I have an XF7 with an FC4 & FC7 pedal.  I would like all the organ voices have their Leslie effect turned on/off (latched) with a foot switch.  How do I accomplish this with the pedals I have?  Include programming and which port the pedal should be plugged into.

I have tried to use the control tab to assign the leslie, but I seem to have to keep changing the port if I also want to switch to a piano sustain when I am using an organ and piano in the same performance.

Can someone point me in the right direction?

Keep the FC4 plugged into your SUSTAIN jack for the piano sustain.  I personally use the MOD wheel for organ Leslie because it can sweep through a range of intensity or speed.  You could use the FC7 plugged into FC2 jack on the board to accomplish the same thing, and it would “stay” at the point you leave it (From all the way on to all the way off and in between) just like the MOD wheel does.

If you want a simple on-off latched switch for the Leslie, get an FC5 (They’re inexpensive) and plug it into FC2 jack.  Remember, whichever pedal you use to control Leslie (FC7 or FC5) you must program the VOICES you want the Leslie controlled that way specifically to the FC2 jack (Many organ VOICES default to the MOD wheel for Leslie), and STORE them as new VOICES to have them come up the way you want each time you select them.

See page 61 of the Motif XF Reference Manual for the info to set up the Controller Settings (Source and destination) for VOICES to get the ROTARY SPEAKER effect routed to the FC2 jack on the machine.

EDIT:  If you use an FC5, plug in and route to the Assignable Foot Switch jack instead of the FC2 jack. Plus, I just looked at my FC5 and it doesn’t latch, you have to hold it down to keep it on.  You will have to do some searching if you want a true latching pedal.

I personally use the MOD wheel for organ Leslie because it can sweep through a range of intensity or speed.

Sorry, but that is not true. The parameter that is typcially being controlled in most B3 organ VOICES is “SPEED CONTROL”; it neither ON/OFF, nor is it sweepable to gain a range of intensity or speed. The parameter is either SLOW or FAST.

When assigned to a controller like the MW all values below a certain value select the SLOW speed and all values above a certain value select the FAST speed. The very distinctive Doepler effect “transition time” function is a very separate and very programmable set of parameters within the EFFECT. But the assigned controller for SPEED CONTROL will select either SLOW or FAST - Whether you use the MW or the Foot Controller the response is the same SLOW or FAST. You cannot manually control the intensity nor in between speeds with a MW or FOOT CONTROLLER if the parameter is SPEED CONTROL.

Here’s how it works. If the VOICE when recalled has the Rotary Speed set to SLOW, and you engage the MW - to switch it to FAST - the parameters that will effect the transition are the following:

There are independent parameters that determine:
Rotor Speed Slow
Horn Speed Slow
Rotor Speed Fast
Horn Speed Fast

Slow-Fast Time of R (Rotar)
Slow-Fast Time of H (Horn)
If set to 0 the transition time is immediate, if set to 127 the transition time is very, very, long (loose belt)

All the SPEED CONTROL does is switch the speed from SLOW to FAST, the time it takes and actual speed are separate parameters. But typically that is not what you have control or want to have control over… think about the real thing. You do not control the tightness or looseness of the belts in real time, you simply activate the transition and the physics takes over. The fact that the belts are loose means there is a given transition time. On the real Leslie it is a switch SLOW/FAST

Please see the article on the Rotary Speaker effect for details.

If you assign a Foot Switch like the FC4 to control the SLOW or FAST function - an FC4 is a momentary pedal and therefore will always works as a momentary switch. this means that when engaged (pressed) it will send 127 when released it sends 0. If the original Rotary Speaker speed is SLOW, when you engage the pedal the speed will switch to FAST (as long as the pedal is held) when you release the pedal it will return to SLOW>

This is not a Latched function. Yamaha does not make a latching pedal. ANd therefore in order to use an FC4 or FC5 in this situation you would have to keep your foot on the pedal (not ideal).

You can purchase a simple clickable FS (Yamaha does not make one) that can be used to activate the SPEED CONTROL. The FC5 is like the FC4 - it is always momentary. Yamaha does not currently make a clickable foot switch but I’m sure you can find one in most any music store.

You can use the FC7, plugged into the FC2 jack. Set it to send cc001 - it will work exactly like the MW - all values up to a certain point will be SLOW and once you pass a particular point it will switch to FAST - the time that it takes to transition is always a function of the programmable parameters of the Rotary Speaker Effect.

But the FC7 is not perfect either as it defaults to the opposite of the MW. the MW when a program is recalled sends a value of 0. the FC when a program is recalled sends a value of 127. This means that it may require that you move the pedal to minimum before it becomes live.

Can I use a typical foot switch that controls reverb/tremolo on a guitar amp?  I have plenty of those, and which jack would this plug in to?  I know it is probably a dumb question, but I am guessing the foot switch jack.

Correct. And they should work. Let us know.

Plug it into the “Assignable FOOT SWITCH” jack
Press [UTILITY]
Press [F5] CONTROL
Press [SF3] CONTROL
Set the FOOT SWITCH CONTROL NO. = 001

Thanks for that great explanation of the MOD wheel/rotary effect Bad_Mister.  I guess I was fooling myself into thinking I was controlling on more of a continuum than I am.  But I use the wheel a lot when playing organ voices, so that wouldn’t be too difficult!  Now I will be more aware of what I am actually controlling at any given moment, instead of simply working to get it to “sound right”!

It works GREAT!  Just what I was looking for.  Thanks!

I am surprised Yamaha doesn’t sell a switch just for this purpose or at least include it as an accessory.

So it is not possible to control the speed ("slow/fast") with a clickable foot switch from foot controller jacks 1 or 2? i’m asking because i want to keep the assignable foot switch set to sustain pedal to control external modules.

So it is not possible to control the speed ("slow/fast") with a clickable foot switch from foot controller jacks 1 or 2? i’m asking because i want to keep the assignable foot switch set to sustain pedal to control external modules.

Don’t know how to answer this other than. Wrong, it IS possible to control the speed Slow/Fast with a clickable foot switch. Yamaha does not make one, but nothing stops you from using one. What is NOT possible is the bit you mention about keeping the Assignable Foot Switch set to Sustain Pedal. The XF has a dedicated Sustain Pedal jack and only one other Foot Switch jack, the Assignable Foot Switch jack.

The Boss FS-5L is a latching foot switch, it would probably work.

Yes, the FS-5L works. I use one as my foot switch because it latches, and that’s what you need for the Leslie effect to work the way a Leslie really does. The FC7 will work as well, but you’ll need to plug it into the FC2 jack, which means you’ll need another FC7 for expression. Here is my setup:

FC3 for sustain,
another FC3 for wa effects, etc (yes it does work),
FC7 for expression,
Boss FS-5L to turn AF2 on and off, which I can assign to the Leslie effect.

Any old foot switch will work plugged into the Assignable Foot Switch jack.
I have a Vox Amp and use the foot switch from that.  Any guitar amp effects foot switch will work and use the settings Phil used in the post above. It just needs to be a latching switch.