New Virtual Drummer (and a virtual bassist coming!!!) - Work

[garchev]

I was long time intimidated by the limitations of the instant drummers... Besides, there is no way to adjust the playing of the virtual drummer.

A couple of months ago I purchased an unique product - a virtual "team" of drummers which is very similar to the Instant Drummer. The beauty of it is that you can change different drummers according to your stile preferences (Metallica or jazz, for example), you can control everything, type of drum kits and single drums, intensity, combine different parts, etc. And the best part: it has an artificial "brain" which follows your playing, tempo, etc!!! There are also plenty of video demonstrations so check them out.

The product is called Rayzoon Jamstix 2 - http://www.rayzoon.com/. It is very affordable price-wise as well. It is a VST, but if you use SaviHost, you can make any VST standalone... Anyway... There is a demo which you can work with at: http://www.rayzoon.com/jamstix2_demo.html

Now, what should we do to make it play in Riffworks?

You need a VST Chainer - this one works for me great - http://www.kvraudio.com/get/1068.html, and it's free...

Then you need EnergyXT which is a DAW sequencer. The beauty of EnergyXT is that it is standalone and VST as well, which means that you can put it in another DAW or VST host or VST Chainer. I don't know of other DAWs that have a VST version, but I might be wrong.

EnergyXT is something loke $80 or so, but there is a trial download from the website with all the functions working: http://www.energy-xt.com/download/.

What you need id the "energyXT2 - VST Plugin version"...

Instal or put the VST s in a separate folder (e.g. Riffworks VSTs anywhere you want). It doesn't really matter, they can be in different folders, hard drives, etc., it's just to make the example easier.

In this Riffworks VSTs folder you should have MultiFXVST.dll, enrgyXT.dll and jamstix2.dll.

Start Riffworks, go to "Hardware" button, click. Now the red light should be off. Now click below on "Effects" and light should be on.

Go to "Amp", click on it and from the drop down menu select *Select Plug-in Path*. From the browser select the "Riffworks VSTs folder". Now you three plug-ins should be in the drop down menu. Select MultiFXVST.dll. You'll see a separate pop-up window with the general MultiFXVST interface. Go to "Add" and from the browser select enrgyXT.dll from the "Riffworks VSTs folder". Still in the MultiFXVST , go to "Effects" tab. Click.

Now you will see the enrgyXT interface. Go to File>setup>Browser>Plugins and locate again "Riffworks VSTs folder", this time jamstix2.dll and click on "Add" on the right side. Close the Setup window.

Now,on the left-hand side there is a pluin button. Click on it untill you see the jamstix2. Drag and drop jamstix onto the "modular environment" on the right side.

What this environment shows is different units and virtual connections between them. You don't need to do anything, the connections should be established automatically (but you should read more about enerfXT, IF YOU ARE INTERESTED...).

Double click on jamstix2 module in the modular environment and the Jamstix 2 screen should appear....

A"Quickstart songs" menu should appear, if not, go to the menu tab... I've never used the demo, since I have a registered version, (I was so blown away, I bought it right away, without trying it...). So, from the Quickstart, choose anyJamsessiom...

Then go back to energyXY and hit the play button (top center).

Now you should hear the jam...

In Riffworks, just hit recor for the layer...(don't forget to switch off the instant drummer, as it will be mixed, (BTW, one more option to mix things!!!).

That's it. I know it may seem complicated, but believe me, it is not. I was playing with chainers and VSTs and Riffworks and once you get the simple logic of connecting VSTs, there you go, you can chain effects, drummers, virtual bassists, audio and midi files, you name it. This is because now you have the power of a DAW sequencer into Riffworks.

Last thoughts, I know people from Riffworks might not like this, as it can hurt Instant Drummer sales, but I really think that they are not flexible and competitive enough with respect to adding more useful features.

Cheers,

[garchev]

BTW, instead of Jamstix 2, you can have ANY virtual instrument, an audio or midi file, or an input aoudio or midi signal from another instrument, through an VST effect to Riffworks...

