MOD Duo & Roland FC-300 Midi Foot Controller

Using MOD devices
#1

Hi everybody,

I’m currently setting up some guitar pedalboard on my MOD Duo and some days ago I bought a Roland FC-300 as MIDI Foot Controller.

Now I try to make it work but found some issues that I’d like to have discussed with other users.
Most of the issues already have been mentioned in this forum somewhen and somehow, but I thought it useful to have it collected in one new thread.

Here are my findings / problems:

  1. FC-300 Expression Pedal values are jumping / some quick button toggles get lost
    Issue is reproducible as well for me. Hopefully it can be fixed by the moddevices developers, as it would remove the requirement of extra workarounds.
    MIDI connection issues

  2. Interaction with the FC-300 - display status information
    As I learned in the following thread (Two-way Midi Mapping), it currently seems not to be possible to get back some status information at a MIDI device.
    .
    Of course the infamous mindi plugin could be used somehow - but this would not work for the FC-300 as SysEx is required.
    .
    The FC-300 supports 4 different operation modes. In “SysEx” mode it is possible to remotely control its LEDs, display text, segment display, special Tuner display mode. But unfortunately the FC-300 also sends SysEx messages in this mode…
    .
    So for a perfect interplay SysEx mapping would be required:
    .
    Question:
    Does somebody have a clue, if it would be possible to write a new LV2 plugin that could map incoming SysEx messages to control plugins on a pedalboard, and map status information of the used plugins back to outgoing SysEx messages (e.g. like an internal MIDI converter, or maybe more direct internally)??

Thanks for reading.
I hope for ideas and feedback :slight_smile:

Dan

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Virtual Control Chain Device
Two-way Midi Mapping
#2

I am sorry, but sysex messages are discarded on the software side of the MOD units.
So plugins will not receive them, and if they try to write them, they will be discarded at the end.

Regarding issue 1, what version of the MOD are you using?
As I mentioned before, we had issues with MIDI running status but those are fixed now.
If it is not yet fully working, would be nice to know. But please confirm the version you are running.

On the issue 2, what I can do is prepare a build that sends back the feedback to all ports once a preset or snapshot changes.
Then you can verify if that is enough, and we (MOD team) find a way to put it into a released version.

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#3

I’m glad to help test. It would be a much better user experience if the status lights on my MIDI controllers reflected the actual state after switching presets or snapshots. I’m not opposed to owning and using a MOD Footswitch (…and expression pedal), but with the dearth of new and innovative MIDI controllers out there I’d guess having this 2-way communication will be an often requested feature.

Somewhat related, has there been any progress on the ability to map individual presets to actuators?

#4

I running the latest software version 1.8.5.

#5

I would definitely test it!

#6

In this specific case I’d require something like an external Control Chain <-> Midi (SysEx) Mapper.
Do you think it could work?

#7

In this specific case I’d require something like an external Control Chain <-> Midi (SysEx) Mapper.
Do you think it could work?

I don’t really understand what this would achieve, so my guess is no.

#8

Some extended background:
Generally the FC-300 is able to control things in the MOD via ProgChange and CC messages :+1:

But if thinking about possibilities of two-way interaction, things seem to become complicated :thinking:
As far as I learned until now, the task between the MOD and the FC-300 is challenging and contains some sort of chicken-and-egg problem:

  1. The LEDs of the FC-300 are (for now) ONLY controllable with external MIDI SysEx commands. For such purpose the FC-300 has got a special “SysEx mode”.
    If active the pedal accepts and transmits SysEx messages when operated.

  2. The MOD doesn’t accept or send SysEx messages.

So the solution to enable two-way interaction could be either

  • The FC-300 (in “Control Mode”) could be made able to sync its LEDs and current button states by receiving CC messages that match the current MIDI button configuration.
    As far I understand this would exactly happen if you’d implement the MIDI update broadcast discussed here Two-way Midi Mapping.

or

  • I build myself a hardware translator: A Control Chain device based on an Arduino Shield equipped with extra MIDI ports.
    This device could then contain a defined number of software only controls that I would translate from/to FC-300 SysEx messages.
    .
    The idea doing this in hardware is only because of the MODs SysEx restriction. Without it, I suppose, it would also be possible to do it directly in the MOD as an AddOn or Plugin.
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#9

Sorry for the long reply.
This was explanation + a reminder for myself.
Maybe I think too complicated and I don’t see much simpler ideas (don’t propose “buy an other pedal” :wink:)

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