Bitwig 5 browser is a mess

[Hanz Meyzer]

Also can’t find it better, except some minor improvements. The biggest headache i have here, that the collections do not really work anymore, and there are only 13 places for shortcuts. The shortcut graphics all look very similar. Then layout gets wider the more shortcuts (uber ugly), and the browser never starts with the filter i want (even i defined a start setup per type, but this is still too retarded), and there are way too many, very confusing filter groups. Grouping by sound type is nonsense, because someone sorted this for you already in an annoying way. If i want to see uhe categories, i have to click 6 times first and so on.

In the end, i have to click way more now, and the filter groups are just annoying.

I think their goal was to integrate the packages, and something then went wrong. Maybe the didn’t do a proper concept phase first, and the features raised up spontaneously in an „agile“ way….

Please fix collections and improve context related start filtering at least… but because Community is not involved into the conceptual process, they will never fix this properly sadly, that’s what i believe.

[dupont]

yes another example yesterday, plugin tone booster installed, can't found tone booster under manufacturer tag ?

'ToneBoosters' - no space between the two words.

ah, found, I clicked on the wrong left side icon, I can know see the manufacturers names list. Not intuitive, I've been working with version 5 for several weeks and only found this morning how to do this simple task !!!

[Jolaff]

What I would like is quite basic.

1. A shortcut to a folder (yellow rectangle)
2. That shows me only what is inside that folder on the left panel (red rectangle)
3. And that shows the result that are now on the bottom panel on a right panel (blue rectangle)
4. No need to show the parents folder (purple rectangle)

or that shortcut could be a tag that shows as result all folders/files that I tagged ...as in Ableton Live ...with collections you can't tag a folder

[neverbeeninariot]

yes another example yesterday, plugin tone booster installed, can't found tone booster under manufacturer tag ?

'ToneBoosters' - no space between the two words.

ah, found, I clicked on the wrong left side icon, I can know see the manufacturers names list. Not intuitive, I've been working with version 5 for several weeks and only found this morning how to do this simple task !!!

There's a bit of a learning curve, and still a few weird bugs - but after a little time using it, I get on with it ok, or at least, it mostly does what I need it to do.

I'm guessing/hopeing that we'll see some refinements and workflow tweaks to the browser in due time.

[dirtydenver]

Also not a fan of the new browser. Old one was perfect, simple, efficient. Could always find what I needed instantly. New one I'm constantly confused on where I am, what I'm looking at, what filters are on / not on, why certain plugins aren't showing up, etc...

[Teksonik]

I finally gave up on the version 5 browser. It's just too bloated and buggy for me. It seems rushed and poorly tested.

I've been working with the browser in Tracktion Waveform 12 and it's much better for my needs.

It does have the ability to customize plugin display names which BW does not (unless they added it in 5.0.7 but I have my doubts).

So for example "TR5 Sunset Sound Studio Reverb" becomes simply Sunset Reverb and so on. Very nice feature to make a tight and efficient plugin data base.

Waveform also has true midi step record which BW does not so I've been spending most of my time with it for the last couple of weeks.

I won't give up on BW altogether but at the moment it's not seeing any usage here. We'll see what updates come in the future but it seems like BW and I are going in different directions.

[aMUSEd]

I wish there was a button for presets along with the buttons for samples etc

What do you mean?

I mean there are buttons on the side for 'Everything', 'All Instruments', 'Audio FX', 'Note FX', 'Plugins' and 'My Library' - why not one for presets? To find presets for a specific plugin, let's say Diva for example, I have to Click on 'Everything', then 'Location', then browse down till I get to Diva user or factory presets. It's ridiculous. The old browser would take me directly to the presets for whichever plugin was loaded as long as they were compatible.

Yes I do know I can also click on the arrow next to the plugin in the pop up browser but that way I just get a list of all 7,000 + Diva presets I have, no organisation by bank, just one long list.

[nowiamone]

It does have the ability to customize plugin display names which BW does not (unless they added it in 5.0.7 but I have my doubts).

So for example "TR5 Sunset Sound Studio Reverb" becomes simply Sunset Reverb and so on. Very nice feature to make a tight and efficient plugin data base.

Oh yea. I would not only love to customize Plugin names, but also the categories and tags! A real individualized and powerful Browser does not have pre-written Categories and Tags made by someone else... How should it ever fit the needs of your own individual musical universe of libraries/samples?
I'm not favoring the BW4 Browser over the BW5 Browser, and i think it's still a lot better than Abletons Browser, and i can look over its impairments, and focus on more important stuff. BUT i find it highly disappointing to see how much potential has been given away despite Bitwig focusing on a Browser Update for many months...

