Recommend an External MIDI Controller for my DS61

[chokeslamrav]

I love my DS61, but I don't like the keys.
I use a lot of splits and layers, and I love how simple it is with the DS.
This keybed is too short for me, and it's too late to return the DS, so an external controller seems to be my only option.

I've purchased a few MIDI controllers to try out with my DS (Alesis V161, Nektar T6, Novation Launchkey 61, and Arturia Keylab), but I have concerns getting them to work with the splits and layers.

For instance, last night the Novation Launchkey 61 arrived.
I got the layers to work by setting every Patch in RxCH to "1".
I can't seem to find a way to get the Controller to identify splits.
95% of the Launchkey user guide is about Controller+DAW, there's nothing about Controller+Keyboard.

I have a few other controllers on the way, but I fear I'll have the same issue.
I've tried to research the problem, but most solutions are about fixing a Controller+DAW or Controller+PC issue, nothing about Controller+Keyboard.

I can imagine four outcomes here:
1. Order a MIDI Controller that just serendipitously works
2. Program the JUNO to work
3. Program the Controller to work
4. It's not possible

I'm hoping someone here has experience in this department and can lead me in the right direction.
Thanks for your time.

[vespina]

You have to understand how multi parts works with external MIDI controllers. In your JunoDS, each part on a performance (it doesn't matter if its a split or layer) is assigned to a particular MIDI channel. By default, parts 1 to 16 are mapped to MIDI channels 1 to 16. By default each part on a performance is set to sound ONLY if that part is selected. So, if you want all your parts to sound at the same time (either layered or splitted) you have two options:

a) Set the KBD option to ON in both parts, so they will be played even if that part is selected or not.
b) Map both parts to the same MIDI channel (only works for layers).

Now, MIDI controllers send information thru a particular channel, so if you have your MIDI controller set to channel 1, it will fire the patch associated with the MIDI channel 1 in your keyboard. So far, so good.... the problem begins when you realize that the notes triggered by the MIDI controller doesn't behave the same way than the notes triggered from your local keyboard.

Let's say you have a performance with 2 parts layered:

Part1: Piano DS (Channel 1, Kbd ON)
Part2: Morning song (Channel 2, Kbd ON)

When you press your local keyboard you hear both patches playing at the same time. Great. Now, connect a MIDI controller to you JunoDS and set it to send data over MIDI Channel 1... now when you play your MIDI controller, you only hear the piano sound, on part 1... ok, that is expected because part 1 is assigned to MIDI channel 1 and so its the MIDI keyboard.

Now, let's say that you configure your performance this way:

Part1: Piano DS (Channel 1, Kbd OFF)
Part2: Morning song (Channel 1, Kbd OFF)

Now, when you play your local keyboard you still hear both sounds, because both parts are now assigned to the same channel. If you now play some notes with your MIDI keyboard, you will hear both sounds triggering, since they are assigned to the same midi channel. Great!

Now, let's create a split:

Part1: Piano DS (Channel 1, Kbd ON, KeyRange: C4-G9)
Part2: Bass (Channel 2, Kbd ON, KeyRange: C1-B3)

If we press C2 we will hear only the bass and if we play C5 we will hear only the piano. If my MIDI controller is set to Channel 1 and I play C2, I will hear the bass, but if I play C5 i will continue to hear THE BASS, all over the keyrange. This is because JunoDS won't apply the Keyrange configuration to incoming MIDI data from an external source.

So, the bottom line is that you can handle your layers from your MIDI controller simply by asssigning all the parts to the same channel, but that won't work with splits... what can we do then ?

Well, you will need a MULTI-ZONE MIDI controller. Normal MIDI controllers comes with just 1 MIDI zone, this means, they can only send MIDI data thru an specific configurable MIDI channel. But more advanced MIDI controllers comes with multiple MIDI channels. Each of them can be assigned to a separate MIDI channel and can be activated/deactivated at will. So, in our last example, if we have a multi zone MIDI controller, we would be able to assign Zone1 to MIDI Channel 1, Zone2 to MIDI Channel 2, activate both zones and then we would be able to play our split, right?? WRONG... what we would hear is BOTH sounds layered!!

The reason is that the problem here is not the channel but the Keyrange configuration... So, you either need to:

a) Configure the keyrange on your MIDI controller (if it supports that function)
b) Use a 3rd party software (like Cammelot Pro) to handle the split configuration for you.

Hope this make sense to you.

[vespina]

So, after all that chitchat, here goes my recommendations:

a) If you decide to go for the multi zone MIDI controller, I would recommend StudioLogic: SL88, SL76, NumaCompact or NumaCompact 2X.
b) If you decide to go for the external software, I would definitely recommend Camelot Pro for iPad.

Regards

Victor Espina