Anyone using Midiquest? Also, I have a question about making a track template.

So, here is my first question:
 
You know how when you insert a softsynth, it combines midi and audio into one track, allowing you to have audio and midi together?  Can you do this with a hardware sound module?  Basically, I would like to create a midi track for the module, create an audio track for that same module, then combine them to make an instrument track.  After I had everything perfect (soundcard inputs selected, midi inputs correct), I would save this as a track template.  Then, the next time I want to use that module, BAM....easy as pie.  Is this possible?
 
2nd: Has anyone used Midiquest XL?  I want to know how well it works....it's pretty expensive.
 
Also, FYI- Scott's Sonar X1 Power book is awesome.  I REALLY have learned alot from it.  Just thought I would randomly throw that in....lol.
 
THx guys!

I know how to set up a midi track template....I just really like how nice and neat vst instrument tracks are, and would like to replicate this with my hardware units.

I also use Midiquest XL and it works great.  The XL version comes with an editor so you can create librarians and patch edit panels, but it does take some work in learning. I did use it to create a librarian/editor for my Yamaha G50 successfully. You need to have detailed (an accurate) SYSEX documentation for the synth  in order to create your own driver (as it is called in MidiQuest), which is the biggest hurdle to overcome.

The bonus is that MidiQuest XL doubles as a VST plugin for a DAW to directly control a hardware synth, as well as automatically update the cakewalk instrument definitions so you can select the patch names directly from a midi track, instead of guessing bank and patch numbers.

I have a lot of older hardware synths and they're all supported. However my Blofeld and Radias are not. I may get a chance to write drivers for them once Waldorf and Korg release up to date SYSEX documentation. For now, I just use the supplied editor/librarians and use the patch name as the track name in my projects.

It's cool when you have a dedicated audio input for each h/w synth, and it might have been convenient (now with the inspector) to combine them into an instrument track, but it isn't possible.

Something unfortunate about the setup (midi & dedicated audio for an ext. synth): PDC does not work correctly for me. In other words, if there is an effect somewhere in the project that requires plugin delay compensation, it doesn't manage to compensate the external instrument's audio track properly, so it sounds out of sync with the rest of the project.

Midi quest has a demo. I tried it once and it did not support my instruments very well (Korg M1, Roland D50 & JV80). There are sometimes arcane things in sysex or synth voice architecture that are too complicated to deal with. Or maybe there were bugs. Anyway, it's great to be able to test drive it.

Bill B

brundlefly,

Actually, what seems to be happening is that prerecorded midi events being played to the external synth ARE being delayed. Then, the audio input is delayed again as it goes through the effect that requires the PDC and comes back out the main audio output. If I send the external synth audio directly to the main output without going through that effect, it plays in sync. Or, if I use direct monitoring, I hear it in sync.

Is there really a correct way of doing it? How could Sonar know which midi channel is linked to input on a given audio track? And therefore how much it should be delayed compared to the rest of the audio?

Incidentally, if I record the external synth using the prerecorded midi, then play it back without the live audio input, it plays in sync, meaning the software figured out how to compensate the audio recording based on PDC. I think this would be standard practice for recording any other live audio. And by delaying the outgoing MIDI, it is emulating how a performer would be playing against the delayed audio out.

For all these tests I set the delay for perfect space to 8192 to make it extremely obvious.

In short, the OP's idea for a MIDI track associated with a dedicated audio input for an external synth is cool, but would require PDC code changes in Sonar.

Bill B

bvideo


brundlefly,

Actually, what seems to be happening is that prerecorded midi events being played to the external synth ARE being delayed. Then, the audio input is delayed again as it goes through the effect that requires the PDC and comes back out the main audio output. If I send the external synth audio directly to the main output without going through that effect, it plays in sync. Or, if I use direct monitoring, I hear it in sync.

Is there really a correct way of doing it? How could Sonar know which midi channel is linked to input on a given audio track? And therefore how much it should be delayed compared to the rest of the audio?

Incidentally, if I record the external synth using the prerecorded midi, then play it back without the live audio input, it plays in sync, meaning the software figured out how to compensate the audio recording based on PDC. I think this would be standard practice for recording any other live audio. And by delaying the outgoing MIDI, it is emulating how a performer would be playing against the delayed audio out.

For all these tests I set the delay for perfect space to 8192 to make it extremely obvious.

In short, the OP's idea for a MIDI track associated with a dedicated audio input for an external synth is cool, but would require PDC code changes in Sonar.

Bill B

I don't think I've ever run into this because I always have my hardware synths recorded to audio by the time I'm adding anything that needs PDC.


I would have thought/hoped they would just leave MIDI timing alone, and do all the compensation on audio. If they're delaying MIDI playback, I guess you'd have to enable PDC bypass on the input-monitored hardware synth audio tracks do avoid the double delay.

But you'd be out of luck if the PDC plug is on one of the hardware synth tracks.


I'll have to check this out.