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Post by 4real on Mar 24, 2011 18:49:28 GMT -5
Hmmm....will check that out...there is a lot to these things, I only use midi out on the casio so not sure that it might need "in" as well to alter things. Will look up MidiOx...now, I wonder where that manual went...LOL. Eventually a proper midi controller would be good, hard to justify it yet but there are other things that they can do with VST controls as well. There are some benefits to the cheap keyboard though...it works as an instrument without the computer, it is not velocity sensitive so as long as I hit a key it will all come out even and expression added later rather than having to correct for bad expression later and well...I have it and it was cheap at the time. I suspect that transposing may well be a common feature of a midi controller, certainly something I will be looking for if the 'work arounds' are too convfusing. Thanks for the tip
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Post by 4real on Mar 24, 2011 19:54:45 GMT -5
Oh...just found a possible free drum VSTi... www.superdrumfx.com/index.php?language=2Superdrum FX Took a bit to get the library recognised but very interesting MIDI drum instrument. There are some velocity sensitive mouse pads, 3 multilayers to the sampled sounds and a unique approach to keeping the samples interesting i seems. A fair if a little confusing GUI interface and the opportunity to load or make your own samples to play in it..and the price is right. Still, tricky...seems to require you have it search for the sample libraries a bit, hmm, but most likely it is that I need to learn some tricks on it, the manual pdf is necessary...but it seems a powerful tool that might be something of a solution and more towards the lines of EZD...
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Post by 4real on Mar 30, 2011 23:33:43 GMT -5
I finally bit the bullet and just got EZDrummer since trhe exchange rate is so good (the Oz dollar is higher than the US dollar for the first time in my lifetime, which means forever I think!)...
It really is a good sounding intuitive instrument that can copy and past real patterns or play any midi back with the sampled sounds...or play the things with the keyboard as a VSTi.
I got the basic program plus the claustrophobic pack which offers a range of different sounds and effects and beats with a little percussion. May also spring for the latin percussion at some point too as I can imagine wanting to explore a range of sounds.
Beatcraft is a decent but basic step sequencer but is not midi. It might still be useful for a range of things and is a great 'drum machine' but the lack of midi and direct interaction with the DAW is letting it down as being very useful unless you can envision an entire track from the drums alone.
...
Have yet to find a 'track level parameter' for input Midi transposing. It is very easy to apply in mixcraft one something has been recorded, but can't see a way yet to do it on the input so things sound transposed as they are recorded...I've been hunting some kind of VST perhaps but Mixcraft may not be versatile enough.
I'm considering a decent but budget keyboard controller with velocity sensitivity...nothing seems to have the ability to transpose which is common on cheap keyboards...which I find a little odd...doesn't seem a hard thing to do in the hardware to reassign the signals from different keys...any further thoughts?
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Post by 4real on Apr 1, 2011 8:18:31 GMT -5
Hmmm...well, sound click don't like me again... Still, photobucket allows sound with vid, so added a graphic to this evenings 1 minute of messing with EZD and a few guitars... Still a lot of work to do and the sound is disappointing once taken down to MP3 and the dickey computer speakers on the laptop. I was reading about 'dynamic range' and the 'loudness wars' today...now I know what they mean!
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Post by JFrankParnell on Apr 1, 2011 10:38:19 GMT -5
I've read alot about it, too. These guys: dynamicrange.de/ make a meter that measures loudness really well, I use it every time. www.pleasurizemusic.com/es/es/download#menu1I tend to mix it up(waves L3) into the 'hot' range of their meter, or just on the edge of warm/hot. I also have this hooked up to my music player (foobar2000) to compare indie/commercial/my stuff. Oh, btw, its possible to make an mp3 that's indistinguishable from the original. I wont go into the details now, but, LAME vbr(192-224) JS v0, gets you pretty close.
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Post by 4real on Apr 1, 2011 15:22:09 GMT -5
Cheers, yeah they are the guys...i got the DR meter for the DAW but have yet to use it.
My new Mic is so sensitive, it picks up the sound of the mic from across the room and it was used on all the guitars in front of the amp, so there is a huge amount of natural reverb I will have to learn to control. Seems to be a lot on the EZ drums too, but have yet to play with the sounds and such, perhaps send them dry and process them separately or something...was done quick and late...LOL...can only get better!
