Previous Thread
Index
Next Thread
Print Thread
Go To
RealBand
Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 13,040
DrDan Offline OP
Veteran
OP Offline
Veteran
Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 13,040
I have a fully polished BIAB .mgu file. I want to bring into RB to simply optimize some of the individual RT's before moving into my DAW. My BIAB has soloists coming in and out at selected Bars.

Option 1
When I open the .mgu file in RB all my soloists play all the time (it is not following the F5 bar settings for who plays when).

Option 2
When I drag and drop - all the correct wave files come over, but, no chord chart so I can not regenerate any of the RT?

What have I forgotten?

Dan


Retired to Make Music - No Plan B
My SoundCloud
View Current Projects
RealBand
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 22,650
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 22,650
I wait until I move it to RB to deal with soloists; it's just easier to me.


I do not work here, but the benefits are still awesome
Make your sound your own!
RealBand
Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 13,040
DrDan Offline OP
Veteran
OP Offline
Veteran
Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 13,040
Quote:

I wait until I move it to RB to deal with soloists; it's just easier to me.




So the answer is "WORKFLOW"!

RealBand
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 22,650
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 22,650
Always is here. Don't like doing it twice, and don't like losing anything I spent time on.
For the record, I thought 2011.5 build 3 fixed F5 issues .. they back? I don't bother much with F5 in BiaB, I'm usually out of there by the time I start anything on that level.

Last edited by rharv; 08/28/11 08:47 AM.

I do not work here, but the benefits are still awesome
Make your sound your own!
RealBand
A
Anonymous
Unregistered
Anonymous
Unregistered
A
Doesn't work well for me either Dan. If I want to preserve the song as it is in BIAB, I am just SOL. If I tell RB to NOT regenerate, I get nothing when the song comes over. It created dummy MIDI tracks 1-8 but no audio tracks. And if I uncheck the box that tells it not to regenerate, I get no audio tracks so I am forced to let it regenerate and I get a whole new song and have to start over regenerating track by track.

I wonder what could be done to create a "Convert SGU and MGU to SEQ" routine? I did one last night that was about 75% painless, but that was the best one of the 7 I have moved so far. Once I started using RB I create in RB and that is no longer and issue, but that whole first batch of songs, before I knew what a RB was, were all done in BIAB and conversion has been painful at times.

RealBand
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 22,650
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 22,650
Freeze everything in BiaB before opening in RB Eddie, that should help.


I do not work here, but the benefits are still awesome
Make your sound your own!
RealBand
A
Anonymous
Unregistered
Anonymous
Unregistered
A
Any ideas why I had no audio tracks while I had the "Automatically regenerate" box unchecked? Or are you saying load it into BIAB, freeze all the tracks, save it, close BIAB, open RB, LET it regenerate, but it won't because the tracks are frozen?

One of the 2 left to move has the PERFECT steel guitar pickup at the head and I would HATE to lose that.

RealBand
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 22,650
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 22,650
Opening in BiaB shouldn't change the existing BiaB file since you'll be saving in seq format.
So try what you described above. If worried use save as before opening in RB and rename it to keep the original.


I do not work here, but the benefits are still awesome
Make your sound your own!
RealBand
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 8,835
R
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
R
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 8,835
Dan don't count out taking a run at finishing in RB i have and unless i am going to have some very elaborate stuff going on i like RB


HP Win 11 12 gig ram, Mac mini Sonoma with 16 gig of ram, BiaB/RB 2026, Reaper 7, Harrison Mixbus 11 , Presonus Audiobox USB96
RealBand
A
Anonymous
Unregistered
Anonymous
Unregistered
A
Quote:

Opening in BiaB shouldn't change the existing BiaB file since you'll be saving in seq format.
So try what you described above. If worried use save as before opening in RB and rename it to keep the original.




Well, the original is still going to be there was a MGU no matter what, so.... And when I import them, I make a copy and change the copy to songname2.MGU before doing anything. The nerd still comes first before the musician.

