MUTOOLS

sl23 · Post by **sl23** » Wed Nov 16, 2011 11:50 am

I've been an occasional music maker for around 12 years and started with hardware. I bought my first pc 6 years ago but have only recently started getting into using it for music production. Not long after buying my first pc I tried the Computer Music Mags version of Musys v1.5. Though I didn't know it had become a dead product. Having found out it had been updated to v3.14 I tried and succeeded in obtaining a copy and have used this since. All the while though I'd been keeping an eye on Mu-Lab and plan on buying it soon as I can afford to. last Xmas I bought the Novation Nocturn and this worked well with Muzys though I only had a crappy keyboard. I planned on buying the Novation sl Mk 2 but just as I got the money Novation released the Impulse with Automap v4!
After much deliberation I decided to but the Impulse and set it up soon as I got it only to find Automap no longer works with Muzys!!! After a few emails to Novation with the original Muzys files they tell me Automap v4 won't work with Muzys. Great!As I intended buying the successor to Muzys anyway I thought I'd put a request in for Mu-Lab v4. Would it be possible to add Automap compatibilty to Mu-Lab? Or is that only possible by Novation themselves?

If it's out of your hands I've been told I could exchange the Impulse for the sl Mk 2. This uses earlier versions of Automap the same as the Nocturn but I'd like to know if they'd work with Mu-Lab before exchanging.

Thanks

Scott

mutools · Post by **mutools** » Wed Nov 16, 2011 1:29 pm

Thanks for your detailed story and for choosing Muzys/MuLab as your musical tool.

Wrt Automap: I'm sorry to say there is no such support planned in the short term. Therefore i also did not yet research the automap sdk and so i can't answer questions about it.

The main reasons why it's not (yet?) planned is that it's a quite specific feature request and so only a relatively small group of users will benefit from this. And this while MuTools' R&D resources are limited and a long list of other feature requests with more impact is waiting.
I hope you understand the logic in this decission.

That said, note that it's very easy to assign a MIDI controller to any module/VST parameter in MuLab:

1) For MuLab own modules like MuSynth, MuDrum, all MUX patches, ...: Right-click the parameter -> "Map MIDI Controller"

2) For VSTs: Give a little tweak to the parameter, then popup its context menu -> "Map MIDI Controller".

Note that the module must have MIDI focus (i.e. you can play it from MIDI) for these mappings to work. This focus normally automatically follows with what you're doing, unless it's a sub-module, in which case it's normally the main module to which it belongs to which takes the MIDI focus.

There is also a session-global controller map which always works. (but so you may need more MIDI controllers or else you might end up double mappings)

Also see: http://www.mutools.com/mulab/docs/quest ... swers.html

Hope this helps.

sl23 · Post by **sl23** » Wed Nov 16, 2011 3:56 pm

Thanks for the quick response and yes I completely understand your answers. I don't suppose you have any recommendations for a suitable controller keyboard for use with Mu-Lab?

Btw just like to say that you've done a great job with Mu-Lab

I've only had a few quick goes with it and I love its simplicity. And the fact its portable there aren't many DAWs that are. Muzys has always been a solid platform for me and I'd like to get Mu-Lab v4 hopefully soon

Thanks

Scott

mutools · Post by **mutools** » Wed Nov 16, 2011 4:18 pm

sadhakayuj wrote:Thanks for the quick response and yes I completely understand your answers. I don't suppose you have any recommendations for a suitable controller keyboard for use with Mu-Lab?

No, not really. I also think this is a very subjective choice. It depends on personal parameters like what you want/can spend, the amount+type+feel of the knobs/sliders/buttons, the width+feel of the keyboard etc.

Personally i use a Korg Kontrol 49 and am very happy with it.
But that's also because i really like the feel of the keyboard

sl23 · Post by **sl23** » Wed Nov 16, 2011 7:40 pm

Grrr... I knew you was gonna say that! lol Thanks for your help though

The thing I liked about Automap on the Nocturn was that its simple to use and it saves its settings as a .dll file. How does something like the Korg Kontrol save its settings? Is it easy to setup for a particular VST?