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Post by JFrankParnell on Apr 1, 2011 16:43:59 GMT -5
I tend to 'master' my tracks simultaneously with mixing. I know this is agaisnt the grain of normal thinking, but 1. my tracks will probly never see a real mastering studio and B. I just dont get the logic of mixing when you dont really know what it will sound like after mastering. When I mix, I'm hearing it as pretty much a finished product. On my master bus, i usually have a 'vintage' compressor, knocking it down, maybe 4-6db, then bbe exciter, then L3 (maybe another 6db of comp), then TT DR meter. As the mix starts to gel, I'll be checking in on the TTDR to see that my DR is about where I want it. If its getting too hot, I back off on the L3 first, and maybe the vintage comp.
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Post by 4real on Apr 1, 2011 16:57:39 GMT -5
Mixcraft uses LAME, not sure which version but would be fairly current. I am be getting a false impression as the playback on the net here is on my computers speakers which are good, but kind of hyped in treble and bass, losing that midrange punch...and seems kind of flat overall...that track sounds 'huge' in the DAW through a small but very 'flat' hi fi monitoring thing I am using or in the phones. Worth considering though as this is how the music is generally heard by others over the net.
It's way to early for me to have an opinion, but it makes sense. However, I tend to see a lot of the art of mastering seems to be about the very big picture of perhaps a whole album to get some consistency of sound than individual tracks. What i think the problem is that if things are mastered while mixing, a collection of tracks may have a vastly different sound and level and punch.
But with only a month on this and hardly much 'creation' going on as yet, a long way from that for me!
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Post by sumgai on Apr 1, 2011 17:50:39 GMT -5
4,
in re: Listenting to your computer....
I tend to advocate that one rush down to the nearest pawn shop, and procure a standard bookshelf stereo system, complete with speakers of fair to good quality. Use this as your audio reproduction center, feeding it with your computer, and everything will sound worlds better than any speakers you can plug into the sound card (or the machine's motherboard, etc.).
This goes for headphones too - I don't feed them directly from the sound card, it's just not the same as what I hear when they're plugged into the stereo amp's headphone jack.
FWIW. YMMV. Little man not for sale. yadda yadda...
sumgai
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Post by 4real on Apr 1, 2011 19:12:05 GMT -5
Oh...it's ok...the set p is quite good really...
I have a small but quite loud and decent little stereo with several EQ settings that can be turned off to "flat" for a fairly true sound. ANd, I use a UA-25 midi interface with outs to that (though for some reason I have yet to understand, I am having trouble teaching the general computer programs to use that output). This has been the set up for some years now with the old computer too.
The interface accepts midi from the casio and two audio ins plus headphones and signal out to the stereo monitors and includes powered preamps (for my new condenser mic) with limiters. It's possible to plug a guitar directly into the interface but it doesn't sound quite right, so I am using an amp lately. I might though experiment and try using the preamp out (fender HRX) directly into the interface as I've done with the old BR-600 machine and works well. I live in a big bright open plan house/room here with wooden floors and a lot of glass so the sound can bounce about a fair bit. Most of that reverb is from the room!
On this track, the rhythm guitar is the amp but on the lead guitar I ran the amped guitar through the 'shred' simulator of a Marshall and it is quite an authentic sound..for free! Doing it this way, I can change the entire amplifier all the way to a direct clean should I choose. If I combine several takes to one track, everything then is consistent.
I do know that most stereos these days are designed to sound "loud' which generally means compressed and 'hyped' with EQ's that change things radically. I know my MP3 player that I listen to a lot of music on has a lot of different EQ settings which really changes the sound of things quite a bit as well.
With this little stereo thing, it even has a remote control so I can control it from the desk, mute the monitors for headphones or avoiding bleed and feedback with a mic, or even change the EQ to hear what it might sound like through different kinds of systems. Also, it is my stereo as well, so I can hear the difference between what I am making and what other records sound like through it. I almost went for some studio monitors but really, these things are not bad especially at this stage and get the job done.
I sometimes wonder if mixing with a completely 'flat' system is ideal anyway if that is the only time the music is going to be heard like that.
The laptop also has some very good speakers in it considering, the ASUS is renown for that and designed by Bang and Olfsen...but it is a bit 'hyped' and an almost 'surround sound' kind of effect...good for games and you tube or whatever...but not really up to this task.
Thanks for the input though guys...
Oh...and does anyone know an alternative for Soundclick for posting audio for free. They seem to have gone a little 'nutty' and with their weirdness I have to wonder if they are going to stay afloat. Photobucket is so much easier and so I just added a picture and loaded it as an MP4 and that all worked in an instant. But, really I'd like to post just audio if possible.
