Connecting MIDI keyboards to Hauptwerk

[mdyde]

I have gone to General settings … Midi input paths, and on the left side of the drop down menu I have highlighted ‘USB MIDI cable 02 ‘Keyboards div 3 (Swell)

On the right this now shows Alias: Keyboards: div 3 (swell); Midi input port: USB Midi Cable; Midi channel 2, and have clicked OK.

Most (maybe all) USB music keyboards transmit on MIDI channel 1, so you probably need to select 1 as the channel for it, instead of 2.

You can also use Hauptwerk's MIDI logging functionality to check what MIDI channels your MIDI keyboards are using, if needed:

http://www.hauptwerk.com/clientuploads/documentation/Tutorials/MIDI-Logging-Tutorial.pdf

Thanks Martin, but if my original MIDI keyboard operating the Great Organ is operating on channel 1, I'm not going to be able to use my new one for the swell on that channel, am I?

I've followed the Tutorials link you suggested, but as I said in my initial post on this subject, I'm a complete dummy (I admit it) where computers and techno-speak are concerned, so am getting stuck trying to follow this instruction through. I ticked the diagnostics box as instructed, but the next instruction (3) tells me to activate the MIDI switch which I need to determine the MIDI input for, and here I'm lost, because my problem is with a manual not with any switch (which I take to mean a stop or a piston). I'm doing my best (honestly!) but can't get my head around what I'm meant to do at this point and need it explained more simply .... I know, I know ....

It seems I need someone to tell me how, if a USB music keyboard operates on channel 1 (and I haven't a clue what that actually means) how do I get it to operate on a different channel so as not to clash with another keyboard already operating on channel 1? I'm sure there's a simple answer somewhere and at my great age I'm just to dumb to see it. Sorry to be a pain but I really want to crack this. (I'm not a complete dumbo though, I have managed to make the modulation wheel on my new keyboard work the swell pedal, which was going to be my next 'how do I ...?)

Meanwhile, I've now unchecked the diagnostics tick box pending finding the time to come back on here to read any more replies.

[mdyde]

You can have two devices on channel 1, as long as they're attached to different MIDI ports (or different USB/MIDI cables).

Each MIDI port (or USB/MIDI connection) has 16 channels of its own.

Ah, the mud becomes diluted . Many thanks Martin, I'll try again later when I have time, armed with this info.

Right, so now, having attached a keyboard through my second MIDI/USB cable into a second USB port on my computer, I have gone back to General Settings/MIDI input paths, on the left menu I have clicked on 'USB Midi:02 Keyboards Div 3 (Swell), and on the right I've changed Midi channel 2 to 1, clicked OK, and have got an error message: 'Two or more MIDI input path objects have matching attributes when those attributes must be unique as a combination.The attributes in question are: MIDI input port, MIDI channel number (1-16). The (first) two such objects are named USB Midi 01 'Keyboards div 2 (Great) and USB Midi 01 keyboards div 3 (Swell). When clicking off the message and being asked whether I want to save the changes I have clicked 'discard'.

So despite my initial optimism I am no further forward and still seem to be going round in circles

Should I have saved the changes anyway, and continued?

In the meantime I've tried different channel numbers as suggested in the downloadable user's manual but, having initially not been able to play any on-screen note from my keyboard, now it's started playing Great when I thought I had told it to and expected it (silly me!) to play Swell. If I go back to channel 1 I'm confronted again with the error message above.

One other point occurs to me. This second cable I am using came with the keyboard I bought through Ebay, and has been used by the previous owner with a different programme. Would that have had any bearing on why I can't now use it on Channel 1 for 'Hauptwerk'? And if so, would the best thing now be to buy another new MIDI/USB cable instead?

on the left menu I have clicked on

USB Midi:02 Keyboards Div 3 (Swell), and on the right I've changed Midi channel 2 to 1

snip

USB Midi 01 keyboards div 3 (Swell).

These seem inconsistent, are you sure of this?

Right, so now, having attached a keyboard through my second MIDI/USB cable into a second USB port on my computer, I have gone back to General Settings/MIDI input paths, on the left menu I have clicked on 'USB Midi:02 Keyboards Div 3 (Swell), and on the right I've changed Midi channel 2 to 1, clicked OK, and have got an error message: 'Two or more MIDI input path objects have matching attributes when those attributes must be unique as a combination.The attributes in question are: MIDI input port, MIDI channel number (1-16). The (first) two such objects are named USB Midi 01 'Keyboards div 2 (Great) and USB Midi 01 keyboards div 3 (Swell). When clicking off the message and being asked whether I want to save the changes I have clicked 'discard'.

So despite my initial optimism I am no further forward and still seem to be going round in circles

Should I have saved the changes anyway, and continued?

In the meantime I've tried different channel numbers as suggested in the downloadable user's manual but, having initially not been able to play any on-screen note from my keyboard, now it's started playing Great when I thought I had told it to and expected it (silly me!) to play Swell. If I go back to channel 1 I'm confronted again with the error message above.

