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Of course it's a blues, dummy...  Where have you been? <Med shuffle> Chorus/Intro from the 5 "Them crazy old retirement facility blues yeah, yeah, yeah...." Verse/ Now get up from those wheelchairs,,, swing them around...pull out those silly hearing aids and really dig the sound...Oh baby, yeah those cra_zy.. retirement facility blues... "I'm telling ya right now son, it's them crazy old retirement facility blues, ooohhhh yeeaahhhh" da dum, da dum...big guitar lick on the 5... Verse 2/...Ok you guys write it. Back to the mundane. If your laptop is noisy you probably have an old one or you're not using a ground plug and you're picking up ground hum. Try it with the battery, it it's quiet then you need a two prong adapter. The newer ones have very good mini plug audio outs. Bluesy Bob
Biab/RB latest build, Win 11 Pro, Ryzen 5 5600 G, 512 Gig SSD, 16 Gigs Ram, Steinberg UR22 MkII, Roland Sonic Cell, Kurzweil PC3, Hammond SK1, Korg PA3XPro, Garritan JABB, Hypercanvas, Sampletank 3, more.
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Quote:
Quote:
I love the laptop, mainly because I have the chord sheet rolling in front of me at all times and when you do many, many tunes (and at my age) I don't even try to remember all the changes anymore. Been using one for too long to remember (oh, we already addressed memory) with no issues.
Break A Leg!
The laptop idea is sounding more interesting.
My laptop's sound quality is terrible.
What laptop to PA interface are you using ?
Bill
I am using the 1/8 jack from the laptop headphone hole right into a little mixer via RCAs. From there 1/4 jacks to my powered speakers. Before the powered speakers I ran the 1/8 from the laptop right into the pa via RCAs.
I am sure you will find in todays (still using a old 6 year old Lenovo as a back up) laptops the sound quality is vast improved over the past. But unless you are running an antique the sound breakdown should not be with the laptop.
What interface do you use?
Later,
Last edited by Danny C.; 03/15/12 02:37 PM.
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Apprentice
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Apprentice
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 193 |
Matt,
The name of the app I was referring to is BackTrax. I may have been a little misleading about it returning to the set list after going outside of the list and returning. I must have read too many app descriptions lately :-). Still, it looks quite viable for the live musician.
Good luck.
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Thanks, I'll check it out!
BIAB 2026 Win Audiophile. Software: Fender Studio One 8, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6, Song Master Pro, Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Fender Quantom HD8 & Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors.
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Enthusiast
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Enthusiast
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 46 |
I want to thank everyone for their hardware recommendations for playing backing tracks. I just happened to come across this piece of DJ gear in a Mom & Pop Music store. Cortex HDC-500 I just started playing with it and it seems like it's going to do the job for me. It plays MP3 and wave files, has two USBs for flash drives, hard drives or even a computer keyboard. RCA and XLR out. Thanks again everyone. Bill
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Newbie
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Newbie
Joined: Mar 2013
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I wanted to point out a link which can be useful : SyncInside - Backing tracks advanced player www.syncinside.net[EDIT] Camera Connection Kit and a Class compliant USB sound card are required to exploit the multitrack features. [/EDIT]
Last edited by bellicapelli; 04/19/13 10:44 AM.
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Expert
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Expert
Joined: Nov 2008
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Maybe I was one of the first to use the original Apple Ipod Shirt-Pocket unit into my laptop and then inti a Akai Mixer. Before that I often brought a Peavey Road Rack loaded: Crown Base Station Amp (300 Watts) Peavey 701-R vertical mixer Side by Side Lexicon LX-1 and LX-5 Effect Boxes Lexicon Vortex Non-Digital Effects Box Side by Side Roland M3-R's with separate Editor Yamaha Motif Rack Unit Sound enhancer Box Now I don't roll a rack around any more...heap everyghing on my motorized gurney! Now I use two Keyboard Amps for my PA System. Move em with my new Catapillar Front End Loader. Deisel Fumes pretty overpowering but it does cover up the "Mary Jane" Breezes I have a trained army of "Jazz Roaches" that drag in the guitars and keyboards. Tip for long lived cats like me: Bring a couple of heaveyweight nymphos to help! 
