Table of Content

Overview

We take pride in making the device one of the easiest-to-use programmable MIDI controllers in the market. If there is any questions you have using the device, please do not hesitate to drop us an email at help@morningstarfx.com.

Version

Saving the manual as PDF

There is an icon at the top right of the page. Clicking on it will bring out a menu with an option to export the page as a PDF document.

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Glossary

Important things to note

Editing your presets in the editor

Make sure you are in Editor mode. Press Switch [C + D] to enter editor mode or click the Toggle Edit Mode button on the editor.

Entering Edit Menu

Press Switch [D + F] in the main preset page. The last used preset, expression pedal input and bank will be displayed in the menu.

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Design and Architecture

The MC6 MKII is a fully programmable MIDI controller, capable of controlling up to 16 MIDI devices per switch.

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Each bank can display up to 6 presets, of which all are accessible from the 6 switches. The other 6 presets can be engaged via dual switch presses or external aux controllers. A Page Toggle function is also available to switch between the first 6 presets and the last 6 presets.

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Hardware Overview

Powering the MC6

Your MC6 MKII device can be powered via the following methods

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Connect a USB cable to the MC6. The MC6 is capable of being fully powered by USB.

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Connections

Information on all the inputs and outputs on the MC6.

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Midi In/Receive

This is where the MC6 receives MIDI messages from other MIDI devices.

The MC6 passes incoming MIDI messages via the MIDI In/Receive port out to the USB port, and vice versa.

Midi Out/Send/Thru

This is where MIDI data is sent from the MC6 to other devices. You can use a standard 5-pin MIDI cable, or a 7-pin one if you want to power the MC6 with phantom power. The MC6 also has MIDI THRU, which allows incoming MIDI messages to be relayed to other MIDI-capable devices.

USB port

The MC6 can also send and receive MIDI data via USB, allowing you to have control over your DAWs and music software. It is class compliant and compatible with Windows, macOS, Android and iOS.

The MC6 passes incoming MIDI messages via the MIDI In/Receive port out to the USB port, and vice versa.

EXP 1 & 2

Connect your expression pedals to these ports. You may also connect aux switches to add more programmable switches to the MC6.

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Using External Aux Switches

You can connect an external Aux switch to your MC6 to control Presets G - L.

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If you would like to build one yourself, you can refer to the following schematic:

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Using Expression Pedals

The MC6 works best with Expression pedals fitted 10k - 25k linear potentiometers. The potentiometer wiper should be connected to the Tip of the stereo cable, while the Ring and Sleeve should be connected to the outer lugs on the potentiometer.

When connecting a new Expression pedal, be sure to calibrate it first by going into the Edit menu (Switch D+F), selecting Exp1 or Exp2 and then Calibrte.

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Global Configuration Menu

To access the Controller Settings Menu, hold down Switch D before powering up the MC6. This menu allows you to edit the global settings for the device.

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The display will indicate that it is booting into the configuration page, and the menu below will be displayed:

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Factory Reset - Reset

To do a factory reset, hold down for 2 seconds. The MC6 will show that it is performing a factory reset.
All user presets and settings will be reset to factory default when a reset is done.

Set MIDI Channel - MidiCh

Set the MIDI receive channel for the MC6. The MC6 can receive and respond to messages from external midi controllers.
Press Switch A or B to increase or decrease the MIDI channel respectively.

Press (Save) to save your settings and (Exit) to exit.

Change Expression Input - ExpInpt

Change Expression Input Type and select between Aux Switch, Expression or Fixed Sw 1 Setting.

• Aux Switch: Use a stereo cable to connect to an external aux switch to control more presets.

• Expression: Connect an expression pedal via a stereo cable (Tip connected to wiper) to engage the expression preset.

• Fixed Sw 1: Similar to the aux switch, but the functions are hard-coded to control the Bank Up, Bank Down and Toggle Page functions without sacrificing any presets.

Switch Sensitivity - SwSens

Set switch sensitivity. Choose from 1 (least sensitive) to 5 (most sensitive). Pressing Switch A+B together will select 2, while B+C will select 4.

By default, this is set to 3 and should be comfortable for most users. Depending on personal taste, you may adjust sensitivity to help you bank up/down (by stepping on 2 switches at once) more accurately. More sensitive means that the lag between the time when a message is sent out and when the switch is pressed it at its minimum.

Change Page - Pg(1/2)

Access more options in the Main Configuration Menu by changing the page.

Bank Display Time - BnkTime

This setting adjusts the amount of time the bank details will show when the bank is changed.

The value displayed is in milliseconds.

Bank Change Time - BnkChgDelay

This setting adjusts the time it takes to load the next bank when the bank is changed.

The value displayed is in milliseconds.

MIDI Clock - MidiClk

The MIDI clock setting toggles the persistent MIDI clock function ON and OFF. This setting is related to the MIDI Clock message under MIDI Types. If persistent MIDI is ON, the MIDI Clock message will continue sending a MIDI clock signal when engaged, even when engaging other presets or scrolling through banks. However, if persistent MIDI is OFF, the MIDI clock signals will shut off when an event (like a switch press or expression pedal move) is triggered.

