Non FC midi for Axe Fx III

M

Mongillo19

Rock Star
Messages
5,311
I just need a basic midi controller to switch a few scenes and activate a tuner on the Axe Fx. I've had the FC6 and 12 in the past but I'm trying to squeeze it on a smaller board and the FC line is a little pricey for my needs.

I've looked at the Hotone and Airstep (which is on sale for $180) but I know we have some midi pros on here
 
Yeah I reckon so. They're super comfy for a pedalboard, and have oodles of control options. Dogshit screens though, which is more or less due to the form factor.
 
Orvillain said:
Yeah I reckon so. They're super comfy for a pedalboard, and have oodles of control options. Dogshit screens though, which is more or less due to the form factor.
Click to expand...
I really wish they would get the MC3 in stock but I think it's been out for awhile now. Back to the drawing board I go lol
 
I used the XSonic Airstep with my FM3 and it was fine for simple stuff like scene/preset changes, tuner, tap tempo.

That said, there's a couple of things that made me sell my Airstep/Lite combo:
  1. I found out that what's on the pedal is tied to having those same profiles on your mobile apps. I never noticed this on iOS because I was using an iPhone and an iPad so the data was always synced. I just thought it read what was installed on the Airstep. But after moving back to Android for my phone, I found that they would not be synced and had to start all over if I wanted to configure it on one or the other.
  2. I found that having displays on the controller becomes nice once your setup gets complicated enough. I think it would be fine for controlling a Fractal or HX Stomp because those have displays of their own to represent state. My board full of Strymons? Not so great when several of the pedals don't really show any indicators for which preset is in use etc.
  3. Relying on a mobile app that didn't seem to get updates very often sounded like a bad plan. I wouldn't worry if there is a web or desktop app to configure stuff but mobile apps can be more problematic for long-term support.
  4. Might be my phone, but the Airstep had much more trouble connecting to my Android phone than with my iOS devices. Literally could be next to each other and the Android was much slower for some reason while it doesn't have any issues with my other gear.
If I were to buy something now, I think I'd go with Morningstar products too. I'm thinking of getting the new MC6 Pro for my pedalboard.
 
laxu said:
I used the XSonic Airstep with my FM3 and it was fine for simple stuff like scene/preset changes, tuner, tap tempo.

That said, there's a couple of things that made me sell my Airstep/Lite combo:
  1. I found out that what's on the pedal is tied to having those same profiles on your mobile apps. I never noticed this on iOS because I was using an iPhone and an iPad so the data was always synced. I just thought it read what was installed on the Airstep. But after moving back to Android for my phone, I found that they would not be synced and had to start all over if I wanted to configure it on one or the other.
Click to expand...
I remember mentioning some of this in past discussions wrt the Airstep Combo.

The editor is easy to use and at first it appears to be powerful and intuitive but it quickly hits limits on what you can do.

The librarian and data management aspect is absolutely horrible as you touch on.... The limitation that only one mobile device's state truly represents the state of the Airstep and the fact that any paired device cannot query the Airstep for its current state really hamstrings its use for advanced stuff, IME...

I interacted with their support some on it when I first got it on that front but they are much more interested in generating preprogrammed variants like Spark, Katana, etc, than they are making it a truly good general purpose product like Morningstar have done.

Agree, re display.

Other cons:
Pricey (per switch)
Obtuse FW update procedure that seems to change with every new release.

Upside:
Wireless
Built-in rechargeable battery
If you are utterly clueless; they do have a large library of configurations

Summary: get an MCx product. (IMHO)
 
I have a Airstep with my fm3.

I use it in a very simple way, just to select scene 1 to 5 on press and 6 to 8 on hold.

I also use it with my iPad and forscore. Each time a select a sheet on forscore it sends the midi data I need on my fm3.

I also have one expression pedal for volume plugged in it. As I use it as a general volume control, it solved the problem of calibration I had when plugged straight into the fm3

It’s not really pricey for Bluetooth and midi. And works well if you have simple things to do.

The form factor is really great.
 
The first rev MC6 with 2 Dunlop mini expression pedals served me well when I first got my AxeFX3 (before FCs were available). Only issue was the small display because of my less-than-perfect eyesight.

There was a bit of a learning curve with getting everything setup properly, since I was an early adopter of both devices. Probably more resources available now to simply the configuration process.

PXL_20230427_170816064~2.jpg
 
gearJunkie said:
The first rev MC6 with 2 Dunlop mini expression pedals served me well when I first got my AxeFX3 (before FCs were available). Only issue was the small display because of my less-than-perfect eyesight.

There was a bit of a learning curve with getting everything setup properly, since I was an early adopter of both devices. Probably more resources available now to simply the configuration process.

View attachment 6831
Click to expand...
Is that a nano board?
 
I found a cable @ Sweetwater with a 7-pin MIDI connector into the MC6 leading back to my rack with a 5-pin MIDI + power dovetail going into the AxeFX3 and the MC6 wall-wart power supply.
 
If you're still looking for an inexpensive MIDI footswitch, this is the best value I'm aware of right now:

Paint Audio MIDI Captain foot controller

I just stumbled on this "new" Paint Audio MIDI Captain foot controller on Amazon. At first glance it looks like a re-skin of the (terrible) MelAudio MIDI Commander, but it has enough new features (additional programmability, low-latency BlueTooth MIDI) to make me think this is a genuinely new...
thegearforum.com thegearforum.com

Biggest con is that the footswitch spacing is a little tight.

I'm also a fan of the Ampero Control 4, but I don't know whether 4 switches would be enough for you?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Spaced Out Ace
Midi loop switcher and multi fx
Replies
4
Views
328
Spaced Out Ace
Spaced Out Ace
kartikg3
My HX Stomp Pedalboard Setup and Workflow for Gigs and Live-Looping
Replies
1
Views
257
Mikael Dez
Mikael Dez
Q
Fractal VP4 Processors versus Axe-FX II, FM9, FM3 ... and implications for future products?
2 3 4
Replies
68
Views
4K
unix-guy
unix-guy
texhex
AXE III fw 27 vs. Kemper vs. Tonex
Replies
3
Views
451
Jarick
Jarick
texhex
Losing My Mind (AXE III Doubling / Slapback / Air Noise)
Replies
1
Views
248
megametal7
megametal7
Back
Top