Grubo is an experimental project that aims to present an audio-visual experience using Roland Groovebox MC-101 and the Unity game engine.
- Unity 2019.3
- HDRP compatible desktop system
Grubo uses a MIDI connection to control visual effects from MC-101. You can use a physical MIDI connection (MIDI interface + MIDI cable) or a USB cable connection with the MC-101 MIDI driver (only available for Windows and macOS).
You have to enable MIDI message transmission (TxUSB MIDI/TxMIDI Out) on all
four tracks. These options are available from the track settings menu (press
SHIFT and TRACK SEL 1 - 4). Please see the reference manual for
details.
The visualizer is designed under the assumption that each track is assigned as follows:
| Track | Type | Visual Effects |
|---|---|---|
| Track 1 | Drums 1 | Structure effects |
| Track 2 | Drums 2 | Camera effects |
| Track 3 | Synth 1 | Ribbons 1 |
| Track 4 | Synth 2 | Ribbons 2 |
There are a few key controls. All the visual effects are disabled by default,
so at least you have to enable one of these effects by pressing 1 - 5.
| Key | Function |
|---|---|
| 1 | Toggle track 1 effects |
| 2 | Toggle track 2 primary effects |
| 3 | Toggle track 3 effects |
| 4 | Toggle track 4 effects |
| 5 | Toggle track 2 secondary effects |
| q | Color scheme 1 |
| w | Color scheme 2 |
| e | Color scheme 3 |
| r | Color scheme 4 |
| t | Randomize color scheme |
| a | Toggle hue shifter |
| z | Toggle invertion effect |
- Grubo uses the Minis plugin that allows Unity to receive MIDI messages via the new Unity input system.
- The Kino post processing effects are used to create its lo-fi visual style.
- All the visual elements are rendered with Visual Effect Graph.

