MIDIbox SEQ V4 Release + Feedback

[TK.]

On 5.11.2017 at 11:25 PM, K-rAd said:

I am also experiencing the crash when doing a 'save as' of the session while seq is running.  V4.091  STM32

Looking forward to checking out the new version.

Does it still happen with the new version?

I'm asking because I'm still not able to reproduce this.
However, I noticed that sometimes the sequencer is not running smoothly during the save operation - but it doesn't lead to a crash. After the operation it continues as usual.

Best Regards, Thorsten.

[u-link]

On 9.11.2017 at 7:32 PM, TK. said:

cool! :)

Whenever you select a track, a corresponding CC will be sent (Port, MIDI channel and CC number can be configured).

This feature was requested by somebody who wanted to synchronize the track selection with his DAW (as far as I remember it was Ableton Live) - but I don't know, what exactly he configured in his DAW, and I'm also not sure about the advantages. It was just a quick hack for him ;-)

Best Regards, Thorsten.

Ok, got it, so nothing too exciting. I was kinda hoping it would be sending / allowing changes to the Track Settings and FX directly via CCs. I am aware that this should somehow be possible to do via NRPN, but that is way more complicated to control (and beyond my scope of abilities....). Wouldn't it be amazing to create a plug-in in CTRLR or something similar that is kinda a "channel strip" plug in for all the Track Settings that are remotey controllable via MIDI (not the notes/values)? Then, you could create 16 MIDI channels in your DAW, drop one plug-in instance for each Seq-track and automate everything incredibly easily. I imagine that plug-in controlling the Mute status, pattern selection, subdivider, FX amounts etc. With the four virtual USB MIDI ports, it would be easy to dedicate one just for the communication between Seq and DAW. You could then just jam on the machine while all edits / pattern changes get recorded and automated upon replay.

Edited November 11, 2017 by u-link
typo

[Rio]

minor bug: Mute View LED will not turned off by Edit or Pattern View... is this normal?

Greetings, rio

Edited November 13, 2017 by Rio

[k2z3k0]

hi there

is that wierd that my stfm32f4 cpu is 80% when sequencer is idle

and 20% when busy?

 

  bests,K

[eptheca]

STM32F4 / V094

I am having problems with the ALL button, it's not selecting 

Also Initializing takes more like 10 seconds than 2 ( This happened in V092 as well)

Same as Rio, mute LED stays on

[u-link]

On 28.11.2017 at 1:53 AM, eptheca said:

Same as Rio, mute LED stays on

On mine, too.

[k2z3k0]

confirmed

mute led stays on

[u-link]

There are no Song Mode events that allow to automate changes of Force To Scale and the Root Note, and also Groove settings. 

 

Also, this: 

On 5.11.2017 at 6:35 PM, TK. said:

                     Special function: by pressing COPY+PASTE the patterns will be pasted into the next slots

doesn't seem to work here (STMF32F4). It does say it copies patterns to PRESETS on the screen, but when I then switch to the next Pattern position, it's empty. Am I doing something wrong?

Thanks!

[TK.]

A new minor-release is available:

MIDIboxSEQ V4.094b
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

   o fixed LED handling for common frontpanels (e.g. MUTE LED stayed active regardless of selected view)

 

On 16.11.2017 at 6:42 PM, k2z3k0 said:

is that wierd that my stfm32f4 cpu is 80% when sequencer is idle

and 20% when busy?

Here the explanation for this effect: the high load is caused by LED updates.
Whenever the sequencer is playing, LEDs will only be updated when a new step is played, or the user pressed a button.
But in idle mode I simply update them each mS regardless of this.
It has no real impact on the performance, but it could be improved in future.

On 17.12.2017 at 2:22 PM, u-link said:

There are no Song Mode events that allow to automate changes of Force To Scale and the Root Note, and also Groove settings. 

You are right, currently these settings can only be automatically changed by switching to another session.

It would be difficult to integrate this into the song tables. Especially groove settings might contain a lot of additional data (e.g. if customized grooves are used) which doesn't fit into the table format.

On 17.12.2017 at 2:22 PM, u-link said:

doesn't seem to work here (STMF32F4). It does say it copies patterns to PRESETS on the screen, but when I then switch to the next Pattern position, it's empty. Am I doing something wrong?

This behaviour was requested by k2z3k0: 

COPY+PASTE in the PATTERN view will only copy the groups and switch to the next slots. In order to permanently store into these slots you've to push the SAVE button (if not assigned to a Fx button, enter EXIT and press the SAVE button there).

Best Regards, Thorsten.

[u-link]

15 hours ago, TK. said:

A new minor-release is available:

MIDIboxSEQ V4.094b
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

   o fixed LED handling for common frontpanels (e.g. MUTE LED stayed active regardless of selected view)

Does what it is supposed to.

Quote

 

You are right, currently these settings can only be automatically changed by switching to another session.

It would be difficult to integrate this into the song tables. Especially groove settings might contain a lot of additional data (e.g. if customized grooves are used) which doesn't fit into the table format.

