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I saw on another thread that you are also considering a Roland RD-88 and other higher end keyboards for your midi controller. The Nektar LX+ series is definitely not in the same league as something like that as far as the keyboard is concerned. Even though Nektar say that the 88 key version is semi-weighted, the whole thing weighs only 18#, compared to the RD-88's 30#. There's just no way to get even a half-decent piano action in something that weighs much under 30#, so if that is a priority, the LX+ is probably not what you're looking for. Also, the layer/split capability of the LX+88 is simpler than the RD-88. They are different in so many ways, they can't really be compared. The DAW integration of the LX+, on the other hand, is good, while the RD-88 has none that I can see. 😏

I just received a Nektar LX+49 for Christmas. The LX+ series has a dedicated Cakewalk plug-in, which is why I chose that series instead of the more expensive T or P series. It works as advertised when set up per the instructions, I am very happy with it so far. I don't know if the overall specifications of the LX+ series meet your needs, but you might want to check them out.

I don't want to derail this thread, just want to followup on a couple of things I mentioned in my last response. I've had a chance to play a bit with the Nektar LX+49 that I received for Christmas. When set up according to the directions, it works as advertised with CbB, so I am very happy with it. The soft-takover works fine in CbB. It also works fine in Studio One 5, contrary to what I had read a while ago, but maybe this is a somewhat recent change for Studio One. Back to the KK keyboards, they are close to what you are looking for if you're using one of the supported DAWs. Or maybe if Azlow3 could figure out how to access the Track mode with his AZController??? There was a user on your site that said they had developed a preset for the mk2 keyboards that did most of the mixer functions, and he provided the file for download, but when I tried it, it appeared almost "empty" to me, none of the controls were mapped to anything, and not surprisingly, it did nothing.

Some simple controllers with non-motorized faders and/or traditional knobs instead of endless encoders still have two way communication with the DAW, so that they know what the DAW's current parameter value is, even if they don't display it. This enables them to write logic that does what some call a "soft takeover". As the knob/fader is being physically moved, the controller doesn't begin sending it's value to the DAW until that value equals the DAW's current value. It's not quite as good as motorized faders or endless encoders are, but it's a lot better than the alternative "parameter jumping". I don't know if the Korg controllers have some version of this or not. I know the Nektar LX+ controllers do, and they also have a "driver" specifically for Cakewalk (well, Sonar at the time it was developed). I'm hoping they will work well with CbB, especially because Santa is bringing me one for Christmas, so I should find out soon. Since I was just describing this soft takeover functionality, it is worth noting for users of Studio One that, based only on comments by others on this forum, Presonus has somehow disabled it in their DAW for non-Presonus controllers that have non-motorized faders and/or traditional knobs. I guess that is one way to gain an edge on their lower end hardware competitors.

If by knobs you mean the eight encoders, they do not do anything out of the box as far as DAW control is concerned in CbB. I'll try to explain my understanding of why this is so. The NI hardware is configured as two separate software midi devices. There's nothing wrong about this, it is common when a piece of hardware is meant to be both a control surface and an "instrument". But this means that a particular midi message has two possible software midi devices to go to, and the overall brain of the hardware decides where each message goes in a particular circumstance. In the NI models, the messages from the white and black keys, as well as the pitch bend and modulation wheels/strips, are always sent to the software midi device I'll call "instrument". The messages from the Stop, Play and Record buttons as well as the big knob are always sent to the software midi device I'll call "control surface". The messages from the eight encoders can go to either software device, as determined by the mode the hardware is currently in. What are the modes? There's plug-in mode, which activates when it senses that the current track has an instance of Komplete Kontrol on it. In that mode, the encoder messages go to the control surface device, and more specifically to the Komplete Kontrol plug-in itself. The encoders are automatically mapped to Komplete Kontrol parameters for the current instance, and this is perhaps the best thing about having an NI keyboard. There is midi mode, which can be chosen by the user at any time, but in this mode, the encoder messages go to the instrument device. I won't go into details of how to do it, but it is possible for the user to program many presets into the NI hardware, in combination with Cakewalk midi learn, which can then be used to control lots of DAW parameters. The problem with this is that each preset is based on a static midi channel, not a dynamically selected track. For example, you could set up a preset to use encoder one sending CC22 on midi channel 1, in combination with a midi learn on the slider for a particular CbB track, and this would enable encoder one to control the volume on that track. But even if you did a bunch of this, due to the limitations, it is still nowhere near having tracks one through eight (regardless of how tracks have been added, subtracted or moved over time) controlled respectively by encoders one through eight, with the ability to shift banks of eight tracks. This amount of sophistication is impossible in CbB, as far as I know, even with tons of work. Then there is track mode, which can only be chosen when using one of the DAWs that NI has specifically collaborated with: Ableton, Garage Band/Logic, Cubase/Nuendo and most recently, Studio One. In this mode the encoder messages are sent to the control surface device and some of the other buttons are also activated. Whatever dynamic mapping that is necessary magically takes place, and all of this enables volume, pan, mute, solo and a number of other DAW functions to be triggered from the NI hardware very much as you would expect from a typical control surface such as a Mackie. So the NI keyboards could be a great choice if using one of those DAWs. If not using one of those, and DAW control is of primary importance to you, it is not as good a choice.

