Variorum

Since GPO instruments are actually SFZ's, individual patches can be configured to respond to CC1 in pretty much any way the sound designer wants. Some do change multiple parameters (i.e. volume and filter). The fun part is that you can edit the SFZ files yourself to add that, and other, functionality to the patches. They are very advanced SFZ files, though, so it's not a job for the faint of heart ?

"All your V are belong to us"

Huge Thanks, @K.P. Sullivan! You're a master music sleuth! ? I got a copyright notice from YouTube on the song back in April that said "may have content that is owned or licensed by CASH" and TBH, I thought it was a fraudulent company issuing claims on obscure music. I couldn't dispute it, though, because it's not my song... Thanks to you, I got to listen to some other music by Tatsuro Yamashita (and his wife Mariya Takeuchi!) I've updated the YouTube page for Song5. Thanks again for your efforts!

Yeah, I stole it from some wiener's YouTube channel ?

Here's an update to the Velocity Compander MFX. It works the same way, but extends its functionality to Poly Aftertouch, Channel Aftertouch, and Control Change values. The Aftertouch modes will probably be most useful when you're playing your keyboard to modify its response curve, but they work when playing back or Processing, too. This works identically to the Velocity Compander when Velocity is selected so you can uninstall the original component if you want to, or just keep it. It's tiny ?. When using Ctrl Chng mode, you can type in the CC directly or use the mouse wheel to scroll the value. Download it at Viramor.com Hope it works!

Avatar?!?! That's a selfie! ?

Thanks @Starship Krupa ? Technically, I should put something on the GUI to differentiate them from built-in the Cakewalk MFX... I did shamelessly rip off their design ? If one of them has a bug or spontaneously becomes self aware and takes over the computer (BTW, check out my SKYNET MFX... coming soon!), I don't want the Bakers to get blamed...

Thanks for the encouragement @Jim Fogle ? I'll see if I can modify the compander to work with controller data in addition to velocity... or maybe just modify it into a separate effect for now. I like the Transform tool for smaller changes, but an MFX might be useful for track-wide CC modifications.

Thanks @Klaus ? The velocity display component is actually 127 pixels tall and the bars are sized using literally the same function that modifies the Midi velocities, so it gives you a really accurate representation of the changes you'll get... and it was 90% of the coding work for the MFX. Well, actually, 90% of the work was tracking down an obscure bug that sporadically caused heap corruption... Gotta love C++ ?

@scook's VST Inventory Tool will export a nicely formatted list in HTML format. You can transfer that to a spreadsheet or text file by simply copying and pasting.

Hey @David Baay... I'm afraid to upload the SFZ files. Even though they are editable by the end-user and do nothing without the encrypted wave files , I'm sure somebody would whine about copyrighted material, or something ? But I can show you what I changed in the files Be sure to make a back up the Instruments folder (C:\Program Files\Garritan\Personal Orchestra 5\Instruments) before editing any of the files. It's not very big (only contains the SFZ's), only 16-17 MB. The line numbers below should be correct, but double check that you're modifying the correct line... FILENAME: C:\Program Files\Garritan\Personal Orchestra 5\Instruments\Orchestral Strings\Violas\Violas Mappings\Vla Martele Alt 1.sfz ORIGINAL (Wrong Sample): Line 36 <region> offset=500 lovel=001 hivel=127 key=074 amplitude=100 tune=15 loop_mode=no_loop sample=27f5kD5_1$EXT MODIFIED: <region> offset=500 lovel=001 hivel=127 key=074 amplitude=100 tune=15 loop_mode=no_loop sample=27f5kD5$EXT ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- FILENAME: C:\Program Files\Garritan\Personal Orchestra 5\Instruments\Orchestral Strings\Violins 2\Violins 2 Mappings\2nd Vln Sautille Alt 2.sfz ORIGINAL (Wrong Sample): Line 17,18 <region> offset=2000 lovel=001 hivel=127 key=063 amplitude=100 tune=7 loop_mode=no_loop sample=09p4iD#4$EXT <region> lovel=001 hivel=127 lokey=064 hikey=064 pitch_keycenter=065 amplitude=100 tune=10 loop_mode=no_loop sample=11p4iF4$EXT MODIFIED: <region> lovel=001 hivel=127 lokey=063 hikey=063 pitch_keycenter=065 amplitude=60 tune=10 loop_mode=no_loop sample=11p4iF4$EXT <region> lovel=001 hivel=127 lokey=064 hikey=064 pitch_keycenter=065 amplitude=60 tune=10 loop_mode=no_loop sample=11p4iF4$EXT

It wouldn't hurt to leave it on the track for the entire project; it uses virtually no memory or processor power. I guess it really depends on the type of track you're using it on and your personal workflow. If you're happy with the track after wiggling the knobs, you can process the effect and remove the plugin. You can always add the plugin back later and re-adjust the velocities if you need to. But, remember that you don't want to bounce to clip to apply a Midi Effect... just select the clip(s) or the whole track and go to Process/Apply Effect/MIDI Effects on the Cakewalk menu to permanently apply the velocity changes. The pop-up box will ask if you want to remove the plugin from the track after the changes are applied.

