I created a perfectly normal SGU in BiaB - ALL REAL TRACKS - _CDRIVIN.STY - and thought I'd try and work with it in RB instead of my usual DAW. I didnt get just my 5 tracks - I got all this c--p as well! blocking up the tracks. If I'd have wanted the midi tracks (where did THEY come from??) I'd have asked for them. As it happens one is a Piano track (it doesnt exist at all in the STY) which is actually quite a nice, usable extra but that is not the point.
Tracks 1 - 8 are useless to someone working in RTs only but I cant empty them prior to importing anything so unable to actually start at Track1.
Can you understand now why people like me who don't WANT to be midi and/or RB Technofiles don't use RB and bale out to a normal DAW using wavs ex-BiaB? Seriusly cheesed off Ian
Last edited by sixchannel; 11/07/1904:39 AM.
Old Guys Rule.The older I get,the better I was! BB2023 ULTRA, 1013, Win 7 and 10
Ian, those extra tracks are created inside the BiaB file. RB creates them as part of the process. I just highlight them and delete them it only takes a minute or two to do that. The plus is that sometimes I get a really good track to use for other things. Example, sometimes I use a TC helicon vocalizer to enrich a song with more backing vocals I can use one of those midi tracks to control it. Embedding the cc commands to start/stop, and define the parameters wanted.
HP Win 11 12 gig ram, Mac mini Sonoma with 16 gig of ram, BiaB 2025, Realband, Reaper 7, Harrison Mixbus 9 32c , Melodyne 5 editor, Presonus Audiobox 1818VSL, Presonus control app.
The unwanted midi tracks get created for a reason. I believe the reason is because of the method PG Music uses to create a style that uses RealTracks.
I suspect PG Music begins the RealTracks style creation process by starting with an all midi style, assigning RealTrack instruments and then saving the modified style under a new name. Whoever is creating the new, RealTracks style forgets or overlooks removing the underlying midi patterns.
When a Band-in-a-Box song file containing one of these modified RealTracks is imported into RealBand, RealBand reads the midi data on each track as well as importing the RealTracks.
When PG Music creates a RealTracks style from scratch there is no underlying midi so midi doesn't get created in RealBand.
that has happened to me but it's nothing more than a minor nuisance. the ease with which BIAB and RB work together more than compensates. and as a DAW it does everything I want and need (so far!)
as I've posted before, if you like another DAW use it but RB is fine for me and there must be thousands of us who are quite happy.
Peter Gannon's post about using the free Cakewalk DAW suggests that just about anything is possible without paying for anything other than BIAB whcih comes bundled with RB.
When I started on floppy discs it was PowerTracks that came as the freebie and the change to RB has been quite simple in the main.
I remember when I used to use RealBand, a lot of good things have come about because of the frustrations with RealBand, like the Biab Plugin and ReaTrak. If you don't want the bottom midi tracks just un-select "Also Generate RealCharts" in the Generate button menu.
Those extra tracks occur because Realband is generating the notation for the Realtracks. This notation is a MIDI file. In BIAB, such notation is not seen unless one goes into the Notation or Leadsheet windows.
Because of the nature of Realband, though, the notation is created as a separate MIDI track.
To disable it, head into to Options and follow the below image...
Personally, I like that the MIDI version of a RT is easily available because I've used it a number of times. For example, if I want a bass line to follow a particular pattern at a certain point, I create that pattern with the MIDI bass that's derived from RT notation. I then either use the MIDI with a good softsynth bass or create a wav from the MIDI and copy/paste the created section into the RT's track. Provided I have a softsynth whose timbre is similar to the Realtrack's, copy/paste works fine. (Bass doesn't have to be an exact timbre match for it to sound ok.)
The song below is a recent one I've assembled using a bass line that was created from a Realtrack's MIDI notation. I modified that bass line to suit what I wanted and then ran it through Garritan's Jazz And Big Band 3 (sold by PG Music). I also used a Realtrack's MIDI notation for the Piano.
