ultra

yeah as this post develops, i'm realizing that going with multicolor leds is probably beyond my capabilities, being pretty new to electronics. the standard way of using just 16 buttons has been done a hundred times, is well documented, and should be good enough for me. besides, i can always build more in the future :). if a pcb layout ever gets made, i can work with that quite easily :). i'm using tk's seq v2 panel as a guide for my own layout. for v3, are there any additional buttons that should be added, given that i'm no longer going with 4x16 buttons and just using 1 row like tk?

i've been researching a little more, but a lot of your questions i can't yet answer. here is the pdf for the led matrix, if you haven't found it http://www.ucapps.de/mbhp/button_duoled_matrix.pdf edit: i just realized that was your first link. lol. i do not know about two color leds, but on ebay a company sells three color 5mm rgb leds in 50 packs for $10 (+ $10 shipping to u.s. but i'm sure it can be combined if you order 100). just search "rgb led" on ebay and find the company that has them for $9.99 buy it now. you want the common cathode leds. i don't know yet if this will increase the number of necessary dout modules. these will probably be the leds i order. i'm just waiting for the seller to get back to me about combining shipping for 100 leds. also i'm still searching for tactile switches that have the same button diameter (not overall diameter) as a 5mm led. with 4 legs per led i figure the switch top should be about the same size. do you know recommended brands of tactile switches besides alps? i think two post leds won't work because of the way the dout modules work. they would have to have three legs, one being a shared cathode and they would be wired as if they were two seperate leds. another edit: i got information somewhere that said to use common cathode leds. for rgb that would mean four legs total, but looking at those pictures, there's three legs. there's also three colors to the leds, meaning i'm back to square 1 on finding them! after playing around a bit with front panel designer, i think i can easily fit the led switch matrix in a 3u panel with room to spare. in fact, i may try to shift it all left and incorporate the magic midi delay as well, if being able to save a setup gets implemented. i used to want a desktop seq, but i'm also in the works of planning other projects and i figure a rack would be the way to go. i got a 12U rack that can sit on my desk for around $30 at sweetwater. it's probably cheap but good enough for me.

using encoders to save space was exactly my thought. a smaller lcd off to the right would fit into my seq, so i'm sure a few extra encoders underneath would work out too. i guess i won't know until i've found the right switches to glue my rgb leds to for the matrix buttons and get going on the layout. as far as outputting goes, i figured i'd have a second core inside the box, and instead of having four midi plugs available, i'd just have two and allow the delay to be bypassed and external gear could be midi'd through the seq and use it's delay (i'm assuming the seq has midi thru to the output). if i understand midi correctly, there's two transmission wires and a ground so that could as simple as adding a dpdt switch. memory and sync would be great. i do plan on tinkering with some code once i get a midibox working, but all i've coded so far is in visual basic. i've read that tk's code is well documented though so perhaps it wouldn't be too hard to figure out. drew

i could possibly work that into my sequencer design. hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. does anybody consider this delay to be good enough to be permanently incorporated into a bigger, more expensive project? i'm making a seq in a 19" rack, and at 3U height and even with the led matrix, it seems i'll have some space left over. does this repeat any information sent to it? on a side note, has anybody coded randomization into their midibox gear?

excellent, thanks.

moebeus, i'm interested in trying out other incarnations of the midibox. could you please give me a link to your creations?

you're a good friend.

so, it's a hardware seq that's similar (in ways) to softstep? that's excellent.

so does using the led matrix at all require code? i'm not apt at this, unfortunately. i saw the youtube video and figured there was software ready to go for that implementation.

let me know how it goes. i swear from the youtube video i saw a color for an active step, a color for an inactive step, and another for a step being triggered. but there may have been no color for the inactive step. is there code involved with what you're doing?

is this the proper led to use for the led matrix? http://cgi.ebay.com/50X-New-5mm-4-Pin-RGB-Common-Cathode-LED-8-000mcd-F-R_W0QQitemZ250077113620QQihZ015QQcategoryZ66954QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

which leds and switches for them are you looking at? i'm currently trying to figure out what my seq panel will look like and knowing how much space for the leds and what to use is part of that. i tried the method where you glue a led to the top of a tact switch and it works pretty well. i bet a three-legged led would work even better because you could bend one the opposite way and give it more stability. i'm doing this as rack mounted (after much deliberation) and i figured it to be 5U high.

congrats!

i love polyrhythms. what is vX?

those sil and dil headers and ribbon cable are found for very cheap at www.futurlec.com. expect them to take a while for delivery, though.

wow i wish i had a laser cutter. they are very expensive.