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Post by ashcatlt on Apr 1, 2011 23:20:44 GMT -5
Wow! I had one thing I wanted to say, and now by the time I actually get around to typing there's all this other stuff? I'm gonna be here all night! That's okay, I've got plenty beer. I do think that it's important to do your final mixes on a good clean flat monitor system. Now, when I say system, I'm also talking about the room. No speaker stands alone. It is part of an acoustic system which includes the room around it. Early reflections and flutter echo can mess with the higher frequencies and standing waves can create nodes throughout the room where in some spots there will be no bass, and in others it'll be overwhelming. There's piles of info around the web on how to minimize or eliminate these problems, so I'll leave that. More important than any of this, though, is knowing your system. Listen to your monitors every chance you get. Listen to everything you possibly can on them, especially recordings with which you're familiar. Figure out how things sound through these speakers in this room. You already have a pretty good idea how these things translate to other environments, and you'll be able to judge how your mixes will translate based on that info. I think Pete's got the right idea mixing on the stereo he uses for daily listening. It's one of the very few good things about mixing in your living room. In the interest of full disclosure, I do most of my "pre-mixing" here in the living room. This is where I do all my editing, add special effects, and do at least rough EQ, compression, and...you know...mixing. I switch between a pair of AKG headphone which I've been using for 16 years and the consumer grade 3.1 computer system on which we listen to all of our daily music, youtube, DVDs, and TV. The headphones are known to be a bit bass light and overly smooth on the high end, while the speakers are just about the opposite - scooped with too much bass and harsh high end. The room is not really treated, though the geometery, furniture, carpet, and construction are mostly favorable. I do a lot of moving around the room while I'm mixing. I'll tweak a bit while listening on headphones or close up on the speakers. Then I'll play the song back while I to the kitchen or bathroom or step out on the porch to smoke something. I end up with pretty good results at that point. Most of the stuff I've posted here has been mixed exactly that way. I don't really call anything "serious" completely done until I take it through a couple more steps, though. First, I drag my recording computer over to Luke's basement. We've got a barely passable space down there. It's typical concrete floors and walls, but the space we use for the studio is about 18x24, and the walls between that and the rest of the full length basement are so flimsy as to not count as reflective surfaces below the low mids. There's a big ol bass trap of a stairway and another made out of a closet, and we've got a couch and a mattress and...yeah, not the greatest space. We measured the place and put the speakers right about at the 38% point where they belong. Built twin towers of cinder blocks up to standing ear level height and threw my Alesis M1s (which were in my living room for years in New Orleans) up there. I now also have a set of Yamaha speakers (which I had in my living room for years back in the mid 90s), and a pair of powered monitors (which I've never seen before) on top of those. And that leads to another point. It's probably even better to check your mixes on as many different systems as possible. Load 'em up on your mp3 player and take them out to the car. Listen to them as you drive to your friends house. Listen to them again through your friend's stereo, and again in your friend's car as he drives you to a friendly local bar where you can convince the staff to let you listen to it on their system. Take notes of anything that seems weird in any of these situations. Can you fix one without messing up the rest? If not, I think you're done. Otherwise, go back and change some stuff. Either way, you've learned something valuable re: your system and how it relates to the "real world". While you're at it, check on earbuds. You'll be horrified at how much bass there isn't! There are ways to fake it, but... It's my firm opinion that the Mastering Engineer should have very little to do. I agree with Pete that, for the most part, the ME should be applying very minor tweaks - to EQ, dynamic range, maybe stereo imaging - in order to make a group of mixes sound like a single cohesive and consistent album. There might be a little final dynamic touch up to tame down truly aberrant peaks. In this day and age, he or she will also be doing any bit- or sample-rate conversion and dithering which might be necessary. If it takes much more than that then he's actually finishing the mix, and if you're the mix engineer then he's doing your job. I do generally mix into some form of mix-buss compression. Not because I want to hear what it's going to sound like after mastering, but because I know I'm going to be adding it at some point and it just makes sense to have it from the start. Nowadays I tend to use some form of tape emulation for this. It ends up very much like monitoring from the repro head back in the analog days. The mix-buss compressor really shouldn't be doing a whole heck of a lot in most situations. It's just there to add a last little bit of "glue" to bring the whole track together. If you find yourself trying to tame any major dynamics issues or "fix" the mix at this stage then you really need to back up. Anything really serious can usually be dealt with better at the track or sub-buss level. I've always done my mastering in SoundForge. When I just want to get something up to a competitive level to post here or hand off to my bandmates or post as a "demo", I