Wondering if anyone here knows anything about designing and manufacturing midi controllers?

I know the market is quite saturated BUT, there are is still a need for more ergonomic-focused offerings. Ever realize how hard it is to fit a typing keyboard, a mouse pad AND a musical keyboard with samplepads and knobs/faders all onto a single desk? Unless you have a workstation specifically built for music producing, it's pretty hard.

I think there would be a reasonable market for compact midi controllers with multiple components, integrated either in a modular fashion or all-in-one, that were made with ergonomics in mind.

I know that midi isn't technically the hardest thing to implement, but I don't know much about manufacturing the physical controllers. But even that shouldn't be reinventing the wheel.

Who knows about such things?

 

Best controller ever (Nintendo 1989):


Full story here:
https://medium.com/everything-80s/why-was-the-nintendo-power-glove-a-failure-fe477dcc6593

 

@Noizey98 Why did you dislike? It would be fun to play a vst instrument with this device (imagine it implemented with MPE midi). The Power Glove was a great idea and I would go for a v2.0: it's been 30 years and I believe the technology can now solve the problems it had in the 80's

 

Today I would try that with software and a phone's camera. It should be possible to recognize a person's movements and translate them into controller data that could be sent via BT to a gaming PC. One could try that also with midi and make people drumming by their movements. With the processing power of current devices, that could be possible, or the players could wear special clothes with a few essential LED chains. That would not be expensive. I am thinking about something like that for a long time. It would also be a good method to prevent obesity (with lazy/akinetic people like me ).

However, the OP asked for a completely different device, if I understood that correctly, a kind of Midi-controller Lego Kit, that for instance allows you to assemble (easily) for, say, your favorite vst instrument, a similar layouted controller.

In some ways, this idea may already exist as the Joué Board and the Sensel Morph.

 

If you can speak German, this is nearly everything you need to know :

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8ANKYeWEXshCLOS9sFfcQNigYXEb1Ps6
(It's a whole Playlist with 23 Parts )
(I did some smaller projects with his Videos )


If you can't speak German
go on from here :
And for small series (>1000) this Videos is interesting (From 6:00 he makes 100 electronic devices . His style is maybe a bit crazy, but this dude know already everything you need to know for your project . )

For his Midi Projects :

TL:DR
So the first Step is a ruff sketch (I did mine with Google Sketch-up, but it doesn't exist in this form anymore, so you need a CAD new Sketchup is ok but different )
second is prototyping
after that serials it

Software :
https://www.autodesk.de/products/eagle/free-download
https://www.freecadweb.org/ or https://www.sketchup.com/en

 

Last edited by a moderator: Dec 31, 2021

Something similar but i don't know if it is available , but Imogen Heap used it a lot called Mi.Mu

Then Rishabh (he teaches at Berklee) showed an ableton session using Mi.Mu Gloves

and also check out Fuse , it's a 3d synthesizer module , works on gyro + midi (i loved it)

I attended a synhesizer making workshop , and over there the synth circuit boards were designed and mass produced by animal factory based out of Bombay(India)
Their site https://animalfactoryamps.com/

so once you figure out the board then comes the Cosmetic design , now that area i have been trying to figure out , like
who produces arturia\akai\novation midi controllers - couldn't find the mass production unit whereabouts.

 

https://www.ultraleap.com/product/leap-motion-controller/

http://uwyn.com/geco/

looks interesting almost like a theremin

 

Does anyone on this forum fucking read posts before they comment?

 

I was just trying to give ideas. Instead of making a controller which would be expensive you could design software to work with some stuff that is already out there.

 

When the camera capture for the Xbox (Kinetic controller) came out I spent nights playing boxe with friends. The whole concept was very interesting, unfortunately the capture did not convey the user's body movements in a faithful way and, in the long run, made the game frustrating (This is probably why Kinetic for Xbox is discontinued). I consider the accelerometers used inside smartphones much more useful, in fact I believe that the glove used by Imogen Heap is based on this technology.

I believe no one here has fully understood what you really mean. Forgive us: this is a forum for mentally impaired people. Maybe you better elaborate what you want to say in simpler words

 

I think this is someone with a midi controller idea looking for someone to design, manufacture, program it.
The easy stuff.

 

Yes, do you read the answers ?
Now I do every question step by step.
Maybe you see that the things you want to ask here, is not as a written question.

Yes, I do, and the guys in the Videos I linked do.
(the first one works at Behringer the second does his own small series )

No, never realized but never had a problem with it.

Again I do the guys with the Video and you if you watch the stuff I give you.


That's the questions .

Some further thoughts

Since every musician is different, this will not sell well.
The striker 7 (typing keyboard ) was a flop


It was ergonomic. It was modular, I had even a Display for more advanced functions . And it was expensive .
Now think about how much your device will cost . (with such a concept in mind when a Maschine NI costs 500$ and a good Midi Keyboard 200$ a good typing device 100$ and so on )

 

Last edited by a moderator: Dec 31, 2021

In my opinion, most MIDI controllers are useless, as you can work way faster with the simple mouse and keyboard combo (especially if you learn your DAW's shortcuts). The only MIDI controller I am using and I would always buy is one that has very deep integration with my DAW (for instance Akai Fire for FL Studio). Yes I know you can map everything to everything but it's a pain and sometimes not even worth it.

 

Your problem is there is no company in the Midi market which not thought about this idea
most of them say it's too much work for a too little market .
So they don't buy your idea. Specially without a ruff sketch and better a prototype (again the stuff I said early )

So, you have two ways
1. You build your own companie. Furthermore, you have people working for next to nothing or already have millions to pay them right (both unlikely )

2. You do it all by yourself . (that's the second Video I linked because does he does this with a small series of 100 devices and selled them )
Sorry, but that's the only way I see for your idea, and that's means learning all about electronic.

 

Last edited by a moderator: Dec 31, 2021

I forgot about this classic.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Creative-Prodikeys-DM-Keyboard-PS-2/3899436

 

Most MIDI controllers are useless because of *lousy design*. Unfortunatelly, this applies to both large corporations and small startups: everybody wants to sell us the same old idea, only slightly repackaged.
The only controllers I respect nowadays are Nektar Panorama P1 and SiniCon E24. Because they go beyond MIDI.

 

I have an old doepfer drehbank (64 pots) with eight pedal inputs, I had a lot of fun working with it, I created a lot of transparent masks for different plugins, the downside is that there is no recall for presets, the solution should be a a lot of encoders and something at the plugin level that sends the preset parameters back to the controller ... I don't know if there is something like that.

 

There is something like that: Nektar Panorama P1.

 

You need enormous knowledge. You need a lawyer. You need blueprints. You need a factory to do it. Shortly before you have earned even one mark, you have to invest thousands. If you have a good idea and can summarize it in writing in a concept, you can apply to investors.

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Last edited: Dec 31, 2021

im not sure but i think for 2 or 3 years theres the new dütsch-mark, they called it euro

just a question, every of your answers is made with a translator? not bad, imho!