msmcleod

For the most part, you don't actually need the Plugin Manager: Manual scans can be done from Preferences->VST Settings Plugin properties can accessed be via the plugin's VST2/VST3 dropdown menu The plugin layout can be changed via the plugin browser by right clicking on the plugin The only thing you really need the Plugin Manager for is excluding problem plugins, but I'm sure the CbB devs will provide an alternative way of doing this before removing the Plugin Manager.

We've been discussing this in another thread. I found this to be worse than 4.2.0. I've found that once I set my default detection algorithm in 4.2.0, it remembered it and worked fine even after rebooting the PC. In 4.2.1 however, it consistently hangs cakewalk when dragging an audio track on to a MIDI track. The workaround is to create a region FX and manually select the detection algorithm. It'll then work for the rest of the session with that project.

Yeah, I've got 4.2.020 on my main PC, and 4.2.103 on my laptop. Both versions are quicker than 4.1.1, but not as stable.

You're probably thinking of OMF.

No, it's not a big issue for me. Maybe the OP has other reasons for needing to use it.

I upgraded to 4.2.1 on my laptop yesterday. The 4.2.1 update consistently hangs Cakewalk when dragging an audio track on to a MIDI track, unless I've previously created a region FX and selected the default detection algorithm. On my main PC I'm still running 4.2.0. So far I've had to set the default once with 4.2.0, and it's remembered it ever since without issue. I'm running the Editor version, with a default of Polyphonic Sustain.

I used to use it to switch 32 bit plugins to use JBridge instead of bit-bridge, and exclude certain problem plugins. Nowadays I find it quicker to edit the registry directly.

yeah, on reflection I think Kylie is better.

Or Carlton maybe...

I've not really used overwrite mode much, I mostly use sound-on-sound or comping. As keyboard is my main instrument, for keyboard parts more often than not I'll just CTRL+Z and re-record if I'm not happy with it. For guitar, I'll use sound-on-sound in the way I've described in earlier posts. I'll keep on playing takes and pick the best one. If I don't get a good take after around 30 odd takes, I'll give up and start comping manually. Drums is my weakest instrument, so I'm more likely to use comping. I've occasionally experienced the waveform not displaying. I've not worked out what causes this yet - it might be the zoom level combined with the scroll lock setting perhaps? Maybe some-one else can enlighten us... Personally I don't pay much attention to the display, as I'm concentrating more on playing. I just keep playing in a loop until I think I've got a good take.

I've just upgraded to the latest Melodyne (4.2.1.003), and the hanging issue is still there. The issue with the default algorithm not being picked up is intermittent. Sometimes it picks it up, sometimes I have to re-select. The workaround of creating a region fx first, then dragging to a MIDI track works; but if I forget to do this first, just dragging an audio track on to a MIDI track will cause Cakewalk to hang.

Thanks for the update notification ØSkald. Detection seems to be quicker on this release. Unfortunately it still causes Cakewalk to hang when dragging an audio track on to a MIDI track, unless you create a region FX first ☹️

You can send a WM_SETREDRAW message to the control's handle to turn updates on and off: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/desktop/gdi/wm-setredraw But yes, it would be good if that was part of the CWnd class.

This method still works for me. I don't recall having to change the registry... although I suspect I changed it in Preferences before the option disappeared. The things I need help for are less well used ones, rather than standard workflow tasks (which usually means they've not changed since SONAR), so the fact that it's out of date hasn't been an issue for me so far.

For me it takes around 4 seconds to display 324 VST 2 effects, but clicking on VST3 instruments takes 8 seconds for only 7 VSTi's. Clicking on the DirectX effects comes back almost instantly. To my mind it must be doing more than that behind the scenes. Then again, it might just be inefficient code. For example, you can see the scroll bar handle shrink as the VST2 effects populate, almost as if it's responding to WM_PAINT messages as each list item is added (rather than refreshing the GUI after the list has been populated). This wouldn't explain the 8 seconds for 7 VST3 instruments tho. For me it's not the end of the world, but it is a bit annoying when it repopulates everything every time you alter the plugin options.

What MIDI interface are you using? I've found the cheaper USB to MIDI cables are extremely problematic. The reason being is that their internal buffer size is extremely small, so if they're overloaded with MIDI data they drop notes... and for sysex, they are totally useless. Bear in mind also that at 1:1:000 any program changes, CC settings (pan, volume etc) are being sent all at once. Maybe moving the start of your song to 2:1:000 might help.

