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Multi-channel devices attached to USB input

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Christine
Posts: 0
Active Member
Topic starter
 

Apologies if this has come up before (in fact I find it hard to beleive it hasn't - but I can't seem to find anything).

I'm trying to attach an NDLR multi-channel arpeggiator device to my Montage 7 directly, using the USB-A socket on the back of the instrument. It recognises it as a MIDI device fine and receives note input from it.

BUT, even though I have MIDI I/O mode on the Montage set to multi, whatever I send from the NDLR always plays on all PARTs. Send to MIDI channel 1 - all PARTS play, send to MIDI channel 2, all PARTs play. What I would expect in this situation is the channel 1 notes play on PART 1, channel 2 notes play on PART 2 - as they do when I use the 'normal' USB-B socket for connecting to a computer.

I checked this wasn't a problem with the NDLR by connecting a (Yamaha) USB-MIDI device to the USB-A port of the Montage and sent things to various channels from another device (actually a computer running Reaper). regardless of which channel I send to, all PARTs play all of the notes I send.

Have I missed something or is this a bug (or non-feature) in firmware 3.50.0?

 
Posted : 02/09/2020 12:23 pm
Bad Mister
Posts: 12303
 

Have I missed something or is this a bug (or non-feature) in firmware 3.50.0?

Likely a misunderstanding about how it works.

Plugging an external controller to the MONTAGE “TO DEVICE” port will allow you to use an external device in place of the MONTAGE Keyboard. Your MONTAGE settings for MIDI I/O Mode do not apply in this instance...
What does apply is based on how the MONTAGE addresses itself... KBD CTRL linked Parts are a “band of brothers” they all hang out... in a “one-for-all, all-for-one” manner!

Your external controller will be set to play all KBD CTRL linked Parts whenever you transmit IN on a Channel that corresponds to a KBD CTRL active Part number. Any one of them will do.

Example: you recall “CFX + FM EP” This is 5-Parts, the first four acoustic piano, the fifth FM electric piano, Super Knob morphs between the two.
There are 5 KBD CTRL icons active... means they will all respond to any MIDI IN Channel 1 through 5.

Any non-KBD CTL Part will respond only when you transmit on its specific channel.

Try this:
Press [CATEGORY SEARCH]
Set “Bank/Favorite“ = All
Set “Attribute” = All
Select “INIT” > “Multi/GM”

This places an instrument in each Part 1-16. One Part per Channel
KBD CTRL is active on Part 1.
Transmitting In on Ch 1 will cause it, Part 1 to sound
Change your controller to transmit on Channel 2
Transmitting in on Ch 2 will cause Part 2 to sound, while Part 1 is silent.

Now activate the KBD CTRL icon on both Parts 1 and 2... they both will sound if you transmit IN on either Channels 1 or 2.
If you link another it joins the “band”... all KBD CTRL Parts are together, and any of their channels speaks to all of them.

Any of their channels will suffice to make them respond!
If you’re using a controller that only sends on a single channel at a time... you can access the MONTAGE via the “TO DEVICE” Port with full control... but the active / non-active function of the Parts is now determined exclusively by the KBD CTRL links.

__All KBD CTRL linked Parts will sound together - exactly the same as if you were playing on the MONTAGE keys provided you transmit on the channel corresponding to one of them.
__Non-KBD CTRL linked Parts will sound only when you transmit on their correspondingly numbered MIDI Channel. If Part 8 is not KBD CTRL-linked, then you must transmit on Ch 8 to trigger it.

It is that simple and that complex.

Hope that helps.

Extra Credit:
Example:
If you have “CFX + FM EP” (5 KBD CTRL-linked Parts) you can be playing them with the MONTAGE keyboard as you always would, while simultaneously triggering a lead sound in Part 8 (no KBD CTRL) by transmitting IN on Ch 8 from your external controller.

Or the converse, by transmitting IN on any Ch 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5, you can play the “CFX +FM EP” with your external keys, while playing any non-linked Part with the MONTAGE keys by *selecting* the Part directly!

 
Posted : 02/09/2020 2:26 pm
Christine
Posts: 0
Active Member
Topic starter
 

Yes, that's exactly what I was missing.

Thank you so much!

 
Posted : 02/09/2020 2:34 pm
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