how do you know what string is playing if you don’t already have the midi channel set before it hits the MIDI muxer chip on the instrument. I don’t see the entire electronics of your project. Can you explain the actual electronics of the fretboard?
The guitar I am building has an embedded microprocessor. It will send MIDI NOTE ON and NOTE OFF (start and stop, 0x9 and 0x8) commands to the computer running Cantabile Solo. The commands can include the string number (concatenated) to be used as a channel number (for instance 0x96 would be NOTE ON for channel 6, followed by the note in hex, and its velocity value up to 127 in hex as well). So once the command gets to Cantabile, it would use the channel number to generate the sound even if another request for the same note was issued with a different channel number? Or am I misunderstanding how channels work?
Thanks I get the idea now. The embedded chip sorts out the string number and makes it the midi transmit channel
Using the MIDI channels assumes you are feeding multiple sound generators on the receiving end. Either 6 separate synthesizers or a multitimbral synth like Omnisphere, Kontakt etc … This would allow the incoming MIDI from your guitar to be routed to the correct tone generator module on the receiving end. Each one would be set to receive only on the channel they were set to receive on.
Yes, that is exactly it. The guitar has only one cable. Through this USB cable pass – one way, from guitar to computer – the MIDI commands that the guitar generates. So how do I tell Cantabile (and/or the plugin it is accessing) to process these commands? Let’s take the simple case where the guitar sends the same MIDI NOTE IN twice, once for the A2 on string 6 fret 5, followed by the other for the A2 at string 5 fret 0 (open string). Where in Cantabile or its plugin (again I am using Grace) do I tell it which notes are available on a particular channel? You mentioned multiple input routes; where do I tell ?what? that I have multiple input routes? BTW, this is not for recording, this is for playing live.
If you are using only one plugin that has only one channel for input you would set the Cantabile route to “Omni” on the Source and “1” on the target in the Route Control window for the Guitar Midi controller input route you create. This would funnel channels 1 through 6 to the single ch 1 input on your synth.
As for overlapping notes from different channels, they will all be merged into the channel 1 route.
If you use a Multi Timbral synth then you would need to channelize the data to each engine or tone slot in the synth like this
If you use a Multi Timbral synth then you would need to channelize the data to each engine or tone slot in the synth like this. If you have 6 separate plugins for generators then you would need to channelize the data like above but each input route slot would route to a different vsti synth
I hope this is part of what you want to know
Dave
**Edit: Note Ron I made some corrections to this post sorry if it confused anything.
Thanks, dave_dore. I’ve printed your reply and will set up a test for it (the 2 options). Since this will involve hardware and software, it may be sometime next week. I really appreciate your effort and will report the results here.
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@dsteinschneider Well, Doug, if you like Matchstick Men, you might also consider I Had Too Much To Dream Last Night by The Electric Prunes. Can your audience take all that tremolo? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IeVnbAfcwv8
I like both those songs a lot btw 
I am having flashbacks. Make it stop.
Kool, maybe we need a thread for songs with notable effects (and how to make them). A Greek lady friend once sent me an Arabic instrumental with super cool slurs; so it would be open to all genres.
I like the meme.
I always thought that song was “Too Much to Drink Last Night” 
Well that doesn’t make any sense … how can you have too much to drink? “Help, I’ve fallen and I can’t reach my beer!”
I also thought that at the time. Strawberry Alarm Clock, Zombies, Jefferson Airplane, The Doors, Steppenwolf, Donovan, Vanilla Fudge, Iron Butterfly, Buffalo Springfield, The Byrds, The Chambers Brothers, The Youngbloods, and thousands of others jumping on the Psychedelic train (which became a money train). Hell, even Kenny Rogers jumped on for a short time. Acid, pot, flower power, headbands and bell bottoms. When older adults on TV adopted the clothing and using the slang, it all fell apart.
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Okay, I’m learning a lot. Here is a link to collateral from a MIDI Commands test. The screen print shows what the Arduino program spit out. I will continue trying to get the sound back so that I can post that in this Google Drive folder: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1BstOSiQmfcWwqtlM925B6kaQBTAv7Mx-
Forgive me, Father, for I have hacked. I got the sound back and I have no idea how. But what the hey!
I think this is going to work for me. Any opinions would be welcomed. Here’s the link (again) to the enhanced Google Drive folder, now with the .wav file in audio and visual form.
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1BstOSiQmfcWwqtlM925B6kaQBTAv7Mx-
Thanks to all who have helped. – Ron
I’ve got the same GR-55 with a PRS, and acoustic steel-string, and a Tom C. Holmes all mounted with GK2 (or 3) pickups. For the ‘V-Guitar’ side of the synth, it is amazing -ZERO LATENCY… However, using with Cantabile and VST’s I’ve been able to enjoy a <5ms latency with my i7 (6th), 16GB, SSD gamer laptop. Even the synth sounds from the box are usually (way) less than 10 or 12. However, the richer (pianos, etc) tones are not very ‘strummable’ since that can be way too much to track for so-called, modern guitar synth products. Either way, I’m very happy with what I can do in the studio or live with the GR-55.
I just got back from Youtube after watching some demos on the GR55. Very nice.
Also, I took one last shot at SEEING the difference between an A2 playing alone on Channel 5, and being joined by the same A2 on Channel 6. I’ve added 4 images to my related Google Drive folder. I’ll just include the first here.
Hi. I mainly use the GR55 for the modelling, as, apart from the odd sound, I am not impressed with its PCM sound engine. I do keep meaning to try driving external synths when I get time
Regarding the GR55, I am impressed at how well the Analog-to-Digital conversions are progressing. Also, there is no sign of a felt-like ribbon silencing the strings so that they do not play as open when a string is released. As to latency, it is an inherent property, a few cycles have to go by for an AD conversion to occur.