ultra

no problem. one week left :)

julien, if you need help with the liveapi stuff, let me know. perhaps by then i'll have my liveapi work done and you can just use that, since it'll be easy to work with. ableton won't support liveapi, but i don't think it's going away. for one, what does the akai box use? since max for live isn't required to use it, there has to be something available. it's behavior looks a lot like the code i've already written: i have functions written for midibox (no modification of my live api work is required, just load it) that can do the following related to clips: check to see if a clip exists on a slot automatically notify the midibox if a new clip is inserted into a track, with data on which track and which slot launch or stop a clip notify the midibox of the new clip state once launched or stopped, even if you did it with the mouse request the name of a clip and send it to the midibox via sysex notify the midibox when a clip name has changed turn on "loop" for a clip i think there's more but i can't remember at this moment, but from what i've read, this is what you need to get started. no support by ableton doesn't mean it's going away. mackie protocol, and all of those other midi remote scripts you see in your live dir have to continue to be supported. this is simply liveapi. if it changes, i think the liveapi community will figure it out. the reason i haven't released the code yet is just because there's a few tweaks i want to do yet. well, more than tweaks. i had considered waiting for mios32/osc, but i've decided to go ahead with what i've made so far using midi. i think this afternoon i'll have an opportunity to get some more work done. the important things i want to accomplish is finish about 3-4 more functions, then do a complete rewrite of the midibox code and the live api code to make it more efficient and readable. also, currently the midibox listens to everything i've coded, and i'm going to change that so the user has the ability to turn on or off whatever listeners they want. there's just too much midi traffic right now and the user will never use it all at once. there's a lot of functions available. ultra

as far as i know, the only thing i can do with the file browser is show and hide it. but i'd think you would want to do this head of time?

can you elaborate? as in, the specific steps you take to do this. i'm holding off on this for now, but i still will complete the project. i'm having trouble finding the time to get going on it again. but something usable is already almost done :). eventually this will change to osc when mios32 supports it. i think it'll be a better way in the end.

try setting mios studio to wait for an upload request, then power on the midibox.

if you don't want to wait for mios32/seqv4, you can use this for an all-on-one seq pcb: http://www.midibox.org/forum/index.php/topic,12811.0.html personally i'm hoping the seq v4 software will be out by the time i get a mios 32 setup going, but i'm not gonna wait. of course, i already have an ultracore built so it's just a matter of soldering the CS pcb. ultra

maybe i've jumped the gun a bit. at least, i'll take your word for it that you're not just here to market MFL. i have a few questions: will we have access to the protocol that MFL uses, so we can choose not to use it and still gain control over live? i'm not expecting a "yes" to this answer, but i figured i'd ask anyway. i don't see why an additional control layer is necessary when i've accomplished all kinds of control over live without it. in fact, i've managed to do pretty much everything i wanted to. my only concern with it is what you stated, that it can change with versions. but it sounds like you have something pretty much solidified, and with MIOS32 supporting OSC, we could have a nice tight integration with live without the need for an additional control layer. i am very interested in what MFL has to offer, and i'd like to be able to control these step sequencers in the way i'm able to control any other kind of device on a track. if you're interested in knowing how this particular diy builder wants to take control over live, i started a thread a while ago that completely describes the controller i'm planning: http://www.midibox.org/forum/index.php/topic,12636.0.html. i've tested pretty much every aspect of this controller's description, and i think it's all currently possible. i also have another thread where i describe a live controller that sounds very much like the akai controller that was just announced. http://www.midibox.org/forum/index.php/topic,12585.msg106255.html#msg106255 does the akai controller require MFL to work? if not, do we get access to the same thing it uses? is liveapi going to go away with live 8? with MFL, how will control over master sections (such as transport) work? to my understanding, max is used as a device on a track, and i'd assume it's there to control track-related items. i can see how getting at info on tracks could be made easier, but what about controlling live in general? thanks, ultra

nils will just make love to it.

your sequencer got a pretty face :)

ralf, i'm struggling to understand this post for a couple of reasons. the first is that liveapi does exist. in fact, i've been working on a system that allows any midibox user access to live that go beyond the new akai controller and the monodeck II. i'm even able to access track, clip, device, and device parameter names and put them on the midibox, after automapping the midibox to each control. feedback on clips is an easy one. so the system exists, it's just that we weren't really told about it and how to use it. which leads to the next reason i'm confused. the monodeck II was built using an open-source system with information provided by tk and the midibox community. however, i've yet to find any information about the monodeck II that was given back to the community (edit: i've found information on the hardware, but nothing on the software/communication). i have looked, because of my interest in getting under the hood with live. it was a bit disappointing to find nothing. now we're being asked about how to improve a commercial product, after having been slighted on information regarding how to control our own devices. are you providing max for live for free? or do you want us to purchase it and tell you how you can make it better? how is this nothing more than a max for live advertisement being posted to the forum, when we already have a means to control live but are told it doesn't exist?

