tact switch issues: trolled forever

i just got a mpc 1k with really bad switches, i hadto push hard to make them

work.. then i made some wd40(non corrosive, oiling contact spray)

impregnation... now they work perfectly. i guess if some tried this before changing the

switches, they would have saved time and money. over the years i can say it adds to

the longevity of the components.

I have a monome 40h, would be interesting to see what I can do with it with my 2500. Need to figure out the 2500 first though, lol.

Look up 'ardiunome' as well, similar device but using any arduino controller. Those small PCs like the raspberry PI would also be useful.

Instead of hacks and workarounds, what about a semi-open hardware project for JJOS? I mean, JJOS is awesome, but how many MPCs are left that still need it installed? And because JJOS is so good I'd hate to see it die with the MPC.

Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think it's be that rough to get it working with class compliant USB drivers so you could supply your own audio interface and a plug in a USB thumb drive for storage in addition to what, 1gb(?) of internal storage. Maybe double the size JJ has to work with for the OS and unlock the RAM limit too.

modulator wrote:i just got a mpc 1k with really bad switches, i hadto push hard to make them

work.. then i made some wd40(non corrosive, oiling contact spray)

impregnation... now they work perfectly. i guess if some tried this before changing the

switches, they would have saved time and money. over the years i can say it adds to

the longevity of the components.

Did that to my friend's mpc, worked for about week.

I've been hitting the books and manuals and gleaning as much info as I can on this forum, as well as experimenting with trial and error with varying success. However, I've hit a wall with a few things. For starters (before I pull my hair out), has anyone been able to get a sequential macro to work with pattern to pad? If so, then how? I've been trying but now I don't even know if it's possible.


EDIT: It just hit me. I would have to route one of the MPC midi outputs to the MPC midi input assigned to button mode for this work. wouldn't I?

yes, that would work.

i haven't done anything with the MPC being its own macro-delivery device so it would require testing.

Well, my goal was to be able to trigger a macro with a midi keyboard with the MPC as it's own macro delivery device. Directly routing the MPC midi out to it's own midi in assigned to button mode did work, as we both knew it would. Mikolo already proved this through his round robin method (respect) but it was worth further testing for this specific application. Unfortunately, pattern to pad won't trigger with an external midi controller.

This setup would require a midi merge box (Midi Solutions has one for $60) or some Arduino wizardry and maybe then the external controller would be able to trigger the pattern to pad by looping the signal back to the MPC's physical input, which in turn would trigger the rest of the pattern. But that's all theory at this point until I scrap enough money to burn on a merge box. It's a neat feature but not neat enough to rush out and buy one of these things for something that may or may not work. If someone with the required hardware could prove the concept on their own it would be much appreciated.

On the plus side, I did finally figure out how to assign note on/off to any button on the Axiom (that feature wasn't explicitly stated in the manual). So at least I have that.

Ocular wrote: has anyone been able to get a sequential macro to work with pattern to pad? If so, then how? I've been trying but now I don't even know if it's possible.


EDIT: It just hit me. I would have to route one of the MPC midi outputs to the MPC midi input assigned to button mode for this work. wouldn't I?

Yep thats right.I've been doing that. Just make sure your MIDI thru settings aren't going to cause any feedback problems and your good to go. Prior to the pattern feature I was using simult for this, which only gives you 5 notes but with pattern it gives you more options. I've got a solution for iPhone macros too using a midi interface and touchosc - i'll do a video in 3 weeks or so when I have a little more time for music.

maximum robot wrote:

modulator wrote:i just got a mpc 1k with really bad switches, i hadto push hard to make them

work.. then i made some wd40(non corrosive, oiling contact spray)

impregnation... now they work perfectly. i guess if some tried this before changing the

switches, they would have saved time and money. over the years i can say it adds to

the longevity of the components.

Did that to my friend's mpc, worked for about week.

I'm not surprised! WD40 is for door hinges and cleaning bicycle chains. It is not for electronic components as the solvents in it can cause permanent damage over time.

Never apply any cleaner/lube products to electronics unless they are specifically labeled for such use.

me wrote:...then i applied some deoxit... now they work perfectly. i guess if some tried this before changing the

switches, they would have saved time and money. over the years i can say it adds to

the longevity of the components.

true story!

**** wrote:

me wrote:...then i applied some deoxit...

true story!

Now yer talking...

elektrik_muz wrote:

maximum robot wrote:

modulator wrote:i just got a mpc 1k with really bad switches, i hadto push hard to make them

work.. then i made some wd40(non corrosive, oiling contact spray)

impregnation... now they work perfectly. i guess if some tried this before changing the

switches, they would have saved time and money. over the years i can say it adds to

the longevity of the components.

Did that to my friend's mpc, worked for about week.

I'm not surprised! WD40 is for door hinges and cleaning bicycle chains. It is not for electronic components as the solvents in it can cause permanent damage over time.

Never apply any cleaner/lube products to electronics unless they are specifically labeled for such use.

I was reading wrong. Yeah, didn't use WD40. First i used some Mr. Muskelknutte to get rid of dust, then put DeOxit to tacts.

As a follow up to this self-quote:

Ocular wrote:This setup would require a midi merge box (Midi Solutions has one for $60) or some Arduino wizardry and maybe then the external controller would be able to trigger the pattern to pad by looping the signal back to the MPC's physical input, which in turn would trigger the rest of the pattern.

I did a mock-up of this experiment minus the midi merger by routing my Axiom to MPC midi input 1 and then routing MPC midi out A to MPC midi input 2, with input 2 assigned to button mode set to channel 16. I then set my control track and channel to 16 with track/pad output assigned to channel 16A. Soft-thru was assigned to omni-A.

Essentially, this setup allowed me to control input 2 (MPC loopback) via input 1 (Axiom) and allowed the external controller signal to loop back to the physical MPC input 2 (this was proven by the signal echo shown on the midi monitor). This is what the midi merger box was meant to achieve in hopes that, by sending the note/pad signal assigned to pattern to pad (referred to as PtP from here on) to a physical MPC midi input, it would trigger the PtP. Unfortunately, PtP still did not trigger. Rather, the external control button worked as a normal assigned button (fun fact: if the note isn't assigned to a button it will create a spectacular midi feedback loop).

In conclusion, PtP is not accessible through midi signaling but rather through the physical MPC pad only and I can safely assume that this wouldn't work with a midi merger box. This was probably old news to some people, but I really wasn't sure and I didn't see that spec limitation anywhere in the JJOS manual.

Sorry folks. I tried to devise a semi-practical way to implement macros that were self-contained to the MPC without the assistance of a DAW or Arduino but failed miserably. Arduino or a DAW really is the best way to go about this. Damn. On the plus side, I learned soooo much. Arduino questions soon to follow.

^^^
You can use pad patterns for macros if you use the pad itself. Is there a reason why you need it to be in>out>in rather than just out>in?

Nah, no good reason other than just wanting to see what was possible with an external midi controller and button mode.