MIDI-Transformer: A small plugin for rerouting and transforming MIDI messages

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MIDI-Transformer

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Hi All,

I hope it's okay to cross-post this, as I posted it yesterday to the Effects form as well.

I just a released a fairly simple but powerful little plugin that allows you to redirect and modify MIDI messages by applying custom response curves. The plugin can be downloaded directly from the product page. The product page also includes some more detailed instructions on how to use the plugin. The source can also be found on github, which may be of more interest in this forum.

To use the plugin, you just place it somewhere in your FX chain and select a MIDI input source from the top-left dropdown, as well as a MIDI output destination from the top-right dropdown. Then you can modify the curve graphically and observe the effects. During playback, the GUI will show incoming values and how they are being transformed, as shown in the second screenshot below. The plugin can be chained as well in order to affect multiple types of MIDI messages in a single FX chain.

Hopefully some of you will find this plugin useful. Feedback is more than welcome!

Screenshots

General usage screenshot, showing a curve that will use velocity values to modify pitch bend:
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Highlighting how the GUI displays the last received MIDI input in real-time:
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Last edited by DNAdisaster on Tue Oct 26, 2021 10:48 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Interesting approach.
I think i'll leave a couple of my thoughts in GH issues, is it ok?

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Kott wrote: Wed Oct 13, 2021 9:39 am Interesting approach.
I think i'll leave a couple of my thoughts in GH issues, is it ok?
Yeah absolutely, all feedback is definitely welcome. Thanks for checking it out!

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This is awesome! Thank you.
Free MIDI plugins and other stuff:
https://jstuff.wordpress.com
"MIDI 2.0 is an extension of MIDI 1.0. It does not replace MIDI 1.0(...)"

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umd wrote: Wed Oct 20, 2021 12:36 am This is awesome! Thank you.
Really glad you found it useful, thanks for checking it out! Let me know if you have any feedback or what features might be helpful for you in the next revision.

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Hi, I'm using Cakewalk by Bandlab and am unable to get MIDI-transformer to load. I don't see it in the MIDI fx menu. I see it in the audio fx insert menu, but I get an error message when trying to load it. Anyway, it's not an audio effect so I'm not surprised that it doesn't load. Can you please clarify? Thanks HH

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EgonTwo wrote: Tue Nov 09, 2021 10:38 pm Hi, I'm using Cakewalk by Bandlab and am unable to get MIDI-transformer to load. I don't see it in the MIDI fx menu. I see it in the audio fx insert menu, but I get an error message when trying to load it. Anyway, it's not an audio effect so I'm not surprised that it doesn't load. Can you please clarify? Thanks HH
Appreciate you bringing this up, I was able to recreate the issue as well. I sent you a PM with an alternate VST2 build to try as a possible quick-fix (maybe... hopefully). The VST2 at least loaded into Cakewalk for me without crashing. I've never tested or used Cakewalk, so I'll have to investigate a bit further why it's behaving differently than others. It's very possible Cakewalk expects the plugin to identify itself differently, like you suggested.

If there's anyone out there that has experience developing/testing VST3's for Cakewalk, I'd be very interested in hearing your perspective!

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This reminds me of the old midiCurve by Insert Piz Here. It's 32 bit so I'm glad there's finally a modern alternative.
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EgonTwo wrote: Tue Nov 09, 2021 10:38 pm Hi, I'm using Cakewalk by Bandlab and am unable to get MIDI-transformer to load. I don't see it in the MIDI fx menu. I see it in the audio fx insert menu, but I get an error message when trying to load it. Anyway, it's not an audio effect so I'm not surprised that it doesn't load. Can you please clarify? Thanks HH
In Cakewalk land, the stuff that winds up in the MIDI FX menu are not VST plugins. They were 'MFX' plugins, variants on the DirectX standard. There were only ever a tiny number of 3rd party MFX plugins.

I havent used CW since it was Sonar, but if you want to use VST plugins that do MIDI processing, I think you still have to configure them as instruments (via the plugin scanner configuration), and you may have to enable MIDI output.
Some useful info at

https://discuss.cakewalk.com/index.php? ... nstrument/

There's also some info on setting up the MIDIshaper plugin for older versions of Sonar at

https://www.cableguys.com/midishaper-sonar.html

that might still be useful.
An idiot on Set Theory:
"In some cases there is an object called red that contains everything that is red. In much the same way a pot is a plate."

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