Browsing presets with "Program Change" of my MIDI controller...

Hello,

I like being able to browse the presets of a synth with the + / - "Program Change" buttons of my MIDI controller... (Eyes and ears on the synth and keyboard only, eyes no more disturbed by computer.)

Here with FM8, it seems difficult : I have to
* Click the "(PC) Programs" button on the right
* Then an empty "Program List" is displayed
* Then I would have to drag and drop , one by one, all the presets into the list.
With 128 presets, this is veryyyyyyy long.

Why is it impossible to select 100 presets (example : with SHIFT+click for selecting multiple presets : this doesn't work ) and drag/drop them into the Preset List ?

Thanks in advance.

 

Any idea ?

How to quickly create a "PROGRAM LIST" (in the right panel of FM8) of for example 128 presets, in order to be able to browse presets with MIDI controller + / - buttons ?

 

You could loop your MIDI messages to mouseclicks (there are programs for that) and assignn them on the arrow up/down place next to the preset name.

Complex, but working if you don't move your window

 

Thanks for your answer.

Yes it would work, but I learnt from the past that each time I created a complex processus for my music workflow (with scripting or third party softwares etc.), then I very rarely used them because when you are in the creative process (composing), you don't want to spend time with such complex things : I personnaly just want to play on the keyboard and don't think about complex MIDI routings...

--

But I can't imagine that NI hasn't thought about the keyboard player who doesn't want to have one hand on the MIDI keyboard , and the other hand on the mouse in order to click "next preset".

It is impossible that NI hasn't thought about people who want to browse presets while playing on a MIDI keyboard, don't you think so ?

 

I never questioned the sense of all that, I'm really wondering, why you cant map it

 

There are really no MIDI messages you can send to change the patch? That does seem like quite an oversight.

 

Which MIDI messages ?
"Program Change" don't change anything except if you manually create a Program List by adding one by one lots of presets in a list...

Any idea?

 

Well they have, that's what the programme list is for. Many banks have more than 128 presets which midi can't handle so the programme list enables you to get round that. But I agree it's dumb that you can't add patches more than one at a time, a feature I have asked for myself since years ago.

Of course you can use your QWERTY keyboard arrow keys in hosts that allow this.

 

If you are ok with having the synth opened in a window everytime you want to change the preset AND having the window always at the same position when you want to change it, tell me.

Then I make a small program for that. It is not the best solution but if you just play piano on the synth and you have enough screen space left, you'll be fine with it.

 

Can your controller send ASCII characters? I programmed my controller to send the up and down arrow keys with the plus and minus button on the controller. I can't remember but you may also need a "click" or an "enter" key. Then, I sample the presets directly from the preset browser. Works nicely. Of course, if your controller cannot send ASCII characters it won't work.
HTH
J.L.

 

Thanks alecman for your proposition, this is very nice from you, but I don't want you to spend too much time on this! How will i be able to control preset +1 and -1 (next or previous arrow) ? With 2 "MIDI CC" ? This would be great

 

What do you mean by sending ASCII characters ? :S
My controller is just a MIDI keyboard, with some buttons (such as Program change + / -, etc.)

 

I have an Axiom Pro that can send ASCII characters. (For example, numbers, letters, return, space, up arrow, down arrow, etc.). It allows you to assign which character is sent for each key. Many newer keyboards have this ability, it may be worth looking into. Possibly, your keyboard already has it. What kind is it?
HTH
J.L.

 

Ehm please tell me, are there already Keyboard commands for this? I mean, some synths allow to change up and down with + and - .


I could make a program for this, it won't be bigger than the KOMPLETE icon xDDDD

 

BUMP to this issue.

 

I'm looking for a way to change VST presets with MIDI controls for years. Always wondered what's so special about those previous/next preset buttons that they can't be assigned normally. I don't see any reason why they shouldn't. But never found any VST in which they are assignable.
When trying out various sounds with your chords/melodies, the preset change via mouse is a workflow killer. You always have to grab the mouse slowly, to not move the pointer. But it sill happens constantly and you have to unnecessarily concentrate on the cursor again and again, though you just press the same button all the time.

Up today, the only method I've found is the already mentioned MIDI to mouse method. I use Bome MIDI Translator Pro, but it's not free. Maybe there are free alternatives.
It's not as bad as you think, you have to configure it only once. The downside is, that you will have to buy a dedicated MIDI controller for the translator. I paid about 100$ for both - the program and the controller. What doesn't one do for a good workflow...

