Hi,
I am trying to connect the BeatBuddy through Midi as slave with the Tempode as Master, so I can tap the Tempo in and use the Start/Stop Button.
But unfortunatly this doesn´t work - I checked the correct connection - but nothing.
I tried it with a Boss DR-880 as a Slave and for the Tempode as Master and it worked perfectly.
Then I tried the Boss DR-880 as the Master and the Beatbuddy as Slave and it also worked like a charm.
The only thing Tempode as the Master and the BeatBuddy as a Slave doesn´t work!
From the short glance to the page provided, this Tempode thing probably implements a custom synchronization protocol for most (if not all) other devices listed on their page.
This is pretty strange, as if you say Boss DR-880 works as a Master with a BeatBuddy slave for you, this must be something with your Tempode. Have you tried Master Sync’ing that with something else to see if it actually works?
I have tried mastersyncing it with the voicelive 3, boss dr-880 and also with ableton live thru a usb midi interface (midivace 2x2) and it all worked perfekt only syncing the BB doesn´t work!
But the strange thing is, when i go from the tempode into my midi interface and from the out there to the BB it works perfektly!
But only when I use the Software Midi-Ox or Ableton live to map the midi-outputs!
How can that be?
Looks like your tempode thing uses custom (non-standard) protocol and needs some additional unit (like your midi interface) to have it translated to standard in order for BB to sync correctly.
I’d refer to tempode manual (or support) to find out whether this behavior can be changed.
"Hi Marco,
Since it’s controlling the Boss pedal, Tempode is working correctly. It’s a straightforward device that just sends MIDI Start, Stop, and Clock.
If you have a MIDI device connected to your computer, you can see what information is coming in using MIDIOX for PC or MIDI Monitor for Mac.
Is there some sort of setting on the Beatbuddy to make it slave to an external MIDI device?
It seems very strange that it would slave to the Boss pedal only.
We’ve been making it for 4 years and have yet to find a device that does not work with it.
We’ve also had a number of customers buy it for use with the Beat Buddy, and Marco’s is the first one with an issue.
I personally test every Tempode before it leaves the shop, and would be very surprised if Tempode had any problem, particularly in light of the fact that it is controlling Marco’s DR-880.
My question for beat Buddy is whether there is some sort of setting that needs to be switched to make Beat Buddy slave to an external device.
My other question for Beat Buddy is whether the Beat Buddy uses a 6N138 or similar optocoupler to electronically isolate the incoming MIDI data, as per the MIDI spec.
All in all, Beat Buddy is very slick - I checked it out at 2014 NAMM.
Nope, there is no such option to make BeatBuddy slave to an external device - it simply does that by default.
As Marco also said his BeatBuddy slaves to his DR-880 with no issues, I am also pretty surprised, because the problem is not as obvious as it may seem.
While we’ve had some customers having issues with tempo drifting when slaving BeatBuddy to Boss products, but not a single complaint about it not slaving at all!
Silly question, but you are plugging your midi cable into BB’s midi in and not midi out aren’t you (just trying to help as it’s a bit of a mystery otherwise)?
This is very strange indeed. I would love to help you with your issue, however I neither have Boss DR-880, nor Tempode.
Can you please make a short video showing the problem? I want to see:
just about 15-20 seconds of how your BeatBuddy slaves to DR-880 perfectly (BB Midi In > DR-880 MIDI Out)
15-20 seconds of how your DR-880 slaves to the Tempode without issues (DR-880 MIDI In > Tempode MIDI Out)
and, actually, your issue - BeatBuddy slaved to Tempode (BB MIDI In > Tempode MIDI Out).
I really want your issue to be solved. If the problem is on the BeatBuddy side, I guarantee your unit will be replaced. However, it is totally unclear this time what causes your problem.
Thank you for your time!
Thank you a lot for your videos!
At this point I am totally sure you are making all the cable connections correctly. I will pass this to our firmware team for further investigation.
One little thing I saw - I can clearly see the arrows-like sign (indicating BB is being slaved) in your DR880-BeatBuddy video:
I am curious when does it appear - right when you connect the two devices or when the actual playback starts?
Am I correct that there is no such sign at all when pairing Tempode with the BeatBuddy?
Last question - have you changed any setting on any of the shown devices, or you only changed cable connections between these videos?
When I connect it to the Beatbuddy or turn on the Boss DR-880 the sign on BeatBuddy immediately shows up - disconnecting or turning the DR-880 off, the sign disappears!
And you are right - there is no such sign at all when pairing Tempode with the BeatBuddy!
I have never changed any settings of the devices - I just changed the cable connections!