just Normalize the thing. SoundForge's Normalize process allows you to Normalize by Peak or RMS, and to set a specific level. What's the difference between Peak and RMS Normalize? In Peak mode, it scans the file (or selected portion thereof) for the single loudest word, figures the difference between that and the specified level, and applies gain to the entire file (or portion) to make up that difference. If the loudest peak in a file hits -3db, and we've specified -0.4db, it'll gain the whole thing up by 2.6db. You could, in fact, get the same effect by turning up the master fader in the DAW by 2.6db. In RMS mode it scans the file (or...) and figures the RMS (basically, the average, or steady state) level across the file and then applies gain to the whole thing to make up the difference between that level and the one we've specified. So, if the file comes back with -18db RMS level, and we want -12, it'll add 6db. But what if they're the same file? What if peaks hit -3db, with -18db RMS, and we want -12db RMS? Adding 6db puts the RMS right where we want it, but the peaks now hit +3db! As everybody knows, we're talking about dbfs, as in Full Scale, as in it can't possible get any louder than 0. Normally, anything above that would be clipped down to 0 and nasty distortion would result. SoundForge has a checkbox, though, which tells it to "Apply Dynamic Compression" in these cases. I'm not sure what exactly it does, but it sounds better to me than the Waves L series and most of the other "maximizer" type things I've used. So, when I'm quick mastering I'll pick an RMS level to shoot for, and then Normalize to an RMS level just maybe .3-.5 db louder. Then I'll Peak Normalize back down to -0.3 to -0.5db. It's best not to go all the way to 0dbfs because it can cause "inter-sample overs" in some converters, and some compression algorithms can raise the overall peak as well. When I'm a little more serious about the product, though, I use a sequential or "series" compression technique. If you look at the waveform of a "final" mix at a relatively wide zoom level (like the whole song) you will generally find 3 kind of rows or regions of peaks. The first (loudest) region is the truly aberrant peaks. Some of these might be software glitches, but most often they're what I call "coincidental" peaks. These happen in the extremely rare instances where the entire mix is pushing in the same direction at the same time. There's usually only four-five-six of these in a given song and they stick way up above everybody else. It's not unusual to have these stick up 2-3db above the next region. These peaks are usually so fast that you don't even really notice, and all they're really doing is stealing headroom. You can knock these down without really losing any dynamic impact. The second region will be a bit more dense. You need to look at these sometimes and make sure that they don't correspond to something like a kick drum or snare - in which case you might want to revisit the mix. Most of the time, though, these will also be more "coincidental" - coming when one or two instruments manage to hit at the same time. These can also usually stand to be tamed a bit without losing too much real impact. The third region will be the overall program material. So, I set up a compressor (or, in SoundForge, run a destructive dynamics process) with threshold just above the second region with fairly aggressive (9-12:1) ratio, and fast attack and release. This doesn't usually have to be a real severe ratio, like a brick wall limiter, since the truly aberrant peaks we're hitting now will be knocked down some more in the next process. Then set another compressor (or...) with a threshold just above (or just tickling the top of) the third region with a more gentle (3-6:1) ratio and still fairly fast attack and release. Now scan your levels with the Normalizer. Dynamic range really is the difference between the Peak and RMS levels. If you was to Peak Normalize (close) to 0dbfs, where would the RMS sit. Usually by now I will have gotten to the -12dbfs or slightly higher range that i normally shoot for. If that ain't enough, then maybe look for a fourth region or just set an even less aggressive compressor to squish down the tops of the program material until we get where we want. Of course, it's not a bad idea to actually listen to what you've done to the poor audio file along the way. All that really matters is how it sounds. This process, though, usually ends up with less audible distortion and a better sense of dynamic impact than just slamming the thing into a wall. Okay, I'm done typing (for) now.
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Post by 4real on Apr 7, 2011 22:45:41 GMT -5
Nice rant there ash, a lot to learn but I see what you are saying and agree...will have to come back to a lot of these things as I learn along the way. The TT dynamic range meter is an interesting thing to watch though, I do think there is a valid point that things tend to get very dense and compressed without the dynamic range that used to be and made things sound bigger and hit harder.
At the moment, learning a few things by mixing midi tracks and applying instruments and effects and seeing how things 'fit together' and comparing it a little to the records and their approach. Learning which VSt instruments and effects work for me and whittling it down to a few essentials.
EZ Drummer was a great tip and apparently I got it and the Claustrophobic exp at about half price on sale, as they have doubled when I went back to get another...oh well!
Regardless, there is so much you can do with it as a basic kit sound wise, to create patterns...or to just use it as a vst instrument on everything. Will be working on a good way to create my own library of patterns to add to it, perhaps stripping basic beats and rolls from decent midi files or created on the piano roll.