Yamaha...Motif ES-8, Motif Rack, CS6X
Korg...Karma,Triton Classic, PA-80, M-1+
AkaiSampler-S5000, Roland.. X5080 Rack/G-1000 Arranger
Various Guitars/Basses Amps Pedals Rec.Equip.
Plus, BIAB 2015 and Sonar Platinum 2015 Upgrade from Cakewalk's Sonar X-3
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Well, it's an old thread, but here goes anyway.
I may be the only person who has ever used backing tracks with a marching band. Many years ago I took a teaching gig in a small county high school. The band was pretty tiny, but, of course we had to show up every Friday night for the football halftime.
The band was severely lacking in low end - no tubas, no trombones, etc. Basically, it was flutes and trumpets! I got the idea of using band in a box to create rhythm section backups. Wrote 2-way harmony parts for the flutes and trumpets (even had a couple of clarinets). It was one of those communities where they really like polkas - so I put together a book of polkas for the band, and also sequenced a few simple published band arrangements.
One of the dads had a welding shop and he built a cart that would hold a 500-watt guitar amp, a 12-volt marine battery, and a heavy duty inverter. An Ensonic VFX-SD sat on top of the cart and furnished the sound -- and it put out A LOT of sound!
I clearly remember the first football game of the season. We had a long bus trip to some little town far to the south. We were a little late getting to the stadium. As we were getting off of the bus the other band was already in the stadium playing away. It was a fairly large band, probably a little over 100 players, and my kids were feeling a bit outclassed.
This was the first game of the season, and neither band was going to march on the field. We had agreed beforehand that the bands would play a "concert" in the stands during the halftime.
The home band played first. They did a reasonable job. Then it was our turn. We played a couple of tunes and I could not help but notice that everyone was pleasantly surprised at the great sound the little band was getting.
After a couple of tunes, I told the drum major to wait a few minutes and then start up on of our "special" polka arrangements. I wanted to go to the other side of the stadium and see how it sounded from there. I was about halfway across the end zone when the band began playing. It sounded great - like a 140 piece band!
When I got to the section of bleachers where the home band was, the band members were literally sitting there with their mouths open. I remember the band director's words, "Wow! How do you get so much sound from that little band? How many trumpets do you have?".
"Well I only have five trumpets", I replied. Then I pointed to the press box behind the band, "But I told them that I want that press box on the ground behind the stadium when we leave here!".
I never explained any more about how we did it. But now you know that Band In A Box has a marching band history!
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That's a funny story. I bet the other band leader is still scratching his head....
Charlie
BIAB 2026:RB 2026, Latest builds: Dell Optiplex 7040 Desktop; Windows-10-64 bit, Intel Core i7-6700 3.4GHz CPU and 16 GB Ram Memory.
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Great story.
I love it when the underdog comes shining through!
BIAB & RB2026 Win.(Audiophile), Windows 10 Pro & Windows 11, Cakewalk Bandlab, Izotope Prod.Bundle, Roland RD-1000, Synthogy Ivory, Session Keys Grand S & Electric R, Kontakt, Focusrite 18i20, KetronSD2, NS40M, Pioneer Active Monitors.
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 - thanks for sharing!
Bob "Notes" Norton  Norton Music
https://www.nortonmusic.com
100% MIDI Super-Styles recorded by live, pro, studio musicians for a live groove
& Fake Disks for MIDI and/or RealTracks
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what a clever solution, and great use for band in a Box!
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Journeyman
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As a retired band director I think that is halarious.
The closest I can come to that is that I once I had a Maestro woodwind sound system that was able to synthesize sounds. I would hook it up to a clarinet and have an instant bassoon in my elementary band.
