Piano roll

[Ratttz]

Not a huge fan of writing with a piano roll; I normally do arranging in Finale first. How easy is it to import midi files into Magix to, say, control a VST instrument?

[Armandeus]

The software doesn't automatically put each MIDI channel on a separate track, as far as I can tell. If you want that you either have to brute force it with copy and paste, or find other software that will save each MIDI channel as a separate file, and then drag and drop each file into a separate track in Music Maker.

[Ratttz]

It adds some additional work in porting over arrangements, but that's fine. As long as it doesn't totally mangle what I put into it it'd be fine. I think either Sony Acid or Bandcamp absolutely HATED whenever I tried to get it to import midi data.

[Imba™]

You can drag and drop midi created elsewhere no issue within reason. It is a bit less controllable once inside MM, than the other DAWS like Sonar X3 vs options on midi chanel-patch etc (Music Makers options are far more basic). But you can pretty much drag and drop a midi from the hard drive and apply a VST like the new harp to it and then convert it to a wave file if needed.

[Armandeus]

Yes, that's right. But if your MIDI has several channels with different voices (instruments) in it, and it's in one file, Music Maker will make it all one track when you drag and drop it. Then it will play fine as long as you only use general MIDI to play it. If you want to change all the instruments, you need multiple MIDI tracks, one for each instrument. Breaking up a MIDI with multiple instrument channels into one track per channel is what is not automated and therefore time-consuming. I can't imagine why MAGIX did not add this feature, since it is a simple matter for a computer to do and requires no human input.

Other than that, and the software's tendency to crash a lot, there has been no MIDI mangling that I have experienced.

[Imba™]

Originally posted by Armandeus:

Yes, that's right. But if your MIDI has several channels with different voices (instruments) in it, and it's in one file, Music Maker will make it all one track when you drag and drop it. Then it will play fine as long as you only use general MIDI to play it. If you want to change all the instruments, you need multiple MIDI tracks, one for each instrument. Breaking up a MIDI with multiple instrument channels into one track per channel is what is not automated and therefore time-consuming. I can't imagine why MAGIX did not add this feature, since it is a simple matter for a computer to do and requires no human input.

Other than that, and the software's tendency to crash a lot, there has been no MIDI mangling that I have experienced.

To be honest Arm' I suspect MM is geared more towards the basic-new user so more set up for loops and step seq' drum creation with ease. Midi is there but automated and basic and that isn't a bad thing as it allows speed of creation vs the headache of just how complex it can get in Sonar. The way to treat magix is to convert midi to wav as needed and store the midi in case you wish to change something later. Stuff like sonar can cope with hugely complex midi arrangements without crashing to a level 100x more complex than Magix can. But magix is very good (and stable) with audio loops.

[Armandeus]

Is it for basic new users?

Then why does the harmonizer tell me all samples are in C major when they clearly are not?

Why are there only several keys for soundpool samples and the only way given to adjust the key when the exact key you need is not on the numbered list is to use the pitch shift tool, which has a dial with numbers on it (semitones, perhaps?) instead of telling you what the new key you shifted the sample to now is?

I guess I need to have a grounding in music theory and enough ear training to know what key a sample is in - but then I wouldn't be a basic new user anymore, would I?

[Imba™]

Originally posted by Armandeus:

Is it for basic new users?

Then why does the harmonizer tell me all samples are in C major when they clearly are not?

Why are there only several keys for soundpool samples and the only way given to adjust the key when the exact key you need is not on the numbered list is to use the pitch shift tool, which has a dial with numbers on it (semitones, perhaps?) instead of telling you what the new key you shifted the sample to now is?

I guess I need to have a grounding in music theory and enough ear training to know what key a sample is in - but then I wouldn't be a basic new user anymore, would I?

Are you using the supplied content the catooh Loop stuff? That may be detected in wrong pitch (even after you adjusted) as it picks up the original pitch of the sample? The pitch 1-6 thing for the catooh content is a bit odd as you would think it would be billed as musical notes not numbers.

But to be honest the supplied Loop content is very basic and will allow a few ideas but should be viewed as tutorial stuff really, much better qaulity looped genre content can be bought elsewhere. As you spend time you can then start writing music in piano roll-with a keyboard etc with the virtual instruments and that is where MM 2015 is very good vs many other DAW's is has a pretty decent basic set of stuff, instrument and FX wise.

12 months ago I could not even write a note of music had no idea about pitch or even what a soft synth was and thanks to Magix MM and Cakewalks Music creator then Sonar 12 months later I now write pieces for full orchestra's and can programme some very complex soft synths and plugs-ins.

So although most users will outgrow MM it is useful as a musical notepad and fast mixing and 5.1 authoring and video-audio output (much faster than Sonar for test ideas).

The only tool I have seen that can detect the inidividual pitch of each instrument in a normal looped sample is the polyphnic studio version of Melodyne (300 euros!). That can take a loop apart and also convert it into midi, but it is a 64 bit VST3 so you need Sonar X3 for it.

[Armandeus]

Thanks for the information.

I bought the premium version of MM and I'm making use of what I have, but as software for beginners with limited musical training it is sorely lacking in features. I suppose I could stick to making trance music in one key with no chord progressions at all.

[miR]

lol

[Imba™]

Originally posted by Armandeus:

Thanks for the information.

I bought the premium version of MM and I'm making use of what I have, but as software for beginners with limited musical training it is sorely lacking in features. I suppose I could stick to making trance music in one key with no chord progressions at all.

The supplied content is basic just 'filla' stuff, some of loops can be pitch adjusted but not all. It is there to help you fill a template with ideas but to be honest you going to want to use actual instruments (either included) or other 3rd party VST's to make a track, more than any of the supplied loops. The loops kinda teach you want you want to recreate using instruments and there you can be a zillion times more creative. So messing with loops is fun and teaches you the very basics vs most EDM.

So MMP2015 has loads of basic playable instruments, keyboards, strings a harp etc with those you can create individual tracks and to be honest it has a half decent range of basic instruments vs many other DAWS. But no matter which DAW you choose 99.9% of semi pro and pro-users would buy 3rd party plugins, synths and use them inside the DAW and the instruments inside the DAW are just basic use for say trying to compose on a laptop.