Members soulgolem2 Posted October 16, 2014 Members Share Posted October 16, 2014 Here is what i have in mind, i want to take some 25 usb mini keys midi keyboard and see if the board with the key contacts can be connected to another (regular sized) midi keyboard. I have a few midi keyboards, but none with mini keys, so i don't know how they connect inside, anybody got any insight on that ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members the_big_e Posted October 16, 2014 Members Share Posted October 16, 2014 usb midi is not the same as 'real' midi. USB midi goes over (obviously) a usb cable to/from the computer. In usb terms, the computer is the master and the kb the salve.With real midi (over a midi cable) there is no concept of master or slave, it's just a pathway between devices (and it's up to you how you define them as master or slave).The other obvious difference is the cable. You would need some way to convert the usb midi signals to 'real' mid. So at a guess I think you'd need to connect the usb kb to the computer and then have some software in the computer listening for the midi signals from that kb and echoing them back out to a 'real' midi interface. The means you'd need (in addition to the existing usb connection on the computer) some sort of (probably usb based) real midi interface to the computer so that the computer could 'talk' real midi as well. The only alternative would be some sort of usb to midi converter box like this http://www.kentonuk.com/products/ite...usb-host.shtml You'd connect the usb kb to the usb side of this and the sound module/whatever to the midi side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members the_big_e Posted October 16, 2014 Members Share Posted October 16, 2014 PS. You could probably knock up a usb to midi box like that using an Arduino, a USB daughter (or use the onboard usb) and a MIDI daughter board and a bit of programming. I'd do it but I have more than enough projects going on right now! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members soulgolem2 Posted October 16, 2014 Author Members Share Posted October 16, 2014 Yes i know of the kenton, the iconnectmidi and the arduino thing, i think you misunderstood what i'm trying to do. I want to open up the keyboard, take the keyboard part out and connect that circuit board to another circuit board brain, this all happens before the signal is even converted to midi or USB so it doesn't really matter at this point what the end connection is, all i want to know is whether those connections INSIDE the keyboard and on the PCB will be compatible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members the_big_e Posted October 16, 2014 Members Share Posted October 16, 2014 I am going to hazard a guess and say 'no' but we'd need far more info to make any sort of reasonable guess (but no is still looking to be my favorite).Can you hook them up, sure, you can hook up anything to anything given enough info and some circuitry to convert signals etc (and maybe a little software) but will they be compatible 'out of the box'? I very much doubt that. What PCB 'brain' are you talking about and I suspect the kb guts/circuitry will be all propriety and unique to each manufacturer and maybe even kb so you'd pretty much have to do it one on one by hacking it.At it's most basic the kb would be read via a diode matrix and if you had access to the actual data pins of whatever 'brain' you are using (eg, the data pins on an arduino) then you could potentially hook them up and scan the keys via the diode matrix.I've done that in the dim and very distant past but today, who knows.Like I sey, need far more info that you have provided so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members veracohr Posted October 16, 2014 Members Share Posted October 16, 2014 If you have a regular-sized keyboard, why do you want to control it with mini keys if you don't have to? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members soulgolem2 Posted October 16, 2014 Author Members Share Posted October 16, 2014 veracohr : just a personal project of mine, building some sort of keyboard-mpc hybrid and mini keys fit perfectly design wise. the_big_e : from what i've seen in some keyboards, midi or synth, the key contact pcb part usually doesn't have a brain, it's just slaved to another pcb brain, and sometimes the connections are compatible since lots of keybeds from different makers are ordered from a few known keybed specialized companies (fatar comes to mind) so the midi device maker usually only designs the brain and circuitry to go with it, i've seen lots of similarities in regular sized keyboards, but i have yet to open a mini sized one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members the_big_e Posted October 17, 2014 Members Share Posted October 17, 2014 The contact pcb is probably going to be some sort of diode matrix so I see what you are getting at but you'd still have to look at both that and whatever 'brain' you are considering in order to figure out if they'd go together. They may well do so to some extent at least but it's impossible to say without delving into the guts of there things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members soulgolem2 Posted October 18, 2014 Author Members Share Posted October 18, 2014 Yeah probably will have to do some testing, i came here thinking maybe someone had direct experience with such things, the people that design those things, where do they hang out ? would probably a simple answer from them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RockPianoman Posted October 18, 2014 Members Share Posted October 18, 2014 The voltages between boards might not be the same.....the circuitry that makes those contacts work is more than just the contacts.....there is a high probability that since voltages may not match, it could fry the circuits.....also, mini keys have less travel than full sized keys....it doesn't sound like it would work well....if you want mini keys to control something, buy a used Yamaha DX100 or something similar and it will control anything.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members soulgolem2 Posted October 18, 2014 Author Members Share Posted October 18, 2014 well it's not just wanting a controller for the sake of wanting a controller, if that was the case, it'd be easy, there are many to choose from, it's for a custom built project. what i don'T know yet, but soon will, is if mini keys keybeds are constructed by the brand or by a sourced maker, if they are sourced elsewhere, chances are they will be a lot of compatibility between brands, since a keybed is always slaved to a brain, if made by the same manufacturer it probably requires the same voltage and probably equiped with the same or compatible connectors. If those keybeds are built by the actual product brand, then there probably won't be much compatibility and my best bet would be to try a brain + keys from the same brand. If it's anything like regular sized midi keyboard, history suggests that there will be a few compatible units. I'll post pics as the project develops. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wesg Posted October 23, 2014 Members Share Posted October 23, 2014 If you are willing to redesign the diode matrix board, you can make anything work. I couldn't possibly tell you any specifics, though. The most important factor will be matrix size (6x12? 8x9? etc). If you are doing velocity-sensitive keys, you might need to change the software if the angular distance between the contacts is different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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