Hello everyone!
this is my first post in mixxx forum so please bare with me.
I hope this is a good place to put the post, if not, maybe some moderator should move it accordingly.
I am a web radio broadcaster and i use mixxx for this reason.
I don't want to spend too much money on many midi controllers so i was wondering: is it possible to use a software midi controller to control mixxx?
Well, it looks like it is! (with some problems/restrictions though...)
First things first.
Operating system: Ubuntu 16.04 LTS (unity)
Sound cards (two, yes two but only for advanced use - not needed): onboard (monitor speakers), external usb (microphone and headphones). The external helps A LOT to minimize the hiss of the mini jack microphone - i would say it eliminates it and it is very cheap, like 10 euros.
Mixxx midi contoller: Hercules dj controller mp3 (probably the very first one the company created). Bought it second had. It does not have controls for all mixxx functionality, hence the original question...
The solution:
run an application on an android device that sends midi signals towards the pc.
run an application on pc that collects the midi signals and forwards them to Mixxx.
Configure Mixxx to accept those signals.
The android application i found is called 'touchdaw'
Install from google play. Free version, hope it lasts with less functionality from the paid one and not expire...
Configuration icon (3 horizontal lines) and select mixer.
Config icon->setup->MIDI Ports->Port 1->Wifi (could not make USB to work...)-> Multicast
Config Icon->setup->DAW Controller-> Sequencer-> Cubase/Nuendo (don't know if it matters, maybe it has something to do with the IP:Port setting later...)
The pc application i found is called 'Qmidinet' . It looks like it is the only one out there for Linux. They state on their website it is in beta with bugs - indeed, in my case it crashed and had to restart both the application and mixxx in order for mixxx to be able to understand the signals.
Install from Ubuntu repositories.
Run (initially on a terminal so that you can see output - simply run the command 'qmidinet') . An icon appears on the top bar next to the network-language icon. From there check the options:
Number of ports: 1
ALSA: checked
JACK: unchecked
Interface: Any
UDP Address: 225.0.0.37
UDP Port: 21928
Those are the default
If you run it from a terminal, moving a slider on the android device should produce output on the terminal and some green colour on the icon of the application tray.
Run mixxx from a terminal 'mixxx --controllerDebug' so that you can see the output (just the first time for the configuration of it)
Preferences->Controllers->port 0 (this is how it appeared for me)-> enable
Now when you use a slider on 'touchdaw' you should see output on the mixxx terminal.
All you need is to teach mixxx how to behave with the controlls on the software midi controller. Use Learning Wizard (MIDI only) for this reason.
One last thing: Mixxx teaching process could not understand a slider as a slider but as a button instead. Going over the mixxx docs and watching the mixxx terminal output, i noticed that the code for the slider was 0xE0 (Pitch Bend) where the learning process used the NoteON code instead. Updated the port_0.midi.xml file ('Open User Preset Folder' in Preferences-> Controllers) with <status>0xE0</status> in order to work. OpCode was updated and Control took (automatically ??) the value 0xFF, it worked , didn't not change it....
Its been a lot of stuff and maybe i missed something when writing this post, please be kind !
Anyone is more than welcomed to update/propose/make better this procedure.
Here are some links to websites/photos of what i have mentioned:
https://qmidinet.sourceforge.io/qmidinet-index.html
http://www.humatic.de/htools/touchdaw/
http://medias.audiofanzine.com/images/normal/hercules-dj-control-mp3-641616.jpg
The MIDI Keyboard or Digital Piano is often the heart of a small home recording studio, and the easiest and fastest way to enter bass lines, edit drum tracks, and of course record keyboard tracks. The other benefit of making a MIDI connection is if you want to learn to play keyboard or piano. Once you have a MIDI connection you can benefit from interactive piano lesson software and online piano courses. It is also a great way to benefit from interactive music theory software and apps.
There are THREE main ways that you will be able to connect your digital piano or keyboard up. It will depend on your keyboard. You can connect your keyboard if it has any of: traditional MIDI ports; a USB (sometimes labelled as USB host); or maybe even bluetooth. Here is a quick video which covers all the aspects of how to connect your MIDI keyboard to your iPad, Mac or PC, whether it has MIDI ports, USB or Bluetooth. Scroll down below if you want more detail, and links to the products mentioned.
