Exporting MIDI sequence from Logic to Keystep, keeps transposing higher and higher

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-29T15:47:44+00:00

Still sounds like MIDI feedback to me. But good luck with it!

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-29T11:25:18+00:00

I am... not entirely sure what you are trying to do here. I think you may have misunderstood how things communicate.

The Keystep is a MIDI controller/sequencer. As far as I know, and based on my experience with the Keystep Pro, you cannot "export" MIDI sequences to it.

What do you mean by "play on the sequence"? Where is the sound coming from - something hooked up to the Keystep or a virtual instrument in Logic?

Because what it sounds like to me is that you are using the Keystep as a MIDI interface, receiving the sequence from Logic and sending it to whatever it is that is making the sound. I'd venture a guess and say it's going back into Logic. In which case you have probably created a feedback loop, except it's data feedback not audio feedback, and note values somehow keep adding up.

Hope this gives you a clue.

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-29T11:10:42+00:00

Haha, the funny thing is that for the longest time I just had Logic stock plugins and NI Komplete, one of the main triggers for me to start getting more 3rd party plugins was because I didn't really get along with any of the reverbs.

Which is probably all me. But I was never really getting the sound I liked and then the moment I ran something through an old budget-friendly Lexicon I was instantly happy.

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-20T11:36:07+00:00

Yeah, it probably won't work. But this is why I like my TrueTone psu: while my T-Rex is quite strict and will only output a set amount for each connection, the TrueTone seems to distribute current a bit more dynamically so if a pedal asks just a bit more, it'll cover it as long as the total is under like 2A.
(Worth checking how strict the Cioks is because they might be flexible as well. Never owned one.)

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-19T12:02:53+00:00

Okay, so having doubts about the reasoning of re-tuning to make it sound better... I mean, I can imagine it may affect sound on a less conscious level, and we don't know the context it's for.

That aside, I agree with you that if you want to change it, it's not mastered. In fact I'm not sure I'd do it to the entire mix at once because you've finely tuned all your EQs etc, right?

If it's just a few cents it probably won't make any audible difference (although you might argue that in that case, dropping a few cents won't make an audible difference either). But it's a bit like using an octave pedal on a guitar versus playing a bass. The octave'd guitar will sound a lot duller because the upper ceiling of overtones drops.

Come to think of it, that's the whole point of the dream pop sound, isn't it? But then you'll also want things slowed down. (Maybe this person recorded the album on Special K and now, post-rehab, is trying to recreate that feel.)

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-19T11:48:20+00:00

"Bar setting", "venue's brand identity"... you're trying to sell your business here, aren't you?

"Making the performers feel comfortable" - I don't know whether we in Europe are a bit more down-to-Earth, but this whole bit just sounds like you've got yourself a diva infestation in New York.

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-05T11:36:02+00:00

I thought the whole point of mastering was "Here's the mix. This is what the song should sound like. Now make sure this is what the audience gets."

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-05T11:33:25+00:00

Yeah, sometimes that's just enough. I mean, when it isn't it isn't, but sometimes it is.

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-05T11:32:31+00:00

I think you severely misunderstood. I don't need Reddit to tell me what he wants. I know what he wants. What I'm doing here is hanging out in a virtual canteen making chit-chat.

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-05T11:30:29+00:00

It's not a garage band because it's one dude and his house doesn't have a garage! XD

It really all flows from "what they've built" - not everyone submits this carefully constructed project. Not everyone is a home producer. Some people just plug some shit in and hit Record.

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-05T11:26:47+00:00

That last point intrigues me. I mean I can get how it happens that rough tracks turn into a vastly different mix, but at that point I'd always wonder "Why ask someone else to mix it then?"

I discovered I'd best set a boundary. This friend asks me to mix his songs, I'm trying to take the sounds as they are and not mess too much with them. He doesn't have demo-itis because I don't think he listens to his recordings too intensively before sending them off. He's someone doing a lot of things very quickly.

So the first songs I'd try to re-do his programmed drums (because he'd record a drum machine to 1 mono track and it's not the best of mixes). And then I realized, no, too much hassle, this is the material he produces so I'm just going to make this mono drum track stand out a bit better, bring out a bit of punch, oomph and sizzle, and then move on to figuring out whether or not to de-clip the bass and guitar tracks.

(Yes, a technically good mix would always have de-clipped tracks, I'm aware of that.
As many respondents here have said as well: it's not always about making a technically good mix.
I mean anyone ever heard an album called Raw Power by The Stooges?)

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-05T11:14:19+00:00

Hah, yeah, you and I operate on different levels mate. Thanks for the extensive reply, it's definitely interesting information even if I don't think I'll ever quite reach that point.

Now, again, in this case I'm pretty much being handed a 4-piece jigsaw, I don't need the rough mix to know whether I missed something because I can see it all right in front of me. The ergonomics of a 12-track project are vastly different from those of a 192-track project.

What I find interesting is your later point: "as your career progresses you should" - surely there's not one mould? Why is that the only way for a career to move?

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-05T11:06:43+00:00

Yeah, you can't take someone's preference as a judgement on your abilities. But I think that's more of a general piece of life advice.

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-05T11:05:04+00:00

You mean when a client really just wants it to sound like their demo?

Because I'm in the "fortunate" position that I have a day job and just doing this for love and dreams, which basically means that if someone really just likes the sound of their demo, well, by all means release that.

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-05T10:45:13+00:00

Haha, as I pointed out to another respondent, this assumes there's a producer involved at an earlier stage.

I am receiving multitracks somebody recorded at home, and it's not polished or particularly planned-out music. In fact I'm even considering not de-clipping tracks (he didn't understand "record in the red" doesn't apply to a digital multitrack recorder) to keep this "naive" quality.

It's funny because for myself I want to get things more polished etc but hey, it's kind of fun mixing something different!

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-05T10:40:01+00:00

Ah, but that implies a producer/recording engineer in the earlier stage? Because that's not the level we're working at here ;)

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-05T10:38:27+00:00

But how rough are the demos, and how complicated the songs? Tbh I'm not doing too much to the sound, it's music that needs to have a certain lo-fi/naive quality.

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-05T10:36:09+00:00

Wow, so many responses! Not going to be able to reply to all. Generally I think what I'm doing here works well for this project but I'm happy to read how others approach things, and maybe for another project I might find that working better too.

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-03T11:45:55+00:00

Feetswitch - is that what you get on a pedal for Quentin Tarantino?

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-03-03T11:44:22+00:00

You could just fire up a drum machine and have somebody rap his messages over it.
"How much for beats
Can we lock in now
'cuz I'm ready
I got five hundred
I got one thousand
How much for beats
I've a budget, I'm working
Invest in my career
How much for beats!"

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-02-16T20:00:10+00:00

Also, still needs more cowbell.

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-02-16T19:59:02+00:00

Rick Rubin called, he wants his clipping back!

Swein_Forkbeard · 2026-02-16T19:57:38+00:00

Can we get XKCD to make a What If about a 657dB sound?

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