Blades
Thanks, Mr. VariousArtist. I think it may be a bit too casual, and I've been "criticized" by a co-worker that a 15 minute video would be WAY too long - is it? Or is that the right pace and length for the depth presented?

I'd like to get more form to it in the "planning to record" stage, without making it stuffy, but also streamlining how big the resulting vid is so that I can present it someplace in better than youtube/google video quality.

What do you guys think?

You're welcome Mr. Blades. I think the answer depends on what your goals and target audience are. Right now you have an easy to watch video that gets the point across without getting mired down with being too exhaustive in all the possibilities, nor sounding too corporate (boring) like. It appealed to me because it has a sense of real-world practical usage about it.

You could work a whole bunch more on it, and clean it up and make it more professional, but I think you will find that you'll be crossing into that zone of 80% more effort to gain 20% more results. If that's what you, and importantly, your target audience desires, then go for it.

Me, personally? I'd like to see more of these videos at the expense of higher quality professional clips. As long as they're free. But if you made me pay then I guess I'd change my stance ;-) But I think I can get enough out of these as they stand and at 15 minutes I think you're just inside my "google video" attention span, lol!

I agree with Middleman, a learing function for the map manager would be time saving.
I do not think the video was too long. I think it streamlines the process of working with the drum map manager. Thanks Blades.

Hi Blades
Thanks for this. Just getting into it myself and hope that it stays up long enough for me to get completely through it. (I'm still trying to get the basics of Session Drummer down)

Curious,
I'm a video guy as well as into music and use a couple of different programs in productions that call for on-screen scenes such as you have done here. These products all have differing qualities of rez and output to usable video. Just wondering what you use.

Also, there's a whole group of people on a forum I found that do much the same sort of tutorials about video editing here. They have nice looking stuff too.

Thanks for a great job on an important subject for me.

Blades,
Excellent work! Thanks alot! This is the sort of thing that a newbie such as myself might like to find over at the Sonar Wiki http://sonar.sonarama.com/sonar/index.php/Main_Page
Perhaps you might consider adding it there as well.

Hello Blades,

This is one of the most-excellent tutorials (on any subject) that I have ever viewed. Of course it would take a drummer to figure out drum maps. You have an inherent feel for explaining things. I hope you are giving drum lessons because you'll produce some very good playing students. The presentation has some rough edges, I'd edit out throat clearing and coughs (no one needs to hear someone elses bodily functions on a recording). :-)

What software did you use to create this tutorial? I could use it for somethings I'm working on.

If I were Cakewalk, I would acquire this video and include it on the install DVD. Thanks so much for your time and effort.

Regards,
George

a newbie such as myself might like to find over at the Sonar Wiki

I've signed up for a Wiki ID. I will put something in there about Drum Maps and link to the video when I have access and time.

You mentioned an envelope tutorial - please post a link if it is available.

BTW, I am a big Kevin Gilbert fan and enjoyed your cover very much.

Thanks for the cover compliment. On one hand, I'm surprised how many folks DO know if this tune, but on the other hand, it's unfortunate so few people even know who Kevin Gilbert was. I have not gotten to the envelope tutorial yet. Before I continue to create them, I'm trying to optimize how I'm outputting them and finding a place where the least degridation and expence is incurred.

This is one of the most-excellent tutorials (on any subject) that I have ever viewed

Can I use that in my marketing materials? jk

What software did you use to create this tutorial?

Camtasia. It's pretty cool, though, like anything, especially at its price, you'd expect some things about it to work better. But it has a ton of features and appears to be about the best out there for this type of software. It's unfortunately $299! Ouch. Fortunately, I'm hopefully getting my company to foot the bill (I'm the boss, ya know ) for this one, as I'm planning on using it for real corporate stuff - the resolution stuff will not be an issue with LAN based videos. Obviously, those will be significantly more polished as well, beacause I WILL be getting paid for them. I'm just scratching the surface of this tool, and it's pretty fun to think of the things you could do with it...but I'm a geek

I never used midi track layers until then

Just watch out for the midi track layer gotchas in the piano roll view. It's fine if the layers are florming one cohesive thing, but if they happen to be "takes" or something where there is overlap - it will be a confusing mess to look at...ask Susan or, really, don't...another topic she's probably sick of trying to explain the importance of!

Hi everyone - I will drop this after this update

I got some cheap web space and uploaded a flash version of this video there. It takes about a minute to load with a decent inet connection, but I think the quality level is much better and easier to see what's going on.

Anyway, here it is: http://www.blades85.com/SonarDrumMap/SonarDrumMapFLV.html

Mr. Blades...one question, does this method work for rewire devices such as giga? I've been messing around with it this morning and can get my TD20 to map as you instruct, but so far not the rewired Larry Seyer drums..any adivce?

Thanks in advance.

Don't rewire things show up the same as any other plugged in instrument? I thought they did, so I'd expect it to work...may have to look at that.

ORIGINAL: Blades

Hi everyone - I will drop this after this update

I got some cheap web space and uploaded a flash version of this video there. It takes about a minute to load with a decent inet connection, but I think the quality level is much better and easier to see what's going on.

Anyway, here it is: http://www.blades85.com/SonarDrumMap/SonarDrumMapFLV.html

Blades,

This is an excellent tutorial, both in terms of content and execution. I think the pacing was just right and loved the conversational style you used. You obviously have a gift for teaching. Thanks very much for taking the time and effort to do this!

Hi Blades,
That link does not work for me. Takes a while, then I get a Google header and
"error on page" in the status bar.

ORIGINAL: Blades

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-846998225868834934&hl=en

Thanks for this, Blades. Makes it all very clear. Guess I'll have to start using these now.

Paul

I’m at my wit’s end. I’ve got a Yamaha DTXpress IV Special set I want to hook up to Sonar P&S 7 over the MIDI connection. I have no experience with MIDI at all, but via the Tutorial 1 I was able to be sure my MIDI setup is functional (that is I that it plays the supplied MIDI track and my drumset is triggering MIDI sounds - just not the ones I want!)

I played your video, but the screen is unreadable - just a fuzzy blur, so I can’t see your settings. In the video you said you skipped over a lot of things. I think I might need those things!

I really can’t expect you to “hold my hand”, but if you can at least steer me to where you got hip to this stuff it would at least be a start! Yamaha doesn’t seem to have any forums and there doesn’t seem to be anything of use here at Sonar! Any books you can recommend? Something, anything!

Thanks in advance
Mick

Ive bought your books. No help.

Yeah the “flash” version is much clearer. I watched more of it and am kinda getting more of an idea as to how things work. What I’m missing is the basic stuff you said you skipped over in your video.

Up front, I have never used any of the MIDI stuff in CW/Sonar - strictly an analog guy to audio tracks via mic’s and/or “signal line” outputs from amps. Ya know, plug in a mic hit record and play. CW/Sonar (and all outside reference material) is really “midi-centric”. That’s problem number one.

Problem number two is that my Yamaha DTXpress IV set does not have a MIDI in port so I have to route the output to the computer to hear what I have recorded. It seems that most of the CW/Sonar manuals (and I’m talking to you Mr. Scott R. Garrigus) assume one has MIDI in AND out on their “control surfaces” - if I’m using the correct terminology.

Playback while recording is not a problem - the drum set has normal audio out lines going to a separate amplification system. (BTW - what do you use for live performance?)

I am currently working on tutorial 2 from the “on-line” help and tutorial 9 from the book that came with the software. Those two resources combined with your video are starting to help, but man -my head hurts!

Right now I’m having a problem with “latency”. I hit a drum and the sound comes out a “second” later - not good. What’s up with that?

Mick