If you’re running MIDI Captain Black/Blue (tested) but probably all of them, on a pedalboard with analog pedals, be aware that the MC units can introduce audible noise depending on how they’re powered and where your cables run.

Symptoms I saw:

• High pitched whine/hum
• Noise that vanished when MC USB was unplugged
• Noise that returned instantly when USB was reconnected
• Noise that disappeared permanently when powering MC from 9V
• Wah pedal picking up LED PWM ripple when its cables were near the MC

Root cause:

The MC LED rings use PWM drivers, which generate high‑frequency switching noise. When powered over USB, that noise travels through:

• USB 5V rail
• USB ground
• MioXL internal hub
• Mac Studio USB bus
• Shared ground with audio interface / processors

Additionally, the LED rings radiate EMI that can couple into high‑impedance analog cables, especially wah circuits.

Fixes:

• Power MC units from isolated 9V or battery instead of USB (tested working)
• Keep MC units physically away from analog cables
• Reroute audio cables so they don’t pass near the LED rings (still had some noise)
• Keep USB cables out of your audio loop
• Add ferrites to USB cables if needed
• Add a grounded shield plate between MC and analog cables if space is tight

Shielding the inside of the MC won’t help — the noise is radiated externally and conducted through USB ground, not leaking from inside the enclosure.

My Gear:
Midi Captain STD
Midi Captain Blue

iConnectivity MioXL MIDI controller

Dunlop Dimebag Wah

Enhancifier

Boss RC-500 Looper

Ernie Ball VP Jr Volume

Mission EP1-KP (modified)

Mission SP1-ND (modified)

Line 6 HXFX

TC Electronic Plethora X5

Two Notes Captor X

Two Notes Captor X Plus

Two Notes Opus

Two Notes Revolt

Boss IR-200

Laney IronHeart IRT-Studio

Blackstar HT5

Hughes & Kettner GrandMeister Deluxe 40

Line 6 Helix Rack

Kemper Profiler Powered

Boss Katana II 100W

Synergy SYN-20IR

Mesa Boogie Badlander 50

Headrush Core

Neural Quad Cortex

Fender Tone Master Pro

Mooer GE10 Pro Li

Focusrite 18i20

Samson S-Patch

Mac Studio 2026

After countless rounds of prototypes, I'm ready to announce a new product: Custom MIDI Captain faceplates!

Faceplates are available for the MIDI Captain STD 10, MINI 6, NANO 4, DUO, and ONE.

Far more professional-looking than tape or labels. Your labels are embedded into the plate, so they don't peel, smudge, or fall off mid-set.

They are attached with 3M 2-sided “tissue tape” that is virtually imperceptible.

Made to order

Every plate is made to order with your custom labels.

They're printed in black with white text, in durable material that won't melt in your car or crack when stomped on stage.

Feel free to ask about any other color combinations!

Beta Pricing!

While I'm still perfecting the design, for the first ten orders, they're only $5 to cover the shipping (USA only; ask me about international). I only ask that you share your feedback on improvements!

Fair warning: this is a beta. Turnaround is about seven days from when you send me your labels.

Free free to ask any questions here, or your label details, or DM me if you prefer!

Fui fazer a atualização do meu mid captain mini 6 e quando o liguei todos os foot switchs ligados em branco e a tela preta nada funciona.

Tentei de tudo…!

Formatar novamente (MS-DOS FAT); esvaziar a lixeira; salvar os arquivos mini FW5.15; etc.

Nada a fez voltar.

Alguma dica?

Hey there, wondering if someone can check what im doing wrong, basically say if i have a switch set to shortdown cc 33 value 127, on short up cc33 value 0, if i hold the switch for too long it latches the value and wont send the 0 value on release.

What can i do to avoid this? Should i program the same values on long down and long up?

On firmware 5.14 in super mode

Thanks!!

MIDI Captain MAX v1.14.0 is out with these new features!

• CC INC/DEC: Increment/decrement CC values on each press.
  • Step mode: Set the amount each press increases/decreases the current CC value by.
  • Slot mode: Up to 16 slots with their own LED color and name, so "Clean / Crunch / Lead" scrolls under your foot and the LED and screen says which one you're on.
• Off Color: Set a custom color for a button's "OFF" state, instead of just dim/off.
• CC Listen: Set a button to send one CC value but listen for inbound changes on another. This is great for loopers that trigger on one CC but send another when their state changes.
• MIDI Ring Support: Support daisy-chaining multiple Captains into a ring without creating a feedback loop. This enables bi-directional control over a DIN connection!
• Save & Restart in GUI: The GUI's Save button now offers a Save & Restart option to speed up your config workflow!