I just wonder how different the file format (or content) is after RB digests it and spits it back out. I mean I will assume I can't just rename it SEQ and expect it to work since the generation happened in what amounts to a completely different program, that just happened to be coded by the same parent company.

RealBand
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 22,650
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 22,650
Your right, can't just rename it, but many here have reported freezing helps keep it more accurate. Maybe it saves the 'secret' commands that are used to generate, maybe it saves actual tracks. Not sure.


I do not work here, but the benefits are still awesome
Make your sound your own!
RealBand
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Expert
Offline
Expert
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Guess the best thing to do is save your frozen BIAB RT tracks as Audio WAV tracks - that way you're covered if the MGU opening in RB does regenerate or somehow changes your "frozen" RT tracks.

Can't be too careful until you're actually sure that a function works the way it should 100 out of 100 times.

Ian


Ian
My "Original Tunes" Site
My gene pool needs more chlorine.
RealBand
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 8,021
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 8,021
I'll stick my big nose in here for a bit. If you're ultimately going to shove the song from BIAB to RB why bother with BIAB at all except for the set up rudimentary functions. When RB came out I was well used to BIAB so did the route you're all doing. Then I started cutting back on what I don in BIAB now the only thing I do is set up the chord structure and part markers. In 6 months I'll probably never use BIAB


John
ESI Gigaport HD+
Lenovo Turion II /4 Gig Ram/ Win7x64 be
15.6" Monitor
"The only Band is a Real Band"
www.wintertexaninfo.com/BANDS/JohnnyD.php
RealBand
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 22,650
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 22,650
I'll tinker with chords and styles in BiaB, then when it comes time to start structuring the piece its off to RB.


I do not work here, but the benefits are still awesome
Make your sound your own!
RealBand
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 8,021
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 8,021
Quote:

I'll tinker with chords and styles in BiaB, then when it comes time to start structuring the piece its off to RB.



I'll do the chords,part markers,shots,holds, pushes. I'll open a style just to see how it fares. In RB I don't use styles at all. I just add tracks one at a time via trial & error.


John
ESI Gigaport HD+
Lenovo Turion II /4 Gig Ram/ Win7x64 be
15.6" Monitor
"The only Band is a Real Band"
www.wintertexaninfo.com/BANDS/JohnnyD.php
RealBand
A
Anonymous
Unregistered
Anonymous
Unregistered
A
Now that I am getting used to RB, honestly I doubt if I will ever even load BIAB again other than to freeze the old songs before moving them over. It's like going from a Schwin to a Harley.

RealBand
Joined: Nov 2006
Posts: 157
Apprentice
Offline
Apprentice
Joined: Nov 2006
Posts: 157
I don't use BIAB, can't see the point of using 2 programs to compose a song when RB seems to do it all. Then again, I might be missing something.


Andy

Macbook, 2.4 GHz, Lion OSX, 4mb RAM running Windows 7 through a Bootcamp partition,
750Gb 7,200 RPM hard drive, Ultra Pack fully installed on HD
RealBand
A
Anonymous
Unregistered
Anonymous
Unregistered
A
Agreed Andy. NOW. Before I had no idea what RB was and did about 7 songs in BIAB. Now trying to move them over has been a nightmare. They sound nothing like the original and it has been an ordeal working them back to what I think sounds good.

RB all the way from this point.

RealBand
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Expert
Offline
Expert
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Andy - what you might be missing is what can be done on a bar to bar basis in the BIAB chord window
that cannot be done in the RealBand chord window. It's a lot less work in BIAB than it is in RB.

You'd have to try it out to be convinced.
It's all in what you need to produce your material.



Ian


Ian
My "Original Tunes" Site
My gene pool needs more chlorine.
RealBand
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 8,835
R
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
R
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 8,835
They have different work flows and are aimed at different segments of the users population.


HP Win 11 12 gig ram, Mac mini Sonoma with 16 gig of ram, BiaB/RB 2026, Reaper 7, Harrison Mixbus 11 , Presonus Audiobox USB96
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
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.