The problem is that one host can use multiple controllers, but one controller can't be used by multiple hosts. I use the Akai LPD8 controller for the translator, since it's not too big and has 8 easy to hit pads.
To not "waste" the 6 remaining pads, I have also assigned some DAW functions to it, that also can't be assigned to MIDI. I chose the transport functions (stop/play/record), metronome on/off, loop mode on/off and overdub on/off.

I made it like that:
I've created a basic profile with only the DAW functions assigned.
Then I've duplicated the profile, added a VST, aligned it to the top right corner of the screen (to recall the same position easily), and assigned mouse clicks to the previous/next preset buttons.
I've continued duplicating and adjusting the profile for every VST.

When changing the VST, I just have to pull it to the corner and select the corresponding preset in MIDI translator.
(DAW + FM8, DAW + Absynth, DAW + Diva and so on)

The MIDI translator also has a "window inject" feature, what means that the mouse clicks are performed relative to the frame.
So you don't need to move the window to a specific position. Unfortunately, VST windows are one of the few exceptions where the inject feature doesn't work.
(the only situation I'd need it for...)

Maybe this will be fixed in some future version. Already made a post in their forum about this.

 

Found another way to do it. I got a small touch monitor (Mimo Magic Touch Deluxe), mounted it to my midi keyboard and configued it as extended desktop area. Now I can drag a synth plugin to the touch screen and skip prests or change controls with touch input on it.
But this also has a few downsides:

-the program has to be compatible.
Examples:
FL Studio - everything can be controlled with touch.
Bitwig - only plugins work - the whole ui doesn't react to touch input.
Photoshop - all menus and controls work, but the canvas only accepts mouse input.

-no multitouch. Well, basically yes - all 10 fingers are recognised (you see a small circle under every finger on the screen) - but you can't grab two knobs at once. Or control two x-/y-fields, or press multiple buttons simultaneously, etc. As if the whole Windows engine is constructed for only one (mouse) operation at a time.
FL Studio even has a "multitouch" option in its setting - but it didn't change anything.

-it's dependent on the plugin size. Some higher resolution pulgins won't fit on the small touch screen. And a large touch monitor can't be mounted to your keyboard.

(memo: it's 2016 and resizing just slowly starts to appear in a few plugins. I just don't see how this isn't a naturalness since ages. At least 2 or 3 sizes should be the absoulte minimum, considering how many monitor sizes we have, and always had. AND considering how small all the controls in most plugins are -how much wasted space they usually have, where it would be easiy to make a smaller version without loosing any control)

I'm not exatcly sure if I regret the purchase. It's still nice to have another small sceen in reach, where you can drag some controls over for mouse-free usage. Even if it's single touch.

 

If you just want to scroll the list of sounds to try them out, then:
Highlight a sound in the complete list...hit return and listen...down arrow, hit return and it selects the next sound and loads it.
This works as long as you don't change focus to another window or something else in the same window with your mouse.
If you have a wireless KB it would help.
And you can restrict the search results for a shorter list of only Pianos e.g. if that is what you're looking for.

 

That would work for some people, but I have my keyboard on a desk leaf and the midi keyboard on top of the desk.
Can't access both at the same time.
Also can't imagine how this would work when you have a big midi keyboard. (88 keys)
If put the keyboard in front of it, you can't reach the midi keyboard properly.
On the left or right of it, it's too far away.
Therefore I've decided to place a mouse on the midi keyboard (it has a plain area at the right side, just about the size of a mouse pad)
and adding some small midi devices for additional controls on top and around the midi keyboard. (Akai LPD8, QuNeo, and now the small touch sreen)

I could also just grab the mouse to change presets, but... all the buttons on synth plugins are so ridiculoulsy small. Especially the preset change arrows. Mostly they're around 8x8 pixels, which is an extremely small area on a 1080p screen. Every time you grab the mouse, you'll move it a small bit and have to concentrate on the cursor to get it back to the right position.
This may sound trivial... but if you're just looking for a sound, and have to: grab, aim, click, grab, aim, click, over and over - it's just exhausting.
For a thing that could be so easy. In the past, I've had hardware synths with the presets change buttons perfectly accessible.
The small touch screen, that I've placed in the center of the midi keyboard, is the best solution for me so far. It's still more direct than the mouse.

The other thing is, the method you've mentioned only works for plugins that support such keyboard commands. It may work in any NI plugin, but I have a lot of synths. I don't think they all support arrow keys & enter for preset browsing.