S4 - Fx tricks in midi mode (new user video)
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S4 - Fx tricks in midi mode (new user video) Posted on: 20.01.2011 by Kecia Wnukowski I copy here the video's description:Because of the fast communication protocol (generally used), many people tend to forget that the S4 is ALSO one of the best midi controllers out there. Facing the difficulties to be limited on how you can manage different FX parameters with the jogwheels or some buttons, I decided to have a go at a FX management midi mode to pull out quickly some tricks. The idea was to be able either to play with the buttons like pads ( a bit like a midi-fighter) or emulate with the jogwheel and faders - in this case the pitch fader - the juggle mode from the VCI100. The video is only here to 'showcase' what is the endless potential that you could add to the existing S4's embedded mapping. You can see I switch to midi mode as the browse button will lit in blue (and I've created some led behaviours on the sample play buttons). Only two tracks mixed basically here and me playing with the FX combinations I set up. As I said this is a test, I usually don't twist songs that much with effects so please be gentle with me . The coloured faders were painted blue & white to match decks' colour code with some acrylic paint but comes originally from Djs face like the orange knobs used on all D/W knobs. Playlist: Kenny Larkin - You are (Planet E communications) Hobo - Berlin booty (Minus) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TF0VsLlq0Fc Hope it will give you some ideas. | |
| Kayhan Polat 25.01.2011 |
Originally Posted by Pollux#13
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| Alane Botkin 15.04.2011 | Can you explane how use the default s4 mapping and midi mode? |
| Kecia Wnukowski 11.04.2011 | Hello, actually the two threads are two different things, but for the midi mapping I used for this example, as I said, that was a test, I didn't work on it anymore after the start of the thread and used the file as a base for others mappings ideas that are just that..ideas that haven't been translated for something I could use myself. If one day NI allows the loop length display to be mapped either in hid or midi mode and frees up a bit the fx units routing, I'll work on something as it will be then interesting to integrate all those ideas in a single mapping. But I'm sure one can easily take inspiration from what was presented in the first place or even take advantage of the ideas featured in the latest midi fighter mapping and adapt it to the s4 in midi mode. |
| Byron Dipple 11.04.2011 | It has already been shared http://www.djranking s.com/community /showthread.php?t=26132 |
| Anastacia Kijewski 10.04.2011 | +1 on the sharing request. i'd love to try this one out. i'm currently using my X1 with the IG mapping and it's making me bonkers with the new possibilities. having my S4 working regularly plus on midi mode with another mapping would be perfect! would love to try some different ones so that i could at some point select the best options for my personal use! Could you be so kind as to share this mapping with all of us ? cheers |
| Katherin Voigts 08.04.2011 | How is this working with TP2? Sounds absolutely incredible! Definitely need more people like you dishing out the information. Hats off |
| Dewayne Liddicoat 07.04.2011 | Very cool! Thanks OP for sharing all this info. |
| Francina Decosse 04.03.2011 | shift+browse will switch the controller to midi mode. The custom mapping demonstrated in the video is made in Midi mode. There is also a limited possibile to redefine some of the built-in mappings w/o switching to Midi Mode. Read through the Traktor Bible site for insight: http://www.traktorbible.com/en/kontr...rmappings.aspx |
| Oswaldo Adin 04.03.2011 | ive never mapped crap in my life but im going to try,,so this is a complete noob question.. how do you map the button that turns the s4 from default setting to your whole other custom settings? like makes it so you can do all that cool stuff just by pressing browse? / |
| Francina Decosse 02.03.2011 | bump! the OP is so great that the whole thread needs to be around the first few pages of the sub-community |
| Emilia Colchado 27.01.2011 | please share |
| Kayhan Polat 25.01.2011 |
Originally Posted by Pollux#13
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| Murray Hoffa 25.01.2011 | Well not so much by myself, i trawled through various DJTT articles and found what i was looking for and applied what i learnt...But yea, I got a PM today if I would share my mapping, its no where near finished(yet) but i'll gladly help out anyone who wants to try and D.I.Y. it via PM or this community
...So I probably wont be uploading the .tsi either, however you never know! :P Thanks again Yul, you're the one qho ispired me to carry this out and I'm about 200 times more knowledgeable on mapping as a whole now! Sound! |
| Kecia Wnukowski 25.01.2011 | Good man! That's the spirit! It's good you found the solution by yourself and you probably learned more this way. Congrats. |
| Murray Hoffa 24.01.2011 | Ok so i sorted every thing i needed to know about the LEDs and the mapping... Cheers Paulo, No problem glad to help, See what you can do if you just read a little and experiment? Yes sir! I'm not slightly schizophrenic <.< |
| Murray Hoffa 24.01.2011 | Actually any chance you could go a bit more in depth with the LED mappings? When i got to Add Out>Output>Beatphase Moniter and input your values, where do i go from there? |
