OSC

Modulaser supports Open Sound Control (OSC) input and output over UDP. You can map any OSC address to any parameter (clip controls, output settings, BPM, cues, timecode) and get value feedback sent back to your controller.

OSC shares the same control infrastructure as MIDI, so the learn flow and mapping targets work the same way. If you run a lighting desk, see DMX for fixed-fixture control over Art-Net or sACN.

Enabling OSC

Open Settings, choose the OSC tab, and tick Enable OSC. Set the Input port Modulaser listens on (default 8000). To get parameter values back on your controller, set Output host and Output port to its IP address and listening port (default 127.0.0.1:9000). Feedback, query replies, and /info responses all go there.

The tab also has a message log that shows what arrived and whether Modulaser handled it, which is the quickest way to debug a wrong address.

When OSC is enabled, Modulaser advertises itself on the local network via mDNS (_osc._udp). Controllers that support ZeroConf/Bonjour (TouchOSC, Lemur, Max/MSP) can discover Modulaser automatically without manual IP/port entry.

Starter Templates

Modulaser ships with ready-to-use control surface layouts for both TouchOSC and Open Stage Control. Both share a four-page layout, pre-wired to the default address scheme:

• Master: color presets and RGB faders, strobe rate, colorize and strobe toggles, blackout, BPM with live readout, tap, resync. Color and strobe drive the selected output group's Colorize and Strobe effects
• Cue: play/pause, prev/next, stop, loop, and an 8×4 jump-to-cue grid (32 cues)
• Timecode: play/pause, skip back/forward, stop, seek
• Clips: 8×8 clip-select grid with feedback, 6 macro faders, and 4 output-group strips with opacity, send, and clear

Both templates request a state refresh when they load, so widgets start on Modulaser's current values instead of the template defaults.

Downloads:

• TouchOSC template
• Open Stage Control session

OSC Learn

OSC learn works just like MIDI learn. Open it from the menu:

• macOS: menu bar > Shortcuts > Edit OSC…
• Windows / Linux: Edit > OSC Learn

All mappable controls show a green overlay.

1. Click a control in Modulaser to select it as the target
2. Send an OSC message from your controller
3. The mapping is created and saved automatically

The learn window shows the assigned address, or the default address if you haven't mapped one, and a Range for continuous parameters. Click Clear to remove a mapping.

Only one learn mode can be active at a time. Enabling OSC learn disables MIDI learn and vice versa.

Default Addresses

Modulaser has a built-in address scheme that works without any manual mapping. Addresses are case-insensitive.

Clip Parameters

Clip addresses target the currently selected clip and layer. The general pattern is /clip/{category}/{parameter}. Macros are the exception: they're clip-level and work without a layer selection.

Available Parameters

Global Output

Global color and strobe now live in per-output-group effect chains instead of /output/color/* and /output/strobe/*. Route color and strobe through the group effect addresses below.

Output Groups

/group/{index}/name and /group/selected/name send the group name back as a string, and /group/selected/index sends the focused group's index (-1 when nothing is focused). These are feedback only.

Output Group Effects

Effect chains are scoped to output groups. Slots are zero-based, and preset addresses target the first matching effect in the chain. The chain itself (adding, removing, reordering) isn't exposed over OSC, and a slot address only works while an effect sits in that slot.

Built-in preset short names are colorize, strobe, chase, scale_pulse, flash, and rotation. Control keys come from the effect's published controls. Color controls take one channel at a time: /group/selected/fx/colorize/color/r, /g, or /b, each 0–1.

See Effects for how to add effects and publish controls.

BPM

Cue List

/cue/playpause, /cue/loop, and /timecode/playpause follow the value you send: above 0.5 turns them on (or plays), anything else turns them off (or pauses). Use a latching button, not a momentary one.

Timecode

State Refresh

Send a zero-argument message (or any value) to /refresh when an OSC client connects after Modulaser already has OSC enabled. This re-sends every parameter value so widgets jump from their template defaults to Modulaser's actual state.

Address Aliases

Many addresses have short aliases that resolve to the same target:

Oscillator and phasor speed send their feedback on speedhz, so use that address if a widget needs the value back.

Custom Mappings

Custom mappings let you override or extend the default address scheme. A mapping connects an OSC address to a control target with an optional input range. To read an address without a mapping, use the OSC Input node.

When both a custom mapping and a default address match an incoming message, the custom mapping takes priority.

Wildcards

OSC Learn always creates a mapping for the exact address it received. To use wildcards, edit the mapping's address in osc-mappings.json. Custom addresses support two wildcard patterns:

• * matches a single path segment. /clip/*/level matches /clip/x/level and /clip/y/level
• ** matches zero or more segments. /group/**/opacity matches /group/0/opacity and /group/selected/opacity

When multiple mappings match, the most specific one wins (counted by literal segments).

Input Range

By default, Modulaser expects incoming values in the 0.0–1.0 range. The Range fields in the learn window narrow that range (for example 0.2 to 0.8) or invert it (1.0 to 0.0) to reverse the control direction.

If your controller sends another range, like degrees (0–360) or MIDI-style (0–127), scale it in the controller, or read the address with an OSC Input node followed by a Multiply Add node. You can also edit the mapping's range in osc-mappings.json.

Modulaser reads the first numeric argument in a message and takes it as an absolute value. String arguments are ignored, including the relative + / - adjustments some apps send.

Feedback

When OSC output is enabled, Modulaser sends parameter values back to your controller whenever they change, on default and custom addresses alike. Feedback is suppressed for 50ms after receiving a message on a given address to prevent loops.

The full current state is sent when OSC is first enabled. Clients that connect later can request the same push by sending to /refresh.

Wildcard Feedback

Custom mappings with wildcard addresses (e.g., /clip/*/cycles) track which concrete addresses have been received. Feedback is sent to those resolved addresses. Until a concrete address is seen, feedback falls back to the default address for the target.

Feedback Values

Most parameters send a value between 0.0 and 1.0. Clip selection is three-state:

• 1.0: selected
• 0.5: occupied but not selected
• 0.0: empty

Output group send and clear buttons are two-state: 1.0 when the group has a clip routed to it, 0.0 when it's empty.

Querying Parameters

Send a zero-argument message to any mapped address and Modulaser responds with the current value. This is useful for syncing a controller on connect or building custom status displays.

Queries always get a response, even if feedback suppression is active for that address. Action-only targets like /bpm/tap produce no query response.

Discovering Addresses

Send a zero-argument message to /info and Modulaser responds with a bundle listing every available address. Each entry contains five arguments: [address, kind, min, max, current_value]. Kind is one of continuous, toggle, or action. Action entries send NaN for the current value.

Responses are chunked into bundles of 12 messages to stay within UDP packet size limits.

You can scope the query to a specific category: