Decouple "Fixed Note Output" from Internal Sample Pitch

Feature Requests
1

I am really enjoying Playbeat 4, but I’ve run into a frustrating workflow limitation regarding the MIDI routing and the internal audio engine. I am trying to set up bidirectional visual feedback with my Novation Launchpad Mini MK3 in Ableton Live.

The Goal: I want each of the 8 tracks in Playbeat to send a unique, discrete MIDI note (e.g., C1 to G1) to Ableton. This allows me to route those notes to my Launchpad so the pads light up individually when the sequencer plays.

The Problem: To achieve this, I have to turn ON the “Fixed Note Output” in the MIDI Outputs tab and assign unique notes to each track. However, doing this immediately forces the internal audio sample to be pitch-shifted to that exact MIDI note. If I assign Track 1 to C1 for the LED feedback, the drum sample suddenly plays two octaves too low. There seems to be no way to disable “Key Tracking” for the internal audio engine.

Why the current workarounds don’t work for me:

  1. Using the TUNE knob: I can manually pitch the sample back up using the Tune knob (e.g., +24). However, as soon as I load a new sample or use the A.I. Randomize feature, the pitch resets and the sample sounds completely wrong again.

  2. Using an external Drum Rack: I could route the MIDI out of Playbeat into an Ableton Drum Rack to avoid pitch issues. But doing this completely bypasses Playbeat’s internal sample engine and the excellent A.I. Sound randomization, which is one of the main reasons I use the plugin.

The Request: Could you please add an option to decouple the MIDI Output Note from the internal sample pitch? A simple “Key Tracking ON/OFF” toggle in the sample editor—or making the “Fixed Note Output” strictly affect the MIDI output without altering the internal audio pitch—would completely solve this.

This would make Playbeat 4 the ultimate sequencer for hardware controller integrations without sacrificing the internal sound design features.

Thanks for considering this!

2

Hi @renevermont

First of all, thanks for your kind words about Playbeat 4 and for taking the time to explain your setup in such detail.

We completely understand what you’re trying to achieve, and it makes perfect sense to want independent MIDI trigger notes for your Launchpad while keeping Playbeat’s internal audio engine functional.

Currently, Playbeat’s MIDI output is connected to its Pitch engine. The MIDI data is primarily designed to reproduce the pitch information generated within Playbeat when triggering external instruments, which is why you’re experiencing this behavior with Fixed Note Output.

See the short tutorial below:

We’ve also received several requests for this functionality from other users (you can follow the ongoing discussion here: Export midi is broken - #17 by Audiomodern ).
This is one of the reasons we’ve decided to introduce the trigger keyboard layout shown below :backhand_index_pointing_down: This allows each track to be triggered independently while keeping pitch-shifting information separate.

The good news is that we’re already working on an update that will significantly improve this workflow.

We’re developing an enhanced MIDI export system that will allow exported MIDI patterns to be routed back into Playbeat itself, something that isn’t currently supported.

This new system will include embedded keyswitches, allowing MIDI trigger notes and pitch-shifting information to be handled independently.

This means you’ll be able to work with consistent trigger notes while preserving Playbeat’s internal pitch variations and sample playback behavior.

We don’t have an exact release date to announce just yet, but we do have a prototype ready, so this is an area we’re actively improving.

Thank you for your patience.