A MIDI controller for Final Cut Pro
InputConfig is completely free on the Mac App Store. You don't have to make an account, there are no subscriptions, and nothing is locked. Optimized for Apple silicon.
A MIDI controller can run Final Cut Pro, through an app that turns each pad and knob into one of Final Cut's keyboard shortcuts. Final Cut has no MIDI learn and no MIDI settings; it listens to the keyboard. InputConfig does the turning, free on the Mac App Store, and it finds a class-compliant MIDI device over USB or Bluetooth MIDI with no driver. The layout below is for a pad controller with a few knobs.
On this page
Steps
- Connect the MIDI controller over USB or Bluetooth MIDI.
- In InputConfig, add a row, press Scan, and hit a pad.
- Pick the Final Cut shortcut for that pad, such as J, K or L.
- Set each knob to Turn for jogging or Dial for scrolling.
- Activate the preset and bring Final Cut Pro to the front.
Map the pads to Final Cut's shortcuts
Pads and keys act as buttons and stay held while you hold them.
- You: Add a row per pad, press Scan, hit the pad, and pick the key.
- InputConfig: Sends that key to Final Cut whenever you hit the pad.
- Check: With Final Cut in front, hit the pad for L and playback starts.
| Pad or knob | Final Cut key | Job |
|---|---|---|
| Pad 1 | J | Play reverse; again for faster |
| Pad 2 | K | Stop |
| Pad 3 | L | Play forward; again for faster |
| Pad 4 | Space | Play and pause |
| Pad 5 | I | Set range start |
| Pad 6 | O | Set range end |
| Pad 7 | Command-B | Blade at the playhead |
| Pad 8 | M | Add marker |
| Knob 1, Turn mode | Right Arrow clockwise, Left Arrow counterclockwise | Jog a frame at a time |
| Knob 2, Turn mode | Command-Plus clockwise, Command-Minus counterclockwise | Zoom the timeline |
| Knob 3, Dial mode | Horizontal mouse wheel | Move along the timeline, faster the further you turn |
The keys come from Apple's Final Cut Pro shortcut list. Option-L and Option-J (half speed forward and reverse) and Option-M (marker with a name) are good choices for spare pads.
Choose Turn or Dial for each knob
A knob can be read three ways:
- Turn. Fires a short nudge every few steps of rotation, clockwise for one row and counterclockwise for the other, which is how a knob becomes a jog wheel. Turn Step sets how far you turn per frame. At the default, a knob turned from one end stop to the other gives about 32 steps.
- Dial. Treats the center as zero, like a stick: the further from center, the faster the output runs, which suits scrolling.
- Switch. Fires once past halfway, for pedals and buttons that send CC.
The built-in MIDI: Knob Deck preset has a Turn-mode knob on the arrow keys and a Dial-mode wheel on scrolling to copy from. To find what a knob sends, open the Live Visualizer's MIDI view and turn it.
Share one controller between Final Cut and your DAW
If the same pad controller also plays drums in Logic or GarageBand, give the Final Cut preset an auto-switch entry for Final Cut Pro. When Final Cut comes to the front the pads send its shortcuts, and when you leave it the preset that was running before comes back. Turn automatic switching on in Settings, Advanced first.
InputConfig listens alongside other apps, so the notes still reach your DAW if it is also listening to that controller.
Adapt it for Premiere and Resolve
- Premiere Pro. The cut at the playhead is Command-K and zoom is plus and minus without Command. Premiere also has a Control Surface page in its settings for the hardware protocols Adobe supports.
- DaVinci Resolve. It has a page of its own. The cut is Command-B and zoom is Command-Plus and Command-Minus, as in Final Cut. For grading with real knobs, Resolve users tend to reach for dedicated panels or Resolve-specific MIDI tools, which do things a keystroke mapper cannot.
The video editing controller guide lists the differences row by row.
If a game controller is simpler
If you do not already own MIDI gear, a game controller in the off hand does the transport and marking jobs with no desk space. The Final Cut Pro preset in the Smart Preset Maker is ready in two clicks, and a DualSense can buzz when a mark lands. The two can run together: MIDI rows and controller rows live in the same preset.
The short version
- Pads. Give them J, K, L, Space, I, O, Command-B and M.
- Knobs. Turn for frame-by-frame jogging, Dial for scrolling the timeline.
- Two apps. Auto-switch hands the pads to Final Cut only while it is in front.
Final Cut listens to keys, so any pad that sends a key can drive it.
Questions
Does Final Cut Pro support MIDI controllers?
Not directly. It has no MIDI settings, so a MIDI controller needs an app that turns its pads and knobs into Final Cut's keyboard shortcuts.
Do I need a driver for my MIDI controller?
Not for a class-compliant USB or Bluetooth MIDI device, which is most of them. InputConfig finds it the way GarageBand does.
Can a MIDI knob scrub the Final Cut timeline?
It can step the playhead a frame at a time (Turn mode on the arrow keys) or move the timeline view with the mouse wheel (Dial mode).
Does the same pad work in Final Cut and OBS or Logic?
Yes, with a preset per app and per-app auto-switch turned on.
Related
This page in other languages: 日本語
Updated