by bordonbert Wed Jan 24, 2024 7:30 am
Hi Jaro. Welcome to the forum. There is a good reason why you won't find too much information on using the FSM432 with a TM amplifier, let's look into it.
To figure out using a FSM432 you first have to understand the difference between the TMs and the GMs. Your TM40D has MIDI control of 3 functions. It can select the Channel, turn the Fx Loop on and off, and change the Power Soak setting. That is all! The Grandmeister uses digital rotary controls and can have any of its front panel controls altered to any value. It can also have all of the built in onboard effects turned on and off and also reset to any levels at any time. It can also set up the entire amp to any one of 128 preprogrammed voices. That's a shed load more than the TM40D and requires something more high tech to control it.
The TM40D is not a true full MIDI amp, it only allows control of those 3 simple areas. The GM series also ties in a Power Soak setting to each individual Channel so that will change automatically whenever the channel is changed, even manually with the selector switch. I am not sure if that is the case for your TM40D, it doesn't seem to be mentioned in the manual. If that is the case then on the fly selection of the Power Soak is even less important.
I would think about whether it is worth paying the money for the FSM432 to control so few functions. Don't get me wrong, the FSM432 is a good controller and is fully matched to the H&K amps and processes, I use one with my own GM36 and like the combination, but it isn't cheap and it isn't particularly flexible. At the moment you are using a FS2 footswitch. That allows you to select your channel. It may be a H&K footswitch though any cheaper 2 button model is easy to pair with the TM40D, there are instructions on here if you search. Look at the Thomann ones for example and see how inexpensive they can be. They are literally only an enclosure, a pair of switches, two LEDs and two resistors. A cheap FS1 type footswitch will then allow you to control the FX Loop on/off. So it is only control of the Power Soak setting which will be added by a FSM432. Is it worth the extra money?
Now I would say that if you were thinking of upgrading in the future to a GM40D then the FSM432 is a good choice. There are other MIDI controllers around, a half million of them it appears! They have more and more exotic and complex functions built into them and of course, higher and higher prices. In the way of guitarists today the highest level of functionality is a "must have can't live without" need despite the fact that most people only set up a few of the simplest functions then brag to their friends about the other thousand they will never use. Don't be tempted to overspend on things you will never need.
The FSM432 has 7 switches. These are not dedicated to any one task. The footswitch can be put into a couple of modes where the switches act differently. It can control the Channel Selection, the FX Loop and Power Soak setting all separately just as you do. It can also be put into a "Patch Mode" where a bank of 4 voices is selected from 32 available programmable banks, and the 4 basic buttons then select between the voices in that bank. Each of those voices programme the entire GM series amps to a completely different setup where everything on the amp is programmable. That is really what MIDI is about. The TM series are good amps but their MIDI requirements are very simple.
What is the rest of your setup? Do you have other MIDI pedals which you need to control too for example? Are you planning to upgrade to a GM40D in the near future?