Synth in QTractor

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Musicteacher
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Synth in QTractor

Post by Musicteacher »

Hi,
I'd like to use Yoshimi or ZynAddSubFX as a plugin in QTractor.

How must I set things up to be able to choose the bank and the sound?

I had the problem that the sound kept switching back to another sound, so I think I must be doing something wrong.

Also, which of the two is better for use within QTractor?

Thanks and sorry for the probably dumb question,
Andreas
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bluebell
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Re: Synth in QTractor

Post by bluebell »

Musicteacher wrote:Hi,
I'd like to use Yoshimi or ZynAddSubFX as a plugin in QTractor.

How must I set things up to be able to choose the bank and the sound?

I had the problem that the sound kept switching back to another sound, so I think I must be doing something wrong.

Also, which of the two is better for use within QTractor?

Thanks and sorry for the probably dumb question,
Andreas
Both work fine. Qtractor's concept is not to switch Bank/Program within a track. My way to do it:

- One sound, one MIDI track. That's no problem because you can have as many MIDI tracks with synths as you like.
- If you work "in the box" several tracks can have the same MIDI channel. You’re not limited to 15 tracks.
- In the track's properties: (No instrument), Bank (None), Program (None)
- I select the sound in the plugin as appropriate. Qtractor remembers this when the session is saved/loaded.

Works fine.

Linux – MOTU UltraLite AVB – Qtractor – http://suedwestlicht.saar.de/

Musicteacher
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Re: Synth in QTractor

Post by Musicteacher »

Thanks! I think the "no instrument - no bank - no sound" property is important, as I did differently, and it didn't work. I'll try it out this evening!
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Re: Synth in QTractor

Post by Linuxmusician01 »

I didn't realise but Yoshimi is a a software synthesizer based on ZynAddSubFX. I cannot find a Yoshimi plugin, but I can start Yoshimi as some sort of standalone synth...

This is how I tried to load the ZynAddSubFX plugin in Qtractor:
  1. Click on the button in the toolbar "Add track". The Track window pops up.
  2. I the Track window, under "Type", I choose "Midi".
  3. Then I click on the "Plugins" tab.
  4. In the Plugins tab of the Track window I choose "Add". The Pugins windows pops up.
  5. If I search for ZynAddSubFX then I can see two types of it: an LV2 plugin and a (Linux Native) VST.
  6. If I choose the LV2 plugin then a window "flies away in to nothing", i.e. it's window wont show. If I choose the VST version then an empty window pops up.
  7. One can choose and Instrument Bank in Yoshimi via: "Instrument -> Choose instrument bank -> click on the black triangle/down arrow next to the button called "Refresk bank list"". Now I can play and hear Yoshimi If I ise it's built in keyboard (Instrument ._ Virtual keyboard).
  8. In Qtractor I can use the right mouse button on the newly created ZynAddSubFX track on the left hand side of Qtractor's UI.
  9. Then I choose: "Instrument -> ZynAddSubFX -> Bank 0". I cannot find said Instrument Bank that has a lot of instruments defined....
I tried to put in some notes in Qtractor/ZynAddSubFX with the piano roll. Played it back, see a lot happening in the mixer but I hear nothing. Tried to add a track in Qtractor w/ my favourite Midi VST (a Minimoog clone), added notes in the piano roll and did hear sound.

I give up. Don't know how to use the ZynAddSubFX plugin in Qtractor. Maybe I'm not experienced enough with Qtractor, maybe ZynAddSubFX is broken, I don't know.

P.S. Just read the reply you posted while I was writing. Do you hear anything??
Last edited by Linuxmusician01 on Fri Mar 08, 2019 7:25 pm, edited 2 times in total.
glowrak guy
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Re: Synth in QTractor

Post by glowrak guy »

Hi, at the moment, I have linux reaper loaded, with zyn-fusion on one track,
and zynaddsubfx with the more traditional gui on another track
by first loading carla-rack on a reaper track, and loading zynaddsubfx to that rack.
And also have a standalone zynaddsubfx routed to
a Reaper audio track, with zyn-chorus as an effect
on that track.

The vst path to zyn-fusion is /opt/zyn-fusion
but you could also link the .so to your home/you/.vst folder
Cheers
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Re: Synth in QTractor

Post by sysrqer »

glowrak guy wrote:Hi, at the moment, I have linux reaper loaded, with zyn-fusion on one track,
and zynaddsubfx with the more traditional gui on another track
by first loading carla-rack on a reaper track, and loading zynaddsubfx to that rack.
And also have a standalone zynaddsubfx routed to
a Reaper audio track, with zyn-chorus as an effect
on that track.

