Darkglass MIDI Footswitch

The Darkglass MIDI Footswitch is a five-switch MIDI controller made by Darkglass for its amplifiers and pedals. It is designed first for the Exponent 500 amp and the Infinity 500 Combo, but its MIDI OUT/THRU connector can also drive any generic MIDI device with a 5-pin MIDI cable, and it is USB MIDI compatible¹².

Each of the five footswitches can be configured through the free Darkglass Suite software, with ready-to-use templates for Darkglass products, and effect bypasses can be bound to the five footswitches per preset¹³⁴. Darkglass lists it at £175.00 GBP, and it was sold out at that price on the maker's product page as of 25 October 2026².

What it is and what it does

The unit is a floor controller, not an effects pedal: it sends MIDI program change and control change messages to other gear rather than processing your signal. Darkglass positions it as a companion to the Exponent 500, whose manual notes that the amp's 7-pin MIDI connector is to be used only with the Darkglass MIDI Footswitch, and that effect bypasses can be bound to its five footswitches for each preset⁶.

Out of the box it needs no programming. The factory configuration sends the default MIDI messages of the Infinity 500 Combo and Exponent 500 presets 1 to 5, on MIDI Channel 1 with Program Change 2 to 6¹. Beyond that, everything is configured in the Darkglass Suite over USB-C, including ready-to-use templates for Darkglass products²⁵.

There are 16 MIDI channels available, and each can be assigned to a different MIDI device, so one footswitch can command several pieces of gear at once¹.

The footswitches and modes

The five footswitches cover 5 main and 5×5 sub layer actions, and the controller works in several modes¹.

In Super Intelligent Footswitch mode, recognizable by its blue LEDs, the first four footswitches correspond to the four footswitches of the Super Intelligent Footswitch and AO Super Intelligent Footswitch¹⁷.

In Multi page mode the LED colors identify the active page, with the top page shown in white¹. In Super Intelligent Footswitch mode, recognized by its blue LEDs, the first four footswitches correspond to the four footswitches of the Super Intelligent Footswitch and AO Super Intelligent Footswitch, labeled CLEAN, VMT, B3K and MUTE¹.

Power and connections

The MIDI Footswitch draws only 15 mA, so it is light on a pedalboard power supply¹. Darkglass gives several ways to run it:

• 9V DC barrel jack, center negative: works with a generic power supply rated at a minimum of 15 mA¹².
• USB-C: connects to a computer for configuring in the Darkglass Suite, or directly to the Darkglass e500 amp for syncing settings; USB power banks and chargers can be used as the power source².
• Powered by the amp: with the Exponent 500 or Infinity 500 Combo, use the 7-pin MIDI cable and the MIDI Footswitch is powered by the amplifier; Darkglass amps can also power it through the same 1/4" plug used for the data, giving full operation over a single cable¹⁴.

On the connection side, the 5-pin DIN MIDI IN jack takes a MIDI OUT from another device and passes those messages through to the MIDI OUT/THRU connector, so the unit can sit mid-chain in a larger MIDI rig; MIDI THRU can be disabled in the Darkglass Suite under Settings¹. The 1/4" TS jack connects to the FOOTSWITCH connector of Darkglass amplifiers¹.

Firmware and setup

Firmware is handled entirely through the Darkglass Suite: the current firmware version and firmware updates are found on the Settings tab¹.

1. Connect the MIDI Footswitch to a computer with a USB-C cable².
2. Open the Darkglass Suite and go to the Settings tab¹.
3. Apply the update from there¹.

During the update, do not disconnect the MIDI Footswitch or close the Suite¹. If a settings sync with the amp fails, Darkglass advises connecting a dedicated 9V power supply to the MIDI Footswitch and trying the USB connection again¹.

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