Holiday Weekend Hours

It's Victoria Day Long Weekend in Canada. Our Customer Service hours are:

Saturday, May 16: Closed
Sunday, May 17: Closed
Monday, May 18: 8:00am - 4:00pm

Regular hours
resume Tuesday, May 19th!

Today's the Last Day of the Band-in-a-Box 2026® for Mac Special!

Order before 11:59pm PDT today (May 15, 2026) to save up to 50% off your Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac® upgrade and receive a FREE Bonus PAK loaded with great new Add-ons to use with this new version!

Don't wait - order today!

Check out all the new features in the redesigned Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac®!

Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac - Special Offers End at 11:59pm PDT on Friday, May 15th, 2026!

Order before 11:59pm PDT on Friday, May 15th and SAVE up to 50% on most Band-in-a-Box® version 2026 for Mac Upgrade packages... and that's not all! With your version 2026 for Mac purchase, we'll include a Bonus PAK full of great new Add-ons FREE! Upgrade to the 2026 49-PAK to receive even more NEW Add-ons including 20 additional RealTracks... that's 222 NEW RealTracks available with version Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac!

Upgrade to Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac® today for as little as $49! Check out the Band-in-a-Box® packages page for all available purchase options.

Learn more about the Free Bonus PAK and 49-PAK here.

If you have any questions about which package is the best option for you, just let us know. We're here to help!

202 New RealTracks Released with Band-in-a-Box 2026!

With Band-in-a-Box® 2026, we've released 202 incredible new RealTracks (in sets 468-488) in a variety of genres—featuring your most requested styles!

Jazz, Funk & World (Sets 468-475):
Our new jazz, funk & blues RealTracks include a groovin’ collection of RealTracks and RealDrums! These include more requested “soul jazz” RealTracks featuring artists Neil Swainson (bass), Charles Treadway (organ), Brent Mason (guitar), and Wes Little (drums). There are new “smooth jazz” styles (4), which include a RealTracks first: muted trumpet, as well as slick new smooth jazz brushes options for drums. Blues lovers will be thrilled—there are more “classic acoustic blues” styles, including guitar (5), bass (4), and drums (10) with blues master Colin Linden, featuring understated and tasty background acoustic soloing, plus brushes drums and acoustic bass. There are also new electric blues RealTracks, including electric blues with PG favorite Johnny Hiland (3) and soulful electric slide guitar from Colin Linden (4). If you love funk & gospel, there are great new options this year, including gospel organ (3) from Charles Treadway, as well as new funk, tango, and rock ’n’ roll drums (3) and bass (1). And for big, bold arrangements, we have uptempo soul horns (4) featuring a three-part hip horn section with options for a full mix or stems of each individual horn — plus an accompanying rhythm section (4) of drums, bass, guitar, and electric piano!

Rock & Pop (Sets 476–482):
Our new rock & pop RealTracks bring a powerful mix of requested favorites, fresh genres, and modern chart-inspired styles! We have more of our popular “Producer Layered Acoustic Guitars (15)” featuring Band-in-a-Box favorite Brent Mason. We’ve continued our much-requested disco styles (10), and added new Celtic guitar (5) with a more basic, accessible approach than our previous Drop-D or DADGAD offerings. There are also highly requested yacht rock styles (17), inspired by the smooth, polished soft-rock sound of the late ’70s and early ’80s — laid-back grooves, silky electric pianos, warm textures, elegant harmonic movement, and pristine production aesthetics. Fans of heavier styles will love our new glam metal (13), capturing the flashy, high-energy sound of ’80s arena-ready guitar rock. We also have a set of rootsy modern-folk rock (18), with a warm, organic sound combining contemporary folk textures and driving acoustic strumming. And we’ve added lots of new modern pop styles (16) — the kinds of sounds you’re hearing on the radio today, featuring exciting new drums, synths, and cutting-edge RealTracks arrangements.