Check the outputs on your keyboard. Does it have MIDI ports? MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is the protocol for communication between your keyboard and your computer. When you press a key the action is registered by the software you are using through the MIDI link.
Click the 'File' tab in the upper left corner of the software to select 'New Project,' then click the MIDI tab near the top middle of the screen to select the connected keyboard from a drop-down menu. To date, the standard way to connect a MIDI keyboard to an iPad has been to create a wired connection between the two. How To Connect A MIDI Keyboard To An iPad (Wired Connection) describes how to do this. However, for those who prefer a neater, more elegant solution, Bluetooth is. Go to the Options tab, click Preferences, then click the Link/MIDI tab on the left. Locate your MIDI device in the Input section and turn the Track button to ON to enable it. Follow the same procedure for your MIDI keyboard output listed. Press a key/pad to confirm you’re getting MIDI signal. Then use the MIDI Thru from the keyboard to connect another MIDI cable to the MIDI in of the Sound module. Parting Notes. All in all, a two-keyboard setup opens many doors for you in terms of control and sounds. You can use your master keyboard to control the sounds of the other keyboard without disturbing its synth settings.
this is my first post in mixxx forum so please bare with me.
I hope this is a good place to put the post, if not, maybe some moderator should move it accordingly.
I am a web radio broadcaster and i use mixxx for this reason.
I don't want to spend too much money on many midi controllers so i was wondering: is it possible to use a software midi controller to control mixxx?
Well, it looks like it is! (with some problems/restrictions though...)
First things first.
Operating system: Ubuntu 16.04 LTS (unity)
Sound cards (two, yes two but only for advanced use - not needed): onboard (monitor speakers), external usb (microphone and headphones). The external helps A LOT to minimize the hiss of the mini jack microphone - i would say it eliminates it and it is very cheap, like 10 euros.
Mixxx midi contoller: Hercules dj controller mp3 (probably the very first one the company created). Bought it second had. It does not have controls for all mixxx functionality, hence the original question...
The solution:
run an application on an android device that sends midi signals towards the pc.
run an application on pc that collects the midi signals and forwards them to Mixxx.
Configure Mixxx to accept those signals.
The android application i found is called 'touchdaw'
Install from google play. Free version, hope it lasts with less functionality from the paid one and not expire...
Configuration icon (3 horizontal lines) and select mixer.
Config icon->setup->MIDI Ports->Port 1->Wifi (could not make USB to work...)-> Multicast
Config Icon->setup->DAW Controller-> Sequencer-> Cubase/Nuendo (don't know if it matters, maybe it has something to do with the IP:Port setting later...)
The pc application i found is called 'Qmidinet' . It looks like it is the only one out there for Linux. They state on their website it is in beta with bugs - indeed, in my case it crashed and had to restart both the application and mixxx in order for mixxx to be able to understand the signals.
Install from Ubuntu repositories.
Run (initially on a terminal so that you can see output - simply run the command 'qmidinet') . An icon appears on the top bar next to the network-language icon. From there check the options:
Number of ports: 1
ALSA: checked
JACK: unchecked
Interface: Any
UDP Address: 225.0.0.37
UDP Port: 21928
Those are the default
Connect Midi Keyboard To Computer
and worked for me.If you run it from a terminal, moving a slider on the android device should produce output on the terminal and some green colour on the icon of the application tray.
Run mixxx from a terminal 'mixxx --controllerDebug' so that you can see the output (just the first time for the configuration of it)
Preferences->Controllers->port 0 (this is how it appeared for me)-> enable
Now when you use a slider on 'touchdaw' you should see output on the mixxx terminal.
All you need is to teach mixxx how to behave with the controlls on the software midi controller. Use Learning Wizard (MIDI only) for this reason.
