I'm using Microchords for the first time and love the way they work in Pop Rock music at least but am finding a problem when they follow a Held chord The exact same microchord bar is used in a phrase prior to it and works perfectly but later, that bar containing those microchords (copy and paste) is used again after a bar containing a held chord (X...). Not only do they not work, the Held chord just seems to carry on through and the microchords in the bar are ignored. It also seems to affect the following bar to a strange extent as some instruments either falter or dont play at all on the 'pick up'. The bar after that everything seems back to normal. Peculiar behaviour. Maybe I'm doing it wrong but can't see why it should work fine in one scenario and not in another. Any ideas? All input appreciated. Bests Ian
Old Guys Rule.The older I get,the better I was! BB2023 ULTRA, 1013, Win 7 and 10
Ian, I haven’t worked a great deal with this, but I found the new 15-minute video they released yesterday really helped me. Have you seen it? Top sticky post in this BIAB for Windows Forum.
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; Roland Integra-7, Presonus 192 & Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors.
Hi Matt Yes, I saw it and watched it. Very in depth presentation. Most of what it gives BB will probably never used by me but just that ability for aggressive pushes is a boon to rock pop guitarists. The issue seems to lie OUTSIDE of MC. Its fine and works according to plan UNTIL I put a Held Chord bar in front of the MC bar. Bests Ian
Old Guys Rule.The older I get,the better I was! BB2023 ULTRA, 1013, Win 7 and 10
I used to have those kinds of problems but a build eliminated them, I don't remember which one.
I just tried to reproduce your problem but I couldn't. If I did C(hold) then in the next measure just M it failed every time, as it should. If I put C(hold) then in the next measure C then M I worked every time, even when copied.
Maybe it is based on the style that you are using? What style are you using?
Also note I work in MIDI and have not tried this with RTs.
If you could upload your song then we could look at it.
I got banned from Weight Watchers for dropping a bag of M&Ms on the floor. It was the best game of Hungry Hippos I've ever seen!
64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
Hi Ian I'm pretty sure that something has been reported to the developers relating to Styles that use held chords do NOT react correctly to Micro Chords. So hopefully that is being investigated. Trev
BIAB & RB2025 Win.(Audiophile), Sonar Platinum, Cakewalk by Bandlab, Izotope Prod.Bundle, Roland RD-1000, Synthogy Ivory, Kontakt, Focusrite 18i20, KetronSD2, NS40M Monitors, Pioneer Active Monitors, AKG K271 Studio H'phones
I used to have those kinds of problems but a build eliminated them, I don't remember which one.
I just tried to reproduce your problem but I couldn't. If I did C(hold) then in the next measure just M it failed every time, as it should. If I put C(hold) then in the next measure C then M I worked every time, even when copied.
Maybe it is based on the style that you are using? What style are you using?
Also note I work in MIDI and have not tried this with RTs.
If you could upload your song then we could look at it.
Mario Awwy from base just a few days - the Spring has finally sprung. But I CAN tell you it is a BLANK 44 style. All RTs. IIRC I have one phrase that has a bar of Eb, then an MS bar before going on. Works fine. 8 bars later (I think) that Eb is Eb... and the MC bar goes belly up. Bests Ian
Old Guys Rule.The older I get,the better I was! BB2023 ULTRA, 1013, Win 7 and 10
Hi Ian I'm pretty sure that something has been reported to the developers relating to Styles that use held chords do NOT react correctly to Micro Chords. So hopefully that is being investigated. Trev
GYBR going well. I'll wait and see how the MC queries turn out. I changed the arrangement slightly to get round this particular issue. Bests Ian
Old Guys Rule.The older I get,the better I was! BB2023 ULTRA, 1013, Win 7 and 10
Ian, are you using a held chord and microchords on the same bar or are you placing the held chord on one bar and the microchords on the following bar?
Examples: Bar 15 has held chord and microchords. Bar 15 has held chord and bar 16 has microchords with the expectation the held chord carries over from bar 15 to bar 16?
Ian, are you using a held chord and microchords on the same bar or are you placing the held chord on one bar and the microchords on the following bar?
Examples: Bar 15 has held chord and microchords. Bar 15 has held chord and bar 16 has microchords with the expectation the held chord carries over from bar 15 to bar 16?
Hi Jim Bar 15 is a single 4 beat held chord (Eb...) Bar 16 is Microchords only. Bar 17 is a normal 4 beat bar with 2 chords in it. I know the MC bar works as it is used earlier and works as intended but the bar prior to that use is a normal 4 beat bar. Bests Ian
Old Guys Rule.The older I get,the better I was! BB2023 ULTRA, 1013, Win 7 and 10
I believe Microchords and Motifs are considered to be underlying chords and complementary to whatever main chord is on the beat. I don't think the Microchords and Motif functions look before or after the bar but instead complement whatever is in inside the bar.
Try adding at least one chord (Db...) in bars 21 and 44 and I'll bet the Microchords will work.
