Akai MidiMix setup for Tracktion Waveform 9.

[globetrotterdk]

That's an actual upload from the controller to the editor (...)?

Yes. It is the custom template that I created. The only change is for the buttons - from "note" to "cc".

Yeah, there's a pattern to it. Knobs and faders contiguous in one group, switches in another. All on channel 1.
Certainly NOT MCU!

OK, no I couldn't find anything with MCU either in the editor nor in the sparse user guide.

[globetrotterdk]

Here is something that for some reason isn't in the user guide, that I found here <http://www.akaipro.com/support/kb/artic ... mix-editor>.

The relevant section appears below, but I am unsure how to use it:

[NTO]

Here is something that for some reason isn't in the user guide

Right, because it's for the editor not the device.

[NTO]

[snip]
OK,I got the knobs and faders to work with pan and volume controls without having to use Mackie (MCU), however the buttons continue to elude me.

I was thinking I would try midi learn w/a generic setting, then I saw this:
MIDI Learn
Click MIDI Learn to enter MIDI Learn mode. In this mode you can easily assign external
controller knobs and faders to on-screen controls.

Did you notice it says nothing about learning buttons?

[globetrotterdk]

Did you notice it says nothing about learning buttons?

No, I didn't

[NTO]

Maybe they'll add some emulations/mapping options in WF10 (coming soon hear tell)

It's not trivial, but if you want to try creating an MCU look-alike in the Akai editor; i debugged my BCF2000 emulation of MCU, and the data is between these two forum posts at FLS:
https://forum.image-line.com/viewtopic. ... 2#p1128612

https://forum.image-line.com/viewtopic. ... s#p1128614

How much you put in/into it...

[globetrotterdk]

Maybe they'll add some emulations/mapping options in WF10 (coming soon hear tell)

It's not trivial, but if you want to try creating an MCU look-alike in the Akai editor; i debugged my BCF2000 emulation of MCU, and the data is between these two forum posts at FLS:
https://forum.image-line.com/viewtopic. ... 2#p1128612

https://forum.image-line.com/viewtopic. ... s#p1128614

How much you put in/into it...

Thanks for the links to your two postings in FLS Forum. The Akai MidiMix Editor doesn't appear to have a debugging mode. The notes in your posts don't explain the process that you went through to debug. I assume that it was through a process of elimination, but I have no idea how one would start.

There may be an easier way, but I haven't gotten it to work yet:
https://forum.image-line.com/viewtopic. ... s#p1269712

The subject is a bit misleading as it appears that this technique is more general in nature (look below the screenshot about half way down the thread).

Lastly, is a cheat sheet available for Waveform 9 and specific codes for triggering mute, solo, rec arm, track navigation etc. for tracks 1-8? Perhaps these could be associated with and triggered by specific cc values, bypassing Midi Learn?

[chico.co.uk]

I'm not sure I'm following this, does it not midi learn when you press a button on the akai? No matter whether the button is set to CC or Note? Surely that's the same messages that knobs and faders send too, but they work?

What happens if you midi learn one of the knobs, say to mute track 1, learn the CC message from the knob, then assign that same CC message to a button instead? Does the button then work? Does it work if you press and hold the button down?

[globetrotterdk]

I'm not sure I'm following this, does it not midi learn when you press a button on the akai? No matter whether the button is set to CC or Note? Surely that's the same messages that knobs and faders send too, but they work?

What happens if you midi learn one of the knobs, say to mute track 1, learn the CC message from the knob, then assign that same CC message to a button instead? Does the button then work? Does it work if you press and hold the button down?

Apparently, "button" refers to a button in the Waveform 9 UI. I am unable to assign a knob, fader or button on the Akai MidiMix to mute a track (as an example), using Midi Learn.

I tried to Midi Learn with a Novation Launch Control XL and ran into the same problem - knobs and faders work fine, but UI buttons refuse to assign to a knob, fader or button on the Launch Control XL using Midi Learn.

Sounds like a feature request is clearly called for here.

[chico.co.uk]

I'm still a bit vague here... Are you doing this in control surfaces in settings, defining a new control surface? You can do midi learn there, to learn the knob, slider you're moving, then there's an option to choose (eg) mute for track 2 - which part doesn't work?

Eg ;

[globetrotterdk]

Wow! That explains a lot. I have only tried MCU in this view and have mainly been trying to get Midi Learn to work in project view. OK, I set up a test custom surface for the Akai MidiMix. The mute and solo buttons work now, although there is a quirk with which ever custom setting is last (for example solo channel eight). The midi value disappears after closing the "custom control surface mappings" window. Also, it doesn't appear possible to set any of the "rec arm" buttons for some reason. Likewise "bank left" and "bank right" can not be set as cc values (only notes) for some reason, and when "bank left" (MidiMix) is set to "track up" in Waveform 9, it refuses to work although "bank right" works with "track down" in Waveform...

[chico.co.uk]

Is it possible you've maybe got those notes (or CC messages) mapped to something else already, and that's conflicting? I'm kind of guessing here, but it might be worth deleting your Waveform settings file in case something you've been doing up till now is getting in the way. Or it could be a bug, that needs looking at. Check you're not also mapping the MidiMix as an MCU at the same time, that wouldn't work out too well, for instance.

Once you get the control surface set up how you like, it'll "stick" between projects, you won't need to do it again, but you might want to do "Export Settings" on that page, and keep a copy of that file, in case you get a new laptop, or whatever, and want to recreate the mapping

[globetrotterdk]

Is it possible you've maybe got those notes (or CC messages) mapped to something else already, and that's conflicting?

There seems to be some overlap with the button cc messages and the knobs. Unfortunately, the cc messages appear to jump back and forth between the knobs and faders. Is there any reason that I can't just set the buttons to another channel? Otherwise, I think that I would need to zero out the default values and run cc #1 to whatever the end result would be at the bottom with the last fader.

However, the first sets of buttons (including rec arm) should not be in conflict, so I don't know what the problem is there...

[chico.co.uk]

Yeah, some of the knobs use the same CC messages as the buttons ... that's probably not what you want, if you're mapping a new control surface. You want them to be unique, or else whatever you map to Mute Button 8, would also be mapped to the Row 3 knob, on number 2 - I doubt that's what you actually want ...

I'd just remap them, so all the buttons and knobs send unique CC messages, and then map those in the Custom Control Surface settings in Waveform. You could send them on a different channel, or not, up to you really. If you have bits of hardware, multiple control surfaces, you might want one to send messages on Channel 1, and another to send on Channel 2, so you can use both of them, or maybe you don't plug them both in at the same time, and that doesn't matter to you

But yeah, map the buttons, knobs and sliders to different CC messages

Examples of buttons using the same CC messages as knobs and sliders ;

[globetrotterdk]

What are "send a" and "send b" usually used for? I think the one is gain, but what is the other?

The Akai MidiMix has three rows of eight knobs and eight faders. I will use the faders for controlling the volume of eight tracks. The third row of knobs could be used to pan, as with the Novation Launch Control XL. However, I am unsure what to use the first two rows of eight knobs for. Everything suggests (to me at any rate) that the first two rows should be associated with other variables that are common to all tracks...