My wishes for the Browser right now would be:

• Let users customize the names of Plugins
  Let users create mini-preview-pictures of their Plugins (Optional “visual” Browser)
  Let users deactivate “live-preview” permanently!
  Let users customize the Categories
  Let users customize the Tags
  Add Shortcut for "Play with original speed/stretch to project tempo"
  Fix the “Select All” Shortcut not really selecting all samples in huge Sample-Lists.

What would be yours?

[xbitz]

^^^ set of tag can be extended 'Edit file metadata...'

[xbitz]

dunno what is the issue, mac:opt+cmd+ u/d arrows navigate between the collections (on the left) (I've created all,bitwig devices,non-bitwig devices, presets, favorites), mac:opt+cmd+ l/r arrows navigates in the filters area, 's' key goes back to the search field

perfectly usable, far better than the previous one not messy at all

[nowiamone]

^^^ set of tag can be extended 'Edit file metadata...'

Wow, thanks alot! Question: is this function documented in the manual in the Browser Section? I did not find it. Metadata tag setting is only mentioned for saving templates. Maybe i've overlooked it though.

I have to agree with you, it is not a total mess. And i personally don't share the high amount of hate against it, or the 'bring back the old browser' sentiment.

However, one thing is 100% a mess: The way Bitwig introduced the new Browser. Taches Teaches would never ever have called his first v5 Browser Video "how to make the Bitwig 5 Browser less awful" - not even jokingly, if it wasn't for the fact, that many people were overwhelmed by the lack of beginner-friendly documentation esp. via video, at release of v5. Bitwigs own video came one month after release.

Another thing which is totally messy, unless you prove me wrong, is exactly 'our' topic: The setting of tags.
First and foremost, after trying out your method, the first thing i saw after trying to save a newly tagged noteclip, was this:

1.jpg

This appears to happen, when you want to save the item with only your OWN custom tag.

Then, a second mess appeared, when i tried to edit the tag of a sample.
Because that sample has been tagged by Bitwig extensively, the tags take up all the space of the input-field. Thus forcing me to drag the window horizontally, before being able to type anything in. (Or deleting old tags).

anfang.jpg

ende.jpg

The third absolute mess is: You can't delete already existing tags. Correct?
The main thing i was complaining about and the main thing i would love to have is:
- Option, to set custom tags. By which i mean: Delete EVERY metadata tag out of existence with one click, and then being able to QUICKLY and EFFORTLESSLY add my own Tags. Just a random thought coming up within a millisecond on how it could be quicker: Instead of forcing the user to rightclick-> edit metadata, they could let the user select one (or many!) Items and open up the tag-editor with one click in the right browser-region on a symbol / or via shortcut. Also, they could improve the scaling of the Window and make it more userfriendly.

A forth mess is:
Look at this, come on:

3.jpg

Never have i felt this underwhelmed by a "list" which is supposed to be a list, but it doesn't show as a list. What i mean by that: If you insert a new sample in the cliplauncher for example, and the small browser window squeezes the tag area almost out of existence, Bitwig decided to "well lets just show SOME of the tags, when the window is small". Any other interface on the market then at least gives you some visual hint, via a scrollbar, for example, that says 'hey, there are MORE tags/items - you just don't see them, but, here, take this scrollbar and you'll be able to!' In Bitwig you can rightclick, to see all... naaaa. that's messy. Now imagine adding to this ^^^^^existing mess my own 'library of tags'. Jesus, THAT would be a mess. I won't even start adding my own tags, until i know i can delete the already existing tags.

[pdxindy]

I wish there was a button for presets along with the buttons for samples etc

What do you mean?

I mean there are buttons on the side for 'Everything', 'All Instruments', 'Audio FX', 'Note FX', 'Plugins' and 'My Library' - why not one for presets?

Uhh... just make one

The only Quick Source on the left side that is fixed is Everything... all the others you can delete, rearrange, or add your own

[monolithx]

All these pages of explanation on how to use a browser instead of playing music. Then maybe the problem is not the user...

[fireapplered]

I still hate it and have given up on the right hand browser panel. I used to have everything dispayed as I wanted now I have to click too many things to get what was set as my default before.

Several of the views, especially Everything lag for 20-30 seconds whenever I click or type. Support were not able to recreate it or fix it.

To get to my sample folder quick source I have to click Sound Content > Sample Folder even though the locations shortcut in my quick sources is set to my the sample folder. With the added lag this takes 40 to 50 seconds.

Is anyone else having problems with lag?

I REALLY miss the old browser.

[fceramic]

The new browser is just terrible. This is what happens when you don't have a UX designer. It constantly gets in my way and doesn't behave like expected. Now when I want to change a plugin, the browser has saved the previous search snapshot, so I have to click in the search field and delete what is written or remove filters. Sometimes I really feel that the Bitwig designers don't use their own software.
Sometimes it's so convoluted that I just feel lost looking around at all the tiny icons, filters, collections, locations and modes. It's such a mess.