PG Music Home Forums PG Music Wishlists Band-in-a-Box Wishlist Suggestion: Selective Re-Generating

Rustyspoon#,

You've got a good memory to remember me from the Cakewalk forum! Did I mention ChordPulse to you or did you mention it to me? I've had the program for a long time and don't remember now how I first found out about the program; I'm glad I did though as it's a wonderful program. However, I feel comparing ChordPulse to Band-in-a-Box is an unfair comparison. That's kind of like comparing a Volkswagon Beetle to a Rolls Royce. Both are reliable, European vehicles but beyond that, they are hard to compare.

As you mentioned, +++ Chordpulse +++ is an accompaniment program that uses styles to create songs. So ChordPulse and Band-in-a-Box share that functionality. However beside that shared function the two programs differ.

ChordPulse has a simple but elegant user interface while Band-in-the-Box's interface is much more complicated. But that is because the Band-in-a-Box program has many more features. ChordPulse is a midi only program that relies on Windows' built-in GS wavetable for sound reproduction. Band-in-a-Box midi can use any midi driven external or internal sound module. However BiaB also use audio sources such as audio loops, user created audio, RealTracks and or RealDrums. ChordPulse can create a general midi file. So can Band-in-a-Box. Band-in-a-Box can create, display and print notation while ChordPulse does not offer anything similar.

But, I don't think your intention was to imply the two programs were equal. I suspect your intent was to highlight the minimal but elegant user interface of ChordPulse versus the busy and complicated user interface of Band-in-a-Box.

PG Music has been making incremental changes to the user interface in the last few years so I believe PG Music is aware change is needed. However, the program is so versatile and users use the program in so many different ways that I believe it is difficult for PG Music to know what features to highlight. But every year they tweak and receive user feedback regarding what works and what doesn't work.

Band-in-a-Box regenerates on the fly. By that I mean Band-in-a-Box renders the first few bars of a song then begins playback while regenerating the rest of the song as a background task. I don't know of any other program that builds tracks that way. Maybe one way to make the program more efficient would be to delay playback until all tracks are completely regenerated.