Using 8x8 controllers (Novation Launchpad, Ableton Push, Akai APC, Synthstorm Deluge, Akai Force…), it could make sense to have an option bind all seven patterns to rows in the grid (instead of using keyswitches).
I now realize that I can use the +/- buttons to bind a row on my Launchpad to the active Scaler pattern (with “Active Bind Keys” set to ALL). Neat.
To move to another pattern, I need to keyswitch using the major scale pads lower in the grid (the so-called “white keys”, from piano-style controllers).
What would be neater is if the whole control surface could work directly to trigger chords without having to switch.
Use case: exploring a large variety of chords to select some for chord progressions.
Expected behaviour: the grid controller gives direct access to all chords from all patterns as each of the grid’s pad binds to a chord in the Scaler pad.
Observed behaviour: keyswitches are required to go from one pattern to another and then use the same part of the grid.
That’s a great idea, and as someone with an 8x8 MIDI controller (Maschine Jam) I second this request. If each chord pad in the Scaler pattern matrix could be mapped to a MIDI note or CC, then we could create templates for each 8x8 controller to reuse.
For an 8x8 controller it would make sense to be able to assign MIDI CC to the pads in the Chord Pad. The Launchpads let you asign your custom CC maps. I didn´t buy the Launchpad yet since there is no way to assign CC within the chord pad view.
As I was thinking about this, I realized that at some point I did solve this need with Scaler 2 as is.
You can actually lasso in section C all the patterns, so that they map continuously to the MIDI keyboard, each chord can be recalled by consecutive MIDI notes, like so…
Put your 8x8 chords/progressions into the section C matrix (fill the 7 patterns), then go into EDIT mode in section C. Then you click and drag a rectangle around the “Pattern” buttons on the left (also called “Lasso”)
But you can move the keyboard mapping around with the Settings menu…
If you now set your scale on your 8x8 MIDI controller to Cmaj or Amin, so that it only maps the white piano keys to its pads, you can press a pad and get a corresponding chord, from the 8x8 section C matrix in Scaler. Works well for me on Maschine Jam.
Wow. Had no idea about the lasso trick. In fact, despite your clear instructions, I kept lassoing the buttons themselves as I was misunderstanding what you meant by “Pattern” buttons. It’s probably in the manual, somewhere yet I’m not finding it. (They call those buttons “Pattern selector”. When you’ve selected all patterns, the contextual menu allows you to “Unselect All Patterns”. I’m just not finding a mention of selecting multiple pattern selectors so that the MIDI note binding will work on all of them.)
Interestingly enough, the patterns are in a reverse order. For things to work properly, I need to put Pattern 1 at the bottom (row 7) and Pattern 7 at the top (row 1). On Launchpad, it’s probably best to use a chromatic layout and set to “All Notes” instead of “Only White” as the default diatonic layout repeats the root.
Still, we’re getting somewhere.
I’d consider this as a somewhat clunky workaround.
What could work quite well is having a full map of key bindings. With 64 pads instead of 56.
I’d probably mix in some other functions, for good measure. Like, one pad could toggle the performance mode and another might even switch voicings…
At any rate, Scaler is already proving a worthwhile tool. More so than most other “theory plugins” out there, I would say.
Yes, you have to be specifically in the section C “EDIT” page, where all 8x7 pads show, just like (one of my many) screenshots indicated…
I hear you on the slight mismatch of 8x7 Scaler and 8x8 on the MIDI controller. On my custom template I built a while back for Maschine Jam, I used one of the spare rows to switch performances (as you also surmised)
Why did I do a custom template? For that other reason you pointed out, that using the default MIDI controller note mapping, it goes from bottom to top, whereas Scaler visualizes it from top to bottom.
Hi @Miki , I also use a more “traditional” maschine drumkit controller, similar in layout as the MPC. And the same logic of configuration and use applies. Yes I can bank/scroll the note range used by the 4x4 pads.
Yes, this method has worked quite a while. Scaler 2 had this function to consecutively map chord pads in section C to continuous keyboard range early on.
Did you guys discover diads without starting a feature request? Guess they could be implemented with the update for guitars. Hope the developers get creative in new features. For harmonization like in Davide´s latest video it would make sense to be able to adjust raws for different MIDI channels.
Especially if we could trigger one pad in a raw and another one in another raw simultaneosly.
Did you create a custom layout with your Launchpad yet? Think with the mk3s and the custom mappings adjusting the pads for Scaler should go easy. Novation has a custom tool that lets you create a C major scale per row. Adjusting the pads for the LASSO trick shouldn´t be a problem.
As I mentioned I didn´t get a Launchpad yet but it is tempting. Think I will decide after the guitar update shows in which direction Scaler goes for playability.
Not yet, no. (I have a Launchpad X and I really like it.) Once I understood more about how this worked, I realized I probably didn’t need a custom layout, as long as I switch around the patterns.
Something to know about the main diatonic mode is that it doubles the root, every octave. So you get CDEFGABC every row. That can be a bit of an issue in terms of matching the LP’s pads with the chords in Scaler.
In the custom mode you can adjust the octaves of the scale. That´s why I asked.
In theory it should be possible even to trigger multiple Scalers since you can selct the MIDI channel too per raw.
HI IM having trouble following this one. I have an akai fire. can I do the same thing with its pads? Any idea how to set it up? Also is there way to save these controller layouts for scaler?
