How to use NI instruments and Kontakt 6 with Cakewalk by BandLab?

[Aarool Bhaalerao]

So I was searching for free VST plugins when I found Native Instruments.

 

This is what I have installed (I have installed all in my :D, not :C and in the Cakewalk VST folder - if this should matter):

 

Blocks Base, Controller Editor, Expansions Selection, Guitar 6 Player, Kinetic Treats, Komplete Kontrol, Kontakt 6 Player, Kontakt Factory Selection, Mikro Prism, Play Series Selection, Reaktor 6 Player, Reaktor Factory Selection R2, Supercharger, Traktor DJ, Traktor DJ2, TRK-01 Bass. (Phew turned out to be longer list than I first thought lol).

 

I have seen Guy Michelmore using Kontakt as an instrument track, similar to Spitfire LABS. What I understand is, Kontakt is basically where you can put all your VST plugins, and then you can put Kontakt in the DAW and use several instruments from only one instance. 

It is basically a manager so you don't have to look for each VST separately. Correct? 

Like similar to LABS - there is only ONE synth "LABS" but inside the LABS are various installed instruments.

 

I also understand that before Cakewalk recognizing these, they have to be run separately first, which I did.

 

But what I don't understand is how to add Kontakt and basically just like how to use Native Instruments for Cakewalk it is so confusing!!? 

 

I saw several videos saying you add it through the synth rack, but when I press the add button it does not say "Kontakt" anywhere in the dropdown! I am confused please help...

 

 

Thanks in Advance.

[Nigel Mackay]

Kontakt is not the best way to learn how to use a DAW, much too much to learn. Put all that stuff in a folder called Kontakt Stuff for Later When I have Learned.

Then watch this video. (Ignore the Audio Inputs setup bit because you don't have an audio input interface.)

Play with the SI Bass, Drums, Strings and Piano.

The watch this video.

More videos to watch: 1  2 

Watch this  and then immediately this.

 

[Aarool Bhaalerao]

Lmao love the sarcasm @Nigel Mackay!

 

Yeah I have already learnt how to use the DAW and stuff. I have literally made 3 songs for a Pokemon project I am doing (see attachments - and then maybe review question mark).

 

I watched the best free VST plugin video of another ytber, through whom I got to know about NI, and now I really want to try Kontakt sooo.....

01_ManiTown.mp3 02_Route1.mp3 03_AlluringIllusions.mp3

[Nigel Mackay]

I don't offhand know of a good tutorial about the concept of using Kontakt.

Kontakt plays VSTs designed to be played in Kontakt. And only those designed to be played in Kontakt. You put Kontakt in your VST folder. (Not the other stuff.) In your project you insert Kontakt from the list of instruments.

Create a folder called Kontakt Instruments or whatever, and insert the folders of all those NI instruments as sub-folders. This is not essential, you can have them all over the place and add them one by one, but it is easier to keep track if they are in a master folder.

In Cakewalk, you open the GUI of the inserted Kontakt, and click on Manage Libraries. You use the Add Libraries button to add all those folders. When you close Manage Libraries you will have the familiar list of libraries that you have seen in videos.

On YouTube go to Creative Sauce and see the tutorials on using Kontakt Multiple Outputs. Also have a look what is recommended in the Tutorials section of the Forum.

Be aware that something like Blocks Base needs to be played inside Reaktor. You can search YouTube for guides about that sort of thing.

BTW If you use the + at the top of the track pane to add Kontakt (choose Instrument rather than Audio) you can limit the number of audio tracks Kontakt creates. If you drag from the Browser the Limit To entry does not work with Kontakt.

 

EDIT In YouTube search for kontakt library install. Plenty of tutorials.
 

Edited November 21, 2020 by Nigel Mackay

[Aarool Bhaalerao]

Alright, I figured it out!

 

So basically you don't move the whole install file into the Cakewalk VST 64 location, but you only kopy paste kontakt (see what I did lol) .dll into the Cakewalk folder.

 

It now loads up fine... but, what I now want to know is what are the Guitar Rig 6, Traktor DJ 1 + 2 and Reaktor 6, and how to use them in Cakwalk. What do they do and how to use them, basically?

 

If I understand correctly, that unless I have the paid version, I cannot add third party libraries. But the video I was seeing had "Spitfire" in Kontakt, meaning it is a licensed library in NI, so how do I put my Spitfire LABS plugin into Kontakt, or there is no point?

 

Thanks

[msmcleod]

1 hour ago, Aarool Bhaalerao said:

Alright, I figured it out!

 

So basically you don't move the whole install file into the Cakewalk VST 64 location, but you only kopy paste kontakt (see what I did lol) .dll into the Cakewalk folder.

