FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

The place to go for all of your burning Midronome questions

Note: this FAQ is about what the Midronome does. If you want to know how to use the Midronome, read the Midronome User Guide.

AUDIO METRONOME

Yes, there are 9 volume levels and 60 different click sounds. Both click and volume are adjustable for the downbeat (first beat of the bar).

Yes! The LED next to the display flashes green on the downbeat and red on the other beats.

Yes, any time signature in "x/4" is possible. You can also tap a full bar on a Drum Pad connected to the device, that will change tempo and time signature at the same time :)

Absolutely, just plug it in! The audio metronome output can be set to "balanced" to be used with the balanced input of a mixer or audio interface.

Yes absolutely. By default, your sequencers start on time with the metronome (on the next bar), but like many things on the device, you can change it so they start right away.

CLOCKS & SYNC

Yes, that's the main function of the Midronome :) You can also start and stop your sequencers using the PLAY button.

Absolutely! The ANLG port on the back of the Midronome sends 2 analog clocks 5V pulses. Each of them is configurable from 1 to 24 ppq (pulses per quarter note). The Midronome can also send one 24 ppq clock and a start/stop gate signal (0V -> 5V) in DIN Sync mode (see below).

The ANLG plug on the back of the Midronome can send a DIN sync (also called "sync24") signal which most vintage Roland machines will sync to. Notice that you will need an adapter from 3-pin TRS to 5-pin DIN in most cases. See the pinout specs of DIN Sync on wikipedia.

Yes, and there are 2 ways to do it. 1) You DAW can follow the MIDI Clock sent by the Midronome over USB - currently only possible in Ableton, Bitwig, Reason, and FL Studio. 2) Using the Midronome plugin, send audio pulses to the Midronome so it will follow the DAW.

Not easily. Most USB keyboards only have a "Type-B" plug made for USB devices, just like the Midronome. In this case you will need a computer between the two devices, with MIDI forwarding software to send the USB-MIDI Clock from the Midronome to your MIDI keyboard.

The newer OP-Z and OP-1 field devices have a Type-C plug and implement USB host. The OP-1 field can connect to the Midronome directly (USB to USB), it communicates with and gives power to the Midronome. The OP-Z does not have enough power so a powered USB hub between the OP-Z and the Midronome is necessary.

If your device can play audio pulses at 24ppq on a dedicated audio output, then you can get the Midronome to follow the pulses. Note that this output needs to be dedicated for this, you will not be able to use it for anything else.

Following a MIDI Clock sent over USB is a really bad idea and would mean every single clock coming out of the Midronome is subject to a large amount of jitter. If you have a very steady clock and can send it over DIN-MIDI, then you can wait for the simple MIDI-IN add-on module (coming soon) which will accept MIDI Clock.

You can use a MIDI Thru box, a clock Eurorack module or sync multiple Midronomes together. In the future, you will also be able to add a simple module to add more outputs (see "Potential future features" on the forum).

SYNC WITH DAWs

DAW stands for Digital Audio Workstation, it is a computer software, usually used for recording and music production. Examples of DAWs: Ableton Live, Logic Pro, Studio One, Pro Tools, FL Studio, Steinberg Cubase.

External Sync is getting the Midronome to follow (=sync to) audio pulses sent to its "INPUT" port. This can be used for any hardware or software which could generate the pulses, but is mainly used with DAWs. In a DAW, the pulses can be generated with the Midronome plugin.

No. This is called "Beat Detection" or "Tempo Following" and is not the same as Midronome's "External Sync", which requires 24ppq pulses.

The Midronome plugin is available as VST3, AU, and AAX. It has been tested in all major DAWs. If the plugin is not working in your DAW, you can simply create an audio track and write audio pulses (any loud sharp sound will work) at 24ppq, which are 64th note triplets.

Absolutely, that's the point of the external sync! That will only be when the transport is playing (since no pulses are sent when it's not). When using the Midronome plugin, you can get the plugin to send MIDI data to the "Midronome Commands" over USB, then it will also follow time signature and tempo when the DAW transport is stopped.

