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Band-in-a-Box Wishlist
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Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 3
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Posts: 3 |
I wasn't sure where to post this....
I was seriously considering purchasing Band in a Box until I heard some of the real tracks demos and was left feeling somewhat disappointed at how excruciatingly middle of the road they sounded,which isn't necessarily a bad thing if you're into that kind of thing,but I was looking for a more contemporary *indie* type sound.
A VERY large proportion of the styles and real tracks in Band in a Box are country,bluegrass,jazz and horror of horrors, FAITHooo:!!! genres (and again,I don't mean to offend,but this just isn't my scene),and even the heavy rock styles sound somewhat corny.
Two of my favourite bands are Radiohead,and Interpol - my music is heavily influenced by them;is it possible with BIAB to get even close to sounding like this?
I don't mean to discredit BIAB,I love the concept,but it would be nice if they could also cater to musicians looking for a more 'edgier' contemporary sound.
I shall post a request in the request section.
Cheers.
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Band-in-a-Box Wishlist
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Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 3,079
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AT first listen that may be so BUT with a little work and lateral thinking you can write some amazing songs, in any style. Just do not expect to press a button and get a song styled like Radiohead, Lady Gaga or whoever. However I do not use RealTracks I use MIDI and MIDI means to me that anything is possible with a bit of editing, sometimes a lot of editing  It just takes time to get what my ears want. To me BIAB is what it says on the box, it is the best band a man/woman can ever have in his/her home studio and I say that without ANY reservation. After initially writing on guitar/piano all my songs are then developed in BIAB, with a bit of adjusting in another program J**mer, and finished in Cubase SX, or ACID, with a few VSTi's such as FL Studio. Having just said this in defence of BIAB, which I have used for maybe 20 years, I now will have to put some of my songs on line as examples.  Some really great songs are already on line in the User Showcase, produced with Real Tracks/Instruments, but I won't name names in case I forget some. Take a listen. Alyn
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Band-in-a-Box Wishlist
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Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 3
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Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 3 |
Thanks for taking time out to respond Alyn.
I was wondering whether through editing I could achieve the results I'm looking for.I was looking to band in a box as an upgrade, if you will, to my ancient old Yamaha QY700 hardware sequencer that can generate phrases to an inbuilt chord track (in effect what BiaB does.
I'm wondering will it actually offer me anything I can't do with the QY700.
Obviously I have a DAW so the BiaB's included "DAW" isn't essential,and I use designated software for my drum tracks.
Yes, with midi you can edit to your hearts content,but it was the real tracks that interested me in the product.But again,I found them very 'naff', for want of a better word.
I like the idea of the soloist function as I'm a useless lead guitarist,but does is this feature enough to justify me purchasing BiaB.
I'm still tempted though,as intuitively I feel I might just be able to make this thing work for me, (as you've clearly been able to do),just not sure whether I can't already achieve what I want with the equipment I have already,but am just too lazy or impatient to do it.
It's a shame BiaB don't make 'bespoke' packages tailored to the individuals needs, as a huge amount of the styles (jazz,country,faith,bluegrass,cheezy rawk!;-))will just be surplus to requirements,yet I will still be paying for them.
Then again,with some clever editing,or careful placement,a jazz line (for example)might just sound amazing in a section of a rock song.As you said,with a bit of ingenuity one could just make it work.
I will check out some of the songs as you suggested,see if there's anything close to what I want to achieve.
Thanks again.
P:S Very interested to hear your work,so yes,time you posted some material me thinks! ;-)
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Band-in-a-Box Wishlist
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Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 52
Enthusiast
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Enthusiast
Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 52 |
I used to have a QY700 machine, and those Yamaha guys sure know how to program styles for the modern listener.
They have a simpler pattern based approach and make use of rich XG synth which helps in the richly detailed programming for synths they get.
It would be great if PG could do a deal with Yamaha and actually license the Halion Sonic engine and sound set for BIAB.
As you and others say. the MIDI side of BIAB and other Arrangers shouldnt be neglected. theres still a lot if mileage in that side but
it does require a much richer sound set and synth capability than just GM2.
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Band-in-a-Box Wishlist
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Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Expert
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Expert
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696 |
Hey Porch - I suggest you post this on the Off-Topic Forum - there's a lot of knowledge there. I'm not your man, but this is getting lost here. I don't see why you couldn't use the QY Synth as the primary synth in BIAB - I use an XG DaughterCard which goes back a ways. Cheers - Ian
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Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 4,026
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Quote:
I'm a useless lead guitarist,but does is this feature enough to justify me purchasing BiaB.
YES IT DOES ! It will guide you to play guitar better by showing you in real time how to play the lead solos on a fretboard and in multiple positions . That alone is worth the money !