If you do a little more searching on this forum, you will find threads where I and others have detailed the "out of the box" level of integration between CbB and KK mk2 or A series keyboards. To summarize, if you hook them up correctly and use the Mackie MCU surface interface provided by Cakewalk with the handshake disabled, the stop, play and record buttons will work as expected. The "big knob" will let you scroll the time line and change the selected track.\ The encoders and other buttons do work as expected "out of the box" within a Komplete Kontrol instance on a track, so if you're big into that environment, it is still pretty cool. Anything beyond that, as far as parameters of the DAW itself are concerned, requires the user to program what they want, and I think it is very complicated to do so due to the structure that NI imposed on the way these boards work. Deeper DAW control seems to be reserved for the DAWs that NI has specifically chosen to work with. Those DAWs somehow awaken a Track mode inside the keyboard that enables much deeper Daw integration. Without access to that Track mode, DAW control is limited to what is available in what they call MIDI mode.

Based on info from another thread on this forum, I found a Cubase articulation map for Strummed Acoustic 2 at arpegiah.com. These can be imported into CbB, which would probably be a good start. I haven't actually tried it yet, so I can't give any further insight.

Thanks for the feedback. I'm worried that if they do the same as last year, the crossgrade won't be discounted at all. If they discount a new license 50%, that would be $200, which is also pretty good, but if the discount on the new license is less than 50%, I could wind up paying more. Decisions, decisions, a bird in the hand and all that...

I'm interested in the crossgrade, it is $299.95 in the Presonus store.. In your professional opinions, do you think Presonus will offer the crossgrade lower than $195.72 during Black Friday promotions? I checked what they did last year for Black Friday, a lot of things were at 50%, but the crossgrade was not discounted at all. I'm just curious what you think, I won't hold anyone responsible. 😊

At first I thought I agreed with Jim about the keyboard shortcut. But that is assuming hitting Alt+8 is intentional. If a new user using the Basic workspace accidently hits Alt+8, has no idea what they hit or why that perplexing window just popped up, maybe it would be better if the keyboard shortcut is also deactivated. I guess there's no way to make everybody happy.

Well, you were the one who asked Noel about the possibility of reconnecting with Don. 🙂 I was just trying to say that maybe CbB should think twice before becoming dependent on a one-man shop for it's notation under the current circumstances. Now, if BandLab buys Overture and takes over development, that could be good!

@abacabYou're right, Don was on the Problems and Bugs sub-forum yesterday. I don't normally go there. My comment about no activity other than deletions since July 05 was in regard to the General Discussion sub-forum. Back to the topic of notation in CbB, my opinion is that it does not need advanced scoring capabilities, those who need that are better served in a non-DAW application. CbB just needs a few basic additions and fixes to any glaring bugs.