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General Usage

Changing Banks

Step on Switches [A + B] together to bank down and Switches [B + C] to bank up. There are a total of 30 banks on the MC6 MKII.

Bank Changes can also be executed by programming a Bank Change function to a preset, or by using an External Aux Switch.

Switch and Display Names

Each switch corresponds to the display name closest to it. Pressing Switch [A] activates Preset A, switch [B] activates Preset B and so forth.

Mapping Actions to Midi Types

The MC6 MKII allows you to map actions taken on the switches to MIDI Types and functions. For example, you can map a CC#1 message to a Press action, and a CC#2 message to a Release action. When the switch is pressed, a CC#1 message will be sent, and when the switch is released, a CC#2 messages will be sent. There is a list of actions available to you.

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More information can be found in the Action Glossary.

MIDI Thru

The MC6 MKII can be programmed to pass incoming MIDI signals from the MIDI IN port to the MIDI OUT port. It can also pass CC, PC and Note messages thru to the USB port. The MC6 MKII will also pass incoming CC, PC and Note MIDI signals from the USB MIDI port to the MIDI OUT port.

You can toggle this setting on and off by pressing Switches [A + F] together.

Editing Presets

Both the Switch Presets and Expression Presets on the device can be edited via the on-board editing functions or the Web/Desktop Editor.

Coping and Pasting Presets

The device allows copying and pasting of presets into different

Dual Switch Functions

The MC6 MKII makes use of dual switch combination to carry out certain functions.

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Editing the MC6

The MC6 MKII can be programmed on the device itself, or by using the Web/Desktop Editor.

Edit Menu

On a new controller, all switches are initially labelled as EMPTY. It is up to you to decide exactly what each one will do.

To enter the Edit Menu

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1. Press the switch you wish to program

2. Press Switches [D + F] together. This will take you the the Edit Menu shown below.

Edit Menu

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After pressing Switches [D + F], the Edit menu will be displayed. The preset and expression you last used will be displayed, as well as the bank you are currently on.

Press Switch D to edit the preset, Switch E to edit the expression preset, or Switch F to edit the bank.

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Programming Presets

Preset Edit Menu (Page 1)

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Msg - Edits the 16 Midi Messages available in the preset.

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(Pg 1/3) - Shows the current page in the menu. Press to go the next page.

(Exit) - Exits the menu.

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Preset Edit Menu (Page 2)

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ShrtNme (Short Name) - Edits the preset short name. Look at Editing Names for more information on how to edit any names in the MC6.

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(Pg 2/3) - Shows the current page in the menu. Press to go to the next page.

(Exit) - Exits the menu.

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Preset Edit Menu (Page 3)

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Toggle - Toggles between On and Off for the preset toggle setting. If On, each time the preset is engaged, the toggle position of the preset will change. The Midi Messages in the preset will rely on the toggle position of the preset to determine if it should be invoked.

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(Pg 3/3) - Shows the current page in the menu. Press to go to the next page.

(Exit) - Exits the menu.

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Editing Preset Messages

Selecting a Message to Edit

When you enter the Edit Msg interface, the screen above will show. In this screen, you can view the current Midi Type that is assigned to that message. It also indicates the current message that is selected for editing. Pressing Next will allow you to edit the selected message.

Edit Action

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The next menu allows you to select the action to assign to the message. Once selected, each time that action is carried out on the corresponding preset switch, only the messages assigned to that action will be invoked.

Edit Toggle Position

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The next menu allows you to edit the message toggle position. Select between On and Off. This allows only the messages that match the current preset toggle position to be invoked.

From firmware 3.2.1 onwards, this feature has changed to toggle positions 1, 2 and Both. Toggle position Both will have the message sent in both toggle positions.

Edit Type

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The next menu allows you to edit the Message Type. Scroll up and down to select the Midi Type that you want to be associated with the message. You can read about the full list of Midi Types available in the Glossary.

Edit Type Parameters

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Depending the Midi Type that is selected in the previous menu, unique parameter edit menus will be loaded. Edit your parameters and then press Save on the last page to save your settings.

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Setting up a Toggle Message

Setting up a toggle message is easy. On the editor, there is a toggle option on the top left of the interface. Switch it to On to enable toggling for the preset.

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How it works

Each preset on the MC6 allows you to toggle between two positions: 1 and 2. By default, the presets are on toggle position 1. If you switch the toggle position to ON, each time the preset is engaged, it will toggle to the other position (between 1 and 2).

Each message also has a position option, where it will be sent out only when the position of the message matches that of the preset. Hence, if you set Msg1 to be a PC message in Pos 1, and Msg2 to be a PC Message in Pos 2, and you have your toggle on for the preset, each press will toggle between Msg 1 and Msg 2.

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Toggle Name

When the preset is in position 1, the Short Name will be displayed. When the preset is in position 2, the Toggle Name will be displayed.