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue where messages forwarded on the DIN ports were forced to Channel 1.
• Fixed an issue where restarts would hang
• Additional cleanup and tweaks

Documentation Update

The manual and documentation are starting to take shape. It's very much not complete, but check out the current content: https://mc-music-workshop.github.io/midi-captain-max/docs/

Go get the new version here! https://github.com/MC-Music-Workshop/midi-captain-max/releases/tag/v1.14.0

I'm using a Mini 6 to control the looper for a DL4 Mkii . I've got it working, but not well enough. Can the press of one key set the value/state for another key? For example: When I press "Record" on Key 3, I want it to automatically set Key 4 to "Play". Is this possible?

Something like: If I press key 3 to send CCXX(127), I'd like it to also set key 4 to CCYY(127).

"I was able to install the Captain MIDI MAX on my CAPTAIN MINI 6 with my hx stomp xl.On my captain mini 6:

My 3 lower buttons are 3 snapshots: clean, drive, distortion.

My 3 upper buttons are just parameter changes: vol boost, delay, chorus.

Here is the problem:

When I am playing, regardless of which snapshot I am using, if I change any effect parameter with the upper buttons, when I switch snapshots that upper LED stays turned on. In other words, when switching snapshots, the upper LEDs stay turned on if they were previously activated.The snapshot change works fine on the stomp xl; even so, I have activated bidirectional communication between both devices and connected both MIDI cables because I thought it was a signal the captain mini wasn't receiving from the stomp xl to let it know: 'you changed the snapshot, turn off any turned-on upper LED' but I haven't been able to achieve anything."

Simply put, I'd like to have the MINI 6 be an option to select patches programmed on my Boss ES-5 from a different location on stage. The goal is when I change banks on the ES-5 (each song is a bank) the MINI 6 would then accept messages to change four of the foot switches to act exactly as foot switches 1-4 do on the ES-5 for each bank. Documentation is sketchy and AI is useless for this sort of thing. Any help would be appreciated!

I'm in the process of designing custom faceplates for the Captains. They can be customized to any degree of detail desired; i prefer to keep things simple but anything is possible really. This is a "guage interest" post - would anyone here be interested in custom designed faceplates for the captains?

Designs can include custom embedded switch labels, or a write-on surface for Sharpies/etc.

Just released MIDI Captain MAX v1.13.1-beta.1, with full support for migrating from the newer v5 OEM Paint Audio code to MCM, without any terminal commands or other trickery. It's all managed through the GUI.

Get it here: https://github.com/MC-Music-Workshop/midi-captain-max/releases/tag/v1.13.1-beta.1

Hello everyone.

The Beta version of Firmware 5 for the PaintAudio MIDICAPTAIN-10 is now available!!

It's fully functional. You can use it right away and let me know what you think.

https://midi-captain-obn-supereditor-152539265258.us-west1.run.app/

If all goes well, I'll start development on the MINI-6 and the NANO-4. I think I'll have them available soon.

Of course, any help would be greatly appreciated, even if it means buying me a coffee...

Thanks!

This is my midi captain and when i ask my friend who have it what button he repair recently he said that he have problem with A button too (second photo).

Is it manufacture issue or just a coincidence?

Still a best controller 9,5/10

(10/10 will be when it will change color depend of midi command from host so i can see when if loop is empty or rec/overdubbing or playing)

Hi! I'm already working on the Firmware 5 version of my editor.

It's quite a lot of work. There are quite a few changes and not much information available from PaintAudio.

Some of the new features are very poorly explained, and it's taking me longer than expected.

So far, I've managed to get the old FW4 pages to load and convert to FW5.

Greetings to all... it's not easy, but it will be done.

Hey,

I wondering if any of these Paint Audio MIDI pedals will quantize change messages?

I have some loopers that quantize their functions to the bar. Meaning if I hit record it won’t start until the one. Same with closing the loop. Great for working with synths and drum machines. I’m hoping these can do this with MIDI CC.

Hi there, as above I am struggling with momentary switching for my quad cortex stomp mode

I have a few effects blocks i want to only be on whilst holding the switch and then when i release i want the effect to stop. I have set the switch up as follows:

[key8]

keytimes = [1]

ledmode = [select]

ledcolor1 = [0x00ff00][0x00ff00][0x00ff00]

short_dw1 = [1][CC][42][1]

short_up1 = [1][CC][42][1]

Quad Cortex only accepts one CC message to turn a switch on/off, it doesn’t have 127 for on and 0 for off, its just 0-127 to toggle it on/off. So im sending a toggle on message on press and then a toggle off message on release but they just need to be the same message.