@abacab I'm actually trying to be very objective. I bought Overture in late 2017 and use it when I have scoring needs, so I definitely want it to succeed. I've visited the Overture forum almost every day since then and seen almost every interchange between Don and the users, so my opinions are not based on hearsay or generic Internet research. The advanced users that find the last few versions unusable are some of the people that do Don's beta testing, and aside from the bugs, they still think Overture's workflow is the best of any notation program, so they also want it to succeed. I intentionally didn't put negative details in my response to try to prove that Overture is bad or anything like that because that's not my intent at all. I'd tell you to go to the Overture forum if you want to see what people are complaining about for yourself, except that posts which reflect negatively on Overture are routinely deleted from the forum, it happened again a week or two ago. The deletion of negative posts is the only sign that someone from Overture has been on the forum since July 05, despite pleas from loyal users for Don to just send a note that he is still alive. This is a fact I verified just minutes before sending this response.

A few years ago when the possible Overture/Gibson partnership was mentioned, I also hoped that it would somehow happen. At the time of Sonar's demise, Don was generous enough to offer us Overture for only $50, and I took advantage of that. Since then, things may have changed. At present, the latest several versions of Overture have been more or less unusable by advanced users due to bugs, sometimes even in core functionality that was working acceptably before. This has left people unhappy, and to make things worse, Don has been basically unresponsive on his own forum for months, which is very unusual. I suppose it's possible the reason for this is that he is so busy negotiating some kind of deal with BandLab that he doesn't have time to respond to his Overture customers. If that is the case, maybe it will turn out to be a good thing for CbB. If that is not the case, then an Overture/CbB partnership might not be a great idea.

John, usually when there are symptoms like you describe, it is an issue between Cakewalk and your audio interface. Sometimes a Windows update or other things can screw up that relationship. if you haven't already, go into Cakewalk Preferences and try switching the driver mode under playback and recording settings to something other than what it is now and apply (save) that. For example, if it is currently set to ASIO, change it to WDM/KS. After applying, switch the driver mode back to what it is now and apply again. This will force a refresh of the communication between Cakewalk and the audio interface. You may also have to restore some of the settings under Devices and Driver Settings, I don't recall if all of that is stored per driver mode. If you're lucky, this will help. I hope you don't give up on Cakewalk too!

I've known about the dots for a long time. Now that more people may be looking at them, I should point out that (on my system, at least) there is a minor bug related to them. Most VST3 versions of plugins that do operate with 64 bit data will incorrectly show the 32 bit dot patterns, while their VST2 versions correctly show the 64 bit dot patterns. Izotope Ozone is an example. I asked Izotope about it, they said it must be a Cakewalk (Sonar, back then) issue. It doesn't hurt anything as far as I know, so I haven't bothered to inquire further.

If you can't find an INS file specifically for the Forte, you might try going to the link below to get an INS file for the earlier Kurzweil model PC3. Modification of the file, perhaps significant, may be required to get it to work for the Forte, but there should also be a fair amount of commonality between the two models so you won't be starting from scratch. https://www.keyboardforums.com/threads/kurzweil-pc3-v2-03b-cakewalk-ins-file.24987/

CbB will recognize the M32 as a control surface using the Mackie Control device with the input/output named Komplete Kontrol M DAW. (The input/output named KOMPLETE KONTROL M32 MIDI is for the keyboard aspect of the M32, not the transport controls.) The setting for Disable Handshake in this Mackie Control instance needs to be checked. This can be accessed from the Utilities menu in CbB. The below I have copied and edited from another thread that was for the NI A61, which uses the same software and has the same capabilities: Make sure the M32 is in MIDI mode. If the PLUG-IN/MIDI button in the upper right is lit at all, you are not in MIDI mode. The PLAY, REC and STOP buttons will also be unlit. To go into MIDI mode, press shift and the PLUGIN/MIDI button. When you release both buttons, the light should go out in the PLUGIN/MIDI button, and turn on in the PLAY, REC and STOP buttons on the left. The M32 should now have the following functionality: PLAY, REC and STOP will work as expected. The 4-D encoder knob on the right will scroll the timeline when turned clockwise or counter-clockwise, scroll tracks when nudged up or down and scroll track parameters when nudged left and right. This is assuming that, between the track view and the console view, the track view was the last one "touched". This corresponds with the top to bottom arrangement of tracks in the track view. If the console view was the last of those two views to be touched, the up/down/left/right behavior is reversed to correspond with the left to right arrangement of tracks in the console view, as long as the console view is visible. If the console view was last touched, but is not visible (it is in the multidock and a different view is selected there), left/right/up/down does nothing! Hope this helps!

