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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 85
Enthusiast
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OP
Enthusiast
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 85 |
However, the GM sounds are pretty bad. I mean, stinky cheesy bad.
To get to the good stuff, you have to pick a GOOD virtual instrument (and assign the proper MIDI channel) for each active channel in your BiaB song. But so far, the sound quality on the non GM instruments is excellent, as good or better than any soft sample libraries that I currently use.
While it is usable with BiaB, you do need to know a bit about dealing with "virtual rack" gear and assigning MIDI channels, etc. If you have some experience with this sort of thing already, then this software is a piece of cake, but if you aren't comfortable with doing this, then fair warning: the Vi One is NOT good as a "plug and play" GM solution.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 812
Expert
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Expert
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 812 |
Hey EightString,
This is VERY useful information and changes my opinion of it completly. I was looking forward to buying it as an alternative to the TTS-1. But if the GM patches are lame, that is a deal breaker for me, as I am VERY picky about the quality of sounds.
It's too bad that Kontakt is not GM compatible, as this would be a great alternative. I also wish I had the programming chops to make my own program, I would make a KILLER GM sound set and make my Million!!
Ed
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 134
Apprentice
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Apprentice
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 134 |
Don't give up on the 'cheese.' I'm pretty sure Vir2 has some pretty deep control parameters to let you tweak those patches to something that sounds good.
BTW, Kontakt is a sampler. You could have 64 different pianos if you wanted to make Liberace jealous. There's really no such thing as a GM standard for a sampler.
That said, you can 'roll your own' 'GM patches' to your heart's content. You just find the BIAB midi channel assignments and sync that to Kontakt with the Piano sound you select playing on the same midi channel as the the piano plays in BIAB. I believe Kontakt will ignore the patch change message and just immediately play.
You'd just make yourself several 'combo' patches for Kontakt for different genres and then load them depending on what you're trying to do in BIAB.
Prado
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 85
Enthusiast
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OP
Enthusiast
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 85 |
I just think that the raw quality wasn't there for the samples used in the GM patches, also evidenced by how quickly they loaded compared to the better sample sets in the package. And in A/B with TTS-1 or ForteDXi, the Vi One GM patches sounded pretty awful in comparison.
So I figure, why futz with tweaking GM patch parameters to squeeze out "tolerable" sounds, when I can just load "Big Grand Piano" or "Upright Bass" from the menu, and assign the proper MIDI channel to the input and be done.
And yes, I'm already creating some "go-to" racks of Vi One instruments to load on command. I currently have a "jazz trio" rack, a "jazz quartet with strings" rack, and a "big band" rack.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 134
Apprentice
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Apprentice
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 134 |
I am anti-futz. Didn't vote for it last election, and won't this time.  Combo patches are king! Prado
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 676
Journeyman
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Journeyman
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 676 |
I'm glad to hear vi.one is pretty good. I have it sitting in its box, awaiting a better computer...
As for the GM sounds, It's not a deal breaker for me.
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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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XPro & Xtra Styles PAK Sets On Sale Now - Until May 15, 2026!
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Band-in-a-Box 2026 for Mac Videos
With the release of Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac, we’re rolling out a collection of brand-new videos on our YouTube channel. We’ll keep this forum post updated so you can easily find all the latest videos in one convenient spot.
Whether you're exploring new features, checking out the latest RealTracks or Style PAKs, this is your go-to guide for Band-in-a-Box® 2026.
Check out this forum post for "One Stop Shopping" of our Band-in-a-Box® 2026 Mac Videos!
Band-in-a-Box 2026 for Mac is Here!
Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac is here and it is packed with major new features! There’s a new modern look, a GUI redesign to all areas of the program including toolbars, windows, workflow and more. There’s a Multi-view layout for organizing multiple windows. A standout addition is the powerful AI-Notes feature, which uses AI neural-net technology to transcribe polyphonic audio into MIDI—entire mixes or individual instruments—making it easy to study, view, and play parts from any song. And that’s just the beginning—there are over 100 new features in this exciting release.
Along with version 2026, we've released an incredible lineup of new content! There's 202 new RealTracks, brand-new RealStyles, MIDI SuperTracks, Instrumental Studies, “Songs with Vocals” Artist Performance Sets, Playable RealTracks Set 5, two new RealDrums Stems sets, XPro Styles PAK 10, Xtra Styles PAK 21, and much more!
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2026 Free Bonus PAK & 49-PAK Add-ons
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Holiday Weekend Hours
As we hop into the Easter weekend, here are our holiday hours:
April 3 (Good Friday): 8:00 AM – 4:00 PM PDT
April 4 (Saturday): Closed
April 5 (Easter Sunday): Closed
April 6 (Easter Monday): Open regular hours
Wishing you an egg-cellent weekend!
— Team PG
Update to Build 10 of RealBand® 2026 for Windows®!
If you're already using RealBand 2026 for Windows, download build 10 to get all the latest additions and enhancements.
Band-in-a-Box® 2025 for Mac® users: Build 904 now available!
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Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Windows® users: Build 1237 is now available!
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