Yeah, as mentioned, there are options to make your workflow better if you want. Uncheck the 'generate RealCharts', as mentioned above, will get rid of the bottom un-needed tracks issue.
The 8 'BB' tracks (with the blue track names) at the top are the designated BiaB tracks. These (if left as is) will regenerate the whole song when the Song Generation feature is used; much like BiaB does. This retains a BiaB behavior if you want it. It takes longer in RB but the behavior is retained.
Some people use them, some people delete them, personally I just use Right-click - Tracks - Make all BB tracks regular tracks. Then those blue track names turn black and the tracks act like normal RB tracks. You can do whatever you want with them. They are not permanently locked as BB tracks, they just start that way IF you open an BaiB file. When you open a BiaB file RB does as much BiaB adaptation as possible .. but it's pretty easy to get rid of if you want to, which I normally do right away.
If I open a BiaB file, the first thing I do is Make all tracks regular tracks. If I wanted BiaB behavior I'd be using BiaB ... but that's just me.
I do not work here, but the benefits are still awesome Make your sound your own!
Can you understand now why people like me who don't WANT to be midi and/or RB Technofiles don't use RB and bale out to a normal DAW using wavs ex-BiaB? Seriusly cheesed off
RB is complex, it does a lot of things that are unexpected because folks think it's just another "normal" DAW but it's way more than that. As has been explained, those midi files are a FEATURE of the program and all you do is check a box if you don't want them. You really must read the manual and help files and watch the videos.
Still, the simplest way to use RB is to not import a Biab file. For me I never do that, just begin your song in RB. It works just like Biab when you do that without all the confusion. That whole "Make Biab tracks regular tracks" continually confuses noobies so by starting the song in RB in the first place avoids that.
Start with the chord grid and enter your chords. Then pick a style and generate. The big difference between Biab and RB is the Generate drop down menu in RB. You can tell it to generate ALL BB tracks or one at a time. If you want to do one track at a time which I use a lot, then start at the track level by highlighting one track, right click in the track then pick Generate.
If you tell RB to generate all the BB tracks at once it seems to do it much slower that Biab does. That's only because Biab was given the ability to start playback BEFORE the tracks finished generating. One good way to lock up Biab is to stop playback after just a few seconds and then immediately hit play again. It's not really locked up, you just forced it to interrupt one generation and start over. RB has to finish generating all the tracks before you hear anything so it's usually better to work with one track at a time like you would be doing anyway in any other DAW.
RB does so many different things that you have full control over that it can get confusing and yes frustrating if you don't understand it.
EDIT
I remembered I had seen a vid about this and did a YouTube search. The vid is about using the BB Plugin in RB but as he says you don't need to do that because it can all be done natively inside RB itself but if you want the plugin you can use it. The last third shows how to start a song from scratch in RB basically like I described above.
We’ve expanded the Band-in-a-Box® RealTracks library with 202 incredible new RealTracks (in sets 449-467) across Jazz, Blues, Funk, World, Pop, Rock, Country, Americana, and Praise & Worship—featuring your most requested styles!
Jazz, Blues & World (Sets 449–455):
These RealTracks includes “Soul Jazz” with Neil Swainson (bass), Mike Clark (drums), Charles Treadway (organ), Miles Black (piano), and Brent Mason (guitar). Enjoy “Requested ’60s” jazz, classic acoustic blues with Colin Linden, and more of our popular 2-handed piano soloing. Plus, a RealTracks first—Tango with bandoneon, recorded in Argentina!
Rock & Pop (Sets 456–461):
This collection includes Disco, slap bass ‘70s/‘80s pop, modern and ‘80s metal with Andy Wood, and a unique “Songwriter Potpourri” featuring Chinese folk instruments, piano, banjo, and more. You’ll also find a muted electric guitar style (a RealTracks first!) and “Producer Layered Guitar” styles for slick "produced" sound.
