Yeah, I realized that the pots/encoders would be too close to eachother right after posting this and already started redesigning. This box will be one huge monster filled with controllers. I’ll have to be careful so it doesn’t get struck by lightning - otherwise it might come alive! I’ll post it as soon as it’s more or less finished.
a numeric keypad can be used of course - but when you want to use it in the mios itself you’ll have some extensive programming on front of you.
I don’t really need it to be used in mios, I want each key to send a different midi message.
In fact, I don’t think I’ll need much mios programming at all. But I was wondering, how are encoders handled? Do they send a midi control message with a value from 0-127, or is it also possible to make it send, for instance midi note-on’s depending on the speed and direction you’re turning? Might be a stupid question, I don’t know.
oh and it would be highly recommende that you post what this is actually being meant for. ableton? doubt that.
Well, ableton, yes and no. I want to write some custom software on my computer, which will interpret the incoming midi messages before sending it to ableton (and possibly other software or hardware as well in the future).
So the 12 buttons underneath the lcd screen would be used to trigger clips in ableton, with bank up/down buttons next to it.
You asked for it 
: My software will work roughly like this. You have a grid of patterns (vertical) and blocks (horizontal). There’s always one pattern playing, but you can edit other patterns and then switch to it when you’re ready. I can select patterns and blocks with the cursor buttons on my controller. A pattern is made up of blocks, and a block had a number of properties - such as length, scale root note (A, B, etc), scale type (minor, major, etc), etc, which can be controlled by the rotary buttons above the cursor pad, and by the keyboard buttons underneath it.
These properties will be used to feed a number of arpegiators, which are also controllable from the box. I’ll have three instrument sections (one left, two right), each with a few controllers to control the synths, and some arpegiator settings.
The numpad will be used for entering ranges for the arps (for instance, if the current scale is A minor, pressing 1 will toggle wether A will be included in the selected notes, button 2 will select whether C will be used, and button 3 will select whether E will be used, and this for a number of octaves). But I’m still thinking about this - for instance, I will also need to define rhythm parts which indicate where accents go, and then I need to be able to select whether a certain arp can have non-chord notes on accents, and between them, etc. I want it to be as flexible as possible, so it doesn’t always sound the same.
The idea is to have an improvisation box, where all synths automatically play in the same scales and follow the same chords. I’ll be able to turn some knobs and push some buttons, and totally different melodies will come out. And I’ll also be able to control the beats with the trigger buttons.
I can handle the programming part (it will take some time, but I’ve done tests that indicate this is doable). Now, building the box and making sure I’ve got all the tools I need while still being user-friendly, that’s another matter.
You only have to worry about it coming to life if you use a big, old fashioned, high-voltage lever power switch in your basement while a speech impaired hunchback watches you