Freemidi patchlists and Absynth

Anybody know the secret of setting up a freemidi patchlist so that I can see my custom bank of Absynth sounds while using Digital Performer?

I got this far: made the custom bank in Absynth, copied all names to a simpletext file (copied, sort of, the format of the already existing "Native Instruments B4" file in the System Folder/Freemidi/Default Names/Applications folder), changing a few things like total patch number to 128, etc.

No go. DP3 can't recognize it. I keep going back, changing a couple of things, trying again, nothing seems to work.

Any gurus out there who can help?

TIA

 

You can add a patch list to freemidi by hand. You have to use the patch list manager you will find this in the freemidi apps folder. Go to the patch list menu. Choose Add patch list.New list will appear click on it and name it double click on the move handle this will open it. The sound names window should open set up the numbering format to suit your self click on patch 1 and name it then press enter to move to the next name. To make it appear in DP assign it to the appropriate device in the patch list manager device window. In the freemidi device window click in the patch list col to the right of the device name choose your patch list. Hope this works.

 

...Apporpriate device?

I'm with you on the custom patchlist (I've already done it for my Microwave XT), but still unclear as to how to assign the patchlist to a device (or a device to a patchlist)

In my Freemidi setup, there is no option for adding "Absynth" as a device, nor is there a physical location for it (i.e. MTP port 3).

As a test, I created a new device called Absynth, left it as 'unconnected' in the Freemidi setup, and then assigned my custom patchlist to this device.

Result: DP3 still sees nothing. Back to square one. I'm convinced the solution lies in that "Applications" folder in the Default names folder. That's where NI's B4 patchlist goes, same thing with the Virtual Sound Canvas...how to get it to work is another thing...

 

...

I have Absynth as well as DP3 I will try and see if I can come up with
anything.

 

...

I have a possible answer this may not be very elegant but it seemed to work.
In the default names file there is a simple text document called standard
names. I started to put in the absynth names in
place of the "patch1" etc this does allow you to call up the names of one
bank of absynth names but will mean all unsupported devices will come up
with that same bank. I think you are right the problem is in the default
names. If you could copy the B3 file and change them to the absynth names
and the absynth ID code it might work. If not try contacting Musictrack if you are in the UK they are very helpful or you could always ask NI to provide some patch lists as they do it for Pro 52.

 

Thanks a lot for the info. I'll try the standard names trick first, then try to get to the bottom of the ID code. I just downloaded the Demo of B4, and sure enough, the File Creator was NiB4, just like the code. I'll put in the code for Absynth and see if that works.

 

...

if you manage to solve the problem let me know as I may use it in DP myself

 

Tried the "Standard Names" workaround, and it works like a charm (thanks again...)

My theory about changing the code to CLaM (the Absynth code) failed in practice, although I'm still convinced that's how it's supposed to be implemented. This will become more important soon, as I plan to purchase Kontakt, and will probably run into similar problems there....
For now I'll go with the standard names method, and fiddle with my other theory when I don't have to actually get work done.

 

...

The only other thing I could think of is the fact that freemidi does not
know that Absynth is there. I noticed when I installed a demo of Bitzhead
Unity. In the freemidi config there is a unity input driver so I suspect
that freemidi is a least aware of the program. I also tried creating a
device for Absynth as you did but as much success as you. I think that
freemidi can not assign the patchlist to the created device because it is
not there as far as it is concerned. How you get round this I do not know it
is a bit beyond my limited understanding of the workings of such programs.

 

I haven't tried this, but why not assign Absynth to an iac port? I think the patches will then stick to it ...

 

...

if an iac port is to do with interapplication midi I don"t know how you
assign Absynth to the port, if it is not related to the above could you tell
me what it is.

 

in the early days of soft synths you had to create an interapplication port in OMS or FreeMidi and then assign the program to it in the sequencer. Since that's how AS-1 works and its patches show up in DP and Logic, I thought that might work for you.

 

You can still define IAC busses in OMS (or at least name them), but I don't think you can in Freemidi. You can check "Inter-application Midi" in the Freemidi preferences, but I think that's about as elaborate as it gets.

I tried to have Freemidi use OMS, and assigned Absynth to an IAC bus in OMS. As a result, I couldn't get DP3 to trigger Absynth at all, plus, I lost most of my patch names for the rest of my gear. Went back to freemidi. I emailed tech support at MOTU, but haven't heard back

 

If you use Audio Ease VST wrapper ,this negates the need for patch lists as the bank used in any DP session loads up with the session

 

The loading of the bank is not an issue. It's being able to choose the patches by name. I don't see how using Absynth as a VST plug-in removes my need to know what my patches are called.

 

from the 1.0.2 manual:

OMS Names Manager
You can use File>>Export Names to Clipboard to copy the names of all the presets
to the clipboard. You can then paste the names into an OMS Names Manager
document. This will only work for an OMS IAC buss defined in your Studio Setup
however. For information on using the OMS Names manager, see your sequencer's
manual.

Don't think the issue has changed ...

 

Well you could use this as a workaround. But it takes a little work.

Set up FreeMidi to use OMS. Add Absynth to your IAC bus in OMS and create a OMS patch list using Name Manager. (I got Name Manager with ProTools, I don't know where else you can get it.)

Then to get DP to use FreeMidi Patchlist for your other synths you must do the following:

Create dummy devices in OMS using a synth that is both supported by OMS and FreeMidi and that you don't own. But then name them whatever they actually are. For example--you own a Roland XV-5080, so you create a device in OMS and select JV-1080 (assuming you don't own a JV-1080, if you do then pick another device) and name it XV-5080. Then rename the patchlist in FreeMidi Name folder to match that of the corresponding dummy device (so the FM patchlist for XV-5080 will be renamed JV-1080.) Get rid of or rename the actual JV-1080 patchlist in FreeMidi and OMS Name Folders. In DP, it will look to OMS for the name, but not finding anything, will use the FreeMidi List.

I use DP everyday with Absynth and this works for me. (But I use OMS anyway, which is why I dealt with this in the first place.)

 

Thanks, shadowbox, for the reply. I was able to get DP3 to see all the correct patch names for my synths using OMS as you described. However, I don't have Name Manager, so pasting the names into a Names Manager document is impossible (this technique, which is also of course in the Absynth manual, was described in the post previous to yours).

Any chance of sending me that Names manager app?