| Murray Hoffa 24.01.2011 | Sorry, got that sorted! :P |
| Murray Hoffa 23.01.2011 | Thanks very much Yul, that has been a great help...Just one more query while i'm here. If I set up Effect Parameters of Beatslicer on say "Hotcue 1-4" i.e. HC1 - 0, HC2 - .25, HC3 - .75, HC4 - 1 and then I create a modifier to use those same buttons for another set of effects parameters, i.e. Shift 2 + HC1 = Gater .5, Shift 2 + HC2 = Gater .75 and so on, why does the Beatslicer parameters also change? And how can I stop it doing so? I dont believe that makes too much sense so I'll try again... What I want: No Shift + Hotcue 1-4 = Beatslicer effects parameter 3 increments (Fx unit 1) Shift + Hotcue 1-4 = Gater parameter increments (Fx unit 2) What I have: No Shift + Hotcue 1-4 = Beatslicer effects parameter 3 increments (Fx unit 1) Shift + Hotcue 1-4 = Beatslicer effects parameter 3 increments (Fx unit 1) PLUS Gater increments (Fx unit 2) Thanks again, you're a great help! |
| Nedra Fresneda 22.01.2011 | Browse button doesn't stay lit to indicate MIDI mode, it just does because you pressed it when entering it (and hasn't been mapped yet), you can click it and it will turn on/off. the indicator is having the loop displays showing "ON" or "00" |
| Charline Dye 22.01.2011 | Thanks for the info. I haven't dug around in the controller editor yet, but that will get me started. |
| Kecia Wnukowski 22.01.2011 | Did you set up your buttons within the controller editor (not the "manager" inside your preferences). There you can change all midi messages from the S4. I had to do this as all buttons within were configured as control change messages. Open TS4 and open the controller editor Press the chosen button, it will lit on the controller editor: for each button on the right you have three tabs: templates, pages, assign Within the assign tab, change type to 'note' (instead of control change) and below set your button as 'gater'. Your button should now be set up correctly. Do the same for the buttons you intend to use. You may want to save your template once done. Go back to your mapping (remember in this case, you're adding a generic midi device, not a user S4 mapping). Depending on how your work with FX ('restore parameters when switching FX' options), you may need to call an FX preset first so everything's ready when you want to act on your buttons. - Create a shift (hold) modifier set as hold for a value of 1 As an example I'll take here a beatslicer in advanced mode and we'll consider that's the only FX you're going to set up: In your drop down menu ("add in") where you choose the functions you're going to map: - go to global> Fx panel mode> learn your button, assign to the correct FX unit, set to direct to advanced mode (single). add the modifier condition=1 - "add in" all the parameters from the drop down menu from ' Fx single' so that should be: Fx select (beatslicer), Fx on (set to 0), effect button 1, effect button 2, D/W single (set to 0), effect param 1, effect param 2, effect param 3... at least (you may choose to add a LFO reset but that's your call and don't bother with the 'reset'). Learn all those to your button. All those shall be assigned correctly to the Fx unit you chose. All those shall have the modifier condition=1 added. So you set up a modifier that when pressed and when you press (usually you have to press twice) your chosen button to call your beatslicer it should transform the fx unit to single mode, call your beatslicer, make sure the fx is set to 0, make sure all parameters are at a 'safety' level (hence the D/W to 0). Now you can create the direct action for your button by creating all the needed functions as you may see fit (and don't forget to add your modifier =0). Personally speaking, even if that's a bit of work, I tend to recreate all the fx functions so I never have any surprises (ie all settings from the change of the fx unit to single mode, to all parameters and buttons). I usually for instant action set the 'effect on' function to an 'hold' type. Create accordingly for the other buttons, following the same method. Don't forget also to have a way of assigning the Fx unit(s) to your decks on this midi mapping, that could be handy to not to have to switch to get back to the controls. Hope that helps (a bit). ps: - when switching to midi mode, I believe the browse button's led should be and stay blue but I may be mistaken. - the led display cant' really be set up in midi mode, usually it says 00 on both display, sometimes it keeps some other led lit inside. Don't really bother. Just know it doesn't work in midi mode. |
| Murray Hoffa 22.01.2011 | I cant get my head around any of this, I'm able to map the effects and their parameters to the hot cue buttons, but I can only select it as a direct so when i hit the button to go from say 0 to 1 and then hit the 0 to .25 i have to hit the 0 to 1 twice to make the parameter change...Dont know if that makes any sense! :/ Also when i go into Midi Mode, the browse button doesnt stay lit, the loop length screen says "on" dont know if thats supposed to happen either! :/ |
| Janyce Henningson 21.01.2011 |
Originally Posted by Yul
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| Kecia Wnukowski 21.01.2011 |
Great video Yul might be a stupid question but what fx do you have mapped to the tempo faders and is it a freeze or something like that that switches on at the bottom of the faders travel?