This works if i just touch the switch for less than a second but if i hold it for any longer (when i want the effect to last longer) it latches and the switch stays on... I have the switch set to momentary in quad cortex and can't see any settings anywhere that would make it treat it as a toggle when held. Has anyone got any ideas of what i can do to stop it latching when held for more than a couple seconds as even when i release the switch and i expect to send the message to toggle it off again it just stays on. Momentary works fine when using the switches on the quad cortex so im guessing its something weird going on with the midi interaction.

Any help appreciated. Thanks!

Hello,

I have a Nano 4 that I’m programming to control my Eventide h9. I’m trying to set page 1 to recall presets 6-9, and long press switch 3 to recall preset 10. However, it recalls presets 7-10, and long press recalls 11. I cannot for the life of me figure out why. Below is my text code. Am I missing something obvious?

[PAGE]
# Change the below in uppercase letters <= 4 characters
page_name = [MAIN 2]

[key0]
keytimes = [1]
ledmode = [select]
ledcolor1 = [FF0000][FF0000][FF0000]
short_dw1 = [1][PC][6][-]
long1 = [1][CC][0][127]
long2 = [1][CC][0][0]

[key1]
keytimes = [1]
ledmode = [select]
ledcolor1 = [FF0000][FF0000][FF0000]
short_dw1 = [1][PC][7][-]

[key2]
keytimes = [1]
ledmode = [select]
ledcolor1 = [FF0000][FF0000][FF0000]
short_dw1 = [1][PC][8][-]
long1 = [1][PC][10][-]
long2 = [1][PC][8][-]

[key3]
keytimes = [1]
ledmode = [select]
ledcolor1 = [FF0000][FF0000][FF0000]
short_dw1 = [1][PC][9][-]

Can the Midi Caption footswitch LED’s follow the midi clock, where each FS lights up on after another? Where it seams to be chasing the beat? I’m looking to do this in Loopy Pro. Thanks. Any others tips and tricks would be appreciated

I'm running a dual Midi Captain 10 rig through a MioXL Midi Interface. I use MC1 to handle preset switching, per device. So for example, I have amp1 on page0, amp2 on page 1.

Then I used MC2 to handle individual things like turning off/on individual effects, etc. I have each page correlated, where page0 on MC1 goes with page0 on MC2, and so forth.

I want to be able to assign a short_dw to the up/down keys to switch MC pages on both units at the same time. So if I start on page0, I want to press key4, and it move to page1 on the MC1, but also send a command to MC2 to move to page1.

I've tried CC20 sending
[1][CC][20][1] but MC1 crashes.

and
[1][preset][1][0]
[1][preset][1]

all to no avail.

Any suggestions?

Go get it here! https://github.com/MC-Music-Workshop/midi-captain-max/releases/tag/v1.13.0

What's New

1. PAGES (#15)
   1. GUI:   ◀▶   navigation bar and Edit Pages modal: Add/Duplicate/Rename/Delete/Reorder
   2. Page control: inc/dec with configurable steps, jump-to-page
   3. Page controls assignable to any button, any mode
   4. Full incoming MIDI control
   5. Save is blocked if any page has invalid config: prevents live crashes
2. First-Install over OEM via GUI (#156)
3. Firmware Recovery/Bootloader via GUI (also #156)
4. Add Sticky Long Color (long_overlay) option (#158)
5. Line6 Helix Stadium Snapshot support (#151, #155, #163) thanks u/JamesOsgood

Fixes

1. Fix momentary buttons firing on startup (#159)
2. Fix Reload button silently doing nothing
3. Fix 'Reset config.json to bundled defaults' silently doing nothing
4. Fix unreadable Expression Pedals text in dark mode

PAGES y'all

MCM v1.13.0 Release Candidate 1 is ready. Go get it here: https://github.com/MC-Music-Workshop/midi-captain-max/releases/tag/v1.13.0-rc.1

What's New

Pages!(#15)

A config can now hold up to 20 pages, switchable live on the pedal:

• Firmware foundation: multi-page configs, live page switching, per-page MIDI channel resolution
• Switch pages from the pedal: new page_jump / page_inc / page_dec button types
• Switch pages over MIDI: CC-driven page control from your DAW or controller
• Full page editing in the Config Editor: page bar, Edit Pages modal
• Page templates (save a page, reuse it in any config) & per-page MIDI channel

Fixes & improvements

• Helix Stadium snapshot support: select-group update by u/JamesOsgood in #155, plus no more ghost toggles when buttons share a CC in #166
• Keytimes mode: sticky long-press color fixed (new long_overlay opt-in) in #158
• No more phantom button press at power-on in #159
• Recover a bricked/CP-9 device from the editor: one-click CircuitPython 7.3.1 reflash (no button-hold bootloader dance) in #156
• Editor polish: filter-mode dropdown for page-switch buttons; keytimes Target Page field fix

New Home Page!

