Hello,
I would like some help with routing Massive's VST (Or any VST) through Ableton and be able to control the VST sound with scratching on a CDJ 900.
I have looked at some videos by Dubspot and a few other folks but I am not really trying to turn the CDJ into a actual controller, I only need it to be controlled when I pull back the record and attempt to scratch with it. Ideally I want the information to be recorded by Ableton via midi.
My current gear: Ableton 8, 2 CDJ 900, DJM 900, Traktor 2.
I really think theres a way to produce this by routing but can only see that my midi data is being recognized in Live but of course no sound is generated.
Please if anyone has knowledge of a way of producing this I would be grateful.
Thank you,
Rob
Special Request for Assistance
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Warrior Bob
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Re: Special Request for Assistance
First off, your question title doesn't say anything about your problem. I clicked on it by accident, which is the only reason I'm reading 
But to your problem directly:
What kind of MIDI message does a CDJ900 send out? I've never played with one, but from what you've said it sounds like it's sending something out.
What sort of thing do you want to control with your platter movements? Are you attempting to "scratch" the sound like you might with a vinyl record (where it makes all the vinyl-style swiping sounds), or are you just trying to use the platter to control synthesizer parameters?
But to your problem directly:
What kind of MIDI message does a CDJ900 send out? I've never played with one, but from what you've said it sounds like it's sending something out.
What sort of thing do you want to control with your platter movements? Are you attempting to "scratch" the sound like you might with a vinyl record (where it makes all the vinyl-style swiping sounds), or are you just trying to use the platter to control synthesizer parameters?
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realista69
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Re: Special Request for Assistance
Well thanks for the attention 
My real problem is simply hooking them up so the sound is actually coming out the speakers. I see midi data traveling every time I scratch but I hear no sound, nor am I sure if Ableton would read the notes I am making with my hand. It seems like some sort of technical routing is required and I am hoping someone might be intrigued enough to share the knowledge to help me make it happen.
And yes I want to be able to scratch with my hand to control the parameters. I'm actually sure I can generate any type of patch movement in the music if I could only get to hear the music. I have been scratching for years now, I hear some melodies and think I can make that with simply scratching the sound out.
Hoping for some help with roughing for options given the equipments capabilities.
My real problem is simply hooking them up so the sound is actually coming out the speakers. I see midi data traveling every time I scratch but I hear no sound, nor am I sure if Ableton would read the notes I am making with my hand. It seems like some sort of technical routing is required and I am hoping someone might be intrigued enough to share the knowledge to help me make it happen.
And yes I want to be able to scratch with my hand to control the parameters. I'm actually sure I can generate any type of patch movement in the music if I could only get to hear the music. I have been scratching for years now, I hear some melodies and think I can make that with simply scratching the sound out.
Hoping for some help with roughing for options given the equipments capabilities.
Re: Special Request for Assistance
If MIDI data from your CDJ is being sent to Massive at all, then it seems like it isn't Note On data or you should hear a sound. I would start by making sure you can get some audio out of Massive (or any other VST) first of all, by either connecting a MIDI keyboard or using the computer keyboard to play some notes. Or draw a few notes in a MIDI clip and route the output to your VST.
Page 25 of the instruction manual of your CDJ has a section on which MIDI messages are sent via USB by the CDJ to your computer. The manual also states you have to install a driver and select the device in software settings.
It might be simpler to check if you can use the CDJ with Ableton by just playing a sound file like an audio sample or a pre-recorded track before trying to use a VST.
HTH
Page 25 of the instruction manual of your CDJ has a section on which MIDI messages are sent via USB by the CDJ to your computer. The manual also states you have to install a driver and select the device in software settings.
It might be simpler to check if you can use the CDJ with Ableton by just playing a sound file like an audio sample or a pre-recorded track before trying to use a VST.
HTH
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Warrior Bob
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Re: Special Request for Assistance
I thought the only sounds you would be hearing would be from Massive, and you're just using the CDJs to control Massive's parameters? I think there's some confusion here so I'm going to explain the principles and hopefully that'll help you out.
CDJs output two things that I know of: an audio signal and MIDI messages. In a traditional DJ setup your audio signal goes into a mixer, and the MIDI data doesn't go anywhere.
- To record the audio signal in Live you need an audio interface (your computer's soundcard might work). You create an audio track in Live, assign the inputs to the correct inputs on the interface, enable the record button and go. You probably want to turn on monitoring too.
