The build above also adds the ability to “hold” the ansible keys with Ctrl-click (or Cmd-click on macOS) the same way you can hold keys on the virtual grid. I also recommend MIDI mapping the module buttons and knobs (especially the teletype param knob, this is the only way to access the keyboard+param knob shortcuts in tracker mode, for example.)
First thoughts on the new Ansible (Kria, Meadowphysics, Earthsea) module for Rack 2.
I know you said the unreleased modules are incomplete, but so far this is fantastic! I’ve been following along this YouTube tutorial for Kria (whitewhale update) –
Monome Ansible Kria Tutorial by Puscha
and it works really well.
Tips
use ASR or Slew for better Duration effect
use VCV Notes for documentation and save as a preset; labels from Glue by Stoermelder works great on the individual modules
unlike the individual modules, ansible does not save what’s playing if you exit VCV (is this permanent?) unless you save the pattern(s) as a preset within the grid. Learn how to do this asap. See the end of the video.
Questions
Given that patches are saved through preset patterns in the Grid, how does one share a monome patch?
I noticed there is no name on the modules (makes sense, trademark). May I suggest Mon Homme? Sorry, couldn’t help myself
As for Earthsea, the update is much more usable (no controller needed) than the standalone version. I hoping to use this to help me learn/master the fretboard.
Meadowphysics appears to work like the standalone version. Haven’t really tested it out yet.
Thanks
edited: Stoermelder module is Glue – to label buttons – not Strip
Builds for Rack 2.git.219bbaf1 are downloadable here:
In addition to the SDK update, this also brings in a couple of small fixes to improve performance and have I/o behavior more closely match hardware behavior.
That would indeed be useful. Unfortunately the plan is to keep the Rack modules identical to the hardware (since they run more or less the same firmware code.)
The hardware White Whale does support a reset via Teletype II ops, so if and when I get around to implementing II, perhaps I can also add expander modules for White Whale and Earthsea so you can access those extra abilities without Teletype.
Here’s the final 1.x alpha build. I was hoping to get this out before 2.0 was final, but I was a few hours short! I’ll have a release for Rack 2.0.0 out shortly, maybe tomorrow.
Here’s a silly little video using all four modules with an official 2021-edition monome grid, a gorgeous piece of hardware:
Thanks so much for the detailed feedback on ansible! I finally got a chance to try out Stoermelder Glue, and wow, using it to label the grid is an excellent idea, I may use that strategy to document some sample patch files for people to learn how to use learn the grid interfaces more easily.
Re: saving patches, yep, that’s one of the last issues keeping it from being complete. I do eventually expect it to save working memory even if you don’t explicitly save a preset. Doing this for ansible is a little more complex than with the other modules, because of its multi-app design. I also hope to eventually add a patch text file export for ansible, similar to how you can use the right-click menu to simulate USB patch export on teletype.
Ansible earthsea and standalone earthsea are almost different modules. The ansible version is clockable and polyphonic, but aside from that it’s much simpler; it lacks the rune-controlled CV outs of the standalone version. I like having both accessible!
I am really looking forward to using my grid with Rack2. is there maybe a beta version that I could already use? And if you need some help for testing, please let me know.
There’s a minor issue with grid protocol switching in 2.0.0 that I didn’t see when testing with the Rack 2.0 beta releases. I didn’t have the opportunity to fix it this weekend, but I hope to be able to get to it by the end of the week and post a new build here.
FYI now that the beta period is over, I’m going to mark ansible “hidden” until it’s complete. So if you are already using it in patches it will still load, but it wont be placeable in new patches. Let me know if anyone has concerns about that.
There are betas for 2.0.x under the Actions tab on the repo. You need a GitHub account to access the Artifacts (the “builds” that came out of specific commits) but if my memory works, you might already have one.
The one Dewb posted up there is for 1.1.x … not sure what the differences are besides panel graphics having a facelift and probably a different Teletype firmware revision.
First, delete any previous versions (folders or .zip/.vcvplugin files) of the plugin from the plugins folder within your Rack2 user folder. Then download the .vcvplugin file for your platform from the links below. Place the file in your Rack2/plugins folder, and restart Rack.
The exact user folder location depends on your OS version and cloud-documents integrations, here are some suggestions to find it reliably:
MacOS: Finder, Go menu, click Documents > Rack2/plugins
Windows: Right-click Explorer on taskbar, click Documents > Rack2/plugins
NOTE: For maximum safety, you may also want to export Teletype scenes from your favorite patches before upgrading.
Changelog from v1.0.0-alpha4 to v2.0.0-alpha5:
VCV Rack 2 Free support
Graphics refresh to match Rack 2 aesthetic
More informative jack and knob tooltips
Streamlined right-click menus
Provisional support for VCV Rack 2 Pro VST
still testing different DAW/OS combinations; please share your observations
New option to decrease I/O sampling rate for reduced CPU use
Modules primarily interact with control-rate signals, so processing I/O every step is unnecessary
Slight downsampling is enabled by default
I/O rate can be decreased even further, or increased back to audio-rate, from right-click menu
Timers and events always use wall-clock time and are not affected by downsampling
Teletype improvements
Screen drawing uses less CPU
Screen should not glitch when the Rack engine is stopped (e.g., when no audio output device is selected)
Built-in scenes available as factory presets in right-click Presets menu
Importing to the active scene changes
New behavior for Active Scene > Import from file and Active Scene > Paste and init new scene from clipboard: active scene will be cleared, new script loaded, and I init script will run, just as if the scene had been loaded from flash memory.
Additional option Active Scene > Paste and merge clipboard into current scene keeps the alpha2/3/4 behavior; you can paste a scene fragment or pattern block into your current scene without changing the rest of the scene. The init script will not be run automatically, even if the clipboard includes it.
Virtual grid improvements
Keys are now mappable with VCV MIDI Map
Note: VCV MIDI Map is unidirectional, with no LED feedback, so this is more useful for meta/alt keys than whole-grid MIDI mapping
Better handling of dragging across grid keys; previous key is released before next key is pressed
Keys held with Ctrl/Cmd-click are now drawn “pressed” rather than with a highlight ring
Grids have a more interesting preview image in the module library
I really would like to learn these modules, but I have a question about hardware integration. Is it possible to map oder connect a non-monome grid-controller like a launchpad via midi or built a TouchOSC-Controller on an IPad and connect that somehow?
The plug-in communicates with hardware using serialosc, so it will list whatever controllers serialosc reports. You could try one of the utilities out there to connect MIDI devices to serialosc, but I haven’t used and can’t recommend any of them.
