Stanto SCS.3?

Stanto SCS.3?
Posted on: 04.04.2011 by Shane Alberg
What does DJTT believe of the Stanton SCS.3 system?

http://www.stantondj.com/stanton-con...s/system3.html

It looks kinda fun to me, I would love to implement it with my Traktor PRO setup. eBay has them for a good $200 to $300, which doesn't seem like a bad investment for me.
Chasidy Heckenbach
14.12.2011
Originally Posted by ZiiK
a couple of more q's come to mind...

are the layer layouts and notes fixed as in the generic presetguide found at stantons homepage or is it possible to chose to put three faders on all six modes?
yes u can do that. the scs3d just changes it's mode when a sysex message is received - so just need to ensure the one u need is sent out from the layer-change call. if u just wanted the fader mode all the time then no need to send out anything after startup ofc.

You say that you remade the triggerpattern to 3x4, is that space the same way as seen in video from the mixxx software crew? one point every second led along the sliders.
i haven't seen the video. i just divided up the central vertical slider into the same 4 areas u get from the left and right hand ones. it's a great idea in theory but not sure now so much in practice as i have found myself pressing the wrong ones at time - hence why i guess stanton decided to just use it as a single fader even in button mode.

And how do you set that up? I have a theory... not sure it's right though.
the faders send out a note on inititally followed by the cc's for absolute and relative movement so my code uses the noteon to indicate when it has been pressed but works out what "button" has been pressed (and then process it) once it gets the absolute cc value.

so something like:

* if we get a non zero noteon message remember that the user has pressed a "button" somewhere on the fader

* if we get a cc work out what "button" has been pressed and send noteon message for that button if we haven't done already

* if we get a noteoff message send/process the noteoff for the "button" that was used

this is the midi coming out of that fader area:

Code:
-- central bottom fader

add_control("fader5_press", 1, "note", 1);
add_control("fader5", 1, "cc", 1);
add_control("fader5_relative", 1, "cc", 2);
edit: one more thing, when using the circular bit does that also have an absolute cc? And where is the startingpoint? Where on the "clock"?
all faders have relative and absolute messages. in mm events like faderX are the absolute while faderX_relative is the relative. faderX_press is the noteon/off. don't remember where the circular control starts off hand - 12 oclock i believe/presume
Chasidy Heckenbach
12.12.2011
Originally Posted by ZiiK
zestoi, I'm believeing about making a four deck layout with your software. Linking one layer of deckspecific stuff onto each of the four hardware buttons at the bottom and then make sublayers for different functions. Would that be doable or am I spinning out of control here?
that should work ok, that's a lot of layers all in all - no reason why not tho.

I recall reading about three colour feedback on the LEDs so I suppose it would be possible to make three cycling layers for each of the six mode buttons or perhaps just stick with two to keep it simple
yep - there's 2 colors for most buttons from the two colors of led, red + blue, making the third color a kind of purple.

i would use the 4 bottom buttons to select the deck and then the 6 mode buttons to select the mode for that deck - making 24 total layers - which is still quite a lot... i'm not sure why you'd need/want to use the mode buttons in cycling mode? could be useful if a modifier that is independant of the overall layer or something - but probably too confusing to use.
Chasidy Heckenbach
12.08.2011
Originally Posted by djproben
What program are you mapping this controller for? Are you using bomes or something to get around darouter?
i'll probably use the scs.3d mostly for traktor but might map a page of controls to use for ableton too - not sure.

i'm using my own midimasher software to run everything. it's sort of a "bomes meets midikatapult" type app i guess. it allows me to write my actual config in lua, like that example lua file i listed. i use virtual midi ports to communicate with traktor and ableton which allows any element of any controller to use traktor or ableton or any other app i might want to use.

hooking into traktor is via this lua file in conjunction with a tsi file and i have other configs like this one that lets me create buttons/faders ala midikatapult and even create a virtual midifighter (which then uses the vanilla midifighter tsi's in traktor) in either normal or 4banks mode from any controller that has a grid of 4x4 pads.

i just want to be able to use all my controllers together as basically a single control surface and not be limitted by traktors (or other app) mappings, modifiers etc.

certainly impressed with the scs.3d anyway. for now going to make it control either deck a or b unless i select the top/right button around the circular area that then adds a whole new set of layers that i'll use to control the sample decks.
Isreal Roberto
08.06.2011
Originally Posted by nem0nic
Oh, and while we're talking about it I'll add this. The SCS.3d sends both an absolute and relative message (as well as note on/off) for EVERY slider. So there's NO NEED for BMT to turn an absolute message into relative (or vice versa). All you need to do is to map to the appropriate message. And because every slider not only sends both types of CC message but also note on/off when you touch it, you can use the sliders to do some pretty sick things that aren't possible with tactile controls. A good example of this is to use a slider to turn an effect on while you're touching the slider, and the position of your finger controls a parameter in that effect. I personally use that for the beatmasher and it sounds sick. Oh yeah, and that's without using DaRouter.
Can someone tell me how to achieve this? I'm referring to the ability to only hold an effect while your finger is down on the SCS. Is it possible with the default traktor settings or do you need to use the generic settings, or change something in bome's? I've always wanted this feature, to be able to use mine like a Kaoss pad.

