GM compitable vsti or dxi host
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- KVRAF
- 6937 posts since 4 Jun, 2004 from Utrecht, Holland
Before we get babylonian: a host only "hosts" the instrument plug-ins and how they're played. The VSTi's are the separate instruments.
The only true GM compatible VSTi's you'll find imho are not even VSTi's but GM soundfonts (SF2 files) you can load into the SFZ soundfont player (a VSTi). Not very different from playing midi files with Windows Media Player on a SB-Live...
Most VSTi's have patches/presets that have no relationship with the GM standards. Although with some work you can get ultimate results with any host and a load of VSTi's.
Now please enlighten me: what's this "foobar"? Is it like Napster used to be, but sharing MIDI files?
The only true GM compatible VSTi's you'll find imho are not even VSTi's but GM soundfonts (SF2 files) you can load into the SFZ soundfont player (a VSTi). Not very different from playing midi files with Windows Media Player on a SB-Live...
Most VSTi's have patches/presets that have no relationship with the GM standards. Although with some work you can get ultimate results with any host and a load of VSTi's.
Now please enlighten me: what's this "foobar"? Is it like Napster used to be, but sharing MIDI files?
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- KVRer
- Topic Starter
- 8 posts since 29 Sep, 2004
From foobar2000.org:
"Foobar2000 is an advanced audio player for the Windows platform. Some of the basic features include ReplayGain support, low memory footprint and native support for several popular audio formats."
It has a midi plugin, though it needs what the coder said was a dxi or vsti midi host. There is one, emidi,, but it sounds like crap, uses 50% cpu and doesn't support soundfonts.
So....the coder said that it needs a "gm compitable midi host, dxi or vsti". I am not too good at this vsti and dxi and stuff.
There are a few ones on http://www.cakewalk.com/Products/DXi/default.asp
but there is only one freeware, which shows up in the plugins setup "utility", but it doesn't give any sound.
Hope you understand what I mean!
"Foobar2000 is an advanced audio player for the Windows platform. Some of the basic features include ReplayGain support, low memory footprint and native support for several popular audio formats."
It has a midi plugin, though it needs what the coder said was a dxi or vsti midi host. There is one, emidi,, but it sounds like crap, uses 50% cpu and doesn't support soundfonts.
So....the coder said that it needs a "gm compitable midi host, dxi or vsti". I am not too good at this vsti and dxi and stuff.
There are a few ones on http://www.cakewalk.com/Products/DXi/default.asp
but there is only one freeware, which shows up in the plugins setup "utility", but it doesn't give any sound.
Hope you understand what I mean!
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- KVRAF
- 2401 posts since 29 Dec, 2002 from In the dark
Edirol Virtual Sound Canvas and Hypercanvas are GM sound modules.
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- KVRAF
- 2401 posts since 29 Dec, 2002 from In the dark
Mmm OK not completely free. I got 2 copies of VSC for free (bundled). One came with Sonar and one with Powertracks. The hypercanvas comes with Sonar 4 for free.
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- KVRer
- Topic Starter
- 8 posts since 29 Sep, 2004
But I don't have any of these programs.Sepheritoh wrote:Mmm OK not completely free. I got 2 copies of VSC for free (bundled). One came with Sonar and one with Powertracks. The hypercanvas comes with Sonar 4 for free.
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- KVRAF
- 2401 posts since 29 Dec, 2002 from In the dark
Then the best is to get sfz and use Gm soundfonts.
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- KVRAF
- 2401 posts since 29 Dec, 2002 from In the dark
PS - and add minihost. Then you have a complete GM host.
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Voidoid Surrealist Voidoid Surrealist https://www.kvraudio.com/forum/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=41079
- KVRAF
- 4048 posts since 18 Sep, 2004 from Places far less tedious than this blue trainwreck...
If it comes down to a soundfont/sfz solution, try
http://www.titanicsf.com/
As a GM, it's damn nice for free.
http://www.titanicsf.com/
As a GM, it's damn nice for free.
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- KVRist
- 178 posts since 23 Jul, 2002 from Washington DC
Looks like titanic soundfont needs a mirror..VoidoidSurrealist wrote:If it comes down to a soundfont/sfz solution, try http://www.titanicsf.com/
As a GM, it's damn nice for free.
I apologize, large downloads are disabled at the moment. Please come back next month.
If you'd like to mirror the file, please contact me at lukesena at titanicsf.com. Thanks...
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Voidoid Surrealist Voidoid Surrealist https://www.kvraudio.com/forum/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=41079
- KVRAF
- 4048 posts since 18 Sep, 2004 from Places far less tedious than this blue trainwreck...