One last thing: Mixxx teaching process could not understand a slider as a slider but as a button instead. Going over the mixxx docs and watching the mixxx terminal output, i noticed that the code for the slider was 0xE0 (Pitch Bend) where the learning process used the NoteON code instead. Updated the port_0.midi.xml file ('Open User Preset Folder' in Preferences-> Controllers) with <status>0xE0</status> in order to work. OpCode was updated and Control took (automatically ??) the value 0xFF, it worked , didn't not change it....
How To Play A Midi Keyboard
Its been a lot of stuff and maybe i missed something when writing this post, please be kind !
Anyone is more than welcomed to update/propose/make better this procedure.
Here are some links to websites/photos of what i have mentioned:
https://qmidinet.sourceforge.io/qmidinet-index.html
http://www.humatic.de/htools/touchdaw/
http://medias.audiofanzine.com/images/normal/hercules-dj-control-mp3-641616.jpg
Your complete quick guide to connecting your keyboard to: PC or Mac; Laptop or Desktop; Tablet or Smartphone.
If you are just starting out with your home recording studio set-up, the first thing you may wish to do is find out how to connect a MIDI keyboard or digital piano up to your computer, tablet or phone. This will enable you to use any interactive MIDI software and apps: quickly record virtual instrument tracks; write your own songs and music; learn to play and more.
Why Connect Your Keyboard?
Midi Keyboard For Computer
The MIDI Keyboard or Digital Piano is often the heart of a small home recording studio, and the easiest and fastest way to enter bass lines, edit drum tracks, and of course record keyboard tracks. The other benefit of making a MIDI connection is if you want to learn to play keyboard or piano. Once you have a MIDI connection you can benefit from interactive piano lesson software and online piano courses. It is also a great way to benefit from interactive music theory software and apps.
There are THREE main ways that you will be able to connect your digital piano or keyboard up. It will depend on your keyboard. You can connect your keyboard if it has any of: traditional MIDI ports; a USB (sometimes labelled as USB host); or maybe even bluetooth. Here is a quick video which covers all the aspects of how to connect your MIDI keyboard to your iPad, Mac or PC, whether it has MIDI ports, USB or Bluetooth. Scroll down below if you want more detail, and links to the products mentioned.
Do You Have Traditional MIDI Ports?
Check the outputs on your keyboard. Does it have MIDI ports? MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is the protocol for communication between your keyboard and your computer. When you press a key the action is registered by the software you are using through the MIDI link.
Most traditional keyboards and Digital Pianos have MIDI in and out as standard. Look for ports like the one in the image below. It is possible your keyboard is only a controller, and may only have MIDI out. That’s OK. The principal of MIDI connection is still the same.
[The following content contains affiliate links. For more information, read our disclosure policy here.]
Connect Keyboard/Piano with MIDI Ports to any Mac or PC – Option 1: USB-MIDI interface
So if you have a keyboard with MIDI ports, then the simplest and cheapest solution is a USB-MIDI interface. The following are all highly recommended USB-MIDI interfaces which will do the job easily and cost-effectively.
Roland UM-ONE MK2 USB MIDI Interface High-performance FPT processing, very compact, affordable, and easy to use. Compatible with PC, Mac and iPad.
iConnectivity mio 1-in 1-out USB to MIDI Interface Plug and play – no drivers or difficult installation needed, ultra low latency MIDI Input and Output
Creative EMU XMIDI 1X1 USB MIDI Interface Active-Sensing messages filtered, MME, DirectMusic and CoreMIDI supported
M-Audio USB Midisport Uno MIDI Interface Perfect for connecting a keyboard or controller to your computer with upward mobility – add as many USB Midisport interfaces to your computer as you have USB ports
We advise that you always stick with a well-known brand which is why we recommend any of the above. They all have good manufacturer support, up-to-date drivers and good guarantees in the event of any problems. If you want even more choice, then you can follow this link to find the current top 10 most popular MIDI interfaces.