I agree that you can really mess around with it just by changing the .tsi, I changed all the functions on my single unit to be 'focus deck' then I use all the deck B controls for alternative functions. For example you can have the deck B scratch mode control fx similar to Ean's Fader FX mode. Now I'm believeing of making one of the deck B modes control the loop recorder since I'm running out of buttons on my APC40. I still mainly use my SCS for finding the first beat of a song since all my other controllers are button-based, and it's just great to have it just in case I need to throw in a track that I haven't gridded.
Chasidy Heckenbach
07.06.2011
Originally Posted by nem0nic
If you need info, let me know.
cheers - i may well do i've had a quick gander at the docs i downloaded from the stanton site and they seem to explain it all - but i won't know until i actually try i guess.

very interesting device this anyway. don't believe i'd like to have a solely touch sensitive set of controllers but having this one in the mix (literally ) for effects or deck control (or who knows what) should be very cool.

edit: i seem to be going for the record for the largest set of cheap controllers here... not that the scs.3d was cheap when new but is a bargain 2nd hand.
Santiago Brasier
14.12.2011
The same way I thought it could be done, probably done that way in that mixxx video aswell. Can't find it now though.

Great beeing able to swap the layout to...
Think I would end up using the platter layout the most at the moment, and probably not use trigger at all. I like the launchpad

Now it just comes down to make the choice, scs3d or not. Been looking at the Reloop contour aswell, has great layers from scratch laid out pretty much as I would want them. And all encoders and minifaders give added functionality otherwise needed to add by another small unit. However only heard bad things about reloop customer service. and would not give me the same flexibility and portability due to its weight.

Since I don't intend to use it in a traditional fashion the tradional layout might be confusing. Still believe physical controllers are a plus...

these choices
Chasidy Heckenbach
14.12.2011
Originally Posted by ZiiK
a couple of more q's come to mind...

are the layer layouts and notes fixed as in the generic presetguide found at stantons homepage or is it possible to chose to put three faders on all six modes?
yes u can do that. the scs3d just changes it's mode when a sysex message is received - so just need to ensure the one u need is sent out from the layer-change call. if u just wanted the fader mode all the time then no need to send out anything after startup ofc.

You say that you remade the triggerpattern to 3x4, is that space the same way as seen in video from the mixxx software crew? one point every second led along the sliders.
i haven't seen the video. i just divided up the central vertical slider into the same 4 areas u get from the left and right hand ones. it's a great idea in theory but not sure now so much in practice as i have found myself pressing the wrong ones at time - hence why i guess stanton decided to just use it as a single fader even in button mode.

And how do you set that up? I have a theory... not sure it's right though.
the faders send out a note on inititally followed by the cc's for absolute and relative movement so my code uses the noteon to indicate when it has been pressed but works out what "button" has been pressed (and then process it) once it gets the absolute cc value.

so something like:

* if we get a non zero noteon message remember that the user has pressed a "button" somewhere on the fader

* if we get a cc work out what "button" has been pressed and send noteon message for that button if we haven't done already

* if we get a noteoff message send/process the noteoff for the "button" that was used

this is the midi coming out of that fader area:

Code:
-- central bottom fader

add_control("fader5_press", 1, "note", 1);
add_control("fader5", 1, "cc", 1);
add_control("fader5_relative", 1, "cc", 2);
edit: one more thing, when using the circular bit does that also have an absolute cc? And where is the startingpoint? Where on the "clock"?
all faders have relative and absolute messages. in mm events like faderX are the absolute while faderX_relative is the relative. faderX_press is the noteon/off. don't remember where the circular control starts off hand - 12 oclock i believe/presume
Santiago Brasier
13.12.2011
a couple of more q's come to mind...

are the layer layouts and notes fixed as in the generic presetguide found at stantons homepage or is it possible to chose to put three faders on all six modes?

You say that you remade the triggerpattern to 3x4, is that space the same way as seen in video from the mixxx software crew? one point every second led along the sliders.
And how do you set that up? I have a theory... not sure it's right though.

Looks like so much fun mapping and using this unit. Still a little scared to go touch though.

Cheers

edit: one more thing, when using the circular bit does that also have an absolute cc? And where is the startingpoint? Where on the "clock"?
Santiago Brasier
13.12.2011
you're probably right about that beeing a bit much!