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I use an iPod touch that has all my songs listed in a playlist in alphabetical order. This Is way is done to match the way my sheet music so I can read my sheet music while I play. A lot of the songs I have memorized but there are some pan songs I still play to sheet music. I can't use a laptop becuase I have some songs that I made on an the either the 2014 version of BIAB or 2015, and some where given to me buy my steel pan teacher and there are on my iPod. Plus the nice thing about using my iPod is that it can jump right to the next song. However, the volume level of each song is inconsistent so one track may be quite while one may be loud, but not rock concert loud, as I play jazz, calypso, island, and pop, and soca tunes. If you don't know what soca is, it is the dance style of Trinidad and Tobago.
Computer: Macbook Pro, 16 inch 2021
DAWs: Pro Tools, Logic, and Maschine
plays drums, percussion, bass, steel pan, keyboard,
music producer/engineer
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Bill thanks for starting this excellent topic. I have a question or two for Joe : Joe, are you still using this setup ? Would it be possible to pm you on this ? I'm also looking for something low cost that is simple and reliable. I play guitar and sing a little, and I might be playing soon with a drummer friend who also sings. It would be really cool if we could add a bass track and maybe another guitar or some synth parts, etc, for doing songs live. Could this be done without a soundman working a board out front ?
I'm also curious about how the sony mini disc player can be operated with a foot control. Would this be an ordinary Sony mini disc player ? I can't imagine how this could be operated with foot controls, but your setup sounds really compact and easy to use. I sure would like to duplicate what you're doing.
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I see this is your first post so you're forgiven for not realizing this thread was started 8 years ago then resurrected in 2017. Note the post before yours is February 2017. I haven't seen most of these people on the forum in years. Your question is very common and it's very easy to answer. Get a tablet either Android or iPad. Both can store and playback MP3's or pure wav's. The wav's take up a lot more space while the MP3's are compressed. Don't be worried about that MP3 still sound great. If you ever listen to Youtube music, Soundcloud, iTunes etc they're all compressed too usually more than an MP3 is. Your phone has the same capability as a tablet but you'll be happier with the bigger screen on the tablet. Sound goes through the headphone out with an adapter cable so it can plug into your PA. As for apps for IOS there is Forscore: https://forscore.co/about-music/For Android there's Mobilsheets: https://www.zubersoft.com/mobilesheets/ These let you create setlists, you can go from one song to the next with a bluetooth footswitch if you don't want to mess around with your finger on a touchscreen and both can link up to backing tracks so when you change songs both the leadsheet and backing tracks are ready to go. If you already have a laptop you can use that as well but a laptop does not have easy access to these live performance apps you can get with IOS or Android. I'm sure there are probably DJ programs (not apps) for that but I'm not familiar with them. Bob
Biab/RB latest build, Win 11 Pro, Ryzen 5 5600 G, 512 Gig SSD, 16 Gigs Ram, Steinberg UR22 MkII, Roland Sonic Cell, Kurzweil PC3, Hammond SK1, Korg PA3XPro, Garritan JABB, Hypercanvas, Sampletank 3, more.
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Ask sales and support questions about Band-in-a-Box using natural language.
ChatPG's knowledge base includes the full Band-in-a-Box User Manual and sales information from the website.
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Introducing XPro Styles PAK 11 – Now Available for Windows Band-in-a-Box 2026 and Higher!
XPro Styles PAK 11 for Windows & Mac Band-in-a-Box® version 2026 (and higher) is here with 100 brand new RealStyles, plus 31 RealTracks/RealDrums!
Guess who’s back again? That’s right! It’s our XPro Styles PAK’s triumphant return with the 11th edition in this series! 100 new styles are coming your way spread across the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres. And this edition's wildcard genre explores the immense and far-reaching catalogue of electronic music! The included 31 RealTracks and RealDrums can be used with any Band-in-a-Box® 2026 (and higher) package.
Special offers available until August 31st, 2026!
