Previous Thread
Index
Next Thread
Print Thread
Go To
#243942 03/13/14 08:39 PM
Band-in-a-Box for Windows
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 5
T
Newbie
OP Offline
Newbie
T
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 5
Hi I'm totally new to BIAB and have run into a problem.

How do you get a clean ending rather than sounding like the song just stopped in the middle of a phrase? I don't want the default 2 bars stuck on at the end because that makes it end on the wrong chord. Occasionally I get a proper ending, but I don't know what I did right when it works or what I did wrong when it doesn't. (I'm techno-challenged)

I am just making a basic back-up track with no original parts added.

I may need a "for Dummies" version. Thanks in advance for your help. smile

Last edited by totalnovice; 03/13/14 08:48 PM.
Band-in-a-Box for Windows
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 19,783
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 19,783
Hi totalnovice,

Welcome to the forums smile

It sounds like you might be entering chord changes in the ending 2 bars.

To my way of thinking, BIAB's 2-bar endings are terrific.



To get them to work properly, there can be only one chord in the ending region of the song and that chord must be on beat 1 of the first bar on the 2-bar ending.

In the above image, the final C chord is (a) the only chord in the ending 2 bars and (b) it occurs on beat 1 of bar 32 (the first bar of the 2-bar ending).

Hope this helps,
Noel


MY SONGS...
Audiophile BIAB 2025
Band-in-a-Box for Windows
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 174
S
Apprentice
Offline
Apprentice
S
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 174
Hi, you should check out YouTube for dozens of BB videos.
Here's a link on Endings.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NF3n9KDcFwI&list=PLAFYmlnjKjj7DfOSMPegPKXXn2UJVoTi_&index=42

PS: You can also goto PG Music and select BB for Windows, then Videos (whole bunches) and... it also offers you to view the video on YouTube.

TIA(thanks in advance).
Hope this helps

Band-in-a-Box for Windows
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 4
Newbie
Offline
Newbie
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 4
Often, I want to hold a chord for 4 bars and let it fade, rather than the 2 bar ending. Let's say the song is 64 bars long, and in the key of E. I want the first chord in bar 64 to hold and fade.

First of all, I use real tracks a lot, and this works great on real tracks.

I insert 4 bars to make it 68 bars long. On bar 64,I want to hold the E and let it fade. I enter E... in bar 64 - 3 periods after the chord play and hold the chord. Then on the ending, which is probably bar 69 and 70, I enter E. in bar 69 - a single period after the chord is a rest until the next chord entered. The result of this is a nice single chord with all the instruments, holding the chord and fading.

You can do lots of variations, too. If you enter E...g, for example, guitar keeps playing in rhythm, and all other instruments play one beat and hold. E...gs has guitar and strings playing in rhythm, and the bass, drums, and piano hold.

I hope this helps,
Dave.


From another BIAB brother,

Dave.
Band-in-a-Box for Windows
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 10,231
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 10,231
It's the other way around for me.

I use the 2 bar endings exclusively. 99.9% of the time BB does the right thing and ends the song properly.

Be sure the number of bars in the song matches the actual number and that the ending has only the final chord in it at the beginning. Also note that the color (blue or green) will influence the groove in that ending.

Having said that, on occasion, BB does play something weird... such as a bass note that hits after the final beat in the song or an acoustic guitar that seems to be doing something strange.

There are a few solutions that I use when this happens and nothing short of changing the style will work. Of course, if you like the style, changing it is not an option either so it's time to grab the book of "work around solutions".

1. I ignore it in BB and move to RB where I render the tracks using the real tracks samples. Often this solves it, or if not.... I move the track as rendered to my DAW where I use the split/copy/paste or a volume envelope to either move or hide that strange note sequence. If the note in the bass is simply misplaced in the time line, a simple split/copy/paste/drag will often solve it. The other option is to remove it using the volume envelope and in the case of many instruments, using this method is perfect since they are not crucial to the sound in the ending last few beats anyway. I use both of these methods quite a bit.

2. I ignore the 2 bar ending....add about 8 bars to the song and use a "hold" where I want the song to end. The hold is on 1 in the ending measure and fades naturally rather quickly over the next several beats. This is quite common in live music and it works well in BB as well. I have used this once or twice in the past, not because the ending was messed up in BB/RB, but because I wanted a simpler ending than BB was delivering.

Hope this helps


You can find my music at:
www.herbhartley.com
Add nothing that adds nothing to the music.
You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both.

The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
Band-in-a-Box for Windows
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 38,502
M
Mac Offline
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
M
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 38,502
Ctrl-N "Song Settings" window has a simple dialog that allows for turning the 2-bar Ending OFF for a song, plus a few other easily selected Ending features.

Experiment, all of it is just as easily undone.


--Mac

Band-in-a-Box for Windows
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 493
B
Journeyman
Offline
Journeyman
B
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 493
Along with all of the good advice already given, you have the option to turn off the BIAB generated endings and make your own (as explained in previous post above and in the videos you've been directed to). You can do this globally (for all songs) or for each song.
If you use real tracks, you can have 4 bar BIAB generated endings. That adds another wrinkle.
I agree with the other posters - usually the BIAB endings are great when coupled with the correct style for the song you have made, with an occasional 'what was that?' thrown in just to keep you on your toes.
When you figure out the endings and are happy with the way one sounds you can freeze the song to preserve it exactly as it has been generated. If you click the regenerate and play button without freezing BIAB will come up with something else most of the time and that may or may not be what you are looking for. Basically it comes down to a lot of experimentation and tweaking of the song.
Of course there is always the option of making your own ending (by turning off the BIAB generated one as mentioned above) and that again involves more trial and error and being familiar with how BIAB works and what it can do. I would say that for me I use about 90% of what BIAB generates and the rest I program in, sometimes porting to RealBand for the final mix.
It really is a two edged sword situation with BIAB / RB - very simple if you want it to be and very complex if you choose to put in the time to learn it. And don't be intimidated by it. Everyone on this forum and those that use BIAB that don't come here started from scratch (including a lot of head scratching) to eventually reach whatever level of knowledge we all have of BIAB. Hang around here and you will quickly figure out who are the real pros (and that is certainly not me), but you will always be welcome and have your questions answered.
Good luck with your song making and have fun. Oh, and get really familiar with the Save and Save As buttons...

