Discuss other brands keyboards, synthesizers, modules, software, controllers including how they compare or work with the Nords.

Re: pc keyboard to midi (without computer)

Postby mjbrands » 24 Mar 2013, 23:38

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The top layer has the carbon contacts on the bottom, the middle layer just has holes where the contacts are and the bottom layer has the contacts at the top.

If you have something similar, the contacts might not be grouped together on the 'connector' end, but you should have a top and a bottom side. I could scan mine 18 times and get back 18 8-bit values, where every bit stands for a key pressed down. I'm sure not all combinations are used, but I expect most of the 18 'rows' to have about 5-7 'columns'.
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Re: pc keyboard to midi (without computer)


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Re: pc keyboard to midi (without computer)

Postby cosmodrome » 25 Mar 2013, 16:51

Mr_-G- wrote:Thanks cosmodrome, yes that is interesting too although I would want the whole thing to be as simple as possible to work with.
The idea is to create a simple version of an isomorphic keyboard like the Axis 64 (discontinued? where do you get one from in the EU?) that can be plugged in and be able to play straight away.
If I need an hdmi display to set the kbd up via a console, then that the whole thing becomes more difficult to set up and carry around. Maybe that is not a problem and setting all those commands as an autorun sort of batch process avoids needing a display, but I do not have a raspberry pi to try, nor I know anybody who does to ask.

I am suspecting that are more problems ahead for a simple device such as latency and how to map the keys to midi messages (one would have to process the key pressed to a particular look up table of of midi note on/off bytes messages, but if doable, it would be great.

Edited typo


You don't need a screen at all. You can log in on the Raspberry (or any other linux system) via network with a simple text console or small app like putty or connectbot from a PC or smartphone. Loading the right MIDI modules is done automatically when booting the board. The MIDI to keyboard mapping looks about like this:

vmpk
aconnect vmpk:0 ext:1

That's all you need to connect any kind of PS/2, USB or serial keyboard to a MIDI channel on a Linux system. Just writing this, because I know the hassle of connecting keyboard matrixes to Arduino.
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Re: pc keyboard to midi (without computer)

Postby Mr_-G- » 31 Mar 2013, 16:32

Just an update. I have been exploring a nice little program, vmpk, which is a "virtual midi piano keyboard" that lets you use the kbd as input. I just found out that (most) pc keyboards do not allow (by design) certain key combinations (for example QTR, VZB, ZSX). So the idea of making an isomorphic input device out of a pc keyboard is, strictly speaking, not possible if one expects to play key combinations. Some of those will not work :(
Last edited by Mr_-G- on 31 Mar 2013, 16:33, edited 1 time in total.
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