Midi pad controller with full midi range access?

[UCAudio]

Does anyone know of a decent 16 (or more) pad midi controller with easy to access transpose buttons that let you shift up and down the midi range to access all 128 midi notes? I'm waiting on Push like everyone and need some decent midi pads in the meantime.

The MPD18 looked perfect to me but then I realized it only lets you access about one third of the midi notes... or 3 drum rack banks which seems ridiculous. How hard would it be for these companies to let you shift all the way up and down the midi range. Every midi keyboad does this. Anyone know of a simple pad controller that gives you full midi range access?

[Matt_Quinn]

You could set it up pretty easily for an MPD18 with a Midi Pitch effect. Set up as many banks as you need as chains in an effects rack, then map the MPD slider to the chain selector.

[UCAudio]

Would you have to use 2 tracks to do that... so, setup the midi pitch effect on one midi track and then route the output to another midi track with your drum rack on it so you could record?

[Matt_Quinn]

I don't think so, but not 100% certain. The way I'm thinking about it, create 8 parallel chains:

1: Blank
2: Pitch device +16
3. Pitch device +32
4. Pitch device +48
5. Pitch device +64
6. Pitch device +80
7. Pitch device +96
8. Pitch device +112

Distribute the ranges of each chain equally, then map the chain selector to the rack's macro knob. Map that knob to the MPD18's slider. Now you should be able to select from 8 'banks' of pads by moving the slider up & down. I don't think you need a second track.

[yur2die4]

If he recorded a clip, the notes would get transposed.

I don't really have a clean elegant solution. I'd either suggest making multiple presets on the controller (a controller usually lets you have at least 20 presets, I know for myself, I rarely use more than 2. So that leaves a lot to work with).

Or consider getting a Maschine . on the short term it'd be a major shock to the wallet. Long term, it is extremely fun and versatile and you might want it down the road. Instead of having already paid for an mpd and Then a Maschine, you could have saved some trouble.

Lastly, some scripts allow you to use a controller with drum racks in the manner where, you control any group of slots that are currently highlighted in view. The thing that has always been a drag about it is that there was no way to choose/move that selection.

Perhaps with Push emulations and whatnot, someone has made a solution for that?

[Matt_Quinn]

I don't really have a clean elegant solution. I'd either suggest making multiple presets on the controller (a controller usually lets you have at least 20 presets, I know for myself, I rarely use more than 2. So that leaves a lot to work with).

MPD18 only has 3 presets.

Lastly, some scripts allow you to use a controller with drum racks in the manner where, you control any group of slots that are currently highlighted in view. The thing that has always been a drag about it is that there was no way to choose/move that selection.

Perhaps with Push emulations and whatnot, someone has made a solution for that?

Ah, my MPD18 did this in Live 8 (automatically followed whatever pads of a drum rack that were visible on-screen), and it was the best thing ever. That functionality disappeared in Live 9, and despite my bringing it up in the Beta forum and here, no one has acknowledged it as an issue. I would kill to have that function back. Is there a script for the MPD that will do it?

[yur2die4]

It has 16 presets. 3 banks per preset.

[Matt_Quinn]

Ah, right.


So OP inspired me to build the device I was talking about above, just a simple combo of Pitch devices in chains with a single macro to scroll through banks of 16 pads. Works great for my MPD and Quneo, should work for any pad controller with drum racks. Assign the macro to any knob or fader you have available and it makes zipping around drum racks pretty fast.

http://www.sendspace.com/file/wykh9p

[UCAudio]

Thanks. Now I just need a MPD. What happens when you use this rack and try to record your midi performance... record whatever you play on the pads. I'm guessing you can't play/record a kick and snare in one bank, and then in the same track play/record sounds on different drum cells/pads. I guess you could if you use multiple midi tracks though.

[TYLRbass]

Thanks. Now I just need a MPD. What happens when you use this rack and try to record your midi performance... record whatever you play on the pads. I'm guessing you can't play/record a kick and snare in one bank, and then in the same track play/record sounds on different drum cells/pads. I guess you could if you use multiple midi tracks though.

You're right.. when you get to recording that is when this setup fails, and you would need to send from one track to another to get the proper MIDI notes recorded.

[Matt_Quinn]

Thanks. Now I just need a MPD. What happens when you use this rack and try to record your midi performance... record whatever you play on the pads. I'm guessing you can't play/record a kick and snare in one bank, and then in the same track play/record sounds on different drum cells/pads. I guess you could if you use multiple midi tracks though.

You're right.. when you get to recording that is when this setup fails, and you would need to send from one track to another to get the proper MIDI notes recorded.

Did you try it out? I can't remember if I recorded anything or not last night. Seems weird that the same track wouldn't record the output of the Pitch device though, I mean the signal hits that first, converts note X to note Y, and note Y is triggering the proper pad in the rack. I know arps don't record the output of the device in the same track though, so you are probably right.

[TYLRbass]

Thanks. Now I just need a MPD. What happens when you use this rack and try to record your midi performance... record whatever you play on the pads. I'm guessing you can't play/record a kick and snare in one bank, and then in the same track play/record sounds on different drum cells/pads. I guess you could if you use multiple midi tracks though.

You're right.. when you get to recording that is when this setup fails, and you would need to send from one track to another to get the proper MIDI notes recorded.

Did you try it out? I can't remember if I recorded anything or not last night. Seems weird that the same track wouldn't record the output of the Pitch device though, I mean the signal hits that first, converts note X to note Y, and note Y is triggering the proper pad in the rack. I know arps don't record the output of the device in the same track though, so you are probably right.

Yeah the MIDI notes would be recorded before they hit the pitch device so it has no effect on the recorded clips, that's why the two track method is necessary.

So it's either deal with having banks and banks of notes on your controller preset for your octaves or deal with having one track sending into another track. If you go the route of creating a controller script that follows the drum rack box you still need to use the mouse to select where the focus of the drum rack is, which was always a deal breaker for me.

[Matt_Quinn]

That is so odd. It would be nice if you could choose the point in the chain at which the signal is recorded.

[UCAudio]

Just seems weird to me that people making midi devices don't put transpose buttons on them so they can output the full midi range. Are there any pad controllers that do this so you don't have to deal with multiple tracks or other work arounds?

[yur2die4]

http://youtu.be/mjT7O5uFR8w

That guy makes some pretty crazy script solutions. I just always forget the name haha