Greetings People.
This might sound crazy and over the top, but has anyone here tried to sync a second pyramid from the first units B out jack? Let me elaborate.
I have a large amount of gear that I have connected to the first Pyramid via the Midi A out port which is connected to a Midi Solutions T8. To connect even more gear and have them all in sync, there are a couple of options.
- use midi thru ports (no i don’t want to do that)
- get a second T8 and connect it to the Midi B out port (maybe)
- sync a second Pyramid via the Midi B out port and have a mirrored set up.
You might ask why would I want to do that? Well having a second unit gives me access to a fresh unused set of midi channels. When you have a couple of multi part synth modules connected to the first chain, you quickly run out of channels.
So back to the original question- I have in fact done this successfully (well sort of). The second unit responds to clock and transport and passes that on to the midi A and B ports. Great. Except occasionally the second Pyramid drops out altogether, and therefore so does everything connected to it.
I have tried everything i can think of to pinpoint the issue, including adjusting every midi in/out setting on both units. When the second unit is not slaved from the first and in control of sync and transport, all is cool of course. When the sound modules I have connected to the second unit are disconnected from the second Pyramid and run from the first one, no problem, so I know it is not an issue with the settings of the sound modules, or the independent use of either Pyramid.
There must be some sort of problem when both units are running. As i said, I have had it running successfully for hours, but it does stop at random eventually, so not stable enough for live use.
My final step is to adjust the midi timeout and see if that is acceptable, but even then, I guess I’ve been spooked.
Anyhow…anyone shed some light?
1 Like
Hello,
I’ve clocked the Pyramid to various devices over time and it’s always ticked along happily. Are you trying to set this up so you have one set of Synths connected to Pyramid 1 and another to Pyramid 2?
Or do you want to control all the synths from both Pyramids? If so…
I would recommend one of the iconnectivity devices for complex routing and managing lots of synths. Something like the MIO 10 might do you? I use one and once you’ve got your head around the routing software, it’s incredibly flexible and you don’t need to continually rewire your set up to get MIDI where you want it to go. Plus you can save different configurations for different projects (like jamming, playing live, tracking into a DAW, sequencing on synth from another, re-routing your master keyboard etc etc)
I also use an ERM multiclock to clock everything. Clock comes out of the ERM, into the MIO and then the MIO splits it, sends it where it needs to go and merges incoming note/CC information from my Pryamid and any other sequencers I have in play. You can get super specific with the filters on it too to eliminate spurious midi signals or clocks getting through to where they don’t need to go. Works great. No more mergers and splitters and endless wiring/-re-wiring. One clock to rule them all and everything else set to slave. The multiclock is ruthlessly tight and can lock everything to your DAW for when you get to tracking audio.
I’ve not tried it but the MIO should be able to see your USB port on the Pyramid which would give you another 16 channels. Maybe you wouldn’t need a second Pyramid anyway?
jim
Well a big thank you Jim. I really appreciate your feedback. This looks like it may be just the device I have been looking for.
I was trying to use the pyramids as separate brains for various bits of gear, (some of which do not require midi note input - just clock and CC messages), but have them in sync. I also have an ERM, but I use the Pyramid as the master and the Multiclock on port A. (this allows me to control transport on 3 synced sequencers (Elektron) connected to it and utilise the midi router function within as a type of filter to act in conjunction with the T8 connected on the 4th ERM port.
Port B on the Pyramid sends info to a small modular rack.
Essentially I am trying to future proof my setup, so as to allow maximum flexibility, room to grow and with minimum use of keyboard controllers. It would be a favourable situation if I could achieve this with the one standalone sequencer, so this has really got my attention. In conjunction with the ERM and the T8 this could be a winner.
factus10, maybe I’m overthinking this whole scenario. I think the reason I do not want another through box is due to the fact that several of the devices have their own sequencers and I want the ability to control the transport of those on an individual basis. For example with an ERM hooked up it allows individual start/stop of devices connected to it without stopping the entire sequence, and as you know, once they receive transport sync, you can’t do it from the devices themselves.
OK, glad it was helpful. Let me know if you go for the MIO and need any tips on setting it up. The iconfig routing software has its quirks and is a bit of a slog at first. But makes sense once you’ve got going. You may have zero problems with it - it’s perfectly logical, just has a bit of a fussy UI.
There are quite a few iconnectivity fans/users on this forum - they’re great partners for Pyramids.
jim
I have actually just ordered one. It has forced me to reconsider my thought process on connectivity. This will be much cleaner and straight forward. I must admit, I did not know that it even existed. Thank you for the offer of assistance - it is highly likely that I will take you up on that.
Steve
No probs.
Definitely worth spending a few hours getting an idea of how you want to route things together before it arrives. I’m sure you’re probably doing that already. Let me know if you need any pointers.
jim
Ah, didn’t realize that was part of your workflow. Carry on then! 