Edit: One of those pros is Mac, that posted above while I was typing. Never miss one of his post.

Last edited by BarryKJ; 03/14/14 08:07 AM.
Band-in-a-Box for Windows
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 196
F
Apprentice
Offline
Apprentice
F
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 196
I often use the following.
Say your song from sheet music is 32 bars long. I set the song length to 31 bars and BIAB adds by default an extra two bars at the end. So I now enter the last chord in the song in the first of those ending bars and add three dots after it. For example if the last chord in the song is say an E, put E… (three dots after the chord name). (Note if BIAB happens to put in the wrong chord in the first of the last two bars just change it ). Now when the song is played back the whole band when it reaches that last chord (in bar 32)in the song will play that chord and stop.

You can also add a slow-down say from the second last bar by typing F5 and enter a tempo which is say some value smaller than the tempo of the song by trial and error.
This is often indicated in the sheet music as a “rall.” And can make for a nice ending.

Noel96 #244064 03/14/14 06:01 PM
Band-in-a-Box for Windows
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 5
T
Newbie
OP Offline
Newbie
T
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 5
Thanks Noel96, that did the trick. Thanks to everyone for your ideas. I'll probably try some of those techniques in the future. I'd like to find ways to have more control. For now, my frustration level has lowered and hopefully so has my blood pressure!

Previous Thread
Next Thread
Go To

Link Copied to Clipboard
ChatPG

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.

PG Music News
Band-in-a-Box 2025 Italian Version is Here!

Cari amici
È stata aggerate la versione in Italiano del programma più amato dagli appassionati di musica, il nostro Band-in-a-Box.
Questo è il link alla nuova versione 2025.

Di seguito i link per scaricare il pacchetti di lingua italiana aggiornati per Band-in-a-Box e RealBand, anche per chi avesse già comprato la nuova versione in inglese.

Band-in-a-Box 2025 - Italiano
RealBand 2025 - Italiano

Band-in-a-Box 2025 French Version is Here!

Bonjour à tous,

Band-in-a-Box® 2025 pour Windows est disponible en Français.
Le téléchargement se fait à partir du site PG Music

Pour ceux qui auraient déjà acheté la version 2025 de Band-in-a-Box (et qui donc ont une version anglaise), il est possible de "franciser" cette version avec les patchs suivants:

BIAB 2025 - francisation
RealBand 2025 - francisation

Voilà, enjoy!

Band-in-a-Box 2025 German Version is Here!

Band-in-a-Box 2025 für Windows Deutsch ist verfügbar!

Die deutsche Version Band-in-a-Box® 2025 für Windows ist ab sofort verfügbar!

Alle die bereits die englische Version von Band-in-a-Box und RealBand 2024 installiert haben, finden hier die Installationsdateien für das Sprachenupdate:

https://nn.pgmusic.com/pgfiles/languagesupport/deutsch2025.exe
https://nn.pgmusic.com/pgfiles/languagesupport/deutsch2025RB.exe

Update Your Band-in-a-Box® 2025 to Build 1128 for Windows Today!

Already using Band-in-a-Box 2025 for Windows®? Download Build 1128 now from our Support Page to enjoy the latest enhancements and improvements from our team.

Stay up to date—get the latest update now!

Update to RealBand® 2025 Build 5 Windows Today!

Already using RealBand® 2025 for Windows®? Download Build 5 now from our Support Page to ensure you have the latest enhancements and improvements from our team.

Get the latest update today!

PowerTracks Pro Audio 2025 for Windows is Here!

PowerTracks Pro Audio 2025 is here! This new version introduces many features, including VST3 support, the ability to load or import a .FLAC file, a reset option for track height in the Tracks window, a taller Timeline on the Notation window toolbar, new freeze buttons in the Tracks window, three toolbar modes (two rows, single row, and none), the improved Select Patch dialog with text-based search and numeric patch display, a new button in the DirectX/VST window to copy an effects group, and more!

First-time packages start at only $49. Already a PowerTracks Pro Audio user? Upgrade for as little as $29!

www.pgmusic.com/powertracks.htm

Video: Summary of the New Band-in-a-Box® App for iOS®

Join Tobin as he takes you on a tour of the new Band-in-a-Box® app for iOS®! Designed for musicians, singer-songwriters, and educators, this powerful tool lets you create, play, and transfer songs effortlessly on your iPhone® or iPad®—anytime, anywhere.

Band-in-a-Box® for iOS® :Summary video.

Check out the forum post for more information.

Forum Statistics
Forums58
Topics84,078
Posts774,415
Members39,546
Most Online25,754
Jan 24th, 2025
Newest Members
markstimo, ghodrat, Patrenotes, wsmart54, Axel1986
39,545 Registered Users
Top Posters(30 Days)
MarioD 175
DC Ron 112
rsdean 104
Noel96 92
dcuny 74
WaoBand 69
Today's Birthdays
Gudrun
Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5