Using Fantom XR with an Accordion, Foot Swich Help Needed.

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naadbrahma
Posts: 2
Joined: 05:49, 29 February 2016

Using Fantom XR with an Accordion, Foot Swich Help Needed.

Post by naadbrahma »

Before I take the plunge and buy a Fantom XR, I wanted to see if it will even work for me. I have an accordion wired up with midi, it uses 7 channels as follows:


Channel 1 = keyboard
Channel 2 = keyboard second voice
Channel 3 = keyboard third voice
Channel 4 = keyboard fourth voice
Channel 5 = bass chords
Channel 6 = bass chords
Channel 7 = bass

My hope is that I can first off create a performance where I can assign a voice to each channel and do the appropriate setting to pan them and change the volume settings etc. For example, I could have:

1 = accordion
2 = trumpet
3 = saxophone
4 = violin
5 = piano
6 = strings
7 = bass

I would like to be able to take channels 1-4 and selectively mute them as needed with some sort of foot controller. My accordions midi box only has a midi out, nothing else. It also has no assignable controls on board. What I do know is that it will only communicate with the performance bank, this was stated by the tech who wired my accordion.
I'm hoping there is a way to make this work. I absolutely love the sounds of the Fantom XR and hope it can be used up on stage.
rcraven
Posts: 629
Joined: 14:36, 9 September 2007
Location: Melbourne Australia

Re: Using Fantom XR with an Accordion, Foot Swich Help Neede

Post by rcraven »

Hi
this should be fine.
There are a number of foot controllers around that can put out Continuous Controller (CC) 7 Midi messages which is volume.
You need a controller with switches that on the first push put out CC 7 00 and the next push resets the volume to, say, CC 7 110 on the particular channel. It is called 'toggling' the value.

Have a look at the Behringer FC1010 or the Yamaha MFC10 or Roland FC-300

There isn't any need to filter out the notes going to that channel, just turn the volume to 0.

All the best
Royce
naadbrahma
Posts: 2
Joined: 05:49, 29 February 2016

Re: Using Fantom XR with an Accordion, Foot Swich Help Neede

Post by naadbrahma »

Excellent. I'm assuming I'll plug the accordion into the midi through of the foot controller, and then the foot controller into the Fantom XR? I'm still a bit new to midi aside from using a workstation. Right now I have my accordion hooked up to Kontakt 5 but it's not as practical for live performance.
rcraven
Posts: 629
Joined: 14:36, 9 September 2007
Location: Melbourne Australia

Re: Using Fantom XR with an Accordion, Foot Swich Help Neede

Post by rcraven »

Hi
just back from a few days away...
You mention Midi Thru (through). I hope you realise that this is NOT a Midi Input !
Midi Thru outputs an echo of what came in to Midi In. It is designed to 'chain' connect Midi devices.

The pedal needs to be able to 'merge' the accordion midi with the pedal Midi.

I know my Yamaha MFC10 does.
Unfortunately, the Behringer FC1010 doesn't do a good job of merging, but you can get a reprogrammed chip that fixes that and adds a whole lot of extra stuff as well.
This is a Yahoo group that has info and editors for the fixed Behringer pedal.
http://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/fcb1010_uno/

Here is the guy that rewrote the ROM (there is even a bit of code of mine in there as well).
He designed and builds a replacement pedal that might be better for you, called Gordius Little Giant.
http://www.gordius.be/index.php

I haven't used the Roland.

All the best
Royce Craven
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