How to hack Rekordbox for using the jogwheels of any controller (almost)

[TeoTormo]

Mod Edit: Teo figured out how to make this happen and published an article here on Hispasonic (spanish-only) detailing the full instructions. DJTT also did an English writeup here on the blog, check them both out!

I want to share this information because I almost hacked Rekordbox for using any jogwheel from any DJ controller, but I'm stuck at some point and maybe someone know how to complete it.
Well, as many of you must know, Rekordbox allow to midi map any controller and almost any function, but the jogwheels functions are right now "restricted" and the only way to use jogwheels is connecting one of the officially supported controllers from Pioneer. Well, I have managed a way in macOS to hack Rekordbox and make the program think that a Pioneer controller is connected, so, you can send jogwheel data from other controller and use functions like scratch, search and pitchbend from there. Maybe I will write it with some inaccurate instructions because my macOS is in Spanish and I'm going to translate the steps and menus to English as I suppose that may appear in English macOS.
It's pretty simple, just open the Audio/Midi Setup Utility and change the name of the IAC virtual MIDI driver from macOS, to do that just open Window/Show MIDI Studio, and change the name of the virtual device to the name of some Pioneer class compliant controller that is officially supported. It is better to use a class compliant name device because that way Rekordbox does not check if the driver is installed and working. You can see a list of all the name of the supported devices if you right click on the icon of the Rekordbox app and select "Show content of the package" and then navigate to "Resources" folder, there you will see all the mappings from the Pioneer devices with the name they are recognized in Rekordbox. The better ones that worked for me are PIONEER DDJ-ERGO and PIONEER DDJ-WeGO3. It is very important to rename the IAC virtual driver using exact name and exact upper and lower cases. It the midi ports of the device, delete "Bus IAC 1" and leave the port without name.
Now, Rekordbox will startup and believe that a officially supported controller is connected. Now you have to route the MIDI messages of your "real" controller to the virtual "fake" device, for that you can use a free app like MIDI Patchbay (google that...). Once both devices are routed, you have to change the original mapping of the device Rekorbox thinks you are using and insert the MIDI messages your controller is really sending. Go to the mappings folder of Rekordbox (I have explained where they are some lines up) and edit the .csv file of the device name you decided to use. You can use Excel or Numbers for that. If you look carefully the file, you will quickly find the lines that define the jogwheels control, the only problem is that MIDI messages are expressed in hex, if you don't know how to write in hex the common MIDI CC, just use the MIDI mapping window of Rekordbox and using the learn function write down the hex comands that appear there when you touch or move the controls of your controller.
I have managed with a VCI-100 to pitchbend, and to stop a track touching the jogwheels, but the scratch was horrible because I just managed to make slow movements. Tried different things during some days but was not able to finetune that. At the end of the .csv files there are some options for the jog control, but can't find how they work. Maybe someone could find a definitive way to do it.
Good luck.

[SlayForMoney]

Nice work! Several years ago this forum was very much about workarounds and hacks, that spirit has somehow diminished recently and I'm glad to see some people are still trying.

[TeoTormo]

Well, I have completed the thing. I've found how Pioneer jogwheels behave and with the help of MIDI Translator Pro finally completed the thing. I will upload a video later with a proof of concept.

[Hippie]

Good work

Sounds a bit like the old TSP regedit trick to fool doze into believing a qualifying piece of hardware is connected.

[TeoTormo]

Finally I have published an article at Hispasonic.com with the details of how to make the hack, there is also a video with the results. The article is in Spanish, but MIDI and maths are international languages. Here you have it:
https://www.hispasonic.com/tutoriale...trolador/42873

[electroshock]

Can this be done with two separate platters like Behringer pl1?

[TeoTormo]

Sure, electrshock. But I don't know if the PL1 has capacitive feature in the jog.

[electroshock]

Site says it is touch sensitive.
https://www.music-group.com/Categori...D-PL-1/p/P0AJF

[nem0nic]

But I don't know if the PL1 has capacitive feature in the jog.

It does. Default platter turn message is Bc 1F y, where c is the MIDI channel and y is the messaging from the platter. The platter uses a relative CC message (3Fh/41h in Traktor).

The touch on message is 9c 1F 7F and off is 8c 1F 00, where c is the MIDI channel.

MIDI channel can be changed by using the paging function OR using the channel change utility.

[TeoTormo]

It does. Default platter turn message is Bc 1F y, where c is the MIDI channel and y is the messaging from the platter. The platter uses a relative CC message (3Fh/41h in Traktor).

The touch on message is 9c 1F 7F and off is 8c 1F 00, where c is the MIDI channel.

MIDI channel can be changed by using the paging function OR using the channel change utility.

That was great, that's all the needed data.