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Posted By: xoomster Syncing with RC-50 loop station via midi - 12/30/09 09:44 PM
Yes, I'm new here.

I've searched the forums, and talked to tech support. They recommended I post here to see if anyone can help me out. (Thanks in advance for all the previous info....)

I'm trying to sync PT with an RC-50 loop station for live performances. I want to use PT as the audio / drums, etc, and have the ability to loop live via my loop station. (I play guitar.) I want to layer loops over the basic PT sequencer to create live performances. To do this, it is imperative that the RC-50 and PT be in sync.

I now have PT successfully talking to my RC-50 loop station via a midisport 2x2 anniversary USB / MIDI adapter. (That was a nightmare in itself. The midisport drivers do NOT work in "compatability mode"...) Anyway, .... I'm running PT on XP pro.

I can send Start / Stop, clock, etc, both ways. I've tried making PT the master, and making the RC-50 master. Neither works adequately for the following reasons.

1) RC-50 master / PT slave
This works great for start / stop. (Although it is an all-stop on the sequencer,... but that's another issue...) The problem is, there is a latency from the RC-50 to PT. There is no way I know of to set any kind of SPP Locate Delay in the RC-50. So, starting the loop from the RC-50 works... but the latency makes it unplayable. The two devices are out of sync. ("1, and, 1, and, 2, and, 2, and....) There are also no settings in PT, (or the midisport driver), that I can find to adjust for this latency. DOES ANYONE KNOW OF A WAY TO FIX THIS, OR REMOVE THIS LATENCY?

2) PT Master / RC-50 slave
Again, start / stop works. I kick off the PT, and the RC-50 starts ticking. Unfortunately, PT sends ALL the midi data to the RC-50. This doesn't work as the looper is just a loop station. So, I lose all the sound output. DOES ANYONE KNOW OF A WAY TO SEND THE CLOCKS TO THE LOOPER, BUT STILL HAVE THE SOUND GO TO A WAVERTABLE, OR SOFTWARE SYNTH?

If anyone can offer any help, I would greatly appreciate it. FYI, it appears that this can be done with Abletron Live. However, I've been a BIAB user for years and would prefer to stick with PG.

DO
Posted By: rharv Re: Syncing with RC-50 loop station via midi - 12/30/09 10:02 PM
Use 'ports' to assign the tracks to the outputs desired....
What are you using to make the music sounds?

You'll need to uncheck the box in the preferences area that says 'reroute all midi to DXi synth'.

Then assign the tracks to the synth or output you desire per track by right-clicking the track name.
Once saved these settings should stick
If you could tell us more of what you are using for sound, maybe we could help more

Make sure the midi device on the top of your device list is the MC-50 so it is the default output for the clock.

Also, there is a setting for MTC and simple MIDI clock, try both of these. Some devices work better with one than the other.
I would make PT the master, this is the way I have had the most luck.

I believe there is a way to have PT send SPP, I am sure I have used that but am not in front of a machine with PT on it right now ..

The delay from the RC-50 may be because of the buffer on the audio for the softsynths or audio tracks in PT.
That is why I think it will be better to have PT be master so it can account for that from the beginning..
You could clone some of the tracks and output one set to the RC-50 and one set to the synth.
I would ditch using sequencing altogether, but that's just me. I would record the sequenced parts to audio, make sure you have a type of countin for all your intros, and just record them to audio and use an mp3 player or cd player to play those tracks and loop along with the audio.

Start/stop will still be up to you, but at least you can avoid the latency issue and the hassle of dragging a lappy and audio interface to your gigs.

-Scott
The sync problem with the RC-50 is a known issue. It's definitely an inherent glitch in the looper.
I am with Scott. Convert all the loops to audio and load them into the looper and control them that way. You can output the click separately to monitors.

Note: To put the click in sync with your track you have to adjust the master tempo NOT just the phrase tempo.
BIAB has an awesome soundtrack function that helps with the output of the audio so that it stays consistent with your click. Aligning the tracks to the click this way does away with the need to record a count in. You can set the RC-50 to do that for you.

Good luck.

FC
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