[VST/AU] Realtime Guitar to Midi Converter - Bituosity MiGiC (Free Beta)

[philipkarlsson]

That rtp loopback needs to be optional! I can't get this to work in Sandboxie still. People don't like hassles, make it shine!

That depends on what you mean with hassle.. Say that you don't have any previous experience with virtual midi and you don't have another driver?

What I could (and will) do is to make the driver optional at the end of the install and rewrite the midi-backend so that you can choose arbitrary midi-ports and add I will probably add a midi-out-slot to the VST (not doable with audio unit).

Please tell us when it's ready then I'm also going to test.
(I have a MIDI loopback already installed here and don't want another one installed, so if rtp loopback is non-optional currently I'll rather wait a little for the new version)

edit:
crosspost with yours.

The reason is to make it as transparent as possible to the user so you don't have to mange virtual midi by yourself. It would have been a lot easier for me if Migic simply connects to already created ports which you would select from a drop down or something similar.

What would you prefer?

As already said above, the second is the version I'd clearly prefer.

Its settled then!

[philipkarlsson]

What I could (and will) do is to make the driver optional at the end of the install and rewrite the midi-backend so that you can choose arbitrary midi-ports and add I will probably add a midi-out-slot to the VST (not doable with audio unit).

Way to go!

Better get to it then

[philipkarlsson]

Has anyone got the Windows x64 VST to detect guitar input? I've tried both StudioOne v2 and Cubase v7.5 with no luck in either.

Thanks,
G

I have, although in Ableton. Make sure that you have a signal-strength that is just a little below peaking and increase "sens". Do this before adding the plugin to the track. If the track becomes silent when you add MiGiC to the track it tracks your guitar! Also, make sure that you apply the effect to a mono track.

Cheers,
Philip

[No_Use]

Its settled then!

Thanks.
Though just as another thought, I can see this as a valid point to consider also:

Say that you don't have any previous experience with virtual midi and you don't have another driver?

But if it's optional during installation I think both 'newcomers' and more experienced users like probably the maority here will be happy.

[planetearth]

Having some trouble with it here, using Sonar X3 (x64) under Windows 7, SP1. Apparently, I also had to install rtpMIDI and enable Bonjour (which I don't usually have running on the DAW). I don't even really know what rtpMIDI is, but it installs as a "service" and has an option to let "anyone" connect to the computer.

Even with rtpMIDI installed and MiGiC (and my computer) showing as MIDI input and output devices in Sonar, I still had to run the MiGiC Helper--but what does that actually do? There's nothing in the window for it, and the only option associated with it is "Exit".

Once MiGiC was tracking my guitar, I had to hit the strings pretty hard to get a velocity over 110, and most of the time, the velocity didn't go below 48. I'll try playing with the sensitivity to see what that gets me. The guitar was plugged directly into the mixer and straight into the DAW.

The most serious problem so far is that when MiGiC is running, it makes Sonar load the wrong synth when I choose one. For example, if I choose SampleTank 3 to load into a project, I get Synthmaster. If I choose Rob Papen's Blue II, I get a different Rob Papen Synth. This is repeatable, and the same, wrong synths are substituted for the ones I choose. If I restart the DAW, restart Sonar and not load MiGiC, the synths I choose will then load correctly into the project. (This doesn't seem to be associated with rtpMIDI, since this also happened before I realized I really needed to use rtpMIDI and then installed it.)

This does not happen with all the synths. For example, Kontakt 4 loads properly into the project, even with MiGiC running. But it happens with enough of them that there's no way to know which synth I'll get when I choose one. I'm basically playing "synth roulette" at this point.

So, my short-list of issues are:
Loading/running Bonjour on an otherwise stripped-down DAW.
Installing, loading and running rtpMIDI, and I'm not really sure what kind of access it offers even when I'm not using it in a project (which would be most of the time).
Loading/running MiGiC Helper, with no idea of what it's doing in the background.
Synth roulette/Sonar X3's list of synths is scrambled when MiGiC is running.

I had downloaded "Beta 3" from your site, but it installed v0.2.1 of MiGiC. This is the same version that I started to install earlier. (I didn't install that version; I tried to get a newer version today, but it still installed the same thing, apparently.)

Hope this helps!