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Band-in-a-Box Wishlist
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Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 7,803
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Joined: Aug 2006
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BiaB, and RB by extension are what they are, they lean towards country, Jazz, light rock, Faith, bluegrass. They are not young hip hop, FM radio type folks. That said the program can do a lot, and the RTs can be very useable blended into a project. In their basic genres they are very powerful, to step out of that it takes more creativity. The very concept of the Real Tracks, is still very young. As the years go by more will be made, and for every one who crys out for radiohead there are ten who cry out for more jazz, country and pop rock.
No tool kit is complete without a full set of tools. No music recording setup is complete without a full arsenel as well. I could get by without BiaB, and RB, but it makes my setup far more productive. You have to decide if it is the right tool to add to your tool kit. Can RTs be used for certain tracks to make the style of music you like. I wrote a country rock song the other day, but i used a lead guitar from the praise set and it fit right in. The track was a bit brash without effects, so a nice deep reverb tamed that beast and made it sit in the mix.
remember what you call cheezy rock, others call hits. Quality is in the ear of the consumer. How many Cds does radiohead sell compared to Britney spears? Wow that makes you think.
Lastly the idea of tailored packages for certain styles. That could be a never ending problem, as no two people could agree on what goes in each package. If you took all the jazz, country, and bluegrass out and sold the rock and praise tracks and styles would it really make the package that much cheaper? Or would the country bass, lead guitar, and even drums maybe useful. but even more important would the cost of building custom packages offset the saving of adding less content? Interesting conversation.
Lenovo Win 10 16 gig ram, Mac mini with 16 gig of ram, BiaB 2022, Realband, Harrison Mixbus 32c version 9.1324, Melodyne 5 editor, Presonus Audiobox 1818VSL, Presonus control app, Komplete 49 key controller.
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Band-in-a-Box Wishlist
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Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 1,739
Expert
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Expert
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 1,739 |
Other posters will know I am not afraid to criticise BIAB and often do, but i want to jump in here and say that the Yamaha QY's though ok for their generation were far cheesier than BIAB (I have had all three types).
Real Tracks are live musicians and that makes a big difference. A (mouthorgan) harp for example cant be captured by MIDI or certiain feedback types of guitar.
Yes a lot of stuff is 'legacy', but this makes sense because it makes it useful to a wider market.
If you want to rehearse a set of chord changes for your band then there is enough here to get lift off. I often find that the way BIAB plays a phrase gives me inspiration and is very far from the original MIDI blat for on early Yamaha stuff (QY700)
Personally, my view is that there are lots of excellent tracks and I have learnt to enjoy genres that I have never explored - like country
BIAB widens ones ears
I say the best decision is to buy it
Just My opinion
Zero
Win 11 64, Asus Rog Strix z390 mobo, 64 gig RAM, 8700k
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Band-in-a-Box Wishlist
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Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 8,074
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The software is quite capable of making the music you like, but it requires styles specifically made for that genre.
There are more of the styles you don't like because the existing customer base DOES Like them. But I strongly recommend that you request styles for specific generes and even specific bands.
With every new release, new styles are added. And many of us have found the elements of different styles to be highly reusable in other styles. The current version adds looping capabilty, which lets users create backing tracks based on their own playing, or on commercial loops.
In other words, if the sound you want isn't already available,you have tools to make it yourself. How cool is that?
The younger musician market is the future, and I am sure that the good people at PGMusic will thoughtfully consider your requests.
But please allow me to leave you with one thought:
This is amazing software. The people who make it are proud of it, and rightly so. If you say its cheezy then ask them to add features that you like, why should they? It is common sense not to insult the people you are trying to influence. Just because you start an offensive comment with the phrase "I don't mean to offend" it doesn't make it less offensive.
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Band-in-a-Box Wishlist
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Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 716
Journeyman
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Journeyman
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 716 |
BIAB does have the ability to support user made styles and the style wizard can turn a midi track into a style for you; the best results are gained by importing just the right pattens from a midi however that suit your purposes.
Audio Drum tracks can also be imported as 'Real Drums' styles and there's tuition on how to achieve this.
You an also make your own Real Drums style if you have a source track in audio.
Whilst there are styles in eighth base odd metres BIAB treats them in such a way as they take place within a bar of 4 beats. So there are issues about supporting odd time signatures 'as standard'. For metres like 7/8 etc BIAB will not allow you to import/ make style from midi tracks in these time signatures.
So Radiohead might be a hard nut to crack especially if it's any of their odd time signature stuff. I think if you were trying to replicate indie bands you'd be better off with other software.
