jason r


Hi Blades,I have just tried your link for the videos but the they do not open.Are the links working or have they been removed.Thanks.

I just tried them.  For me part 2 of the video tutorial is working.  Part 1 does not work, however.
 

Part 1 is goofed up - don't know how, but it's not right.  Part 2 should be ok.  I will be updadting the site to get all the videos working again over the next few days.

I have fixed the Part 1 of this video on the website now. 

FWIW: I have also started shifting videos around to their own pages rather than as popups to hopefully gain some compatability with more browsers.

I had a BCF2000 and I couldn't get it working, even following Blade's tutorials, and returned it to Americal Musical Supply.  However, after reading later threads and one from one user that got one that didn't work and got a 2nd one and it worked properly. I've ordered another from ZZounds today.  Hopefully this one will work OK.  

The first one was recognized by Win 7, 64 bit and "installed" and Sonar recognized the device (set to Mackie mode) but that was all I could get other than the lights that came on when it was powered on. 

Woo Hoo, the second one works.  Thanks to Blades, I've got it installed.  However, there are no MIDI drivers for 64 bit OS - when I tried to install them in Windows 7 64 bit, I got an error message that they were only for 32 bit and to get the 64 bit verion, but there are no 64 bit MIDI drivers on the Behringer downloads. 

I did get the MIDI drivers loaded on my Vista 32 installation.

On Windows 7 64 bit, I connected the unit, Windows found and installed the drivers.  Surprise, I was able to set up the BCF2000 in the MIDI devices and controllers.  I tested it and was able to control one of my recordings - playback, levels, etc. 

Now the fun part of working with it and becoming familiar with all the controls.

Merry Christmas

Awesome - good to hear.  Thanks for reporting back.

I'm not in front of my DAW at the moment so I could be wrong but I think you can get at the other 2 bands via the 'plugin' mode. I have definitely done that but I can't remember whether that was in my V5 Studio days when I was using the Sonitus EQ as a plugin rather than the track EQ as it is now.

Hi guys,

Thanks a ton Blades your tutorial got me up and started with the BCF2000 and Sonar.

I use the track and EQ modes.  I love being able to sweep and set my EQs with the controller.  However, I like to use plug ins for EQs so sometimes I find myself copying settings over from the sonar EQ to a plug in.

My question is, is there a way to control my plugins via the BCF2000 in MC SO mode?  Could someone explain to me how to go about this.  For example I like to use Waves RenEQ and Sonnox EQ, is there a way to control these plugs?

Thanks again for the brilliant tutorial!

To control plugins in you need to put the BCF into "plugin mode". To do this do the following

(When I'm referring to buttons here I am always referring to the block of buttons on the right hand side unless I state otherwise.)
 
1. Press and hold the shift 1 key (top left) and then press the track/plugin button (3rd down on right) twice. The LED should change to P1 and then P1. (<-Note the period on second press) The first mode is multi-track mode where each pan pot controls the same selected control on each track, the second mode with the "." gives you full control over the currently selected plugin on the currently selected track. Note that P1 always refers to the track EQ.

2. To move to the next plugin (P2) on the currently selected track make sure that you actually have another plugin on the current track and that the "Edit" light lights by pressing "shift 1" and the "M1" key (2nd down right hand side) together. Note: If in edit mode the light will toggle on and off as you press and release "shift 1". Release all

3. Press the M1 key (unshifted) and hold, then "shift 1" and hold, and then the right bank select button (5th down right hand side) The LED should then change to P2. and you have control over the first plugin. (Controls are assigned to the pan pots by default but you can flip them with the faders by pressing "Shift 2" (2nd down left hand side) and "M1" - they cycle through the following sequence:- pan pots only -> pan pots and faders duplicate -> pan pots and faders swap -> pan pots only)

4. To move through the plugin controls a bank at a time make sure the edit key is still lighting (press shift 1 to check - see above on how to turn on/off) and then press the bank right/left keys. While in edit mode the bank keys will control the current pan pot assignment NOT move tracks a bank at a time.

I hope this gets you going. It all looks and sounds far more complicated than it is. It soons become second nature once you've learnt all of the various key presses. Apart from a handful of functions related to not having a jog wheel there is nothing this unit won't do that the Mackie will (just a little more long winded) all you have to do is read the Mackie control surface help file for loads of info and key presses. I find it easiest to think of the BCF being in different "modes" - Track mode, plugin mode, EQ mode, Send Mode, Pan mode, etc. etc and then most of the controlls relate to that particular mode (but maybe that's just my crazy way of working - )

You really need to use the unit in conjunction with the virtual LED, without it I would imagine it a bit of a nightmare to "see" where you are. Unfortunately I am led to believe it doesn't work on Vista or 7. One of the reasons this old luddite is still clonking on with XP.

Hi BCF2000 users

This may sound like a strange question, but ...

=> is it possible to use the whole of the  BCF2000 as a "single-track-at-a-time" controller  ?   or better put   can I program as many buttons / rotaries / faders over the whole unit to as many  single-track and program specific funtions and parameters as I need and therefore use the whole of the BCF's rotatries / faders / buttons  one one-track-at-a-time  and then move it up / down to each needed track ?

I  realize that in order for the above to be possible from Sonar's perspective, I would need to use  ACT  to set the above up   [  sadly recenlty, I have become a bit of an ACT expert as I have had to configure several contorllers manually  ]  -   but the BCF2000 needs to be able to be configured freely for the above to be possible.

So ...... can any BCF2000 users advise if the above can be done, or are the various track buttons / faders / rotaries on the BCF2000  "hard-wired"  to only be used on each pre-hardeware-asigned track.

If the BCF can be set this way, it would be an awesome  single-track-at-a-time controller.

Thanks,
tim

I'm no ACT expert so I'll leave others to answer that aspect of your question but from a Mackie mode point of view much of what you want to do is already available in that mode.

If you put the Mackie into single track mode the faders all relate to the currently selected bank of channels but the rotaries all relate to various functions on the currently selected track . Pan, Send, send levels, send pan etc etc. These can then be reassigned using a different 'mode' - EQ, Send, Pan, Plugin etc. The only thing is that the control assignment is preset. You don't get to choose what rotary does what for example other than via the various mode assignments.

The BCF in Mackie mode is extremely powerful and capable of controlling just about every aspect of Sonar, far more than you think at first glance. If I where you I would investigate this mode in depth first and see if that meets your needs.