Will probably make a 4layers with 6 functions to start with and then use extra layers to work in experiment mappings.

//Joel
Chasidy Heckenbach
12.12.2011
Originally Posted by ZiiK
zestoi, I'm believeing about making a four deck layout with your software. Linking one layer of deckspecific stuff onto each of the four hardware buttons at the bottom and then make sublayers for different functions. Would that be doable or am I spinning out of control here?
that should work ok, that's a lot of layers all in all - no reason why not tho.

I recall reading about three colour feedback on the LEDs so I suppose it would be possible to make three cycling layers for each of the six mode buttons or perhaps just stick with two to keep it simple
yep - there's 2 colors for most buttons from the two colors of led, red + blue, making the third color a kind of purple.

i would use the 4 bottom buttons to select the deck and then the 6 mode buttons to select the mode for that deck - making 24 total layers - which is still quite a lot... i'm not sure why you'd need/want to use the mode buttons in cycling mode? could be useful if a modifier that is independant of the overall layer or something - but probably too confusing to use.
Santiago Brasier
12.12.2011
zestoi, I'm believeing about making a four deck layout with your software. Linking one layer of deckspecific stuff onto each of the four hardware buttons at the bottom and then make sublayers for different functions. Would that be doable or am I spinning out of control here?

I recall reading about three colour feedback on the LEDs so I suppose it would be possible to make three cycling layers for each of the six mode buttons or perhaps just stick with two to keep it simple

Would be great if you guys could let me know if I'm on track or losing it.

Cheers

edit: btw, I intend to have transportcontrol on another unit so wont need them anyways.
Santiago Brasier
12.12.2011
I can see that you have worked a little on the scs3ds code since last time we spoke! Looking good!

By finding this thread I found the reply for that PM I sent aswell, so no need to reply that zestoi.

This has made me almost certain I will pick one of these up to and learn to write some code for your program. Looks like great fun!

I'm one of those guys who find tinkering to be almost as fun as playing. So much fun to explore! Just a never ending desire to find out what can be done and how to make the programs and controllers to work the way I want them to.

Good times,
I probably will bother you both with questions zestoi and nem0nic if I follow through with this...

Hope thats cool

Cheers
//Joel
Chasidy Heckenbach
12.08.2011
i saw a guy using bomes to make the circular led's 'spin' like on a cdj, turns out this is all the code i needed to do the same thing and looks pretty cool...

Code:
capture_event("traktor", "beat_phase_monitor_a", 0, function(d, e, v, p)
    if v ~= scs3d_cache["scs3d"]["beat_phase_a"] then
        scs3d_cache["scs3d"]["beat_phase_a"] = v
        send_event("scs3d", "fader3", scs3d_cache["scs3d"]["beat_phase_a"])
    end
end)
tho for some reason in my tsi i had to set the range for the beat phase monitor midi to 0..17
Chasidy Heckenbach
12.08.2011
customizing actual mappings from my app to something like traktor is actually pretty simple, for example this line would link the play button from the scs.3d when it's on its virtual page 0 (deck a) to play_a in traktor and the same button to play_b when it's on its page 1 (deck b) with feedback from traktor etc (first 2 lines are to connect to the appropriate midi port):

open_midi_device("traktor", "traktor", "Traktor to MM", "MM to Traktor", 2);
open_midi_device("scs3d", "scs3d", "SCS.3d", "SCS.3d", 2);

create_button("scs3d", "play", 0, "traktor", "play_a")
create_button("scs3d", "play", 1, "traktor", "play_b")

and since lua is just a coding language you can use as many variables as modifiers to put whatever logic in there u want. the create_button() function is just some lua code that creates a pipe between the two devices.
Chasidy Heckenbach
12.08.2011
Originally Posted by djproben
What program are you mapping this controller for? Are you using bomes or something to get around darouter?
i'll probably use the scs.3d mostly for traktor but might map a page of controls to use for ableton too - not sure.

i'm using my own midimasher software to run everything. it's sort of a "bomes meets midikatapult" type app i guess. it allows me to write my actual config in lua, like that example lua file i listed. i use virtual midi ports to communicate with traktor and ableton which allows any element of any controller to use traktor or ableton or any other app i might want to use.

hooking into traktor is via this lua file in conjunction with a tsi file and i have other configs like this one that lets me create buttons/faders ala midikatapult and even create a virtual midifighter (which then uses the vanilla midifighter tsi's in traktor) in either normal or 4banks mode from any controller that has a grid of 4x4 pads.

i just want to be able to use all my controllers together as basically a single control surface and not be limitted by traktors (or other app) mappings, modifiers etc.

