I've Written A Patch Editor For the CZs and CT6500

[IanB]

Sorry if this is a bit spammy, but I've created a new patch editor for the CZ series and CT-6500. It's for WIndows 10 and is in the store, but is completely free and completely ad free. Also does not capture any user info at all. It's just a patch editor. It's called VZV CZ. Did I say it's free?

As I said it supports the classic CZ series and also the preset CT-6500 which, although you cannot save any presets, accepts the usual Sysex so you can edit the "live" patch in the edit buffer and save virtual banks of patches in VZV CZ which you can then load into the synth with a click or tap. I've attempted to make an interface which is touch friendly for us with tablets which are more convenient to carry around than a desktop machine

 

I actually wrote this because I have a CT-6500 and finally worked out how to edit the sounds and couldn't then find a really up to date Windows patch editor.

 

Here's the store link- https://www.microsoft.com/store/productId/9NBT2LCQV3NQ

 

If that doesn't work, just search VZV CZ in the Windows Store and it should pop up.

 

There's two known issues I only spotted after the latest upload (typical); more than one rtpMIDI network channel can crash it on startup and it doesn't disconnect from an input if you switch to another one.  I have fixes for them done already but it would be nice if some CZ series users would try it out and report anything else before the next bugfix release since each release in the Store has to be approved so it takes a while. If anyone out there is kind enough to give it a try, you can report any feedback or bugs here or to support@veezeevee.net 

 

Thanks for reading!

 

[Brad Saucier]

I wish I had a CZ to try it.  I know we have a few members here who do, and will want to try this!  

[IanB]

Thanks Brad, I hope so

And patch editing really opens up the CT6500 since it's a CZ in disguise!

[Chas]

@IanB, does the "VZV" part of the name mean that it can work with the VZ series too? Would love a computer based patch editor for the rather complex "interactive Phase Distortion" synthesis used in the VZ series.

 

[IanB]

Sorry to disappoint Chas, I'm afraid it's only for the CZ series. The "VZV" is my um "brand". I'm afraid I don't have a VZ synth or I'd happily write a patch editor for it!

[Chas]

Damn, I was hoping for a VZ patch editor! The VZ series have huge untapped potential, being more powerful that the CZ Phase Distortion. However, the complexity of iPD programming puts off most people from trying to create patches for it.

 

One day I'll try and understand how to program mine!

[IanB]

Well if I had access to one I'd be happy to do it, but unfortunately buying one is out of my (zero) budget at the moment

[CYBERYOGI =CO=Windler]

Casio CZ-230S is another preset keyboard with 4 externally reprogrammable patches. May the data format be identical with CT-6500?

I own no "tablet" (pulsed microwaves are brain destroying) beside my castrated IBM Thinkpad X61t (wifi/bluetooth card chucked), which resistive touchscreen is single-touch and crashes various Win10-only apps (e.g. "Photos"). I am also no registered member of the M$ club and hence have no access to their app store anyway.

[IanB]

Hi Cyberyogi, the patch editor doesn't require a tablet, it works on any Win10 machine using the mouse. The interface is just designed in a way that makes tablet usage comfortable. As to the app store, I don't think you have to be a member of anything to use it, so long as you have Win10 on your machine. But if not well obviously that won't work for you.

I don't have a CZ-230S to test with, but I assume the Sysex format is the same as for the CZ synthesizers and CT-6500, so patches should be interchangeable between all these Casio machines. Just using raw sysex you should be able to send a patch direct to the edit buffer which is patch 60 hexadecimal (96 decimal). On CZ synths, patches 0-31 are presets, 32-63 are programmable and 64-95 are the data cartridge, with 96 being the edit buffer. On a CT-6500, 0-47 are the presets and 96 is the edit buffer. I'm not sure what numbers the CZ-230s uses for its programmable patches.

The main point of my editor is that you don't really need to save anything locally as you can load patches live using a single click or tap.

[Hylke95]

Nice work on this editor! I tried it with a CZ-2000S and windows 10 64-bit. All functions I tried work great, though the colours don't seem to render correctly, making it hard to read the text on the buttons (see image). A fix for this would be great, if possible

[IanB]

Thanks Hylke95, glad it all works fine! It uses the system colours for text so it looks like your system colour is set to white?

This is one of those things I hadn't foreseen, I'll do a fix ASAP.

Other than that, did you find the interface easy to use?

[IanB]

Hmm, so I'm just replicating this and it's when the App Mode is dark in personalisation.  Not quite sure which way to go with this. I can either set the text to black or have a different Dark Mode colour scheme where text fields are black with white writing, the background colours are darker, etc. Any preference Hylke? (or anyone else!)

 

*Edit* for now I'm going to just force the App's theme to "light" for now as redoing all the colours will be a bit of a pain in the assets. Once I reupload the app, it has to be re-certificated by MIcrosoft so takes a couple days (or maybe longer at the moment, don't know about that).

*Edit 2* The update is now in certification. You should get a pop up asking you to upgrade the next time you start the app after Microsoft's approval.

[Hylke95]

Thank you! Forcing the theme to light for the app would be excellent. I will keep an eye out for the upgrade

[IanB]

The updated version is now available in the Windows Store. :

If you like it, I'd appreciate a rating/review of course!

[IanB]

Latest update now in the Windows Store, including a significant bug fix.

