AX Synth & Beheringer FCB1010 - HELP!!!!!!!!

Forum for AX series synths and keytars and all things for those who love that "on the shoulder" look.
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Miss_Smooth
Posts: 1
Joined: 09:34, 16 March 2014

AX Synth & Beheringer FCB1010 - HELP!!!!!!!!

Post by Miss_Smooth »

HI

I am trying to program my Beheringer FCB1010 foot pedal with my AX Syth. I want to use my pedal board to select patches on the ax synth so I don't have to flick through.

Can anyone assist me with this - I am tearing my hair out!

Thanks
Miss_Smooth
barnboy
Posts: 1
Joined: 01:07, 13 April 2014

Re: AX Synth & Beheringer FCB1010 - HELP!!!!!!!!

Post by barnboy »

Hi. Just PM'd you with the following message. Fig'd I'd double down and post this as well.
Hey Miss Smooth...
Wondering if you ever made any headway with your Keytar/Behringer rig.
I'm trying to configure a similar setup but with the addition of a DAW program thrown in the mix.
The FCB1010 is giving me migraines. Very user un-friendly.

Also...for some reason I can't get my keytar to switch midi channels.
(Hold "Shift" and "TX on", hit the channel, press "write").

Wondering if you've had an issue as well or if my ax is broken.

Anyway- would love to know if you've garnered any info that you'd be willing to share.
Will gladly do the same if I make progress.
Thanks a bunch!
Alan
fixxxer113
Posts: 23
Joined: 22:45, 1 November 2008
Location: Athens, Greece

Re: AX Synth & Beheringer FCB1010 - HELP!!!!!!!!

Post by fixxxer113 »

From what the manual says, it seems that this is possible. It is mentioned that the AX-Synth can receive bank select and program change messages. As with barnbys issue, this might be a midi channel problem.

When you have two midi devices communicating, you should always make sure that they are both set to Tx/Rx on the same channel. Other than that, you should also check for any device specific settings. For example, I had the following issue:

I have a Fantom X6 and an AX Synth. I once made a performance setting, where a piano was selected on channel 1 and a sax on channel 2. I wanted to play only the piano with the Fantom and only the sax with the AX. I set the AX to transmit to channel 2, but it also played on 1. I fiddled with all the individual part settings, enabling and disabling what they could receive, but nothing. It turns out that the problem was the "Remote Keyboard Switch" option in the System/MIDI menu on the Fantom. I thought that this should always be on, if you want to use an external keyboard. This applies only if you're playing in "Patch" mode. What this switch actually does, is make the remote keyboard behave exactly like the internal one. So, in performance mode, it always sent the note signals to all parts. Turning it off, meant that the Fantom did not receive notes from the AX while in "Patch" mode, but in the performance, it worked like I wanted, with the AX only controlling the second part.

You should check whatever device or DAW is receiving the notes from your AX. It might be that it is set up in a way that it receives in all MIDI channels, even if the AX is only set to transmit through one of them.

Hope this helps
fuzztone
Posts: 10
Joined: 17:05, 6 August 2014

Re: AX Synth & Beheringer FCB1010 - HELP!!!!!!!!

Post by fuzztone »

Well, I'm using the venerable Yamaha MFC10 with the AX-Synth and it's a dream, though the editing is so tedious I am tempted to write an iPad app just for the foot controller. One of the features of the Yam FC is a Function mode which lets me program chords of up to 4 notes for each of the 10 large foot buttons. IT has up to 5 banks of 10 buttons in this mode. The other mode is a Program Change mode, problem being that it only goes up to 128 (127 is 0 is the first number). That would take us to Bank 4, program 32. How do you access Banks 5 to 8? Simply by pressing any of the AX buttons 5-8 and then sending the PC command from the foot controller. Why is this? Because program changes are received in the CURRENT BANK. Otherwise you have to program Bank Control messages, only available in the Function Mode of the MFC. YMMV
You must be aware of this when controlling an external synth from the AX.
"The AX-Synth does not allow you to enter Bank Select messages (CC00
and CC32) for the Program Change numbers you transmit using the PGM
CHANGE functionality. However, when you select an internal sound, its
Bank Select address (CC00 and CC32, see also page 37) will be transmitted
along with its program Change number."

So when you press a button or select a patch on the AX, the bank and PC are transmitted (when MIDI TX is on).
BUT the AX is always in receive mode, without turning on TX. If you want to specify which bank to transmit to the AX, use the MIDI Implementation Chart. You precede the Program Change command with a Bank Select command. That involves a MSB datum and a LSB datum. The MSB is always CC00, value 87 (that means send to the AX Synth), and LSB is CC32, value 0 (for Banks 1-4) or 1 (for Banks 5-8). This is followed by the PC value from 0-127. Example: Pan Pipes, in Bank 5, Tone 21, is CC00, 87, CC32, 01, PC21.
It has to be translated into the arcane Hex (base16) language, though. CC00 is transmitted to a particular MIDI Channel 1-16. You tell it to transmit a PC (b) to channels 1-16 (0-f) with the command b7 (send MIDI Change to channel 8) or most commonly b0 (send MIDI PC to channel 1) followed by the MSB 00 the LSB 00 (for Banks 1-4) or 01 (for banks 5-8) and the PC (0-127 or in Hex, 00 to FF). Naturally you will want to use a Table to look it up, or the FCB may have a preview mode that lets you step through the sounds as you try them.
That same PC looks like this in Hex: b0 00 01 15
It sounds complicated, but you get good at it with a lot of experience. HTH
Ammo
fuzztone
Posts: 10
Joined: 17:05, 6 August 2014

Re: AX Synth & Beheringer FCB1010 - HELP!!!!!!!!

Post by fuzztone »

Oops, the MSB is 87 decimal, which is 56 (5 x 16 = 80 so 5 x 16 + 7 = 87 but remember the offset 1 because 0 is the first number, not 1, so 5 x 16 = 50 plus (7-1) = 56). I just use a spreadsheet.
56 Hex, also written 0x56 or 56H, means the Roland AX Synth.
So the sound in Bank 5, Tone 21 is b0H 56H 01H 15H. Nerdy hey?
fuzztone
Posts: 10
Joined: 17:05, 6 August 2014

Re: AX Synth & Beheringer FCB1010 - HELP!!!!!!!!

Post by fuzztone »

That was a bit hard to follow, the arithmetic, so let me put it another way. How do you express the decimal number 87 in Hex? Subtract 1 (because there is no 0 in decimal but there is 0 in Hex) = 86. Divide by 16. That's 5 x 16 and 6 x 1. Hex digits go from 0 thru 9 followed by A thru F. So 56H - 5x16 plus 6x1.
I use a spreadsheet.
It's good to review this cause I haven't used the Yamaha FC in awhile, and want to get back into it.
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