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Voidoid Surrealist Voidoid Surrealist https://www.kvraudio.com/forum/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=41079
- KVRAF
- 4048 posts since 18 Sep, 2004 from Places far less tedious than this blue trainwreck...
From a Hydrogenaudio forum post by "kode54":
For now, you must acquire a proper DXi synthesizer. Either Virtual Sound Canvas DXi, or Hyper Canvas. As far as I know, only the former supports GS MIDI, including SysEx messages for activating multiple drum channels.
I decided not to support the synthesizer properties dialog just yet, as each instance of the synthesizer would need its own dialog. I've also found that most of them don't remember preferences across sessions, unless I happen to support saving the performance data. I found that performance data is usually around 300KB, and includes a LOT of data specific to the synthesizer state for the current or most recently played sequence data, including current instruments, volume levels, reverb levels, (which can only be changed by standard SysEx with VSC DXi... damn you Hyper Canvas for not being GS.) possibly even lots of internal state variables such as the last used volume envelopes and whatnot. Too much song specific data to store just to remember a polyphony level higher than the default.
There's also the LiveSynth Pro DXi, but it has some annoying deficiencies:
1) It cannot load more than one SoundFont to each bank number. You cannot load a GM bank to bank 0 and then overlay a GS add-on bank starting at bank 0.
2) It cannot be configured to load a certain preset or bank at startup. It will always have to be reconfigured for every single instance. Modifying foo_midi to always keep one instance running and reset it between songs is too stupid for me to consider.
Maybe, with luck, someone will write a DXi interface into TiMidity++. That is, if TiMidity++ supports multiple instances in one process. Even though (I think I remember) it's C++, it might use static variables and such...
Writing a frontend to the TiMidity++ executable is not a good idea. For one, the process contains no mechanism for triggering a "clean" shutdown without modification, such as what zdoom requires. Terminating the task is probably not the cleanest way to shut it down.
Plus, each instance will then load its own copy of the current instrument bank. It will not be able to keep the bank resident for the session, with the option to unload it at any time. Start up, reload instrument bank, render until terminated, unload set, shut down. Every time.
I suppose the same problem of reloading exists for the current DXi's, but at least they share the instrument bank across instances. No, I am not modifying it to keep one instance running. Resetting it between songs would probably be flaky at best.
Sounds like a pretty sucky way to deal with midi files to me. I'm curious, why are you so set on playing midi through a program that doesn't really support it all that well
For now, you must acquire a proper DXi synthesizer. Either Virtual Sound Canvas DXi, or Hyper Canvas. As far as I know, only the former supports GS MIDI, including SysEx messages for activating multiple drum channels.
I decided not to support the synthesizer properties dialog just yet, as each instance of the synthesizer would need its own dialog. I've also found that most of them don't remember preferences across sessions, unless I happen to support saving the performance data. I found that performance data is usually around 300KB, and includes a LOT of data specific to the synthesizer state for the current or most recently played sequence data, including current instruments, volume levels, reverb levels, (which can only be changed by standard SysEx with VSC DXi... damn you Hyper Canvas for not being GS.) possibly even lots of internal state variables such as the last used volume envelopes and whatnot. Too much song specific data to store just to remember a polyphony level higher than the default.
There's also the LiveSynth Pro DXi, but it has some annoying deficiencies:
1) It cannot load more than one SoundFont to each bank number. You cannot load a GM bank to bank 0 and then overlay a GS add-on bank starting at bank 0.
2) It cannot be configured to load a certain preset or bank at startup. It will always have to be reconfigured for every single instance. Modifying foo_midi to always keep one instance running and reset it between songs is too stupid for me to consider.
Maybe, with luck, someone will write a DXi interface into TiMidity++. That is, if TiMidity++ supports multiple instances in one process. Even though (I think I remember) it's C++, it might use static variables and such...
Writing a frontend to the TiMidity++ executable is not a good idea. For one, the process contains no mechanism for triggering a "clean" shutdown without modification, such as what zdoom requires. Terminating the task is probably not the cleanest way to shut it down.
Plus, each instance will then load its own copy of the current instrument bank. It will not be able to keep the bank resident for the session, with the option to unload it at any time. Start up, reload instrument bank, render until terminated, unload set, shut down. Every time.
I suppose the same problem of reloading exists for the current DXi's, but at least they share the instrument bank across instances. No, I am not modifying it to keep one instance running. Resetting it between songs would probably be flaky at best.
Sounds like a pretty sucky way to deal with midi files to me. I'm curious, why are you so set on playing midi through a program that doesn't really support it all that well