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I Feel I'm In The 'midi' Of Everything (Frustration No. 139)

Entry posted by justsoulin

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So, I got a DAW setup - yeh, party time.

I got all my plugins to link (well 99% of them) correctly - yeh, party time.

I got a Novation Launchpad hooked-up and making noise- yeh, party time.

But there hasn't been any time for a party :no:

You see 'between' each potential party-time of the first three lines, are a lot of things each respective company doesn't tell you. How could it with all the permutations of OS, DAW's, Plugins, Soundbank file types, Sound Card setups, Keyboards, Controllers etc. Well it could go a long way if truth be told !!!!!

Take this Presonus example; they offer you a list of compatible and tested 'external devices'. But if your 'things' aren't in the list, then you set them up manually. To do this you choose which category your 'thing' fits under:

  1. New Keyboard
  2. New Instrument
  3. New Control Surface.

But that creates a problem, since if your 'surface controller' acts as a Midi interface and you add it as a surface controller, it will not act as the Midi interface it is supposed to. So you have to add it as a keyboard. They don't tell you that, but they could (and if they do, I haven't been able to find it 'from them').

Then take the Novation Launchpad problem. They made it to work with Ableton Live, so that DJ's could perform amazing live sets. DJ's seems to have united to the Launchpad and have been busy creating various maps etc that will allow them to use it with FL Studio, VDJ and a host of other DJ type programs.

But it has the ability to be used like a Midi keyboard, just pads to hit instead of keys, and to organise the pads in the way you want (called mapping). So if you have EZDrummer, you can create a Midi drum track quite easily.

But there's little help in this area, probably in one respect due to all the permutations of OS, DAW's, Plugins, Soundbank file types, Sound Card setups, Keyboards, Controllers etc.

But it doesn't stop the frustration of knowing it 'will' do the job you want it to do, but taking a lot longer to work out how to. Couple that with the hours spent going through say Youtube and people's so called tutorials that are just them showing off what they can make the Launchpad do without saying how, and finding out way, way down the line about how you setup the wrong permutations of connecting and routing a Midi external device .............. you end up not feeling very much in the party mood.

People create these amazing 'map' files, but they seem to omit where you put them to work. All these little types of things just mount up in frustration and time spent tracking down answers that offer solutions aswell as joining multiple forums to ask basic questions that leave you in 'limbo land', as you wait for days for a kind person to answer your question.

It's no wonder really that musicians walk away from mixing and production - they'd have no time left to make music :lol:

So, if you're the kind of person who gets a new toy and opens the box and plays with it without reading the instruction manual first (requiring some doctorate in language interpretation), or you have zero PC / technical skills, or you have no patience .......... I advise you to think carefully before going down this path :lol:

I mean, install Ableton and be left wondering why the 64 bit version will not utilise your 32 bit plugins, I dare you :lol:

I bet you're glad this is 'my' mountain to climb now :yes:

Onwards and upwards ......... as they say!

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Hiya David - thx for asking :)

 

No keyboard, hope to use it to trigger sounds as well as panning etc.

 

As opposed to having a controller with twisty type knobs, the pads (i know can be, just don't yet know how to make them so) can be used as an increasing or decreasing amount by degree, by mapping each pad to say a % of panning left and/or right.

 

Even though the Launchpad consists of 64 pads, there are multiple 'pages' which therefore multiplies the potential control. That sounds a bit Irish. what that means is, by pressing certain buttons, I get 64 pads mapped out for 'X' midi control, touch another button and I get a further 64 pads for 'Y' midi control, touch the button again and a further 64 pads etc.

 

I see so much potential in its use for creating 'real music' and yet a) there's no user manual & B) 99% of any tutorials are geared to DJ'ing & Ableton (and 'canned' music').

 

It will be an excellent teacher, since once I fathom out all the "how to's" for a controller in a 'non-native' environment, anything else should then be a doddle :)

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I have been looking for a surface control for my setup and have found it to be a bit of a minefield.

 

I use protools and Logic pro on Mac OSX so require something that would work seamlessly.

 

I have looked at the SSL Nucleus

Avid S3

Icon Qcon pro X

Mackie Universal

and a few others but none according to the music equipment forums I have read are without problems.

 

I am so disappointed with the manufacturers because they state in their sales literature that they are compatible but most are lying through their teeth to the customer.

 

If anyone here uses Mac OSX and is using a surface daw controller with motorised faders that they are happy with I would appreciate you letting me know what you are using.

 

My studio is small with a vocal booth adjacent so I can't fit anything larger than a Nucleus sized unit on my desktop.

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