abacab

Yep, confirmed it here. Got the same result after editing and saving just the Syntronik bass multis from ST4. This is probably worth opening a ticket with IK.

TTS-1 is the most useful if you want to open a GM song file, and don't have a Sound Canvas module or other GM synth handy. It is 16 channel multi-timbral, and the parts in the GM file are assigned automatically in TTS-1 when you open a GM MIDI file. It does that very well. But it is not very tweakable, is quite dated, and has some great and some not so great sounds. You can start with it, and then start substituting other virtual instruments for parts that need improvement. Xpand!2 is the best bang for the buck ROMpler! At $15 or less I would recommend it to anyone that is just starting out with Cakewalk, and doesn't already have a collection of usable instruments. It doesn't do GM, and it is only 4 channel multi-timbral. But you already have TTS-1 for that, right? And the sound content for Xpand!2 is only 1.5GB, so a rather small footprint on disk, compared to most sample libraries. What you do get is a diverse array of 2500+ presets sorted into 29 categories of instrument sounds. Editing is basic, and limited to some macro knobs for easy edits (think Analog Lab, or SynthMaster Player). The 4 parts can be layered or split. You could use up to 4 instances of Xpand!2 to create a 16 part mix in your DAW. This could be a great go-to sketching tool for songwriting, because of the number of sounds available. Later on you could upgrade to high end samplers, and replace parts as desired. *Edit: z3ta is still a good synth, but it's all synth. Very editable, but focus is on synth sounds. Not really comparable to the other two, especially if you are seeking "real" instrument sounds. Plus z3ta+ is discontinued, and only available if you already have it.

I found files with those names in my Rapture Session folder, but that is a light version based on Rapture Pro. Nothing like that came up in my legacy Rapture folder.

You can use any Syntronik instruments, or Syntronik Free, that you already have, in ST4. They will show up as separate sound libraries in the browser view. As far as I know SampleTank 4 SE doesn't include any Syntronik instruments. But it does add some new synth instruments for SampleTank 4. As far as I can tell they are not the same thing as Syntronik, but they could have borrowed some samples from Syntronik to create new presets from, IDK. In fact, ST4 MAX includes about 19GB of "new" synth sound content. This appears to be major overkill if you already have Syntronik, IMO.

I do recall seeing a feature request somewhere, I think it was on the IK Syntronik forum, regarding the ability to assign MIDI channels to the multi parts. Don't think that feature ever got any traction with the devs, as a workaround was always to just use the SampleTank UI. As you also pointed out, there are some advantages to using the SampleTank UI. Plus they seem to have ported most of the good stuff from Syntronik, such as the cool FX rack, over to the SampleTank 4 UI.

Yep, $349 vs. $999 for the Roland AX-Edge.

Good catch! By default, the parts in a blank SampleTank 4 parts view are assigned consecutively to MIDI channels 1-16, where in the native Syntronik UI, the parts are all assigned to "omni". So when loading the preset Syntronic multis from within SampleTank 4, the multi parts all seem to load with consecutive MIDI channels (1, 2, 3, 4,etc.) assigned, which means only the first part on MIDI channel 1 will respond, until you set all parts to channel 1. This only seems to be a programming oversight for ST4 with the preset Syntronic multis, as I checked some of the other preset multis for ST4 , which had all parts assigned correctly to channel 1 when loaded. The native Syntronic UI does have preset multis, but they appear in a different menu from the main browser in the Syntronik UI. Look for the dropdown menu within the multi view. The main browser only offers single patches, but does have the building blocks for creating your own multi velocity layers.

That Keytar looks like fun!

Can't imagine why that would be, other than a corrupt install. Both the bass and the guitar still working here on Windows 10, as plugins and with the Ample mini host (standalone). What is the error message?

+1

Just wondering how you are setting up your tracks for recording the Ample Sound output? If you are using a simple instrument track, by default it will record the MIDI. It is possible to capture the performance as audio on a separate audio track. If you play back an audio recording of that performance along with the MIDI, that will trigger the MIDI instrument again, and you will get it doubled. After recording the Ample Sound performance to an audio track, you will probably need to mute the MIDI clip.

First, I would thoroughly read the installation section of the motherboard manual that came in the box to familiarize with the connector locations and functions. Then I would tag or label any cables attached to the existing motherboard as to what they are connected to. I would ask questions for any that you cannot identify. Depending on how tight the fit in the case is, you may need to remove power supply, graphics card, drives, cooling fans, etc. Those tags will really be helpful when putting humpty dumpty together again! Good luck!

I get the point about the potential step down in available sounds when going from BandLab to Cakewalk. The starter sounds in the current edition of Cakewalk by BandLab may not offer much content, but the DAW is offered for free and is completely supported for free. And to the OP's point, there are plenty of great freebie plugins out there. Just the 50 sounds in IK Multimedia SampleTank 4 CS should go a long way for a new user! My point here is regarding the "free" part of Cakewalk. The development and support staff is small and focused on the DAW. Professional developers and support engineers usually don't work for free. If Cakewalk were to officially bundle 3rd party plugins, then they would be obligated to support their use, as that would be an implied endorsement and guarantee of functionality. Which would mean either taking time away from the DAW focus to test, QA, and support additional plugins, or adding staff to support them. I suspect that is one of the main obstacles for them to release any former legacy Cakewalk add-ons. The BandLab CEO, Meng, has stated that the Cakewalk DAW would always remain free. However, I would vote for a pay model for add-ons to see the re-release of Rapture Pro, for example.

When I tried out the Cubase Elements 30-day trial a while back, it came with instrument content for Halion Sonic SE (a limited subset of the full Halion Sonic 3 content). But I don't really see the point of having a "free" version of Halion Sonic SE without any content...

That's why an automated installer is desperately needed. Too many moving parts now for a human to get it exactly right with a manual install.

Hey ZincT, nice find!

Winner, winner, chicken dinner!!!

Yep. The SynthMaster developer said on their forum last September: "Guys, I started on the v3 development, the first milestone is to merge the architectural changes in SynthMaster One onto SynthMaster 2.9. That will be v2.9.9 release (Free update). Then we will be able to design the new UI from scratch."

I think in hindsight, I would probably rather have the MPK249, over the Advance. Sliders. https://www.akaipro.com/mpk249

Just grab the everything bundle. You get SynthMaster 2.9, all the preset packs for SynthMaster 2.9, plus a free upgrade to SynthMaster 3 when it's released. And they throw in SynthMaster One. https://www.synthmaster.com/synthmastereverythingbundle.aspx

One thing you can do is create separate paths for your ST3 content and your ST4 content (don't install them all in the same folder path), then add both paths to the ST4 GUI. If this ever gets messed up, just delete the content paths from the sound content settings in the GUI and then re-add them to the GUI.

I wonder what the "SampleTank 4.pak" file is in the "Program Files/IK Multimedia" folder is. It's too big to open with any editor I have.

Nevermind. I opened that file up in Notepad++, and it appears to only be system settings for ST4, but no favorites. They must be elsewhere...

I suspect that they are saved in the "settings.properties" file in this path: "C:\Users\[username]\AppData\Roaming\IK Multimedia\SampleTank 4".