Gordius TinyBox Manual de usuario
THE TINYBOX
User Manual v.1.4
1
Contents
Introduction: what is the TinyBox ? ....................................................................................................... 4
1. An FCB1010 “booster” ................................................................................................................. 4
2. A MIDI-USB interface ................................................................................................................... 5
3. A MIDI filter/router ..................................................................................................................... 5
4. A wireless status display on iPad or tablet .................................................................................. 5
5. A MIDI touch controller ............................................................................................................... 5
6. A setlist manager, lyrics display, sheet music app ...................................................................... 5
The TinyBox hardware ............................................................................................................................ 6
Getting started ........................................................................................................................................ 8
1. Make sure the FCB1010 can connect to the TinyBox .................................................................. 8
2. Turn the FCB1010 into a TinyBox slave ....................................................................................... 8
3. Install TinyBox ControlCenter ...................................................................................................... 8
4. Make all connections ................................................................................................................... 8
5. Launch TinyBox ControlCenter .................................................................................................... 8
Using a computer with the TinyBox ....................................................................................................... 9
The TinyBox ControlCenter software ................................................................................................... 10
Launching TinyBox ControlCenter ..................................................................................................... 10
Displaying TinyBox status info on the laptop .................................................................................... 13
Using the TinyBox editor ................................................................................................................... 14
Managing setlists, song lyrics and music scores................................................................................ 15
Monitoring the TinyBox MIDI messages ........................................................................................... 19
Upgrading the TinyBox firmware ...................................................................................................... 20
Programming the TinyBox .................................................................................................................... 21
The TinyBox setup structure ............................................................................................................. 22
Example 1 : structure of a typical TinyBox setup .............................................................................. 23
Example 2 : sending MIDI messages ................................................................................................. 25
Example 3 : programming expression pedals .................................................................................... 26
Example 4 : using variables ............................................................................................................... 27
Example 5 : using conditional commands ......................................................................................... 28
Example 6 : a programmable MIDI filter ........................................................................................... 29
Example 7 : a programmable MIDI router......................................................................................... 30
The TinyBox programming language ................................................................................................... 31
0. Comments ................................................................................................................................. 31
1. Defining preset, effect, trigger and sweep names .................................................................... 32
2
2. Defining the bank structure ...................................................................................................... 35
3. Defining songs and setlist .......................................................................................................... 38
4. Defining preset contents ........................................................................................................... 39
4.1. Defining MIDI channels ......................................................................................................... 40
4.2. Defining data variables .......................................................................................................... 41
4.3. Defining the TinyBox initial state .......................................................................................... 42
4.4. Defining song or bank initialization ....................................................................................... 42
4.5. Defining the preset contents ................................................................................................. 43
4.6. Defining the effect contents .................................................................................................. 43
4.7. Defining the trigger contents ................................................................................................ 44
4.8. Defining the sweep contents ................................................................................................. 45
5. The command set ...................................................................................................................... 46
5.1. Switch and pedal assignment commands ............................................................................. 47
5.2. Effect activation and relay activation commands ................................................................. 49
5.3. MIDI commands .................................................................................................................... 50
5.4 Continuous Control commands ............................................................................................. 51
5.5. Delay command ..................................................................................................................... 52
5.6. Filter/router commands ........................................................................................................ 52
5.6.1. Filtering certain MIDI message types ................................................................................ 53
5.6.2. Filtering certain MIDI channels ......................................................................................... 53
5.6.3. Routing MIDI channels ...................................................................................................... 54
5.6.4. Filtering or routing MIDI notes .......................................................................................... 54
5.6.5. Filtering or routing MIDI ControlChange messages .......................................................... 55
5.6.6. Resetting the filter/router ................................................................................................. 55
5.7. Variable commands ............................................................................................................... 56
5.8. Conditional commands .......................................................................................................... 57
5.8.1. The condition syntax ......................................................................................................... 58
5.8.2. if…then…else statements .................................................................................................. 59
5.8.3. while statement ................................................................................................................. 60
5.8.4. switch statements ............................................................................................................. 60
5.9. UseKeyboardControl ............................................................................................................. 62
APPENDIX : TinyBox programming language reference ...................................................................... 63
APPENDIX : the Tinybox MIDI routings – a detailed rundown ............................................................ 66
Communication between FCB1010 and TinyBox .............................................................................. 67
Controlling your MIDI enabled hardware ......................................................................................... 69
The MIDI IN to MIDI OUT routing ...................................................................................................... 70
3
MIDI-USB port 1 ................................................................................................................................ 71
MIDI-USB port 2 ................................................................................................................................ 72
A special case : “UseKeyboardControl” ............................................................................................. 73
A special case : troubleshooting ........................................................................................................ 74
APPENDIX : Tinybox latency measurements ....................................................................................... 75
What is latency ? ............................................................................................................................... 75
How does TinyBox keep latency down ? ........................................................................................... 75
The latency measurements : overview ............................................................................................. 76
The latency measurement results ..................................................................................................... 81
1. Comparison TinyBox – MidiSport .......................................................................................... 81
2. TinyBox latency MIDI IN – MIDI OUT ..................................................................................... 84
3. TinyBox latency from virtual FCB1010 trigger to MIDI OUT .................................................. 88
Document versions
Version 1.4 20/08/2020 Support for extra SysCommon and SysRealtime messages added
SwitchOn/SwitchOff commands no longer restricted to be used in
presets only – effect activation infinite loop detection added
Version 1.3 01/07/2020 support for ‘while’ loops added
Version 1.2 05/06/2020 Appendix about latency measurements added
Version 1.1 01/06/2020 Getting started chapter added
MIDI routing appendix added
‘UseKeyboardControl’ and ‘ModifyVelocity’ commands added
Version 1.0 18/05/2020 Initial release
4
Introduction: what is the TinyBox ?
