H9 best midi device for presets

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    • #112419
      fuzzmax
      Member

      hi.  Maybe it has been answer but i can't find (ok i did not go through all the forum) but i want to know what is the best midi device to activate presets without having to go up and down through them.  Devices that patches can be assign presets.  thanx

    • #127630
      LA Keys
      Participant

      All you need to send to the H9 is a MIDI program change. This will select any of the 99 patches directly. More about this could be found on page 39 of the manual…

      Then, just about any midi controller could do that. It is then very hard to say which one is the best, based on this single criteria.

      One that I like is the Arturia Beatstep. It does much more than that, but you could set the 16 pads to select any presets on the H9.  Then the knobs could be used to directly tweak any parameters on the H9. I know it says "Controller sequencer" but you don't have to use it as a sequencer. Just configure all pads and knobs as controllers.

      There's so much choice out there I'm sure you'll find one that meet YOUR need, and is within your budget.

      LA

      • #141720
        shawnd
        Member
        LA Keys wrote:

        One that I like is the Arturia Beatstep. It does much more than that, but you could set the 16 pads to select any presets on the H9.  Then the knobs could be used to directly tweak any parameters on the H9. I know it says “Controller sequencer” but you don’t have to use it as a sequencer. Just configure all pads and knobs as controllers.

        wow, that’s cool.  so the 16 buttons could be configured to launch your 16 favorite presets?

        also , in the dumb question category, how would the Beatstep physically connect to the H9?

    • #138553
      fuzzmax
      Member

      thanx for the reply.  I know there is plenty of them but i wanted to see which one was more appreciated  by the users.  The arturia looks great but i feel the operation is more fingers intended than by the feet.  Disaster area seems like a popular controller but i would like more stompswitches to have more presets ready to go on the fly.

    • #138554
      st.bede
      Participant

      I have used a number of midi foot controllers through out my life. The only princuple that is unversail in this case: more power= longer learning curve. I have Softstep 2. Remarkable control, however it is still a pain to program. The size and weight is killer and it has held up perfectly. It is a bit tricky to use when my feet are shoved into fat tennis shoes. 

    • #127633
      mikhael47
      Member

      I would try and find something that allows you to send Program Change and Continuous Controller messages.  I use a Voodoo Labs GCX with other equipment and the fact I can run 2 expression pedals, and control multiple items is a good thing.

    • #138559
      mikhael47
      Member

      Of course I meant Voodoo Labs GCP, not GCX… 

    • #138565
      fuzzmax
      Member

      so the ground control pro is working well with the H9?  It is kind of affordable.

    • #127634
      fuzzmax
      Member

      Is anybody using a PEAK FCB4N2?  

    • #138567
      mikhael47
      Member

      I can do some testing but yes, it can send both PC and CC messages.  Is it going to be the only thing in your midi chain?  Is it going to be on the floor or in a rack?

      My setup would be GCP Midi OUT > GCX Midi In > GCX Midi out > H9 Midi in.  I will probably keep the H9 on the same midi channel as the GCX for simplicity but I may move it to it's own channel.

      The trick is to know what CC's and PC you want to send.  For instance… If you want to control TAP, you are going to want to set a particular CC on the GCP button you want to use for TAP, then set the H9 to learn and hit that button.  

      The GCP can control several different midi devices at one time and you can name them.  I have mine setup for 4 "presets" and 8 "Instant Access".  So the top left button on my GCP is set to TAP and it sends the CC that the H9 responds to, it's momentary so you click it in time with the music to set the tempo.

      The 4 preset buttons are setup to call the GCX loops I wish to engage as well as send the right PC down to the H9 to select the preset I want.  There are bank up/down buttons on the GCP that allow for more presets.  The presets can be named. 

      The only thing I am not sure about is if the H9 can send tuner info back to the GCP, I doubt it can.

