Audio / Midi interface advice needed

mhand · Post by **mhand** » Fri Mar 16, 2007 1:12 pm

after quite a bit of searching on the internet I still can't quite find what i'm looking for and wondered if anyone could point me in the right direction.

Might be easier if I describe my set up and what I want to do.

I have a midi keyboard, a groovebox, an electribe, a drum machine, and a sound module. I want to have Live as the master sending clock messages to the groovebox, drum machine and the electribe and the audio out from these fed into separate tracks in live, and use the keyboard as a controller for the sound module and the audio out from the sound module into another track

I also want to use either the groovebox, electribe, drum machine or the keyboard to control software instruments in live, or I might want to use the midi out on the groovebox as a controller for the sound module for example. In theory I could set up all sorts of routing. I could have 1 channel on the groovebox transmitting midi to the sound module, some others transmitting a different midi channel controlling software instruments and some others sending audio out via a mixer

I can do all of this at the moment but it involves a lot of unlugging and re plugging of cables everytime I want to change something in the set up, but obviously i'd much rather be able to push a button or flick a switch to change something.

Is there an interface out there that I can just plug everything into and set up different routings that I can change quickly and easily ? So if say I have midi channel 1 on the electribe going to the sound module I can press a button to then send midi channel 1 to live, or to ignore midi messages and send the audio out to live.

I've seen the multiple in/out midi interfaces that seem to be able to handle the midi configurations, but nothing that also has mulitple audio inputs or outputs. Does anything like this exist or am I dreaming?

Thanks

mhand · Post by **mhand** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 1:16 pm

ok. So how do you guys hook up your hardware ?

a couple of basic questions that I don't understand. I've checked the websites and I'm still not clear. These firewire multiple audio in/out interfaces like maudio audiophile. Do these route the audio into different tracks in Live ? Do I just connect it to the computer, connect stuff to the inputs and I can record it all in different tracks?

And the multiple midi inputs like m-audio midi man, can I route midi across the connections ? ie I can connect a midi device to input number 1 and route the signal to output number 2 ?

nowtime · Post by **nowtime** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 5:54 am

Do these route the audio into different tracks in Live ? Do I just connect it to the computer, connect stuff to the inputs and I can record it all in different tracks?

yes. in each Live track you can select any mono or stereo input from your audio interface.

Hoitabuam · Post by **Hoitabuam** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 9:17 am

Hello mhand,
seems that you need one audio interface with multiple I/O's (firewire !) and a separate midi interface also with multiple I/O's (Midi is slow by nature so you can take a USB - Edirol Motu Esi alm..). The rest is just fiddling around with different routings. I have a Terratec MIC8 for and an old MIDITEMP MP88 for controlling the hardware synths.

frank bash · Post by **frank bash** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 4:27 pm

what about edirol fa-101

8 input jacks
8 output jacks
2 digital in/ out

midi in/out

global latency 5.8ms (at the smallest buffersize)

"you can route the hell" if you want

i got it i love it

posssu · Post by **posssu** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 4:56 pm

I also recommend you to check out Firepod or Firestudio by Presonus (www.presonus.com)

vijaywins · Post by **vijaywins** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 4:28 pm

Hi,

So, you've

1. Midi keyboard,
2. A groovebox,
3. Electribe,
4. A drum machine

You wish to

1. control these 4 Midi Devices from Ableton Midi Sequencer.
2. And Record Audio from these 4 Devices into Ableton.

Its pretty SIMPLE...

What you need now is a SOUND CARD with >>>> with

1. Multiple (Atleast) 4 Midi IN and MIDI OUT.
2. Multiple (Atleast ) 4 Audio IN/OUT

Here is a card that supports only 2 Midi IN and MIDI out. You need more
Midi In/Out .

http://www.esi-pro.com/viewProduct.php?pid=17&page=1

There is another product going to be launched called " Hexa Fire" http://www.sonicsense.com/esi.htm

That can help you. Search Internet for Multiple Midi In/OUt sound card
with Multiple Audio I/O.

Orelse you need two devices...

1. Device with Multiple Midi In/Out
2. Device with Multiple Audio In/Out..

Multiple Midi In/out device >> The USB MIDISPORT 4x4

http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/M ... -main.html

Multiple Audio IN/Out Device >> m Audio Delta 10/10

http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/D ... -main.html

Let me know if this helps. Bbye...Best of luck.

laird · Post by **laird** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 5:09 pm

The above reply will sort ya out.

But you also asked how we set up our hardware, so I'll add my .02

I used to do what you want to do: had multiple hardware synth controllers. recorded everything all at once, all slaved to the computer's tempo.

But I realized that I only had so many hands, and even fewer musical neurons... I only needed to play or record 1 synth at a time.

Consider buying ONE good (USB?) MIDI controller and sticking with that. For the price: I think one good MIDI controller beats 4 mediocre ones plus a multiple-input MIDI interface. Forget the hassle of all that extra MIDI cableage. And forget using that electribe as a controller-- its knobs transmit NRPNs, not individual MIDI CC values anyway right?

Secondly, there are a number of good audio cards that come with a MIDI input/output. If your $$$ is limited, I'd focus on buying a good soundcard with limited MIDI input.... versus buying 2 cards.

Lastly, really ask yourself if you need multiple Audio inputs. Dont get me wrong-- multiple inputs can be great, especially for bands. But if all 4 of your instruments are being controlled by Live... then there's no difference in recording all 4, one at a time, versus recording all 4 each on their own audio input. You can only tweak the knobs on one device at a time, right? Anyhow, its just something to ask yourself: do I really NEED multiple inputs?

laird · Post by **laird** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 5:13 pm

There are devices you describe, that'll let you route MIDI to different places (PC to groovebox, or groovebox to synth, or synth to PC)

like:
http://www.electrovoce.com/Applications/patch.html

(google "midi patch bay").

I think this is more of a headache than setting up one simple, central station and just living with it. Live is my master clock, this is my keyboard controller, the other are slaves.

mhand · Post by **mhand** » Thu Mar 29, 2007 5:58 pm

Thanks for all the replies everybody. Really helpful and pointed me in the right direction

good points made about thinking about what you really need and want to do. My original idea about hooking everything up in this way was that I'm trying to get away from programming within live and to have a more hands on approach. But I also want the versatility of being able to use the features of the different hardware to control soft synths and switch between them quickly and easily.

Plenty of food for thought and a bit of research to do.

And forget using that electribe as a controller

not sure if we mean different things by the word controller. I can hook up to the midi out on the electribe and it transmits the 2 parts as separate midi channels so I can 'control' in my meaning of the word, that is play, 2 separate instruments in live. The synthesizer section doesn't transmit midi, but I control the instrument parameters on my mackie control.

Thanks again for all the advice