Midi Quest 10 - Is it worth it?

[DevonB]

Older boxes like my Matrix-1000 and Casio VZ-10m required tweaking (I remember having to add timing delays, and some other things I can't remember now).

Problems with VZ10m? I can't even get MIDI OX to play nicely with it of all things! I eventually got it to work with Bome's SendSX.

Devon

[xybre]

Rekon doesn't respond to e-mails. The virus editor which I own will not load the present banks as advertised. There is no documentation. You can tweaksthe virtual knobs and the synth reponds but no luck in loading banks and patches or recalling them. Wasn't working in SX 3 or 4 and the same in Cubase 5. $50.00 down the drain. Not recommended.

I never purchased it, but I did get emails back from the developer when I was asking about things. Maybe you should try again? Just a suggestion, I don't know the details, ya know.

[Senor_Biggles]

I've used SoundDiver and MQ for about 10 years now. My opinion is that SoundDiver was better in the respect that the provided editors were very good and worked as expected. You could tell that the developer had put some time and effort into it.

MQ's provided editors are all riddled with bugs and appear to be created quickly without any thought going into how it can help creativity. MQ boasts supporting hundreds of synths. The reality is that most of these editors are useless.

What MQ has done well is provided a development platform from which you can create an editor that will be as good as if not better than what you could do in the provided SoundDiver editors. SoundDivers adaptation editor was limited in it's ability and was only useful for the most simple of synths.

MQ10 has gotten to the point where I can create very useful editors for complicated or sysex hampered synths such as Wavestation, Emu Romplers, Yahamaha FM series, and Roland MKS series. I've been able to create my own for these synths with satisfied results.

Granted, it takes a lot of time to create these editors but it can be done within MQ10. Vyzor's DSI Evolver editor is a great example of what can be done in MQ if you have the inclination. It would be in the interest of SoundQuest to focus more on encouraging outside development of editors and focus more on the platform because they do that much better than creating the editors within the program.

[atomix1040]

Hey, i'm athe author of the Controller plugin. It can control any parameter in midi, the format does not matter, you can send raw binary data if you'd like. So if a synth has a midi implementation you can create a controller for it with my plugin. I didn't update the codein a while but i'll get back to it, for now i cleaned it up a little and updated the JUCE version (win32 only, i don't have a mac at the moment).

[songshark]

FWIW it's worth a I had a terrible experience w/MIDIQUEST and would highly recommend they be avoided. Prior to purchase, I was told, in Email, by their support people it would work perfectly with my version of Logic IF I bought a specific VST to AU wrapper. I bought their software and the wrapper they recommended -- and wasted hours and hours trying to figure out their crappy documentation and make it work. It was only AFTER the fact they then told me it, "oops, we goofed, it won't work." (Clearly they had not tested it when they told me to buy it.) Not only did they not offer a refund for their software purchased on their misleading claims, they wouldn't even agree to provide me a free upgrade to what they claimed was a plug-in version they were developing that they claimed WOULD work for me! It was money completely down the drain and not so much as even an apology, much less a simple upgrade to make it right. My advice: avoid at all costs!!!

[trackzone]

The Alpha Juno has good midi implementation and can be controlled with a BCR 2000 or other midi controller.

In my experience, there are lots of problems with software solutions. Some hosts do not support Sysex to begin with. Ableton Live, my main work horse, does not seem to work with sysex editors.

Did you think about following:

Code: Select all

A  -->  B   -->  C
C  -->  B'  -->  A'

then also simultaneously

Code: Select all

A  -->  f..  -->  D
D  -->  b..  -->  A'

so all together we have two parallel signal chains which run in both directions, resulting all together in 2 * 2 = 4 signal paths.

Now lets explain the above variables A,A',B,B',C,D,f..,b.. :

A is Midi-Controller sending CC, e.g. BCR2000 on USB
B is CC to Sysex Converter for the right MIDI-TARGET, e.g. MIDI-OX for Alpha Juno-2
C is MIDI-TARGET 1, e.g. Alpha Juno-2
B' is Sysex to CC Converter for the right MIDI-TARGET, e.g. MIDI-OX for Alpha Juno-2
A' is Midi-Controller receiving CC, e.g. BCR2000 on USB

D is bi-directional CC capable host, e.g. Ableton Live
f.. is forward routing from USB to Midi-Yoke 1, set Midi-Yoke 1 in Live as Remote input
b.. is backward routing from Midi-Yoke 2 to USB, set Midi-Yoke 2 in Live as Remote output

Finished.

And what is the gained result? Now you should be able to tweak your Alpha Juno-2 via your BCR2000 and record all made tweaks at the same time also in Ableton Live if you want. I just wrote the idea right now from my head without any testing, but for even editing in Live and hearing the results in Juno-2 sound output we would probably need to establish another link from D to C, again via B, visualized as follows

Code: Select all

D  -->  B  -->  C

Improvements and corrections are welcome.

[trackzone]

Just forget what I wrote above and use instead: http://code.google.com/p/ctrlr

This is a killer MIDI hardware modular controller! Just check it, you will not believe your eyes! Thanks Kubiak Roman!!!