Other MIDI Controllers

The GCX is a good quality router, there are better options available but they are way more expensive. The GCX has 8 loops, each one has a input-output and a send-return. This will allow you to do more than just looping/racking pedals or fx. The loops can also be used as switches e.g. to switch channels on your amp. You can also use them to a/b between amps or preamps. The way to connect your GCX highly depends on how you want to use it, however, the manual is very well written and clear so you shouldn't have a problem hooking it up. On the front panel, you have 2 inputs that can be used as feed thrus. There are a couple of different versions available, some older GCXs had a guitar input, this one could only be used front-to-back. The input on the right has a buffer, which you may or may not like, if you don't, you can plug straight into loop1 or use the other feed thru. If you want to use it to loop pedals, you will need a number of short cables to patch from 1 loop to the other. Some people are modding their GCX internally so they don't need the short cables but this way, you can no longer use the loops for switching or a/b-functions. I always ran mine with pedals sitting on a shelf, 6-7 of them and this worked flawlessly. The GCX only responds to Midi CC commands so you will need a midi-controller that can send sufficient CCs and preferably has instant access switches. You don’t have to buy the Ground Control pro but the 2 units were made for each other. I used the GCX with a Rocktron All Access and that works fine too. Price/quality wise, the GCX is really good. Not to many options out there so choose the one you want, the GCX gets recommended and is used by a lot of people.

Back in the 1980's, devices like the Decibel Eleven Loop Expander, would be very very expensive and only a few companies made this ; Axxes, Raxxess or by icon rack builders like Pete Cornish in the UK or Bob Bradshaw in Los Angeles . You can use the all four loops to add foot pedals under MIDI control for certain programs, the loops are shielded, isolated so that none would interact with each other except when " called" upon by the MIDI controller. It features a Class A Buffer, can control four foot pedals or you could use one of the loops ( loop #4 ) to change channels on a non MIDI amplifier . I have a Behringer AM100 Acoustic Modeler in loop #1, a Boss GE-7 BAND EQ in loop #2 to simulate a nylon string guitar, a EHX Ravish Sitar Simulator in loop #3 and loop #4 is empty for now. This device let's me do Acoustic simulation with great ease, now I can do Dokken's ; Into The Fire", " Alone Again ", Ozzy / Randy Rhoads ; Can't Kill Rock n Roll", "Revelation / Mother Earth, " Dairy Of A Madman ", " Megadeth's Holy Wars / Punishment Due " ," Bon Jovi's Dead Or Alive" or Metallica's ; " Fade to Black" or "One ". My Acoustic and special stand stays home now. With the owners manual, you can set the MIDI Device Channel and the CC Message section to receive any changes you want to make on the device to exclude or add two or three Comands from your MIDI Controller . It works best with 12 volts at 150 mA power and you can add foot pedals in your pedalboard or rack . The Decibel Eleven Loop Expander costs much less than a RJM Mini Effects Gizmo and is equal in both sound and quality .

The Contour ShuttlePRO V.2 is a USB control surface that comes in handy if you use it the right way and understand its functions. It comes with presets or pre configured for a bunch of different software applications but in my case I wanted a control mouse that I could use and make it fully customizable to the way that I want it set up. It let me do that, it was very easy to set up and assign any of the 9 buttons to whatever I wanted to set them up with. It works great for your music production software and for video production software. I use it frequently with Sony Vegas Pro 11; I have it all set up to work with Vegas Pro the way that I need it to work. Sometimes I do have a difficult time getting it to recognize what software I am working with. I wish it would automatically know which software I am on and open up my preset for that software. I have not found out a way to do this yet, and the manual does not explain it very well. Setting it up was simple if you want to keep the basic presets that it has for software. If you don’t have the software that it is set up for or you want to have your own configurations then it will take a little more time to do this but it is not hard. It is very handy to have a mouse like this around. I have been using the ShuttlePRO V.2 since 2010 and it has never let me down, it is a must have for any one into creating music and editing videos from home. It is affordable and has 15 buttons that you can program. It feels great in your hand because of its shape. This is a must have especially for Cubase and Sony Vegas Pro.