certainly impressed with the scs.3d anyway. for now going to make it control either deck a or b unless i select the top/right button around the circular area that then adds a whole new set of layers that i'll use to control the sample decks.
Danae Dumler
12.08.2011
What program are you mapping this controller for? Are you using bomes or something to get around darouter?
Chasidy Heckenbach
12.08.2011
just in case anyone is interested this is my lua code that does the darouter type stuff http://djism.com/lua/scs3d.lua

need to work on the led feedback for the sliders next and the scs.3d has some neat tricks for that...
Chasidy Heckenbach
11.08.2011
finally had time to write some code for this controller and i have to say that it really is one amazing controller....

fantastic midi spec too. i'm not using the darouter so not sure what that pushes out - but the native midi implementation is ideal. using my own app i've mostly replicated how darouter sets it up for now, tho using the two top outer buttons as toggle modifiers and the bottom two as hold/shift ones - which gives me stacks of layers to play with when you include in the fx/eq/loop/trig/vinyl/deck buttons at the top.

i believe i've setup the various modes of the central area to be the same as darouter atm, but is simple to change, i love being able to change how the central area operates (circle, buttons, faders) whenever i need to.

shame tho that by default in button mode you get 4 buttons on the left, 4 on the right and a fader in the middle, i'm changing that to work as a 3x4 bank of buttons which seems more useful. shame its not possible to squeeze a 4x4 out of it i guess tho.

had a look on ebay and people seem to be wanting silly money for these atm, but i only paid about 50 quid for mine which i believe is a steal

i loooove the fact that any control acting like a fader sends out a relative message (ala an encoder) as well as absolute, not to mention a note on and note off too...

how come these things arent more popular?

i wouldnt mind an scs.3m, not to replace an actual mixer, but for fx or something but i havent seen one of those go for a reasonable price.

i suspect whatever controller(s) i end up using in a few years i'll still keep this scs.3d

edit: as well as the 3 modes they document you can also make the central area have 2 faders/sliders and one column of buttons:

-- buttons + faders 5+6
-- F0 00 01 60 01 01 f7
--
-- faders 4,5 + buttons
-- F0 00 01 60 01 02 f7
Chasidy Heckenbach
09.06.2011
i read what u said before about it sending relative as well as absolute values but it didn't stick in my thick skull for some reason.... that is pretty awesome! (plus the note on/off is an added bonus ofc)

i do like the idea of the circular touch strip area as a virtual jog wheel but mostly i believe it's going to make a fantastic effects control surface...
Diogo Dj Dragão
09.06.2011
Can someone tell me how to achieve this? I'm referring to the ability to only hold an effect while your finger is down on the SCS. Is it possible with the default traktor settings or do you need to use the generic settings, or change something in bome's? I've always wanted this feature, to be able to use mine like a Kaoss pad.
Sure. Map to the controller directly (no DaRouter). Use the MIDI spec to do the mapping manually in Traktor is going to be easier than trying to learn it, but it's possible either way.

The SCS.3d's "natural" MIDI output is what we called "super slider mode", where every slider area (anything that looks like it would generate a CC) sends a note on/off, a relative CC, and an absolute CC. So if you wanted to use the gain strip for effect on/off and dry/wet, you would map the following...

Effect on/off - 90 07 ** (and it would be a toggle)
Effect dry/wet - B0 07 ** (B0 08 ** is the relative message, but it's not necessary since this isn't a physical control and gets app feedback).

To drive your LED feedback, your dry/wet output message should be set to B0 07 ** (where ** is 28 to 2F for a peak meter pattern). Be sure to use blend.
Audrey Pinda
08.06.2011
I have to chime in on this.

I don't personally own the SCS3 system, but a close friend of mine does. He used Torq with Numark TT100's for years (and recently has been messing about with Torq 2.0 with the tables again) and decided he wanted/needed something more portable. And so he bought (under my recommendation and his want for complete touch control) the SCS3 system and Traktor.

It's neat. It takes some time to get familiar with. It's not like hopping on tables or CDJ's and being used to the layout completely. Messing around with the mixer is different, but not in a bad way.

Honestly, it's fun. It's VERY portable which is also great.

If you have interest in the touch capabilities, it's great. The only issue being is mapping to a certain extent, but people come out with mappings fairly often for all controllers, or you can buckle down and do it yourself.