OK, we will have to live with it then :-)

Quote

This behaviour was requested by k2z3k0: 

COPY+PASTE in the PATTERN view will only copy the groups and switch to the next slots. In order to permanently store into these slots you've to push the SAVE button (if not assigned to a Fx button, enter EXIT and press the SAVE button there).

Best Regards, Thorsten.

Alright, I get it: for it to work reliably, you FIRST need to press Copy, then, while it's copying (and you are still holding Copy), you need to press Paste. The Patterns in the new Slots then get selected immediately, ignoring the Pattern Change Synchronization Option (3/25). Wouldn't it make more sense if that would be kept? Imagine you are wanting to make the copy-paste-and-switch-action after 16 bars of playing one Slot, easy to trip you out of the right counting like that. 

 

While I was trying this out, I realized something else that seems counter-intuitive: With Pattern Change Synchronization on, you need to set Option 2, "Pattern Change Synchronization Change considered each XX steps" the same or smaller as Option 1, Track Synchronization Steps per Measure. That is unfortunate, as again, imagine you only ever want to change patterns every 16 bars (the max step number of 256), but you want that irregular 14 step pattern on Track 5 reset every two bars (which is why you set Track Synchronization Steps per Measure to 32). No luck, stuck on that pattern! So I would argue it would be better if these two were independent from another, meaning the Track Sync doesn't reset the Pattern Change Sync "step counter". If one were to compare  to Ableton Live, you can set the "Global Quantization" to be 16 bars, but each clip can have any length.

It would also be great if these two "counters" would be included in the Step View (underneath the Pattern Overview Cursor maybe, as two lines filling up), to give you a "synchronization aid" if you've been jamming so hard you fell out of the count. 

In the Root Menu, there is a Measure counter anyways, so what about refining this to be included in the Step View, too, displaying both "Total Measures Played" and "Measures Played since this Pattern Was Selected" - handy to see how long you have been on the same pattern.

Thanks a lot for your time!

Edited December 20, 2017 by u-link
typo

[TK.]

19 hours ago, u-link said:

Alright, I get it: for it to work reliably, you FIRST need to press Copy, then, while it's copying (and you are still holding Copy), you need to press Paste. The Patterns in the new Slots then get selected immediately, ignoring the Pattern Change Synchronization Option (3/25). Wouldn't it make more sense if that would be kept? Imagine you are wanting to make the copy-paste-and-switch-action after 16 bars of playing one Slot, easy to trip you out of the right counting like that. 

I don't think that a pattern synchronisation makes much sense for this operation.
If it's only because you want to get an orientation about the pattern position, then we've to find other measures (see below)

19 hours ago, u-link said:

While I was trying this out, I realized something else that seems counter-intuitive: With Pattern Change Synchronization on, you need to set Option 2, "Pattern Change Synchronization Change considered each XX steps" the same or smaller as Option 1, Track Synchronization Steps per Measure. That is unfortunate, as again, imagine you only ever want to change patterns every 16 bars (the max step number of 256), but you want that irregular 14 step pattern on Track 5 reset every two bars (which is why you set Track Synchronization Steps per Measure to 32). No luck, stuck on that pattern! So I would argue it would be better if these two were independent from another, meaning the Track Sync doesn't reset the Pattern Change Sync "step counter". If one were to compare  to Ableton Live, you can set the "Global Quantization" to be 16 bars, but each clip can have any length.

You are right! Nobody complained about this dependency so far, but I can easily change it.
Resp.: did this now in v4_095_pre1, please try it out: http://www.ucapps.de/mios32/midibox_seq_v4_095_pre1.zip

20 hours ago, u-link said:

It would also be great if these two "counters" would be included in the Step View (underneath the Pattern Overview Cursor maybe, as two lines filling up), to give you a "synchronization aid" if you've been jamming so hard you fell out of the count. 

In the Root Menu, there is a Measure counter anyways, so what about refining this to be included in the Step View, too, displaying both "Total Measures Played" and "Measures Played since this Pattern Was Selected" - handy to see how long you have been on the same pattern.

Unfortunately no place in the step view.

In v4_095_pre1 I added it to the main screen (root menu), hope that it helps

Best Regards, Thorsten.

[u-link]

58 minutes ago, TK. said:

In v4_095_pre1 I added it to the main screen (root menu), hope that it helps

 

Cool, that is great with the counters. The Sync-dependencies-change also works. Thank you.

It would be neat if on the Pattern screen, pressing Select plus the new Slot (also pressing new Slot, then pressing Select) would momentarily bypass the Pattern Change Considered setting and immediately select the next Slot as if Pattern Change Considered were disabled - say you have a drum break programmed on Slot 8, you can switch immediately by holding Select plus GP 16, then normally select the main pattern in eg. Slot 1 again, and bam, it comes back in on the 1 after 16 bars!

Edited December 20, 2017 by u-link
another new idea again...

[TK.]

