I found it helpful for navigation and managing nodes. There are still numerous presets that can be programmed to help speed up your color such as adding nodes, bypassing color and resetting grades to name a few.

Sometimes I suffer from “CRS,” which stands for “Can’t Remember Stuff,” and I forget some of the presets I setup. TourBox was thinking about people like me when they added the HUD, which stands for Heads Up Display. Especially when I was getting started, I liked having the HUD turned on, which will put an overlay of the left, up, down and right buttons, (which look like the classic Nintendo controller) inside of the application you are using. It will even change when you press one of the modifier keys. You can change the location of the overlay by just clicking and dragging it to a new spot on your monitor. Once you become a pro, you can turn off the HUD so it will not be on your screen.

Another cool feature within the Console is the ability to label your presets. This can be handy, especially if you want to rename shortcuts. For example, the shortcut in Resolve to mark in and out on clip is the “X” key. You can program this into one of the buttons and change the name to “Mark Clip.”

Pros

• Lots of options for customization
• Solid tactile feel
• Audible clicking
• HUD (Heads Up Display) for presets

Cons

• Cannot setup the slider to move an effect parameter
• Cannot adjust color parameters in the color page

Summing Up
Overall, I am fond of the TourBox Elite, and I am happy to have it in my arsenal. It makes navigating through my timeline and making edits much easier. It brings a new feeling to editing and everything flows much easier especially when using my laptop. It is small and compact and easy to take on the road. If I had to choose between using a tablet or the TourBox with my laptop, I would easily choose the TourBox.

I was a little disappointed with the controls in the Color Page, so it is not a replacement for any color panel. However, it is extremely useful for navigating around the Color Page and your node structure.

If you are a short-cut nerd, then you will love the TourBox Elite. If there is a keyboard shortcut, then it can be programmed into the TourBox Elite.

Troy Smith has over 20 years of experience as a colorist and online editor. He is also a founding board member of the Colorist Society Hollywood, a local chapter of the Colorist Society International.