Jump to content

Patch changes on "headless" Midibox SID


tomtiki
 Share

Recommended Posts

Is there a way to send patch changes to a headless (no control surface) Midibox SID? I'm thinking of a performance situation where patches could be loaded in advance and I would just select them from my control keyboard. I suppose it would be the same situation with a rackmount Midibox SID.

Sorry if this is an obvious question. I did not see this information in the docs.

Thanks,

Tom

Link to comment
Share on other sites

According to the midibox sid CC implementation chart :

http://svnmios.midibox.org/filedetails.php?repname=svn.mios&path=%2Ftrunk%2Fapps%2Fsynthesizers%2Fmidibox_sid_v2%2Fdoc%2Fmbsidv2_cc_chart.txt

CC0 is bank change and CC32 is "Voice 123 Portamento rate"

I obviously have something confused.

If someone could point me at information on how to do patch and bank changes from a practical sense (on an actual MIDI controller keyboard), then I will go read that before asking any more dumb questions.

Has anyone ever wired a numeric keypad directly into the Midibox SID so that patch and bank could be typed in directly? I have a Yamaha MU5 Tone module with a built in keyboard and display that does this.

Here is a commercial product that sends patch change commands :

http://www.musictechnologiesgroup.com/midipatch.htm

If this functionality (bank/patch change via keypad) could be added to the Midibox SID, it would be pretty much what I am looking for.

Thanks,

Tom

CC #0 is to select the bank, and CC #32 is to select the patch. (btw these are standard CC values for bank/patch changes)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A simple description of what I am looking for is a Midibox SID version of a Yamaha MU5 :

http://usa.yamaha.com/products/music-production/tone-generators/mu5/?mode=model

The built in music keyboard is not necessary, but would be nice. Patches can be changed from the built in keys. I would like to be able to type in a patch number directly rather than using a rotary encoder. I'm thinking a 4x4 matrix keyboard.

My end use of this would be for my son's marching band to be able to integrate SID/chiptune type sounds into their performance. I realize that i could build a separate box that would send these bank/patch changes, but that would use the MIDI IN port...then I would need a merger. If this was doable through the CORE without going through MIDI, it would be much simpler.

I found the project that allows a C64 keyboard into a Midibox project, but that would make the system too large and contain many unnecessary keys.

Thoughts? Sorry if I am missing something obvious.

--tom

Link to comment
Share on other sites

hmmm... I'm not sure where I got CC# 32 from. Regardless, CC# 0 is bank select, then use a standard program change message to select the patch. In essence, any device that can send patch change messages will work, be it hardware, or software.

Of course the other option is to add a minimal control surface because the default function of the menu knob is to change patches.

Edited by Labelwhore
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have a Midibox SID with a basic control surface. Using the knob to select random patches is not the best when you are trying to pick a specific patch, or a higher numbered patch.

In performance, there are generally lighting problems and these displays can be hard to read. Being able to enter a patch number via a keypad would be more efficient. A display would be nice, but not necessary. I may look at the C64 8x8 keyboard encoder to see if I can make that work. The software would then have to be changed to accept input from the keypad.

There should be a way to do this as a Midibox module which could plug into the DIN/DOUT bus rather than MIDI. That would avoid the requirement for a MIDI merger.

Update : Just found some 16 button keypads in my parts box. They are wired as individual switches with a common ground. Keys are 0-9, A, B, C, D, # and *. I could just connect this keypad to a DIN module, then I would just need software to make it work. Pointers on how to do this would be appreciated.

--tom

hmmm... I'm not sure where I got CC# 32 from. Regardless, CC# 0 is bank select, then use a standard program change message to select the patch. In essence, any device that can send patch change messages will work, be it hardware, or software.

Of course the other option is to add a minimal control surface because the default function of the menu knob is to change patches.

Edited by tomtiki
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi,

while it may probably be coded into the MIDIbox SID program, it will require a custom pic assembly job for your needs - would probably be easier (but more expensive) to invest in a midi merger and a lpc17 core, for which numeric keypad input coding and then sending the cc would be much easier. You might even be lucky to request that feature from TK. to put it into the MIDIbox NG, he is currently working on ;-).

If you can live with a set of say ten preprogrammed patches for a live set, it would work even without modifying any code in the MIDIbox NG, just program the patch changes to be emitted, when pushing a button. I think, this may be even better in a live environment. Have a LED indicate the "song" you are currently playing on, press the next button to load the next patch. And it could send to multiple synths, to program them all...

This can already be done with the MIDIbox SEQ V4 Mixer by the way... so if you drive your MBSID via MBSEQ anyways, you would not need a merger...

Many greets,

Peter

Edited by Hawkeye
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...