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Switching between speakers and headphones

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IainStinson

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Switching between speakers and headphones

PostThu Apr 21, 2022 9:01 am

I'd quite like to be able to switch between using my speakers and headphones by using a midi control on the console. Although I can do this by getting off the bench and operating the audio interface from the front panel, this is rather inconvenient.

I can get so far with a solution to this:
a. by dedicating a midi control to advance the audio preset selection and having another control to go back one preset selection and
b. by making adjacent presets be speakers and headphones only.

For example make audio presets 1 and 2 have identical routing except that preset 1 connects to the "speaker" devices and preset 2 connects to only the headphones ("devices"). By advancing the preset by from 1 to 2 (via the midi control) the system changes to use audio preset 2 (headphones) and pressing the preset back button the system switches to audio preset 1 (speakers).

It works. However, it is inconvenient to have to remember what is selected and you can go forward or back too far.

It could be improved, a little, if there was a control panel to select a specific audio preset, at least then on a per instrument basis you could set two controls to activate defined audio presets, one for the speakers and one for headphones.

Has anyone got a good solution to this for Hauptwerk?

Other solutions involve using the audio interface control application to change the active profile (to be one for headphones) and this probably could be automated (with some work), provided I could trigger the action from a midi event. Getting a midi event such as a piston press to "pass through Hauptwerk" isn't something that's provided in the system. It seems to require another little program intercepting this midi event rather than passing it on to Hauptwerk.

Any thoughts?

Iain
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larason2

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Re: Switching between speakers and headphones

PostThu Apr 21, 2022 9:14 am

I’m afraid I don’t have an easy solution, but thanks for posting the clever way you currently do it!

It sounds to me like a job for an arduino. It shouldn’t be too hard to wire up a midi in, and one relay per channel to “unplug” them when you don’t want them to be in use, and wire up those relays to an audio plug on either end of the relay. But that’s a complicated engineering solution to a simple programming problem!
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mdyde

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Re: Switching between speakers and headphones

PostThu Apr 21, 2022 9:25 am

Hello Iain,

Just for information: we do have an enhancement request logged for potentially adding the ability for a MIDI piston to toggle between two different mixer presets for that purpose.
Best regards, Martin.
Hauptwerk software designer/developer, Milan Digital Audio.
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mnailor

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Re: Switching between speakers and headphones

PostThu Apr 21, 2022 9:31 am

In HW 7:

Similar to what you already said, but try using View | Mini control panels | Mixer preset. You can assign a piston to -> and another piston to 1, so you can switch between preset 1 and 2. They can be assigned once for all organs.
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magnaton

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Re: Switching between speakers and headphones

PostThu Apr 21, 2022 5:10 pm

For my Hauptwerk setup I have 2 switches about 3ft from the console.
(1) All amplification (active monitors, tower speakers, powered sub)
(2) Computer, audio interface, console lights, and everything else

My headphones are connected to the audio interface and always active. So for headphones only, I simply turn off switch #1.

Danny B.
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mnailor

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Re: Switching between speakers and headphones

PostThu Apr 21, 2022 6:10 pm

That's what I do, too: turn off the power to all the amps. But I also unmute the headphone bus in my audio interface -- muted in a perhaps misguided attempt to make the headphones last longer.
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NickNelson

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Re: Switching between speakers and headphones

PostFri Apr 22, 2022 5:38 am

My startup/shutdown method, which is not too difficult to set up and is described here:
https://forum.hauptwerk.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=20258#p151900
has the useful side effect that once an organ has loaded, the speaker amplifiers can be
switched on and off by toggling the 'Organ Ready' control.

Nick
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IainStinson

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Re: Switching between speakers and headphones

PostWed Apr 27, 2022 9:08 am

Thanks for the various suggestions about how I might be able to switch between headphones and speakers (amps) from my console.

The best solution would be to have Hauptwerk provide the function to toggle between two audio presets (which Martin said was an enhancement request).

I decided to go along the route of powering the amplifiers on and off from a console button. Thanks to Nick for his comment which helped think about this way of doing this.

Here are some notes about what I’ve done.

