A/V Synth Controlled by Gamepad

Here’s something I’ve been working on for the last couple of days – an A/V synth controlled via a Logitech gamepad, generating video through Quartz Composer and audio through Ableton Live.

This is just the first step – a proof of concept. Now I’m going to flesh it out and assign many more variables to the onscreen graphics (right now I am only controlling two variables). One idea I have had is to use 4 cheap joysticks to control the lights, which would allow for a nicer feel. Also, a full keyboard would work nicely – perhaps I could stick to 4 lights, and simply choose which light to play based on whether the user is going up or down in pitch, and by how much.

Technical Bits:
I use Junxion to do two things to the HID signals coming from the Gamepad. First, I convert all buttons and thumbstick axes into MIDI CC controllers so that Quartz Composer can use them. I also convert the 4 button inputs to specific MIDI notes that will be read by Ableton Live. In this way, a single button press on the controller registers a CC controller and a MIDI note on/off through the same virtual port, read by two different programs.
Let me know your thoughts!

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Published:
10.20.06 / 10pm
Category:
Software, Quartz Composer