General MIDI VST

[xtenkfarpl]

I see there was a thread about this a few years ago, but it didn't seem to reach any clear conclusion.
Has anyone found a modern VST available to produce a simple playback of MIDI files with standard General MIDI sounds?
All the older ones (virtual sound canvas etc) seem to have been discontinued.
Sure, I could build one up using sample players etc, but I'd like to have something that just "does the job out of the box".
I find it hard to believe that there isn't SOMETHING out there to do this?

[juliansader]

Any good multi-channel soundfont player (such as VSTSynthFont) should do the job, if you load a GM soundfont into them.

[teniente powell]

Deleted post. The link has unexpected results.

[biggator]

This still seems to be available

https://contentstore.roland.com/soft...und_canvas_va/

[maggotspawn]

Originally Posted by biggator

This still seems to be available

https://contentstore.roland.com/soft...und_canvas_va/

Pity it won't work on 64 bit systems. I second the Soundfont player suggestion.
In addition to General Midi there are loads of other ones available.

[juliansader]

Originally Posted by maggotspawn

Pity it won't work on 64 bit systems.

Curious... According to Roland's website, "No plugin bridge will enable to run 32bit Soundcanvas VA on 64bit OS/DAW environment", but according to another thread in this forum, it does work in REAPER 64bit (at least with REAPER's own bridge).

[ELP]

"maggotspawn: Pity it won't work on 64 bit systems"

That´s bullshit..
Two versions available for install 32bit & 64bit Edition and both works excellent.
(if this would be not the case for a plugin, which is just one year or so on the market,
it would be more then only stupid)

-absolute real authentic Sound Canvas emulation incl (N)RPN & near all possible
(except Scrolling Text events) SysEx messages-

& btw. SysEx & NRPN event compatibility is really needed,
if you would use this for authentic playing XYZ GM|GM2|GS MIDI Files...

GM|GM2|GS SysEx compatibility with other Soundfont or whatever plugin sampler and or rompler is mostly not given.

[maggotspawn]

Originally Posted by ELP

"maggotspawn: Pity it won't work on 64 bit systems"

That´s bullshit..
Two versions available for install 32bit & 64bit Edition and both works excellent.
(if this would be not the case for a plugin, which is just one year or so on the market,
it would be more then only stupid)

-absolute real authentic Sound Canvas emulation incl (N)RPN & near all possible
(except Scrolling Text events) SysEx messages-

& btw. SysEx & NRPN event compatibility is really needed,
if you would use this for authentic playing XYZ GM|GM2|GS MIDI Files...

GM|GM2|GS SysEx compatibility with other Soundfont or whatever plugin sampler and or rompler is mostly not given.

Touchy aren't we? I'm just relaying what was on the linked web page.

[ivansc]

Originally Posted by teniente powell

Discontinued but free.

http://hyper-canvas-vst.software.informer.com/1.6/

Unfortunately it insists on having a CD to download the install data. Even though the Download from that link appears to contain everything you need.
Gonna try burning the files to a cd!

Blast from the past anyway, isnt it?

Silly really as I already have two different hardware versions of the sound canvas.

[Andywanders]

Originally Posted by maggotspawn

Pity it won't work on 64 bit systems. I second the Soundfont player suggestion.
In addition to General Midi there are loads of other ones available.

Sound Canvas VA x64 is working fine here (yes, there are two versions - x86 and x64).

IMO it's the best option for playing GM. Soundfonts are OK but require more setting-up and what-not. This thing just loads and is ready. It also sounds very good.

The only downside is that it doesn't have multiple outs. That would be a nice feature if Roland ever decided to add it.

[ashcat_lt]

But...

...the SoundCanvas kinda sucked.

Useful for sketches and as raw sounds to mess up with other things, and it really did just do what it did without any questions, but a SoundFont player with a good free GM library is not harder to use or worse sound quality. It could, potentially, be a whole lot better. It sounds like a kludge and like you might have to assign all these different samples, and whatever, but a well built library just loads up and you use program changes per channel like you would with the hardware, or an emulation thereof.

[mschnell]

Originally Posted by maggotspawn

Pity it won't work on 64 bit systems. I second the Soundfont player suggestion.
In addition to General Midi there are loads of other ones available.

The (old) DXI-Version does not work on 64 Bit.
In another Thread we have been notified that it (the payed VST version) does work in 64 bit. I understand that there even is a 64 Bit VST, but also the 32 Bit VST should simply work via the VST Bridge built in Reaper.

In another Thread I did several tests with several General Midi instruments and found (the old DXi-) SoundCanvas to be the better than any free Soundfont I found. (Please listen to the mp3s I posted.)

-Michael

[Andywanders]

Originally Posted by ashcat_lt

But...

