Been tinkering with MIDI-tracks on the Syntakt recently (and it should be the same for the Digitakt…): just realized that while turning the encoders to send CC modulating cutoff of any VSTi e.g. Pigments I get audible stepping. Compared that with the encoders of a Push 3 for example (beautiful encoders btw!) or other potentiometers… and they are all buttery smooth?
Can anyone relate? Wrong settings?
Your standard MIDI CC message has 7 bits of resolution, or 128 different values.
Depending on what you are trying to control, you will hear stepping because there is simply not enough resolution to make the change small enough.
In reality there is always stepping, but as the resolution increases, so is the difference between the steps, to the point where you cannot perceive them with your ears anymore.
Let’s take your filter cutoff as an example:
If your plugin allows you to adjust the cutoff frequency between 1 and 20kHz in 1Hz increments that is nearly 20k different possible values for the filter cutoff.
Your 7 bit MIDI CC can do 128 different values with 0 being the lowest and 127 being the highest. For every change of the CC value by 1, the filter cutoff needs to change by about 156 Hz, assuming that a CC value of 127 equals to a filter cutoff of 20kHz.
I don’t think you can do it with the Syntakt but the MIDI standard supports 14 bit CC messages which would allow values between 0 and 16383, but even with that you would get about 1.22 Hz change of your filter cutoff for every change of the CC value by 1.
Thanks, frekvencia — that makes sense, of course. Why is the stepping audible though when using the Syntakt as a controller and completely smooth when using Push 3 or a simple custom-build MIDI-controller with a pot?
Try setting your Syntakt to send NRPN (see manual Page 74 / PARAM OUTPUT). That is the way to get 14bit messages.
Thanks, seems to be a strange issue between Syntakt and Pigments.
Are you MIDI mapping a knob on your Push 3 to send 7 bit MIDI CC?
If not then it’s likely not using 7 bit MIDI CC and something else instead that allows for higher resolution.
You could also try to map a knob to a 7 bit CC on your Push 3 and map it to the same knob in your plugin, then you should hear the same stepping as you turn the knob.