A lot of effort goes into correctly determining, validating and reporting these issues. Disappointingly, still unattended to in 2015:
BIAB & RB2026 Win.(Audiophile), Windows 10 Pro & Windows 11, Cakewalk Bandlab, Izotope Prod.Bundle, Roland RD-1000, Synthogy Ivory, Session Keys Grand S & Electric R, Kontakt, Focusrite 18i20, KetronSD2, NS40M, Pioneer Active Monitors.
43. The Minimize Window problem Sometimes, when you minimize the main BAIB window, it's impossible to get it maximized again. Sometimes, it just happen after some minutes, but unfortunately, from time to time you need to end BIAB through the Task Manager (losing all the work you've done) simply because there's no way of getting a response from the program after minimizing it.
44. The BIAB preventing Windows from shutting down Many times, when you close your windows session with BIAB open, the program, instead of asking you if you want to save your work before shutting down the system, shows the Chord Builder window (?) and just prevents the system from shutting down
I think you need a new PC. Over the last 20 years the only problems I've experienced with BIAB have been caused by myself. #42- My BIAB boots up in 3 to 8 seconds. Faster than in BIAB 2014. Ray
Asus Q500A i7 Win 10 64 bit 8GB ram 750 HD 15.5" touch screen, BIAB 2017, Casio PX 5s, Xw P1, Center Point Stereo SS V3 and EWI 4000s.
I think you need a new PC. Over the last 20 years the only problems I've experienced with BIAB have been caused by myself. #42- My BIAB boots up in 3 to 8 seconds. Faster than in BIAB 2014. Ray
My PC is less than three years old, and runs flawlessly all kind of programs (many of them much more powerful than BIAB) without problems.
I've worked for several years as an IT technician and I really know how to tell a software problem from a hardware problem. Wich, in fact, is not very difficult in this case, since any kid with some familiarity in modern computing would immediately recognize several problems after working a little bit with BIAB.
On the other hand, if during the last 20 years of use the only problems you've experienced with BIAB were caused by yourself, that's because you're using BIAB in a very limited way, probably just writing a chord progression, choosing a style and pressing play. MANY bugs have been reported in this (and other) forum by MANY people, and only a couple of die hard fans here are constantly trying to deny the obvious fact that BIAB needs a lot bug fixing work.
ADD: There's nothing wrong with user-reported bugs, on the contrary, they are a great help for developers and an essential aspect of the software development process. In fact, many software companies have a dedicated Bug report forum in their web. There's no need to deny them.
A few other users had a similar problem, and found that it was due to an anti-virus program. These programs can block or slow the running of a program.
Here's an example message of someone that had the problem "I tweaked my MSE antivurus to ignore the BIAB program (BBW.EXE) and that dramatically improved my time. Maybe look at something like that."
>> I've worked for several years as an IT technician and I really know how to tell a software problem from a hardware problem. - Sure, but once you determine that it's a software problem, you need to determine what piece of software is causing the problem. My c:\bb\data\FlashMessageLog.txt file reports that my bootup time is 4.7 seconds. - my Bootup time in millseconds =4,777 [3/2/2015 6:51:54 PM]
Please post the top 20 lines of your c:\bb\data\FlashMessageLog.txt file in a message
- Bootup time in millseconds =65,808 [02/03/2015 11:49:50] - Time to Count Plugins in ms =749. Plugins counted=26 [02/03/2015 11:49:43] **** New Session started at : 02/03/2015 11:49:43 - Bootup time in millseconds =7,695 [02/03/2015 5:06:37] - Time to Count Plugins in ms =80. Plugins counted=26 [02/03/2015 5:06:37] **** New Session started at : 02/03/2015 5:06:37 - Running Windows Notepad.exe to display file C:\BB\Data\FlashMessageLog.txt [02/03/2015 4:34:31] - Bootup time in millseconds =8,194 [02/03/2015 4:29:50] - Time to Count Plugins in ms =78. Plugins counted=26 [02/03/2015 4:29:49] **** New Session started at : 02/03/2015 4:29:49 - Time to Count Plugins in ms =566. Plugins counted=26 [02/03/2015 4:29:22] **** New Session started at : 02/03/2015 4:29:21 - Bootup time in millseconds =37,859 [02/03/2015 3:33:59] - Time to Count Plugins in ms =218. Plugins counted=26 [02/03/2015 3:33:55] **** New Session started at : 02/03/2015 3:33:55 - Bootup time in millseconds =76,705 [01/03/2015 23:54:53] - Time to Count Plugins in ms =274. Plugins counted=26 [01/03/2015 23:54:47] **** New Session started at : 01/03/2015 23:54:47 - Bootup time in millseconds =19,007 [24/02/2015 12:15:27]
I've just created an exclusion rule for BIAB in Kaspersky and will report the results here.
Hi Cerio Thanks for the information. I use Norton Internet Security. I generally don't have long boot times, and haven't made any special exceptions in NIS for BiaB (as far as I know)
It will be great to get your results.
Thanks Trev
BIAB & RB2026 Win.(Audiophile), Windows 10 Pro & Windows 11, Cakewalk Bandlab, Izotope Prod.Bundle, Roland RD-1000, Synthogy Ivory, Session Keys Grand S & Electric R, Kontakt, Focusrite 18i20, KetronSD2, NS40M, Pioneer Active Monitors.
I was also experiencing extremely long startup times for BIAB (sometimes about a minute). I just excluded BBW.EXE from my virus scanner, and BIAB now launches much, much more quickly.
