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MIDI Resolution Limitation, 14 Bit Controllers, DMX, OSC

Posted: Mon May 08, 2017 07:16
by robque
What do you do when you realize this limit of 127 steps resolution of standard MIDI CC?
Especially if I use Resolume as for projections as DMX lights and in low light performances, there is noticable steps in brightness change while trying to precisely fade channel or master composition.

Since all digital lighting or image media has 255 steps per pixel channel and midi has only 127 it becomes noticable.

What are your sollutions during the shows? Do you use DMX controllers for resolume? Or something with OSC? or are there any precise midi controllers?

What is the solution there for professional users or perfectionists? Or it's just me hitting this issue? :|

Re: MIDI Resolution Limitation, 14 Bit Controllers, DMX, OSC

Posted: Mon May 08, 2017 15:23
by Oaktown
MIDI is 127 steps (7-bit) and there is no such thing as a smooth MIDI controller.

DMX is 255 (8-bit) and two channels can be paired up as 16-bit channel but that doesn't work with Resolume.

OSC uses floats (32-bit) and double floats (64-bit) and as of version 5.0.2 "OSC input can take doubles as well as floats" so it's an easy choice :D

Re: MIDI Resolution Limitation, 14 Bit Controllers, DMX, OSC

Posted: Mon May 08, 2017 16:57
by .lov.
Oaktown wrote:MIDI is 127 steps (7-bit) and there is no such thing as a smooth MIDI controller.
The very rare 14-bit MIDI is the feature of the Continuous Controller MIDI specification, where any of the first 32 controls (MSB - CC 0-31) can be optionally paired with a control offset 32 higher (LSB - CC 32-63) and using them as coarse and fine parameters of a 14-bit value, and this way allow using 16,384 possible values instead of 127.

Although there are not so many hardware - synth, never heard about any MIDI controller that actually supporting it - or software that are actually supporting it.

Re: MIDI Resolution Limitation, 14 Bit Controllers, DMX, OSC

Posted: Tue May 09, 2017 21:14
by robque
I was asking this question in facebook group as well, and so far the best answer was BCF2000 with bomes for 14Bit MIDI and ofc suggestions for OSC and DMX
https://www.facebook.com/groups/5854801 ... 232353277/

No straightforward standalone plug and play hardware solution so far.