Help Index

MousePlayer 2.1 Help Index

For information on how to use Help, press F1 or choose Using Help from the Help menu.

Introduction

What is MousePlayer?

Keyboard

MousePlayer Keys

Procedures

Getting Started

Changing the Output Device

Changing the MIDI Channel

Changing the Sound (Program Number)

Changing the Note Velocity

Changing the Chord

Changing the Note View Mode

Changing the Note Bending Mode

Attaching a WAV File to a Key

Miscellaneous

License Agreement


Introduction - What is MousePlayer?

MousePlayer is a screen representation of a piano keyboard.

It can play through the internal speaker in the PC, or it can play sounds using the Windows Multimedia Extensions if you have a sound card or an external MIDI sound generator.

MousePlayer is very useful for setting up the MIDI Mapper, it lets you audition the sounds on a sound card or MIDI sound module, and it can be fun to just bang on little melodies.

-----------------

Related Topics

Getting Started


Keyboard

MousePlayer Keys

Use the following keys in MousePlayer.

Key(s)	Function

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Up	Increments the program number (Sound / Instrument Tone).

Down	Decrements the program number.

Page Up	Increments the program number by 10.

Page Down	Decrements the program number by 10.


Procedures

MousePlayer Procedures

The Procedure topics give you step-by-step instructions for using MousePlayer.

For information on how to use Help, press F1 or choose Using Help from the Help menu.

Getting Started

Changing the Output Device

Changing the MIDI Channel

Changing the Sound (Program Number)

Changing the Note Velocity

Changing the Chord

Changing the Note View Mode

Changing the Note Bending Mode

Attaching a WAV File to a Key


Getting Started

When MousePlayer is running, you should see a representation of a piano keyboard.  Clicking on a piano key will generate sound through the PC speaker.  The arrows on the left and right of the piano keyboard shift the range of octaves that can be played.

Above the piano keyboard are buttons that let you change settings for the output device, the type of sound played, etc.  Click and hold on a button and you will see a drop-down menu with the possible choices for that setting.  The Procedures section describes the buttons and how to change settings.

----------------------

Related Topics

Procedures


Changing the Output Device

You can play notes through the internal PC speaker, through a sound card, or through an external MIDI device with MousePlayer.

Click and hold on the left most button above the piano keyboard.  It has a label of out: and displays the currently selected output device.  Depending on the size of your screen, the current selection will be shown as a single character or as a long description.

A menu will appear with Internal PC Speaker as the first entry.  If the MIDI Mapper is installed, it will appear as the second item.  The installed MIDI ports will follow.  Select the port you would like to play through.

Many sound cards are compatible with the original Ad Lib card, and you will see an entry for the Ad Lib.  The Ad Lib driver included with Windows will play instrument sounds on channels 1-15, and drum sounds on channel 16.  The instrument sounds (programs) are mapped to the General MIDI program numbers.

Usually you will want to use the MIDI Mapper as the output device.  It allows you to map a device's programs to the standard General MIDI program numbers.  It also lets you map drum sounds to the right keys.

Selecting a direct device sends untranslated program change and note data to the device.

----------------------

Related Topics

Changing the Sound (Program Number)

Procedures


Changing the MIDI Channel

MIDI devices respond to channels much like the channel selector on a TV.

Click and hold on the button above the piano keyboard with the ch: label.  A menu will appear with selections for all 16 MIDI channels.  Select the channel that you wish to play on.

After selecting a new channel, the program number on the MIDI device will not be changed immediately.  This allows you to audition the currently selected sound on the new channel.  Select a new sound, or switch to another Windows program, and then back to MousePlayer to cause a program change to be sent on the current channel.

----------------------

Related Topics

Changing the Sound (Program Number)

Procedures


Changing the Sound (Program Number)

MIDI allows you to select from a range of 128 sounds.  These sounds are referenced by number.  In the early days of MIDI there where no standards for what sound was called up by a program number.  Now we have General MIDI which assigns specific sounds to program numbers.  The MIDI Mapper can translate program numbers so that a MIDI device can properly respond to General MIDI program change messages.

Click and hold on the button above the piano keyboard with the pgm: label.  Depending on the size of your screen, the current selection will be shown as a program number or as a program number and the General MIDI name for the sound.  A menu will appear with eight groups of sounds.  Select a group, and a sub-menu will appear with selections for that group.  When a sound is selected, a Program Change message will be sent to the currently selected MIDI device.