If you are wanting an extremely neat portable setup (and hot damn does it look cool to boot) then I'd say go for it. If you want something more professional? Then go for that. The different parts can also work great down the line for cue and FX controls, so you aren't losing anything if you decide to go full out DVS later as well.
Isreal Roberto
08.06.2011
Originally Posted by nem0nic
Oh, and while we're talking about it I'll add this. The SCS.3d sends both an absolute and relative message (as well as note on/off) for EVERY slider. So there's NO NEED for BMT to turn an absolute message into relative (or vice versa). All you need to do is to map to the appropriate message. And because every slider not only sends both types of CC message but also note on/off when you touch it, you can use the sliders to do some pretty sick things that aren't possible with tactile controls. A good example of this is to use a slider to turn an effect on while you're touching the slider, and the position of your finger controls a parameter in that effect. I personally use that for the beatmasher and it sounds sick. Oh yeah, and that's without using DaRouter.
Can someone tell me how to achieve this? I'm referring to the ability to only hold an effect while your finger is down on the SCS. Is it possible with the default traktor settings or do you need to use the generic settings, or change something in bome's? I've always wanted this feature, to be able to use mine like a Kaoss pad.

I agree that you can really mess around with it just by changing the .tsi, I changed all the functions on my single unit to be 'focus deck' then I use all the deck B controls for alternative functions. For example you can have the deck B scratch mode control fx similar to Ean's Fader FX mode. Now I'm believeing of making one of the deck B modes control the loop recorder since I'm running out of buttons on my APC40. I still mainly use my SCS for finding the first beat of a song since all my other controllers are button-based, and it's just great to have it just in case I need to throw in a track that I haven't gridded.
Chasidy Heckenbach
07.06.2011
Originally Posted by nem0nic
If you need info, let me know.
cheers - i may well do i've had a quick gander at the docs i downloaded from the stanton site and they seem to explain it all - but i won't know until i actually try i guess.

very interesting device this anyway. don't believe i'd like to have a solely touch sensitive set of controllers but having this one in the mix (literally ) for effects or deck control (or who knows what) should be very cool.

edit: i seem to be going for the record for the largest set of cheap controllers here... not that the scs.3d was cheap when new but is a bargain 2nd hand.
Diogo Dj Dragão
07.06.2011
If you need info, let me know.
Chasidy Heckenbach
07.06.2011
this thread just convinced me to pick one up for 50quid from ebay anyway. i'm going to have a hell of a lot of fun mapping with this device
Chasidy Heckenbach
03.06.2011
Originally Posted by nem0nic
I believe the biggest "mistake" that was made with the SCS.3 controllers is that they were never expanded on. If Stanton had followed through with the line, they would already have the next evolutionary product in the market and a lot of this discussion would be moot.
definately a shame they didn't try something else using this type of technology.

esp as touch strips are starting to become popular on various controllers and is using ipads etc.

tbh i had previously thought the SCS.* devices were quite new as i'm very new to all this stuff myself
Diogo Dj Dragão
03.06.2011
I was using them with ableton and decadance so for me changing the midi CC # output to avoid input conflicts with other hardware was essential but also a major hassle.
This is (mostly) valid, especially if you want to use them with a specific preset but are having conflicts. But you can always change the channel of the OTHER device causing the conflict.

As for using them in Live, it wasn't any more difficult than using any other MIDI controller in Live. In fact, for the 2009 NAMM, I did a setup where I had 4 SCS.3ds connected to Live - each controlling different tracks (inspired by Moldover's Octomasher installation). Again, the only time you would need BMT is if you wanted to change the behavior of the controller. And even then, only if none of the available presets gave you want you wanted.

stangely though the scs3m(mixer) does not need darouter or bomes its all hard coded to the unit, the scs3d's(decks) are darouter/bomes dependant.
Stanton decided to build logic into the SCS.3m as a reaction to opinions like yours. Honestly, I believe the hybrid approach taken with the SCS.3m was the best solution possible (works in super slider mode with DaRouter, or with built in logic without it). There was actually an alternate firmware worked on for the SCS.3d at one point that made it work more like the SCS.3m, but it would have broken some other functionality in the process because there wasn't enough room in the firmware to implement it correctly.

I believe the biggest "mistake" that was made with the SCS.3 controllers is that they were never expanded on. If Stanton had followed through with the line, they would already have the next evolutionary product in the market and a lot of this discussion would be moot.
Chasidy Heckenbach
03.06.2011
Originally Posted by mike_o
if you want to use it with ableton live for custom stuff its a evening mare of bomes programming, bomes is also $80 extra.
i certainly won't be needing bomes anyway - as my own homebrew app (which i'll be sharing with the community when ready) does all i need. it supports addons to be coded in the LUA programming language so for example i wrote one function to emulate a midifighter for one page of my launchpad

this code will stick 2 midifighters in normal mode in the top half of page 2 of the launchpad layout and a 4banks mode midifighter below them on the left using default colors:

Code:
create_midifighter("launchpad", 2, "midifighter1")
create_midifighter("launchpad", 2, "midifighter2", 0, 4)
create_midifighter_4banks("launchpad", 2, "midifighter3", 4, 0)
so i don't really care what notes/cc/channels a controller sends and receives on so long as i can work out what they are.

the idea of my app is to aggregate/mashup any number of controllers and allow output to be routed to any app. the 'midifighter' functions send out to their own virtual midi device (created by loopMIDI) so i can just use the official midifighter maps - while most output goes to either a virtual midi port for traktor or one for ableton live.

so my main interest is really just the layout of a controller and what buttons/faders etc it has - as well as the price ofc

edit: link to my first attempt at emulating the midifighter in lua is here
Benita Jankauskas
03.06.2011
the scs 3's are cool units.

