17. How do I control the reverb and chorus effects on my SoundBlaster Live! ?

The MIDI reverb and chorus effects won't work in Band-in-a-Box® and PowerTracks Pro Audio unless the sound card software is set up properly. The exact steps vary with different drivers, but the concept is the same.

  1. Open up the SB Live! "Environmental Audio" window. You need to create a new environment and name it whatever you like (Naming it with a ! at the front of the name will put it at the top of the selection list, making it much easier and faster to find in the future).
  2. Set the reverb and chorus sliders to a reasonable point. We find that 50% settings emulate the old AWE cards fairly well. Set them where they sound good to you. Remember that you will be able to control each effect from zero to the master input setting you pick now from within PowerTracks Pro Audio and Band-in-a-Box®. Check to be sure that the reverb and chorus are controlled by controllers 91 and 93 (the default for the card, but check it to be sure. You will see the numbers in the same window).
  3. Pick the tab at the top that brings up a page that has the various sound sources listed that environmental audio can affect. The object here is to pick each one other than MIDI, and tell the software to NOT apply the chosen environment to that one. This would include your CD audio, wave files, everything on the list but MIDI. Don't worry if MIDI does not appear on this list, it depends on which version of the Live drivers you have. Turn everything else to OFF, one at a time.
  4. Close the environmental audio window, saving the settings, and start upPowerTracks Pro Audio or Band-in-a-Box®. The reverb and chorus controls from within PowerTracks Pro Audio or Band-in-a-Box® will now work.

Alyssa - PG Music