As an ideal companion to the Behringer FCB1010, the TinyBox is many things in a tiny black box. It will
take a comprehensive manual to explain all features in detail, but here’s a short overview:
1. An FCB1010 “booster”
By combining your FCB1010 with the TinyBox, you turn it into a very powerful MIDI foot controller.
The box eliminates all the restrictions of the original floorboard:
- a setup can contain up to 200 banks of 10 presets
- each bank can contain any mix of presets, effects (or stomp boxes) and triggers (or momentary
effects)
- each preset can send a virtually unlimited number of MIDI commands on any combination of
MIDI channels
- a preset can send SysEx messages of any complexity
- a preset can start a MIDIClock stream with programmable BPM, and send MIDIStart, MIDIStop
or MIDIContinue messages
- a programmable delay can be added between MIDI messages
- an optional “Direct Bank” switch can give one-click access from all banks to an extra set of 9
commonly used presets
- each expression pedal can send one or multiple ControlChange sweeps, which can be different
for each preset.
- expression pedals can use different sweep curves
- expression pedals can also send PitchBend or ChannelPressure messages
- the use of conditional commands and data variables allows to add complex “if…then…else…”
logic to your setup content
- …
All this comes with very intuitive editor software which makes creating a complex setup as easy as can
be. You can describe your setup as plain text, using a text editor with auto-complete functionality. This
makes sharing your setup with others as easy as copy-and-pasting a piece of text. The setup text is
compiled into binary code prior to sending it to the TinyBox through USB. The software runs on Mac
and Windows.
5
2. A MIDI-USB interface
The TinyBox includes a class-compliant MIDI-USB interface, which means it can be connected to a
Windows or Mac computer without installing any drivers. The box can send MIDI messages both to
hardware connected to its MIDI OUT port and to software running on a computer connected through
USB.
The MIDI-USB interface is also used for reliable transfer of setups to the TinyBox. Gone are the days of
buying and trying different MIDI interfaces to find one which is compatible with the Behringer FCB1010
patch dumps.
3. A MIDI filter/router
MIDI can be sent to the TinyBox and passed through a programmable filter/router. This filter can block
certain MIDI channels, move or copy certain MIDI messages to a different MIDI channel, transpose
MIDI Note messages up or down, adapt note velocity, block certain note ranges or ControlChange
numbers, and so on. This allows you for instance to turn a simple MIDI keyboard into a full fletched
master keyboard with different zones controlling multiple synths simultaneously.
4. A wireless status display on iPad or tablet
Connect the TinyBox to a computer running the included TinyBox ControlCenter, then wirelessly
connect an iPad, Windows or Android tablet to the computer, and you get a wireless FCB1010 status
display! TinyBox ControlCenter acts as a webserver for your tablet. Use the browser to view real time
status of your FCB1010: current bank name, available preset names, stomp box states, and so on. What
a huge difference compared to the small 7-segment display of the FCB1010 – you can now name your
presets and stomp boxes and know what is going on at any time. ControlCenter itself also incorporates
a local status display, so without WIFI you can view the status directly on your laptop too.
5. A MIDI touch controller
The same status display on your iPad can be used as a wireless MIDI controller! You can click any button
on the “virtual” FCB1010 in your browser, and the TinyBox will react as if the footswitch of a “real”
FCB1010 was pressed. This might appeal to keyboard players for instance, who could even leave the
FCB1010 at home and use the virtual iPad version instead!
6. A setlist manager, lyrics display, sheet music app
As a fancy extra, TinyBox ControlCenter comes with a setlist manager which allows you to upload song
texts and/or sheet music. You can scroll through the setlist using the FCB1010 up/down switches, and
the preset bank for each song is activated on the FCB1010 while the corresponding song text or score
is displayed on your laptop or iPad.