I had them for 2 years and loved and hated them at the same time.

I was using them with ableton and decadance so for me changing the midi CC # output to avoid input conflicts with other hardware was essential but also a major hassle.

on its own in a DJ program only they are very easy to setup and use, but if you have any thoughts about using them outside of a DJ program (Live) forget it.

I spent so many hours changing things in bomes that it just burned me out and I got rid of them.

my only complaint is that it has so much potential outside of DJ'ing that your imagination will go crazy, but implementing those ideas is a serious pain in the ass.

I still believe I should have kept 1 of the scs3d's but I had to sell them as a set to get a buyer.

are you a DJ Only? if yes then they are a safe purchase.

if you want to use it with ableton live for custom stuff its a evening mare of bomes programming, bomes is also $80 extra.

my only real complaint is that I bought them when they were very new and did not know I would need bomes to edit there messages.

I was very unhappy with needing to spend an extra $80 for a software editor for them, I had never owned a midi controller that required and extra sofware purchase to be able to edit messages.

all my novation, korg, akai and m-audio stuff had a software editor included with the product and I just expected this to have midi editing capabilities as well.

man I was pissed when I realized that I would either have to spend an extra $80 on bomes or shelve the $400+tax dollars I spent on them.

stangely though the scs3m(mixer) does not need darouter or bomes its all hard coded to the unit, the scs3d's(decks) are darouter/bomes dependant.

they can be cool but a big hassle too.
Chasidy Heckenbach
03.06.2011
Originally Posted by nem0nic
The notes follow the output messages on the hardware. The reason it APPEARS that way is because tito is looking at the output of DaRouter - not the native messaging of the controller.

So if you're addressing the controller natively, you follow the MIDI spec. If you're modifying a TSI related to a DaRouter preset, it's best to take note of the messaging used in the TSI and copy it in your new message. So (for instance) you want to map the pitch slider LEDs to deck phase instead of the preset default pitch - look at the pitch output message in the TSI, copy down the values, delete the old pitch output message, and create the new phase output message using the values you copied down.
cool - makes sense. i probably wouldn't use the darouter app then as my own homebrew app gives me multiple virtual pages for any device etc and handles any mappings. i'm very tempted to pick one up now...
Diogo Dj Dragão
03.06.2011
the only odd(ish) thing i can makeout from reading this thread is that it's a different message to change an led compared to the noteout from that control
The notes follow the output messages on the hardware. The reason it APPEARS that way is because tito is looking at the output of DaRouter - not the native messaging of the controller.

So if you're addressing the controller natively, you follow the MIDI spec. If you're modifying a TSI related to a DaRouter preset, it's best to take note of the messaging used in the TSI and copy it in your new message. So (for instance) you want to map the pitch slider LEDs to deck phase instead of the preset default pitch - look at the pitch output message in the TSI, copy down the values, delete the old pitch output message, and create the new phase output message using the values you copied down.
Chasidy Heckenbach
03.06.2011
well all of this is making me want one

seem to go for about 50quid 2nd hand for a single SCS.3d on uk ebay - quite a steal.

the only odd(ish) thing i can makeout from reading this thread is that it's a different message to change an led compared to the noteout from that control - but i hardly see that as a biggie and i'm sure there's reasons for it being that way (that i don't understand as haven't looked at it's midi spec yet)
Diogo Dj Dragão
04.06.2011
you have an extra layer for all midi buttons and knobs with a shift function, sending messages in midi channel-1, without software.
And this can be done with a modifier in Traktor using the DECK button output to set the modifier state. Or...

In xone you can change the midi channel without software
You an change the MIDI channel of either the SCS.3m or SCS.3d using nothing but the controller. Read the manual. BTW, you can also change the channel of either device using a SYSEX command.

You can change the behavior of the lighpipes, again without software
And again, just because you haven't learned HOW to do this with the SCS.3 controllers doesn't mean it's not possible. It's not only possible to change the behavior of the LEDs without DaRouter or BMT, it's EASY. You just vary the last byte of the MIDI message. Let me say this again... YOU DON'T NEED TO DO ANYTHING BUT CHANGE THE LAST BYTE OF YOUR MESSAGE. BTW, just HOW are you changing the "behavior" of the lightpipes in the X4? They're either on or off. In the SCS.3 controllers, you usually have not only on or off, but also multiple colors available. In the case of arrays, you have multiple feedback patterns.

but the da scratch does not have the hardware based flexibility of the xone
The only "hardware based flexibility of the xone" is a button that does a -1 to the MIDI output message. Otherwise it is what it is.