Steve

[philipkarlsson]

Having some trouble with it here, using Sonar X3 (x64) under Windows 7, SP1. Apparently, I also had to install rtpMIDI and enable Bonjour (which I don't usually have running on the DAW). I don't even really know what rtpMIDI is, but it installs as a "service" and has an option to let "anyone" connect to the computer.

Even with rtpMIDI installed and MiGiC (and my computer) showing as MIDI input and output devices in Sonar, I still had to run the MiGiC Helper--but what does that actually do? There's nothing in the window for it, and the only option associated with it is "Exit".

Once MiGiC was tracking my guitar, I had to hit the strings pretty hard to get a velocity over 110, and most of the time, the velocity didn't go below 48. I'll try playing with the sensitivity to see what that gets me. The guitar was plugged directly into the mixer and straight into the DAW.

The most serious problem so far is that when MiGiC is running, it makes Sonar load the wrong synth when I choose one. For example, if I choose SampleTank 3 to load into a project, I get Synthmaster. If I choose Rob Papen's Blue II, I get a different Rob Papen Synth. This is repeatable, and the same, wrong synths are substituted for the ones I choose. If I restart the DAW, restart Sonar and not load MiGiC, the synths I choose will then load correctly into the project. (This doesn't seem to be associated with rtpMIDI, since this also happened before I realized I really needed to use rtpMIDI and then installed it.)

This does not happen with all the synths. For example, Kontakt 4 loads properly into the project, even with MiGiC running. But it happens with enough of them that there's no way to know which synth I'll get when I choose one. I'm basically playing "synth roulette" at this point.

So, my short-list of issues are:
Loading/running Bonjour on an otherwise stripped-down DAW.
Installing, loading and running rtpMIDI, and I'm not really sure what kind of access it offers even when I'm not using it in a project (which would be most of the time).
Loading/running MiGiC Helper, with no idea of what it's doing in the background.
Synth roulette/Sonar X3's list of synths is scrambled when MiGiC is running.

I had downloaded "Beta 3" from your site, but it installed v0.2.1 of MiGiC. This is the same version that I started to install earlier. (I didn't install that version; I tried to get a newer version today, but it still installed the same thing, apparently.)

Hope this helps!

Steve

Hi Steve and thank you very much for the feedback!

1. rtpMidi + MiGiC helper As you may or may not know, Windows unlike Linux and Mac does not have support for creating virtual midi-ports directly in the OS (thats why this hassle is avoided in Mac). Therefore, you need to install a virtual midi driver which emulates the driver of a physical device. IF MiGiC where to start rtpMidi directly in you DAW the DLL would be loaded and opened once you open your DAW in the evaluation or when you open the plugin for the first time. If you then close MiGiC the DLL would still be open and the next time you open MiGiC it would no longer be possible to connect the driver since the DLL is "tied" to old instance of MiGiC. This is where MiGiC helper come in. MiGiC helper is the midi-backend for Windows, and by moving it to a separate process I don't have to worry about the DAW loading the DLL. Bonjour might be needed so that the MiGiC can talk to the process. As pointed out before, users may prefer that you select a midi port in MiGiC rather than relying on rtp-midi. In practice this means that you would be responsible for creating the virtual midi port for MiGiC. Would you also prefer this?

2. The sens value Did you ever considering increasing the gain of the signal? And/or increasing the sens value? I hoped that this should be fairly intuitive but perhaps I need to call the knob something else or write a tutorial? It seems that the threshold for sens might be a little to high and I will correct this in the next beta release.

3. The "synth-roulette" This I have no logical explanation for what so ever. Totally clueless and I have never encountered this with any plugin?! Anyone having similar issues?

4. The version numbers. Beta 3 = 0.2.1 , all versions need to have a number. Would not have been possible for me to write Beta 3 instead of 0.2.1. Maybe not so intuitive but I will make sure that the name on the web page always is correct.