Very nice idea, and also very easy to implement :)

Please try this version: http://www.ucapps.de/mios32/midibox_seq_v4_095_pre2.zip

Best Regards, Thorsten.

[k2z3k0]

hello everyone and happy new year

 

do anyone can confirm problems with RANDOM GENERATOR with v4.95.pre2?

seems it is not working everytime you press GENERATE button

best regards

Edited January 1, 2018 by k2z3k0

[k2z3k0]

hello again

 

was wondering if there is possibility for 1 or more CC layer in DRUM tracks?

 

bests

Edited January 1, 2018 by k2z3k0

[TK.]

Happy new year! :)

I just tried the random generator, (still) works fine at my side - need more input.

Concerning CC layer in drums: technical problem is, that there is no place to configure the CC number:
- the memory area which is usually used to configure the CC number is allocated by the Note number of the drum instrument
- but even if I would introduce dedicated memory locations for the CC number, I've no idea where to place the configuration item - the EVENT page is completely allocated. :-/
 

The only possibility that I see is to provide pre-configured CC numbers for drums (such as CC#1 - Modulation Wheel) - but I'm sure that people will ask for more flexibility sooner and later for good reasons, so that the actual problem won't be solved.

Best Regards, Thorsten.

[k2z3k0]

Got it.thank you

    K

[k2z3k0]

Regarding Random Gen

Im sory,yes it is working

although it does not showing results imidiately on screen like before.i have to press and hold and then after a second it comes

thats why i got confused.

Thanks

   K

[u-link]

Hi, too bad about the Drum CCs. I reckon you wanted to implement it originally, TK, and that's why it says "TODO" where the "CC" entry of the other Track Types normally is... I just use a second track set as a CC track if I want to automate drums. Would be very neat though to have it combined though.

Also on Drum Tracks, would it be possible that Transpose would transpose  +/-16 notes (or +/-8 if the Drum Track is set to 8 notes)? So you could quickly go through different banks of drum kits of 16 sounds each.

I also started to put together a "cheat sheet" that lists all the key combinations and extra menus that are not immediately apparent. I think it would nicely compliment the Beginner's Guide on the Wiki. @jjonas, would you be able to create a Wiki profile for me? It's pretty much just info that is in the release notes, but organised according to the menu pages (and checked if still relevant).

[slo]

I've noticed the sync to measure is erratic on my SeqV4. In pattern mode with the same 4 patterns playing, as I move around screens I see the countdown or count up to mute/unmute working, then moments later it mutes/umutes immediately on a mute press. I can see no pattern to this behaviour and it seems to work more often than not. Also if I have drum or CC track selected sync to measure does not work. Any ideas?

[TK.]

@k2z3k0 and @u-link: are you already using the STM32F4 core? In this case I might be able to provide configurable drum CCs as an option for MBSEQV4+

@k2z3k0: I'm surprised that the screen isn't updated immediately in your case, I've to check this!

@u-link: drum track transpose: good idea! I will check this
And thanks for starting a cheat sheet! :)

@slo: there is a third pointer which is the "song position", currently not displayed in the menu page, but only in the song page. I've to check & document, how this works together with synchronized mutes/unmutes.

Best Regards, Thorsten.

[u-link]

6 hours ago, slo said:

I've noticed the sync to measure is erratic on my SeqV4. In pattern mode with the same 4 patterns playing, as I move around screens I see the countdown or count up to mute/unmute working, then moments later it mutes/umutes immediately on a mute press. I can see no pattern to this behaviour and it seems to work more often than not. Also if I have drum or CC track selected sync to measure does not work. Any ideas?

Are you sure this isn't only happening when FAST ist active? That overrides the setting. 

1 hour ago, TK. said:

@k2z3k0 and @u-link: are you already using the STM32F4 core? In this case I might be able to provide configurable drum CCs as an option for MBSEQV4+

@u-link: drum track transpose: good idea! I will check this
And thanks for starting a cheat sheet! :)

@slo: there is a third pointer which is the "song position", currently not displayed in the menu page, but only in the song page. I've to check & document, how this works together with synchronized mutes/unmutes.

Best Regards, Thorsten.

Yes, I am using the STM32F4  core. Thanks a lot!

[k2z3k0]

yes im using STM32F4 core

thanks TK!

 

[TK.]

Alright, so please try this version:
http://www.ucapps.de/mios32/midibox_seq_v4_095_pre3.zip

This turns your MIDIbox into a MIDIbox SEQ V4+ :)

For the V4+ variant CCs can be assigned to drum track layers.
The CC number is statically assigned: the first assigned layer will send CC#16..C#32, the second assigned layer CC#33..C#48, etc. depending on the drum instrument.

I tried this with the MIDI automation of StylusRMX, and it works there.

Best Regards, Thorsten.

[k2z3k0]

hi TK

so v4+ starts this is great!

CC in drum layer works just fine, but values are hiding after pattern is restarting.

Would be possible to configure CC numbers from HW file or in options?

Way you set it its just fine,was wondering if there are options

 

testing continue...

thank you

  K