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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Hey guys! I am trying to get BIAB to play the Guitar chord
(C F Bb D G) [x33333]
My chart has the cord listed as C11. When I enter it into BIAB, the program translates this to C9sus. According to the RealCharts it is playing:
(C G A F) [x3526x]
This voicing does not work for the song. Can you suggest another voicing to force BIAB to play the C11 as written?
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You'll love this one, That is a C11, but is also a Bb69 with a C in the bass. All those guitar chord studies have not gone to waste here...
Enter Bb69/C. Let us know how it sounds.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Gm7/C seems to work alright as lon as the Bass is playing along BIAB is voicing this as
F Bb F Bb[xx3366] The bass gives me the C. Any other suggestions?
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Try C9sus Look for the chord list in the Help section. Later, Ray
Asus Q500A i7 Win 10 64 bit 8GB ram 750 HD 15.5" touch screen, BIAB 2017, Casio PX 5s, Xw P1, Center Point Stereo SS V3 and EWI 4000s.
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Rob,
You could also try Bb6/C (which is equivalent to Gm7/C but BIAB might interpret Bb6 a little differently from Gm7) Interestingly, the notes you give C-F-Bb-D-G do correspond to Csus9 since there is no 'E' (or 3rd) in the chord.
What I often do in situations like this to reduce the chord to its base triad and see if that works. Then, when I discover what the chord's base is, I add appropriate extensions like 7, 9, 11, etc.
Base triads that I'd try for this chord are C, Csus, Bb, Gm.
Regards, Noel
MY SONGS...Audiophile BIAB 2026
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Lets face it we all know there is no way to make BIAB voice a chord exactly how you want it (Short of editing the midi data itself and freezing the track). The Style dictates this. For simple triads you can pick a simple sytle and then select "jazz down" options and you may get lucky and hear voicings exactly as you want, but for extended chords BIAB will do it the way it wants.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Quote:
You'll love this one, That is a C11, but is also a Bb69 with a C in the bass. All those guitar chord studies have not gone to waste here...
Enter Bb69/C. Let us know how it sounds.
The RT I'm using "Guitar, Electric, Rhythm Western Swing" (#185) is voicing that as x5556x while in the key of F; there is no Bb. When the Bb is missing, I hear it.
The Gm7/C misses the G and the D but the F and Bb seem to be more important to my ear. Probably has something to do with being in the tonic triad, but here I show my less than complete knowledge of theory.
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Ray and Noel, thanks for the input, I tried both suggestions. Neither quite hit it. But that is what makes this place great, folks trying to help each other with their nit picks!
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Quote:
Quote:
Enter Bb69/C. Let us know how it sounds.
The RT I'm using "Guitar, Electric, Rhythm Western Swing" (#185) is voicing that as x5556x while in the key of F; there is no Bb.
A perfect example of the BIAB player doing what he wants. I am sure it sounds musical in the context of the broader musical phrase, and you can regenerate a couple times to hear him play it differently, but don't always expect to hear "exactly" what you type. 
Hold it, I see the problem, you as asking a country picker (Guitar, Electric, Rhythm Western Swing) to play a jazz chord with the 6th and 9th, ?? I don't think those western guys have that many fingers. 
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(C F Bb D G) [x33333]
Try entering Bb6/C
It may fool BB but it likely won't yield the wonderful barred 3 of the guitar. Yeah, yours truly is guilty of grabbin' that easy chordshape perhapa a bit too much, but then it is certainly an R&B staple...
--Mac
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Two comments. Your chart has the cord as C11, but you aren't playing the 3rd E. Why is that? Of all the notes to omit, that seems to me to be one of the worst.
As a guitarist, the chord you have given looks like a Gm7/C--the top four strings gives you a drop-2 Gm7. You've simply added a C in the bass.
If you put this chord in BIAB (at least in the styles I tried), BIAB will let the bass instrument play the C, and the guitar will play fragments of the chord you want, but with a G in the bass sometimes (fair enough, as the bass instrument is playing this an octave lower anyways).
(Mac's suggestion of Bb6 is, of course, the same notes at Gm7. But the fingering you want gives the chord more of a minor sound, at least to my ears.)
So it seems to me that you have to make a choice. Do you want to follow the chart and include the E, or do you want to follow your preferred fingering and omit it? If so, I recommend some version of Gm7.
John
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Thanks Mac, Noel suggested that too. I went with the Gm7/C. It misses the G and the D but the F and Bb seem to be more important to my ear. @Smooth: I'm not playing it - BIAB is. I'm simply transcribing and trying to force the program to play a certain way.  Thanks for your help everyone.
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C-F-Bb = atacked 4ths, a wonderful sound in the right place, can see how you'd prefer the G-7/C for that.
BTW I think I'd likely call it a C9sus (in closed position, a keyboardist would likely grab the 4ths) but for a guitarist, well, you know, the chordshape might well be identified and grabbed quicker if it were called a Gm7/C for a lot of cats. Adding the x33333 on the chart would cinch it.
Enjoy,
--Mac
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Hate to beat a dead horse here, but what do you do once you get it? Do you freeze the track? Because as we all know the next time you play it will sound different. 
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I moved it over to Sonar. I guess freezing would work but I am recording vox and don't record audio with BIAB. Not that there is anything wrong with the program, but I have been using both programs since before BIAB/RB crossed over to the DAW world (and before Sonar was called Sonar).
I've only been playing with RTs for about a year. Before that I had BIAB 2008 (and before that BIAB 2005, etc. If one of the midi styles played a note I didn't like, it was simple to fix. I love RT's but they are not as flexible as MIDI. It is still rather difficult to get a good MIDI guitar sound out of the box - especially acoustic. I guess it it worth the trade off.
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Just out of curiosity, Rob, what styles have you looked at. The more pop-based styles may give you fewer changes and simpler chords.
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Quote:
Just out of curiosity, Rob, what styles have you looked at. The more pop-based styles may give you fewer changes and simpler chords.
SJ, these are Real Tracks so they are not influenced by the Style. Styles only effect Midi tracks. With Real Tracks you get what is recorded. So Rob could certainly have tried a different RT - and roll the dice to see what they play, (to get a C11, which I believe is where this all started, I owuld looked at the jazzier RTs) but I suspect Rob liked the vibe of the track he had selected. But you knew that. 
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Tried plenty. Needed the Western Swing grove. Beside the one chord, RT#185 was a perfect fit. The Gm7/C workaround sounds fine for the 2 1/2 measures it plays. I'm sure neither Freddie Green or Gene Autry would mind.
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