 

It now loads up fine... but, what I now want to know is what are the Guitar Rig 6, Traktor DJ 1 + 2 and Reaktor 6, and how to use them in Cakwalk. What do they do and how to use them, basically?

 

If I understand correctly, that unless I have the paid version, I cannot add third party libraries. But the video I was seeing had "Spitfire" in Kontakt, meaning it is a licensed library in NI, so how do I put my Spitfire LABS plugin into Kontakt, or there is no point?

 

Thanks

Manually copying/pasting DLL's around is likely to cause issues with upgrades. I suggest you change the locations within Native Access itself so that things are installed to the required location:

Alternatively, just add the default Native Instrument path to your VST path within CbB's VST Settings:

 

 

[Nigel Mackay]

Spitfire LABS is not a Kontakt instrument.
When you install it you select where to put the library and the plug-in. Run the Spitfire Audio app, and have a look around to see where you installed everything. Make sure that the location of the VST is in you scan path.
If you run the app you can relocate parts to better folders if you so wish.
It appears under Instruments in Browser.

Guitar Rig 6 is an FX. It must be in your scan path.
It appears in Browser as an Audio FX, and you add it to the FX rack of an audio track.

Traktor DJs are standalone products. They are meant for live DJ work. You get a simulated DJ desk on your desktop or iPad.

Reaktor is a DAW. Has its own instruments and effects.

Look up Reaktor and Traktor on YouTube. Neither of them have anything to do with Cakewalk.

It might be a good idea to start from scratch, installing everything properly, in suitable folders.
Each Kontakt library must be an intact folder structure. You unzip them into your master Kontakt Library folder. Whatever you want to name it.
Things like GuitarRig must be done properly. The various bits need to know where the other bits are.

[scook]

24 minutes ago, Nigel Mackay said:

Reaktor is a DAW. Has its own instruments and effects.

Look up Reaktor and Traktor on YouTube. Neither of them have anything to do with Cakewalk.

Reaktor is a modular environment containing effects and synths.

In addition to a standalone version, it ships as effect and synth VST plug-ins which may be used inside CbB.

It is also used as the runtime engine for several NI plug-ins sold separately such as MONARK, MOLEKULAR, REAKTOR PRISM and THE MOUTH.

[Nigel Mackay]

OK.

[JoeGBradford]

I think Nigel may have been thinking of Reaper?

A very limited version of Reaktor is included in the free NI package with a number of instruments ready built. Use them as you would any VSTi - insert Reaktor on a track and open one of the preset instruments

[Nigel Mackay]

15 minutes ago, JoeGBradford said:

I think Nigel may have been thinking of Reaper?

 

Nope. Nigel just didn't read ALL the information. ?

[Rick Rickoff]

I installed Kontakt Player 6  several months ago for the purpose of using the Upright Bass in Kontakt Factory Selection, which has worked out great.  A few days ago, I decided to purchase Native Istruments' Session Guitarist: Picked Acoustic.  That automatically downloaded to my computer, and I was able to open and play around with it by opening the Kontakt Player directly, so it seems that I should be able to access it in Cakewalk, but I cannot.   When  Kontakt Player is opened directly, Session Guitarist appears in the Library list as shown below. 

 

When I open the Kontakt interface in a Cakewalk audio track, Session Guitarist is not listed as a Library, and if I click the "Manage Libraries" button it opens the Options window as shown below, but Session Guitarist is not listed among the Libraries that can be made visible in the library browser..

If I open the File menu, it shows Session Guitarist is installed at the same location as Kinetic Treats, Kontakt Factory Selection, and Play Series Selection, and when I click the Sessions Guitarist Instruments folder it shows the two Picked Acoustic instruments at the bottom.  If I click on either one of those instruments, I get the error message seen in the right hand pane.

Why is it telling me that the Picked Acoustic instrument "belongs to a library that is currently not installed"?   If it isn't installed, how am I able to access it directly in Kontakt Player?   There may be a simple explanation to this dilemma, but so far it escapes me.  Does anyone have an idea how this can be solved?  If so, I would greatly appreciate reading your answer, and I thank you in advance.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 28, 2020 by Rick Rickoff

[Rick Rickoff]

By golly, I just found the answer to my question, and purely by accident.  I clicked to open Native Instruments' Komplete Kontrol application to see what that would do with Session Guitarist.  As soon as the window opened, it started scanning for installations, found the Session Guitarist files, and incorporated them.  After that process completed, I closed Komplete Kontrol and reopened Cakewalk.  This time, the Session Guitarist appeared in Kontakt's Library Browser.  Thank goodness!  I hope this helps anyone else who has this, or a similar problem, happen to them.

[Nigel Mackay]

After installing you are supposed to log into Native Access and activate it.
Komplete Kontrol basically did that for you.