Country, Americana & Praise (Sets 462–467):
We’ve added new RealTracks across bro country, Americana, praise & worship, vintage country, and songwriter piano. Highlights include Brent Mason (electric guitar), Eddie Bayers (drums), Doug Jernigan (pedal steel), John Jarvis (piano), Glen Duncan (banjo, mandolin & fiddle), Mike Harrison (electric bass) and more—offering everything from modern sounds to heartfelt Americana styles
And, if you are looking for more, the 2025 49-PAK (for $49) includes an additional 20 RealTracks with exciting new sounds and genre-spanning styles. Enjoy RealTracks firsts like Chinese instruments (guzheng & dizi), the bandoneon in an authentic Argentine tango trio, and the classic “tic-tac” baritone guitar for vintage country.
You’ll also get slick ’80s metal guitar from Andy Wood, modern metal with guitarist Nico Santora, bass player Nick Schendzielos, and drummer Aaron Stechauner, more praise & worship, indie-folk, modern/bro country with Brent Mason, and “Songwriter Americana” with Johnny Hiland.
Plus, enjoy user-requested styles like Soul Jazz RealDrums, fast Celtic Strathspey guitar, and Chill Hop piano & drums!
With your version 2025 for Mac Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, Audiophile Edition or PlusPAK purchase, we'll include a Bonus PAK full of great new Add-ons FREE! Or upgrade to the 2025 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 2025 RealCombos Booster PAK:
-For Pro customers, this includes 33 new RealTracks and 65+ new RealStyles.
-For MegaPAK customers, this includes 29 new RealTracks and 45+ new RealStyles.
-For UltraPAK customers, this includes 20 new RealStyles.
Look Ma! More MIDI 13: Country & Americana
Instrumental Studies Set 22: 2-Hand Piano Soloing - Rhythm Changes
MIDI SuperTracks Set 44: Jazz Piano
Artist Performance Set 17: Songs with Vocals 7
Playable RealTracks Set 4
RealDrums Stems Set 7: Jazz with Mike Clark
SynthMaster Sounds and Styles (with audio demos)
128 GM MIDI Patch Audio Demos.
Looking for more great add-ons, then upgrade to the 2025 49-PAK for just $49 and you'll get:
20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and RealDrums with 20 RealStyles,
FLAC Files (lossless audio files) for the 20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and RealDrums
Look Ma! More MIDI 14: SynthMaster,
Instrumental Studies Set 23: More '80s Hard Rock Soloing,
MIDI SuperTracks Set 45: More SynthMaster
Artist Performance Set 18: Songs with Vocals 8
RealDrums Stems Set 8: Pop, Funk & More with Jerry Roe
New! Xtra Styles PAK 20 for Band-in-a-Box 2025 and Higher for Mac!
Xtra Styles PAK 20 for Mac & Windows Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher) is here with 200 brand new RealStyles!
We're excited to bring you our latest and greatest in the all new Xtra Styles PAK 20 for Band-in-a-Box! This fresh installment is packed with 200 all-new styles spanning the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres you've come to expect, as well as the exciting inclusion of electronic styles!
In this PAK you’ll discover: Minimalist Modern Funk, New Wave Synth Pop, Hard Bop Latin Groove, Gospel Country Shuffle, Cinematic Synthwave, '60s Motown, Funky Lo-Fi Bossa, Heavy 1980s Metal, Soft Muted 12-8 Folk, J-Pop Jazz Fusion, and many more!
All the Xtra Styles PAKs 1 - 20 are on special for only $29 each (reg $49), or get all 209 PAKs for $199 (reg $399)! Order now!
Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 20 requires the 2025 or higher UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version because they need the RealTracks from the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.
New! XPro Styles PAK 9 for Band-in-a-Box 2025 and higher for Mac!
