[Oneota]

Hey all,

I'm going to be performing in a pit orchestra soon, and I'll need to synthesize some of the instruments (specifically, Timpani, xylophone, bells, etc). I'm currently planning on using my M-Audio Keystation as a controller, hooked up to my PowerBook running GarageBand with JamPack 4.

Problem is, GarageBand wasn't really designed to just be a simple sound source for a MIDI controller. It's kind of overkill for what I need. Is there any app out there that'll let me set up a quick and dirty list of required voices (drawn from the GarageBand instruments, since they're the best sounding out there) that I can quickly switch between?

[- - e r i k - -]

Is there a specific reason why you don't want to use GarageBand for this? Just set up all your required instruments as separate channels, turn the monitors on and switch between them. Sounds easy enough in my head...

[Oneota]

Originally posted by - - e r i k - -:
Is there a specific reason why you don't want to use GarageBand for this? Just set up all your required instruments as separate channels, turn the monitors on and switch between them. Sounds easy enough in my head...

Yeah, that's what I did initially, and it just struck me how much of an overkill GarageBand was for what I wanted to do. There's just a lot of overhead with the rest of GarageBand's features that I don't need, and it's not really geared towards what I'd like to do.

First off, I need to be able to switch voices really easily and quickly. I've got a Griffin PowerMate setup to help with this, but it's hard to get the sensitivity right. I often need to switch from a timpani roll sound to a single-strike timpani sound in the space of less-than-a-beat, and I don't think I ever managed to get the voice switched right during rehearsal Saturday.

I was just hoping someone had whipped up a simpler app that used CoreAudio and GB's voices, but without its overhead and extra features. Perhaps not, though. Might be something worth learning Cocoa for some day.

[- - e r i k - -]

Perhaps you should look towards alternative controllers, a USB controller with buttons for instance? I have a cheap Contour SpaceShuttle that is perfect for stuff like this. And as for the overhead, why would you care if it just works?