Implementing a facility to toggle the power to the amplifiers (including sub-woofer)
I have set up my system so that a button on the Launchpad I have on the organ bench is able to toggle the power to the amplifiers (and sub). By arranging that my audio presets include my headphone output, by pressing the button on the Launchpad I can turn off the amplifiers and hear the audio from only the headphones or to switch the amps on and hear the sound through the speakers.
This depends on my USB controlled power distribution strip which allows the individual sockets to be controlled from a command (command line command). It also utilises Hauptwerk’s Output 2 on the midi settings for a specified function.

The link between Hauptwerk sending a midi command on Output 2 and the commands to control the power strip is implemented in a small Python program (midi_responder). This program reads data from a midi port, looking for a particular midi note off command (middle c): when it receives this it issues the appropriate command to toggle the state of the power socket which feeds the amplifiers: other midi commands received are ignored. The program receives (as its input) data from a virtual midi cable (provided using LoopBe1); the other end of this virtual midi cable is connected to Hauptwerk as a midi output path.

In Hauptwerk, I needed to find a control available for all organs which could be used to toggle the amplifier power. As I don’t use the Master Crescendo pedal, I chose to configure the control which cycles through the four Master Crescendo settings to respond to a button on my Launchpad (using the normal autodetect procedure); I adjusted the midi settings for this control and set Output 2 to send the midi note off command on the virtual midi cable midi port connected to the midi_responder program. . The program includes code to prevent the amplifiers’ power being switched too frequently and to ignore a flurry of messages sent (from the chosen control) when organs are loaded and unloaded.
The arrangement works.

On start-up amplifiers are powered on. With an organ loaded, pressing the button on the Launchpad turns off the amplifiers; pressing it again, turns them on, and the amplifiers power on or power off on subsequent presses of the button.

One of the problems I had was identifying an appropriate Hauptwerk control to “sacrifice” to this function. It had to be for a function that I didn’t use. Some controls don’t always send midi output if they don’t need to change the state of a control (sensible to keep unneeded midi traffic down). I used a midi monitor program (midi medic) to see which Hauptwerk functions were suitable for this purpose.

Comments, suggestions etc. most welcome.

Iain
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Re: Switching between speakers and headphones

PostWed Apr 27, 2022 4:26 pm

Why not get a few smart plugs and an Echo-show when they're on sale?
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IainStinson

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Re: Switching between speakers and headphones

PostWed Apr 27, 2022 5:01 pm

Why not get a few smart plugs and an Echo-show when they're on sale?


This would of course be a solution - but I wanted to have this run from the controls which are deemed to be a part of the console...and didn't want anyone else to be able to control the switching ("Alexa organ amps off").

Iain
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murph

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Re: Switching between speakers and headphones

PostWed Apr 27, 2022 6:51 pm

4 Lidl plugs and a remote?
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tf11972

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Re: Switching between speakers and headphones

PostFri May 06, 2022 2:24 am

My solution is quite simple, but I know, this is mostly not possible:

My monitor speakers have a subwoofer-out and are controllable via IR-remote. So I simply mute the monitors and can use my headphones.
Best regards
Thomas

Forestpipes - Virtual Pipe Organs
https://forestpipes.de
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gary.chapman

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Re: Switching between speakers and headphones

PostFri May 06, 2022 2:36 pm

My solution is similar. My audio interface (which speakers and headphones are plugged into) has separate volume controls for each. To use headphones, I just lower volume for speskers. This does require the audio interface to be accessible from the bench.

- Gary Chapman
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Re: Switching between speakers and headphones

PostSun Feb 19, 2023 8:48 pm

When I had my system set up by Francois and asked him about the possibility of using a toggle between speakers and headphones, he installed a simple toggle under the console just above where my left knee is when playing, and moving that triggers the amps to switch and shut off the speakers (except my two subwoofers) and activate the headphones.

Everyone I know, says the headphones will sound just as good as the speakers…. And I have found that NOT to be even close to true! It still always sounds too “electronic” and I’ve asked Francois and he tells me mine are set up for the best possible sound.

So, while I don’t have to use the headphones, (and I’m glad since I’m not really a fan to be honest), every once in a while, I’ll put them on to play…. But not often.

Pat
Pilot Southwest Airlines
Las Vegas, Nevada
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Doug S.

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Re: Switching between speakers and headphones

PostMon Feb 20, 2023 11:05 am

How does one make an enhancement request, especially if it might be patentable?
Doug
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