6
The TinyBox hardware
1. Power input: connect any power adapter delivering 9V AC or DC, 500mA or more
2. 7-pins MIDI connector for two-way connection with the Behringer FCB1010 1
3. USB connector for connection with a Windows or Mac computer
4. 5-pins MIDI IN connector
5. 5-pins MIDI OUT connector
6. Red power LED
7. Blue USB status LED
Along with the TinyBox comes a dedicated FCB1010 firmware chip, which turns the FCB1010 into a
“TinyBox slave”. Programming the FCB1010 is no longer needed, all configuration is done in the
TinyBox.
1 The 7-pins cable transfers MIDI to and from the FCB1010, along with FCB1010 phantom power. For
plug-and-play compatibility the FCB1010 needs to be equipped with a “Single Cable Kit” (available at
http://shop.tinybox.rocks) which makes the FCB1010 phantom powered and gives it the same 7-pins
MIDI connector for connection with the TinyBox.
7
The illustration below compares the 7-pins connector with regular MIDI IN and MIDI OUT connectors:
Although the TinyBox is designed as an add-on for the Behringer FCB1010, it is also possible to use all
its features even without an FCB1010 connected:
- as mentioned in the introduction an iPad can serve as a “virtual FCB1010” : when clicking the
buttons of the virtual FCB1010 the TinyBox will react in exactly the same way as if a real
FCB1010 was used
- MIDI keyboard players can choose to use the lowest octave of their keyboard as TinyBox
remote control instead of the FCB1010. 12 keys could replace the 12 footswitches of the
FCB1010, and 2 joysticks or knobs could replace the expression pedals. Of course it is also
possible to work with smaller preset banks in your setup and use less keys for remote control
(3 keys could already be sufficient: “bank up” / “bank down” / “select preset”)
In order to use the TinyBox in this way, search for the “UseKeyboardControl” command further
on in this manual.
8
Getting started
These are the first steps to take when you receive your TinyBox
1. Make sure the FCB1010 can connect to the TinyBox
As shown in the previous chapter the TinyBox communicates with the FCB1010 through a 7-pins MIDI
connector. The easiest way to make the FCB1010 compatible with this connector is by installing the
single cable kit ( http://shop.tinybox.rocks/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=50 )
Follow the instructions in the manual included with the kit.
2. Turn the FCB1010 into a TinyBox slave
Your TinyBox order includes a firmware chip for the FCB1010, which turns it into a TinyBox slave. With
this firmware it is no longer necessary to do any programming on the FCB1010 itself. The floorboard
just sends key presses to the TinyBox, and the TinyBox takes control over the FCB1010 display and
LEDs. Instructions for replacing the FCB1010 firmware PROM can be found here :
https://www.fcb1010.eu/downloads/Upgrade%20Manual_FCB1010_Rev_A.pdf
3. Install TinyBox ControlCenter
Download the software from your account page in the TinyBox web shop. Installers both for Mac and
for Windows are available
4. Make all connections
Connect the FCB1010 with the TinyBox using a 7-pins MIDI cable. Connect a power adapter (9V, 500mA
or more, AC or DC) to the TinyBox power jack. Connect a USB cable between TinyBox and computer,
connect a regular MIDI cable from TinyBox to controlled device.
5. Launch TinyBox ControlCenter
Launch TinyBox ControlCenter. Follow the instructions in the next chapters to verify the correct
connection between TinyBox and computer.
9
Using a computer with the TinyBox
In order to program the TinyBox you need to connect it to a computer (Windows PC or Mac) using a
USB cable. The computer runs the TinyBox ControlCenter software. You will find out all details about
this software in the next chapter.
TinyBox ControlCenter not only allows you to program the TinyBox, but it can also communicate with
the TinyBox during live use to request realtime status info: the current bank content, currently selected
preset, activated effects, etc. The TinyBox ControlCenter can act as a lightweight web server, so any
web browser can connect to it and display live status info of the FCB1010 and TinyBox. In the simplest
scenario you can use ControCenter itself to show the status view directly on your laptop, however you
can as well use an iPad or other tablet as “wireless status display”. Of course, for this the device must
have a WIFI connection with your computer. Most nowadays computers have WIFI built in and can
easily be turned into a WIFI access point1. An alternative is to connect through an external WIFI router,
which can be purchased new for around 20 USD.
using laptop as WIFI access point
using an external WIFI router
1 https://www.imore.com/how-turn-your-macs-internet-connection-wifi-hotspot-internet-sharing
1 https://www.windowscentral.com/how-turn-your-windows-10-pc-wireless-hotspot
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