I'm learning a bit of keyboards too as it is a bit of a necessity I guess...interesting experience. The DAW is a great tool for learning all kinds of stuff in whatever way that suits...seeing notation, or a piano actually pressing the keys at any speed you like as you play along. Will ahve to get around to using guitar pro too to do more with the guitar like that as there is no shortage of material out there, much of it very good.
Still have not worked out any way to do the transposing trick...other than after recording...conceivably you could transpose all the track and convert it back, but sounds like a lot of work! I am surprised that this isn't a common hardware or software function for midi as it is typical of most all in one keyboards...oh well...might have to learn things properly.
Have found some interesting discoveries though, so might be back with a few 'finds' some time...
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Post by ashcatlt on Apr 7, 2011 23:24:08 GMT -5
ToonTrack emailed me the other day to tell me they were having some kind of "two for cheap" sale. Might be worth checking back if your looking for them. I've only got the basic thing with the free lounge kit and I went for the "Twisted Kit" which is basically the kit you hear on those greatest Tom Waits albums. I'm waiting for them to come out with an Orchestral Percussion pack. One of the other MMS drum synths has one.
Cakewalk and Cubase both have access to all kinds of MIDI parameters right there on the left hand side of the track lane where the name and in and out parameters and stuff are. I guess I haven't looked for it in Reaper yet.
Does Mixcraft have or support MIDI plugins?
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Post by 4real on Apr 8, 2011 0:01:54 GMT -5
Yes, but not sure how sophisticated you can route things which might be necessary for say a transposing program...might need to think of a way to create one LOL or put it to a forum on such things see if it is possible!
There are transposing on tracks very easily as with other draws...but this is on recorded midi, not the ongoing midi signals. Couldn't find it in reaper which might have more options though I do find it a bit more confusing with hardly any benefits so far for me at this stage.
...
The toontrack thing might have been last month, I got mine through ebay (deluxe audio) for an authorisation key through toontrack (registered EZD supplier) and the EXPs were less that $40 so half price.
I auditioned a few kits, would be easy to go nuts getting them all I suspect, if the budget allowed, as there is the kit and sounds, presets and the different patterns in them...so a lot of quality product.
I liked some of those tom waites things, though prefer some of his other stuff...lied his stuff with elvis costello too though...certainly a valid enough to some different sounds there and a good idea for a sample collection. I was reading a songwriting bio/book on jimmy web and he had too records produced by Steve Cropper...the kick he found out later sounded great, but was a sampled basketball bounce...LOL...so even the old school guys use some different sounds...many records were made using cardboard boxes and such...prince was really into unlikely but very effective samples on a lot of his hits.
An orchestral kit would be a great idea! A few choice tympani rolls for instance or a giant gong...LOL...but perhaps more than I'd really use.
I was going to get the latin percussion thing, the usual congas and some interesting little sounds. At $80 maybe an indulgence...still, next sale.
Fortunately there are some interesting additions to the claustrophobic kit...waterfall chimes, snaps, claps, triangles, cowbells etc...plus distortions and effects...plus brushes... I was amazed at the differences different produces got from the same things as well, so there is obviously a ot of scope to create a drum sound with any kit before it even gets to the DAW's effects and EQ's.
I will be looking at different places for midi patterns though, groove monkey offer quite a few some free and there is always banging out on the keyboard or typing things in drum machine style...even striping bits from decent midi songs can be a start. I found the midi map spreadsheet for most of the exps and labelled piano roll keys suitable for reaper apparently. I suspect a lot of stuff will be recognisably EZD patterns which is perhaps not the best thing for an original track.
Oh...and I found an interesting tool called the "humaniser" that is similar to EZD function and freeware (tobybear productions i think). A simple vst that adds a bit of controlled randomness to velocity, pitch, timing and such on any midi file...interesting effect. Can be added to even EZD sequences for an even more occasional different 'hit'...I applied it to a midi sax line and it really made it more 'slinky' and less midi...similarly with guitar.
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Post by 4real on Apr 8, 2011 5:41:23 GMT -5
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Post by cynical1 on Apr 8, 2011 11:38:30 GMT -5
Now that spreadsheet is useful. Having sat for hours trying to work out the drum maps in Sonar that sheet would have saved me a load of aggravation.
Definitely a keeper. Very good find.
HTC1
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Post by ashcatlt on Apr 8, 2011 14:05:05 GMT -5
I'm pretty sure that info is in the docs for each kit. You know, like, RTFM! It's really GM standard for the basic kit with alternates above and below that. Seems it comes out an octave high, though, so Standard MIDI files need to be transposed up. In my copy of Sonar anyway.