      I have not setup my expression controllers to the H9, but as an example, I used one of my controllers to adjust the global input level on my GMajor2 to work as a volume pedal, the other one I setup to control the mix of my filter patches.

      Here's a video that explains how to setup the "learn" function on the H9 to accept the CC for TAP. (lets hope it works)

      [View:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efOrl0DlWUA:550:0%5D

    • #127681
      datriani
      Participant

      What do you need this midi controller to do?  How many presets do you need to access, how many units will it be controlling, are all the units you're looking to control have midi capabilities, do you need to be able to turn on/off individual units and/or effects from the foot controller, do you have any space limitation and what's your budget?  

      Sorry for the barrage of questions but I think this would help in terms of providing a good list potentially suitable midi controllers for you.  

      I personally have a RJM Mastermind and Disaster Area DMC-8 and DPC-5, all depending on the situation I'm in.

    • #127720
      lmlyons
      Participant

      There are some very good products for midi control out there. I can only reference Voodoo Labs Ground Control Pro (GCP) and its companion switching product, GCX.   Why both? Two reasons. really good and "fine" control – I can set the system up in a linear fashion (1 button controls 1 thing, or 1 patch controls 1 thing) and/or I can set it up so that one button controls many effects which is more related to how a song progresses. The second,  cut the length of cable between where I stand on stage by 80% and have true bypass on everything.  All my pedals and rack effects are about three feet from the amps and the pedal board with controllers is 30 feet away. I'm running a evil "Twin" and a JVM410. 

      I started using the H9 as the last effect in the stomp box chain on the GCX. The top four switches on the board control a compressor, a few distortion pedals, and the 4th simply sends a midi CC out to the H9 to bypass it. The IA buttons do more that just switch.   The GCX is what helps control the other effects pedals.  That H9 splits the signal to buttons 6 and 7 for amp bypass. I had a set of rack effects in the preamp loops of both amps. Button 7 and 8 controlled bypass on the rack units. I had the GCP setup in 8 IA, 4 bank mode. 4 buttons plus an up/down button could control 1 midi effects unit or all three. I have a foot pedal in the expression pedal one spot, and a tap tempo spdt button in expression pedal 2 slot. They are the perfect pair for the H9. Completely configurable to the algorithms, or almost.  That's what I call the age of innocence. 1 H9. 

      I got a wild hair and one evening a few months ago, and tried that H9 in both amps effects loops. Took about three seconds using the iOS app to set to kill dry to take out the phasing issues. I was hooked. Took pedal 1 to MAX, and got pedal two and three. Took out the Lexi and the old spx1000 which served me well.  The front end H9 now does the fancy stuff like stereo effects. The two H9s inserted in the amp loops do more of the reverb / time based effects stuff. Button 7and 8 are the amp H9 bypass switches. Bank 1 though 8 (the numbering is different, but it gets to the point) are front end H9 specific.  Bank 9 though 16 control each AMPs H9 in tandem – meaning if crystals was in amp 1, it's also in amp 2. Lots of reasons to go this way, especially if you are amp hoppin a lot.  Banks 17 up are set for songs, and the display tells me which song. That's what I call the age of MAX. 3max.

      That's a bit of words there, but to simplify – GCP will certainly handle midi control – it also handles sending expression pedal info to more than one unit –  it sets you up to also add switching later if you are considering that. There certainly are better midi controllers, but the one I have is performance proven, and does the job well.

      best regards and play on..

      Lance

    • #138850
      mikhael47
      Member

      Thanks Lance, now I have GAS for not one, but two more H9's!!! 

    • #138851
      Grigg Haws
      Member

      I know how you guys feel, I have 2 now, going for a third. I actually use on on my nice PA rig.

      I do some weekend PA rentals for bands in the area for fun, and to pay for the gear. and everyone always asks me how I get such killer reverbs and delays etc, I just point to the little H-9 sitting there.