If you have trouble getting to the sub-menus, try pulling the mouse down to the group that contains the desired sound and release the mouse button.  This will display the sub-menu and you can simply click on the sound, or you can click on different group to display a new sub-menu.

If you're playing to the PC Speaker, this setting has no effect.

----------------------

Related Topics

Changing the Output Device

Procedures


Changing the Key Velocity

Changing the Note Velocity

MIDI instruments transmit information about how hard a note was pressed or played.  This information is transmitted as part of a Note On message and is called the Velocity.  MousePlayer transmits notes with your selected Velocity level.

Click and hold on the button above the piano keyboard with the vel: label.  A menu will appear with all 127 velocity levels.  Select the desired velocity setting.

Different MIDI devices and instrument sounds respond differently to velocity levels.  Some sounds change their character with different levels, some sounds will change in volume, and some sounds will not change at all.

If you're playing to the PC Speaker, this setting has no effect.

----------------------

Related Topics

Procedures


Changing the Chord

MousePlayer can play chords instead of single notes when a piano key is pressed.

Click and hold on the button above the piano keyboard with the chord: label.  A menu will appear with selections for different chords.  Select the desired chord.

Try the Octave setting with Chromatic Percussion sounds.  Guitar players often play power chords (5th's) with distorted or overdriven tones.  Select the Power setting, and try this classic rock riff:  E1, G1, A1 ... E1, G1, A#1, A1 ... E1, G1, A1 ... G1, E1.

If you're playing to the PC Speaker, only a single note can be played.

----------------------

Related Topics

Procedures


Changing the Note View Mode

Click and hold on the button above the piano keyboard and to the left of the button with the bend: label.  A menu will appear with selections for the Note View mode.  Select the desired mode.

Always - shows the note under the cursor whenever the cursor is over a piano key.

Pressed - shows the note name when a piano key is pressed.

Never - doesn't show the note name under any condition.

----------------------

Related Topics

Procedures


Changing the Note Bending Mode

You can change the pitch of a sound by dragging the cursor to the left or right of the original piano key clicked on.  This is called bending a note, and is a common technique for guitar players and synthesists like Jan Hammer (theme for Miami Vice) and Herbie Hancock.

Click and hold on the button above the piano keyboard with the bend: label.  A menu will appear with selections for the Note Bending Mode.  Select the desired mode.

Bend Up or Down - Allows notes to be bent up or down.

Bend Up Only - Allows notes to be bent up only.

Bend Down Only - Allows notes to be bent down only.

No Note Bending - Bending is not allowed.  Use this mode when you want to be a little sloppy with mouse movements without causing notes to be bent.

The range of note bending is controlled by the MIDI device.  Some devices allow the bend range to be configured, while others do not.

If you're playing to the PC Speaker, notes cannot be bent.

----------------------

Related Topics

Procedures


Attaching a WAV File to a Key

You can attach WAV files to keys and play the sounds just as if they are musical notes.

Hold down the CONTROL and SHIFT keys and click on the piano key the WAV file will be attached to.  A dialog box will appear that allows you to select and control how the sound file will be played.  If your sound card supports left and right volume control, you can control the placement of the sound in the stereo field.

You can also Drag and Drop a WAV file on a key.  The same dialog box will appear, and the Play WAV File option will automatically be checked.

Close the dialog box, and you will be able to play the WAV sound file.  Playing the key again while the sound is still playing will cut off the previous sound.  You can use this as a stutter or rap style scratching effect.

----------------------

Related Topics

Procedures


MousePlayer License Agreement Information

Copyright © 1994 Turtle Beach Systems.

Copyright © 1988-1994 Donald F. Stegall.  All Rights Reserved.

Copyright © 1988-1994 Playroom Software.  All Rights Reserved.

MousePlayer was developed for Turtle Beach Systems by Playroom Software.

The use of MousePlayer is covered by your Turtle Beach software license agreement.  MousePlayer is copyrighted property belonging to Playroom Software, and may only be used per the terms of the license agreement.  Any other use is a violation of United States Federal Copyright laws.


Terms


Drop-down list box

A single line list box that opens to display a list of choices.  Use the up or down arrows to make a selection, or press the down arrow with the mouse and click on an item in the list.