Setting Keylab LCD text with Mainstage Patch Changes [HOW-TO]

For a while I’ve been wanting a way to get Mainstage to set the Keylab LCD to the name of the patch I’ve selected, and after reading many forums including this thread:
Arturia Keylab : display on LCD screen - User scripts - Gig Performer Community, I figured out a way to do it.

This may work on other Arturia Keylab Keyboards as well.

  1. Download the following midi file:
    Dropbox

  2. Download Hex Fiend - due to forum limitations, I can only put 2 links in this post, but google hexfiend, it’s easy to find, and open source. Open that midi file in the editor.

  3. Save the file with the name of your first patch with -LCD.mid at the end (eg “My-song-LCD.mid”, “Rhodes 1-LCD.mid”, whatever). The “-LCD” is not strictly necessary, but reminds you that all the midi file will do is set the LCD screen text.

  4. Carefully change the text “Line-1-goes-here” and “Line-2-goes-here” so that it contains your preferred text. You can’t delete characters, but you can replace them with spaces or any other letters / numbers you wish. If you have done this correctly, there should be 101 bytes in the file still. (bottom of the window). Then save it again.
    image

  5. Open your MainStage project, make sure your Keylab is connected, select the patch you want to add the LCD text setting to, and add an “External Midi” channel strip:

  6. Click on the External Midi channel strip in the mixer.

  7. In the External Instrument Channel Strip Inspector, select the “Midi Output” tab. It may be hidden under the >> on small screens

  8. In the “on patch change” window, deselect everything except “Send MIDI file”, then click the “Select” button and select the MIDI file you saved in step 4.

  9. Voilla! Your text should be displayed on the Keylab LCD.

Enjoy, and I hope that helps. It’s a small thing, but not having to keep looking at my laptop to know what patch is selected is really useful.

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