converting MIDI files into internal sounds for live gig

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billfiler
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converting MIDI files into internal sounds for live gig

Post by billfiler »

For my live gig I have about 400 MIDI files that I have sequenced in dp and send out to various drum machines and modules. Is it possible to convert all of those to trigger internal sounds (software samplers, synths, etc)? I know I will need a faster computer than what I am currently using but I just lost a steady gig and am now (at my advanced age) having to resort to carrying all my gear to one night stands. I'm trying to cary less and make my setup easier by getting rid of my synth rack. The thing is with my current setup I have all of the songs loaded into one sequence and just assign a keyboard shortcut for all the songs so they load instantly when I hit the right combo of keys. Is it possible to load as fast as I do now? I've never used the v racks but it looks like that might be an option.

Thanks
Bill
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HCMarkus
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Re: converting MIDI files into internal sounds for live gig

Post by HCMarkus »

V-Racks and VIs will be your constant future companion. V-Racks allow you to have sounds used across multiple Sequences reside in your computer's memory so they don't have to re-load when you change Sequences in DP. This allows quick changes, like you enjoy with your hardware ROMplers now.

Although you may have to tweak some velocity settings to get the VIs to respond like your hardware, your tracks should sound better than ever, as you will be working with richer, more detailed sounds.
billfiler
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Re: converting MIDI files into internal sounds for live gig

Post by billfiler »

Thanks,
I've used DP in my recording studio for years but I've never used virtual instruments.
Is Mach V a good package to buy for this purpose? Will it also do a good job for drums or do I need a specific drum package? The gig I lost was a solid 50% of my income so I'm trying not to spend more than I need to.
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HCMarkus
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Re: converting MIDI files into internal sounds for live gig

Post by HCMarkus »

Bill, I'm hoping others will weigh in here as far as Mach V, as I don't personally own or use it.

The NI Komplete Ultimate package is something I do own; it provides a broad variety of sounds that, depending on your needs, might give you everything you require to replace your hardware. The Alecia's Keys piano is very playable, much better than the original NI piano sound set, the Wurli and Rhodes are really nice, organs are fine, and the drums and bass very useable. Plenty of synth and power, and basic orchestra is also included. Overall, lots of very good sounds that hit most, if not all of the bases you probably need to cover.

One thought: depending on your needs, you might be better off rendering than using VI's for your live backing tracks. While VI's are great when you are going to perform a part live, you can't beat the reliability of plain ol' audio tracks. You could render a simple stereo mix or go with buses. Also, if you take this approach, you could do the gig without buying anything except, maybe, a new computer to handle the load plus whatever specific VI (if any) you need to perform live.
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MIDI Life Crisis
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Re: converting MIDI files into internal sounds for live gig

Post by MIDI Life Crisis »

I agree. Rendering is going to be a better option. Not only will you NOT need to buy anything, but you'll have a lower CPU requirement and the sounds you're used to. M5 is great. Plugsound Pro is so better choice for a wide range of basic sounds. If all you need is playback of what you already have and know, render and mix to taste and
You should be good to go go go!
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bayswater
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Re: converting MIDI files into internal sounds for live gig

Post by bayswater »

MIDI Life Crisis wrote: M5 is great. Plugsound Pro is so better choice for a wide range of basic sounds.
Yes, the M5 sounds for basic instruments are great, but they might have a rather narrow range for some tastes. I see you have recommended Plugsound Pro a few times now. What sort of overlap in sounds is there with Mach Five factory sounds? I assume they are both from the same source libraries produced by UVI, and it's only 8G, so I wondered how different they could be.
2018 Mini i7 32G 10.14.6, DP 11.3, Mixbus 9, Logic 10.5, Scarlett 18i8
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MIDI Life Crisis
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Re: converting MIDI files into internal sounds for live gig

Post by MIDI Life Crisis »

Waaaaay different. Check out the audio demos and sound lists. They're basic but cover a very wide range of instruments and styles. Much lower CPU overhead than many M5 libraries. Not as high quality but as a basic set they cover all the basses [sic]
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billfiler
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Re: converting MIDI files into internal sounds for live gig

Post by billfiler »

Thanks for all the info.
Here is what I currently have working. I open one large sequence in DP that I have loaded almost 400 chunks into that are all of my individual MIDI songs. I then assign a key command for each song. So for example if someone asks me for Hey 19 I look at my master list and hit Shift H and it loads instantly, hit space bar and it plays. I hand out song lists at my gig with almost 500 songs on it and people will often just shout out the tune they want me to play. I need to be able to access the songs quickly. So this method works well. I don't have time to close each individual sequence and then open the next. I'd like to just load this from my current work computer (older white macbook) to my new macbook pro with 500G solid state drive and 16G of Ram and then start reassigning the individual outputs for each instrument from MIDI channel to VI. I know it will be a lot of work but It will make my life easier when completed.
I play guitar live so the only input I need is a set of bass pedals that I play when I'm not using a sequence. There are a lot of songs I don't want to take the time to sequence. If someone asks me for Brown Eyed Girl which I've already played 500,000 times, I just play guitar and bass pedals and nobody cares. In that case I just open up a sequence that assigns the MIDI out of the pedals to a bass sound.
The big question is can I somehow make this work so it loads almost as fast as the MIDI sequences currently do. That is one of the reasons I was looking at the v-racks. Although I don't completely understate how they work, it looks like I could load up instruments when I open the file and then they would not have to load for each tune.
Thanks
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Re: converting MIDI files into internal sounds for live gig

Post by MIDI Life Crisis »

The thing with V-Racks is they load ONCE and when you change sequences they are already there, so there is no "load time" other than the MIDI and audio data.

The thing about audio (obviously) is it is going to take up a lot more hard drive space. It loads pretty quickly but not instantaneously unless you're on a fast machine with a fast drive. In your case, a newer machine like a Macbook Air with a large SSD drive might be just the thing. You could plug the headphone out directly to your sound system and not even need an audio interface and the cost of the machine is't too extreme.
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billfiler
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Re: converting MIDI files into internal sounds for live gig

Post by billfiler »

We'll I bought Mach 5. Unfortunately it arrived the day before our vacation. I had time to install it but no time to test anything. I did take manual to read on flights. Looks like setting up a chunk with v-racks is the way to go. But here's my next question.. I have up to 16 MIDI tracks at a time for all of my sequences although most have less. If channel 2 is always bass and I load a bass sound into Mach 5 on that channel what happens when I get to a sequence that uses a different bass sound? There appears to be no way to change the sound ( no program change like MIDI). So do I then have to set up another instance of Mach 5 to accommodate? I would think I would want as few instances of mach5 as possible to make loading faster.
Thanks
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bayswater
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Re: converting MIDI files into internal sounds for live gig

Post by bayswater »

Yes, you'll need multiple instances if you have to load more than 16 sounds for a gig. There are some situations where MachFive can load 64 sounds but I don't think that applies to DP. In any case, multiple instances are better from the perspective of CPU performance on multi processor CPUs. Load time is going to depend mostly on the number of sounds you have, and much less on the number of instances of Mach Five you have.

Remember that you can address multiple instances of Mach Five from one sequence, so you have some flexibility there. Also remember you can put instances of Mach Five in their won V-Racks and turn them on and off in the Chunks Window. Loading V-Racks you turn on there will take time, but if there are breaks, that can give you some more flexibility.
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