MIDI Kinetics Forum

Hello all,

I have recently installed Lemur on my MacBookPro (running Max 6.1 as my M4L) and am learning Ableton. I know Max a little. I have been trying to use Mu as a way of understanding how Lemur and M4L access the Live APL but I've got stuck very early on.

I am using an HP tablet (slate 10 HD) running android as my Lemur.

There is either something I am not understanding or I have a problem with my setup. I want to use Mu to control the audio devices in Ableton. I have no problem putting the Mu.amxd device in a Live set and using it to load a jzml file on my tablet. But that's where I get stuck. I see that each device controller has a jzml file and a maxpat file but I don't know what to do with the maxpat file. I just put both Mu.amxd and the audio device on the same audio channel of my live set and hoped that the maxpat file does something in the background. It doesn't. When I move something on my tablet nothing happens to the device in the live set. I am confused because I thought maxpat files were just used in the full version of Max and only amxd files are usable within Ableton.

I thought my problem may be a file association issue and that M4L isn't seeing the maxpat file for some reason but I have put the Mu 1.2 folder within the cycling74 folder of my Max6.1 application folder and even used options to put it in the Max filepath as well. So I'm stuck. I did have to ask Ableton to find a bunch of files when I loaded one of Mu's framework sets so I'm suspicious.

In the case of the mu.devices that come as part of the Mu Frameworks I have no problems. My lemur will control these amxd devices -- it's the 'bridge' to Ableton's own audio devices that I can't work out.

Can anyone help?

Thanks,

Cameron

Hey cameron,
I haven't used the Mu device personally, so I could be completely wrong here.
The .maxpat file shouldn't be necessary if you have a .amxd file, because the .amxd patch should have all subpatchers and resources "frozen" in it. Maybe the .maxpat is for running it in standalone max (don't know if that makes sense, cuz I don't know what the device is)??

If through OSC, the Lemur connects to the m4l patch (the .amxd) through the udpreceive object inside the patch (and udpsend). That means that the .amxd must connect to your lemur, which means:
-- you will either have to manually type in the IP and port #
-- or it automatically gets that info somehow.... i dunno but there are ways
-- You have to load a second .amxd Mu device that connects to your Lemur layout and then connects to all existing Mu devices (so check if there is a "master" device like that in your Mu folder)

I could be wrong and maybe the .maxpat does handle those connections but... yea seems weird I dunno

Sorry I am not much help, maybe pm Macciza about it

Hi ndivuyo,

Thanks so much for your reply.

I can communicate between the tablet and the custom-made-for-mu devices so I don't think its an OSC/udp issue (it binds to 8000 by default). My problem is that I can't go beyond communication with the custom devices to Ableton's own audio devices.

Of your scenarios I think this one is closest to the issue:

" You have to load a second .amxd Mu device that connects to your Lemur layout and then connects to all existing Mu devices (so check if there is a "master" device like that in your Mu folder) "

I think that maybe I need to make my own 'bridge' and the .maxpat files may contain abstractions for doing this but when I've tried to do this I have had no success. The other point you mentioned, that reference to the .maxpat files may be frozen into the .amxd is also very possible. In that case, if things aren't working because I have a file association issue, I would have expected an error or two in the Max window, but none seems to arise.

I've sent a pm to Macciza and if I make progress I'll post here again.

Thanks so much!

Cameron

Hmmm, can you post the link of where to download this device? Something you are saying doesn't add up to me.
I'll get it running and tell you how.

This is all unless you hear from Macciza

Or wait, are you trying to make your own custom m4l device that accesses ableton api? Before I just thought you were trying to get the mu devices to work, but now I feel like I missed something