We've just released XPro Styles PAK 9 for Mac & Windows Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher) with 100 brand new RealStyles, plus 29 RealTracks/RealDrums!
We've been hard at it to bring you the latest and greatest in this 9th installment of our popular XPro Styles PAK series! Included are 75 styles spanning the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres (25 styles each) that fans have come to expect, as well as 25 styles in this volume's wildcard genre: funk & R&B!
If you're itching to get a sneak peek at what's included in XPro Styles PAK 9, here is a small helping of what you can look forward to: Funky R&B Horns, Upbeat Celtic Rock, Jazz Fusion Salsa, Gentle Indie Folk, Cool '60s Soul, Funky '70s R&B, Smooth Jazz Hip Hop, Acoustic Rockabilly Swing, Funky Reggae Dub, Dreamy Retro Latin Jazz, Retro Soul-Rock Fusion, and much more!
Special Pricing! Until July 31, 2024, all the XPro Styles PAKs 1 - 9 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea), or get them all in the XPro Styles PAK Bundle for only $149 (reg. $299)! Order now!
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.
New! Xtra Styles PAK 20 for Band-in-a-Box 2025 and Higher for Windows!
Xtra Styles PAK 20 for Windows & Mac Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher) is here with 200 brand new RealStyles!
We're excited to bring you our latest and greatest in the all new Xtra Styles PAK 20 for Band-in-a-Box! This fresh installment is packed with 200 all-new styles spanning the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres you've come to expect, as well as the exciting inclusion of electronic styles!
In this PAK you’ll discover: Minimalist Modern Funk, New Wave Synth Pop, Hard Bop Latin Groove, Gospel Country Shuffle, Cinematic Synthwave, '60s Motown, Funky Lo-Fi Bossa, Heavy 1980s Metal, Soft Muted 12-8 Folk, J-Pop Jazz Fusion, and many more!
All the Xtra Styles PAKs 1 - 20 are on special for only $29 each (reg $49), or get all 209 PAKs for $199 (reg $399)! Order now!
Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 20 requires the 2025 or higher UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version because they need the RealTracks from the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.
New! XPro Styles PAK 9 for Band-in-a-Box 2025 and higher for Windows!
We've just released XPro Styles PAK 9 for Windows & Mac Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher) with 100 brand new RealStyles, plus 29 RealTracks/RealDrums!
We've been hard at it to bring you the latest and greatest in this 9th installment of our popular XPro Styles PAK series! Included are 75 styles spanning the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres (25 styles each) that fans have come to expect, as well as 25 styles in this volume's wildcard genre: funk & R&B!
If you're itching to get a sneak peek at what's included in XPro Styles PAK 9, here is a small helping of what you can look forward to: Funky R&B Horns, Upbeat Celtic Rock, Jazz Fusion Salsa, Gentle Indie Folk, Cool '60s Soul, Funky '70s R&B, Smooth Jazz Hip Hop, Acoustic Rockabilly Swing, Funky Reggae Dub, Dreamy Retro Latin Jazz, Retro Soul-Rock Fusion, and much more!
Special Pricing! Until July 31, 2024, all the XPro Styles PAKs 1 - 9 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea), or get them all in the XPro Styles PAK Bundle for only $149 (reg. $299)! Order now!
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.
Video: Band-in-a-Box® 2025 for Mac®: VST3 Plugin Support
Band-in-a-Box® 2025 for Mac® now includes support for VST3 plugins, alongside VST and AU. Use them with MIDI or audio tracks for even more creative possibilities in your music production.
Band-in-a-Box® 2025 for Macs®: VST3 Plugin Support
Video: Band-in-a-Box® 2025 for Mac®: Using VST3 Plugins
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.
blocking up the tracks.
Dansk
Deutsch - Windows
Español
Français - Windows
Italiano - Windows
Nederlands
Polski
Português
Svenskt
русский
Japanese
Simplified Chinese
Traditional Chinese
Korean