INITIAL SETUP OF THE BEHRINGER FCB1010
There are a lot of powerful features that the FCB1010 offers, but I tend to keep things fairly simple and don't use everything. I will list the various settings that I used to get the FCB1010 working with the TC Electronic G-Major.
Direct Select: This feature is configured in the Global Setup. It determines how you will be using the footswitches on the FCB1010 to select presets. There are two modes that it offers:
1. ON - With Direct Select turned ON, you can type in the number of the preset you want and it will directly jump to that preset. For instance, if you want Preset 124, you press 1, then 2, then 4. This would require pressing a total of three switches:
2. OFF - With Direct Select turned OFF, you would use the Bank Up/Down switches to scroll through the presets in groups of 10, then select the number of the preset you want. For instance, if you want to select Preset # 53, you would press the Bank Up button until Bank 05 is displayed, then press switch number 3.
Whichever method you use is up to you. I only use a few presets (1-10), therefore I have Direct Select turned off.
Behringer FCB1010 Calibration Routine: This simply calibrates the electronics within the FCB1010 to ensure accurate operation of the expression pedals. This has NO EFFECT on external devices. I would recommend running this right away as you want to be sure that you are sending the proper MIDI values from your expression pedals.
1. Keep pedal 1 and 3 pressed while switching on the unit. The unit is in self-test-mode now. LEDs are testing.
2. Wait until all pedal LEDs are done testing. Push all pedals now (one at a time, including up and down) until all of the LEDs are turned off.
3. Wait until relay test is finished.
4. Press the down-button once.
5. Adjust the left expression pedal (A) to the lowest value. Once adjusted press UP
6. Adjust the left expression pedal (A) to the highest value. Once adjusted press UP
7. Adjust the right expression pedal (B) to the lowest value. Once adjusted press UP
8. Adjust the right expression pedal (B) to the highest value. Once adjusted press UP
The expression pedals are now calibrated and there should be a MIDI value of 0-127 for each of the expression pedals. NOTE: Even thought they are now calibrated to the proper values, they DO NOT send out MIDI data yet. The expression pedals now need to be 'turned on' within each preset.
Enabling the FCB1010 Expression Pedals: In order to do this, you need to refer to the Detailed PRESET Programming section in the manual, specifically section 2.4.3. Basically what you are doing here is telling the FCB1010 that when I want to call up Preset # XXX, the expression pedals should be turned on. Personally, I think they should be on at all times, but I'm sure there's a reason that Behringer designed it this way.
Copying Presets within the Behringer FCB1010: What I would recommend is call up Preset # 01, enable both of the expression pedals, save the settings, then copy Preset # 1 to Presets #2, Preset #3, etc.. Again, this is a matter of personal preference, but it does save a lot of time down the road.
1. Activate CONFIG in the GLOBAL SETUP (see chapter 2.2 of the manual).
2. Press footswitch 5 to activate the copy function (The VALUE 1 LED lights up and the number in the display starts flashing)
3. Enter the number of the preset you wish to copy and confirm your selection with UP/ENTER (The VALUE 2 LED lights up and the number in the display starts flashing.)
4. Enter the target preset and confirm your selection with UP/ENTER, or cancel with DOWN/ESCAPE.
5. If you want to copy further presets, please press footswitch 5 again.
6. Press and hold DOWN/ESCAPE to quit the GLOBAL SETUP.
Once these steps have been completed, you should be ready to connect to the G-Major Guitar Processor.
SETTING UP THE TC ELECTRONIC G-MAJOR FOR MIDI CONTROL
There are two features in the MIDI/IO Menu on the G-Major that will enable your FCB1010 (or other controllers) to communicate with your G-Major.
1. MIDI Channel: First and foremost, the G-Major has to be able to communicate with the FCB1010 Controller. You can change the MIDI Channel that the FCB1010 is sending MIDI data on as long as you set the G-Major to the same channel in the as the G-Major. Personally, I would simply set the G-Major's MIDI channel to 'OMNI' which will receive everything you send it. This way, you can accidentally change the MIDI channel on the FCB1010 (or any other controller) and it'll still respond to MIDI commands.