[planetearth]

1. rtpMidi + MiGiC helper As you may or may not know, Windows unlike Linux and Mac does not have support for creating virtual midi-ports directly in the OS (thats why this hassle is avoided in Mac). Therefore, you need to install a virtual midi driver which emulates the driver of a physical device. IF MiGiC where to start rtpMidi directly in you DAW the DLL would be loaded and opened once you open your DAW in the evaluation or when you open the plugin for the first time. If you then close MiGiC the DLL would still be open and the next time you open MiGiC it would no longer be possible to connect the driver since the DLL is "tied" to old instance of MiGiC. This is where MiGiC helper come in. MiGiC helper is the midi-backend for Windows, and by moving it to a separate process I don't have to worry about the DAW loading the DLL. Bonjour might be needed so that the MiGiC can talk to the process. As pointed out before, users may prefer that you select a midi port in MiGiC rather than relying on rtp-midi. In practice this means that you would be responsible for creating the virtual midi port for MiGiC. Would you also prefer this?

Well, to be honest, between rtpMIDI and MiGiC Helper, I'm loading twice as many apps to run MiGiC as I thought I'd need. I've never used virtual MIDI ports before, and MiGiC Helper didn't bother me so much, but rtpMIDI did. It's a third-party app that could allow access to my computer (though, if installed and configured correctly, I guess it doesn't). And there's no real documentation for it to explain what it does or how I'm supposed to configure or use it.

2. The sens value Did you ever considering increasing the gain of the signal? And/or increasing the sens value? I hoped that this should be fairly intuitive but perhaps I need to call the knob something else or write a tutorial? It seems that the threshold for sens might be a little to high and I will correct this in the next beta release.

Yes, I'll try the gain the next chance I get. Changing the sensitivity didn't give the results I expected. Lower sensitivity settings (for example, 6 or 7) still didn't trigger MiGiC very well, and I still didn't see "velocity" values below 29. Very high sensitivity settings didn't seem to have much of an effect. But I'll try increasing the gain.

3. The "synth-roulette" This I have no logical explanation for what so ever. Totally clueless and I have never encountered this with any plugin?! Anyone having similar issues?

I haven't seen this with any other plug-in, so I'll be interested in seeing what's causing this--if there's even a way to determine that.

4. The version numbers. Beta 3 = 0.2.1 , all versions need to have a number. Would not have been possible for me to write Beta 3 instead of 0.2.1. Maybe not so intuitive but I will make sure that the name on the web page always is correct.

I thought I had downloaded Beta 2 yesterday--but I see now that "Beta 2" is the standalone version, and "Beta 3" is the VST version. I understand all versions need to have a number. No worries on this.

Thanks for the quick reply, Philip, and thanks for the VST. (I also think it's pretty cool that your website is hosted on a Raspberry Pi!)

Steve

[RunBeerRun]

I was one who preferred the rtpmidi as optional, my reason is that I don't install anything directly to the hard drive, ever. Uninstalls slow down a computer and I take my rig seriously.

I do have MidiYoke installed, and am familiar with all the audio to midi softwares. I have been playing guitar since age 11. I have videos in my Youtube sig link if you're looking to see who the testers are, thanks.

The vid you posted tracked great, but had latency. That's my thoughts so far.

[philipkarlsson]

I was one who preferred the rtpmidi as optional, my reason is that I don't install anything directly to the hard drive, ever. Uninstalls slow down a computer and I take my rig seriously.

I do have MidiYoke installed, and am familiar with all the audio to midi softwares. I have been playing guitar since age 11. I have videos in my Youtube sig link if you're looking to see who the testers are, thanks.

The vid you posted tracked great, but had latency. That's my thoughts so far.

Ok....

As I pointed out I will make the rtpMidi optional and remove all dependencies towards it so that people can choose their own favourite virtual midi driver and I can spend time improving the algorithms instead of wasting time hacking virtual midi drivers on Windows

[philipkarlsson]

Thanks for the quick reply, Philip, and thanks for the VST. (I also think it's pretty cool that your website is hosted on a Raspberry Pi!)

Steve

No problem, thanks for the feedback so far! The reason that there are no documentation is that MiGiC Helper is designed so you don't have to interact with rtpmidi.. at all! It is designed so that the helper manages the creation of ports etc.

The thing is that the only way to create a virtual midi port under Windows is through a third party. I could make my own but that would increase the total development time under Windows. After the feedback I received so far I will probably leave all this up to the user. So the only thing MiGiC does is to deliver midi to an arbitrary port leaving the rest of the hassel entirely up to the user (will also make life simpler for me). Wish it was as pleasant as with Mac/Linux which have native support for virtual midi.

Hope I get my point across Still very interested in finding out whats causing the roulette, will download a version and try for my self!

