Originally Posted By: Mus
Just started using RB and I have a question about the Chords page. Do you have as much control over RealDrum subsets & variations as you do in BB? Thanks M


Band-in-a-Box (BiaB) and RealBand (RB) approach track regeneration differently so the way each program interacts with the chord sheet differs.

By default BiaB regenerates all tracks, completely regenerates the tracks from beginning to end and sometimes performs regeneration automatically. The user must "freeze" a track to prevent the track from unexpectedly regenerating.

Regeneration is totally predictable and selective in RealBand. The user selects what track areas will be regenerated then initiates regeneration. The only exception is when a Band-in-a-Box MGU or SGU file is imported into RealBand.

Import a BiaB (SGU or MGU) song file into RealBand and the song file chord sheet is used as a guide for RB to generate the initial midi and RealTracks. This initial generation ignores frozen tracks.

So, by default, Band-in-a-Box regenerates all tracks and complete tracks. After the initial generation RealBand generates partial tracks on demand.

In practice this means a change in a Band-in-a-Box chord sheet will affect all tracks (unless frozen) and may initiate an unexpected track regeneration.

A change in a RealBand chord sheet has no affect until one or more track sections are highlighted and regeneration is manually initiated.

In my opinion this highlights one of the great strengths of RealBand. A user can use the chord sheet and selective regeneration to obtain precise control over changes made to each track.

There are two great truths regarding Band-in-a-Box and RealBand. Truth one is to think of the two programs as companions; the sum of the two is greater than either alone with each program's strength covering the other program's weakness. Truth two is Band-in-a-Box's focus is on the complete song while RealBand's focus is on precise track control.


Jim Fogle - 2024 BiaB (1111) RB (5) Ultra+ PAK
DAWs: Cakewalk by BandLab (CbB) - Standalone: Zoom MRS-8
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