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Connecting a keyboard basics


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Hello,

I'm a complete beginner in keyboard music and Cakewalk in general. I've found the interface a bit daunting and I couldn't easily find a tutorial on how to connect my MIDI keyboard to Cakewalk. When I start the program, it does automatically recognize my USB-connected keyboard, but I don't get any sound when I press the keys afterward. Could someone please explain how I can get sound? And perhaps how I can choose different instruments? (e.g., I'd like to play with piano, harpsichord and Moog-like sounds).

My model is a (very cheap) Alesis Q49.

Thank you in advance!

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17 minutes ago, scook said:

That video is geared toward hardware sound sources. A better video from the same source for MIDI controllers like the Q49 and softsynths is

 

 

Thank you for the suggestion. I have been able to follow the video up until the point when the guy starts playing his MIDI-keyboard. Mine doesn't make sound yet. I get this notification:

image.png.7336ca2cdcbb789d4f9a3a3938dbdd73.png

 

 

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image.png

That is a MIDI track.

A MIDI track is used to hold MIDI data but must be routed to a sound source (either a soft synth or hardware sound module) to interpret the MIDI data.

The video shows setting up TTS-1 (a softsynth) using an instrument track starting around 3:45. An instrument track is a combination of a MIDI track, an audio track and the soft synth used to create the sound.

 

The other problem

 

image.png

may be the program does not have audio properly configured. If you are using the integrated PC sound chip here are the instructions https://www.cakewalk.com/Support/Knowledge-Base/Audio-Hardware-Setup-Guide?productId=CSPT100&audioDeviceId=135

If you are running Windows 10 instead of using MME driver mode (step 3 in the instructions) try one of the WASAPI settings.

If you have a dedicated audio interface there are instructions available for those too.

 

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3 minutes ago, Mistermaarten150 said:

Wow, I don't know what I did exactly, but it's working!! Thank you guys!

If you are still using the MIDI track as shown in the above image and no corresponding audio track, you managed to route the MIDI output to the Microsoft GS Wavetable Synth. This is enabled by default. In the long run you will probably want to disable this MIDI output option in preferences and learn how to use soft synth plug-ins.

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