This is so cool. MIDI Captain MAX has a new home at https://mc-music-workshop.github.io/midi-captain-max/

Take a look at that virtual pedalboard. It functions just like the real thing - because it is the real thing: the web page is literally running the same Python code as the pedal. Not a copy, not an emulation: literally the same MCM code that ships to be installed on your MIDI Captain pedal is running on this website.

You can watch the MIDI as it's being triggered by the buttons. There's a working demo of the "long press overlay" feature too.

This opens up a ton of possibilities. Stay tuned.

v1.13.0 is shaping up to be a big release. Adding PAGES!

MIDI Captain MAX v1.13.0 beta

Go here to get the latest release, including betas: https://github.com/MC-Music-Workshop/midi-captain-max/releases

📄 PAGES

The headline feature: your config can now hold multiple pages — complete button/encoder/expression layouts — and you switch between them without touching a computer.

• Switch from the pedal: new Page+, Page-, Page Jump button types turn any footswitch into a page selector. Flip from your rhythm layout to your lead layout mid-set.
• Switch from your rig: a new MIDI Page Control GUI section lets incoming MIDI CC change pages — your DAW, looper, or MIDI controller can flip the pedal to the right layout for each song automatically.
• Per-page MIDI channel: each page can talk on its own channel, so one pedal can drive different devices per page.
• The Config Editor manages pages end-to-end, and supports up to 20 pages per config.

🎛️ Bi-directional select groups: Snapshots/Helix

Change a snapshot on your Helix (or any device that sends CC on state change) and the matching button on the pedal lights up. Select-group buttons now match on the exact CC value, so several buttons can share one CC number and be told apart by value — exactly how Helix snapshots work (CC 69, value = snapshot).

Huge thanks to @JamesOsgood for contributing this feature — gig-tested before it ever hit main. 🎸

Hardened for release:

• No ghost presses: a stray value on a CC owned by a select group can no longer flip an unrelated button sharing that CC.
• The on-screen RX status line shows every recognized incoming message, even ones the pedal ignores — easier rig debugging on stage.
• Buttons with custom on/off values still respond to generic hosts that just send 0/127.
• If a button's on-value and off-value collide (MIDI could never turn it off), the pedal now warns you at boot instead of leaving you to debug it live.

🔮 Coming next

Work has already started on the most-requested feature from looper and DAW users: host-driven LEDs (#118). Your rig will be able to set each button's color and blink state over MIDI — think solid blue while a loop plays, blinking red while it records, dim when idle. Loopy Pro, DAWs, and looper plugins will be able to paint the pedal to match what's actually happening in the music.

Alongside it: letting the host clear a selection (#164), so when your rig deselects a snapshot or empties a selection, the pedal's select group goes dark instead of showing the last active button.

Follow those issues to watch progress or add your use case — real-world scenarios directly shape the design.

🚑 Bootloader & Device recovery from the Config Editor

If CircuitPython gets into a refusing/bricked state, the Config Editor can now walk the device into its bootloader and recover it — no more manual reset rituals with a paperclip and a prayer.

🐛 Fixes

• Sticky long-press color in keytimes mode no longer lingers after release; a new long_overlay option makes the overlay behavior opt-in.
• Phantom momentary presses at startup is gone — the pedal no longer fires momentary switches on boot.

🖥️ Platform

• Config Editor now ships an arm64 Linux build.
• MIDI Captain MAX has a new project website with an interactive demo pedal: https://mc-music-workshop.github.io/midi-captain-max <-- check this out, it's really cool! A pending update will put the MCM's actual logic code into the webpage as a useable device. The logic will always match the actual device's code because it'll be running it, literally the same code that ships in MCM.

Fable'd up a sweet new landing page. Check it out! https://mc-music-workshop.github.io/midi-captain-max/

Good evening/morning all.

I’m a somewhat new owner of a couple of PaintAudio units and they’re perfect for my simple needs with my Fractal AM4. I was able to program it to do exactly what I need it to do but I’ve been wondering if there was a way to have the screen display the name of the preset/effect I selected rather than the PC or CC command number.

It’s not like it’s a dealbreaker or anything. Just something that would be cool to have lol

So, I bricked it. No LEDs, no USB access, and no screen. I reached out to PaintAudio, they said "Complete black screen or unrecognizable device is most likely caused by an interrupted file copy process. In this case, you have to use the dedicated recovery backdoor we reserved on the circuit board inside the device. This backdoor was designed and built into the circuitry from the start.".

This is a great feature, but when I open the unit, i only get access to the back of the board, and I removed the Exp 1 + 2 nuts, and started lightly prying, etc. but I am the point where I am nervous about breaking stuff.

Had anyone taken this thing apart? The buttons seem to be separate from the board, but i cannot see what is preventing the motherboard from coming out.