The vst path to zyn-fusion is /opt/zyn-fusion
but you could also link the .so to your home/you/.vst folder
Cheers
For what purpose?
glowrak guy
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Re: Synth in QTractor

Post by glowrak guy »

I posted a working alternative, just trying to be useful.
glowrak guy
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Re: Synth in QTractor

Post by glowrak guy »

Linuxmusician01 wrote: Do you hear anything??
Somethings require jack-midi

a2jmidid -j default

Make connections in the MIDI tab of qjackctl

linux Reaper and the standalone zynaddsubfx
both use jack-midi
Cheers

I also started yoshimi -J
and added that to a reaper audio track
Last edited by glowrak guy on Fri Mar 08, 2019 7:50 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Synth in QTractor

Post by Linuxmusician01 »

glowrak guy wrote:
Linuxmusician01 wrote: Do you hear anything??
Somethings require jack-midi

a2jmidid -j default

Make connections in the MIDI tab of qjackctl

linux Reaper and the standalone zynaddsubfx
both use jack-midi
Cheers
Thanks for the tip. For Qtractor and Zyn it wasn't needed. I read in another topic that you wrote that it might be needed for Reaper.
bluebell wrote: Both work fine. Qtractor's concept is not to switch Bank/Program within a track. My way to do it:

- One sound, one MIDI track. That's no problem because you can have as many MIDI tracks with synths as you like.
- If you work "in the box" several tracks can have the same MIDI channel. You’re not limited to 15 tracks.
- In the track's properties: (No instrument), Bank (None), Program (None)
- I select the sound in the plugin as appropriate. Qtractor remembers this when the session is saved/loaded.

Works fine.
I get sound out of Zyn now too. How can you change the settings/patch of Zyn? I cannot activate a settings screen like I can in any other plugin...
glowrak guy
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Re: Synth in QTractor

Post by glowrak guy »

By settings, do you mean editing synth parameters?
Basic app setting are in the File menu.

If loading with Carla, the gear icon launches the full
zyn gui, the wrench icon is the limited default access gui

On the full gui, there is an Edit Instrument button in the old zyn interface,
lower left, opens a panel with three types of synthesis
to edit, each with a tickbox to enable, and an Edit button
to launch that module's control panel.

zyn-fusion is a custom modernized gui, with
add, sub, and pad buttons on the lower left of it's gui,
to launch those three parameter editors.

Yoshimi's Edit button is on the middle-right
of the gui, but launches the same three edit panel controls

The zyn and yoshimi Instruments menus have a load bank option,
I keep banks in /home/me/.zynaddsubfx, or (.yoshimi)
but the sounds are the same format, and still interchangeable for most uses.
Click each entry in the bank panel to open it, to reveal individual sounds
Cheers
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Re: Synth in QTractor

Post by Linuxmusician01 »

glowrak guy wrote:By settings, do you mean editing synth parameters?
Basic app setting are in the File menu.

If loading with Carla, the gear icon launches the full
zyn gui, the wrench icon is the limited default access gui

On the full gui, there is an Edit Instrument button in the old zyn interface,
lower left, opens a panel with three types of synthesis
to edit, each with a tickbox to enable, and an Edit button
to launch that module's control panel.

zyn-fusion is a custom modernized gui, with
add, sub, and pad buttons on the lower left of it's gui,
to launch those three parameter editors.

Yoshimi's Edit button is on the middle-right
of the gui, but launches the same three edit panel controls

The zyn and yoshimi Instruments menus have a load bank option,
I keep banks in /home/me/.zynaddsubfx, or (.yoshimi)
but the sounds are the same format, and still interchangeable for most uses.
Click each entry in the bank panel to open it, to reveal individual sounds
Cheers
Thanks for the Carla tip. I loaded the LV2 version of Zyn directly in Qtractor and then it does not show its GUI! If I load Zyn via Carla in Qtractor then it works. :)
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Re: Synth in QTractor

Post by Musicteacher »

My problem was different. After using the recomended setting, the program still did change.

The track was imported from Muse Score, there was a program change event in it. That was quite hard to notice!

Regards,

Andreas
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