K2.1 Instrument Volume Output

With K2.1 there is the new instrument volume option where you can adjust the throw of CC#7 per patch. Nice feature, only it defaults to -6dB, lowering the output of every patch. This is a problem when opening previous projects, as it throws mixes out of whack. Adding 6dB of gain at the main out stage is a workaround, but not a good one.

This would be a non-issue if NI had made this a global option, but instead you have to change the output level for each instrument separately. Not a good call, if you ask me. I'm not sure I understand the logic of having this option on a per instrument basis, but at the very least there should be an option to override inst. volume defaults with a global setting.

 

Click the Options button and select the Audio Engine tab.
The first option is: Default Volume for new instrumnent and volume reset.
You have a choice between -6dB or 0dB.
Is that what you're looking for?

 

No. I already have that set to 0dB. This is another level of gain reduction that is at the instrument level and is independent from the global setting you mentioned.

 

Exactly. I also have problems with the new gain level that is set at instrument level. All K2 instruments in old projects sound 6dB too low... *sigh*.

To not break older projects, NI could've either:

1) made the setting global
2) made existing instruments go up to 0dB

 

To not make the setting global or at least have that option seems absolutely ridiculous to me too.

Has anyone made a formal complaint because I will!

Dan Carter

 

Hi,

I fight with this problem for hours ...
Even if I put the volume to 0,0 dB manual it returns back to -6 dB when I start playback.
I have Sonar HS 4 and K2.1 as VST running.

Any suggestions?

Cheers
Dietmar

 

yes, i found this problem today when going to 2.1.1 (i held off 2.1). i too cant understand why NI didnt just make 0db the defalt, and have a global option?

as you probably know, this is not a good workaround since your patch will only be 6db lower if the midi vol is at max (127). '-infinity...-6db' setting affects the midi range not a global 6db change. so change the instrument options to '-infintiy...0db' for each instrument and i think all is as K2.02 was. i just went through all my old projects doing this.

regards,

 

Hi all,

I missed to document this new feature in the Readme:

- New options have been added to the Instrument Options /
Controller Tab to set the range of the CC#7 volume automation. The
default range is - infinity to -6 db.

MIDI Controller #7 (Volume) range

* - infinity to - 12 db

* - infinity to - 6 db

* - infinity to 0 db

* - infinity to 6 db

* - infinity to 12 db


Best,
Markus

 

Hi,
Is there a way to change this option on all instruments?
I have a project (made with Kontakt 2.02) with 3 instances of Kontakt (2 computers) each with 16 channels.
Do I have to change this setting 48x ?
Thanks for your help

Kurzwave

 

Hi,

i was just about to post about this very topic when I came across this existing thread. We have waited to upgrade to 2.1 until now, and therefore just came across this problem.
The fact that this new feature in K2.1 defaults to -6dB is a HUGE problem for us!! All our Kontakt instruments made in previous versions defaulted to 0dB on CC#7=127, so when we load old or active projects now, our mixes are completely screwed up.

First of all, I have to say that the choice to make -6 the default is very odd, to say the least. Why not keep it at 0dB, like it was before? That really makes no sense to me.
Secondly, this really needs to be a GLOBAL option. Or there should be a global option that will override the instrument option. As long as it is an instrument option only, Kontakt 2.1 is completely unuseable for us.
We have thousands upon thousands upon thousands of Kontakt instruments (think everything made by EastWest/Quantum Leap, VSL Pro Ed, everything Spectrasonics and most other major sample libraries as well as a huge personal sample collection built over the last two decades). It is simply impossible to go through all that and re-save it with the new setting at 0dB!

There absolutely has to be a way to set the default range to 0dB globally, or some way of batch saving instruments with the correct setting set in instrument options.

I really hope NI will take this issue seriously, and post a reply here. This affects the way hundreds of composers like us work, and currently makes an otherwise excellent program unuseable. For now, we have had to revert back to v2.0.2

Hoping for a response from NI!

Sincerely,

Andreas Bjorck
Sheldon Mirowitz
Verité Music
Boston, MA, USA

 

Hi all,

we will be looking into possible options to the problem below. sorry to break the former default value for this setting!


Best,
Markus

 

Hi, Markus - -

Personally, I thought that it was *me* when I went back to older (pre-2.1.1) projects and seemed to have funny levels. If this is a ready FIX to this newly-introduced incompatible change, I think it would rate major attention and worthy of a 2.1.x Release.

my humble $0.02 ... KevinKauai

 

The problem is caused by the midi automation scale setting of "63%" for cc#7 or volume, and the only way to clear it up is to select it and remove it, then drag the volume entry in the midi automation back over to the volume fader on the instrument.

Now it'll be set for 100%, what you've had in the past.

Very stupid for NI to have done this.IMHO. very stupid...
/d

 

Hi all,

I thought about the below more - there is actually no good way to offer an automated way to fix this at this point.

please go through the patches in question and change the CC#7 range in the Instrument Options - Controller tab.

for the next Kontakt update, we will set the default range to -infinity to 0 db.


Best,
Markus

 

That's great.....many thanks....

 

Markus,

What happened with this? We just installed the 2.2 update, and it appears the default range is now set to -infinity to +12dB!?

This has to be a mistake, no? In your post above you indicated that it would be changed back from -6 to 0dB in this update. Changing it to +12 makes no sense at all. A value of +12 means that practically every single instrument we own or have ever made will now distort at fulll volume. This makes the 2.2 update, if possible, even MORE unusable than the previous one for people that use CC#7 either as a performance or mix parameter.

Again, what happened? If this change was intended, we would really like to know the reason why +12 was choses as the new default. If it was a mistake, then I hope there will be a hotfix for this VERY soon.

We appreciate your response to this matter.

Thanks!

Sincerely,
Verité Music
Boston, MA
USA

 

Hi veritejoe,

it should be as follows now

* -infinty to 0 db (instead of -6 dB) for all new and Kontakt 2 instruments (default in Kontakt 2.0)

* - infinity to 12 db for all Kontakt 1.x instruments (default in Kontakt 1.x)


best,
Markus

 

Not fixed in VST mode in 2.2.1

Add the following exception:

* - infinity to -6 db for all Kontakt 1.x instruments in VST mode

By the way - this is worse than it has ever been before. I don't understand the rational of going up to +12 on existing instruments, -6 in VST mode, forcing a change of every single instrument. Either explain it or listen to the users who are demanding it get set back to 0. How many product revisions do we have to install to get this resolved?

 

On my PC K1 instruments open at infinity to 12 dB (in K2.2.1 DXi & VST). Are you sure you use the latest VST version (click the Kontakt logo to see the version)? You may have to copy the Kontakt2.dll to your sequencer's VST folder.

 

Hey guys, I'm not sure if this is the place to describe my issue, but
I downloaded the current kontakt 2.2 that is on the NI website as of today
June 2nd

Every time I load up a Kompakt NKI ( yes , I still like some of those sounds) I will play a few bars and the levels are fine, and then BAM!

All of a sudden they rise in volume. THey get very loud. I can literally see the instrument volume slider jump from the left to the right.

Do I have a ghost moving my knobs.

AND ALSO, when loading a different sample collection, I will play fine for a while, and then the sound will drop the other way! The vloume goes down!

I don't get it. Why can't the volume just stay where it is?

Sounds like an easy fix to me, but im no programmer

Please help, any advice would be grateful