[pacothetortuga]

Just got my JamKAT+DITI.

The manual (yep, I?m reading it) says there are cables labeled 1-7, and I should plug cable 7 into DITI input 12.

However, my cables were actually labeled 1-6, 8 (no 7) out of the box. When I plug cable 8 into DITI input 12, it seems like a lot of the JamKAT presets don?t work. But when I plug it into DITI input 8, it all seems to work.

Is there a mistake in the manual?

Related, if these flimsy little labels come off the cables, how does one determine which cable is which? There doesn?t appear to be a way to follow them back thru the 15-pin connector.

[MarioKAT]

Kits constantly change.  When we first made them, we were using input 12 as the power source for the second part of the sensor, but when the jamKAT?R came out, it made more sense to move the input to 8 as the power source because all of the inputs were being used (except 7 because it is designed for hihat.

The latest kits on the SYSEX page reflect that change.

Making heavy duties cables would cost around $80..  It frightened us to try to sell a cable costing that much.  We made the decision to use the current cables because of price.

I truly hope that besides these issues you find the jamKAT the most expressive instrument you?ve ever played on

[pacothetortuga]

Thanks, Mario! One of the best things about AM is that the company president responds to posts on the message board! 

And thanks for the context regarding the inputs. I figured it was something like that.

Regarding the expressiveness of the interface, it's the most interesting thing I've found to date -- especially for a hand percussionist. The pad layout was confusing until I started playing with "palm-tip" conga/bongo technique. Then it all made sense. (Roughly speaking: heels on pads 2, 3, 6, 9 and tips on pads 4, 5, 10, 11 with thumbs on pads 7, 8.)

The first thing I did when I got the JamKAT+DITI was plug it into my laptop and open a MIDI monitor. I meant merely to check that it was sending notes. But then I started looking at the notes coming out of DITI, and I noticed how hitting the same pad produced different notes. And some kits also sent pitchbend! I ended up playing and watching the MIDI monitor (no music) for 15 minutes -- blown away thinking about the possibilities.

Eventually, I pulled up some instruments in Reason to make some noise. I tweeted my experience, which I think you will appreciate:
https://twitter.com/pacothetortuga/status/1149833678870048768

I got the JamKAT two days ago, and I've been blooming with ideas since. Thanks!!!