I would say BIAB has traditionally catered for middle-of-the-road styles that are not based on sonic experimentalism, special effects, or highly specialized idiosyncratic forms. It would be hard to imagine trying to do Frank Zappa's Musique Concrete stuff in BIAB.
Having said that I've managed to do non-metric free jazz in BIAB with varying degrees of success but its not going get me a gig anywhere!! Otherwise by tweaking the chords to give them more bite and abstract tendencies and using lots of drum fills its possible to build up at least an illusion of intensity without too much bother.
Regards
Alan
Last edited by alan S.; 12/11/11 08:34 AM.
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Band-in-a-Box Wishlist
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Joined: Aug 2006
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I wanted to revisit this thing as the release of 2012 changed the game.
AS mentioned above, the looping allows any sound you want to add in, plus now there are real tracks with no effect on them just dry clean guitar tracks, add Amplitude to get your attitude right.
Still BiaB, and Rb, are aimed at a wide and basically conservative group. The background is jazz, and such. if you can't see any value in it, then that is your choice.
It's kind of like walking into a Jazz club, and saying this place is cheesy, because it does not have a heavy Metal night!
Lenovo Win 10 16 gig ram, Mac mini with 16 gig of ram, BiaB 2022, Realband, Harrison Mixbus 32c version 9.1324, Melodyne 5 editor, Presonus Audiobox 1818VSL, Presonus control app, Komplete 49 key controller.
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Band-in-a-Box Wishlist
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Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 716
Journeyman
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Journeyman
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Posts: 716 |
Quote:
I wanted to revisit this thing as the release of 2012 changed the game.
AS mentioned above, the looping allows any sound you want to add in, plus now there are real tracks with no effect on them just dry clean guitar tracks, add Amplitude to get your attitude right.
Still BiaB, and Rb, are aimed at a wide and basically conservative group. The background is jazz, and such. if you can't see any value in it, then that is your choice.
It's kind of like walking into a Jazz club, and saying this place is cheesy, because it does not have a heavy Metal night!
The conservatism is more to do with the kind of Jazz on offer in BIAB styles. Its mostly the relaxed swing or Smooth Jazz styles which come across as background music. Some of the modern ones are better as are the Jazz fusion efforts. They do need to seriously think about varying the dynamic levels in all their style database beyond simply a and b however.
The thing is that a lot of the cutting-edge post-modern Jazz made nowadays is anything but conservative. Some of it takes on board Metal and just about every conceivable genre in a sort of constantly shape-shifting, highly interactive approach that makes it hard to cover in a style based program like this. Still I'd like at least to see BIAB try to cover new trends in music; if only out of an instinct for self preservation in the future market out there.
Regards
Alan
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Band-in-a-Box Wishlist
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Joined: May 2000
Posts: 15,545
PG Music Staff
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PG Music Staff
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 15,545 |
>>> It's a shame BiaB don't make 'bespoke' packages tailored to the individuals needs, as a huge amount of the styles (jazz,country,faith,bluegrass,cheezy rawk!;-) We have hundreds of Rock RealTracks Styles here... http://www.pgmusic.com/bbwin.realtracks.rock.htmThere are hundreds of Rock compositions made by our Users, which you can listen to here http://www.pgmusic.com/user-showcase/?genre=rockMany of these user tracks sound like different styles of Rock than our RealTracks. That is because they have added their own vocals, and additional tracks themselves. Presumably you would be doing the same thing. Anywyay, listen to those User demos, you might hear something you like.
Have Fun!
Peter Gannon
PG Music Inc.
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The thing is, IF you are just going to lay on BiaB, and have it make the whole song for you, you may not get exactly what you want, if it is not in a Genre that the program supports.
But with a bit of creativity you can get what you want. It take some work on your part. Here is a list of things that help you get what you want, using both BiaB and Rb as a team.
1. with rb, 48 tracks to lay down your own tracks along BiaB created ones.
2. Looping to bring in any sound you can find, borrow, or make.
3. "raw" Real tracks to add your own flavor of effects.
4. a very wide based selection of existing RTs.
Take just these 4 options and there is very little you can't do.
Lenovo Win 10 16 gig ram, Mac mini with 16 gig of ram, BiaB 2022, Realband, Harrison Mixbus 32c version 9.1324, Melodyne 5 editor, Presonus Audiobox 1818VSL, Presonus control app, Komplete 49 key controller.
