Muting a track does not mute its MIDI output

[ceasless]

But please also answer the opposite question: how would it limit or annoy anyone if mute buttons would affect MIDI as well as audio output? That's what I don't understand...

Maybe this has already been answered, but that behavior is completely backwards for a DAW that has a note receiver module.

Say I have a lead line that involves 3 hardware synths on three instrument racks. The first rack is driving the first hardware synth and has actual MIDI clips on it. On the second and third racks, the notes are reaching the Hardware Instrument device via the Note Receiver device.

Why on earth would I want muting the first instrument rack to mute the other two? Or say that I want to Solo the third instrument rack to tweak that specific sound? According to Ch00rd's logic, this would mute MIDI coming out of the first instrument rack and make the third one silent, even though it is solo'd.

That makes no sense at all, at least to me.

[ceasless]

I've been using MIDI sequencers since Pro24 on the Atari twenty five years ago (yes I am that old). In that time I've extensively used Cubase, Logic, Reaper and Samplitude as my main DAWs. All of these have track mutes that stop MIDI.

And how many of those allowed you to route notes from any arbitrary track to any other arbitrary track?

Or, if that is possible, would allow an arbitrary-level nested instrument that receives notes from as many tracks as you can possibly load in a DAW?

You all say this ruins multi-timbral VST workflows, but the opposite destroys any benefit of Note Receivers.

[ceasless]

I've been using MIDI sequencers since Pro24 on the Atari twenty five years ago (yes I am that old). In that time I've extensively used Cubase, Logic, Reaper and Samplitude as my main DAWs. All of these have track mutes that stop MIDI.

And how many of those allowed you to route notes from any arbitrary track to any other arbitrary track?

Or, if that is possible, would allow an arbitrary-level nested instrument that receives notes from as many tracks as you can possibly load in a DAW?

You all say this ruins multi-timbral workflows, but the opposite destroys any benefit of Note Receivers.

[ceasless]

I've been using MIDI sequencers since Pro24 on the Atari twenty five years ago (yes I am that old). In that time I've extensively used Cubase, Logic, Reaper and Samplitude as my main DAWs. All of these have track mutes that stop MIDI.

And how many of those allowed you to route notes from any arbitrary track to any other arbitrary track?

Or, if that is possible, would allow an arbitrary-level nested instrument that receives notes from as many tracks as you can possibly load in a DAW?

You all say this ruins multi-timbral workflows, but the opposite destroys any benefit of Note Receivers.

[owensands]

But please also answer the opposite question: how would it limit or annoy anyone if mute buttons would affect MIDI as well as audio output? That's what I don't understand...

Maybe this has already been answered, but that behavior is completely backwards for a DAW that has a note receiver module.

Say I have a lead line that involves 3 hardware synths on three instrument racks. The first rack is driving the first hardware synth and has actual MIDI clips on it. On the second and third racks, the notes are reaching the Hardware Instrument device via the Note Receiver device.

Why on earth would I want muting the first instrument rack to mute the other two? Or say that I want to Solo the third instrument rack to tweak that specific sound? According to Ch00rd's logic, this would mute MIDI coming out of the first instrument rack and make the third one silent, even though it is solo'd.

That makes no sense at all, at least to me.

then you'd put all three on separate tracks and mute/solo each one accordingly and BW can give us the option to route midi Internally or externally or both when track is muted or not route it at all internally externally or both. You can still note receive on other tracks. Makes it more intuitive to me also having them on separate tracks since they are all separate entities.

So in your scenario youd have the option selected in preferences to preserve internally routed midi when muting tracks.
Track 1 has low end of lead track 2 has mids and track three has highs. Track 1 is supplying midi via note receiver to other two tracks. If you mute track 1 then it ONLY mutes the midi going to external instrument and other two still get midi and play. Mute track 2 and it mutes that as well. Solo either track and it solos it accordingly.

[ceasless]

My main point was to address the OP's question of "why is it not directly mapping mute/solo also to MIDI?"

The answer is: because that makes any instrument based on a derived Note Receiver useless.

The example was contrived according to what I could imagine being a normal workflow moment, starting a line and then adding some layers via separate tracks which don't need their own clips. You are adding layers and want to solo one. Whether it is still 3 instrument tracks or you have cleaned it up to 1 dedicated MIDI track + 3 instruments, the behavior the OP and others describe as so clearly correct would mean that you would never be able to solo an instrument track which is fed by a Note Receiver.

owensands, your solution pre-supposes that track muting/solo-ing should *not* be automatically equated with muting/solo-ing a track: it should be according to a track level setting. I agree with you that it is more intuitive the way you describe, and I hope Bitwig adopts it.