I was playing out a lot and got fed up with all the tap-dancing on my pedalboard so at one point I decided to go the midi-route. I had to buy a tool to be able to switch my amps (Savage120/SE) with midi and the answer was the Z-7. The Z-7 is a small box that runs on power from the amp via one cable and needs to be connected to your midi-board or other midi-units. The cable is a standard 25-pin cable as used for computers so if it breaks you can always get another one at a computer store. Just make sure you get one with all 25-pins connected. The Z-7 performed flawlessly. It's easy to program, once you have set it up. Select the correct midi channel via the dip-switches and you are ready to go. To program it, send the program change you want to program to the unit, then select the channel and all the other functions you want to be on this program and hit save on the Z-7. Programming DONE! I think you can program 128 presets in the unit, that should be plenty because I don’t think there are this many combinations of selections on the amps  I think I had about 15 different presets from clean to crunch with different options to high lead settings using the 2nd master volume. Set and forget, you program once and you are good for ever. I was controlling the myriad of options on these 2 amps and it just worked as described. I dropped mine a couple of times and it did hurt my foot more than the little box, so thumbs up for build quality. The Z-7 ONLY works with the Savae SE and Savage 120 because of the special port it has.

(Originally written by Doc Plus/translated from Audiofanzine FR) Audio/Function Switcher with MIDI capabilities in 1U rack format. Audio: - One buffer that you can use or not. I like its sound, close to the Axess Electronics BS2. The buffer has its own input and output so you can place it anywhere you want in the audio path (before loop 1 or behind loop 6 depending on your pedals). - 8 loops in total: the first 4 ones are serial loops (only Send/Return per loop), the 4 others are independent which means they have their own inputs and outputs. So you can use the latter to switch four functions. To summarize, you either have 8 audio loops + 8 functions or 4 audio loops + 12 functions, and of course all other possibilities in between. Functions: - 8 functions. Connection via an 8-pin DIN connector. You have two isolated inputs (Amp1 and Amp2) that allow you to use two amps without ground loop problems. - RJM provides a custom cable and the amp list can be found on the RJM Music website. I made my own cables. I use Amp1 to switch four functions of my Engl preamp and Amp2 to switch one function of another pedal. Midi In, Thru, Out Phantom power: the RG-16 can power your Midi footboard if you use a 7-pin Midi cable. What else do you want? The mix of serial and independent loops is a good idea. The unit provides enough audio loops and functions for most applications! You even have phantom power. What a great manufacturer. Programming: - Midi PC or CC. - Easy Midi channel selection. - Regarding PC and CC data, you can choose continuous controller values. In the default setting audio loops are assigned to 80-87 and functions to 88-95. But you can easily edit them. - Regarding audio loops, you can even switch them in pairs for a stereo application. - The front panel has one switch (and an LED) to activate each loop and function plus a write button that allows you to store the settings described above, and also to save presets (2 banks with 128 presets each). I use it only with CC data but the possibility to activate each loop or function is a big advantage (like its daddy, the Rocktron Patchmate). The buffer sounds fine. You can bypass it or insert wherever you want. Very nice! The RG-16 is audio "transparent" and the switching is noiseless and instantaneous. FYI I previously used an Axess GRX-4 and CFX-4 but I needed more possibilities. Axess Electronics is an excellent manufacturer so I was afraid to be disappointed by the RG-16. Famous American rack processor manufacturers use the RG-16 so I thought it can't be bad... and it's true! I give it 9/10 because the finish is not perfect. It would be nice to have all LEDs in the middle of the unit ;-) RJM's customer support is very good but not as quick as Axess Electronics' (but Mario is unbeatable). Don't forget the name of this brand: RJM Music! The Amp Gizmo, their Midi function switcher is also an amazing product.