Blinking

To indicate that the preset is in position 2, you can also use the blink option, where if the blink option is set to On, the Toggle Name on the main page will blink when the preset is in position 2.

Using the built-in MC6 editor

After going into the preset edit menu, go to Page 3 of the menu. The Toggle button toggles between Toggle On and Toggle Off position for the preset, which the Blink button toggles between Blink On and Blink Off position for the preset.

When editing individual messages, there will be an option to select the toggle position for the message you are editing. Choose between position 1 or 2 accordingly.

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Editing Expression Messages

To edit expression messages, press switch D + F first, which will bring you to the edit page, and then select the expression option.

Expression Edit Menu (Page 1)

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The first page of the menu for editing Expression Messages are the same as that for editing Preset Messages.

Expression Edit Menu (Page 2)

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On the second page, you have the option to edit the Full Name, Sensitivity or calibrate your expression pedal.

Edit Full Name

When the expression pedal is being used, you have the option of displaying a Name for your expression preset. Simply edit and save the name to your expression preset. See Editing Names for more information after entering the FullName option in the Expression Edit Menu.

Calibrating your Expression Input

It is best to calibrate your expression pedal before use to get the optimum performance. Simply go into the Calibrate setting in your Expression Edit Menu. Once there, follow the instructions in the LCD. First set your expression pedal to a heel down position. Ideally, the value should be displayed as 0. Press Next. Next, set your expression pedal to a toe down position. Ideally, the value should be displayed as 127. Press Save to save your settings. Do not worry if you can get a value of 0 and 127 in both positions. Once your setting is saved, the MC6 will optimise the settings to get the most out of your expression pedal.

Setting your Expression sensitivity

Depending on the potentiometer value used in your expression pedal, you may have to edit the sensitivity to get optimum performance. We recommend using expression pedals with 10k potentiometers. The sensitivity setting is used mainly to remove jitters, where the value sent by the MC6 might bounce between 2 values very quickly.

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Editing Bank Settings

To enter the bank settings, press Switch D + F, which will bring you to the edit page, and then select the Bank option.

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Paste - Paste the previously copied bank to the current bank.

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Editing Names

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When editing any of the MC6 names like Preset Short Name, Toggle Name, Long Name, or Bank Name, this interface will be display on the screen.

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(Exit) - Exits the interface.

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MIDI Editor

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Connecting the device

Connect the device via USB to your computer and launch the editor in the latest version of Google Chrome (the Web Editor works on Google Chrome only).

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The editing parameters are similar to the on-board editing parameters.

Editing Functions

There are various controls on the top right panel of the editor (below the Bank and Preset number display) as well. You can toggle the page on the MC6, Bank up or down or copy and paste presets. You can also clear your preset settings by double clicking the Clear button. This also applies to the Clear button on the individual Messages, where the Clear button has to be double clicked.

Device Control Functions

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• Tg Preset: Toggles the Preset between Position 1 and Position 2

• Tg Page: Toggles the device page between 1 and 2 to load Preset A - F or G - L

• Bank Up / Bank Down: Bank up and down on the device

• Copy: Copy the Preset

• Paste: Paste the copied preset to a different selected preset

• Clear: Clear the Preset settings. This button has to be double-clicked

• Save Preset: Save the settings on the Editor to the device

Preset Editing Options

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• Toggle On/Off: Determines whether the preset should toggle it's toggle position each time it is engaged.

• Blink On/Off: Determines whether the preset name should blink when the preset is in toggle position 2.

Message Editing Options

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• Pos button: Determines if the message should be in Position 1, Position 2 or Both. For example, if Msg 1 is set to Pos 1, it will only engage when the Preset is in Position 1.

• Clear: Clears the message. This has to be doubled clicked.

• Copy: Copy the message

• Paste: Paste the earlier copied message to another message..

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Firmware Update

What to download

You'll need to use the Firmware Uploader software to upload the firmware to your device.

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Download the latest firmware here

Upload instructions

Open the Firmware Uploader

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The firmware should then begin uploading and should take only a couple of seconds. Once it is completed, your device will restart with the new firmware.

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Troubleshooting

In the rare event where your device upload is not successful, the device might appear to be bricked with blocks showing across the LCD screen. Do not worry and follow these steps:

1. Download the latest firmware from our website.

2. Remove the back cover for your device and locate the reset button. It is located on the underside of the circuit board, towards the lower left when facing the MC6 from the top.

3. While the device is connected to your computer via USB, and with the Firmware Uploader open, press the reset button location on the PCB.

4. Once pressed, the Firmware Uploader should detect the device. Thereafter, repeat the above upload procedure.

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MIDI Implementation

The MC6 MKII can respond to CC and PC messages from the USB MIDI port and MIDI IN port to execute specific functions. You can send PC or CC messages via an external MIDI controller or software to control the MC6 MKII functions specified below.

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PC Messages

PC messages will change the banks on the MC6 MKII, where a PC#0 message will engage Bank 1, and PC#1 message will engage Bank 2, and so on.

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CC Messages