in case nobody sees the first thread about this pcb, here's a link to the info page, including a description of what exactly this is: http://midibox.org/dokuwiki/ultracore

i think i figured out what to do, and it's pretty simple. i'll use a voltage inverter schematic i posted a while back for those bgmicro lcds (http://www.sub-version.net/images/negativeconversion.gif). one side will get -5v, one will get +5v, and i'll make a divider between the two using the touchpad and a trimmer set to get 0v between them when the touchpad isn't pressed. then i'll get a voltage when the resistance is increased and put that to the ain. this would only give me up to about 3.5v for the y axis, and about 3v for the x axis, but i guess AIN has a pretty high resolution and for a 128x64 lcd, that should be enough. at highest resolution, i'll need values of 0-127 for using this as an x/y controller. from here i'll just have to scale it in the software. cimo your idea i'll probably try on my next parts order. i can't say i totally understand it, but i'm sure i can play around with the parts if i have them. bugfight, i picked up a lm324 but i really don't understand op-amps. i read about them, but i can't see how it applies to this. do you know of a schematic anywhere? thanks, ultra

yeah i saw this and it's quite interesting. of course, especially how it can be used to control live. at this moment i've been holding off a bit with midibox/liveapi stuff so i can see what happens. i'm not sure if the max stuff will be even necessary for my purposes. also, the guys who work on liveapi have found some new functions, and i'm waiting to see what happens with that.

the box at the top of each track is a glcd that can show all the information at once. also, i've figured out how to retrieve parameter names from live. check this thread for my developments on liveapi: http://www.midibox.org/forum/index.php/topic,12585.0.html

i'm planning on using a resistive touchscreen that only has a small amount of resistance, and i'd like to scale this to work with ain. i'm not too familiar with the ain module, but i guess it reads voltages and i would like to use a device that can output the voltage to the ain based on what is fed into it by the touchscreen. the resistance ranges are: top to bottom: 120 min 300 max left to right: 580 min 900 max these work on a range of 3 to 12 volts, so using 5 should be ok. i'm not sure if this even comes into play, but the contact bounce is 5 ms minimum and 10 ms maximum. can someone please point me in the right direction? thanks. ultra

where's the lcd? not enough knobs. i read about this. the pads are basically a clip grid, tightly integrated into live. they light one color to show if a clip is present, and two other colors to show its state. and of course you can control the clips by pressing them. you can do this fairly easily with liveapi. in fact, you could do this entire thing with midibox and liveapi, but better customized for your own purposes. ultra

i've started another group buy for ultracore pcbs. it will run until 2/1/2009. if you're interested, sign yourself up at http://midibox.org/dokuwiki/doku.php?id=ucoregb. doug and xaro, i owe you each one pcb so don't sign up if you don't want more than that. ultra

i've been meaning to get around to another group buy, so now it's started. orders are taken from the wiki page (http://midibox.org/dokuwiki/doku.php?id=ucoregb).

well, here's what i've come up with. it'll probably have to run on mios32 because of all the lcds, and i have absolutely no idea how it'll work out. four channels, each identical. they can easily be assigned to any channel in ableton live. so instead of banking channels, you could show 1, 3, 5, and 8. top six black circles are general use encoders. top 3 circles with white in the middle are mec illuminated switches, also for general purpose. their description shows up on the touchscreen glcd at the top of the channel. shift button can change the usage of any button. for example, if i hold shift and press view on the master section at the right, it'll change clip/device view for the channel. otherwise, view changes session/arrangement view. select button tells live to show that track. same as clicking on its title. the rest of the buttons should be obvious. the general purpose buttons can edit clips, instrumetns, or anything else. in the master section, holding shift turns volume into cue volume (dont' know why i'd even need that), and pan into crossfade. general purpose buttons/encoders will be used to control things like bpm. i basically want to have labeled controls for the things i will always need on a channel, because having touchscreens, six encoders, and three general purpose buttons per channel gives me plenty of other control. i don't mind the menus because this isn't exactly a performance controller. that's coming in the future. this is to be able to edit a live set as much as you wish.

just write something like "that's cool!!!" or "i want a kit!" in the threads you wanna watch ;)

this is exactly the kind of thing i'm looking to do for a "live" control surface for ableton live. with a glcd showing clip names related to the buttons and other info. also, osc and mios32 is the eventual plan for "midibox live", my ableton live control project. keep up the good work, i'm headed this direction in a few months or so :). ultra

for audio cables, i bought some nice neutrik plugs from allied electronics. then i went to some local store that had long pieces of audio cable at a good price. i hacked those into shorter cables that work well with a patchbay. for midi, i just happened to find a good clearance price on some neutrik cables locally.

i think the sifam bullet knobs are smaller than most. i was kinda surprised by the size. check the size, and if you want 11 i'll ship them over for free.

at least nils downloaded the demo BEFORE making fun of this software.

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