    • #138852
      lmlyons
      Participant

      You are most welcome.  Putting one on the front end effected by the preamps, and one each in the amp effects loops unaffected by the preamps – well, its something I am really happy about.  I look forward every day to set that system up, and perform through it.  I haven't been excited like this in a long time, its that good.    

      L

    • #139295
      jarnott
      Member

      Hi Lance,

       

      Thank you for your detailed description.  Do you by any chance have any videos on YouTube showing your configuration?  I am replacing my G-Force with an H9, use the GCP and GCX and would like to learn how others are getting the most of this configuration.

       

      Thanks,

       

      John

    • #139296
      lmlyons
      Participant

      No I don’t have any youtube videos up, but the flow is so simple.

       

      With the GCX,  IA one has a Keely 4 knob inserted.  IA2 has a OCD dirt pedal inserted,  IA3 has a Sparkle drive dirt pedal inserted. The output of IA3 goes into the front end H9.  IA4 has no inserts – it sends a CC message to bypass the front end H9.  The front end H9s outputs go into IA5 and IA7.  IA5’s output goes to the Fender Twin amp – consider it a on off switch for the input into them.  IA7’s output goes to the Marshal JVM410, again its an on off switch for the input into the roar machine.  IA6 is set with a CC message to by pass the H9 in the effects loop of a Twin..  IA8 is set with a CC message to bypass the H9 in the effect loop of the Marshall.   The effects loop H9’s are simply inserted into the effects loop with a midi line going to them. That midi loop comes from the front end H9 which in turn gets its midi feed directly from the GCX   The insert H9s are pretty much only used for reverbs and echo’s.  I load the two with the same exact algo’s and settings – when I call up a patch for the inserted H9 its the same exact patch for both.   I used 2 just to stay away from ground loops and the like – BUT – I do have a setting where I send a micro shift algo to the Twins and a 12 string algo to the Marshall.  STUNNING – Perfect for the PRS P24 trem and the accoustic sound I get out of it – however, there are some places I play that the PRS accoustic output goes into a direct box and on to FOH.  Even then, I still ‘goto’ that cool set of patches when chording open, clean sounding stuff.and I certain I will add more pairs like that.  

       

      I have an expression footpedal inserted into the GCP which passes a midi stream to the front end H9 – great for dive bomb stuff, but mostly used to set rotating effects and wah.  Cant wait for volume control to be added to the H9 line.. I’l add another foot controller – the GCP can take two.   I tried building a tap tempo box like the one on voodoo labs website but it didn’t work exactly as expected, so I simply route a 1/4 phone plug cable with the midi cable from the GCX to the rack and insert the tap tempo into the front end H9. It is the master clock, but not the master.  Theres a story in that part.  Right now, I have The twins and Marshall amp pedals up with the GCP at the front of the stage.  I bundle another 2 cables with the midi and tap tempo cables going to the rack and plug them into the amps.  I can control the Marshall via the GCP, but not the Twin.  I am looking for a cost effective way to midi switch that amp.   The amp switch pedals are on the left of the GCP,  GCP is in the center, and the tap tempo and footpedals are on the right.  I use a radio to the rack – so none of the cabling from the front to the rack has an audio signal.  I must say, that tamed the Marshal OD1 and OD2 channels down considerably.  I took the time to have those four cables made into a  30 foot ‘control snake’ if you will.  It rolls up nicely and setup is a breeze because of it..  I roll up all the cables back to the rack on tear dow.  I need to have fast setup and tear down, because we are the first band to perform most of the time.  