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Post by 4real on Apr 9, 2011 23:45:09 GMT -5
I have found a few things like that...got no documentation with my ezd or ezps as downloaded...but the cost last month was half price so got EZD and 1 exp for just over $100 and the exp were all less than $40 so kicking myself a little...still, could go nutz!
Apparently they have a new software called EZplayer that amongst other things will convert any drum map into another...so GM to an EZD format for instance. At least for basic kits the GM mapping on normal midi files seems to translate pretty well.
I did see that if you had an after touch keyboard you can use that to "choke' cymbals...any idea what the midi command to achieve this might be?
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Post by cynical1 on Apr 10, 2011 9:17:35 GMT -5
I didn't get a documented drum map with the EZX modules I bought. I did find a few free downloads off of the Toontrack site for a couple of kits, but when I dumped the trump on the Funkmasters EZX none of the maps but the Standard map would come close. So we're not talking at cross purposes, this is the .map file in Sonar that you assign to the MIDI drum track so that you see the drum, or drum sound, detailed in the MIDI edit window versus the black and white keyboard. For example: Which looks like this in the MIDI edit window: ...instead of this, without the drum map assigned: Each sequencing app has a different method to create these, but without the actual definitions it's a hit or miss (no pun intended) process. I found a few mistakes in mine from trying to do it by ear by referring to the spreadsheet 4real posted. Depending on what sequencer you have, Toontrack has free drum maps you can download here. And as an aside, if you're looking for some free loops, that actually sound pretty good, you can get the free set of MIDI drum loops from Groove Monkey here. You don't get the full sets, but some of what they give you for free turns out to be fairly usable. Happy Trails Cynical One
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Post by sumgai on Apr 10, 2011 11:07:29 GMT -5
4,
In MIDI, there is no distinct 'after touch'. 'Touch' itself is usually equated to velocity, something that all keyboardists can relate to.
EDITED. See reply below for further explanation.
sumgai
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Post by ashcatlt on Apr 10, 2011 14:10:22 GMT -5
Aftertouch is a valid MIDI control message. It's not always implemented, and of course Pete won't have it on his keyboard since it's not velocity sensitive. It's not a "numbered" cc control, it's more like pitch wheel and modulation. I don't know anything about mixcraft, but in most sequencers the Piano Roll will have a lane in the bottom for Control messages. It often defaults to showing velocity, but can usually be changed to show the others. You should be able to find the aftertouch in there and then draw it in. I think I've done it before with cymbal chokes.
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Post by 4real on Apr 10, 2011 17:23:20 GMT -5
Thanks guys, very interesting.
Yep, Mixcraft has a drop down menu for various parameters under the piano roll that will be useful...sustain pedal on/off/ pitch and mod wheels and others, doesn't specifically say after touch but I would suspect that one of the parameters might create the effect should I need it....cheers.
The cymbal choke...saw it on a demo using the after touch, the cymbal sounds and cuts off as it you grabbed it and sounded very effective on EZD...knowing that menu is there will be useful for a few things.
I cant see how one can change the piano roll labels on Mixcraft...it is limited but still developing, will put in a suggestion to work on that side of things or if it is possible at the moment. Saw that rewire will be developed along with a lot of other things in the next version probably next year. It is after all supposed to be an easy interface compared to something like Reaper and it does what it does very well, there is a lot of other stuff that they keep kind of hidden, and other things still under development.
Looking at those images though, maybe i need to explore EZD a lot more, are those drum maps in the EZD program...looks like a sonar thing. Perhaps one day I might upgrade to something like that, I had sonar lite from the interface some years back and cakewalk before that. I've only just got EZD so have not even touched on it's full potential for multiple outs and such...but so much better than fooling about with loops or drum machine type programs alone.
So last week been exploring remixing some midi files, so this week perhaps get some time to do some more audio type things. I appear to have a new GF so had to do the inevitable 'guitar playing thing' recently (lucky I passed the audition...LOL). Making music with the computer is so different to just picking up a guitar and playing...far more time consuming LOL...but it is amazing the 'power' that you can now fit into a laptop but there is a steep learning curve...not to mention learning how to use all these fabulous instrument sounds like EZD, Pianissimo and recently discovered an old copy of Edirol's (roland) Orchestral as well as a heap of other new toys yet to be explored.
One thing I am enjoying though is the "Dubmaster Liquid Delay" by G-sonique that came with Mixcraft 5 pro. A great synchronized delay with phase type effects and filters that does some lovely things with all kinds of instruments and the drums of course, you can make very ordinary simple parts have a real 'swing' to them...I've always had a thing for delays, but this kind of thing takes it to a whole different level! Might have to learn to use it in small doses though...