I believe that's what you refer to? |
| Kecia Wnukowski 21.01.2011 |
In midi mode how are the jogs / faders compared to normal - can you tell the difference even?
As for faders I just don't know, I didn't checked or paid attention. Because I set up the pitch faders as modifiers however I can tell the modifier states are more properly read by the software (unlike on some other units where if you move the fader too quickly the software miss some states which makes juggle mode a bit unreliable). |
| Viola Bunner 21.01.2011 | Great video Yul might be a stupid question but what fx do you have mapped to the tempo faders and is it a freeze or something like that that switches on at the bottom of the faders travel? |
| Christa Viscardi 21.01.2011 |
Originally Posted by Yul
Great video! sure, in NI don't know about this trick P.S. but perhaps they know, but they do not want that would we opened all the possibilities at once |
| Kecia Wnukowski 21.01.2011 | Exactly what I've done for the last week, my girlfriend now officially hates me. |
| Miquel Catan 22.01.2011 | Making me feel like I need to sleep with my s4 so I can become that creative and useful with it. |
| Janyce Henningson 21.01.2011 | Excellent work Yul, very inspiring. I'm just working on a mapping for my X1 that controls decks 3 & 4, then in Shift mode is a sample and effects control. Plus I've got a midifighter coming Monday which I'm going to map for FX. Your thread has given me lots of ideas In midi mode how are the jogs / faders compared to normal - can you tell the difference even? |
| Gigi Weese 21.01.2011 |
Originally Posted by photojojo
+1 on the combo Yul, thanks for sharing. |
| Francina Decosse 21.01.2011 |
Originally Posted by Yul
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| Kecia Wnukowski 21.01.2011 | Forgot: some of the buttons I've mapped, set the parameters how I want it/them to be and I may add a 'increase' or 'decrease' setting for the amount that repeats itself so you can even emulate the movement of a fader in a sense or the other. |
| Kecia Wnukowski 21.01.2011 | Me. Want. A custom built midi fighter. Sexy sexy. |
| Leeanna Ayla 21.01.2011 |
Originally Posted by knaumov
<believeing out loud> I wonder if you could use one of the encoders on a modded MF and make a larger jog wheel type "knob" for it? </believeing out loud> |
| Francina Decosse 21.01.2011 | Although announced months ago, it's on sale for just few weeks. There are not many people to give actual feedback. a review of the interface edition is available at: http://www.digitaldjtips.com/2010/12...dj-controller/ There's also a controller edition w/o the built-in audio interface. The controller only retails for about 200EUR |
| Kecia Wnukowski 21.01.2011 | Yes that's what I had in mind and checked. A X1 would be nice but that would remove away the juggle mode idea because of the lack of fader(s) and jogwheel. Need more info on the product. |
| Francina Decosse 21.01.2011 |
Originally Posted by Yul
It's a damn good companion for the S4, IMO. If only the colour scheme was a better match |
| Kecia Wnukowski 21.01.2011 | I "believe" Beatmasher(s), slicer and gater are mandatory with whatever you put them with or even together. As I priority I would always include with that a delay and or its freeze, a lfo of some kind and a reverb of some kind, as those would work most of time well with any other effect or Fx combos. I use very often the beatmasher+f92lof+reverse grain amongst all others. I also use a lot of 'crush' of some kind so either beatmasher + lofi + reverb in an order or another (it depends) or I may replace the lofi by some mulholland or the like to get something a bit different from the common combinations. I also like the t3 delay with different depths or values to be played with buttons (kinda like on the djm2000), you can be more "rhythmic" with it. You may have thought already about it, but in case, for your midi fighter you may want if you have 8 buttons available, to separate your chained FX: your first 4 buttons will only engage a beatmasher alone, the next tree the beatmasher AND the LFO together and the last the beatmasher AND the lfo AND the reverse grain. It gives you more combinations. As you already have the s4 and that your midi fighter is an add-on, you can probably create at least 8 different presets and more so you'll have plenty of choice anyway. If you work with "blocks" of 2 fx units you can get even more creative in your settings. |
| Leeanna Ayla 21.01.2011 | Thanks for the details. I'm about halfway through my MF mapping and am a little lost on what FX combos would be best because I don't really use a whole lot of FX normally. So finding good combos and their most optimal settings has been a bit of a struggle. These ideas will definitely help. |
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