Assign MIDI controller to channel mute?

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SMS
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Assign MIDI controller to channel mute?

Post by SMS »

Any way to do this? I just want to use my Peavey PC-1600's buttons to mute and unmute tracks in the mixing board.... I know I can do this with automation- I want to use the hardware buttons to record the automation.
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Re: Assign MIDI controller to channel mute?

Post by Shooshie »

SMS wrote:Any way to do this? I just want to use my Peavey PC-1600's buttons to mute and unmute tracks in the mixing board.... I know I can do this with automation- I want to use the hardware buttons to record the automation.
Does the PC-1600 send MIDI controllers? If DP can recognize the signal from a given piece of hardware, it can use it for MIDI control. Then it comes down to what commands are recognized. You should look for them in the COMMANDS window to see what's available. Not sure where Mute would be; if it's there at all, it's probably in the Transport section of the Commands window. Just type "Mute" in the search field to see if it's available.

Another method is to use a Custom Console, which I think can mute a track, and control IT with the MIDI from a piece of external hardware. It may take a bit of creative thinking to figure out how to make this work. It seems like I've done something like this, but with Custom Consoles you soon grow tired of having to reassign them to each new sequence you attempt to use them in. They don't automatically find the tracks in a new sequence, though if the tracks have the same names, they might; I just don't remember. Sorry for my fading recollections of these things. I haven't used Custom Consoles in a huge way in well over a decade, and most of my usage of it was more like 20 years ago. I still use it for little things like controlling pedals on a piano while editing.

Shooshie
|l| OS X 10.12.6 |l| DP 10.0 |l| 2.4 GHz 12-Core MacPro Mid-2012 |l| 40GB RAM |l| Mach5.3 |l| Waves 9.x |l| Altiverb |l| Ivory 2 New York Steinway |l| Wallander WIVI 2.30 Winds, Brass, Saxes |l| Garritan Aria |l| VSL 5.3.1 and VSL Pro 2.3.1 |l| Yamaha WX-5 MIDI Wind Controller |l| Roland FC-300 |l|
reedster
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Re: Assign MIDI controller to channel mute?

Post by reedster »

One way is to use Mackie Control protocol.

Set the 1600 buttons to send Note-On / Off messages.
Note numbers E0 thru B0 send Mutes on Channel 1 thru 8.

Track order in Tracks Overview determines Channel Order -
topmost track corresponds to Channel 1.

In DP / Setup / Control Surface set to Mackie Control.
Set Input port to your Peavey.

Turn on Record Automation for the track.
Play sequence, push Peavey buttons.

One downside is dedicating the physical controller to Mackie Control. If that's an issue - one can use the same approach but with DP's MIDI Keys to generate the Note messages.

Alternatively - rather than Muting channels, mute the Send that feeds the channel. Then attach a MIDI controller to the Send Mute and you're ready to record automation. Probably have to change your busing setup a bit and add aux tracks to use this approach but it's flexible, built-in and robust.

Pretty sure there's no Track/Channel Mute in DP's Commands Window - a close alternative is Track Play Enable, while it's functional it's also a 2 button push process. I don't how to record DP keyboard shortcuts for automation.
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Re: Assign MIDI controller to channel mute?

Post by SMS »

Thanks for the suggestions.

There is nothing in the Commands window to do this.

Thanks for the Consoles idea- I, like you, used to use these a lot. I set up a really slick console for my JV-1080 to adjust channel levels via sysex, expression and MIDI vol, as well as Pan, and I made another console to individual drum kit note levels and pans. What an amazing tool! However, even though there is an "Audio Track Mute" destination listed, I couldn't get it to work. If anyone out there get verify this, I'd appreciate it. The Sends Mutes work, so the idea of sending each track to an aux would work, but I don't need this badly enough to do all that.

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Re: Assign MIDI controller to channel mute?

Post by reedster »

On an Aux track these Console settings work and are recorded as automation:

Image
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Re: Assign MIDI controller to channel mute?

Post by SMS »

I can get the console button to work in that the track mutes/unmutes, however the track's visual mute indicator in the Mixing Board doesn't change state- odd. Does it for you?

Thanks
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Re: Assign MIDI controller to channel mute?

Post by reedster »

At first not - then I recorded automation - after recording the automation the indicator started working.
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Re: Assign MIDI controller to channel mute?

Post by SMS »

Same here- gotta be a bug.
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Re: Assign MIDI controller to channel mute?

Post by Shooshie »

I think this is why it's sometimes hard for me to remember what Custom Consoles can and cannot do. I've sometimes worked for hours before getting the more complicated things to work, which discourages me from trying the same thing again or from ever telling anyone else that you can do it. Then there are simple things that should work, like track mutes, but in this case it's easy to wonder if it's actually working. Consoles are just tricky.

Shoosh
|l| OS X 10.12.6 |l| DP 10.0 |l| 2.4 GHz 12-Core MacPro Mid-2012 |l| 40GB RAM |l| Mach5.3 |l| Waves 9.x |l| Altiverb |l| Ivory 2 New York Steinway |l| Wallander WIVI 2.30 Winds, Brass, Saxes |l| Garritan Aria |l| VSL 5.3.1 and VSL Pro 2.3.1 |l| Yamaha WX-5 MIDI Wind Controller |l| Roland FC-300 |l|
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