- To record the MIDI data in Live you need some kind of MIDI interface (it sounds like you already have this set up but hard to say for sure). You create a MIDI track in Live, set the inputs to the correct MIDI device and channel, and enable the record button. You might want monitoring here too depending on what you're doing. Alternately, you can assign MIDI messages to controls in Live using Live's MIDI quickmapping feature (it's the 'MIDI' button in the upper right).
If any of these concepts don't make sense, check the Live manual - it's a better resource than anything I can write.
As far as I know, Massive is a synthesizer and makes sound in response to MIDI note messages. If you aren't feeding any note data into Massive, it's not going to be producing any sounds. You can demonstrate this by creating a MIDI clip in the track Massive is in, putting some notes into it, and playing the clip.
Since you said you wanted "to scratch with your hand to control the parameters," I'm presuming you mean use the MIDI data coming from the CDJ (which is probably CC data, not notes) to move a virtual knob around in Massive. If you're doing this, you need Massive to already be playing something for you to modify.
Alternately, what you might be trying to do is actually generate MIDI notes in response to your scratching. For this, you're going to need to translate whatever those platter movements come across as (like I said, probably CC) into notes. This is not something Ableton Live can do on its own. There's Max 4 Live, the modular environment, which can probably do things like this (never tried it) and there's also a tool called Bome's MIDI Translator that I think will be up to the task.
The final thing which I think you might be going for is actually putting a CD into the CDJ and using the sound of you scratching that audio to control Massive, no MIDI involved at all. I'm not sure how this would even work, since what Massive is expecting (MIDI notes) is fundamentally different than what you'd be feeding it (an audio stream).
Hopefully some of this helps - I admit I'm not entirely sure what you're going for so I'm kind of taking shots in the dark. Best of luck!
CDJs output two things that I know of: an audio signal and MIDI messages. In a traditional DJ setup your audio signal goes into a mixer, and the MIDI data doesn't go anywhere.
- To record the audio signal in Live you need an audio interface (your computer's soundcard might work). You create an audio track in Live, assign the inputs to the correct inputs on the interface, enable the record button and go. You probably want to turn on monitoring too.
- To record the MIDI data in Live you need some kind of MIDI interface (it sounds like you already have this set up but hard to say for sure). You create a MIDI track in Live, set the inputs to the correct MIDI device and channel, and enable the record button. You might want monitoring here too depending on what you're doing. Alternately, you can assign MIDI messages to controls in Live using Live's MIDI quickmapping feature (it's the 'MIDI' button in the upper right).
If any of these concepts don't make sense, check the Live manual - it's a better resource than anything I can write.
As far as I know, Massive is a synthesizer and makes sound in response to MIDI note messages. If you aren't feeding any note data into Massive, it's not going to be producing any sounds. You can demonstrate this by creating a MIDI clip in the track Massive is in, putting some notes into it, and playing the clip.
Since you said you wanted "to scratch with your hand to control the parameters," I'm presuming you mean use the MIDI data coming from the CDJ (which is probably CC data, not notes) to move a virtual knob around in Massive. If you're doing this, you need Massive to already be playing something for you to modify.
Alternately, what you might be trying to do is actually generate MIDI notes in response to your scratching. For this, you're going to need to translate whatever those platter movements come across as (like I said, probably CC) into notes. This is not something Ableton Live can do on its own. There's Max 4 Live, the modular environment, which can probably do things like this (never tried it) and there's also a tool called Bome's MIDI Translator that I think will be up to the task.
The final thing which I think you might be going for is actually putting a CD into the CDJ and using the sound of you scratching that audio to control Massive, no MIDI involved at all. I'm not sure how this would even work, since what Massive is expecting (MIDI notes) is fundamentally different than what you'd be feeding it (an audio stream).
Hopefully some of this helps - I admit I'm not entirely sure what you're going for so I'm kind of taking shots in the dark. Best of luck!
Re: Special Request for Assistance
I don't have CDJ but reading the manual online, it seems that the USB connection to computer is an audio interface and also sends MIDI data. Warrior Bob, I don' think another audio interface would be required.
Re: Special Request for Assistance
I believe the djm900 also has audio interface built in. Would make sense to me to use that one.telekom wrote:I don't have CDJ but reading the manual online, it seems that the USB connection to computer is an audio interface and also sends MIDI data. Warrior Bob, I don' think another audio interface would be required.
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Warrior Bob
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Re: Special Request for Assistance
Okay, cool. I wasn't sure if it did, so I was careful to say that you only need some kind of interface. If the CDJ has one built-in, then there's no need for another one.telekom wrote:I don't have CDJ but reading the manual online, it seems that the USB connection to computer is an audio interface and also sends MIDI data. Warrior Bob, I don' think another audio interface would be required.