All the XPro Styles PAKs 1-11 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea), or get them all in the XPro Styles PAK Bundle for only $149 (reg. $299)! Order now!
Learn more and listen to demos of XPro Styles PAKs.
Video: XPro Styles PAK 11 Overview & Styles Demos: Watch now!
XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2026 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.
Introducing Xtra Styles PAK 22 – Now Available for Windows Band-in-a-Box 2026 and Higher!
Xtra Styles PAK 22 for Windows & Mac Band-in-a-Box version 2026 (and higher) is here with 200 brand new RealStyles!
It’s time to celebrate! Xtra Styles PAK 22 for Band-in-a-Box® is here, and we've got 200 brand-new styles coming your way!
No Xtra Styles PAK is complete without the classic rock & pop, jazz, and country volumes you know and love, and we’ve got plenty to share, with 150 styles spread across too many genres to list! Of course, it also wouldn’t be complete with our special wildcard volume to add a little spice and pizzazz to the mix. This year, because we loved it so much the first time, we’ve decided to make the second iteration of our SynthMaster volume, full of new sounds, interesting genres, and 50 engaging styles, all making use of the diverse SynthMaster plugin! Here you can find genres such as airy yacht rock, sultry electrotango, and even some synth soca funk. Don’t wait, pickup up Xtra Styles PAK 22 today!
In this PAK you can find: dulcet folk ballads, funky gospel country, Brazilian jazz fusion, upbeat 1980s pop, classic Americana, a plethora of breezy bossa novas, indie singer-songwriter, scintillating synthwave, exuberant electronica, and many, many more!
Special offers available until August 31st, 2026!
All the Xtra Styles PAKs 1-22 are on special for only $29 each (reg $49), or get all 22 PAKs for $199 (reg $399)! Order now!
Learn more and listen to demos of the Xtra Styles PAK 22.
Video: Xtra Styles PAK 22 Overview & Styles Demos: Watch now!
Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 22 requires the 2026 or higher UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version because they need the RealTracks from the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.
Introducing XPro Styles PAK 11 – Now Available for Mac Band-in-a-Box 2026 and Higher!
XPro Styles PAK 11 for Mac & Windows Band-in-a-Box® version 2026 (and higher) is here with 100 brand new RealStyles, plus 31 RealTracks/RealDrums!
Guess who’s back again? That’s right! It’s our XPro Styles PAK’s triumphant return with the 11th edition in this series! 100 new styles are coming your way spread across the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres. And this edition's wildcard genre explores the immense and far-reaching catalogue of electronic music! The included 31 RealTracks and RealDrums can be used with any Band-in-a-Box® 2026 (and higher) package.
Special offers available until August 31st, 2026!
All the XPro Styles PAKs 1-11 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea), or get them all in the XPro Styles PAK Bundle for only $149 (reg. $299)! Order now!
Learn more and listen to demos of XPro Styles PAKs.
Video: XPro Styles PAK 11 Overview & Styles Demos: Watch now!
XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2026 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.
Introducing Xtra Styles PAK 22 – Now Available for Mac Band-in-a-Box 2026 and Higher!
Xtra Styles PAK 22 for Mac & Windows Band-in-a-Box version 2026 (and higher) is here with 200 brand new RealStyles!
It’s time to celebrate! Xtra Styles PAK 22 for Band-in-a-Box® is here, and we've got 200 brand-new styles coming your way!
No Xtra Styles PAK is complete without the classic rock & pop, jazz, and country volumes you know and love, and we’ve got plenty to share, with 150 styles spread across too many genres to list! Of course, it also wouldn’t be complete with our special wildcard volume to add a little spice and pizzazz to the mix. This year, because we loved it so much the first time, we’ve decided to make the second iteration of our SynthMaster volume, full of new sounds, interesting genres, and 50 engaging styles, all making use of the diverse SynthMaster plugin! Here you can find genres such as airy yacht rock, sultry electrotango, and even some synth soca funk. Don’t wait, pickup up Xtra Styles PAK 22 today!