[Photo_G]

Has anyone got the Windows x64 VST to detect guitar input? I've tried both StudioOne v2 and Cubase v7.5 with no luck in either.

Thanks,
G

I have, although in Ableton. Make sure that you have a signal-strength that is just a little below peaking and increase "sens". Do this before adding the plugin to the track. If the track becomes silent when you add MiGiC to the track it tracks your guitar! Also, make sure that you apply the effect to a mono track.

Cheers,
Philip

Ok, I figured it out. Here are the steps that I used to get it running in Studio One v2.6.5 (along with Philip's other guidance above) :

• 1. Start the helper (as admin if S1 also runs as admin)
  2. Launch Studio One (which I always start as admin)
  3. Create a New Keyboard device
  a. Under options > external devices
  b. Select 'receive from' MiGiC
  4. Load MiGiC on a mono audio track
  5. Load the virtual instrument of your choice
  a. Select the New Keyboard device as input
  6. Leave the helper running between sessions or...
  7. Restart the helper (as administrator, if needed)
  a. Launch Studio One after the helper starts
  b. The New Keyboard instrument will start connected

The New Keyboard device can be named to anything (like MiGiC!). If the helper is not running before S1, reconnecting the New Keyboard instrument after the plugin is loaded (and the helper launches) does not seem to help.

Cubase v7.5.30 simply shows 'MiGiC' as an instrument channel input as long as the helper is loaded before the DAW is started up (as Philip indicates in his install notes) which is, I assume, how Ableton and most other DAW's should work.

G

[izonin]

All you need on Windows is a plugin with a midi out pin, just like any other pitch to midi plugin - Fretkeys, Midi Guitar, Midifier, Guitsyn, etc. The midi streaming is thus handled within the DAW, no third party virtual cables or drivers required.

[philipkarlsson]

All you need on Windows is a plugin with a midi out pin, just like any other pitch to midi plugin - Fretkeys, Midi Guitar, Midifier, Guitsyn, etc. The midi streaming is thus handled within the DAW, no third party virtual cables or drivers required.

This would make my life SO much easier. Since this is not possible with AU (and Im a mac guy..) I didnt know about this!

Will give it a shot in the next few days and upload it to you guys if its successful.

Thanks for your input.

[philipkarlsson]

Has anyone got the Windows x64 VST to detect guitar input? I've tried both StudioOne v2 and Cubase v7.5 with no luck in either.

Thanks,
G

I have, although in Ableton. Make sure that you have a signal-strength that is just a little below peaking and increase "sens". Do this before adding the plugin to the track. If the track becomes silent when you add MiGiC to the track it tracks your guitar! Also, make sure that you apply the effect to a mono track.

Cheers,
Philip

Ok, I figured it out. Here are the steps that I used to get it running in Studio One v2.6.5 (along with Philip's other guidance above) :

• 1. Start the helper (as admin if S1 also runs as admin)
  2. Launch Studio One (which I always start as admin)
  3. Create a New Keyboard device
  a. Under options > external devices
  b. Select 'receive from' MiGiC
  4. Load MiGiC on a mono audio track
  5. Load the virtual instrument of your choice
  a. Select the New Keyboard device as input
  6. Leave the helper running between sessions or...
  7. Restart the helper (as administrator, if needed)
  a. Launch Studio One after the helper starts
  b. The New Keyboard instrument will start connected

The New Keyboard device can be named to anything (like MiGiC!). If the helper is not running before S1, reconnecting the New Keyboard instrument after the plugin is loaded (and the helper launches) does not seem to help.

Cubase v7.5.30 simply shows 'MiGiC' as an instrument channel input as long as the helper is loaded before the DAW is started up (as Philip indicates in his install notes) which is, I assume, how Ableton and most other DAW's should work.

G

Thank you very much, will copy this and add it to the FAQ on my webpage!

[Photo_G]

All you need on Windows is a plugin with a midi out pin, just like any other pitch to midi plugin - Fretkeys, Midi Guitar, Midifier, Guitsyn, etc. The midi streaming is thus handled within the DAW, no third party virtual cables or drivers required.

This would make my life SO much easier. Since this is not possible with AU (and Im a mac guy..) I didnt know about this!

Will give it a shot in the next few days and upload it to you guys if its successful.

Thanks for your input.

THAT would be awesome!

G