Country, & Americana (Sets 483–488):
Our new country & Americana RealTracks deliver a rich collection of acoustic, electric, and roots-inspired styles! We have new country pop (9) with legendary guitarist Brent Mason. There is also a potpourri (14) of bouzouki, guitars, banjo, and more, perfect for adding texture and character to contemporary acoustic arrangements. We’ve added funky country guitar (5) with PG favorite Brent Mason, along with classic pedal steel styles (5) featuring steel great Doug Jernigan. There are more country songwriter styles (8) that provide intimate, rootsy foundations for storytelling and modern Americana writing. Finally, we have “background soloing” acoustic guitar (12) with Brent Mason — simpler, but still very tasty acoustic lines designed to sit beautifully behind vocals or act as a subtle standalone solo part.

Check out all the 202 new RealTracks (in sets 468-488)!

And, if you are looking for more, the 2026 49-PAK (for $49) includes an impressive collection of 20 bonus RealTracks, featuring exciting and inspiring additions to add to your RealTracks library. You'll get new country-rhythm guitar styles from PG Music favorites Johnny Hiland and Brent Mason, along with modern-pop grooves that capture today’s radio-ready sound! There are also new indie-folk styles with guitar, bass, 6-string bass used as a high-chording instrument, acoustic guitar, and banjo. Plus, dedicated "cymbal fills" RealDrums provide an added layer that work very well with low-key folky styles with other percussion.

The 2026 49-PAK is loaded with other great new add-ons as well. Learn more about the 2026 49-PAK!

2026 Free Bonus PAK & 49-PAK for Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac®!

With your version 2026 for Mac Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, Audiophile Edition or PlusPAK purchase, we'll include a Bonus PAK full of great new Add-ons for FREE! Or upgrade to the 2026 49-PAK for only $49 to receive even more NEW Add-ons including 20 additional RealTracks!

These PAKs are loaded with additional add-ons to supercharge your Band-in-a-Box®!

This Free Bonus PAK includes:

  • The 2026 RealCombos Booster PAK: -For Pro customers, this includes 27 new RealTracks and 23 new RealStyles. -For MegaPAK customers, this includes 25 new RealTracks and 23 new RealStyles. -For UltraPAK customers, this includes 12 new RealStyles.
  • MIDI Styles Set 92: Look Ma! More MIDI 15: Latin Jazz
  • MIDI SuperTracks Set 46: Piano & Organ
  • Instrumental Studies Set 24: Groovin' Blues Soloing
  • Artist Performance Set 19: Songs with Vocals 9
  • Playable RealTracks Set 5
  • RealDrums Stems Set 9: Cool Brushes
  • SynthMaster Sounds Set 1 (with audio demos)
  • iOS Android Band-in-a-Box® App
Looking for more great add-ons, then upgrade to the 2026 49-PAK for just $49 and you'll get:
  • 20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and RealDrums with 20 RealStyle.
  • FLAC Files (lossless audio files) for the 20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and RealDrums
  • MIDI Styles Set 93: Look Ma! More MIDI 16: SynthMaster
  • MIDI SuperTracks Set 47: More SynthMaster
  • Instrumental Studies 25 - Soul Jazz Guitar Soloing
  • Artist Performance Set 20: Songs with Vocals 10
  • RealDrums Stems Set 10: Groovin' Sticks
  • SynthMaster Sounds & Styles Set 2 (sounds & styles with audio demos)

Learn more about the Bonus PAK and 49-PAK for Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac®!

Forum Statistics
Forums57
Topics86,479
Posts805,522
Members40,129
Most Online64,515
Apr 8th, 2026
Newest Members
AKO64, Gomez, Zoltan Bekesi, kmmkelsns874, Goodmanje
40,127 Registered Users
Top Posters(30 Days)
MarioD 127
rsdean 87
DC Ron 76
WaoBand 64
Today's Birthdays
adaguerre@live.c, Guitarzan, ovation99, rmreport
Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5