small scale midi switching...

A

andydeedpoll

i do love smilies...
hey there,

i'm a-looking to start using my TC electronics M300 reverb/effects box when i'm playing live with my guitar, and i've been trying to find a way of using the midi input on it, with a midi foot controller to change the presets i could save into it. the big Behringer FCB1010 looks like the right idea, but to be honest seems a bit 'over-kill' - i wouldn't want to have something that big on stage, along side my other effects, and i can't imagine i'd ever need to have that many 'buttons' to change settings while playing.

so, has anyone got any suggestions for a small midi foot controller? i was thinking all i'd really need was three buttons - to put the preset up and down, and also to tap the delay tempo. i've looked all over so many websites, and can't find anything... any suggestions?

thanks :)

Andy
 
I've got a TC Electronics G-Major that I use in my guitar rig. I was like you when I got my first rack mount processor several years ago and just wanted to be able to switch between a few patches-- nothing fancy.

So I bought an ART X-12. It worked great. Five presets (buttons) per bank-- really simple. However, a few years and a couple effects processors later and I end up with the G-Major. It has some features that I wanted to use like Tap Tempo. Well, unfortunately the Tap Tempo feature wouldn't work with the X-12 because it didn't send the right MIDI commands or whatever. So I starting looking for a footswitch to tap tempo because supposedly the G-Major was setup to do this. Well... three momentary footswitches later and I still can't tap a freaking tempo. TC support wasn't any help. But they did list the ART X-15 as their recommended MIDI controller.

So... I broke down and bought a mint condition X-15 on Ebay. Needless to say, it's bigger than I want and seems a little overkill... but I love it. I can use every feature on my G-Major now and it's all real easy to setup.

To get to the point... my advice is to get the *recommended* controller to match your processor even if it seems like overkill. Nothing like having the right controller! It will open up functionality that you may not even know you want right now. Plus, if the thing has like 10 patch buttons on it... think of those as 10 different effects pedals. Now instead of seeming like overkill... it's starting to look pretty cool! You can have reverb, delay, phaser, flange, chorus, octave, tremolo, leslie, slap-back, and a filter all at the touch of a button.

But, if you absolutely want just a small little controller, the ART X-12 is perfect. I've had mine for probably 6 or 7 years and played many gigs and rehearsals with it. It's very reliable and nice and compact.
 
BTW... both those ART controllers I mentioned are discontinued... so you have to go the Ebay route.
 
I use the FCB 1010 with my G-Major. My approach is a little different that Scottgman's... Instead of using each switch to toggle each effect, I use each switch to change to a different user patch on the G-Major. Since the G-Major can also switch channels on my amp, I can go from a clean, chorusy sound to a screaming lead with delay with the press of a single button.

I also have tap tempo set up for patches that need it, as well as control over effect parameters mapped to the expression pedals. For instance, I have a clean tremelo sound on switch 8 of the 1010. If I stomp on it once, I get the patch with its default parameters. But if I stomp on it twice, I am not only selecting the patch but tapping the tempo for the tremelo. Also, if I want to change the depth of the tremelo, I use expression pedal A.

Another cool thing I did was map switch 10 so that it calls up my "clean" preset and mutes the output, so I can tune in silence. I stomp it a 2nd time when I'm done, and it unmutes the output.

I would not recommend the 1010 for switching individual effects blocks on and off, like Scottgman does, because it can't receive signals back from the G-Major to control the LEDs. For instance, if button 6 is hooked up to the delay block, when you stomp on it the LED will light up - no matter if you just turned the delay block on or off. It works just fine for switching the blocks, it just won't give you visual feedback about which one is on or off.

However, for preset switching like I do, it works great. I no longer have to try and stomp 3+ switches at the same time (while singing!) when I go from verse to chorus. I just hit one switch and I'm there.
 
Hey Dirty, what kind of amp are you using?

A buddy of mine has a Mesa Triaxis preamp and a G-Major/FCB1010. He has it setup just like you. It seems a little more complicated using the amp channel switching... but the options are almost infinite. Cool stuff. I've got a pretty simple rig (by design).
 
I've got a Mesa DC-3. It's a sweet little 35W 1x12 combo, pretty versatile.

That's pretty much my setup: PRS -> Wah -> DC-3 with the G-Major in the FX loop and the 1010 controlling it all.

The 1010 has two relays that could be used to switch amp channels as well, but it made more sense to me to keep all the sound-related settings in the G-Major patch, and just program each button on the 1010 to control whatever patch I was assigning to it.
 
its beginning to look like the 1010 is the way to go.

I did find some "Midi Mouse" thing, but it cost the same amount as the 1010 (give or take £20) and it only had two buttons ... i might need to save them pennies a bit more, but hopefully, when i Do get it, i won't need to upgrade much after that for quite a Long time...

thanks for all the advice :):)

Andy
 
dirtythermos said:
I've got a Mesa DC-3. It's a sweet little 35W 1x12 combo, pretty versatile.

That's pretty much my setup: PRS -> Wah -> DC-3 with the G-Major in the FX loop and the 1010 controlling it all.

The 1010 has two relays that could be used to switch amp channels as well, but it made more sense to me to keep all the sound-related settings in the G-Major patch, and just program each button on the 1010 to control whatever patch I was assigning to it.
Click to expand...
Cool! Man I bet that rig sounds great!
 
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