MIDI Remote "Selected Track" Option (C12.0.20) - Useable within the API?

Just a question related to the new selected track option in the mapping assistant.

Can it be referenced in the mappings within the API?
For example, can I create a page in code binding controls to the filter section in Retrologue?

This may be one for @Jochen_Trappe perhaps ?

I’m thinking it would be great to read the focused plugin and then present multiple pages for that focus. i.e. Osc 1 section, Osc 2, Filters, Envelopes etc.

Would be so easy to setup arrays for binds if it was possible. Even if you have to manually type each parameter ID or whatever was needed.

It’s not possible. The topics regarding specific plugins and their parameters is still a an ongoing discussion. At the moment the Focus Quick Controls is the thing to address that.

BUT!

You can do a hybrid approach:

  1. Write a script with a slim mapping page only with few basic mappings
  2. Use the Mapping Assistant and for each Instrument Plugin you create a mapping page as a duplicate of your script-based page. There you make use of the new “selected track” feature.
  3. Export your script as a “.midiremote”-file, it will contain the mappings made with the Mapping Assistant as well.
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Ah ok! That makes sense, I’ll give that a try later!

Do you think that focused quick controls will ever get a paging option then? That would be the most preferred method of course. :slight_smile:

Many thanks

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I am not sure. I want to understand better the “sweet spot” use cases. Can you please describe the ideal “hardware interaction workflow” you’re aiming for? That’d be helpful.

Sure, for something like Retrologue as an example, I’d like to be able to create banks of 8 quick controls such as this:

Retrologue (Page 1) :
[Cutoff] [Resonance] [Dist] [FilterEnv] [Attack] [Decay] [Sustain] [Release]

Retrologue (Page 2)::
[Osc 1 Waveform] [Osc 1 Coarse] [Osc 1 Fine] [Osc1 Volume] etc. etc…

Therefore the default page 1 is used for quick performance options, and the following pages allow us to drill down to sound control elements such as oscillator 1,2,3 control, filter, envelope or fx control - whatever pages of 8 we want.

The page system already exists within Cubase - it has for years as I use it with a Mackie MCU, it just needs to be triggerable via a remote device, See my post here that explains it better:

I would really appreciate it if you could consider this option, as it infinitely adds to the possibilities of the MIDI Remote, and uses existing mechanics to achieve the goal.

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I know, I know. But the Focus Quick Controls share behaviour with the Track Quick Controls. If the FQC have a “NextBank” “PrevBank” thing, that’d work. But if you want to select a Bank directly? The Track QCs have only one Bank, the concepts are clashing a bit here, right?

Tbh I’m not a big fan of a fixed 8-item banking approach. If you have more or less knobs, the banking size should be flexible imho, like we did with the Mixer Bank Zone.
But of cause to respect the existing Cubase features, VST QCs (VST XMLs to be precise) are mostly structured as groups of 8 …

… maybe I stop the thinking and get back to bug fixing now :exploding_head:

I’m not sure it’s a clash of concepts as the system already exists.

Currently you have to move away from the MIDI controller, pick up a mouse, change pages on-screen, then return to the MIDI controller.

To my mind there’s no logic to that when “next” and “prev” banking buttons could be added to the MIDI Remote.

Please consider adding those two functions for the userbase. Most users don’t even know this is possible to do, so the fact of bringing this feature to the MIDI Remote would be seen as a very definitive improvement.

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I do this with a C4 and Bome Midi Translator and can confirm this. In Cubase i enable four MCUs and link them with four virtual cables to Bome and then to the four displays of the C4.
Me too really wishes the functions of the Remote Editor. EVERY VST thing feels like a real world synth and i have the freedom to use and arrange ALL parameters, button behaviour and parameter names a VST has, including FX.
It would be perfect if a Midi Remote script is supported in Remote Editor.
The Remote Editor supports only some Controllers due to the nature of what is possible, with this incredible thing. So i know, you cant support all Controllers, but if a Controller (i.e. it has supported and enough ENCODERS, a display etc.) has the options to handle the Remote Editor, then add them to the Remote Editor.
Even complex synths with over 120 parameters, are just four pages with the C4.

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Hi, Jochen.
So, having a “NextBank” “PrevBank” is possible?
Can we get that feature? Why is it not there?
That is all we need.

Thanks.

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It’s been months since this discussion, I don’t think it’s going to happen any time soon… if ever.

I agree and it is very unfortunate. OP kinda ruined it, eh? :stuck_out_tongue: Too bad, it seemed like an easy fix.

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You know, sometimes it’s great being wrong! :slight_smile: lol

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Old thread, I would like to ask for an “unlimited quick controls” on focused tracks/open plugin approach, so I can have the same knob setup and use in the FOCUSED plugin Window. It would make this function truly powerful. I’m been thinking about a mixed aprpoach using Keyboard Maestro and Bome’s, but inside of Cubase would be MUCH MORE elegant.

Best,

Antonio.

Hi @Antonio_Escobar , not sure if this would suit your workflow, but if instead of Focused Quick Controls (they are limited to 8 till now, and I think that the reason is that they’re there to expose the 8 most common functions), if you go with the Quick Controls of the Selected Track, you will (obviously) have the banks exposed by the plugin, i.e., not just 8 controls but a lot more, divided into these banks (of 8, or whichever number your controller can handle, by setting it up). This will work as long as you change your (selected) track. However, it will not work if you just have 2 or more tracks plugins windows open, and you want upon moving from the one to another (by mouse), that your controls follow. This will not happen as far as I can understand, the focus of your controls will stay at the selected track.

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Hi!

This solved my approach:

Thanks!

Interestingly, Greg Ondo has put a video on mapping using the ‘selected track’ options - it’s a nice video for anyone wanting more guidance:

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Yes, @GregOndo is a great tutor :slight_smile:

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This is exactly how I’ve set up my own controller. It’s very intuitive. But the cherry on top would be if there was a way that track selection would follow the plug-in. That is, in this video Mr. Ondo has two plug-ins on the same track. Switching between their windows, he can seamlessly control each one. It’s still the selected track.

But what if he had an Envelope Shaper plug-in window for the track Snare Top open just to the side? If he wanted to control it and he changed to that (by clicking in it, bringing the window to the front), he would also have to manually select the track Snare Top for the plug-in to be controlled. Imagine if track selection would follow any plug-in window currently in focus. Now that would be something to behold.

Yeah that would be nice, they probably should’ve just extended the focused quick controls in the same way really! :slight_smile:

You can setup a MIDI Remote button to move between the plugins though, and then select all your parameter controls and add a single label for them and it will show which plugin is currently focused in the MR area, if that helps?

i.e.

To be honest, if the (Plug-in) Focused Quick Controls had an arbitrary bank size, and they also had pages, would they be any different than the selected channel, Insert viwer parameter bank approach? Maybe the difference would be that we wouldn’t need to dive into the RCE editor at all, since parameter designation would be made directly with L on the plug-in’s header/GUI? I don’t know. There’s some overlap going on here.

Yes, those are also assigned. It’s not bad at all! But a direct “selected track, insert effect 1-16” would be sheer luxury. For the time being, I’m just missing the label (haven’t started this part in the javascript script yet, but I already had it working on my “surface editor” version.

edit: Wait, you don’t mean to tell me you can create a label in the surface editor and make assignments to it using the mapping assistant, do you?