PG Music Home Forums PG Music Wishlists Band-in-a-Box Wishlist DAW Features In BiaB - Yes/No Why/Why Not

< P.S. Charlie. We (I hope) are talking about workflow enhancements. The point your were trying to convey is a workaround / alternative to a better and simpler workflow that I offered. Mine would have less steps, easier to navigate, visualize and execute. I didn't dodge it, I ignored it, because it is not what is being proposed.>

I reviewed and studied your video demonstrations using Cakewalk and went to YouTube to look further into Cakewalk. I found a tutorial by Mike with Creative Sauce and he opened up Cakewalk's piano roll over the tracks view the same as I did in BIAB. I agree that it would an enhancement to be able to toggle between midi and audio but I'm not sure it's possible. BIAB uses proprietary tool wizardry and Creative Sauce guy used a VSTi piano for audio.

The proposal would not result in less steps because the proposal suggestion is to toggle between midi and audio on the same track. Toggle on, toggle off for five partial regenerations results in 10 additional clicks that aren't required in how the task is done presently. Navigation is the same as is the visualization. It's also the same as the DAW Cakewalk works so I assume it to be up to industry standard for midi editing. Execution is better because the audio doesn't have to be disabled, erased and lost. Multiple versions of edits for midi data, audio data or both can be saved or exported. But the workflow isn't the real benefit of your proposal. Underlying midi has long been an underused super feature of BIAB/RB. I recommend you to consider a second look at how it works. Partial regeneration and editing midi using audio to export to a DAW and use with VST3's is only one of many unique and powerful ways to use underlying midi with audio.

RealTracks in the Mixer and waveforms in tracks view isn't actually audio. The audio is in the RealTracks Folder that is directed by RealTracks data and rendered. Similarly, User Tracks and Artist Performance Files are audio but because both are types of Artist Performance Files, they can also have underlying midi data just like RealTracks in Tracks View and the Mixer. Some audio editing results in a RealTrack to be converted into an Artist Performance File because the edit changed the RealTrack and the edit is material that BIAB did not create. That's when an edit results in the name change to artist and the track labels turn to orange. At that point, the RealTrack has to be converted into an Artist Performance Track which the proprietary format of PG Music to allow audio to exist on other tracks besides the Audio Track in the Mixer. PG's proprietary Artist Performance File seems to be the secret sauce to make this possible.

The concept and reality of underlying midi for RealTracks and audio precede the introduction of Tracks View by more than a decade. Piano Roll has never been a workaround in BIAB, and didn't transition into a workaround with the addition of Tracks View. Playable RealTracks and VST3 are the game changers. I don't know if your wishlist suggestion is possible but would certainly put my full support behind the wish. I agree with you, it would be worthwhile enhancement.

For instance: I loaded a RealTrack Guitar soloist, copied it to another track and copied the first track's midi data to a second track and converted the track into a Playable RealTrack so the two guitars doubled each other note for note.

Today, I copied a Artist Performance Set song from Artist Performance Set 4 and copied the entire song and SGU and then converted Brent Mason's solo performance track for that song into a Playable RealTrack that allowed me to actually edit and modify his performance with samples from the guitar he performed with.