Issue with semi-weighted Master Keyboards/controllers ...

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MAGNETO_66
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Issue with semi-weighted Master Keyboards/controllers ...

Post by MAGNETO_66 » Wed May 31, 2017 3:19 pm

Hi everybody ... I'm an Ableton user since 2005; i'm currently running the last version of Ableton Suite on a notebook Asus with cpu Intel QUadcore I7 6700HQ, 16 GB RAM DDR4, 256 SSD + 1 TB HD and the OS is WIndows 10 home edition ... I recently purchased two M-Audio Code61 Master Keyboards / controller and Alesis VI 61 ... As You know, they all are semi-weighted master and i always ger the same issue : When i play "real time" some synth/piano part with Operator, Analog, Sampler, some third parties virtual synth or even external HW synths/expanders (controlled via external MIDI interface) the program failed to send "note off" message ... so one note keeps playing and i have to press again its key in order to make it stop !!! It happens with every note, more or less and every now and then BUT it's very annoying, especially considering that i'm planning some gigs ... 8O :( It is unlikely that all the three keyboards are defective, they are completely new ... Furthermore, i also got a second-hand samson carbon 61 ... As You know, it's a cheap master, the quality of ist keyboard is poor, BUT ii works fine with Ableton and i never get "note off failure" when i use it ... I Know that it sounds ridiculous but it seems that Ableton Live doesn't like semi-weighted keyboards, :? when it runs on my notebook ... !!! Any idea or suggestion about it ? Thank You in advance - Best Regards
I AM MAGNETO ... MASTER of MAGNETISM :-)!

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Re: Issue with semi-weighted Master Keyboards/controllers ...

Post by login » Wed May 31, 2017 7:20 pm

Well it is not related to type of KB.

To me it seems related to sustain pedal messages,if you have a sustain pedal maybe try using with the keyboards and experiment with it.

The KB could be sending this type of message and since the two keyboards belong to the same company it doesn't seem strange they use the same software under the hood (inmusic group) it may be fixable with some configuration settings on them

MAGNETO_66
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Re: Issue with semi-weighted Master Keyboards/controllers ...

Post by MAGNETO_66 » Thu Jun 01, 2017 12:31 pm

Thank You for Your suggestion :) Actually, i use a sustain pedal and i also thought that it could caus that issue ... So i even disconnected it from the Keyboard (M-Audio Code61 or Alesis VI61) BUT the problem remains ... As i already wrote, it happens every then and now and it's completely unpredictable ... :? ! On the contrary, Samson Carbon 61 works fine, although it is a much cheaper device ...!
I AM MAGNETO ... MASTER of MAGNETISM :-)!

Patrice_Peyret
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Re: Issue with semi-weighted Master Keyboards/controllers ...

Post by Patrice_Peyret » Fri Sep 08, 2017 3:10 pm

You may have an accidental sustain issue creating a "stuck note" effect if you use a MIDI controller with numerous knobs and switches.
The issue is that the MIDI standard only has 38 "undefined" codes, so if your controller has more than 38 knobs, switches and sliders, chances are that one of them may have been assigned factory-default Controller Code #64 (40H in hexadecimal) which is normally reserved for the sustain pedal in the MIDI standard. This is because manufacturers of modern MIDI controllers have no choice but to overlap with assigned MIDI codes because of the high number of individual controls on their devices.

For example, the Alesis VI49 or 61 controllers have push switch #13 assigned to CC64, which conflicts with the sustain pedal. I would bet that other brands may have the same issue.
I suspect that devices that auto-map nicely to Ableton have probably avoided that sort of stupid conflict, but these Alesis keyboards have almost no auto-mapping besides track volume knobs.

This means 2 things:
- whatever switch or knob has code CC64 may be interpreted as a sustain on/off by Ableton or your DAW, although you have no physical sustain pedal connected!
- if you connect a sustain pedal to such controller, it will create a conflict with that mis-assigned switch

The solution:
- read the spec for your controller or use a MIDI scanner like http://outputchannel.com/midi-logger/ (works on Chrome browser, not on IE or Edge, did not try with Safari) to figure out if you get a CC64 message from an unexpected control other than the sustain pedal
- change the code assigned to the conflicting switch to something else (paying attention to not creating another conflict somewhere else) using whatever configuration editing tool is available for your midi controller

For example, I reprogrammed switch #13 on the Alesis device to code CC102 which is "undefined" in the MIDI spec and was not used for any other control on that device.


You can find the list of standard MIDI controller numbers here: https://www.midi.org/specifications/ite ... ta-bytes-2 Note that they use the word "damper pedal" instead of "sustain", but thi sis the same thing as the sustain pedal acts by removing the damper on a physical piano.

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