 

Version 1.0.9

 

Bugfix: Repaired major bug caused by missing F7 terminator byte on patch sends, which prevented proper operation with some interfaces (e.g. Behringer UMC) and apps. VZV CZ should now work with a wider range of hardware and software.

 

Features:

Added proper patch dump upload to and download from synth of patch banks on the File tab, with selectable start patch number. You can now get or send 16 patches (2 banks) in one operation. 

Added indicator of last patch accessed on the Synth tab.

Added option to send patch change command to the synthesizer when changing patches on the Synth tab.

-----------

 

Users should get an automatic notification when they start the app that a new version is available

[vbdx66]

Hi @IanB

 

Maybe this is a silly question but would you think about programming an editor in the same fashion for the CT-X range?

 

Regards.

[IanB]

@vbdx66 I would if I had one, unfortunately I haven't  got one so there's no way I can 😕

[Jokeyman123]

Hello Ian.....what...other....keyboards do you have? what platform are you using to create your editor, is it Python, or windows visual basic, C++ or something else?  

[IanB]

All I have is a Casio CT6500 and a basic Roland MIDI controller keyboard. Hence my need to get the most out of the Casio

I used to have a Juno 106, SCI Pro-One, Moog Prodigy and Jen SX1000, but long ago they were all stolen and it still hurts like hell to remember that.

 

I use Visual Studio 2019, with mostly VB.net because I don't like C type curly braces languages for my own use.

[Jokeyman123]

Thought it might be some form of visual basic, very nice. I've been dabbling with ctrlr's designs for software front-ends, but I'm still weak programming sysex which is mostly all you need for ctrlr design. https://ctrlr.org/ 

 

And I was being selfish-thinking you might create a front-end for the very crippled PX350-which has so much potential for programming and external control, but lacks all of that. midi control is there looking at the midi implementation but Casio never made any kind of software front-end for this pretty powerful instrument. Somewhat similar to what you describe with the CT6500-alot of power, but not much control.

 

I can relate to your loss Ian-after making a living with my black diamond pearl Ludwig double-bass kit for over 10 years, some junkies stole it during a move to a bad neighborhood, including my complete collection of Avedis Zildjian cymbals which took me years to get, and which would cost me thousands to replace now. and that's just the cymbals. Have to move on..where there's life there's hope right? and I moved out of there pretty fast after that, you bet your sweet bippy! Long time ago, but live and learn.  

[IanB]

Well it's hard to create an interface for anything one doesn't own, no way to test it. For instance I've had a look at the VZ MIDI/SYSEX spec and it's pretty straightforward, but the probability of the software working correctly if created "blind" is very low.

 

And I feel your pain for that drum kit. That's awful.

My own pain over the keyboards is intensified by the component of my own stupidity involved. I was just rooming with someone at the time, so loaned my keyboards to someone else to use. He then just moved away suddenly without any way to trace him. I was a trusting, naive soul when I was younger. Another part of the pain is that I got that rig together mostly when analogue synths were at their nadir and were eclipsed by digitals like the DX7 etc, but I had kept the faith and knew the analogue sound was unique in its own right and was sure it would make a comeback- which it did to the extent there's now a large "boutique analogue synth" market. It would cost an order of magnitude more to replace them now than when I bought them up as "old fashioned".

[vbdx66]

Speaking of the DX7... it’was the hype back in the late eighties and my younger brother got a summer job to buy one second-handed from a recording studio. It was a hard, very physical job in a paper mill. He got his DX7 eventually and played it for years.

 

It was then stolen from his house. He was very smart because he went into every keyboard shop in town until he found the DX7 back and he could prove it was his unit (I think he still had the invoice wit the serial number or something like this). So the shop owner had to give the keyboard back to my brother.

 

Unfortunately, it was stolen again from him a few years later with all the electronic goods in the house such as the computers etc. and this time the DX7 was gone for good...

[IanB]

@vbdx66 Well that's another sad, sad story. I sometimes think half the musical gear in the world must get stolen.

The worst thing is instruments are sentimental items. If somebody stole my washing machine it would be a financial loss and I'd be angry, but it's not like I have an emotional attachment to it. But instruments have memories.

I remember when my mother was burgled, I was so angry I could have murdered them in cold blood if I got my hands on them. For instance they took her jewellery box, a perhaps somewhat "kitsch" item in the shape of a piano that played music when you opened it. It was worth next to nothing financially, but an immense amount sentimentally to her- it had been a wedding present. And she never felt safe in her home again.

[IanB]

Back to VZV CZ, I just released another update, Version 1.0.11.

 

Unfortunately the recent update (1.0.9) introduced a couple of bugs that caused crashes, these are now fixed.

 

 

Version 1.0.11

 

Fixed a crash introduced in Version 1.0.9 when attempting to add or delete user patches caused by a clash of controls libraries.

 

Fixed a crash when selecting a Synth preset with no MIDI ports selected.

 

sigh

[machineintel]

Hi Ian,

 

Thanks for this great free tool! I've got it up and running successfully with my CZ-3000 and it's working quite nicely.

 

I have one feature request that I think would be extremely valuable: Could you add an option that automatically sends parameter changes to the hardware immediately after the parameter is changed in the UI? Currently, it looks like I have to manually press the 'send live' button if I want to send any changes to the HW. This makes it very cumbersome to hear changes being made as I'm editing a patch.