I am really hoping to use MG3HEX as a standalone app in my live rig, but I also need the Open tunings. Your work around is a great idea! and I second your suggestion for a 1 string per channel option in MG3HEX, or 6 chains using filters and transpose. I really don’t want to have to open a DAW to achieve this. Another thought, the current ReTune Module does micro tunings up to 1/2 step in either direction, perhaps it could be modified to create open tunings. Setting up altered tunings in Triple Play, GR-55, AXON was always easy, hopefully we’ll see it in the next update 
Long time MG2 user here, I must be an idiot because I can’t get it to work. From what I read the hex only works standalone and the standard does work as a plugin…? I’m trying to test MG3 Hex as a standalone with Fishman TP wireless and cant seem to get any input. I confirmed that FTP is functioning, selected my interface as the In and OUT, selected Ch1-8 (Hex), but when I apply that channel 1-8 I still get “no hex input” and when checking back in settings it reverts back to “no hex input” on the channels.
Then I tried the standard/mag pickup MG3 as a plugin in my Host (Cantabile), MG3 does recognize the input and appears to function, but there’s no midi output from MG3. Oddly I get audio output from MG3 though. Any ideas are appreciated!
In the meantime MG3Hex also works as plugin but I’m afraid that neither standalone nor VST will work with the Fishman TP. I don’t see how MG3 should get the wifi input signals.
To your second question it would be good to have some more information. I’m sure that there is a solution.
The fishman TP only sends out midi not audio.
You need six audio channels not midi.
Thanks for the reply. It won’t feel good in the wallet, but eventually I will do something like that. I appreciate the advice and will do that. I have as yet to hear a reply from Fishman’s customer support. Besides the Roland products, there is a hexaphonic system, and I read an interesting article on Hack-a-Day Optical Guitar Pickup Works With Nylon Strings | Hackaday. After reading the Hack-a-Day article, it obviously isn’t ready for prime time. I have perused two other ideas along those lines. Both by EE students and didn’t develop any further (sort of like the dizzying flavors of Linux).
Personally I felt Midi Guitar tracked better than the Fishman in general (once I cleaned up my playing a bit) and it definitely on monophonic on a single string.
I will give it a try.
Boscovec
I meant buying a GK pickup. Roland has had the system for years and it is quite mature. It won’t hurt at all to download and try the beta.
Just to clarify my previous post a tad.
Boscovec
Yet another question. Is there a single board computer configuration that could handle Midi Guitar? I’m not asking for recommendation, just a set of specs. I am not thinking about something similar to a Raspberry Pi in horsepower. I’m contemplating it as a single purpose computer and making sure I well exceed the specs to avoid taxing the CPU or running short of memory, etc. Kind of like using a 1 amp on a power supply when you could get by 300-500 ma to avoid even the mildest taxing of the power supply.
Boscovec
I recently outfitted one of my guitars so I can try the HEX.
I got a GK-3
I built a break out cable
And I got a Scarlett 18i20, the now discontinued 3rd generation can be had at a very good price. (I ordered mine from Thomann shipped to the US)
Thanks for the tip. Will look into the GK and the interface.
Boscovec
Is anyone noticing that when using certain plug ins (Roland Zenology) the pitch is way off yet the pitch shows correctly in midi guitar on the keyboard. It’s almost like it’s down about 2 octaves and then some. Is there a setting to adjust? I don’t want to purchase the license key for hex until I know this can be fixed (could be user error) - MM
Almost all plug ins will have an Octave up and down in the setting.
Alternatively you can use the TRANSPOSER midi tool in MG3 to adjust the pitch.
Yes, but weird that it would work with some plug-ins and not others and also those same presets work with other programs like gig performer so I’m not sure what’s happening. I’ll keep digging. I was just curious if anybody else had experienced a similar problem.
FTP is of course outputting midi, received and confirmed in the host which then is routed to MG3 hex. So are you saying that essentially MG3 hex should only receive audio data? Not midi?
And for the standard MG3, I tried it stand alone with an internal instrument and still nothing. I’ll have to play around with it more I guess
MG3 generates MIDI note data from the audio stream it receives. It isn’t really a sound module though it has some characteristics of one.
It can receive CC or PC messages to control parameters or select presets.
Wouldn’t the MIDI Device be an option?
HEX Setup for WaveformPRO (aka ex Tracktion) users.
Basically you wrap MG3 HEX in their excellent rack and route everything as you see in the picture.
You can also use STEREO pairs for a more simplified setup with 3 tracks only.
I just picked up a GK-3 for super cheap and… does it really make tracking any better? I don’t want to get the required (expensive) pedal if all it’ll do it make octaves track better.
The HEX helps with cords only, for monophonic instruments like saxophone it makes no difference at all.
The cord issues are as follow:
1 - when you have two notes in a cord that are one semi-tone away MG3 gets confused and usually does not play one of them. (or one of those notes fades out two early)
2 - when you play a full 6 note cord, some of the notes sometime get lost.
3 - On cords with large gap between the notes, think open E and the rest of the cord at the 12th fret the low E with overshadow the higher notes, some might not sound or just fade out too early.
The HEX will fix all these issues.
You do NOT have to get the “required (expensive) pedal”, you can just use a direct breakout cable into an audio interface that has 6 available line inputs.
More info about the cable here:
As far as strumming on piano, yes the HEX will help but you also need a good setup that allows you to run at low latency. (depends on computer and audio interface)
PS
I realized the “struming on the piano” was posted in a different thread. More info here:
3 Likes
ElektroFuzz, you have described very nicely the tasks that lie ahead of MG3 Vanilla as a poly audio tracker, which MG3HEX as a 6x mono tracker has already solved well as a ‘diversion’.
Unfortunately, with MG3HEX you still have to overcome major hurdles and spend a lot of money on additional features in order to use it. However, this is only possible for a small circle of guitar players, most of whom already have this technology.
The original mission of the inexpensive Poly tracker MG3 Vanilla of ‘plug and play’ for all has so far only been partially fulfilled, which I would like to remind you of and which should give many more people access to Guitar to Midi:
No hardware requirements
No need for inconvenient special pickups and no physical mods. Our solution is a pure software solution that will work on any of your guitars, not just one. It integrates seamlessly with your digital audio workstation and can process old recordings as well as live playing.
Polyphonic
The Worlds First real-time polyphonic audio tracker. It tracks finger playing and complex chords as well as monophonic leads. It detects hammer-ons, pull-offs, slides and bends and transparently deals with different pickup types, intonations and fret noise.
I hope that this original mission will continue to be at the centre of JamOrigin’s future development…
i don’t notice any significant general tracking improvements when comparing mg3hex to standard. the only exception to this is when i’m using a slide.
what are your issues with mg3 standard’s tracking? latency-wise i don’t really think you’ll see much difference.
there are some non-latency related reasons to use mg3hex:
- instruments can be mapped to fretboard zones
- open tunings
- @prehm 's cv synth per string concept
for the price of a cable i’d say it is definitely worth messing around with. but if you also need to buy an audio interface, maybe not.
tweaking your current system for mg3 standard may be all you really need.