In a sense. If a RealTrack has notation (a RealChart), it is MIDI that can be saved to a file. RealCharts are sometimes exact performances, but other times they are just for educational purposes and lack any data for expression, volume etc.
BIAB 2024 Win Audiophile. Software: Studio One 6.5 Pro, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6; Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Roland Integra-7, Presonus Studio 192, Presonus Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors
Matt has made a very worthwhile point. Don't expect any expressiveness in the data. The MIDI file is likely to just be a manually created transcription.
BIAB & RB2024 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
If I save everything as midi, will the MGU file it lose expression when it is played on Band-in-a-Box? Or should I have two versions -- a midi and an MGU?
Another question -- I want to make the melody quite quiet (for a play along), except for an 8 bar fill in the middle of the song (I made the notes "invisible" in this section). What is the best way to do this?
I have tried playing around with "settings for current bar", but I'm not sure what the numbers mean, as in "louder per bar" it wants you to give it a number.
The MGU and SGU files are BIAB's file types. These save ALL information relating to the backing track you create. MIDI files, on the other hand, only save MIDI information and by saving only in this file-type, you'll will lose some data that was present in the BIAB file.
In other words, if you want to keep the best possible file with the most information, MGU/SGU files are the way to go.
Another question -- I want to make the melody quite quiet (for a play along), except for an 8 bar fill in the middle of the song (I made the notes "invisible" in this section). What is the best way to do this?
In Bar Settings (F5), set the "Melody | Change By" (Volume Changes button) to something like -20 for the first bar in the 8 bars you want the melody to be quieter. If -20 is still too loud, try -30, etc. Negative values reduce the volume and positive values increase it.
After the quieter 8 bars, you'll need to use F5 again to set the melody back to normal.
Another question -- I want to make the melody quite quiet (for a play along), except for an 8 bar fill in the middle of the song (I made the notes "invisible" in this section). What is the best way to do this?
I have tried playing around with "settings for current bar", but I'm not sure what the numbers mean, as in "louder per bar" it wants you to give it a number.
If you want Quiet, as in cannot hear it, just choose Mute If you want quieter, just choose reduce by say a value of -80 and listen to the result (you can choose a value of -127 to +127). Feel free to experiment with values. Remember to choose Back to Normal at the bar where you want the sound to resume/return to normal.
BIAB & RB2024 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
When I use F5 and make a change does it just change one bar, or all the bars from there on? I'm guessing the later? But the red outline only appears around the bar number of one bar.
Without this forum I would give up in despair. The manual seems to lack detail about some things. Or it is difficult to find the information, if it is in there. Sometimes I try googling a question, and usually this forum pops up. I found one post that Noel had made in 2010, I think.
I hope BiaB is paying you helpful BiaB veterans because you provide a very valuable service.
Thanks so much for this information! When I use F5 and make a change does it just change one bar, or all the bars from there on? I'm guessing the later? But the red outline only appears around the bar number of one bar.
The change applies from that bar forward. Even though the red line appears at the location of the change, it continues until a different change is made elsewhere (further) in the song.
Quote:
I hope BiaB is paying you helpful BiaB veterans because you provide a very valuable service.
You comment about being helpful is greatly appreciated.
There are many dedicated forum members here. We're all just end-users, simply volunteers. Many have considerably more experience than me, and continue to unselfishly share their skills.
This really is a very great forum, because of the quality of all of the members.
BIAB & RB2024 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
Velocity as it applies to MIDI means how hard you strike. Think of how hard you might press a key on a piano, for example, on a scale of 0 to 127. For most purposes, it translates into volume.
BIAB 2024 Win Audiophile. Software: Studio One 6.5 Pro, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6; Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Roland Integra-7, Presonus Studio 192, Presonus Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors
This is generally what happens; however, some synths respond differently depending upon the velocity (how hard you strike the note). Sometimes you get a harsh sound at higher velocities, or sometimes you get a different articulation. But yes, velocity and volume generally are related.
That being said, all MIDI notes have a specified velocity in a range from 0 to 127, but the track the MIDI data is on also has a specified volume setting. So velocity is sort of like volume within volume (or as I like to view it, the strength of the note at that volume setting).
So, if your volume settings went from, say, 1 to 10. Then, if you strike a note with velocity of 127 (the highest velocity), and your volume is set to 8, that's the loudest that instrument will play at volume 8. If you up the volume to 10, then velociy 127 is the loudest it will play at volume 10. You can kind of think of velocity as the strength of the note in relation to the volume setting.
But conversely, you can hit a note with velocity of 127 at volume 1 and it will be very quiet; however a note with velocity of say 50 at volume 10 would be louder than the note at volume 1, because it's all relative.
Hope that made sense, or maybe I made it worse.
John
Laptop-HP Omen I7 Win11Pro 32GB 2x2TB, 1x4TB SSD Desktop-ASUS-I7 Win10Pro 32GB 2x1.5TB, 2x2TB, 1x4TB SATA
1. MIDI export defines my work style. I often create the framework for songs in BIAB, then port them into Propellerhead Reason, which is, among other things, a high-quality MIDI-based soft synth. From there I revoice, expand, and massage at will.
2. Jford’s remark about “different synths” responding differently to velocity is actually a patch-dependent effect called “zoning.” It is caused by mapping different samples (digitally recorded sounds) to velocity values. A simple patch might have a clean electric piano sound from 1-80 and a distorted sound from 81-128 to simulate overloading an instrument amplifier at higher volume.
Of course, it can be much more complicated; I have a book on the subject. It is not germane to the discussion, but it’s pretty interesting!
Richard
"My primary musical instrument is the personal computer."
