No sound in Cakewalk

[Tracy]

I did a quick sketch in HookTheory and exported it as a MIDI file. I then imported said file into Cakewalk successfully, but I get no sound on playback. All the tracks appear to be there, I just can't hear them. I've checked my drivers in "preferences", and they appear to be there. What am I missing? (I'm new to Bandlab, so it could be a setting I missed.)

Dance With Me Example.mid

[57Gregy]

23 minutes ago, Tracy said:

I did a quick sketch in HookTheory and exported it as a MIDI file. I then imported said file into Cakewalk successfully, but I get no sound on playback. All the tracks appear to be there, I just can't hear them. I've checked my drivers in "preferences", and they appear to be there. What am I missing? (I'm new to Bandlab, so it could be a setting I missed.)

Dance With Me Example.mid 15.07 kB · 0 downloads

Welcome to the forum.
MIDI is just information that tells a synth what to play. Do you have a synthesizer, software or hardware, connected and do you have the routing correct from the MIDI track to the synth to the sound card/audio interface?

[user 905133]

1 hour ago, 57Gregy said:

MIDI is just information that tells a synth what to play. Do you have a synthesizer, software or hardware, connected and do you have the routing correct from the MIDI track to the synth to the sound card/audio interface?

The file works with GM [General MIDI] synths.  As @57Gregy comments, you need to route the MIDI data to a software or a hardware synth (some device that will play sounds).  The file worked for me using an old Roland M-GS64 (hardware sound module) as well as an old TTS-1 softsynth.

[Tracy]

Thanks for responding. I've been doing this new hobby for a couple of months, so STEEP learning curve. So I'm understanding that I need an additional device or software, and the computer speakers are not enough?  (Probably a dumb question, but this is my first go at this.)

[Amberwolf]

MIDI doesn't make sound, it just tells something that does make sound which notes to play, how loud to play them, and how long to play them for and when to stop each note.  (and a lot of other data but those are the ones you're concerned with at the moment). 

So you have to use a synth (software synth, softsynth, VST, etc., usually in one or more of the tracks of your project) to take that info and make the sounds you want with it.   Some probably come with your version of Cakewalk; if not there are free ones you can use, depending on which specific sounds you want to hear.

You can also use a hardware synth (keybaord, rack, etc) but those are rarely free and usually require other hardware to connect them to the computer (MIDI interface, etc).

 

If you open the Synth Rack (by icon or menu), and insert a synth, the default options should open the synth window, and create you a track to put the MIDI into.

Then you can use the synth window to choose a sound or sound set that will be played by the MIDI track.

If the synth is "multitimbral", it can play several different sounds at once, each on one of the 16 different midi channels.  In this case you can just set each song part (lead, bass, drum, etc) to the right channel for each sound as you set them up in the synth, and they can all be on the MIDI track(s) for that synth.

If the synth is not MT, then it can only play one sound, and you'll have to use the synth rack to add as many synths as you need for each different part.   (this is the usual way projects are done, as it makes a lot of things possible that aren't with a single synth doing it all).  Then each song part's MIDI goes into the MIDI track for that synth.

 

 

 

 

[57Gregy]

18 hours ago, Tracy said:

Thanks for responding. I've been doing this new hobby for a couple of months, so STEEP learning curve. So I'm understanding that I need an additional device or software, and the computer speakers are not enough?  (Probably a dumb question, but this is my first go at this.)

Yes, it's way beyond hitting record on your cassette deck. 🙂
At the top, click on Insert, then Soft Synth.
What soft synths are available to you? 
Maybe Studio Instruments Drums, Piano, Bass?

[Tracy]

When I clicked on Insert>SoftSynth, there were no options. Same thing when I clicked on Synth Rack at the top. My understanding was that Cakewalk came with this (at least according to their own literature). Is there a single plug in for this out there? When I Googled "synth for Cakewalk" it brought up "bass synth", "keys synth", VST plugins, etc. I didn't want to have to program every instrument in the orchestra. 

I really appreciate everyone's generosity and help, but I feel like I just learned arithmetic and this is calculus. At this point, just looking for a simple fix. If it really is that complicated, I'll probably just keep doing the tutorials (the ones that make sense to me, anyway) and circle back to this when I understand more. Grateful for your help!

[Chaps]

22 hours ago, Tracy said:

When I clicked on Insert>SoftSynth, there were no options. Same thing when I clicked on Synth Rack at the top.

 

I'm not sure of exactly which synth instruments Cakewalk by Bandlab comes with because I have all the soft synths that came with earlier versions of Cakewalk I own, and soft synths from other companies. But the synths that Cakewalk does include are add-ons and may require separate installation. If you have not already done so, I suggest downloading and installing the Cakewalk Product Center and logging in with your Cakewalk by Bandlab account. Open the Cakewalk Product Center and make sure Show Add-ons is enabled and install all available add-ons. The Cakewalk Studio Instruments should include enough instruments to get you started. You can also download and install other soft-synth from other companies to use in Cakewalk (many free ones to choose from). That gets more complicated but can also be very rewarding since Cakewalk by Bandlab is a very bare-bones product (which is why it is free).

Edited October 18 by Chaps
Correction

[Tracy]

I think that would have worked. Everything was rocking along until I tried to open Cakewalk Command Center, which required an upgrade to the new Cakewalk Sonar. I got all the components downloaded and it asked me to sign in to continue. I was then redirected to the Bandlab membership page, which is an annual subscription. I can't go any farther without subscribing, and I don't need any of the other services from the subscription, so if I have to pay to use their DAW I might as well just buy another one. Thanks to everyone who tried to help though. I really appreciate it!

[Chaps]

The Command Product Center can install add-ons for Cakewalk Next, Cakewalk Sonar, and Cakewalk by Bandlab. My fault for not mentioning that in my earlier post. If you only install the add-ons for Cakewalk by Bandlab then you shouldn't have to sign in to the Sonar or Next versions, which are subscription services. The account you sign in with should be the same as the one you used to download Cakewalk by Bandlab.

[Tracy]

AAAHHH! I GOT IT!!!  I was able to complete this time. Everything is up to date. The instruments were always there, they just weren't playing. After I reopened the updated Cakewalk, it didn't recognize the HookTheory MIDI file as MIDI... it thought it was a WAV file. So I went back and imported it into Bandlab first (which always played it fine except for the janky trombone and piano sound). Then I exported all the tracks from there to a folder on my desktop, and from there imported it into the updated Cakewalk. . . and . . . SOUND!!!

Thank you so much!! Boy was that frustrating! I was ready to give up on Cakewalk. It's the tenth new program I'm learning, and by far the most difficult. I though Synth V was a steep learning curve, but nothing compared to this! I appreciate all the help. You guys are all rock stars!