Status:
- I just got BIAB & RB 2001 installed.
- Also just let Windows 10 install the driver for my old Axiom 49 keyboard controller.

- With BIAB and with RealBand open I can play the keyboard and hear the notes.
- MIDI In = Axiom 49
- MIDI Out = Microsoft GS Wavetable Synth

Problem 1:
When I open RealBand it tells me...

"Input & output devices are set in Windows to different sample rates. Input will be disabled. Please select audio devices that have the same sample rates,
or visit... Control Panel > Sound
and right click on each device & set sample rate in advanced tab.

BUT - when I do this sample rate does not appear for any of the items on the Playback Tab...
or on the Recording Tab.

My choices are...

Playback Tab:
- Speakers
- RealTek Digital Output
- Real Digital Output Optical

Recording Tab:
- Microphone
- Line In
- Stereo Mix

Problem 1 Question:
In Windows 10, how do you set the sample rates for input and output devices?

Problem 2:
The latency from key press to hearing the note is long.
(I think I saw 200+ ms somewhere)
Problem 2 Question:
Is there any solution for this? Else how do you play along with the RB or BIAB accompaniment?

Thanks for any help.

The delay is called latency, and an onboard device will likely have this issue.
with a delay that long (is it 200 mS or 2000 mS?)
I ask because 2000 would be more indicative of default MME settings in RB.

The solution is a better audio/MIDI interface that supports a faster response, preferably one with ASIO drivers.
The Realtek will be slow natively (not built for this).

Otherwise
To set the bitrate in Windows Right-Click the speaker in lower right corner of your taskbar .. select Sounds
Select the desired device
.. click Properties then the Advanced tab
There is a drop down for the bit rate; start with 16/44 and then test
You could also test the available options in RB - Options - Prefs - Audio tab
Maybe a different available option would work better, but in this instance it seems you are asking the computer to accept MIDI input and generate a sound quickly, which is what ASIO was designed for.

//RB 2001? .. that sounds pretty old, or did you mean 2021?

Yes, I meant BIAB/RB 2021. Just installed it and am trying to get going.

Here is the situation now...

RealBand still complains:
"Input & output devices are set in Windows to different sample rates. Input will be disabled. Please select audio devices that have the same sample rates, or visit Control Panel > Sound, right click on each device & set sample rate in advanced tab."

Per the above and your instructions...

I Right-Clicked the speaker the speaker in the lower right corner of the taskbar and selected Sounds.

Playback Tab:
- Speakers are enabled and I set to 16-bit 44.1
- RealTek Digital Output is disabled
- Real Digital Output Optical is disabled
Question: Should I have more "devices" in this tab?

Recording Tab:
- Microphone
- Line In
- Stereo Mix
Question: But none of these seem applicable... right?
Question: And, Should I have more "devices" in this tab?

Sounds Tab: ignored as it controls Event sounds - right?
Communications Tab: ignored as it controls telephone sounds - right?

And for... RealBand Options... Here are my settings:

Options > Preferences > Audio
- Audio File Type: 16-bit 44.1
- Audio Driver Type: Windows Audio (MME, ASIO are alternates)

Options > Preferences > MIDI > MIDI Devicees
- input device: USB Axiom 49
- output device: Microsoft GS Wavetable Synth
- checked: Reroute MIDI to playback to default Dxi/VSTi Synth
- Timer Period 10ms

For clarity on descriptions...
the "Playback Tab" list output devices... right?
the "Recording Tab" list input devices... right?

So, I'm stumped as to why RealBand still gives me the error message on startup.

As an aside, With RB up I can hear the keyboard when I play it...
And I would like to discuss latency but after I get the bit rate issue solved... as my eyes are already rolling back in my head :-)

I really appreciate the help.

Solve the bitrate mismatch first .. then we can get on to the difference between recording Audio and MIDI
Maybe try ASIO if available .. and make sure Windows and the soundcard are set to the same rate (like 16/44).