Oh, and while we're talking about it I'll add this. The SCS.3d sends both an absolute and relative message (as well as note on/off) for EVERY slider. So there's NO NEED for BMT to turn an absolute message into relative (or vice versa). All you need to do is to map to the appropriate message. And because every slider not only sends both types of CC message but also note on/off when you touch it, you can use the sliders to do some pretty sick things that aren't possible with tactile controls. A good example of this is to use a slider to turn an effect on while you're touching the slider, and the position of your finger controls a parameter in that effect. I personally use that for the beatmasher and it sounds sick. Oh yeah, and that's without using DaRouter.
Irwin Ney
03.06.2011
I still believe to buy a SCS.3d to go together with my iPad and external mixer.
I really like this controller, it was SCS.3d that make me believe about touch interfaces.
I believe that it really changed the Digital DJing world, much more then lemur and much before iPad even exists.
Regine Hulme
03.06.2011
In xone you can change the midi channel without software, you have an extra layer for all midi buttons and knobs with a shift function, sending messages in midi channel-1, without software. You can change the behavior of the lighpipes, again without software and the output of an encoder you can do it with bomes, just like the da scratch. With bomes you can do it all the flexibility of da router but the da scratch does not have the hardware based flexibility of the xone
Diogo Dj Dragão
02.06.2011
For me it is the major flaw and all the people I know who bought is no longer using it.
You're asking for the ability to change the FUNCTIONALITY of the controller - not the ability to map towards it. And NO CONTROLLER on the market lets you do this. Some controllers let you change small things, like what particular CC message an encoder sends, but they don't give you multiple layouts with wildly changing functionality like the SCS.3 does. So in that aspect, the SCS.3 controllers operate just like any other controller. The fact that Stanton used DaRouter to give them so much more functionality built up the expectation that you'd be able to change those behaviors. And it IS possible through BMT programming (on other controllers this would NOT be possible, because that behavior would be handled via firmware and not available to the user at all).

It takes a long time to map the feedback with a lot of trial and error because the feedback messages are different that the input ones.
No, it doesn't take any trial and error. The LEDs are being written to in the TSI. As I said before, all you need to do is look at the message in the TSI and COPY IT. If you're having a problem with the last byte message on an LED array (like a peak meter), and you want it to do a sweep pattern instead of a boost/cut, then you can either look at the MIDI spec (the last bytes don't change), or just keep moving up in value until you hit the next macro.

At the end most of the scs3 became paperweights because the lack of simplicity to make your own mappings, you can see it in the community s and a lot of customers disappointed .
There's a handful of users on the Stanton community s, and THOUSANDS of users who bought the SCS.3 controllers (it's very safe to say there are tens of thousands of SCS.3 controllers in the market). You have no idea what happened to "most of the scs3".

For example I have a vci100 and xone 4d and I have done my own mappings to do the controllers exactly what I want without hassle.
And both of those controllers combined don't have HALF the messaging or feedback the SCS.3d does even without a preset.

And let's face it darouter is buggy and took a lot of versions to be semi-stable.
No, DaRouter hasn't been buggy since the initial release (where there as a problem with the virtual ports in newer operating systems). If you were having performance issues with DaRouter, they were almost always down to one of 3 things (sketchy USB power, AV software or user rights not allowing the virtual driver to be installed, or a corrupt installation in the first place). All 3 of these issues were well documented on both the community s and by service personnel.