Connect Keyboard/Piano with MIDI Ports to any Mac or PC – Option 2: Audio Interface + MIDI Leads
Rather than just sticking with solving the MIDI connection, if you want to make high quality audio recordings too, then you could purchase an Audio Interface with MIDI i/o and a pair of MIDI leads. Here are two really reasonably priced, and high quality options:
The versatile Presonus iTwo Multi-Platform USB Interface with MIDI input and output
Use Midi Keyboard Online
The Focusrite Scarlett 2i4 USB Audio Interface with MIDI input and output
Standard MIDI leads to connect from keyboard to audio interface
Connect a Keyboard with traditional MIDI ports to an iPad: 4 Options
USB MIDI interface or Audio Interface + powered iPad adapter
If you want to connect your keyboard to your iPad, and it has the MIDI ports as shown above, then you have 4 different ways to do it. Options 1 and 2 are identical to the solution for PC and Mac. You buy either a USB-MIDI interface OR a USB Audio Interface with MIDI input and output (so any of the products shown above) and use a lightning to USB adapter (as shown to the left). It is very important you buy one that allows you to charge at the same time … or you will not have sufficient power!
USB MIDI interface or Audio Interface + powered iPad adapter and standard MIDI leads
How To Connect Midi Cables
Option 3: Audio Interface for iPad with MIDI
For example: the IK-Multimedia iRig Pro Duo audio interface for iPad with MIDI
Option 4: MIDI Interface for iPad
For example: the iConnect MIDI 1 Lightning Version USB-MIDI Interface
If you have digital piano or keyboard have a USB output? It is sometimes labelled USB-Host or similar. If so, then you should be able to connect very easily to your Mac or PC with a standard USB Printer cable. Simply refer to the manual for your particular keyboard to find out how to set it up. Easy.
Got an iPad? Then you should be able to connect with a standard USB cable and a lightning to USB adapter (as mentioned above).
OR, to connect to iPad you could buy the Voker Midi Cable to Lightning Connector. This is an interface especially designed to connect from the USB output of a digital piano to ipad, via lightning.
Bluetooth MIDI A Brilliant iPad Solution
Some manufacturers are now including Bluetooth audio/MIDI support for connecting your keyboard with your smartphone or tablet. For example, the Roland Go:Piano and Roland Go:Keys both have bluetooth – use them with any compatible apps on your iPad or smartphone.
Connect Midi To Pc
Although you can get other kinds of MIDI controller, the keyboard is the most popular, widely available, and reasonably priced. If you have not yet got any kind of keyboard, then look first at Getting started – choosing the right keyboard. It will help you decide the best MIDI keyboard for you. You will find almost all modern keyboards and pianos feature USB MIDI connections.
Want To Record MIDI and Audio?
If you not only want to use your keyboard or digital piano as a MIDI controller, but also want to record the sound of it, then do look read our post on how to record your keyboard. Or refer to our complete step-by-step guide on how to record audio and MIDI tracks simultaneously.
There are lots of recommendations in there for kit that will let you do BOTH. And put your keyboard right at the heart of your home recording studio. Or … see the Focusrite 2i4 and the Audiobox iTwo USB Audio/MIDI interfaces mentioned above.
Why do MIDI IN jacks connect to MIDI OUT jacks? Surely it makes more sense to connect a MIDI IN jack to a MIDI IN jack. After all, they’re both labeled IN. Same goes for MIDI OUT to MIDI OUT”
The accepted way actually makes a lot of sense. Think about it. You want MIDI data to go out of your controller and in to your sound module. After all, you wouldn’t connect the audio out jack of your sound module to the outputs of your mixer, would you? No, you connect the audio output to an audio (mixer) input. And then you connect the mixer outputs to the inputs of your amplifier. And then you connect the amp’s speaker outputs to the speaker inputs. Same thing with MIDI. Think of MIDI data as “flowing” in the same way that audio signals “flow” through your audio system.
Still Confused? Or Want To Record Audio Tracks?
This is just a quick guide if you simply want to hook up your keyboard to start using MIDI software. If you want a more in-depth set of tutorials, or you want to record the sound of your keyboard then you can either refer to our quick guide on how to record your piano, or see our full length free video course which explains the difference between MIDI and Audio in detail and shows you step-by-step exactly what you need to either record your keyboard or use it as a MIDI controller.
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