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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 581
Journeyman
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OP
Journeyman
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 581 |
Hi all,
I own 2012 EverythingPAK and am considering switching to the Audiophile version at some point. Is there an upgrade path at reduced expense, or do I have to buy the entire thing as if a new purchase ?
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,116
Expert
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Expert
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,116 |
They don't have a specific upgrade path listed so you probably should contact sales. I would think that it would be just a little bit lower than the upgrade price from 2011 to audiophile which is listed at $479.
Keith
2026 Audiophile Windows 11 RYZEN THREADRIPPER 3960X 4.5GHZ 128 GB RAM 2 Nvidia RTX 3090s, Vegas,Acid,SoundForge,Izotope Production,Melodyne Studio,SONAR,3 Raven Mtis
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 27,583
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Yes, you should call PG Music Sales. I recall it's been addressed before but I don't remember the answer, and it was a while ago.
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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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 581
Journeyman
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OP
Journeyman
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 581 |
Chatting with PG sales as we speak. A nice offer they have made.
OK, so will I need to uninstall my existing version and totally reinstall the Audiophile ? Or is just the Real Tracks that need to be replaced ?
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 27,583
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The program is the same. The only difference is the presence of .WAV files along with the .WMA files in each of your RealTracks and RealDrums folders. If there are .WAV files present, BIAB uses them. Otherwise, it decompresses and uses the .WMA files. Thus, you will notice a small performance increase loading the audiophile tracks.
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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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 581
Journeyman
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OP
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OK. Done deal. New USB hard drive on the way !
So Matt, you use Audiophile right ? I'm counting on you to guide me through the upgrade process then, OK ? When the drive gets here, just do a normal install over the top of my existing 'regular' version ?
What about all my BIAB / Real Band tunes ? Will they just now use the .wav versions of the tracks or will I need to regen them all ? etc ?
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Congratulations!
I can help a little, Mitch. I don't use RealBand; my advice only applies to BIAB:
Your songs do not change in any way. When you load and Play the song, it will regenerate anyway, this time using the audiophile tracks and doing so a bit faster than before. I imagine if you had frozen tracks, you would want to unfreeze and regenerate.
About installing, I have used only the audiophile version for many years so I'm not a good resource on installing over the regular version. Plus, don't listen to me because I don't use the installers given. Instead, I copy the RealTracks and RealDrums folders I want, plus the .ST2 and .XT2 files in the main /BB folder. This way, I have only the RealTracks I know I will use (none of the soloists, for example; that's my job). I do not recommend following my method unless you are very comfortable with file management.
I do recommend you contact PG Music if anything is uncertain when you look at the choices in the Install routine. I believe there are four. Of course, no harm will occur if you install everything right over what you have. The install leaves your own songs alone, and you would still have any bonus pak stuff.
Tip: From now on, watch carefully when updates to the RealTracks come out. Wait until there is a separate link for audiophile users. Sometimes it takes a few hours after the patch is posted.
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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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 583
Journeyman
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Picking up on Matt's point about only loading what you want or need----I sure wish I knew how to manage that, rather than loading the entire (everything) program. How about a video or tutorial on that subject? Maybe this needs to be on the wish list. I don't need any of the soloist, as Matt stated, "That's my job." Also, the program has expanded with real tracks and stuff I'll never use. I hate scrolling through miles of real tracks that don't apply to my music market. I'm afraid to start messing around and changing things with my current setup, for I'll screw it up for sure.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 581
Journeyman
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OP
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I don't mind having ALL the Audiophile Real Tracks installed, I would just like to avoid having the .wav AND the .wma files for the same tracks. But as I understand things, SOME RT's ie the bonus sets etc are ONLY in .wma format, so how does one know which ones to delete and which ones to keep ?
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Jul 2000
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J. Larry, when one gives advice on this type of modification, one runs the risk that someone will actually follow it and mess up.
Given that caveat, I don't think there's too much mystery here, especially since the Registry is not involved. The safest way is to keep your supplied hard drive from PG Music and put it away after you have installed everything to your internal hard drive. You always have it if you mess something up.
Then, if you don't want a whole class of RealTracks, go to the /BB/RealTracks folder on your internal hard drive and delete those folders you won't use.