Yes, I would like to solve the bitrate issue first.
I described the problem in my last post.
Can you take a look and give me some guidance on what to do next?
Thanks for the help.

In your post you tell us what the speakers are set to, but not the recording side. (input).

It is possible that under Recording device Properties-Advanced it is set to 24 bit or something.

Bit rate doesn't matter - 24-bit and 16-bit can mismatch without issue. The problem is sample rate, which must match for both the Recording and Playback devices, otherwise RealBand will not use the recording device - this will only affect recording audio, and should not affect playback or editing, or even recording MIDI.

These are the standard instructions I send out for tech support, which you have so far partially done, but try them anyway:



If your Recording device does not have an option for 44100hz, just make sure to set the Playback device to match it.


For the delay issue, please go to Options > Preferences > Audio, and tell us what is selected for Audio Driver Type. Try switching between WAS/Windows Audio or MME, or try ASIO if your hardware supports it. Generally speaking, WAS and ASIO should provide lower latency than MME.

If you don't have an ASIO driver, you can try one of the generic ASIO drivers like FlexASIO or ASIO4All, though keep in mind that they don't always work well (being that they're generic and were not written specifically for your hardware). This is where purpose-built audio interfaces come in, such as ones from Focusrite, Presonus, Steinberg, etc. Keep away from lower quality brands, as some of them do not write specific ASIO drivers for their hardware and instead rely on ASIO4All.

Under Recording I only have...
- Microphone
- Line In
- Stereo Mix

None of their properties have an "Advanced Tab"

The only device in "Sounds" that has an "Advanced Tab" is...
Playback > Speakers > Proprties

First: Here are my "Recording" device choices...
- Microphone
- Line In
- Stereo Mix
None of their properties have the "Advanced" tab

Second:
In RealBand when I click Options > Preferences > Audio

The current Audio Driver Type = Windows Audio
With these settings:
- Audio Input Driver = blank
- Audio Output Driver = Speakers (Realtek High Definition Audio)
.. Buffer size: 560
.. Sample Frames - 25.4 ms latency
.. Shared Mode
.. Song Sampling Rate: 44100
.. Actual Driver Sampling Rate: 44100

If I select MME
- Audio Input Driver = Blank
- Audio Output Driver = 2 options
... Microsoft Sound Mapper
... Speakers (Realtek High Definition

I'm unsure which of the two options to select for MME

If I select ASIO I'm told "no driver"

Maybe the issue is that I have no appropriate "Recording Device"
What should the "Recording Device" be? My M-Audio Axiom 49 controller?
If so should it show up in Sounds > Recording devices?

Thanks for the help.

Most likely nothing is connected to either the Microphone or Line In - some sound cards disable the device when nothing is connected. In that case, don't worry about the sample rate messages. If you want the messages to go away, you would need to either purchase an external audio interface as suggested earlier, or plug in something to the Microphone or Line In ports on your computer.




In MME either option should work. Also, it seems your sound card does not have an ASIO driver.

The M-Audio is a MIDI device, which would not show up as an audio device.

Thanks Simon. I'm slowly getting it :-)

Indeed... some good advice.

My suggestion is that if you are serious about making music using BB & RB and perhaps a DAW like Sonar or something else, you will of course want to get an external, USB connected interface that uses ASIO native drivers. The vast majority of folks here are using this or a very similar method because it works flawlessly and your latency numbers are usually in the 10ms or less range. Most folks can't hear a 10ms delay. 200ms as you indicated is very noticeable and nearly impossible to play with.

Bit depth is not as critical as sample rates. 16 or 24 with samples at 44.1k are standard. The only reason you might consider something else is if you are writing for film and they will sometimes request a higher sample rate. 48k I believe. For music listening.... 16/44.1 is default.

You're welcome Will!




If sound is only ever coming out of your computer, an audio interface isn't necessary. It's only really when audio is going into your computer that it becomes a requirement - exactly for the reasons you mentioned.

I personally find Bit Depth to be much more important than sample rates, since bit depth adds dynamic range which is usually easy to hear depending on musical genre.