Their Pultronic EQ and 'twisted head" preamps are great too...so many toys, so little time!
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Post by 4real on Apr 13, 2011 17:16:40 GMT -5
Last nights experiments with recording...getting the idea, should practice playing music more I suspect, but at least getting an handle on the process now...despite a creative block soundclick.com/share.cfm?id=10517806Still the sounds are a decent quality and the results improving I think and things getting easier. There are some limitations to Mixcraft, being a lot like garageband I suppose, but still a powerful environment and improving. The sax, cello and strings were all part of the acoustica expanded instrument set of sounds and don't sound too bad in context. Finally found a half decent free step sequencer for drums in Hydrogen it seems...can save to midi and might be a good tool for quickly making midi patterns and storing them in EZD...Beatcraft is still good as an interface but without midi it is more of a traditional drum machine kind of thing.
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Post by sumgai on Apr 14, 2011 0:26:21 GMT -5
ash I see that "aftertouch" is part of the MIDI Level2 spec. I don't ordinarily consider that extension to the original (the whole Level2 thing), in my part of the world, no manufacturers have stepped up to the plate and implemented any parts of it. Maybe that's just my narrow tunnel vision, I dunno.... I also see that it's usually assigned to the 'Expression' control, CC11. (It being a channel thing and all.) One more thing of note..... Pete, you might wanna drift over to www.midi.org. They went dark several years ago, when I hung out there in my early days of MIDI. I see (from Google) that they're back, and they look pretty good, from the quick glance I took. (Thanks to ash for making me take that look. ) HTH sumgai
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Post by 4real on Apr 14, 2011 2:45:01 GMT -5
Fooling about with the keyboard, there seem to be at least one key that offers a cymbal choke but the drum map for EZD's are so big a lot of stuff seems to be off the 61 key limit. Mixcraft has some limitations for sure, but not as many as my adapting to the process. Saw some great fruity loop composing ideas and there are some great things associated with that program it seems, but for now I need to learn to "play" in the piano roll with a mouse I think as there is a lot of potential there. Midi is a fabulous tool, especially for instruments you don't play and such, but there are huge advances in audio manipulation...I've been particularly taken with what melodysheep/colorpulse/symphony of science has been doing with the Melodyne for instance...perhaps not rock and roll, but interesting all the same... Better known for making Stephen Hawking and others 'sing'...here is an exclusive link to an irobot thing i was sent if interested in that kind of thing... Otherwise, collecting a few too many free VST's as is probably a common beginners curse and distracts from making music and only a few are really interesting.... This one for instance I came across looking for something else... www.tobybear.de/p_midibag.htmlI've been practising with stock midi files of songs, reassigning instruments and effects...this effect was kind of useful for some things like loosening up something that is heavily quantised or just randomising the velocity for say drums so the hits in say EZD sound slight different or a slinky sax line. As a non-keyboard player, treating it as more of a musical typewriter for importing data, after touch is perhaps out of my league but getting a little better at playing it.... (EDITed by sumgai to make the YouTube links show up properly.)
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Post by cynical1 on Apr 14, 2011 18:48:02 GMT -5
Not to hijack things too much, but forget EZDrummer, Superior drums or anything else. Check this kid out.
Bet you could sign him for a PSP and some gummy bears...
We now return you to your regularly scheduled thread.
HTC1
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Post by 4real on Apr 25, 2011 4:43:47 GMT -5
LOL...well done...a bit heavy with the cymbals and EZD is a lot less than the mics to get it into the computer...I wonder if any of these kids will ever go on to fulfil this talent...
there is a lot to learn though about drum programming in watching a drummer, even this fellow.
meanwhile...working on a workflow for saving midi clips and adding them to the EZD library...MC5 is not the best for this and wont accept individual outputs to different tracks in the current versions. Interested in FL studio down the road I think...MC5 will do for now.
Guitar Pro is an excellent notation midi editor though...finally got a computer that will run it properly here, it is very impressive, as is the RSE in GP6.