One other point occurs to me. This second cable I am using came with the keyboard I bought through Ebay, and has been used by the previous owner with a different programme. Would that have had any bearing on why I can't now use it on Channel 1 for 'Hauptwerk'? And if so, would the best thing now be to buy another new MIDI/USB cable instead?

AFAICR Hauptwerk won't let you save a faulty setup, so Discard is the only way in that situation.

It looks to me as if you have either lost concentration or simply misread the MIDI interface parameters.

You need to go back over it very carefully and slowly, knowing that it can be made to work.

It looks to me as if you are somehow attempting to use the SAME MIDI interface for both keyboards on channel 1.

You need to look at the interface names very carefully and make sure that you can tell the difference between them. What you have posted indicates that the interfaces have very similar names allocated to them and it's all too easy to mistake one for the other.
Check the names against each other to ensure that they have different names, even if it's a single letter or number difference, but there MUST be a difference, otherwise you are trying to use the same interface twice on channel 1 and that's why Hauptwerk correctly throws an error.

Of course Hauptwerk 4 will sort this out for you, but that doesn't help you now. We CAN make it work.

Regards,

Alan.

Thanks folks. I've run out of time for today now (on pain of the divorce courts) but will go back over it all as you suggest next time on, Alan. At close of play I'd sussed out how to change channels on my keyboards (something I've never needed to do before) so that now from either keyboard I can play Great on channel 1 or Swell (coupled to Pedal? I didn't expect that!) on channel 2. But one of my two cables seems not to want to play although its exactly the same as my other one, so I still can't use both keyboards simultaneously to play, say, a Great solo against a Swell accompaniment. The only way I can change manuals at present is to change the channel on which ever keyboard I am playing, which unfortunately isn't instantaneous but takes two or three seconds - but you're right, we will gete there.

The latest on my problem, doctor.

I think I've found out why I can't couple up two keyboards to play Great and Swell respectively as I wish. I believe it's down to one of the two MIDI/USB cables that I'm using. I've just tried successfully to connect one keyboard, on which Hauptwewrk is happy to let me play on the Great if I use channel 1, or the Swell if I use channel 2. So I switched off, disconnected that keyboard and cable, and attached my other keyboard and cable, switched back on, tried to load Hauptwerk again, and I was given an error message 'Some audio or MIDI hardware that Hauptwerk is configured to use cannot be accessed. Do you want to continue, in which case Hauptwerk will attempt to update your settings to use the hardware available currently, or exit and keep your settings? When this has appeared before I have opted to continue, but then I have had to reconfigure my general MIDI input settings, after which it has denied me access via my other keyboard and cable. If I click on the information button on the error message I am told 'The hardware might be in use because either .... it lists four options, only one of which is really feasible - 'The device's driver is not installed properly'.

I'm guessing that if the device's driver was properly loaded I would then be able to work both keyboards as a two-manual. Am I right? And if so, how, in the simplest terms, do I get the device's driver to load properly?

[mdyde]

Hello Gordon,

You would expect to get that message because you had Hauptwerk configured to use a particular USB keyboard and then re-started Hauptwerk with that USB keyboard (=MIDI device) no longer attached. Hence Hauptwerk wouldn't be able to access that USB keyboard (because you'd detached it), and would warn you accordingly.

There's nothing wrong with your hardware or drivers - you just need to make sure that both of your USB keyboards are attached to the computer before you launch Hauptwerk, then go to the 'General settings | MIDI input paths' screen and select the appropriate 'MIDI port' (='USB keyboard' in this case) and MIDI channel (probably 1) for each of the two keyboards, then click OK. (You will need to make sure you configure both entries before clicking OK.)

Using Hauptwerk's MIDI logging facility will allow you to see what MIDI port and MIDI channel each of your two USB keyboards are using:

http://www.hauptwerk.com/clientuploads/documentation/Tutorials/MIDI-Logging-Tutorial.pdf

If you're still having difficulties, it might be easiest just to stick to using a single keyboard until the forthcoming Hauptwerk v4 is released, since it will automatically detect and configure your settings for you, with no understanding of MIDI ports or MIDI channels needed.

Thanks Martin, I've now tried all this but still it would only allow me to use one keyboard, so I'm still missing something. (I can't get my head around the logging, sorry!) But I think I'll follow your advice and hang on for v4. I don't like being beaten, but with the football club I work with I've got rather used to it this season!

It still makes a super sound (the virtual organ, that is, not the football team!) with just the one keyboard, and I truly bless the day I was introduced to Hauptwerk, but of course the Swell Melody to Great is only usable when the melody/solo line doesn't disappear inside the accompaniment, besides which I would also like to have the ability to solo out on the Great with a Swell accompaniment, hence my wish to use the second keyboard.

Is there any indication as to when v4 may be available?

One further thought in relation to the St Annes organ, would it be feasible to add a Pedal Bass to Swell as well as to Great without too much trouble? But that's another issue altogether and not really for this thread.

[mdyde]

Hello Gordon,

Is there any indication as to when v4 may be available?

As soon as we can!

One further thought in relation to the St Annes organ, would it be feasible to add a Pedal Bass to Swell as well as to Great without too much trouble? But that's another issue altogether and not really for this thread.

Yes - that will possible with v4.