Using the Polar with another controller keyboard

  • I love the Polar, but would like to use it with another keyboard. So, ideally, a couple of splits or layers on the Polar, and a couple others on the controller. The controller keyboard can send out PC's, so I'd like to pick multi's that way.
    Is this possible at all? And how would I go about if it is?


    best


    Jan

  • Yes, that's possible. It's not even complicated. It's how you use the Desktop / Rack model with any controller keyboard in a live setting. The synth section of all Virus TI's are identical, so the Polar is Desktop with a built-in keyboard. General steps:

    • Switch Virus to Multis
    • Set up keyboard to send MIDI to the Virus
    • Set Virus to MIDI keyboard settings to Local OFF
    • Set up your Multi's MIDI Channel and Key Ranges for each of the 16 Parts.

    Also very helpful: Read up on the section about Multis in the User Manual :)

    Bass Player and Synthesist.
    Virus TI2 Darkstar | Virus TI2 Desktop | Sub 37 | Voyager RME | Machinedrum | Analog Four | Digitone | MPC Live | NI Maschine+
    Mac OS 13.5.1 (Ventura) | Cubase Pro 11.0 | Ableton Live 9.6 | Logic 10.4 | MainStage 3.4 | NI Komplete Ultimate 13 | RME Fireface UFX+

  • doesn't Local Off mean that I can't play the keyboard of the Polar anymore? I want to use both keyboards.


    Indeed I misread your request. In that case, set Local ON.
    However, you now really have to carefully set up the Multi Parts key ranges and switch off unused Parts or you will have some unexlected results.

    Bass Player and Synthesist.
    Virus TI2 Darkstar | Virus TI2 Desktop | Sub 37 | Voyager RME | Machinedrum | Analog Four | Digitone | MPC Live | NI Maschine+
    Mac OS 13.5.1 (Ventura) | Cubase Pro 11.0 | Ableton Live 9.6 | Logic 10.4 | MainStage 3.4 | NI Komplete Ultimate 13 | RME Fireface UFX+

  • well, that went surprisingly easy. I only need to figure out why the Polar is playing sounds I've assigned to midi ch2 (which is the Wavestation acting as masterkeyboard) when I switch between Multi's. I need to go through the parts and select a part that's on ch1 (the Polar) for it to play the parts assigned to ch1. The first part is ch2, is that the reason?

  • It seems that the Polar plays the MIDI channel of the currently selected Part. The currently selected Part is stored with the Multi, so if you change Multis, the selected Part will change accordingly.


    Say you want to play the sounds 1, 2 and 3 with the external keyboard (which sends on MIDI channel 2) and sound 4 with the Polar keyboard:

    • Set Parts 01, 02, 03 to channel 2
    • Set key range and transposition of Parts 1,2,3 so that they can be properly played from the external keyboard
    • Set Part 04 to another channel (e.g. 4)
    • Set Part 04 to full key range
    • Make Part 04 the selected Part

    Now your Polar's keyboard will control Part 04, while your external keyboard controls Parts 1, 2 and 3.


    Does that help?



    PS: I just realized that this means you could also "abuse" the Multis to be not only one set (e.g. for a song) but also to have several sets/groups within the Multi by assigning several Parts to the same channel and then switching between the selected Parts:

    • Set Parts 01, 04, 05 to channel 1
    • Set Parts 02, 06, 07, 08 to channel 2
    • Set Parts 03, 09,10, 11, 12 to channel 3

    This way you can build keyboard setups for sections of a song and access them by just selecting a different Part.

    Bass Player and Synthesist.
    Virus TI2 Darkstar | Virus TI2 Desktop | Sub 37 | Voyager RME | Machinedrum | Analog Four | Digitone | MPC Live | NI Maschine+
    Mac OS 13.5.1 (Ventura) | Cubase Pro 11.0 | Ableton Live 9.6 | Logic 10.4 | MainStage 3.4 | NI Komplete Ultimate 13 | RME Fireface UFX+