Sending System Real-Time Messages from a 'home made' MFC to DR-880 drum machine

[bossredman]

Hi.

I have a DIY built Midi Foot controller for controlling my AXefX2.
It has both Midi IN & OUT interfaces & capability.

I recently got hold of a Boss DR-880 drum machine.

If I was to connect a midi lead from the AFX's midi thru port to the DR-880's midi IN port -
Would I be able to send "System Real-Time Messages" from the my MFC to the DR-880.

I believe FA starts & FC stops the DR-880 sequence.

But any ideas on the sytax for sending such a msg.

I'm currently only familiar with sending System Exclusive msg's or PC & CC midi msg's from my MFC..
eg
MIDI.sendSysEx(8,xxxx,true);
MIDI.sendControlChange(0, x, 1);
MIDI.sendProgramChange(x, 1 );

 

[unix-guy]

Can't help with the messages, but you can get the MFC to the midi out by turning on a global option. I think it's called "Echo MFC" or something like that.

If you can't find it, let me know and I'll try to dig it up

 

[bossredman]

Can't help with the messages, but you can get the MFC to the midi out by turning on a global option. I think it's called "Echo MFC" or something like that.

If you can't find it, let me know and I'll try to dig it up

Thanks.

Just to be clear - its a home built controller I'm using (ie Teensy microcontroller with Ardunio code). Not the Fractal MFC.
Are you refering to a MFC global option or an AFX global option?

Also - I've literally just found out about the message.
For the midi library in my Arduino project its:

MIDI.sendRealTime(Start);

&

MIDI.sendRealTime(Stop);

with

using namespace midi;

added to the sketch Header.

So just need to understand if its possible routing wise.

 

[bossredman]

hmmm. looks like the midi out port on teh AFX2 is a combined OUT/THRU port.

If I'm using both the IN & OUT ports already for my foot controller - how do you make use of teh THRU?

Is a splitter required?

 

[unix-guy]

Thanks.

Just to be clear - its a home built controller I'm using (ie Teensy microcontroller with Ardunio code). Not the Fractal MFC.
Are you refering to a MFC global option or an AFX global option?

Also - I've literally just found out about the message.
For the midi library in my Arduino project its:

MIDI.sendRealTime(Start);

&

MIDI.sendRealTime(Stop);

with

using namespace midi;

added to the sketch Header.

So just need to understand if its possible routing wise.

It's a global option on the Axe Fx...

hmmm. looks like the midi out port on teh AFX2 is a combined OUT/THRU port.

If I'm using both the IN & OUT ports already for my foot controller - how do you make use of teh THRU?

Is a splitter required?

The Axe Fx supports bidirectional communication over a 5 or 7 pin midi cable, so you might want to explore that instead of two cables.

Otherwise, then a splitter would be required... And you could split coming out of your controller.

 

[bossredman]

Hi - splitter arrived and seems to be working - thanks for the help.
Atleast as far as Starting & Stopping the DR-880

I'm now trying to send a Change Preset command to the DR-880.

The midi implementaion documentation for the DR-880 says:
Control Change:
Bank Select MSB
Status Second Third
BnH 00H mmH

n = MIDI Channel Number: 0H–FH (ch.1–ch.16)
mm = Upper byte in Bank Number:00H (preset) 01H (user)

But cant seem to get this to work though using a MIDI.sendControlChange(,,,) though.
eg: MIDI.sendControlChange(0xB9, 0x00, 0x15);

Similarly for the Prgram change:
CnH
ppH

The I realised that the midi library IM using shows teh syntax for a CC as:
sendControlChange(DataByte inControlNumber, DataByte inControlValue, Channel inChannel);

..which is essentially in reverse.

SImply reversing teh byte order has no affect.

Any idea how I can get this to work pls.

 

[bossredman]

Actually - never mind.

It just dawned on me after reading the midi implementaion documentation again for the 100th time, that these command refer to "Kits" & not "Patterns" or Preset as I was wrongly refereing them to as.

Argghhhhhh - literally wasted a week of my life trying to get something that couldn't work - to work.

Don't know if its a limitation of this particular old model of drum machine or not?
Do you know if Pattern Change is controlable on newer machines?

 

[bossredman]

Looks like I can send a select Song sysex to my drum machine - so now I'm explorering that.

Trouble is the only way I can get that to work is to set a midi mode on the Drum m/c that then also needs an external midi clock sent to it for playback to start.

MIDI:
The DR-880 will be the slave. It will start/stop according
to messages received from an external MIDI device,
and its playback will synchronize to Timing Clock messages
received from an external MIDI device.

So with a little code added to my foot controller I'm sending midi clock out via this message to the dr-m/c.

    bpm = 100;
    tempo = 1000/(bpm/60);
    intervalT = tempo/24;    

    byte DR880_Sysex_MidiClock[4] = {0xF0, 0x41, 0xF8, 0xF7};
                                   
    unsigned long currentMillis = millis();
    if(currentMillis - prevMillis > intervalT)
    {
         prevMillis = currentMillis;
         MIDI.sendSysEx(4, DR880_Sysex_MidiClock, true);
    }

But because I'm using a splitter on the M-Out of the footcontroller (1 to Dr m/c & the other to the AFX) - it looks like teh AFX is reacting to that msg & constantly sending out Re-sync sysex's (ie 0x21).

Would that be expected?
I thought as I'd included the dr m/c ID (0x41) in the DR880_Sysex_MidiClock msg teh AFX should ignore it - right?

 

[bossredman]

Is there anyway I can send a MIdiClock msg from my Foot controller such that it is totally ignored by the AFX?

I thought this would do it

 byte DR880_Sysex_MidiClock[4] = {0xF0, 0x41, 0xF8, 0xF7};

MIDI.sendSysEx(4, DR880_Sysex_MidiClock, true);

..but evidently not.