MIDI Control Change reference: decimal and hexadecimal

20 Dec 2016

Originally published on jonatascastro.com. English edition translated and revised 01 Oct 2026. Historical examples are identified in the text.

MIDI devices exchange messages about notes, controls, and other performance events. A Control Change message identifies a control number and supplies a value, usually from 0 to 127 in MIDI 1.0.

The control number and its value are different things. For example, CC64 identifies the sustain pedal; its value indicates the pedal's state.

This is a practical selection of conventional MIDI 1.0 assignments, rather than a promise that every instrument implements every control. Check your device's MIDI implementation chart.

For the connection and channel basics, read MIDI explained.

Common controls

Decimal	Hex	Conventional assignment
0	00h	Bank Select MSB
1	01h	Modulation Wheel
2	02h	Breath Controller
4	04h	Foot Controller
5	05h	Portamento Time
6	06h	Data Entry MSB
7	07h	Channel Volume
8	08h	Balance
10	0Ah	Pan
11	0Bh	Expression
12	0Ch	Effect Control 1
13	0Dh	Effect Control 2
16–19	10h–13h	General Purpose Controllers 1–4
32–63	20h–3Fh	LSB counterparts for controls 0–31
64	40h	Sustain pedal: 0–63 off, 64–127 on
65	41h	Portamento on/off
66	42h	Sostenuto on/off
67	43h	Soft Pedal on/off
68	44h	Legato Footswitch
69	45h	Hold 2
70	46h	Sound Controller 1: Sound Variation
71	47h	Sound Controller 2: Timbre/Harmonic Intensity
72	48h	Sound Controller 3: Release Time
73	49h	Sound Controller 4: Attack Time
74	4Ah	Sound Controller 5: Brightness
75–79	4Bh–4Fh	Sound Controllers 6–10
80–83	50h–53h	General Purpose Controllers 5–8
84	54h	Portamento Control
91	5Bh	Effects 1 Depth
92	5Ch	Effects 2 Depth
93	5Dh	Effects 3 Depth
94	5Eh	Effects 4 Depth
95	5Fh	Effects 5 Depth
96	60h	Data Increment
97	61h	Data Decrement
98	62h	Non-Registered Parameter Number LSB
99	63h	Non-Registered Parameter Number MSB
100	64h	Registered Parameter Number LSB
101	65h	Registered Parameter Number MSB

MSB means most significant byte and LSB means least significant byte. Some parameters use two seven-bit data bytes together for greater resolution.

Bank selection may use both CC0 and CC32 before a Program Change message. Sending either one alone is not a universal bank-selection procedure.

Channel Mode messages

These use the Control Change message format but affect the channel's behavior. Their interpretation can include a required data value; consult the specification and device documentation before sending them.

Decimal	Hex	Message
120	78h	All Sound Off
121	79h	Reset All Controllers
122	7Ah	Local Control
123	7Bh	All Notes Off
124	7Ch	Omni Mode Off
125	7Dh	Omni Mode On
126	7Eh	Mono Mode On
127	7Fh	Poly Mode On

All Notes Off is different from All Sound Off. A sound may continue through its release or sustain behavior after a note is released.

The original table contained a duplicated LSB label for CC99; it is corrected to MSB here. CC11 and CC120 have also been added to make the reference more useful.

Reference: MIDI Association — MIDI 1.0 Control Change Messages. The original Portuguese table was adapted from Indiana University's electronic-music reference.