Firmware 2.0 has a new syncing mode which removes the previous 1-bar delay when starting the DAW transport. As for the latency between the DAW and the Midronome, it is extremely small (200us) and="" can="" easily="" be="" adjusted="" by="" using="" the="" track="" delay="" in="" your="" daw.="" note="" that="" latency="" also="" happen="" inside="" sequencers,="" between="" midi="" clock="" audio="" out,="" but="" this="" one="" is="" out="" of="" midronome's="" control.="" ="" p="">

Yes, the Midronome automatically goes back to Master Mode when it stops receiving the audio pulses from the DAW.

Yes, if your DAW can follow MIDI Clock. As of now, only Ableton, Bitwig, Reason, and FL Studio can. Note that because of the way USB works, this type of sync is not nearly as precise as external sync using the Midronome Plugin. But it might work for you :)

Yes! The Midronome has an "auto-play" feature where all sequencers will start and stop with the DAW transport.

MIDI DATA FORWARDING

Yes! MIDI Notes and other MIDI data can be sent from the computer to the USB-MIDI interfaces called MIDI Out 1 and MIDI Out 2. These messages are then merged with the Clock and send over the respective DIN-MIDI ports.

At the moment, the Midronome does not have any DIN-MIDI IN ports. But it will get one soon via an add-on module, on which you will be able to send MIDI Data, in order to forward it on the MIDI Outputs.

Almost - System Realtime messages are generated by the Midronome and there not forwarded. System Common messages are not forwarded either, except Song Select (F3). SysEx messages are forwarded if they are under 125 bytes. All other messages are forwarded.

PEDAL (FOOTSWITCH) AND DRUM PADS

You can control the Mute function, the Play/Stop function, or get the pedal to act as a Tap Tempo.

In the INPUT plug of the Midronome, you can plug a footswitch, and then use it to act as Mute, Play, or Tap Tempo. Guitar effect pedals can be synchronised using the MIDI plugs.

The device will work with momentary pedals like electric piano sustain pedals, and with latching footswitches like the ones for electric guitar amplifiers. For momentary pedals the polarity of the pedal will be detected automatically.

Two pedals. The INPUT plug is a stereo plug (TRS) so you will either need a double pedal or two single pedals with a Stereo to 2x Mono adapter (TRS to 2x TS).

You can use it as Tap Tempo if you plug it in the INPUT jack of the device. You can also use it to set the Time Signature, by tapping a full bar on it (f.ex. tapping 1 2 3 1 will change the Time Signature to 3/4).

You can! Just connect a Stereo to 2x Mono jack adapter to separate the left and right (tip and ring) of the INPUT plug. Then connect your drum pad on the Tip/Left and your pedal on the Ring,/Right.

Yes, using a Stereo to 2x Mono jack adapter to separate the left and right (tip and ring) of the INPUT plug. The left part of the plug is used for the DAW and the right for the pedal.

OTHER QUESTIONS

Yep, two or more! This sync is one-way only: one Midronome will be the master and all the others will follow very tightly. The tempo and Time Signature can only be changed on the master.

Yes, by using the Locked Mode. When in Locked Mode, the device does not make tempo change until they are approved, by pressing the big knob on the device.

Yes! A few options here: you can either (1) configure the PLAY button to act on the MIDI Port 1 only, (2) configure the MUTE button as a second PLAY button, then each button acts on a different MIDI port, or (3) use a double-pedal (double footswitch) with each pedal controlling Play/Stop on one MIDI port.

It does! Holding down the PLAY button for 1 second gets your MIDI sequencers to resync on the next bar. The same can be done by sending a MIDI Command over USB.

Yes, use the Firmware Updater tool to upgrade your device. We recommend you to keep your device up to date with the latest firmware.

All settings are saved automatically, and the tempo is saved every 10 seconds. Upgrading the firmware will not reset the settings.


Didn't find the help you were looking for? Try checking our support page or peek at our forums.
If everything fails, you can always contact us via messenger or by email or even start a new thread on the forum.