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Post by 4real on Apr 26, 2011 8:40:09 GMT -5
I keep running across some limitations within mixcraft, so investigating Reaper again. Finally got it to recognise my ua-25 midi/audio interface and tought it where my VST's are kept...so off to making some noise at least...so that's a start. A higher learning curve but more power. I was able to download most of the EZD files into the reaper named 'piano roll / drum sequencer...you can find these files here with the SDX and other drum brands... stash.reaper.fm/tag/MIDI-Drum-Mapshave to look further to see if it has GM names as well...you can make your own custom lists though... the other things that it can do that mixcraft cant as yet is accept multiple outs such as from EZD or edirol's orchestral to separate midi tracks... There is also the ability to do more sophisticated 'routing' so perhaps I will be able to try out a few programs of that ilk...such as audio to midi...allowing mono signals from guitar or voice to generate midi inputs... Have yet to find a 'transposer' in it, have not even found the midi track transposition function (I am sure it's in there if MC5 has it)...I was able to find a free and a cheap midi transposing tool to try, but it also would require the ability to run one midi device into another, something MC5 cant do, but appears reaper and higher end daws can. Has any one had much experience with reaper? I've heard some professionals are gravitating toward it. Although MC5 has it's limitations, it is still a good program and not regretting having it handy...at the very least, all the effects and instruments are recognised by Reaper so that makes it was not a waste of money as these are generally of a very high quality. Reaper has a host of their own VST's also to explore though a bit light on for 'instruments' it seems.
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Post by 4real on Apr 29, 2011 1:20:19 GMT -5
Well...going all the way trying to master Reaper as Mixcraft has too many limitations for some of the things I want to do. At first it was almost indecipherable to the novice being extremely customizable...in fact I got little out of it prior to trying MC5 and learning the basics, now it makes so much more sense and looking forward to learning all the things it offers.
So far worked out templates, so I can set up all the EZD drums (multi outs for all the drum mics on different channels under a master buss and midi track) and just call up that template with the instrument and all channels loaded up and ready to go. The midi editor loaded with all the EZD drum maps instead of the piano roll...very cool. Did the same for the EZX claustrophobic that has more drum channels and effects, mapped with these drums for easy input on the editor!
Have not tried it yet, but I am thinking of using a "toby bear' midi transposer to address that side of things...reaper allows 'routing' tha MC5 can not do to use such tools.
This also opens up the potential to try a bunch of audio to midi tools, effectively allowing a mono guitar to be used as a midi input device of sorts.
Reaper comes with a whole range of nice effects, the pitch correction is particularly nice allowing manual moving of pitches in the editor...ReTune
There is the potential to control effects and such with midi as well...but a lot to learn there.
One sound I have in mind uses the sustainer, slowly 'blooming' into a harmonic and rhythmically 'gated' to chop it up. I did some experiments a while back adding effects to it like a sever tremolo to get this. The sustainer is also good with really long and extreme filtering types of things and there may well be a lot of potential for it's use in recording. VST's offer a lot more options for messing with this kind of sound.
So, a bit drastic moving from one DAW to another so soon, and bit of expense. There are still some things that MC5 is good at, better with basic film editing and has a notation editor....so it will get some use and it taught me a lot. It came with a lot of great instruments too that transferred over without a hitch except for one, the VB3 organ, which is a shame cause it was amazingly good...but I am sure there are replacements that will do the job adequately as required.
So, still bogged down in Tech to be making too much music, but a necessary evil and getting under control. I can recommend reaper, at leat the price is right (free to try unlimited, $40 if you get in soon).
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Post by 4real on May 3, 2011 3:58:11 GMT -5
Been away for a little bit...but did a little today and getting used to Reaper. Got to do a few things with it that MC5 couldn't, hence the switch...like this use of a free VST called Kirnu which is a very nice arpeggiator. I ahd recorded a bit of an idea for a chord sequence the other week and left if for further development. It was very roughly and loosely played...then I added the Kirnu which arpeggiated everything in 4 octave 8thnote patterns despite it having no sensible arrangement to the time grid or quatizing...so added a bit of a 1/8note echo to it for good measure and out popped this... soundclick.com/share.cfm?id=10596733Although not strictly recording, I did write a bit of music using Guitar Pro 6 since this too will now run well on the new computer..what a great program. It is playable as a solo piece like this, but will take a lot of work to play as well as it does it...LOL. I did write it though with guitar in hand... soundclick.com/share.cfm?id=10560445I supose it was a bit of an experiment in not starting on the I chord and disguising it a bit...must have done well as it is hard to tell exactly what I is. Starts on G, contains chords of C (as in the 'verse' sections of the 'rondo') although the middle section is in G and the piece ends on E minor. There are quite a few 'extensions' and that inserting sound in the 'turnaround' phrases are from the F chord going into the Emin9 having F# in it pulling it back to G...well, I liked it...LOL. Hope all is well in GN land... Oh...and not given up on playing the guitar. I have in mind some interesting ideas for the sustainer guitar and a gate effect, but have a bit more to learn to pull it off...
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