Mackie Control and several DAWs

First question:
After reading the Midi plugin instructions, I understand that Mackie Control can only send and receive midi messages through one midi input and one midi output.
So the Midi plugin should control just one DAW everytime if it is using Mackie Control. 
Is it correct?

Second question:
How do I must configure the Midi plugin to use Mackie Control with Cubase and with Ableton Live?
As I never run both DAWs together, I suppose I just need to create one profile for Cubase and another one for Live, using the same midi ports in both profiles.
Is it correct?

Third question:
I use Bome Midi Translator Pro (BMTP) configured for receiving Mackie Control messages from Cubase and Totalmix at the same time. It has never given any problem.
I would like to ask if it could cause any issues that now the plugin and BMTP are using the same ports and sending/receiving same Mackie meassages at the same time.
After some days using BMTP and the Midi plugin nothing seems to fail, but I wonder if I should change the configuration in BMTP.

Thanks.

First answer:
No, this is not correct. A single Macke device can only be connected to a single daw (at a time). But the plugin can act as up to eight Mackie Control devices, and each device can be connected to a different daw if needed.

Second answer:
Yes and no. It will most probably work, but personally, I would have preferred to have separate ports for the two daws.
In the background, the plugin stores the state for everything controlled by the Mackie protocol. This is done per (input) port. If you just for one second happen to have both daws online, you will create midi loops, and you will cause havoc for the background state engine. If you ensure that the daws are never online at the same time, you are still dependent on the (new) daw to send its entire state when you start it; otherwise, the background states will have leftovers from the previous daw. I'm pretty sure that each daw will "behave" and send everything necessary when started, but still, using the same ports introduces dependencies you will avoid if using separate ports.
If you decide to use different ports, you may need to change the port types. By default, device 1 advertises itself as a main device on the Mackie protocol, while devices 2-8 advertise themselves as secondary devices (secondary devices have only the channels section). The device type has no meaning for the plugin, but it may have meaning for the daw. If you use different ports and get problems, you can change the device type to "main" for both devices; please check the FAQ page for how to do that.

Third answer:
I would have guessed that this configuration would cause Mackie loops, but obviously, it doesn't. If you don't experience any problems, it's probably fine. I think the crucial thing is to ensure that Mackie commands aren't echoed back to the same device they are coming from.

Admin wrote:the plugin can act as up to eight Mackie Control devices, and each device can be connected to a different daw if needed.

Do you mean that I can use every "Extender" device like another "Main Device"?

Yes.

You need to create a configuration file as explained in the FAQ. Then just set

Device_number_IsExtender="false"

for each device you want to advertise itself as a main device on the Mackie protocol.

But as I mentioned, this is only needed if the daw requires it. Cubase, e.g., doesn't care about the device role.

I was reading the FAQ explanation while you was replying. 

I can have 8 independent Mackie devices. Wow!

This plugin is amazing.

After changing an Extender to false, the dropdown menu still shows it as an Extender.

It is the expected behaviour?

No, it should show it as a main device. Reload the editor (change to another button and then back). The dropdown isn't refreshed until you do that.

Yessssss!!!!!!!!!

Wow!!!!!!

Forget my question 2. It had sense when I thought I can only have one main device and 7 extenders.

Thanks a lot

Admin wrote:No, it should show it as a main device. Reload the editor (change to another button and then back). The dropdown isn't refreshed until you do that.

Just FYI, the FAQ says "Changes will be immediately used and visible in the Device dropdown." 

Maybe you would like to add that reloading the editor is necessary, and also that the extenders set as false will be shown as main devices.

Thanks again!

jordikt wrote:Maybe you would like to add that reloading the editor is necessary, and also that the extenders set as false will be shown as main devices.

Done.

fast as a ferrari