And there is zero latency in the chain....

[blue4u]

Very cool!!! Thanks for taking the time to write that!! I've been wanting to check this one out for a LONG time. I wonder....is it possible to get EZDrummer to work with Jamstix AND Riffworks all at once? That would be something I love the sounds in EZDrummer.

No matter what, I STILL love instant drummers They have their own charm just in how easy they are to use, make changes on the fly (in real time), jam with others on RiffLink and have them actually hear the drums you're using and some of them really do sound great!

It's not about replacing anything just about making it better....

[garchev]

In Jamstix 2, you can actually use not only their drum library packs, but any other midi drum library as EZDrummer, Addicrtive Drums or Groove Agent (BTW, ther is already an EZDrummer library in Jamstix 2). In these instances, Jamstix acts like a host; you can load any libraryvia VST capability within Jamstix.

It's not only that, you can load ANY Drum VST Synth instead of the drum midi libraries. And most, if not all VST drum synths, as well as the libraries have the GM (general midi) mapping, so almost everything is compatible. Even if it is not, there are already plenty of solutions in the forums.

I forgot to mention that instead of Jamstix 2, you can actually use EZDrummer, or BFH, or Groove Agent or Addictive Drums. And then, actually, it coud be ANY VST instrument...

And the best is that I've tried it and it works perfectly. I just remembered that for the energyXT there is a stripped down version for ~20 euros, which can be used as well.

[matthewearl]

i have been an owner of Ralph's products since day 1. i love them and i use the jamstix engine to run sound modules off of DFH: Superior. this gives me the most realist drums and human feeling when i need to lay down ideas. i then give shots to my drummer and he prepares them for recording and live use. i put him onto a Vdrum set and his midi ticks go into nuendo and feed the superior drum modules. after he is done recording his midi, i can change the sounds of the drums to any vintage or modern style without him redoing the drums and also quantizing any mistakes he made without re-recording. it is an amazing process. woah. sorry i may have mis-posted haha

matthew earl and michelle rodriguez

[redbaron]

Is it just me, or don´t I understand a word of what this is all about? I believe one more German saying is in order:

"Bahnhof."

[matthewearl]

hahaha

[Les]

Cool Idea,Thanks Garchev.I have jamstix 2 and chainer.I will give it a shot and see.
Thanks again!

[blue4u]

How do u like jamstix Les? Do u think it's better than instant drummer?

[garchev]

Right to the point, Les...

BTW, what's Intellififf?

[Les]

Here it is, I think Intelliriffer


http://www.sonomawireworks.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=3575

[gromitsdad]

Please excuse my ignorance here but I just checked out EZ Drummer, and it looks like something I'd be interested in buying...but I'm not sure of the functionallity with RW. It might be on the forum somewhere already, but I was wondering if someone could point me in the right direction on using it with RW before I buy...and if it's possible.

Thanks in advance!

[garchev]

gromitsdad, Les,

All you need is a chainer and energyXT (or any DAW that has a standalone and VST version!!!).

The chainer is free and energyXT core version is 20 euros only.

If you have this setup, you can import any audio in RW, not only EZDrummer.

Try the demos and follow the instructions for Jamstix.

I would be happy to demonstrate this, maybe I should do some movie with screen capturing to show you. It's so easy, and gives you endless possibilities!!!

Why bother with rewire and inteliriffer? It's not that these options are not good, but only a handful of applications have them...

But, of course it's up to you.

Cheers,

[gromitsdad]

Thanks guys...I'll try some experimenting and let you know what I come up with!

Chris

[blue4u]

I would be happy to demonstrate this, maybe I should do some movie with screen capturing to show you. It's so easy, and gives you endless possibilities!!!

Would you do that?!? Even a simple YouTube video tutorial would help A LOT!! Thanks again for taking the type to share this stuff This is exciting. It allows me to get the best of all worlds!!!

Rich