Hi, I have a Korg Microkey (the newer version) plugged in as a MIDI keyboard controller for the organelle.
Seemingly at random, the MIDI controller will stop working with the Organelle, as in note presses on the controller will not result in notes being played. When the controller becomes unresponsive the octave adjust lights will lock up as well.
Whenever this happens, going to Info shows that the Organelle sees the controller. It lists “Microkey2” under MIDI anytime the Korg is plugged in, regardless of whether the controller is actually working or not.
When the keyboard controller stops working, the hardware keys on the organelle continue to work.
Hitting Reload does not fix the problem.
Unplugging and replugging the keyboard controller while a patch is loaded does not fix the problem.
Changing patches does not fix the problem.
Ejecting and reloading the USB drive does not fix the problem.
The MIDI channel on the Korg is set to 1, which matches the Organelle
So far, the only reliable way I have found to get the Microkey to start working again once it stops working is to do this:
Go to Info
With Info screen visible, unplug and replug the controller
Load a patch, everything works as normal until the keyboard controller randomly stops working again, usually within a few minutes of the fix. Switching patches frequently seems to exacerbate the issue, but I’m still troubleshooting.
Obviously, this makes it hard to use the Organelle in a live performance setting, and I’m starting to think it’s an OS issue rather then an issue with the keyboard controller. Has anyone had similar reliability issues with the Microkey 2? Is this a known issue? Any recommendations or fixes?
Update. I can consistently re-create the problem by loading the Punchy patch. As soon as the patch is loaded it will immediately break the keyboard controller not just for the Punchy patch, but for all patches until I take the Info screen steps listed above. It appears the keyboard controller is not useable with Punchy at all, which would be fine if it was isolated to that one patch, but’s affecting the functionality of the whole unit!
Anyone have a different USB MIDI keyboard controller they can test on this problem to see if this is isolated to the Korg? Plug in the keyboard, make sure it works on a patch other then Punchy (Analog style consistently works for me), then load Punchy and see if the controller stops working.
I’ve found additional patches that appear to break the Korg Micokey. Here’s a list of incompatible patches we can keep updated:
Punchy
Steppy Delay
I’ve also updated the original post to reflect new information: restarting the organelle does indeed fix the problem and get everything working normally.
It appears the Korg is being caused to crash somehow by certain patches. Unplugging/replugging the Korg (which removes power and restarts the Korg) does not fix the problem, even when you switch to a known working patch on the Organelle before plugging the controller back in. The only fixes remain the Info screen unplug/replug fix, or a complete restart, neither of which is practical in a live performance setting. SO WEIRD.
Someone with a different keyboard controller testing this problem would still be helpful, to see if this is isolated to just my controller. Even someone testing a different Microkey 2 would be helpful, maybe I just have a bad one? I’ve had some inconsistent results with MIDI using this particular unit with Logic Pro as well.
Re send/receive, I’m using USB MIDI, no conversion cable from analog midi just straight USB to USB. Shouldn’t that mean that both sending and receiving is possible over the same cable? The Korg Kontrol software you use to edit MIDI channels and CC settings has a “write” setting, which leads me to think the Korg receives that info from the software via MIDI rather then a dedicated USB chip. But, I dunno…the exact chipsets and protocols being used are outside of my area of expertise, and the Korg owners manual doesn’t get into that information either. I can tell you there are only 2 ports on the Microkey 2, a TS jack for a foot switch, and a USB jack for MIDI.
I don’t have another USB midi controller I can try right now but that’s a good idea.
I’ve been hearing things about the microkey not working well on a fundamental level with MacOS, and that Apple and Korg are working on the problem, but it’s all just rumors. My micro key has the same issue when connecting to an iMac over USB and trying to work with Logic…anyone else having desktop computer MIDI issues with micro keys?