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Band-in-a-Box Wishlist
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Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 303
Journeyman
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Journeyman
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 303 |
wake up, brother....Band in a Box has the best backing track quality available anywhere. Obviously you are very young, 'cause you don't know that Biab is the only program using Realtracks, which are real recording sessions from studio musicians....etc....I am not going to be here to instruct you of this if that sounds 'cheezy' to you, then toss your PC in the bin, play in a band or just listen to your Radiohead records, as there's no other turnarounds. PS. the heavy rock backing tracks to me kick ass, very 80's, exactly as I like them  PPS. no offense, but to me Radiohead are a musically meaningless band, as it is most of the 'indie' sound...
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Band-in-a-Box Wishlist
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Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 716
Journeyman
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Journeyman
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 716 |
Quote:
PPS. no offense, but to me Radiohead are a musically meaningless band, as it is most of the 'indie' sound...
why pull your punches?.. tell us what you really think ....no offense
Regards
Alan
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Ask sales and support questions about Band-in-a-Box using natural language.
ChatPG's knowledge base includes the full Band-in-a-Box User Manual and sales information from the website.
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User Video: Next-Level AI Music Editing with ACE Studio and Band-in-a-Box®
Band-in-a-Box® 2024 German for Windows is Here!
Band-in-a-Box® 2024 für Windows Deutsch ist verfügbar!
Wir waren fleißig und haben über 50 neue Funktionen und eine erstaunliche Sammlung neuer Inhalte hinzugefügt, darunter 222 RealTracks, neue RealStyles, MIDI SuperTracks, Instrumental Studies, "Songs with Vocals" Artist Performance Sets, abspielbare RealTracks Set 3, abspielbare RealDrums Set 2, zwei neue Sets von "RealDrums Stems", XPro Styles PAK 6, Xtra Styles PAK 17 und mehr!
Paket | Was ist Neu
Update Your PowerTracks Pro Audio 2024 Today!
The Newest RealBand 2024 Update is Here!
The newest RealBand 2024 Build 5 update is now available!
Download and install this to your RealBand 2024 for updated print options, streamlined loading and saving of .SGU & MGU (BB) files, and to add a number of program adjustments that address user-reported bugs and concerns.
This free update is available to all RealBand 2024 users. To learn more about this update and download it, head to www.pgmusic.com/support.realband.htm#20245
The Band-in-a-Box® Flash Drive Backup Option
Today (April 5) is National Flash Drive Day!
Did you know... not only can you download your Band-in-a-Box® Pro, MegaPAK, or PlusPAK purchase - you can also choose to add a flash drive backup copy with the installation files for only $15? It even comes with a Band-in-a-Box® keychain!
For the larger Band-in-a-Box® packages (UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, Audiophile Edition), the hard drive backup copy is available for only $25. This will include a preinstalled and ready to use program, along with your installation files.
Backup copies are offered during the checkout process on our website.
Already purchased your e-delivery version, and now you wish you had a backup copy? It's not too late! If your purchase was for the current version of Band-in-a-Box®, you can still reach out to our team directly to place your backup copy order!
Note: the Band-in-a-Box® keychain is only included with flash drive backup copies, and cannot be purchased separately.
Handy flash drive tip: Always try plugging in a USB device the wrong way first? If your flash drive (or other USB plug) doesn't have a symbol to indicate which way is up, look for the side with a seam on the metal connector (it only has a line across one side) - that's the side that either faces down or to the left, depending on your port placement.
Update your Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows® Today!
Update your Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows for free with build 1111!
With this update, there's more control when saving images from the Print Preview window, we've added defaults to the MultiPicker for sorting and font size, updated printing options, updated RealTracks and other content, and addressed user-reported issues with the StylePicker, MIDI Soloists, key signature changes, and more!
Learn more about this free update for Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows at www.pgmusic.com/support_windowsupdates.htm#1111
Band-in-a-Box® 2024 Review: 4.75 out of 5 Stars!
If you're looking for a in-depth review of the newest Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows version, you'll definitely find it with Sound-Guy's latest review, Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows Review: Incredible new capabilities to experiment, compose, arrange and mix songs.
A few excerpts:
"The Tracks view is possibly the single most powerful addition in 2024 and opens up a new way to edit and generate accompaniments. Combined with the new MultiPicker Library Window, it makes BIAB nearly perfect as an 'intelligent' composer/arranger program."
"MIDI SuperTracks partial generation showing six variations – each time the section is generated it can be instantly auditioned, re-generated or backed out to a previous generation – and you can do this with any track type. This is MAJOR! This takes musical experimentation and honing an arrangement to a new level, and faster than ever."
"Band in a Box continues to be an expansive musical tool-set for both novice and experienced musicians to experiment, compose, arrange and mix songs, as well as an extensive educational resource. It is huge, with hundreds of functions, more than any one person is likely to ever use. Yet, so is any DAW that I have used. BIAB can do some things that no DAW does, and this year BIAB has more DAW-like functions than ever."
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