       

      So thats the routing.  I set the GCP as an 8IA 4midi configuration.  My first set of 8 banks are specifically for the front end H9.  Its pretty simple, those effects are micro shift, chorus, slap, stuff. The next set of banks are for the H9 effects in the effects inserts of the amps.  The first 4 are for verbs from light to black hole.  The next three are for echos, and the last one I have set up is that micro pitch 12 string setup I listed earlier.  I consider this set of patches the ‘recording or quick gig’ setup.  I can access about any sound I would like.   I am currentlly working on what I call the performance setup – putting effects, and amp control changes into the GCP so that they follow show order – you know, bank 1A is ‘Some Song’ rythmn, bank 1B is ‘Some Song’ lead, but,  I have to find a cost effective midi switching solution for the Twin.  The country dude in me can’t go anywhere without it. Thinking out loud – I wonder if the H9 can accept a configuration file via an iPad and send it on to the GCP – that would be OUTSTANDING!   

       

      Hope that helped – its a really REALLY cool all around performance system and way too fun to figure everything out.  The 3 H9’s really are the centerpiece for my effects.   Now to learn how to tune the guitar   :o).  

       

      Best regards,

       

      Lance   

    • #139300
      leotio
      Participant

      I went on a world wide search for a midi controller/ loop switcher, and as mentioned here, there are many to choose from, I usually buy stuff made in the U.S. and stay away from anything made in China, except if its free, but Eventide is a U.S. company, however, the H9 is labeled “assembled in China” (my only disappointment with it)

      Anyway… most MIDI controllers with audio loops are very expensive, but I found one made in Argentina , branded Max Control, it has everything I needed; a display, 8 loops, over 250 programmable presets, A/B outputs, 2 expression pedals inputs, amp controls, compact footprint,16 gauge metal housing, very well made, and it cost me under $600 with shipping from Argentina, not made in the U.S. but well made, great price and lots of features, I couldn’t pass on that, as I desperately needed to control my H9 without bending over to turn the knob or getting a cramp on my leg from tap dancing on it to get to a preset, this one does the job very well.

      My chain: loops 1-8

      1-Cry baby

      2-compressor

      3-Eq

      4-tube driver

      5-fuzz

      6-volume pedal (thinking of freeing this loop and putting it on loop 7 with the amp’s FX loop)

      7-amp FX loop (send to amp front end input return from FX loop)

      8- H9 1&2

      output of switcher to send of amp FX loop

      I was able to program all my presets on both H9s , but i am having a little bit of problem with MIDI cc, I am trying to control some of the parameters in a few of the algorithms, and it works, save, go to another preset,come back to it and it doesn’t work anymore.  

      I had to get a RJM mini amp gizmo to control my Mesa amp through MIDI (my Mesa model have a special wiring and connector for switching channels) the controller uses 2 TRS 1/4″ jacks to control amps, so it doesn’t control my amp.  

      I need to work out the MIDI cc issue and also don’t want to add a second expression pedal to control H9 #2, maybe I can run the expression pedal to the controller and midi assign it to whichever H9 I want to use the expression pedal with, I haven’t gotten to that yet, still learning about midi.

      This ,so you guys get a different alternative of controlling your H9.

    • #139860
      anibalresendez
      Participant

      Im using 2 h9s and a Tech 21 midi moose and works as a charm

    • #141323
      dmessick
      Participant

      Below is a link to a simply DIY MIDI controller that I made because I was in your situation and could find a small MIDI controller that I could program to send the PC and CC messages that I wanted. In your case it would be programmed to send specific Program Change messages to recall specific presets. You could do this by simply changing all the “CC” in the code to “PC”

       

      https://www.eventideaudio.com/community/forum/stompboxes/h9-midi-controller-diy-0

    • #152523
      jlmiralles
      Member

      Hi there!
      I created a tutorial on how to control the H9 with a external midi controller (Arturia Beatstep) with the help of Ableton Live, H9_remote (a max4live device by Daniel Collins) and Control Surface Studio (for creating a custom remote script).
      With the tutorial we’ll SEE always the 10 knob values of the current preset in the pedal, and SEND RELATIVE midi info in order to have smoothy changes in that values. Also we will have the ability to fast change to the desired presets with only pressing pads, and automatically send again relative midi info to the new values. Here is the link:

      Eventide h9 advanced control with arturia beatstep

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