I always see 'Assignable Knob full' on my Modx8 (firmware 2.0) when I hit the control assign and move the super knob.

I've checked and deleted every control assignment in every part and common but it just keeps giving me the same message. In all the examples I see on youtube they never run into this problem. AM I doing something wrong?

Yes, undoubtedly you are, ...doing something wrong. There are Common Assignments (upper level that apply to the Performance) and there are Part Assignments (individual Part level of the architecture)... you can fill them separately.

It is not clear because you don’t say, what it is exactly you want to accomplish. When starting with a factory a Performance it is best to review current assignments prior to attempting add additional programming...

But let’s start by making a very basic assignment. This will help you understand how Control Assignments work. A Control Assignment will be a Source (controller) and a Destination (parameter) and a group of parameters to apply the controller to the parameter (Curve Type, Polarity, Ratio, and shape Parameters 1 and 2)

From the HOME screen
Press [CATEGORY]
Set “Bank/Favorite” = All
Set ”Attribute” = All
Touch “Init”
Touch “Init Normal AWM2”

This starts you with the initialized sample based program. The very first Waveform (acoustic piano) with the most basic Envelope shape (organ = immediate attack, sustain = hold, immediate release). only Element 1 of the eight available is active.

Let’s assign the Part Volume to Super Knob position — just to get a basic understanding of how this would work.

Press [EDIT]
The upper left corner of the screen, the top line of the screen will always show you *where* you are within the architecture.
Select Part 1
You can do this in the screen or using buttons.

In the screen: lower left corner touch “Common” > see pop-in menu > select “Part 1” > touch “X” to put away the pop-in menu
Using buttons: press [PART SELECT_Mute/Solo] > touch “Select” > “Part 1” > touch “X” or press [EXIT], to put away pop-in menu

Touch “Part Settings” > “General”
Move the cursor to highlight “Volume”
Set the Volume = 0

When you highlight a parameter that is an assignable parameter the [CONTROL ASSIGN] button will glow
Press [CONTROL ASSIGN]
You will see a screen that asks you to choose a controller...

Move the Super Knob
Several things will happen:
_ The Super Knob position will be assigned to control the Part Volume
_ A drop down will appear briefly telling you “Modified: Common AsgnKnob1 —> AsgnKnob 1”
(This means that the Super Knob’s Common Assign Knob 1 has been set to control the Part’s Assign Knob 1)
_ You are taken to “Edit - Part 1 - Common” > “Mod/Control” > “Control Assign” screen

“Destination 1” = Volume
“Source” = AsgnKnob 1
The “Curve Type” = Standard
It is a ramp from left-to-right indicating how the Volume will increase when the Knob is turned from minimum-to-maximum

As you turn the Super Knob, notice Part 1 Assign Knob 1 also moves in concert with the Super Knob... and the Part Volume changes in accordance with the position of the Super Knob. Part Volume can be adjusted by either moving the Super Knob, or by moving Part 1’s Assign Knob 1 directly.

Let us know. Are you able to make this assignment?

Likely you are starting with a program already setup with some one else’s programming — there can be a maximum of 16 Control Sets (Destination/Source) per Part. Each of the 16 Parts has 16 Destinations. Each Part has 8 Assign Knobs of its own.

The Super Knob (which can address all 16 Parts) has 8 dedicated Common Assign Knobs - by default these 8 Common Assign Knobs are *linked* to the Super Knob. By linking a Part’s Knob to a Common Knob we make it accessible to the Super Knob.

Part 1 Assign Knob 1 is *linked* to the Common Assign Knob 1, (which by default is linked to the Super Knob).

When you say you removed all assignments, likely you only removed the Part Assign Knob assignments or just the Common Assign Knob assignments... and because you did not differentiate between these two, it’s likely you were or are unaware of the two different sets of Control Assignments for the Knob system...

With the assignment we made, we were told “Modified Common AsgnKnob 1 —> AsgnKnob 1”
Translation upper Common Assign Knob #1 (a Super Knob linked Knob) is in control of Part 1’s first Assign Knob

To see how this manifests itself within the Performance... while viewing the Part’s “Mod/Control” > “Control Assign”, touch the shortcut box “Edit Common Control Settings”

Here you see “Edit - Common/Audio” - this is the top level of the architecture (where the Super Knob lives).
Destination 1 = Part 1 Assign 1
Assign Knob 1 is set to control Volume. You can follow the routing... notice a Common Control Knob can have multiple Destinations (the “1/1” indicates that this this is first assignment made to this Knob. If multiple a Destination exist you will see them indicated here).
Touch the box “Edit Part 1 Control Settings” - the shortcut box back to Part 1 - Edit and Part’s Control Assignments.

By the way, if you take MODX Connect and create an X8B file (SAVE Performance data) - then upload that file - then anyone with a MODX could load your file and see the same error. Digging into your settings - they'd be able to see what resource is likely consumed and contributing to the error message.