I know you were working at Stanton and did a great support job but the point of view that "you can do a lot but you need bomes and get a lot of time consuming effort put a lot of people off the product. 5 of 5 people that I know who got it, abandoned it because there are plenty of more user friendly solutions.
Just because you keep saying it doesn't make it true. Again, you do not need BMT to do 99% of what a typical user would need to do to remap an SCS.3 controller. Between the option of doing a direct mapping and using one of the many different presets available, there is a wide variety of mappings possible. Now, if you wanted to do something like change an absolute encoder to relative, that would require a preset change - but at least it's possible. How do I change the output of an encoder on the Xone 4D (let's say I wanted to change CC37 or CC45 to an absolute message)? Or how would I change a button's output from a note to a CC? How is the Xone 4D MIDI implementation any more flexible than the SCS.3?
Regine Hulme
02.06.2011
I did a lot of mappings with and without da router. The midi specs are useless if you want to map with darouter in the other hand without da router you can map exactly the way you wanted, feedback included, but you can not have vinyl mode and trigger mode in the center area like using da router. For me it is the major flaw and all the people I know who bought is no longer using it. It takes a long time to map the feedback with a lot of trial and error because the feedback messages are different that the input ones.at the end a lot o hassle with so so results. At the end most of the scs3 became paperweights because the lack of simplicity to make your own mappings, you can see it in the community s and a lot of customers disappointed . For example I have a vci100 and xone 4d and I have done my own mappings to do the controllers exactly what I want without hassle. And let's face it darouter is buggy and took a lot of versions to be semi-stable. Still I have it and I believe someone will solve those issues with a software or firmware solution like tech tools did with the vci100, the da scratch it is a clear example of a product that could been so great but the approach to make it compatible was not a good one. Take the scm3 and the options to change the behavior of the controller without the software was a great step forward but I see more possibilities on the dascratch. I know you were working at Stanton and did a great support job but the point of view that "you can do a lot but you need bomes and get a lot of time consuming effort put a lot of people off the product. 5 of 5 people that I know who got it, abandoned it because there are plenty of more user friendly solutions.
Cheers.
Diogo Dj Dragão
02.06.2011
I bought the SCS when it first came out and then it sat unused for months because I had been hoping to use it with Traktor Pro...
You're exaggerating a bit here to add drama. First of all, there was nothing stopping you from using the SCS.3d with Traktor Pro from the onset. It's a MIDI device. For that matter, there's nothing stopping anyone from using it with Traktor 2.

As far as presets being on the community s go, the presets were on the community s when in beta, and bundled into DaRouter when official. The different presets were for different software packages. If a beta preset was updated, it was placed in the existing thread replacing the old preset. ALL preset threads were stickied to make them easy to find.

The idea is great but the support it is very limited because all the da router implementation it is just plain stupid to put a software between software and the hardware, it is buggy.
No offense, but the only reason you believe the software layer is stupid is because you have no idea at all what it did. If it wasn't for the DaRouter software, we wouldn't have been compatible with Serato (because of their software limitations - not ours). There would have been no LED feedback in several programs as well because they didn't support it at the time (we generated the LED feedback in the preset). It also allowed us to work around other software issues (like MIDI buffering problems). In the case of the SCS.1, it enabled us to implement a HUI preset for Ableton Live and most other DAWs out there. And of course, it allowed us to give a single layer controller multiple layouts and functions.

As for it being buggy, the same kind of software sits in the middle of a LOT of products - but they just hide the front end and install it like a driver. Wacom and Frontier Design Group are just 2 examples.

I really like the idea, the concept and the lack of moving parts but for example mapping the led feedback it is evening mare or the insinuation to buy bomes and learning how to use it to really customize the product just another pr stupid move
And this is the biggest single misconception surrounding the SCS.3 controllers. You ALWAYS had the option of remapping the controllers by changing the TSI. And that was what 99% of users needed to do to make what they wanted. Between Traktor's ability to alias controllers (so no need to worry about conflicts between different controllers), and DaRouter's ability to aggregate multiple devices into a single controller, I can believe of only a handful of situations where you would need to change the actual control messaging. And even then, you had the option of going with the generic preset if you wanted a different mapping.

LED mapping was easy because it was all on a macro. You only ever needed one massage to control single LEDs OR clusters (like peak meters). And this is also exactly how Traktor works. To remap an LED to a different function, look in the TSI for the existing function and write down the message used to write to those LEDs. then delete the old message and add in the new one, copying the settings you wrote down. Or you could just look at the MIDI spec and use that as your guide instead. This is no different than any other controller. Feedback messages are defined on ANY controller. If you don't send what the hardware is looking for, it's not going to work right.
Regine Hulme
02.06.2011
The idea is great but the support it is very limited because all the da router implementation it is just plain stupid to put a software between software and the hardware, it is buggy. So you can map it without da router but you lost the functionallity. They did it better with the 3m because you can change firmware presets in the hardware. In the other hand they took the approach that they are not obligated to do presets sending the product to doom. I really like the idea, the concept and the lack of moving parts but for example mapping the led feedback it is evening mare or the insinuation to buy bomes and learning how to use it to really customize the product just another pr stupid move
Danae Dumler
02.06.2011
They took forever getting a preset for Traktor Pro 1 when it came out; and since Traktor had the audacity to be released right after the SCS3d, it was really annoying. When the presets did finally come out they were buried on discussion boards and there were multiple versions which made it even more difficult. I bought the SCS when it first came out and then it sat unused for months because I had been hoping to use it with Traktor Pro. So I'm not surprised if it's happening again with Traktor Pro 2. I always really liked this controller but support is difficult at best. Suppose I should sell mine at some point since I never use it anymore....

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