[slackhead]

I've been using MIDI sequencers since Pro24 on the Atari twenty five years ago (yes I am that old). In that time I've extensively used Cubase, Logic, Reaper and Samplitude as my main DAWs. All of these have track mutes that stop MIDI.

And how many of those allowed you to route notes from any arbitrary track to any other arbitrary track?

Both Samplitude and Reaper allow you to route MIDI between tracks. Bitwig is far from unique in this respect - and IMHO BW is a little clunky in the way it implements this.

Haven't used Logic much in a long time, so can't tell you about that now.

[ceasless]

I've been using MIDI sequencers since Pro24 on the Atari twenty five years ago (yes I am that old). In that time I've extensively used Cubase, Logic, Reaper and Samplitude as my main DAWs. All of these have track mutes that stop MIDI.

And how many of those allowed you to route notes from any arbitrary track to any other arbitrary track?

Both Samplitude and Reaper allow you to route MIDI between tracks. Bitwig is far from unique in this respect - and IMHO BW is a little clunky in the way it implements this.

Haven't used Logic much in a long time, so can't tell you about that now.

Nice that you avoided quoting the second part of my comment, which talks about capabilities that samplitude and reaper and logic all lack.

[slackhead]

I've been using MIDI sequencers since Pro24 on the Atari twenty five years ago (yes I am that old). In that time I've extensively used Cubase, Logic, Reaper and Samplitude as my main DAWs. All of these have track mutes that stop MIDI.

And how many of those allowed you to route notes from any arbitrary track to any other arbitrary track?

Both Samplitude and Reaper allow you to route MIDI between tracks. Bitwig is far from unique in this respect - and IMHO BW is a little clunky in the way it implements this.

Haven't used Logic much in a long time, so can't tell you about that now.

Nice that you avoided quoting the second part of my comment, which talks about capabilities that samplitude and reaper and logic all lack.

I'm not quite sure what you were getting at in the point I didn't quote. But if you are asking can a tracks MIDI be routed to many other tracks then yes - both Samplitude and Reaper can have one track send to many or all other tracks if so desired.

[thetechnobear]

I agree with the OP... I think mute/solo should apply to midi....
Ableton works this way, and its very useful! (and I don't see any major drawbacks)

as for Note Receiver - Ableton is able to do this using track inputs... and it allows you to choose if you want it 'pre or post' mixer. so Note Receiver, like Audio Receiver, with a pre and post fader option.

(I don't buy that it has to be just audio because its a mixer... real mixers don't have midi channels, but if they did, then if they had solo/mute buttons ... id expect them to mute/solo then midi output)

I can't say its my #1 request.. that would be per note expression (including poly pressure to VSTs!!), so I want 1.2 now!
but its certainly something I think is 'not quite right' in bitwig.

[UncleMarty]

I'd very much like the mute buttons left for audio only personally (after all, midi data can't be "muted"). But I think adding a device which will mute audio and midi would be a good idea for those that want to stop midi data being sent.

[Tearing Riots]

If we compare it to Logic etc., Bitwig has a clip launcher, i often use empty scenes to deactivate the clip in the arranger.
Given i don´t use the launcher for much else then recording, storing and muting.

How would an option 'Mute deactivates track' work for you?

[ceasless]

as for Note Receiver - Ableton is able to do this using track inputs... and it allows you to choose if you want it 'pre or post' mixer. so Note Receiver, like Audio Receiver, with a pre and post fader option.

No, it does not. You can have as many note receivers as you want, from as many tracks as you want, on a single track in Bitwig. This is not possible with Ableton, nor any traditional DAW that I can think of.

Again, the OP's suggested behavior means that a solo'd track which only has note receivers would be entirely silent.

[lamouette/rck]

Hi, there i would like to add a +1 to the muting if the midi track, but as an option, as i understand the point for sidechaining, and other audio things.

I use a Nord drum 2, which is 6 voices from 1 stereo output.

Each voice is sequenced by a specific track, and when i mute one track, i can always hear it.

As i use it as a live use, i would like to simplify the workflow at maximum, so use the channel mute to mute the midi of the track.

Any way to add it a an option in the inspector track panel ?

[Tearing Riots]

If you activate 'auto-monitor' you can use the record arm buttons to mute/unmute the input of the track.