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Thread: The Perfect MIDI Controller ? Help us design it !

  1. #51
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    Quote Originally Posted by norty303 View Post
    But what if you don't use them for fx or even Beyond??
    If its programmable you could assign them to anything or even leave them unassigned. If you don't have enough buttons for the most complex software, then you're stuck without them.

  2. #52
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    You're missing my point Al, and what do you mean by 'if it's programmable'?
    The controller doesn't need to be programmable, although it would nice to be able to choose midi channels and CC's for each control if needed for use with software with very rigid built in mappings
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    I thought it fitting, considering the rocky terrain.

  3. #53
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    By programmable I meant mappable.

  4. #54
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    I think mapping is important and having used joysticks to control patterns I like the idea of having and area to rest you hand for precise control. Also I would def want two joysticks. If I have two patterns, I want to be able to use both hands to move them around each other. I don't see a need for more than two though since you only have two hand.

  5. #55
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    Quote Originally Posted by SaltyRobot View Post
    I think mapping is important and having used joysticks to control patterns I like the idea of having and area to rest you hand for precise control. Also I would def want two joysticks. If I have two patterns, I want to be able to use both hands to move them around each other. I don't see a need for more than two though since you only have two hand.
    You could use your nose.
    This space for rent.

  6. #56
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    Quote Originally Posted by dnar View Post
    You could use your nose.
    Only if it's a big red shiny beezer. Which presents a new technical problem in that it might be confused with the big red 'oh shit' button.

    I could have had more interesting MIDI stuff to say but it's a late Friday night and I have no brain right now.

    EDIT:
    Ok, brain found scurrying under a nearby bit of furniture, retrieved, gently scolded, and now securely installed, so as I am no longer furniture I have an actual idea!
    Buttons are expensive, given enough of them. Little screens under same, and it gets nightmarish. Even just changing MIDI assignments for controls is expensive one way or another. Do you do it in software, adding an external program with MIDI loopback and all the latency and timing errors implied. Obviously not. Anyone who has seen the effect of that rules it out very fast. So hardware? Even more expensive. So the question is what can be done with existing hardware. As each control has a CC number that is unique and duplication makes no sense, then the answer is to use a row of three-pin connectors. Header strips are almost dirt cheap. So are the little three-way plugs used for speaker pr power connectors on PC mainboards. They're very compact too. So let the end user fit those little plugs on the end of each control's triplet of wires, to whichever place, 1 through N, exists in the row. Each place has a fixed CC number. This scheme is freely assignable, needs no code, no extra hardware, causes no latency, is easy to manage with a bit of thought about what is wanted. It even allows easy disabling of some control that for whatever reason is not wanted. This method can be applied to any hardware, especially if designed into a board at the outset. And once you close the back plate on the console you can be sure that no fiddly switch accidentally thrown is going to upset anything, and no memory will fade if the (non-existent) backup battery fails (because it's non-existent).

    If you want cheap, powerful, and versatile, new methods aren't always the best, especially if you're aiming to emulate old methods like analog consoles.
    Last edited by The_Doctor; 01-17-2014 at 19:44.

  7. #57
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    Quote Originally Posted by dnar View Post
    You could use your nose.
    I've actually done that, when using 2 BCF2000s with Martin Lightjockey.

  8. #58
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    I am thinking of trying foot pedals too. A foot pedal mapped to the space key for BPM matching is obvious. An alalog pedal for effect speed...

    So it would be good to permit a small number of TTL and analog external controls to be plugged in.
    This space for rent.

  9. #59
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    I've played and am playing with various setups. It is worth remembering that cue triggers can be keyboard keys or midi keys, so you have a whole range of USB computer keyboards to play with, which includes the X keys configurable keyboards, and my particular favourite, large format keys for children (big tactile buttons you can draw and write on!).

    There are various bits of software out there which allow other things to trigger keys. Joy-to-key is quite fun as this maps joystick controllers to keyboard strokes. So a Guitar Hero drumkit can be brought in to play (includes foot pedal as mentioned above) I have recently acquired a cheap "Beamz" midi controller (I think the novelty of these wore off quick, so Ebay is full of them!) which I am experimenting with

    After many years of fiddling. I have found I prefer to use multiple controllers at once. Simple midi keyboard or pad controllers to trigger cues (these are so cheap on ebay, you can permanently mark them up for laser use) and fader controllers for live parameters.

    I can't really get on with rotary knobs, and after fiddling with many midi controllers, have decided they have to have 100mm faders, (Behringer BCF2000 perfect and dirt cheap used!)

    If space is an issue, many years ago I stuck a Korg Nanokey and NanoKontrol together on a piece of wood with a USB hub. Still find this a great controller!

  10. #60
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    Quote Originally Posted by Yag View Post
    It is worth remembering that cue triggers can be keyboard keys...
    That's important, and despite it coming up in an earlier thread about standalone projector controls, I forgot it this time! If there is ANY way to build in the ability for PS2 and USB keyboard input, do it because as well as offering an alternative controller, it gives over 100 buttons at the lowest cost possible, with virtually guaranteed easy replacement if it gets broken. It also brings a way to get limited security against a stranger getting access and controlling a console when they shouldn't, just by unplugging it so an unlock sequence can't be used unless that stranger had the weird foresight to smuggle a computer keyboard into the place where the show will happen.

    Even if the keyboard were plugged in a password might secure the console against unwanted access. A person could still move knobs, but not do anything dangerous with a laser, and a method like this might help a laser owner get clearance to use the system, having demonstrated that they can keep it safer than one without this security. It may be possible to use an existing BIOS chip to do the donkey work, or some other easily adapted existing hardware.

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