Scott

mutools · Post by **mutools** » Wed Nov 16, 2011 7:49 pm

I think all MIDI keyboards do a good job with MuLab.
Just define a budget and the features you wanna have.
Then go to a real shop and have a feel of the keyboard and knobs.
Then choose one with a good feeling and enjoy creating music

sl23 · Post by **sl23** » Wed Nov 16, 2011 8:49 pm

To be honest I'm very much an amateur so I'm not looking for something too specific just a 4 octave keyboard with easy to use controllers and plenty of them though I have a preference for knobs rather than sliders. I took a look at the Korg and quite like it. I could then still use my Nocturn too

Does it work with Vista and win7?

Neil (Focusrite/Novation) · Thu Nov 17, 2011 11:53 am

Hi Scott,

I sent you a reply to your support case. I was able to get Impulse working with MuLab mixer, devices and 3rd party plug-ins.

Best regards,

Neil Marron
Novation Technical Support

sl23 · Post by **sl23** » Mon Nov 21, 2011 6:20 pm

Thanks. for all the advice I've decided to exchange the Impulse. for the Korg. I've had a few Korg products and though they tend to be a bit pricey they're pretty reliable.

Just wondering if I bought Mu-Lab now how many updates will I get? Will I be able to update to pre v5? Hope that makes sense!

I probably won't be able to afford it till after xmas, will v4 be released by then? Should I wait till it is released before buying?

mutools · Post by **mutools** » Mon Nov 21, 2011 9:17 pm

Yes i hope that M4 can be released before Christmas.
The price of M4 has not yet been decided, except for the fact that it will not be cheaper than M3, so it will be equal or maybe a bit more than M3.
Buying M3 UL now is the best choice as you certainly won't pay too much and you will get M3 UL and M4 UL for the same price. (note that M3 XT does not include a free update to M4)

sl23 · Post by **sl23** » Mon Nov 21, 2011 9:57 pm

I planned getting the UL version. If I bought v4UL would it include updates to v5?

Thanks

mutools · Post by **mutools** » Tue Nov 22, 2011 8:42 am

No. But updates from M4 to M5 will have a gentle price.

sl23 · Post by **sl23** » Tue Nov 22, 2011 9:21 am

oh! ok thanks

sl23 · Post by **sl23** » Sun Dec 04, 2011 2:28 pm

After leaving my new purchase boxed up for the last few weeks and awaiting delivery of its replacement, I decided to have another go at getting the Impulse working.

Personally I think the manual is a bit of a mess but after studying it for around an hour I realised that the Impulse is two controller types in one. I'm very new to PC music so I assumed the Impulse was Automap only. I found that it could play VSTi's in both Mu-Lab and Muzys but not control them.

I thought this was to do with the Impulse not being able to be edited to work with them. However, using Mu-Lab's Map Controller function worked a treat! I then tried this with Muzys and it worked! Sorry Neil but you can use the Impulse with Muzys

After this revelation I think I'll stick with the Impulse instead of swapping for the Korg Kontrol. Saves me £100 which I can use to buy Mu-Lab

I'll be waiting till after Xmas though. Have you set a price for v4 yet Jo?

How does Muzys and Mu-Lab save controller mappings for VST's? Are they saved into the project files? Or as seperate files?

Mu-Lab v3 wouldn't recognise a VSTi until I placed it in Mu-Lab's folder? Is there a reason for this?

When updating Mu-Lab I imagine it's just the Mu-Lab.exe and the App Folder that need updating? The User Folder can be left alone?

Thanks for your help

Scott

sl23 · Post by **sl23** » Mon Dec 12, 2011 6:05 pm

hi Jo could you help with my previous post please

thanks

Scott

MUTOOLS

KVR Audio

Automap v4 and Mu-Lab