Can't get the FCB1010 to work with Bias FX 2

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Jimmylh
Jimmylh's picture
Can't get the FCB1010 to work with Bias FX 2

Hello, I'm trying to get the 1010 to work with Bias FX 2. I'm using a Focusrite 4i4 4th generation audio interface, and my Bias FX 2 is the Elite version 2.7.0.6600 which is the latest version. I have the midi enabled in the audio settings of Bias FX 2. I found a youtube video on how to use the 1010 with Bias FX2 on a channel called Guitar School Live. I followed the instructions to the letter many times with no success. The video is two years old now and I don't know if this combination is still compatible. Can anyone confirm that my setup should still work? Also, how do I know what my firmware version is in my FCB1010 so I can tell if it is compatible with the FCB1010 manager program I downloaded from this site? I picked the newer of the two when I downloaded it. I'm using Windows 11 on a pc with an Intel 13900k. Thanks for any help I can get.

 

Mark van den Berg
Mark van den Berg's picture

Also, how do I know what my firmware version is in my FCB1010 so I can tell if it is compatible with the FCB1010 manager program I downloaded from this site?

To test whether your firmware is compatible with FCB1010 Manager, I suggest you simply send the FCB1010's setup to FCB1010 Manager. See "MIDI -> Receive" in section 6 of the FCB1010 Manager manual.
Unless your FCB1010 has a third-party firmware chip (like Ossandust's UnO), your firmware is probably either Behringer's 2.4 or 2.5, since both these versions have been around for decades and are supported by FCB1010 Manager.
The difference between 2.4 and 2.5 is slight: it's just that 2.5 has the "tap-tempo function" (described in section 2.6 of Behringer's FCB1010 User's Manual).
There are two ways to figure out whether you have 2.4 or 2.5: open up your FCB1010 and see what it says on the firmware chip, or see if you can make the tap-tempo function works.

Can't get the FCB1010 to work with Bias FX 2

I don't have Bias FX 2, so I can't really help you with that.
One tip though: since it is a nightmare to configure an FCB1010, it may be a good idea to first make FCB1010 Manager's virtual FCB1010 work with Bias FX 2. You'll probably need Tobias Erichsen's loopMIDI driver to send the output from the virtual FCB1010 to Bias FX 2, but once that works you can tweak the virtual FCB1010's setup very easily until things work the way you want, and then you can copy the virtual FCB1010's setup to your real FCB1010.

Hope this helps,
   Mark.

Jimmylh
Jimmylh's picture

Thanks for the reply Mark. I found out my 1010 has the 2.5 version. I just bought it new so there is no after market chip installed. There was a trial version of some sort of manager on the Behringer website that displayed the version number in the menu. I have no idea how to use that program, but it was useful for that purpose. lol. This midi stuff is so far over my head I'm not sure if I'll ever get anything to work, but it would be nice to know if I'm just dumb or my stuff is incompatible with each other. I have a midi Nektar keyboard that I plugged into the Focusrite and was actually able to get Bias Fx to recognize a couple of controls on the keyboard so I don't think Bias FX is the problem. I saw the soft version of the 1010 in the manager, but I couldn't figure out what to do with it. Is that loopMIDI driver a download on this site or where do I find it? Thanks again.

Mark van den Berg
Mark van den Berg's picture

I saw the soft version of the 1010 in the manager, but I couldn't figure out what to do with it. Is that loopMIDI driver a download on this site or where do I find it?

The loopMIDI driver can be downloaded from https://www.tobias-erichsen.de/software/loopmidi.html.
It provides any number of virtual MIDI devices. Such a virtual MIDI device functions like a kind of "pipe": applications can send MIDI messages to the "entrance" of the pipe (technically a MIDI output device), and receive MIDI messages from the "exit" of the pipe (technically a MIDI input device).

So to make FCB1010 Manager's Soft FCB1010 send data to Bias FX, you should act as follows:

  • In FCB1010 Manager: enable a loopMIDI device on the output tab of the "MIDI devices" dialog box, and set "MIDI output device for Soft FCB1010" in the "FCB1010 options" dialog box to the same device.
  • Make Bias FX listen to the MIDI input device associated with the same loopMIDI device.

Hope this helps,
   Mark.

Jimmylh
Jimmylh's picture

I don't know what I did, but I got at least part of it working with Bias FX2. I did a bunch of factory resets and nothing happened, but then I did a self diagnostic test that I found instructions for and for some strange reason, Bias FX2 started recognizing inputs from the 1010 and I was able to get the virtual wah pedal going. I also noticed I had to unplug the midi in cable to the fcb1010 to keep Bias FX from constantly getting the same inputs without touching any buttons on the fcb. There must have been some kind of feedback loop going. At least I feel confident now that the fcb1010 isn't defective.