Last edited by Jim Fogle; 03/22/2212:13 PM. Reason: changed beat to bet
Hi Jim Musically baffled. No idea what a 'motif' is and the video sadly assumes I do. Surely if I invoke a microchord bar it should play exactly whats in it, independent of anything before or after? My underetanding is its simply a way of getting more chords in a bar. The first example (bar 21) plays correctly as shown. Bar 44 already has the same chords in it so dont understand what you mean. Naybe me being Sunday Thick after a lovely warm (for March) weekend away. Bests Ian
Last edited by sixchannel; 03/20/2212:03 PM.
Old Guys Rule.The older I get,the better I was! BB2023 ULTRA, 1013, Win 7 and 10
How did you get micro-chords to work without a chord on the first beat prior to inserting micro-chords? Every time I tried that micro-chords didn't work.
Plus it doesn't care what chord to put on the first beat.
Last edited by MarioD; 03/20/2201:11 PM.
I got banned from Weight Watchers for dropping a bag of M&Ms on the floor. It was the best game of Hungry Hippos I've ever seen!
64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
Hi Jim Musically baffled. No idea what a 'motif' is and the video sadly assumes I do.
Good question, a motif is "a short succession of notes producing a single impression; a brief melodic or rhythmic formula out of which longer passages are developed." Like an arpeggio or a lick. My question is how is this accomplished in BIAB. It seems this would need a bit of time, so you have to give it room to play. Can't lay out a 1/16th chordal run and expect the moftif to make itself evident. So maybe it does not play the chord but rather just the an individual chord tone(s) for as long as it has time until it hits the next chord. I hope to find the time some day to figure all this out.
And regarding what Mario said. Sounds interesting, but is that true?
BIAB – 2025, Reaper (current), i7-12700F Processor, 32GB DDR4-3200MHz RAM, Motu Audio Express 6x6 - My SoundCloud (Tip: No need to create a SC account to hear music - just hit ESC ).
I think I would try putting a chord on the first beat of the micro chord bar. My experience has been that the instruction on the previous bar is saying follow this (held chord?) until the next "regular" chord is played.
Again this has worked for me but your mileage may vary?
Mike
Focusrite 2i2 2nd Gen Windows 10 pro 1709 16299.125 Intel core i7 6700k CPU @ 4.00GHz 4.01 GHz 16 gig memory BIAB UltraPak version is 2025 (Latest) Cubase pro 9
Here is the actual MC bar. Its the same in both cases. You can see that Beat 1 HAS a chord in it in both cases. I can't add what's already there. In the first case it works exactly as I expect in that it creates a strong Push forward of that Db and Db/Ab in Beat2 and the F and C play fine as normal. In the second case Beats 1 and 2 are completely ignored, just the F and C (Beats 3 and 4) playing. Surely I'm missing something here - why should it ignore Beats 1 and 2 no matter what is in the previous bar? Bests ian
Old Guys Rule.The older I get,the better I was! BB2023 ULTRA, 1013, Win 7 and 10
Putting a chord on the first beat in micro-chords does not work here. You must put a chord on the first beat in the chord window, not in the micro-chord window, for micro-chords to work.
I know that sounds counter productive but it is the way it is. I think this is because of band aids on old code. Great idea but not intuitive to the user.
I got banned from Weight Watchers for dropping a bag of M&Ms on the floor. It was the best game of Hungry Hippos I've ever seen!
64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
And regarding what Mario said. Sounds interesting, but is that true?
That is the way it worked here. It didn't matter what chord I put in the chord window as the micro-chords always played correctly. I did try this with a few styles and I always got the same results. Note that I used MIDI and not RTs.
You might want to experiment with it to see if it works the same way for you.
I got banned from Weight Watchers for dropping a bag of M&Ms on the floor. It was the best game of Hungry Hippos I've ever seen!
64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
Some Progress. Thanks to Mario I have SOME sucess with Bar 44. I tried what he said and put a single chord (Db) in BEFORE invoking the Microchords chart. They then worked. Sort of. However, Bar 43 has a Held Db (Db...) that I want to continue into Bar44 prior to the Push created in Beat 2. Guess what? It doesnt. The Db in Beat 1 plays - obviously. I can't remove that Beat 1 Db or I'm back where I started. What is unexplained is why Bar 23 worked just by putting the chords into the microchord chart. Its what I actually would have expected. Of course the bar prior does NOT have a Held chord in it. My next fumble about will be to try and get that Db... working a beat longer. Bests Ian
Last edited by sixchannel; 03/21/2209:24 AM.
Old Guys Rule.The older I get,the better I was! BB2023 ULTRA, 1013, Win 7 and 10
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.
Dansk
Deutsch - Windows
Español
Français - Windows
Italiano - Windows
Nederlands
Polski
Português
Svenskt
русский
Japanese
Simplified Chinese
Traditional Chinese
Korean