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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Journeyman
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OP
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Can I input (write out in the notation window) a specific bass line and have the Bass RealTracks play it?
If not, how far off do you think we are from this?
TIA
BIABguy
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No. The realtracks are not samples they are snippets of real performances.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Should be easy now: - write down the bass line
- have a pro bass player play this line
- turn the record into a UserTrack
Martin
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You know Martin, that's not a bad idea. I know a couple of very good bass players who are not that far from me. Hmmm, maybe some pizza and beer would work?
Bob
Biab/RB latest build, Win 11 Pro, Ryzen 5 5600 G, 512 Gig SSD, 16 Gigs Ram, Steinberg UR22 MkII, Roland Sonic Cell, Kurzweil PC3, Hammond SK1, Korg PA3XPro, Garritan JABB, Hypercanvas, Sampletank 3, more.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Can I input (write out in the notation window) a specific bass line and have the Bass RealTracks play it?
If not, how far off do you think we are from this?
TIA If you could do that with RealTracks, they would just be no more than a MIDI fired Sampler, and we already have that capability. You can indeed use a good Bass Patch to play a MIDI-based performance that plays the notes of a custom bassline. --Mac
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Journeyman
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OP
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The realtracks are not samples they are snippets of real performances.
I realize that.
BIABguy
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Journeyman
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OP
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Should be easy now: - write down the bass line
- have a pro bass player play this line
- turn the record into a UserTrack
Now you've got me confused. I understand the first two steps. I assume the last step is used to get more mileage out of the bass player's efforts, correct? How exactly would the last step work? BIAB takes the recorded bass line and does what? It learns what the bass sounds like? It learns some patterns of his playing, possibly? But it can't cut up individual notes and use them to build lines?
BIABguy
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Journeyman
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You can indeed use a good Bass Patch to play a MIDI-based performance that plays the notes of a custom bassline.
--Mac
But I'm after the genuine audio bass sound rather than a MIDI-based sound. I can hear the difference. 
BIABguy
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It learns some patterns of his playing, possibly?
But it can't cut up individual notes and use them to build lines? That's right on target - and relativizes very much the original suggestion. UserTracks consist of riffs, licks and phrases played over some typical progressions and serve as a resource to recreate the typical playing of the pertinent artist, say. They likely won't recreate a specific bass line you once entered. To have a specific base line playd over some 32 bars, say, you better record this playing with a human player. Or use midi - albeit you'd hear the difference ...
Martin
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Midi based sound is as good as the sample it plays If you use better samples it can sound every bit as good as a live player. Bass lines are very excellent in midi form to my ear. Esepcially if you do a tailoring to the midi file.
Plus if you follow the advice above and get some bass lines in the "can" both those played by friends, and custom make some real good midi tracks you can use the new user track features to make a bunch of tracks that will follow like RTs do.
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
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Journeyman
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To have a specific base line playd over some 32 bars, say, you better record this playing with a human player.
Or use midi - albeit you'd hear the difference ...
OK thanks Martin. To get back to my OP. How far off (months/years) do you think we are from having BIAB being able to construct RealBass audio lines from inputted midi/notation?
BIABguy
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Journeyman
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Midi based sound is as good as the sample it plays If you use better samples it can sound every bit as good as a live player. Bass lines are very excellent in midi form to my ear. Esepcially if you do a tailoring to the midi file.
Thanks Rob. Can you recommend a specific midi sample that captures a great jazz upright bass sound? Also, since I've never used samples, how would I take this bass sample and get it into BIAB to be used when creating a midi bass line?
BIABguy
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But I'm after the genuine audio bass sound rather than a MIDI-based sound. I can hear the difference. If you can, you need to upgrade whatever you are using for your MIDI sounds. The SampleTank plugin that ships W/BiaB has at least one good sounding MIDI Bass in it, might be more, I don't recall, but you can always pick up more via IKMultimedia site as well. What you really need to do is put in a bit of study regarding these issues and then soon you will be rollin' your own MIDI parts, and when they are mixed in with a coupla RealTracks along with RealDrums, they can and do sound very realistic indeed. They are samples of real basses, after all. --Mac
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Journeyman
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But I'm after the genuine audio bass sound rather than a MIDI-based sound. I can hear the difference. If you can, you need to upgrade whatever you are using for your MIDI sounds. OK, that sounds hopeful. I am usually using the software-based Roland SoundCanvas that comes with BIAB. My current BIAB is 2011. So three years ago they still didn't have good-enough sounding midi acoustic bass sound for my ears.
The SampleTank plugin that ships W/BiaB has at least one good sounding MIDI Bass in it, might be more, I don't recall, but you can always pick up more via IKMultimedia site as well.
I'll have to check them out. When did they first start shipping with BIAB?
What you really need to do is put in a bit of study regarding these issues and then soon you will be rollin' your own MIDI parts,
Yes I haven't studied the midi side very much. I just thought it couldn't compete with the audio side, sound-wise.
and when they are mixed in with a coupla RealTracks along with RealDrums, they can and do sound very realistic indeed. They are samples of real basses, after all.
--Mac
Therein lies the rub. In my situation I use just bass and drums exclusively with BIAB, no other instruments. So when you have just two instruments sounding, the bass stands out like a sore thumb if it isn't just right.
BIABguy
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The Soundcanvas was better than the built in Microsoft synth, that's all.
Three years ago many of us were using both Hardware and/or software MIDI solutions that could blow that thing outta the water.
It is not MIDI that you loathe.
It is poor sounding and generally free MIDI synths/samplers that are the problem.
--Mac
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Hi BIABguy. To address two of your recent questions:
How far off are we from having RealTracks play a bass melody I input via MIDI? Ans. quite far off, in my opinion and others.
How do I use the bass I recorded as a UserTrack? Ans. There are instructions and user-submitted examples in the new UserTracks subforum. Also, the process is covered in the New Features manual and in a video, all available from this site or BIAB Help.
Good luck!
BIAB 2025 Win Audiophile. Software: Studio One 7 Pro, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6, Song Master Pro, Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Presonus 192 & Faderport 8, Royer 121, Slate VSX, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors.
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All MIDI, three types of Basses, 1998 using Powertracks from PGMusic (Click to Listen) Electric Bass into Acoustic Bass, to Slap Bass. Oldest All MIDI clip I could dig outta the archives here. Every sound on it is MIDI, using the wonderful old Soundblaster Live! card and Soundfont samples, the first month in '98 when that card came out. There are plenty of real sounding MIDI Acoustic Bass patches around these days. Plenty of Hardware Synths, too, like the Ketron SD2, sold on this website and elsewhere, that are even better sounding because they employ newer technology. --Mac
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Quite a few of the TV and Hollywood Movie Underscores and Theme Songs you hear are loaded with MIDI instrumentation and have been for quite some time.
--Mac
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Hi, i use very often the acoustic dynamic bass from Sonivox http://sonivoxmi.com/products/details/dynamic-acoustic-bass($19.00), with it you have different presets to use.You can hear the "twang" and the fingering of the strings. Pair that wit a good bass midi and I guarantee you that you'll be very satisfied. They also offer different kind of basses for about the same price, also they offer audio demos. Check it out. Mike B.
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I was going to suggest Sonivox, and the great samples there. Get a good sampler, and it opens the world up. Also sampletank is a great resource, as is Kontakt. Do a google search for sound fonts. and sound font players.
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
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