In this article, we explain how to set your MASCHINE hardware to control an external MIDI device (e.g. hardware synthesizer or sound module) and also software instruments on your computer.
For this setup, you'll need a 5-pin MIDI cable, a direct USB connection to your computer, and a third-party MIDI routing app.
This feature is available on all MASCHINE controllers except MASCHINE MIKRO MK1 / MK2 / MK3 and MASCHINE JAM since these devices are not equipped with 5-Pin MIDI ports.
Important: This article links to third-party tools which are not related to Native Instruments. These have been tested but we can not fully guarantee their functionality on all computers.
Follow these steps for macOS or Windows to output MIDI from the MASCHINE USB and 5-Pin MIDI ports simultaneously.
macOS
Follow these steps to configure the MASCHINE controller with MIDI Patchbay.
- Go to the Mac App Store to download the latest version of MIDI Patchbay (or download the app for older macOS versions from here).
- Launch MIDI Patchbay.
Note: Read this article if you get an error message when trying to open MIDI Patchbay.
- For MIDI Input, select the Virtual MASCHINE device listing.
- For MIDI Output, select the Non-Virtual MASCHINE device.
Windows
Follow these steps to configure the MASCHINE controller with MIDI-OX on Windows.
- Download and install MIDI OX.
- Double click the MIDI OX app (midioxse.exe) to open it.
Note: Click Yes to allow Windows User Account Control to run MIDI-OX if prompted.
- Select Options > MIDI Devices in the menu bar.
- Under MIDI Inputs, select the Virtual MASCHINE device listing.
- Under MIDI Outputs, select the Non-Virtual MASCHINE device listing.
- Click OK when finished.
MASCHINE Hardware Connections
- Verify that your MASCHINE controller is connected to the computer via USB.
- Connect a 5-pin MIDI cable from the MASCHINE controller (MIDI Out) to your external MIDI device (MIDI In).
Your MASCHINE controller will now control the external MIDI synthesizer and software instruments over the 5-Pin and USB MIDI Ports, respectively.