Just a point of clarification, the subject of the thread is the XR series, which is a step down from the current HRmk2 series, so while "they don't make them like they used to" is certainly open for discussion, it's not a fair comparison between the current XR series and the original HR series. For what it's worth, a few months ago I purchased the 5" model of the Mackie MR series, which is another step down from the XR series, but for the price, I'm extremely happy with them. Especially compared to the direct competition from other brands (JBL 305P mkII, Yamaha HS5, etc.) In my opinion, the Mackie MR is the most accurate/natural sounding of the bunch, and that is what is important to me. YMMV.

You should be able to get this working. I have the NI M32, which is similar to the A61, exactly the same controls, it just has 32 mini keys instead of 61 full size keys. I'm guessing the underlying software is almost identical. My M32 is able to control a small amount of DAW functionality with no issues. You may want to confirm the following to get it working on your computer: Please make sure you have the latest firmware for your A61, and the latest version of Komplete Kontrol, which is 2.3. Once Komplete Kontrol is installed, you should run the stand-alone version of Komplete Kontrol and configure that to work with the A61. Once that is working, go into the preferences for CbB . Under Midi Devices, make sure Komplete Kontrol A DAW is present and checked in both the input and output categories, and make sure Komplete Kontrol A61 MIDI is present and checked in the input category. Then, under Midi Control Surfaces, in the list of connected controllers, you should have a Mackie Control with input and output of Komplete Kontrol A DAW. The inputs and outputs for the controllers often get jumbled, especially if you start CBb prior to all of the controllers being connected and turned on. If need be, straighten these out. If you don't have a Mackie Control in the list, add a new controller using Mackie Control and set its input and output to Komplete Kontrol A DAW. Save these settings. Then, for good measure, close CbB and restart your computer. When you restart CbB, make sure the A61 is in MIDI mode. If the PLUG-IN/MIDI button in the upper right is lit at all, you are not in MIDI mode. The PLAY, REC and STOP buttons will also be unlit. To go into MIDI mode, press shift and the PLUGIN/MIDI button. When you release both buttons, the light should go out in the PLUGIN/MIDI button, and turn on in the PLAY, REC and STOP buttons on the left. The A61 should now have the following functionality: PLAY, REC and STOP will work as expected. The 4-D encoder knob on the right will scroll the timeline when turned clockwise or counter-clockwise, scroll tracks when nudged up or down and scroll track parameters when nudged left and right. This is assuming that, between the track view and the console view, the track view was the last one "touched". This corresponds with the top to bottom arrangement of tracks in the track view. If the console view was the last of those two views to be touched, the up/down/left/right behavior is reversed to correspond with the left to right arrangement of tracks in the console view, as long as the console view is visible. If the console view was last touched, but is not visible (it is in the multidock and a different view is selected there), left/right/up/down does nothing! Hope this helps!

I can report the same as Jerry. I have a Saffire Pro 40 with a TI chipset FireWire card running perfectly under W10 1903. I have never had issues with it.

For what it's worth, Bandora appears to be a repackaged version Jammer, which I have. I watched the video, and while there have been some changes to the position of some things in the screen layout, almost everything else is the same. Jammer has exactly the same named band styles as shown in the Bandora video, the same pop-up menus, etc!

As someone previously mentioned, nothing is perfect, but I like the GUI on CbB best, and I've tried a few. I hope they never change the overall look and feel of it too much. If they want to change the technology behind it someday to make it resize more easily, that's fine. I don't think the Theme Editor is all that hard to work with, once you've spent some time with it. I'm glad we have it, I've made a custom theme for myself that I really enjoy.