So what do we do when we are editing a preset and we get the message "Assignable knob full" when using the control assign button to try to assign the Superknob to volume?

So what do we do when we are editing a preset and we get the message "Assignable knob full" when using the control assign button to try to assign the Superknob to volume?

What do you do!? You review the Controller assignments, each by each, and DELETE those you are not going to use or that are actually doing nothing. You may find that some Control Sets are not going to be used during your performing with this particular sound. I’d say no one ever uses all the assignments but I’m not looking to argue, it’s just highly unlikely that all of the assignments will appear necessary for your performing in any particular instance. Learn to customize.

Oft times the same Control is farmed to several different controllers, pick the one you find intuitive and reprogram others. Some time assignments are made, then the physical controller is disabled, so you want to review each assignment and see if it is something that is even useable. Many times the programmer would put certain bands of the Equalizer to the Assign Knobs — so the user has the ability to customize them. Figure out what EQ you need for the sound and program that as permanent, thus freeing all the Assign Knobs that we’re used for EQ. Other subjective settings like Rev Send and Var Send are candidates for reprogramming — unless changing these during your particular performance these are important. Most times they are “set and forget” — reprogram any Assign Knobs doing Send Levels unless YOU need that.

It’s a programmable synth, what you do is learn to program! Once you start studying the Performances from the viewpoint of how YOU need to use them, a lot of the preset programming can be deleted and updated for your particular needs. That’s what the User Bank is for...

The skill of exploring and observing cannot be overstated... develop it. Learn to find what is actually Assign and which ones lead to dead ends.

Thanks. I need to digest this. I decided to strip it back.
The sound I'm using is syn comp-->digital-->Epiphany.
If I edit that patch I can effortlessly assign the Superknob to volume.

But if I add Epiphany to the performance I'm building, and I use the same procedure, I get the "knob full" message.
I've deleted several parts that I don't need, but I guess that doesn't "free up" assignments.

Here was my problem. When I clicked on Common Ctrl Settings there were 7 assignments. I deleted all of them and now I was able to assign the Part volume to the Superknob,

So your lesson about studying existing assignments is well taken.
Thanks!

Did you just DELETE them? Or did you review each one to see what it was doing? Then decide, I don’t need this, then Delete it.

You’re exploring, but don’t be in too much of a hurry. Sure, you can just Delete them all, but you’ll learn more, quicker, if you take your time and decipher each assignment.

It seems you've definitively determined the resources you are running out of are the Common/Audio level Assignable Knobs (not the PART-level ones).

If you look at your Common/Audio level Assignable Knob assignments for your Performance BEFORE adding "Epiphany" - you can jot those down on a piece of paper and trace them each through to which parameters in each PART (or common level parameters) they modulate.

You can do the same for the "Epiphany" Performance by itself - looking at its Common/Audio level Assignable Knob assignments and writing down what they all do.

If you see that adding these together will use more than 8 Assignable knobs - you can start to appreciate why the system doesn't "automagically" figure out how to merge these. Instead, it leaves it up to you to decide.

After writing down all of these assignments - you'll be able to better decide what stays and what goes. You can go further even and see if any two of the Common/Audio level assignable knobs are linked to Superknob and have the same lower and upper limits (meaning they both spin the direction and have the same range as each other). If this is true - then there's not a great reason to have both knobs. You can combine them and conserve a Common/Audio Assignable Knob.

Now if you have two Common/Audio level Assignable Knobs that have the same upper/lower limits and are NOT controlled by superknob (not linked) - then you have a choice. Do you really need these two knobs to spin independently? That's how they were designed. Or can they both equal each other? In which case you can again combine and loose the independence. It's a choice. And then there may be Common/Audio level knobs that you would never-ever touch. You want them "fixed" at a certain point and never move the knob again. In this case, you can get rid of the assignments and adjust the parameter(s) this knob affects with the offset value that would be applied by the curve(s) attached to each parameter. In other words, "hard code" or "fix" the value in the parameters themselves and get rid of any modulation control you currently have. This would conserve not only the Common/Audio level assignable knob - but also any PART Assignable Knob(s) this knob is attached to. This may be an intense level of editing, however.

Keep in mind that Superknob assigned to Common/Assignable knobs is the only way [SCENE] buttons can be linked to control assignable knobs. So by removing assignable knobs altogether from being controlled by superknob may have an impact on how [SCENE] buttons work or change the sound. This may not matter to you - but it should be realized that even if you don't ever put your hand on superknob - perhaps [SCENE] buttons do virtually spin the knob. Same idea goes for superknob automation (motion sequences that automate the superknob).

In this case I couldn't hear any effect of the Superknob on any of the parts so I deleted them out of utility to get my Performance working.

I have 40 songs to learn and build by next weekend. 🙂

I will definitely study this control matrix because there are things I need to do with foot pedals.