Guide: How to Use a Gamepad/Joystick as a Foot Pedal.
Posted: Thu Jan 04, 2007 5:56 pm
Here's a simple guide from a very poor college student who currently cannot afford a fancy MIDI foot pedal controller. If you guys want screenshots I can certainly update this. Feedback is welcome.
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Okay, after jumping through several hoops and endless searching on various forums, I got it to work.
I am using a simple 8-button gamepad that uses one of the communication ports in my computer (not USB) and it shows up in my device manager as a Genius G08 Device. It's just a gamepad that looks like a PS2 controller.
Here's what I had to do:
1. Download a program called Rejoice which can translate joystick/gamepad buttons into MIDI commands.
http://www.fireballtrailers.com/rejoice/
Help documentation/setup for Rejoice: http://www.fireballtrailers.com/rejoice/help.html
2. Download a program called Midi Yoke which emulates MIDI ports on your computer so that the data from Rejoice has somewhere to go through.
http://www.midiox.com/
- Go to midiox.com
- from the menu on the left click Midi Yoke
- click download
- select appropriate OS
- install (requires restart)
3. Download a program called Bome's MIDI Translator which receives the MIDI commands and translates them into keystrokes on your keyboard.
http://www.bome.com/midi/translator/[/b]
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Okay, once you have those programs installed, here is the setup.
1. Run Rejoice. Your joystick should use the Microsoft PC-joystick driver. If not, select appropriate driver. Now we have to chose a MIDI out, so we need to route the inputs from the gamepad into a virtual MIDI port that we created with Midi Yoke. So at the bottom of Rejoice click "Route MIDI" and select one of the Midi Yoke ports. (I chose MIDI Yoke NT: 1)
2. Run Bome's Midi Translator. In the top menu click on Midi In and select the MIDI Yoke port you chose for Rejoice's output. You don't need a MIDI out (the "out" will be virtual keystrokes).
Bome uses "translators" which are behaviors you want Bome to perform after hitting a button the gamepad. You're gonna want to map one translator per button, max. So click add translator, name it, press enter.
Double-click the new translator and set up Incoming. The incoming signal will be the button press, but thanks to Rejoice it will get to Bome's as a MIDI signal. Click Capture MIDI and hold one of the buttons down on the gamepad. A value should appear in the field. Without letting go of the button, uncheck Capture MIDI.
Now to set up the Outgoing. Click the outgoing tab and then the Key Stroke tab. In this field you can tell Bome what keyboard presses you want to happen when the appropriate gamepad button is pressed. When you're done click Apply and Close.
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Phew. Now you have a
Gamepad --> into MIDI signal --> into MIDI translator--> into keystrokes
You can map pretty much any function in Live using the Key Mapper.
With this setup I was able to finally have a "Kid Beyond" setup. I simply arm all my tracks for record, and designate the gamepad's buttons as:
Button 1: Launch track 1
Button 2: Launch track 2
...etc...
I play guitar, and therefore have my hands full. This allows me to hit Button 1 with my toe to start recording AND stop recording when I'm done, leaving the clip looping. When I'm ready to add another loop on top of that I hit button 2.
I hope this will help at least one other person get a live looping setup for very very cheap.
Thanks for reading!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Okay, after jumping through several hoops and endless searching on various forums, I got it to work.
I am using a simple 8-button gamepad that uses one of the communication ports in my computer (not USB) and it shows up in my device manager as a Genius G08 Device. It's just a gamepad that looks like a PS2 controller.
Here's what I had to do:
1. Download a program called Rejoice which can translate joystick/gamepad buttons into MIDI commands.
http://www.fireballtrailers.com/rejoice/
Help documentation/setup for Rejoice: http://www.fireballtrailers.com/rejoice/help.html
2. Download a program called Midi Yoke which emulates MIDI ports on your computer so that the data from Rejoice has somewhere to go through.
http://www.midiox.com/
- Go to midiox.com
- from the menu on the left click Midi Yoke
- click download
- select appropriate OS
- install (requires restart)
3. Download a program called Bome's MIDI Translator which receives the MIDI commands and translates them into keystrokes on your keyboard.
http://www.bome.com/midi/translator/[/b]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Okay, once you have those programs installed, here is the setup.
1. Run Rejoice. Your joystick should use the Microsoft PC-joystick driver. If not, select appropriate driver. Now we have to chose a MIDI out, so we need to route the inputs from the gamepad into a virtual MIDI port that we created with Midi Yoke. So at the bottom of Rejoice click "Route MIDI" and select one of the Midi Yoke ports. (I chose MIDI Yoke NT: 1)
2. Run Bome's Midi Translator. In the top menu click on Midi In and select the MIDI Yoke port you chose for Rejoice's output. You don't need a MIDI out (the "out" will be virtual keystrokes).
Bome uses "translators" which are behaviors you want Bome to perform after hitting a button the gamepad. You're gonna want to map one translator per button, max. So click add translator, name it, press enter.
Double-click the new translator and set up Incoming. The incoming signal will be the button press, but thanks to Rejoice it will get to Bome's as a MIDI signal. Click Capture MIDI and hold one of the buttons down on the gamepad. A value should appear in the field. Without letting go of the button, uncheck Capture MIDI.
Now to set up the Outgoing. Click the outgoing tab and then the Key Stroke tab. In this field you can tell Bome what keyboard presses you want to happen when the appropriate gamepad button is pressed. When you're done click Apply and Close.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Phew. Now you have a
Gamepad --> into MIDI signal --> into MIDI translator--> into keystrokes
You can map pretty much any function in Live using the Key Mapper.
With this setup I was able to finally have a "Kid Beyond" setup. I simply arm all my tracks for record, and designate the gamepad's buttons as:
Button 1: Launch track 1
Button 2: Launch track 2
...etc...
I play guitar, and therefore have my hands full. This allows me to hit Button 1 with my toe to start recording AND stop recording when I'm done, leaving the clip looping. When I'm ready to add another loop on top of that I hit button 2.
I hope this will help at least one other person get a live looping setup for very very cheap.
Thanks for reading!