Here's a sample of the preset from my D550: Soundfont format: D50Fact-028-Pizzagogo.sf2 Sfz : PizzagogoSfz.zip Note that there's no release samples, so you'll need to set the decay accordingly.

I had a similar experience, which is why I ended up doing a clean install of W7 and upgraded it after I'd installed all the service packs & updates. I suspect it was down to some old drivers that were present on my W7 system that couldn't be upgraded. You're lucky your W7 system still works. My failed upgrade totally trashed my system and forced me to start from scratch. You could stay on W7 for the time being. Failing remove your existing W7 hard drive, get a new hard drive and do a fresh W7 install before upgrading it.

32GB should be more than enough for most projects. I've got 16GB, and for most projects I could easily cope with 8GB. Most modern sample based VSTi's will load samples as and when they need them, so you shouldn't be using more RAM than necessary. This is usually configurable though (e.g. Kontakt). Although VSTI's like Kontakt can be configured to load everything up front, personally I don't as as all it does is increase project loading time.

nice one - thanks

I run a dual boot with Windows 7 64 bit & Windows 10 64 bit. The Windows 10 was an upgrade from Windows 7, however I upgraded from a clean install of Windows 7. Everything in Windows 7 seems a LOT snappier for me. Plugin scans are about 4 x quicker, and the GUI is far more responsive. DAW performance however is identical between the two. Things I did notice that affected performance: Game Mode - make sure this is off (was mentioned in an earlier post) OneSync - Either turn this off, or make sure you customise it for the folders you need... and make sure there's no folders included that Cakewalk uses whilst its running, else it can crash Cakewalk (certainly in the case of project audio files). This goes for any other cloud backup services. Set power profile to high performance, and turn off all power saving on USB devices - again, mentioned before. Windows Defender or any other virus checker - make sure all your VST & Cakewalk folders are excluded.

Not sure how to take this review to be honest. I found it highly subjective. Although the reviewer did raise some good points on areas for improvement, there were plenty of comments that were just inaccurate as well (e.g. the "numbering" of audio devices, which is down to Focusrite's driver than Cakewalk) as just marking something as useless because he personally wouldn't use it (e.g. surround - he doesn't use it so has nothing to say, but then marks it down at the end??). On the plus side, he did praise the ProChannel in a big way, as well as praising areas that were not found on other DAW's. This wasn't reflected at all in the conclusion though.

All the advice given by others above is good. I was going to post the link to the sound on sound article, but I see scook has already done it! What stands out for me is that I think it's important to try to separate the tracking process with the mixing process. In the old days (well for me, anyhow) it was simpler, as I'd get the tone I'd like, record it, then forget about it until the mixing stage. With DAW's, this has got increasingly blurred, especially as its common in home/project studios to record things like bass DI'd and add FX & EQ afterwards to get your tone. If you've got a good tone with it solo'd, treat that track as your tracked bass and leave it as is. What I tend to do is send this to an aux track (or a bus) which would become my "mixing" bass - so any additional EQ or FX are applied to that track, or any buses this is sent to. Another approach I've used is to use an FX chain right at the top within the ProChannel for getting my "tracked" sound (usually consisting of a 1073 strip with a 1176 compressor). I can then use the rest of the ProChannel for mixing. It can really be a challenge to balance the fight between the kick drum & bass - even more so if you've got any low notes coming from keyboards. My rule would be: If you're going for a more clicky sounding kick, then let the bass guitar have the low frequencies, otherwise let the kick drum have the low frequencies and high pass the bass guitar. Personally, I'll high pass the bass guitar regardless but change frequencies depending on whether the kick or the bass guitar is more prominent in the low frequencies. If you're still having issues, try putting a reference track into a track on your project and swap between the reference track and your own. Pick something that sounds like what you're trying to achieve - both mix wise, and with regard to instrumentation. You can then tweak the EQ, level & compression to try to match the reference track. Keep in mind though, that high passing can actually make the bass sound louder - even though you're removing low frequencies.

+1 to this. Quite often I want to group parts of a song into track folders, especially if it's a particularly long one. This helps to keep the visible track view uncluttered and focused on the parts I'm currently working on. But then I'd also want to group things like guitars, vocals etc into their own folders. Additionally, for synths that have multiple outputs I want to put the MIDI/Audio track together in a folder - at least until instrument tracks support multiple out synths

As an alternative, you could use a send to an Aux track rather than Bus. This thread in the old forum discusses the pros/cons: http://forum.cakewalk.com/Aux-vs-Bus-m3318804.aspx