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RealBand
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Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 13
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OP
Newbie
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 13 |
So, I've been playing with some midi files I found/bought on the web.
It looks like RealBand is the program to use for this, since it can put midi channels in separate tracks. And then it will play these just fine, but they sound quite unnatural to me, because it is using either the Microsoft or the Coyote Wave Table Synth (if I understand correctly).
1. How do I get the midi tracks to sound good? If I pick a RealStyle and click on Generate, what I get is a bunch of extra tracks, which don't actually play what the midi instruments play, but a loose accompaniment to the chords that go with the song.
2. I suppose I could invest in better midi software synth, right?
3. Or should I go for a piece of midi hardware that has good sampled sounds?
4. What are the good and/or affordable choices? If you didn't guess yet, I'm new to midi. And to BIAB and RB... :-)
5. I did watch a couple of hours worth of midi tutorials on YouTube, but the controllers, sequencers, synths and sound modules still confuse me. Any suggestions for videos that will tell me what software and hardware there is that will allow one to do some home-studio stuff?
6. I would have imagined that RealBand could deduce the chords pretty well from a midi file, but even there it gets them wrong part of the time. Why is that?
Thanks!
Willy.
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RealBand
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Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 3,348
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Veteran
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 3,348 |
Hi Willy.
You answered your own question with number (2).
A good way forward would be to down load Coyote Forte from the pgmusic website. It's like Coyote WT on steroids - the sounds are generally better samples. It's not expensive and it works seamlessly with RB.
Once you have the chords entered, you have the choice of replacing any of the tracks with either MIDI supertracks, or generating realtracks.
Hope this helps.
ROG.
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RealBand
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Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 10,827
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Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 10,827 |
Hi Willy,
Almost any software or hardware media player such as a smartphone, WinAmp, Real Player, BiaB or RealBand will play a midi file.
As you most likely know, but I'll tell you anyhow, a midi file is simply a set of step-by-step instructions that tells something else what to do. The "something" is a media player that is essentially a session musician that plays whatever instrument that is available. If the "something" is hardware like a smartphone, the instrument is embedded in the smartphone firmware. SOME software based media players, like Real Player or Flash also embed the instruments while others, like BiaB and RealBand, let you supply the instruments.
Soft synths are software instruments that accept midi commands. The instrument can be monophonic and only produce one note at a time or polyphonic and produce multiple notes at the same time. Some synths can only create the sounds of one instrument at a time. A common example would be an electric keyboard that can sound like a piano or an organ but can't sound like both at the same time. Another keyboard maybe multitimral and capable of sounding like a bass, guitar and piano all at the same time.
As mentioned earlier, with BiaB and RealBand you have to supply the instrument sounds. You do that in your midi settings. Some of your choices include:
The general midi instrument set embedded with Windows, the Virtual Soundcanvas (VSC) instrument set included with BiaB or the Coyote WT instrument set included withBiaB. All include the 128 instrument sounds specified by the general midi (gm) standard so they are easy to use but, some would say they lack in the good sounding department. In some cases they are so old they don't work with current versions of Windows.
Another choice is to use the Hi-Q instrument sounds included with BiaB. They sound good but you have to select each one individually and there are few instruments to select from.
Outside the instrument sounds supplied above, you will need to pick, choose and supply your own instrument sounds. You can do a search for "free soft synths", "free midi sounds" and similar and will find there is a lot of sounds available. If you have a keyboard with midi, you can set it up and use its instrument sounds.
If you want to spend some money and are looking for a one stop/one answer type of solution you want either a software, or hardware, general midi compatible sound module. Popular software solutions include: the Roland TTS-1 included with all versions of Cakewalk and Sonar software packages, Ominisphere included with sampleTank 3. Hardware solutions include the SD-2 sold by PG Music, the Roland Integria or any gm compatible keyboard.
Jim Fogle - 2025 BiaB (Build 1128) RB (Build 5) - Ultra+ PAK DAWs: Cakewalk Sonar - Standalone: Zoom MRS-8 Laptop: i3 Win 10, 8GB ram 500GB HDD Desktop: i7 Win 11, 12GB ram 256GB SSD, 4 TB HDD Music at: https://fogle622.wix.com/fogle622-audio-home
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RealBand
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Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 1,827
Expert
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Expert
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 1,827 |
Look here: Free VSTi download Drums, keyboard, sax, guitars VSTi's etc........ Open the midi file in RB > Right click on midi track/s > Specific VSTi for MIDI track > Add VSTi Plugin...
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RealBand
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Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 13
Newbie
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OP
Newbie
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 13 |
Thanks! Okay, so I suppose I can't get any of the midi tracks to use the samples from RealTracks. With RealTracks I can only generate additional tracks, and then I can of course mute or delete the corresponding midi track. Right?
Willy.
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RealBand
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Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 13
Newbie
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OP
Newbie
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 13 |
Thanks! I'll look into some commercial soft-synth.
Willy.
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RealBand
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Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 13
Newbie
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OP
Newbie
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 13 |
I'll look at those too, thanks!
Willy.
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RealBand
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Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 123
Apprentice
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Apprentice
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 123 |
Actually Real Band should play the midi files you purchased EXACTLY as they should sound. I too am new to Real Band (but not to synthesizers/samplers) and experienced the same thing while fiddling around in RB- it generated a bunch of accompaniment tracks and surprised me.
You do not need to generate anything to get the sounds to play, just select your soft synth and hit play. You can select a different soft synth (once you have more loaded) and simply hit play. You can try as many different synths as you want without ever having to generate anything.
BiaB 2024
Reaper v7.15
Melodyne Essential 5.3
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RealBand
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Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 10,827
Veteran
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Veteran
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 10,827 |
You are correct Willy,
RealTracks are audio files. Depending on what package you have each RealTrack is either a wma (windows media audio) or wav audio file. Many times you may see that BiaB indicates the RealTrack has midi by drawing a line underneath the instrument name. BiaB associates a midi file with the audio file so the track can be notated if you ever want to print a music score of your song.
Since the midi and audio are separate files changing the midi file will not change the audio.
In BiaB if you have an instrument track containing midi and overlay a RealTrack, the instrument track will still have the midi but the midi will be hidden by the RealTrack. Export the sgu file to RealBand and RealBand will have the midi in the instrument track and will generate the RealTrack in an audio track.
Jim Fogle - 2025 BiaB (Build 1128) RB (Build 5) - Ultra+ PAK DAWs: Cakewalk Sonar - Standalone: Zoom MRS-8 Laptop: i3 Win 10, 8GB ram 500GB HDD Desktop: i7 Win 11, 12GB ram 256GB SSD, 4 TB HDD Music at: https://fogle622.wix.com/fogle622-audio-home
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Ask sales and support questions about Band-in-a-Box using natural language.
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