2. MIDI Program Change: This MUST also be turned on for the G-Major to respond to external controllers (FCB1010). A lot of people miss this step.
At this point, you should be able to change presets on the G-Major with your FCB Controller. Make sure this is working before you proceed any further.
CHANGING PRESETS: In the MIDI/UTIL Menu on the G-Major, there is a Program Bank option that allows you to determine which bank of presets you wish to use. There are 100 Factory presets in the G-Major. These CAN NOT be edited! User presets are blank and can be edited and saved for future use. If you want to make changes to a factory preset, you can edit it, then save it to a User preset. The G-Major allows you to select presets within either the Factory presets, User presets, or both. Here are the options as they show up in the G-Major's MIDI/UTIL Program Bank menu:
1. Factory: Allows you to select only factory preset from an external controller. This works fine if you like the factory presets and don't need to make any changes to the presets.
2. User: Allows you to select only saved User presets. I use this option as I prefer to customize all of my presets.
3. Custom: Allows you to select between Factory or User presets.
Decide which group of presets you wish to use and select the appropriate option within the Program Bank menu.
USING THE FCB1010 EXPRESSION PEDALS: Within the G-Major, you can assign up to four Modifiers. A Modifier is an external controller that can control various effects parameters. In this case, we'll use the two expression pedals on the FCB1010 as Modifiers. The left expression pedal will be MOD 1 and the right expression pedal will be MOD 2. Here's how you set them up.
1. On the G-Major, press the MOD menu button.
2. Select MOD 1 using the CONTROL PARAMETER wheel.
3. Turn the inner EDIT wheel clockwise and you'll see your control options, which are OFF, LEARN, PEDAL, and CC1-128. Select the LEARN option.
4. Press ENTER and the display will begin blinking "LEARNING". This means that you are in LEARN mode and you can automatically assign your Modifier.
5. Move the left expression up and down. The "LEARNING" indicator will disappear. The G-Major has now automatically recognized your left expression pedal as MOD 1.
6. Repeat Steps 1-5, except select MOD 2 instead and move the right expression pedal during the LEARNING mode. Your right controller is now assigned as MOD 2.
Once you have completed these steps, you can assign either pedal to effects parameters within the G-Major. These settings are Global, meaning that they are present within all presets in the G-Major.
ASSIGNING THE FCB1010 EXPRESSION PEDALS TO PARAMETERS IN THE G-MAJOR: This section covers setting up the expression pedals to control various effects parameters (ie: Chorus speed, Reverb levels, Delay time, etc.)
NOTE: Only effects parameters for the 'activated' effects can be assigned. In other words, you must have the CHORUS effect button enabled if you wish to control Chorus parameters within a preset.
1. On the G-Major, press the MOD menu button. The display will show you MOD 1, 2 ,3 or 4. Do not worry about what is displayed here! This just lets you know that you are in the proper Modifier menu.
2. Press ENTER. At this point, you will see a list of the various effects parameters that can be modified. In the menu display, you will see the effect listed on the right, and the effects value on the right.
3. Scroll through the various effects parameters using the PARAMETER wheel until you find the effects parameter that you want to control.
4. Use the inner VALUE knob to scroll through the various controllers that are available. Select M1 for Modifier 1 (left expression pedal). Press ENTER.
You have now assigned your left expression pedal to control the desired effects parameter. You can repeat this step, except using M2 (Modifier 2) for the right expression pedal.
Also, the controller assignment settings made here are unique to each preset and will need to be initialized for each preset within the G-Major. If you copy a preset, these settings will be copied as well. My suggestion is to set up a generic preset to use as a template for all presets, copy it to all of your other presets within the G-Major, then modify each individual preset as desired.