Lesley, as you can see MIDI is very complex which is why people who are good with MIDI are sometimes referred to as "midiots".
I'll mention General Midi or GM because Biab is based on GM. GM is the simple brain dead way to work with midi. The Coyote Wavetable synth that is included with Biab along with the Sfzorando synth are both GM. They have a limited soundset and have limited control over the individual patches (instruments). This could be good enough for you and if so stop here, you're happy don't mess with it.
BUT if you want to have much better sounds, more control which means much more realistic sounds then you have to move up to more expensive softsynths like the aforementioned Reason, Sampletank, Kontakt etc. Those are NOT GM meaning you have to manually set each instrument for each part inside Biab, they will not simply play automatically. Well, they might play SOMETHING, but not what you expect. The piano track for example may be sounding a completely different instrument, even drums. Hearing that will cause you to post here in a panic if you don't understand what's happening.
The complete explanation of this is long and complex, I'm just giving you a heads up about it.
Thank you for all this additional information, though some of has gone right over my head!
I am an absolute beginner with regards to midi. I asked about it because someone at the chromatic harmonica forum (where I have been posting links to my play-along videos) asked me if I could supply midi files, so he could adjust the tempo. So I think i just need basic, simple midi for that--a simple midi accompaniment.
I'm going to sneak in a non-midi question: How do you handle a "pause" , that is, an upper semi-circle with a dot inside it, above the staff line. Is there a way to make Band-in-a-Box pause?
One way to do it in BIAB is to slow down the tempo for that measure. Press F5 on the measure and there are two types of tempo adjustment. Then go to the next measure, do F5, and set the tempo back to normal.
BIAB 2024 Win Audiophile. Software: Studio One 6.5 Pro, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6; Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Roland Integra-7, Presonus Studio 192, Presonus Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors
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Ci siamo dati da fare e abbiamo aggiunto oltre 50 nuove funzionalità e una straordinaria raccolta di nuovi contenuti, tra cui 222 RealTracks, nuovi RealStyles, MIDI SuperTracks, Instrumental Studies, "Songs with Vocals" Artist Performance Sets, Playable RealTracks Set 3, Playable RealDrums Set 2, due nuovi set di "RealDrums Stems", XPro Styles PAK 6, Xtra Styles PAK 17 e altro ancora!
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 & 7, Xtra Styles PAK 17 & 18, und mehr!
Band-in-a-Box® 2024 apporte plus de 50 fonctions nouvelles ainsi qu'une importante de contenus nouveaux à savoir : 222 RealTracks, des RealStyles nouveaux, des SuperTracks MIDI, des Etudes d'Instruments, des Prestations d'Artistes, des "Morceaux avec Choeurs", un Set 3 de Tracks Jouables, un Set 2 de RealDrums Jouables, deux nouveaux Sets de "RealDrums Stems", des Styles XPro PAK 6 & 7, des Xtra Styles PAK 17 & 18, et bien plus encore!
New! XPro Styles PAK 7 for Band-in-a-Box 2024 for Mac!
We've just released XPro Styles PAK 7 with 100 brand new RealStyles, plus 50 RealTracks and RealDrums that are sure to delight!
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Here's a small sampling of what XPro Styles PAK 7 has to offer: energetic rock jigs, New Orleans funk, lilting jazz waltzes, fast Celtic punk, uptempo train beats, gritty grunge, intense jazz rock, groovy EDM, soulful R&B, soft singer-songwriter pop, country blues rock, and many more!
Special Pricing! Until September 30, 2024, all the XPro Styles PAKs 1 - 7 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea)! Supercharge your Band-in-a-Box 2024® with XPro Styles PAK 7! Order now!
XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2024 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.
New! Xtra Styles PAK 18 for Band-in-a-Box 2024 for Mac!
Xtra Styles PAK 18 for Band-in-a-Box version 2024 is here with 200 brand new styles to take for a spin!
Along with 50 new styles each for the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres, we’ve put together a collection of styles using sounds from the SynthMaster plugin!
In this PAK you'll find: dubby reggae grooves, rootsy Americana, LA jazz pop, driving pop rock, mellow electronica, modern jazz fusion, spacey country ballads, Motown shuffles, energetic EDM, and plenty of synth heavy grooves! Xtra Style PAK 18 features these styles and many, many more!
Special Pricing! Until September 30, 2024, all the Xtra Styles PAKs 1 - 18 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea)! Expand your Band-in-a-Box 2024® library with Xtra Styles PAK 18! Order now!
Learn more and listen to demos of the Xtra Styles PAK 18 here.
Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 18 requires the 2024 UltraPAK/UltraPAK+/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! Xtra Styles PAK 18 for Band-in-a-Box 2024 for Windows!
Xtra Styles PAK 18 for Band-in-a-Box version 2024 is here with 200 brand new styles to take for a spin!
Along with 50 new styles each for the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres, we’ve put together a collection of styles using sounds from the SynthMaster plugin!
In this PAK you'll find: dubby reggae grooves, rootsy Americana, LA jazz pop, driving pop rock, mellow electronica, modern jazz fusion, spacey country ballads, Motown shuffles, energetic EDM, and plenty of synth heavy grooves! Xtra Style PAK 18 features these styles and many, many more!
Special Pricing! Until September 30, 2024, all the Xtra Styles PAKs 1 - 18 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea)! Expand your Band-in-a-Box 2024® library with Xtra Styles PAK 18! Order now!
Learn more and listen to demos of the Xtra Styles PAK 18 here.
Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 18 requires the 2024 UltraPAK/UltraPAK+/Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version because they need the RealTracks from the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.
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