Does anyone have experience or a recommendation for a footswitch to use with with Ribbons? I currently have Ribbons on my desktop but would like to use the cv/exp jack to have a footswitch on the floor to record loops. Is this possible? thanks for any help in advance!
A Moog expression pedal can be used to do this although it’s more of a rocking action than a switch. You can DIY a footswitch version of your own for ~$10. I can provide instructions for that if you’d like. All you need is a switch, a box, and a trs jack.
Keep in mind that using the CV/EXP jack to control the Touch footswitch has some limitations. It doesn’t detect gestures like momentary tap-to-latch or double-tap-to-clear. When using it, you’re limited to simply turning the Touch footswitch on or off.
For example, if you’re controlling the looper, you can hold the switch down to start recording and release it to stop. However, to clear a four-track loop, you’ll still need to press the push button and tap the Touch footswitch on the pedal itself. That said, this limitation might not be a big deal since the control is easily accessible at your fingertips. 
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That was extremely helpful thank you so much!!!
It’s good to know the limitations using the cv/exp jack, that definitely sheds some light.
Although I’m not sure if i’ll go the route of making the switch since I have no experience doing so, but maybe one day!
I’ll give the Moog exp pedal a shot and see how that goes.
Thanks again!
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Sure thing! Moog makes a great expression pedal but it’s a bit spendy. Just about any expression pedal will do. Feel free to check in if you find another option that’s more budget friendly.
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You know what, I take that back. I think I’ll try and build it! Do you think it would be too difficult to tackle? My soldering experience is limited to making guitar cables.
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Thanks for posting this question, as I was just about to post a similar question.
Seeing there are some limitations with CV, I wonder if a MIDI foot controller would work out better for this?.
I stumbled across a MIDI foot controller called Ampero Control Midi CC foot controller. It has a physical MIDI in and Thru port. Midi Foot Controller link
Could I go out from my midi interface, into controller, then midi through from controller to midi in on Ribbons.
Also for op the same company has a simple cv switch at a cheap price.
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Ok so I’ve got the 3 items in my cart. Is that all I need? At home i’ve got a soldering iron and some solder and a drill with various bits.
Thanks again in advance!!
I don’t think you would even need your MIDI interface. You might be able to just plug the MIDI out / thru of this device straight into Ribbons with one of our TRS adapters.
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If you proceed with DIYing - I haven’t tried this myself using the exact parts I suggested so please don’t consider it an official build kit from us or anything. In theory it should work though and I’ve made a little mock up at my desk that does what I expect.
You’ll also need some wire - 24 AWG stranded wire is good for this sort of thing.
The switch from Love My Switches is DPDT (aka 2 switches in one) but you can just use 1 of 2 for the SPDT switch in the diagram.
This is how you would wire it:
There are some other subtle nuances with wiring the switch (e.g. which contacts need to be wired to the ring and sleeve) and I can follow up with more detail if you want to go further with this.
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Thanks Jaak for taking the time to reply. You’re correct. My initial thought was if I went out from my Midi interface, it would allow clock to sync when recording in ableton.
The idea of using a MIDI foot switch would really open the box of being able to play / loop without needing to use my hands for controls.
Thanks for always going above and beyond. Not only are your pedals amazing, but the community, and effort you put in to answer questions/ feedback is amazing!
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Thank you so much Jaak. This is amazing. I’ll definitely be diving into this soon.
Just been dealing with all the madness happening in LA so this will have to be put on hold for a little while.
But once I’m all settled I’m gonna give this a proper shot!
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If I used a non-momentary switch for this, so one press turns it on and leaves it on and a second press turns it off, that would theoretically allow me to start and stop recording and not have to hold the footswitch down during recording. First press locks it on and I’m recording. Second press turns it off. Would that work?
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Yeah I think that should work fine! If you run into any issues, let me know.
We don’t do any “debouncing” on the CV/EXP input - it was designed for fast audio-rate signals up to 500Hz.
So if you notice it glitches when activating the footswitch, let me know and I can add in some debouncing and stabilize it with a quick firmware update.
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It’s working perfectly! Total game changer vs. trying to hit the front panel buttons with the pedal at tabletop level. I’ve been drooling all morning over Disintegration Looper and the 4-track looper.
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Hi jaakjensen,
​I’m currently trying to build a similar external switch using a 3PDT latching footswitch, but my Ribbons doesn’t seem to react to it at all.
​For the wiring, I have connected the TRS cable to the 3PDT lugs as follows:
​Tip (T) to lug 2
​Ring (R) to lug 1
​Sleeve (S) to lug 3
​Could you let me know if I’m missing something or if this wiring configuration is incorrect for the Ribbons’ CV/EXP input?
​Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
I’m so sorry—I should have read the manual more carefully!
​I found that by mapping the “TOUCH FOOTSWITCH” (as described on page 9 of the mapping section), everything is now working perfectly with my latch switch.
​The issue is completely resolved. I’m looking forward to playing around with it starting tomorrow!
Jaak, do I understand it correctly that this footswitch needs to be wired in a specific way, not the way a typical aftermarket footswith is wired?
In other words, a) it must be TRS for 1-button footswitch, and b) it must be SPDT, to be able to switch the TIP between Ring and Sleeve?
At all times TIP is connected to something - either the sleeve (which is the “typical” external momentary fs wiring) or the Ring (which is somewhat unusual)?
And this (shorting the Tip to the Ring) is crucial for the Ribbons (and I assume Ghosts?) to detect the Press or Release?
I tried to use the “standard” Tap-Tempo FS, and it didn’t work, and the best way to describe it - it sort of does “half the action”: the Touch FS is always ON, and gets OFF when I press the FS (effectively shorting TIP to Sleeve).
I know it’s not supposed to work, just trying to figure out how exactly Ribbons is treating Touch FS mapping to the external control.
Funny enough, when used with the expression device, the Touch FS “action” was triggered at the middle point of the expression travel )
Yes, the footswitch needs to be wired in a particular way.
Basically, the CV/EXP input is designed to work with a classic expression pedal. The wiring is:
- TIP: ANALOG INPUT, 0 to +5V
- RING: +5V OUT
- SLEEVE: GROUND
An expression pedal works by taking the +5V on the RING, running it through a pot in the exp pedal, and sending back a variable voltage on the TIP that the device reads.
When TOUCH is mapped to that input, Ribbons is basically watching the tip voltage and treating it like a switch when it crosses the midpoint (around 2.5V). So you want tip to always be at a solid 0V or 5V, not floating.
That’s why a standard tap-tempo footswitch feels like it does “half the action”: when it’s not pressed it’s effectively open, so the tip can float and end up reading as “on”, and then pressing it forces tip to ground and turns it “off”.
The footswitch that behaves correctly is TRS + SPDT, wired so tip (common) switches between sleeve (0V) and ring (+5V). And yes, the “middle of expression travel triggers it” thing is exactly because you’re crossing that midpoint threshold.
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How to make a Yamaha FC5 Sustain Pedal work with the CV/EXP input:
I found a way to make the Yamaha FC5 trigger the TOUCH footswitch using a custom cable. See wiring below. This will work with any NORMALLY CLOSED sustain pedal like the FC5. It will NOT work with a NORMALLY OPEN sustain pedal.
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