In this PAK you can find: dulcet folk ballads, funky gospel country, Brazilian jazz fusion, upbeat 1980s pop, classic Americana, a plethora of breezy bossa novas, indie singer-songwriter, scintillating synthwave, exuberant electronica, and many, many more!
Special offers available until August 31st, 2026!
All the Xtra Styles PAKs 1-22 are on special for only $29 each (reg $49), or get all 22 PAKs for $199 (reg $399)! Order now!
Learn more and listen to demos of the Xtra Styles PAK 22.
Video: Xtra Styles PAK 22 Overview & Styles Demos: Watch now!
Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 22 requires the 2026 or higher UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version because they need the RealTracks from the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.
Peter Gannon Talks Band-in-a-Box with zplane
zplane recently interviewed Peter Gannon, the founder and creator of Band-in-a-Box, about the software's early days, what sets it apart from AI, how zplane's audio algorithms are used in Band-in-a-Box, and more!
Special thanks to the team at zplane for their continued support.
Check out the full interview here: https://products.zplane.de/blog/peter-gannon-interview-pg-music
Last Chance! The Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac® Special Ends Today (May 31, 2026) at 11:59pm PDT!
Time really is running out! Save up to 50% on Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac® upgrades and receive a FREE Bonus PAK—only when you order by 11:59 PM PDT today!
We've added many major new features and new content in a redesigned Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac®!
Version 2026 introduces a modernized GUI redesign across the program, with updated toolbars, refreshed windows, smoother workflows, and a new Dark Mode option. There’s also a new side toolbar for quicker access to commonly used windows, and the new Multi-View feature lets you arrange multiple windows as layered panels without overlap, making it easier to customize your workspace.
Another exciting new addition is the amazing new AI-Notes feature, which can transcribe polyphonic audio into MIDI. View the results in notation or play them back as MIDI, and choose whether to transcribe an entire track or transcribe specific parts like drums, bass, guitars/piano, or vocals. There's over 100 new features in Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac®.
There's an amazing collection of new content too, including 202 RealTracks, new RealStyles, MIDI SuperTracks, Instrumental Studies, “Songs with Vocals” Artist Performance Sets, Playable RealTracks Set 5, two RealDrums Stems sets, and much more!
Upgrade your Band-in-a-Box for Mac® to save up to 50% on most Band-in-a-Box® 2026 upgrade packages!
Plus, when you order your Band-in-a-Box® 2026 Mac upgrade during our special, you'll receive a Free Bonus PAK of exciting new add-ons.
If you need any help deciding which package is the best option for you, just let us know. We are here to help!
Band-in-a-Box® 2026 Mac Special Offers Extended Until May 31st!
Good news- we've extended our Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac® special offers until May 31, 2026!
Band-in-a-Box® 2026 is packed with major new features, enhancements, and an incredible lineup of new content! The program now sports a sleek, modern GUI redesign across the entire interface, including updated toolbars, refreshed windows, smoother workflows, a new dark mode option, and more. The brand-new side toolbar provides quicker access to key windows, while the new Multi-View feature lets you arrange multiple windows as layered panels without overlap, creating a flexible, clutter-free workspace. We have an amazing new “AI-Notes” feature. This transcribes polyphonic audio into MIDI so you can view it in notation or play it back as MIDI. You can transcribe an entire track (all pitched instruments and drums) or focus on individual parts like drums, bass, guitars/piano, or vocals. There's an amazing collection of new content too, including 202 RealTracks, new RealStyles, MIDI SuperTracks, Instrumental Studies, “Songs with Vocals” Artist Performance Sets, Playable RealTracks Set 5, two RealDrums Stems sets, and much more!
There are over 100 new features in Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac®.
When you order purchase Band-in-a-Box® 2026 before 11:59 PM PDT on May 31st, you'll also receive a Free Bonus PAK packed with exciting new add-ons.
Check out the Band-in-a-Box® for Mac packages page to find the best package for you.
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