Completely clueless... here's what I want to do

[thirdrate]

Greetings all, I am extremely unknowledgeable so please bear with me as I try to explain this..

I do not like my keyboard's sound. Using my MIDI cables and Cakewalk Music Creator 2003, I can have the keyboard sound playing through my SB Live! sound card's MIDI. That is better, however, I recently heard some great sounds from these patches here. They are a bunch of "PAT" files. They can be set up to playback MIDI files through the TiMidity++ player. They work by taking the MIDI information as playing it back as a WAVE. This works great to play MIDI files, but I want to use these patches as I'm playing the keyboard. This way I can turn my $300 keyboard into a $1500 keyboard. Well. Maybe. So.. any ideas on what software I need or how I can set this up? Thanks!

[James Argo]

I don't know how to answer your original question about patching the TiMidity ++...

But I know how to turn your small keyboard into monster

First, you have been blessed with SB Live! and Cakewalk Music Creator... FYI, SB Live! card has soundfont capability. That means you can change the internal MIDI sound by loading/unloading soundfont files (*.sf2) into your RAM. Please have a look in your SB Live! installation CD for additional soundfont files. And in case you like to download fro free, go :

www.thesoundsite.net

www.hammersound.net

Once you figure out how to attach the soundfont into your system, you can trigger it with your keyboard within Cakewalk.

...How to do that, Jaymz...?

I'm not at my DAW right now, but as to figure it out, here's the hint... Hook your keyboard to SB Live! MIDI port. In Cakewalk, go Options --> MIDI. Make sure you highlight SB Live! MIDI port (or similiar) as your input source, and SB Live! synth (either A or B) as your MIDI out port.

Go Options --> Soundfonts. Attach (Load) soundfont you choose to any available bank. If you have pop up saying you run out of memory or sumthin', Open your AudioHQ (Application came with SB Live! to tweak the card's feature), open soundfont utility, reach the third tab (memory setting) and raise the amount of memory
you reserve for soundfont to value higher (use the slider).

Back to Cakewalk, re-attach the soundfont. Open new MIDI track, and set input from SB Live! MIDI port, and output to SB Live! synth. Select channel, choose the bank and patch. Play your keyboard...
If you set them up corectly, you should hear the sound of your SB Live! internal MIDI sound playing soundfont.

Back if you have any difficulties...

Jaymz

[James Argo]

...What is SOUNDFONT anyway, Jaymz ?

Read this thread...

http://homerecording.com/bbs/showthr...hreadid=68359&



Jaymz

[James Argo]

...Excuse me, Jaymz... but I'm totaly lost on how to use it with Cakewalk

Okay, then read this thread...

http://homerecording.com/bbs/showthr...threadid=77416



Jaymz

[thirdrate]

With those great informative links I was able to:

1) install the AudioHQ utility from my SB Live! CD
2) set my soundfont memory to the maximum 127MB
3) Add and detach soudnfonts directly within Cakewalk

I just tried a strings patch and I'm amazed at how big and strong the sound is. Now to find a decent acoustic grand piano soundfont

Thanks for all the help!

[moskus]

For a massive piano sound-font, step this way...

[James Argo]

Originally posted by thirdrate
With those great informative links I was able to:

1) install the AudioHQ utility from my SB Live! CD
2) set my soundfont memory to the maximum 127MB
3) Add and detach soudnfonts directly within Cakewalk

I just tried a strings patch and I'm amazed at how big and strong the sound is. Now to find a decent acoustic grand piano soundfont

Thanks for all the help!

Thats a good thing to hear
FYI, I wouldn't recomend to set your Soundfont memory to 127MB unless it's really necessary OR you have at least 512MB memory installed in your system. Just set to the value needed by your soundfont attached

...why Jaymz ?

Because by doing so (set to 127MB), you might degrade your PC's performance. Remember, soundfonts kinda "steal" some space from your main memory, it somehow will make your PC runs slower You probably wouldn't notice this differences if you have at least 512MB, but if your system consists of only 256MB memory, you'll start to think about it, cause that means you have "stolen" half of your system memory source


...And if you find this BBS is helpfull, please consider Pre-order Homerecording.comp CD's Vol 2

[thirdrate]

Unfortunately, the page was right about the incompatibility of >32MB soundfonts with SB Live! cards. I just tried the 72MB Splended piano soundfont and it blue-screened my system! I guess i'll keep looking on TheSoundSite.