Controller-Mapping in Traktor 1.2
Logical and Physical Controllers
With Traktor 1.2 the architecture of the controller mappings has completely been reworked. This tutorial describes the new architecture, it explains the differences between a logical controller and a physical controller and it shows which device classes are available when you create a new logical controller.
In Traktor 1.2 a mapping is no longer created for a particular physical device, but for a logical device/a logical controller instead.
A logical controller has several specific characteristics and properties:
- When you create a logical controller you assign a device class to it. Traktor 1.2 supports the following device classes: Generic Keyboard, Generic MIDI, Denon DN-HC 4500, and Pioneer CDJ-400. The first two device types were available before Traktor 1.2; the two new types are the first controllers for which Traktor offers HID support.
- The device class of a logical controller determines, if only an In-Port or an In-Port and an Out-Port can be assigned to the controller.
- For controllers of the class Generic Keyboard only an In-Port can be selected; the only In-Port that is available is the Keyboard port.
- Controllers of the three other device classes can be assigned an In-Port and an Out-Port. When the logical controller has the class Generic MIDI all available MIDI-In- and. MIDI-Out-Ports can be assigned.
- For the two HID device classes (Denon DN-HC 4500 and Pioneer CDJ-400) the cor-responding HID USB ports can be selected. The selected In-Port is automatically used as Out-Port as well.
- Another characteristic of a logical controller is the type of input the controller can proc-ess and how the received input data is shown in the Controller-Manager dialog.
- For a controller of the class Generic Keyboard the names of the keys are shown.
- For a controller of the class Generic MIDI the MIDI channel, the type of MIDI mes-sage and either the note name or the CC number is shown (see chapter 5 of Traktor Pro Bible for more information about MIDI messages).
- For the two HID controllers Denon DN-HC 4500 and Pioneer CDJ-400 the name of the button/control on the controller is shown.
- A logical controller is active (i.e. Traktor processes the mapped commands) if an In-Port or an In- and Out-Port of a physical controller is assigned to the logical controller.
- The scope of the modifiers (modifiers act as state variables to implement shift-like func-tionality in a mapping) is restricted to the logical controller. An example: When the value of modifier M1 has been set with the keyboard to 4, then this value can be accessed only from MIDI commands that reside on the same logical controller. This means that the modifier from the keyboard mapping cannot be accessed from the mapping of a CDJ-400, because this mapping needs a different device class and therefore resides in another logical controller.
The new concept makes sense when you use two identical MIDI or HID devices, for example two Pioneer CDJ-400. Let’s assume you created a mapping for one CDJ-400 and that this mapping controls deck A. In Traktor 1.2 you can duplicate the complete map-ping of this controller, including all modifier assignments and modifier conditions. Once you have created the duplicate, open the list Device Target in section Device Setup and set deck B as target for the second logical controller. Now you are ready. This is an example of when it is desirable that the mapping for one CDJ can access the modifiers of the other one; this would result in chaos regarding the modifier values.
Another usage scenario could be a quite complex keyboard mapping that suffers in Trak-tor 1.1.2 from the limitation of the number of available modifiers. You could divide this mapping into two logical keyboard controllers to overcome this.
- A logical controller has the property Device Target. This property is set in the list box Device Target in section Device Setup. The device target is valid for the whole logical controller. Together with the Assignment selected in section Mapping Details this property controls whichever deck a MIDI command is sent to. More about this can be found onwards.
The following figure illustrates the new architecture of the Controller-Manager by using some examples. The box on the left side symbolises the controller manager that currently manages five logical controllers and their mappings.
The two top most logical controllers are of type Keyboard. For example, one controller could hold the keyboard mapping Perform and the other one the mapping Preparation. The In-Port Keyboard been assigned to the controller that holds the mapping Perform, i.e. only this key-board mapping is active. To switch from keyboard mapping Perform to mapping Preparation, the only thing you need to do is deactivate the In-Port Keyboard for mapping Perform and to activate the In-Port for mapping Preparation.
The logical controller in the middle contains a MIDI mapping for a Korg nanoPAD. Here no MIDI In-Port is assigned; i.e. this mapping is currently inactive.
The two logical controllers at the bottom each contain one HID mapping for a Pioneer CDJ-400. The commands used in both mappings are identical. Each of the two logical controllers is via the In-/Out-Port assignment connected to a different physical CDJ. The first CDJ-400 controls Traktor deck A and the second controls Traktor deck B.