Because I had a smallish internal hard drive at the time, I started doing it the other way: only copying those I wanted. This involved manually copying the individual RealTrack folders from the supplied hard drive to my internal hard drive. Note that I did copy all of the RealDrums; they are much smaller files and I might sometime need any one of them. The only other 'trick' is that there are files in the main /BB folder with the extensions of .ST2 and .XT2. You must have those on your main /BB folder for the RealTracks you need. I don't think there is any easy way to correlate them, so I copy them all. Then I tell my RealTracks picker to ignore the N/A. That's it.
But PLEASE don't do it this way unless you are very careful and skilled with a Windows file manager, and understand /BB, /BB/RealTracks, and /BB/RealDrums.
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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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 27,583
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Mitch, you are correct. I don't think there is any way to automate that; you would have to look in each RealTracks folder, one by one, and delete only the .WMA files after seeing that there are .WAV equivalents. If you use a Windows file manager, just sort by name and it becomes obvious.
Note that there isn't a lot of savings to be found, relatively speaking. It varies, but overall, the .WAV files are roughly 10 times larger than their .WMA equivalents. So, if you manually deleted all the applicable .WMA files, you would only save something like 9% of the total space taken up by your RealTracks. I determined long ago it was not worth the effort.
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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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 581
Journeyman
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OP
Journeyman
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 581 |
Thanks for the tips Matt. So I'm going to follow your lead and if I mess things up, it will be totally YOUR FAULT !  ..just kidding of course.  So I think I'll just install the Audiophile over the top of what I've got, make sure the builds are current after that and not worry about the dupe files. I have 1TB of storage so not an issue.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Jul 2000
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Sounds like a plan.
One thing to keep in mind, since you've only been around here for six months: the method I have described dates back to a time when hard drives were smaller and RealTracks were a LOT bigger. From version 2011, when PG Music shrank the total size of the files by 2/3 because of the Elastique algorithm, it was no longer as important to try to find enough space for the whole installation. The audiophile version used to fill a 1.5 TB drive!
By the way, on the BIAB forum, there is a default value for fault = 'rharv'. Comes in handy at times like this one. Just don't tell him.
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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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 27,583
Veteran
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Posts: 27,583 |
ps Mitch, if I haven't said it before, I wanted to compliment you on how quickly you have come up to speed with this program and started helping others. That's the way it should work. Nice job.
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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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 581
Journeyman
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OP
Journeyman
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 581 |
Thanks again Matt. I've received SO much help here, that wherever possible in my limited experience, if I can help others, glad to do it. Just need to be careful that what is offered is accurate and really helpful.
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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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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®!
XPro & Xtra Styles PAK Sets On Sale Now - Until May 15, 2026!
All of our XPro Styles PAKs and Xtra Styles PAKs are on sale until May 15th, 2026!
It's the perfect time to expand your Band-in-a-Box® style library with XPro and Xtra Styles PAKs. These additional styles for Band-in-a-Box® offer a wide range of genres designed to fit seamlessly into your projects. Each style is professionally arranged and mixed, helping enhance your songs while saving you time.
What are XPro Styles and Xtra Styles PAKs?
XPro Styles PAKs are styles that work with any version (Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition) of Band-in-a-Box® 2025 (or higher). XPro Styles PAKS 1-10 includes 1,000 styles!
Xtra Styles PAKs are styles that work with the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box® 2025 (or higher). Xtra Styles PAKs 1-21 includes 3,700 styles (and 35 MIDI styles)!
The XPro & Xtra Styles PAKs are not included in any Band-in-a-Box® package.
The XPro Styles PAKs 1-10 are available for only $29 ea (reg. $49 ea), or get them all in the XPro Styles PAK Bundle for only $149 (reg. $299)! Listen to demos and order now! For Mac or for Windows.
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Note: XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2025 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.
The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 19 requires the 2025 or higher UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version as they require the RealTracks included in the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.
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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!
Special Offers
Upgrade to Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac and save up to 50% on most upgrade packages during our special offer—available until May 15, 2026. Visit our Band-in-a-Box® packages page to explore all available upgrade options.
2026 Free Bonus PAK & 49-PAK Add-ons
Our Free Bonus PAK and 49-PAK are loaded with amazing add-ons! The Free Bonus PAK is included with most Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac packages, but you can unlock even more—including 20 unreleased RealTracks—by upgrading to the 2026 49-PAK for just $49.
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
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