[comments, questions, and bugs?] MusE Live MIDI Input transformator

[Impostor]

Been fooling around a bit more with the live midi input transformator. Found out a bit more about how it works, but I also found possible bugs, and a few questions:

1. The presets you create are tied to the current project. That means if you load another project, you loose your settings, and you cannot reload them somehow. You must recreate them from scratch?

2. The modules on the lower right relate to the presets in the list on the left. Clicking on one of the numbered Module buttons, and then clicking on a preset, assigns that preset to that module. Selecting the box, awkwardly set askew next to the numbered module buttons, activates that module and thus its associated preset.
   I would expect* to be able to assign multiple presets to a single module, but how? *Otherwise, why use modules at all, and not let us simply select (a maximum of) four presets to activate?

3. Bug? One cannot "unselect" the numbered module buttons. (The currently selected one is vaguely darker than the rest, at least with the Deep Ocean Theme. In the images below, in the top image the 4th module is selected, and in the bottom image, the 1st module is selected.) Which means that simply browsing through the presets list keeps unintentionally assigning those presets you're clicking on to the current module.

4. So, I create 6 presets, and since there are 4 modules, I give each module a single preset (in order: play, record, rewind, forward). Two dummy presets are included for fun. Activating all modules leads to the correct behaviour of all transformations. And then I save the project.

5. Bug? On reloading this project, another "new" preset is automatically added to the preset list, and the preset-to-module assignment I had set up is completely fucked up: the "new" preset is now assigned to both modules 1 and 4. Rewind (previously module 3) is now assigned to module 2, and Record (previously assigned to module 2) is now assigned to module 3. Play and Forward aren't assigned to a module at all anymore.
   And whereas all 4 modules were activated when saving the project, only modules 2 and 3 are active on reloading.

The top image is the state on saving, and the lower one is the state on reloading the project.

[tavasti]

Does same thing as qmidiroute?

[Impostor]

Does same thing as qmidiroute?

Same how? Same behaviour as I described, suspected bugs and all?

[tavasti]

Does same thing as qmidiroute?

Same how? Same behaviour as I described, suspected bugs and all?

Forget my comment, I did not realize this about some feature of MusE, I was assuming some separate program.

[Impostor]

Does same thing as qmidiroute?

Same how? Same behaviour as I described, suspected bugs and all?

Forget my comment, I did not realize this about some feature of MusE, I was assuming some separate program.

I changed the title :)

[Impostor]

Does same thing as qmidiroute?

Golden tip by the way! I'll just use that to set up my midi transport buttons (which I never even use but whatever). If only I can find a way to set up a toggle with it.

[Impostor]

1. Bug? On reloading this project, another "new" preset is automatically added to the preset list, and the preset-to-module assignment I had set up is completely fucked up: the "new" preset is now assigned to both modules 1 and 4. Rewind (previously module 3) is now assigned to module 2, and Record (previously assigned to module 2) is now assigned to module 3. Play and Forward aren't assigned to a module at all anymore.
   And whereas all 4 modules were activated when saving the project, only modules 2 and 3 are active on reloading.

Okay. So what happens is:

1. Preset-to-module assignment is not saved at all in the project. (switching presets, and running diff on the resulting .med's lead to nothing)
2. Closing the input transform dialog before saving prevents the addition of a "new" preset fucking things up when reloading the project.
3. The activation of any of the four modules results in the line
   <apply>1</apply>
   being added to the relevant section of the project.med file where the relevant preset is defined.
4. From within MusE, I can only activate four presets. So, I created six, and manually added <apply>1</apply> to all relevant sections in the .med file. Didn't work, but I did find out that only the first four presets with that line added to it are activated, in order of appearance in the .med file. The rest is just ignored.
5. All fine and well if you only need to use the four presets. As long as you don't open the midi input transformator dialog again.

By (1) above, it's apparently impossible to assign multiple transformation rules (presets) to a module, and by (4), one can only use four rules simultaneously.

[tavasti]

Does same thing as qmidiroute?

Golden tip by the way! I'll just use that to set up my midi transport buttons (which I never even use but whatever). If only I can find a way to set up a toggle with it.

Yeah, qmidiroute is stateless. For complete/complex midi tricks, mididings is the thing. Can be used to make all kinds of state-machines.

[Tim E. Real]

Hi @Impostor
That's quite the foray into this beast. It's a bit of a relic from the early days, written long ago by others.
I have maintained it, fixed it, and added to it over the years.

Last time I checked it was basically working, modules and all, however it is possible other things
along the way may have altered its behaviour, although it is fairly independent of all other code, acting very early
on all incoming midi before being passed to the rest of the program.

I recall I added the ability to toggle plugin effects on and off via midi (like a guitar stomp box chain).
Somewhere. Somehow. I forget how to do it !

[ Edit ] Ah, here we are in the ChangeLog, (it's not for audio plugins like I thought):
01.09.2013:
- Mods/fixes to Midi Input Transformator plugin: (Tim)
Fixed some bugs when reading procVal2Op from song.
'Program' is now allowed 'Event type' selection.
'Toggle' is a new Processing Value#2 Operation. It toggles between Value#1 and Value#2.
This means for example a standard midi foot controller (which only sends program changes)
can now be used to send TOGGLED midi CC values, say back to an effects unit
thus the foot controller becomes like regular 'chained' stomp boxes, operating
upon individual effects.

[Impostor]

I recall I added the ability to toggle plugin effects on and off via midi (like a guitar stomp box chain).

Yes indeed, I got the toggle working (transforming the press-button message into toggle, coupled with discarding the release-button messages leads to a well working record button).

But either the "modules" thing is bugged, or I just completely misunderstand its intention (which is probably most likely).

[Tim E. Real]

[ Edit ] Ha! It's very old:
0.3.14:
- new: Midi Transformator (look at edit->MidiTransform)
(not all operators and operations are implemented yet)

That's MusE version 0.3.14 - not the date !