Korg Nanokontrol modding. DIY Midi Fighter?

Korg Nanokontrol modding. DIY Midi Fighter?

Hi everybody,
here’s a little project i’ve in my head since a couple of weeks and wondering if possible/easy-to-do.
Basically i would like to use the nanoKontrol brain to build something like the attachment.
It’s just a re-organization of the nanoKontrol buttons, faders and knobs. I want a 4x4 section of buttons (hotcueing and stuff) and bigger faders and knobs. i think that a x-fader on the lower part of the controller can be great too…
Someone wants to post his experience with the nanoKontrol modding (i’m talking about electronic, not painting the front panel with permanent markers :smiley: ), issues encountred, experts advices and stuff before start?

(i’ve looked at the one using PCB to remap a keyboard to use with ableton, but I think that can be easier than that connecting the new buttons directly to the buttons contacts).

I’ll appreciate any kind of help/opinion, thanks!

I can’t help you with specifics, tho i would tell you to do the mod with the nanokontrol mk2, because on the first nano you cannot control the leds with midi (no midi feedback), where as on the mk2 you have the option of midi led feedback.

Do you mean the nanokontrol2? I don’t think there’s an mk2 version of that controller. That’s not a bad idea actually… A $60 brain with LED feedback… hmmmmm

Check out this mod for insight - http://fakemoneynyc.blogspot.com/2010/06/if-you-build-it-you-will-have-blown-at.html
It’s a very similar process you’ll go through. Good luck!

Hey there! Thanks for the answers,
that’s the PCB based project that i was talking about… I think that in this case the PCB thing is bypassable soldering directly to the button contacts… I’ll keep you updated :wink:

it’s not a big issue to not have light feedback for my purposes… i’m actually working on the first version, if it will work correctly i’ll try with the nanoKontrol 2
Thanks!

Hi, have you finished the controller? Also, which software did you use for the first picture of the design (template). Thanks.

For anyone looking for the link to the nano kontrol mod, here it is

http://fakemoneynyc.com/2010/06/02/if-you-build-it-you-will-have-blown-at-at-least-a-week-of-your-life/

Seems like a lot of messing around with that keyboard, better off just buying a usb keyboard IC from somewhere like farnell etc. Then there’s far less faffing around.

although why not just have a look at the midifighter classic hardware and expand on that? I suspect it wouldn’t be difficult to expand the firmware for 32/64 buttons and the hardware side of it would just be a couple of extra 74hc165 chips, the analog input on the classic firmware is via an mcp3004, that could be changed for a 3008 which would give 8 channels, I haven’t looked at how they work but I suspect you could add another one in there and address it easily enough. The only real issue would be select pins, i think there are about 5 unused pins on the at90usb162 used in the midifighter classic, however, in theory it should be entirely possible to compile a midifighter classic firmware for an atmega32u4 board which would give 4 more pins on top of the 5 unused ones, which would probably work out at about 72 extra ‘things’ to control midi with.


Cue points made with nano kontrol mk2 , Works great, with footswitch to delete cues on the fly.
my 2c