I wonder if it's because the program does not "reside" in the registry, nor is in the Program Files folder, and so the virus scanner handles it differently.
John
Laptop-HP Omen I7 Win11Pro 32GB 12TB SSD Desktop-ASUS-I7 Win10Pro 32GB 12TB SATA
I use Trend Micro Internet Security 2015 (it used to be called PC-Cillin). I've used it for probably about 20 years now and have yet to get a virus on my or my wife's computer.
My FlashMessageLog.txt was showing bootup times of 40,000 to 70,000 milliseconds before excluding BBW.EXE. The variance seems to be how long between launches (which I suspect is related to computer caching).
After excluding it, it launches in about 20,000 milliseconds right after a re-boot down to about 5,000 milliseconds for launch time. Plugin-read time is and was relatively insignificant.
John
Laptop-HP Omen I7 Win11Pro 32GB 12TB SSD Desktop-ASUS-I7 Win10Pro 32GB 12TB SATA
Without excluding BBW.exe and BBW3.exe ~12,500mS With excluding BBW.exe and BBW3.exe ~8,500mS
BIAB & RB2026 Win.(Audiophile), Windows 10 Pro & Windows 11, Cakewalk Bandlab, Izotope Prod.Bundle, Roland RD-1000, Synthogy Ivory, Session Keys Grand S & Electric R, Kontakt, Focusrite 18i20, KetronSD2, NS40M, Pioneer Active Monitors.
- Bootup time in millseconds =28,878 [3/4/2015 5:25:27 PM]
Afar excluding in Avast
- Bootup time in millseconds =7,044 [3/4/2015 5:42:20 PM]
Hi JMD, did you reboot the computer in between? First time starts tend to always be slower and subsequent starts on the same Windows session faster because of Windows caching.
BIAB & RB2026 Win.(Audiophile), Windows 10 Pro & Windows 11, Cakewalk Bandlab, Izotope Prod.Bundle, Roland RD-1000, Synthogy Ivory, Session Keys Grand S & Electric R, Kontakt, Focusrite 18i20, KetronSD2, NS40M, Pioneer Active Monitors.
- Bootup time in millseconds =60,384 [04/03/2015 18:56:16] - Time to Count Plugins in ms =1,139. Plugins counted=26 [04/03/2015 18:56:04] **** New Session started at : 04/03/2015 18:56:04 - Bootup time in millseconds =15,398 [03/03/2015 23:11:45] - Time to Count Plugins in ms =94. Plugins counted=26 [03/03/2015 23:11:42] **** New Session started at : 03/03/2015 23:11:42 - Bootup time in millseconds =8,148 [03/03/2015 20:12:48] - Time to Count Plugins in ms =105. Plugins counted=26 [03/03/2015 20:12:47] **** New Session started at : 03/03/2015 20:12:47 - Bootup time in millseconds =9,800 [03/03/2015 19:12:20] - Time to Count Plugins in ms =100. Plugins counted=26 [03/03/2015 19:12:19] **** New Session started at : 03/03/2015 19:12:19 - Bootup time in millseconds =8,483 [03/03/2015 16:25:25] - Time to Count Plugins in ms =172. Plugins counted=26 [03/03/2015 16:25:23] **** New Session started at : 03/03/2015 16:25:23 - Bootup time in millseconds =35,395 [03/03/2015 14:36:07] - Time to Count Plugins in ms =733. Plugins counted=26 [03/03/2015 14:36:04] **** New Session started at : 03/03/2015 14:36:04 - Bootup time in millseconds =7,459 [03/03/2015 13:13:11] - Time to Count Plugins in ms =78. Plugins counted=26 [03/03/2015 13:13:10] **** New Session started at : 03/03/2015 13:13:10 - Bootup time in millseconds =19,686 [03/03/2015 12:35:26] - Time to Count Plugins in ms =117. Plugins counted=26 [03/03/2015 12:35:22] **** New Session started at : 03/03/2015 12:35:22 - Bootup time in millseconds =110,232 [03/03/2015 10:48:14] - Time to Count Plugins in ms =655. Plugins counted=26 [03/03/2015 10:48:08] **** New Session started at : 03/03/2015 10:48:08
Using kasperspky Antivirus 2015 and BIAB 2015.415 here
Hmmmmm A little bit of unexplained variation there.
A few more internal diagnostics might help to narrow down?
BIAB & RB2026 Win.(Audiophile), Windows 10 Pro & Windows 11, Cakewalk Bandlab, Izotope Prod.Bundle, Roland RD-1000, Synthogy Ivory, Session Keys Grand S & Electric R, Kontakt, Focusrite 18i20, KetronSD2, NS40M, Pioneer Active Monitors.
Hi JMD, did you reboot the computer in between? First time starts tend to always be slower and subsequent starts on the same Windows session faster because of Windows caching.
Ya, you are right on that. This item (long and variable startup time) has been around for a very long time. I no longer pay any attention to it. It is just what it is.
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.
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!
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.
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)
One of our representatives will be happy to help you over the phone. Our hours of operation are from
6:00AM to 6:00PM PST (GMT -8) Monday thru Friday, and 8:00AM to 4:00PM PST Saturday. We are closed Sunday. You can also send us your questions via email.
One of our representatives will be happy to help you on our Live Chat or by email. Our hours of operation are from
6:00AM to 6:00PM PST (GMT -8) Monday thru Friday; 8:00AM to 4:00PM PST (GMT -8) Saturday; Closed Sunday.