404 on that, but the pictures under "layout" are pretty decent.

wow!

nice synth. and i like the clock too.

ok this has half as many knobs as i described, but it allows 10 characters (on a 2x40 lcd) name for each parameter. this is supposed to be two lcds side by side like a seq. perhaps have 2-3 rows of this for more control :). the knob that's in white is being turned, showing the value on the lcd in the corresponding position. after a second, the parameter name can return i can dream, right?

hi. i'm working on my seq currently and in the meantime, i'm planning out a second midibox to complement it. please tell me if my idea is possible, and if i would need to code anything to get it done. i would like to build an ableton live controller. not the 2 track, crossfading dj type, but one with 8-16 tracks, each with fader and dedicated eq control. also the standard clip selection buttons and whatever else would be on it as well. i understand this is possible, but here is what i want in addition: i'd like to have a couple 2x40 lcd displays, each with two rows of 8 rotary encoders beneath it, giving me a total of 32 assignable knobs. i'd like the lcd to display the name of the parameter each knob is set up to control (allowing me to input that information and save it as a setup of some kind). the first row of each display would give me parameter names for the first row of (16 total) knobs, and the second row on the lcd for the second row of knobs. it would be great to have a visual for each knob, telling me if i've assigned cutoff, pitch, or whatever else to each encoder. as a bonus, perhaps it could display the current cc value as i'm turning the knob, then revert back to the name of the paramter. is any of this possible?

how are you guys making these panel designs? from scratch in photoshop?

am i the only one here interested in making a seq customized for ableton live, or has someone already done this (and could share some pics and information)? my idea would be to have all the seq v3 functions available, but also some kind of live control surface. faders for 8-16 tracks in live, clip launch buttons, and also the ability to enable tracks for recording so at any time you can begin recording your sequence on a particular track. live could be slaved to the seq and the seq's transport buttons could automatically send the control information. an additional thought is to have 2 rows of 16 additional encoders that could send cc's to whatever parameters you assign them to in live. my thought is to have a button on the seq that displays what parameters are controlled (you could input text and it would show up where the note information normally shows for your sequence.) then there would be no question as to what parameter you are controlling. you can simply hit the button that changes the display to show your parameters (first row of 16 encoders along the first line of the display, second on the second). perhaps different configurations you use could be saved and when you call one up, the text for your setup returns to the seq/control surface. is any of this possible or am i just hoping? drew

if this were me, i'd break the project up into two sections. first i'd worry about getting the program change and sequence start/stop to work. that is as simple as putting two pieces of metal together to form a momentary circuit. so as you can imagine, almost any kind of pedal would work for this. note and cc data has information that needs to be sent and is not as easy as making a switch. for notes, you have to send which note is played, but also what velocity (the harder you hit your keyboard, the louder the sound is) to play. cc's work kind of the same way. you not only send which parameter to change (like which knob you turn on your synthesizer), but also the value (where the knob is turned to) of the control change. i'm not sure how you'd go about using the core for this. you'll have to know exactly what you'd like your setup to look like and then see if it's possible. for example, perhaps you'd use five seperate pedals, each going straight to a particular patch on your synth, or two pedals to select patches (up/down). how many different notes do you want to trigger? there's 128 available using midi data. if you can live with having only program changes and sequencer start/stop, get a core and a dinx4 and start building. in the meantime see what's possible with sending the note data. if you need to be able to trigger notes with velocity data as well, hopefully somebody else on here can help you with that. i'm new to midiboxing (building a seq) so i don't know that much about it, but i do know midi (wrote a sequencer program) so i can help you understand how the different commands work. don't take mine as the final word. it's just my advice to break the project up into sections and hopefully this can guide you into what those sections would be.

yeah i've seen that video of all the leds he's pressing. i'll check ucapps for documentation on that thing. i'd really like to control four tracks directly. i'm at the point where i'm buying switches, encoders, and leds (bought just a few for now to see what i want). is it recommended to use the method where the led is glued to the top of a tactile switch?