I finished up a new MFX plugin. This is a Velocity Compander... or a Velocity Squisher/Stretcher? It lets you pull up lower velocities, push down higher velocities, and adjust the overall offset of the modified velocities. It also lets you set a hard minimum and maximum for the final velocities. It's particularly useful for remapping between instruments (like pianos) that have different velocity curves. Also good for smoothing out percussion tracks. If you've ever tapped in a hi-hat part on the little rubber pads on some keyboards, you know it's really difficult to get anything close to consistent velocity on those things. You can use this to even things out while retaining accents and the general live feel. It's up now at Viramor.com. Let me know if you Guinea Pigs find any bugs!

Now if somebody would grab the source for Audacity and add a VST3 wrapper and ARA2 support... ?

Yup... Stage is in there. Don't know how I missed that. I'm so old... ? Good thing Doc Steve is on the ball

I have an extended Roland.ins file (attached below) that includes the definitions for the Juno G/Gi. That synth is pretty similar to the Stage so it may work (may need some modifications). It has a ton of banks defined for the Juno G. At the very least, it should be a good starting point to make your own INS file. Roland.ins

I try to mention it because it's a bit like CbB... it's one of the best tools available, it's free, and too few people seem to know about it ? I'd recommend Goat's Eye View on YouTube for a good intro tutorial. It's 124 concise videos on how to use all the major functions. It's for an earlier version, but the majority of the content is still applicable to v16. There a dozens (hundreds?) of other videos available, tons focusing on just Fusion (which is now built in). ... and I get very few emails from them after creating my account... mainly update alerts and new beta notifications. It's only downside is that it's geared toward professional studios and formats. It doesn't handle WMV's, for instance. But you can use tools like ffmpeg (that @scook mentioned) to trans-code them.

If you don't mind me offering my unsolicited and somewhat off-topic opinion... Unless I needed to actually compose a soundtrack for a video, I'd always pull the finished audio track(s) into the video editor (especially for something like audio alignment). I use Davinci Resolve by Blackmagic Design. If you don't know about it, I highly recommend checking it out. BMD bought Fairlight awhile back and integrated it into their video editor. It's a really advanced audio editing suite that comes with a lot of plugins, but the best part is that it also supports VSTs (64-bit only, no VST3 yet), even parameter automation. You can essentially mix and master your audio in the video editor because it supports multiple tracks and busses... and it's arguably one of the best video editors on the market. Best part is it's free! There's a $299 version, but most of the features are related to multi-user collaboration and stereoscopic (3D) video editing. IMHO, the free version should cost $299. I know it's a pain to learn yet another piece of software (the manual is 2,937 pages), but this one's definitely worth the effort... and there are a ton of videos on YouTube to help you out. <End of commercial ?>

Quick updates: First, the VST3 version of sforzando seems to be working fine now after the first couple of crashes. No idea why. I blame quantum physics. Second, I'm a dummy. If an SFZ instrument has a GUI (there will be a GUI directory and an XML file in the root folder) you need to drag that XML file into sforzando to "register" it. The GUI will then show up in sforzando AND Aria Player. I'm getting old... forgot about that. Registering the instrument also makes it show up in the "presets" of both players. You can just select it rather than having to import it.

Just a heads up... I updated to sforzando 1.952 because it now has a VST3 version, but the VST3 is crashing CbB (the VST2 version works fine) It could be just my system... still investigating.

Wow! That's an unexpectedly good collection of free instruments! Those are all commercial quality SFZ's. The UI Metal GTX alone is about 1.3GB... Some really advanced SFZ programming, too. These load up in Aria Player, as well (if you have it). You won't get the GUI's, but you can still adjust the parameters. Thanks for the link! ?

GPO5 is definitely worth the $95. It's made up of 11-12GB of samples (some of which are very good). One huge bonus is that, while the actual wave files are encrypted, all of the instruments are actually SFZ's, which means you can edit the text based definition files. I've fixed a couple errors with one of the violin patches in the Orchestral Strings block, and I have plans (one day ?) to add ADSR controls to many of the instruments. Most of the strings use velocity to control the attack, but I'd like a lot more control over the envelope. Even the individual GUIs for the instruments can be modified. It's not for the faint of heart, though... backups are your friend! I just wanted you to be aware that updates and upgrades may not be available, but if you have an extra $100 laying around, you should grab it while it's on sale.

I don't believe Garritan (or MakeMusic) offers free trials for anything but Finale. Seems they had a big problem with piracy of their sound libraries in the past. That may also be the reason why they seem to be getting out of the sound library business... they haven't had any new releases in a long time, and there's a rumor (from an ex-developer?) that there is no longer a development staff for libraries. GPO5 is pretty good if you put a lot of time into it, but it seems unlikely there will be any new versions or further updates for existing versions.

Big thumbs up for the Tyrell N6 from u-he... Great sound, quite a few free presets available, and it's skinnable. It's not quite as good as Zeta+2, but it's really close (and free!) It's a" must have" freebie. If you find a sound that seems a bit flat, just turn on the Chorus at the bottom and instant epic fatness ?