oh damn...
This can't be true that patch-Names are not supportet for Softsynths....?

Is there another way to select the patches (not just with the Patch-Number)?

I think this is very "unprofessional" for a software...
Why Cakewalk don't support this, I can't understand... :-(

frankandfree


Don't have X1 yet (waiting for the demo), but I figure it is still not possible to use instrument definitions for soft synths? Some soft synths will hand over their banks/patches/controller names, but a lot don't. I found that most annoying in the controller lists when they were just blank, not even offering a generic 1 to 127 list for these synths.

I believe Cakewalk is missing out what could be a great feature right there.

+1

Yet again one of those evergreen, never get done, issues that seem to be the forte of Cakewalk, that keep them so near yet so far away.

Here's hoping that some of the new X1 adopters give them a darn good shaking because for some of us it's got really old already.

This is fundamental!

Still plenty of ol' DAW 0.96b under the hood eh?

I'm not too sure but I get banks and patch names in softsynths. They don't need intruments definitions.

Is there a demo of Bandstand available?

mudgel


I'm not too sure but I get banks and patch names in softsynths. They don't need intruments definitions.

Is there a demo of Bandstand available?

Only if the instrument supports it can you.

And sending sys-ex bank changes or anything similar to anything other than a bona-fide midi port (i.e a softsynth) is complete roulette.

I am assuming (probably correctly) no changes in X1 from 8.5.3 here of course.

Right. And very few of mine did when I last tried Sonar.

In my case it wasn't actually bank/patch names that I was missing the most, but friendly CC names that would tell me what a CC number is used for with a specific synth. And the ability to define note names for instruments that rely on key switches. Both could be easily acchieved using instrument definitions (though, IIRC, using note names forced the PRV to drum mode, that would need to be optional to do the trick)
I especially hated the empty CC pulldown menu for those instruments, where you have to insert the CC number using the qwerty.

It seems so glaring obvious. Instead of waiting for all plugin designers to go your route, offer a solution to help yourself...

If patch names are in some softsynths and not others (as far as SONAR goes) then logically it must rely on coding in the plugin not in the host.

now when it comes to hardware SONAR allows ypou not only to use an instrument definition it provides you the editing tools to make an .ins file if one hasn't already been made. Again it would seem that it is the hardware synth that should expose this info to the Software some way.

Am I thinking this through correctly or is there a point I'm missing.

mudgel


If patch names are in some softsynths and not others (as far as SONAR goes) then logically it must rely on coding in the plugin not in the host.

now when it comes to hardware SONAR allows ypou not only to use an instrument definition it provides you the editing tools to make an .ins file if one hasn't already been made. Again it would seem that it is the hardware synth that should expose this info to the Software some way.

Am I thinking this through correctly or is there a point I'm missing.

I know where you are driving at.

I've spent several hours on various occasions trying to work with this one it ain't a new discovery.  Sometimes I've even had to set up a synth as a standalone and access it via a virtual midi cable so it becomes in effect an external synth in order to overcome some of the differences inherent in using softsynths as opposed to hardware ones.

I think it maybe due to some synths exposing patch numbers rather than full names (by return) however the ability to impose an instrument definition on a specific synth to select banks and patches is pretty fundamental, I think you can even do it from Band in a Box let alone Sonar, the synth itself doesn't even need to be party to the list of descriptions you've given it providing the option count of patches and banks returned from the synth corresponds to that of the definition when you select the option it is only the patch/bank number the synth is picking up.  That's how it's always worked on any midi capable program I've ever encountered all it entails is a switch to choose between importing the synths generic built-in names or using your pre-defined ones from a definition which is usually most conveniently a plain text file.

Got this very same problem. I see the patch names when there is no SoftSynth assigned. As soon as the softsynth is connected to the midi then the patch names dissappear, leaving me with just numbers. The softsynth I am speaking of is Vienna Instruments Pro..... Even with Vienna Ensemble this occurs.
 
Raymond