...the SoundCanvas kinda sucked.

The old one, yeah.

But the new, VA version, kinda doesn't suck.

[DarkStar]

Originally Posted by teniente powell

Discontinued but free.

... hyper-canvas-vst.software.informer.com ...

I've just seen that link - go carefully you may be downloading more than you expect

[ivansc]

DS - That is the one I downloaded from that minefield of a site - it insists it wants a CD to install from.

[teniente powell]

Originally Posted by DarkStar

I've just seen that link - go carefully you may be downloading more than you expect

I'm going to delete the post. Sorry.

[VinodXAgent]

Hi OP with the silly nickname,
I use a fairly decent GM VST based on a Yamaha Soundtable. You can download it here. You need 7zip or something similiar to expand the file.
http://veg.by/files/midisynth/yamaha_syxg50_vsti.7z
I scanned this file for malware etc. Everything ok.
For listening to GM Files outside of Reaper there is MidRadio by Yamaha. Google it. Or send me a PM. Let the old Times roll!
P.S. The output of this VSTi is hot. Decrease the output level by 12 dB in the preferences of the VSTi.

[Ulf3000]

Originally Posted by VinodXAgent

Hi OP with the silly nickname,
I use a fairly decent GM VST based on a Yamaha Soundtable. You can download it here. You need 7zip or something similiar to expand the file.
http://veg.by/files/midisynth/yamaha_syxg50_vsti.7z
I scanned this file for malware etc. Everything ok.
For listening to GM Files outside of Reaper there is MidRadio by Yamaha. Google it. Or send me a PM. Let the old Times roll!
P.S. The output of this VSTi is hot. Decrease the output level by 12 dB in the preferences of the VSTi.

well done man , ive been wanting something like this , the midi driver from that site is also awesome

[xtenkfarpl]

That Yamaha SYXG50 seems to work fine. Does exactly what I was looking for: basic General MIDI straight out of the box.

Of course you wouldn't use it for any serious work, but for just playing an approximate version of an existing MIDI file, it does the job!

One reason I wanted this: with the holidays coming up, friend & relatives come over and say "Oh, you have a recording studio? Cool! I always wanted to be a singer, maybe you could record me singing <song_of_their_choice>"?

Obviously I'm not going to build an new backing track, but find an adequate MIDI instrumental track, let them record a vocal, slap a bit of reverb and compression on it... and with a few glasses of wine & good cheer they go home with a nice CD and everyone's happy.

Though of course you do have to have an occasional "equipment failure" if presented with a truly tone-deaf aspirant... ;-)

[joelsampson]

I also have a ReaControlMIDI bank programmed for the Yamaha GM plug. It's in the stash or my web site below.

[Grandma Gertie]

Originally Posted by xtenkfarpl

That Yamaha SYXG50 seems to work fine. Does exactly what I was looking for: basic General MIDI straight out of the box.

I tried it out, and it's what I'm looking for as well, except, is there one like this, but sounds exactly like the "microsoft GS wavetable synth" ?

You see, I write my music out in guitar pro 4, and am accustomed to it's sound no matter how tacky it is to some people.

Reaper already allows you to listen to it via Routing: hardware midi output.
But when you go to to render the session, only the audio gets rendered, and not the midi backing track.


::EDIT::
I tried synthfontVST, and extracted the GM.dls file from windows 7's system 32 folder.
I thought I was golden, but it keeps crashing REAPER when i play the midi file out.

::EDIT::
I installed both synthfontVST 32 bit and 64 bit, I'm currently using a 64 bit system along with 64 bit REAPER. So all signs should point to me using the 64 bit vst, but in this case the 32 bit version doesn't crash on me.

[Goldreap]

Good info here about all this.
http://forum.cockos.com/showthread.php?t=62535

[mschnell]

Or this one: http://forum.cockos.com/showthread.php?t=175257#11
I Just added the SYXG50 to the rendered examples. Seems to be a good option.

-Michael

[Alfonx]

Hi all!

I was searching for a good GM-VST 64 bit for Ableton (and perhaps REAPER; i am using REAPER too) and found this:

I am now using BassMidi VSTi 1.2 ( falcosoft.hu ) within Ablton live 9 (64 bit).
BassMidi is a great vst32/64 SoundFont Player (for free).
I’m using the player with SoundFont „Arachno“.
I add the vst instrument BassMidi on Track 1.
Then i load the midi-file to Track 2-15.
Then i map every Track (2-15) Output to: BassMidi.
I map the Output Channel of Track 2 to Channel 1 of Bassmidi.
I map the Output Channel of Track 3 to Channel 2 of BassMidi.
And so on. Just the Drum Track should mapped to Output Channel 10.
See here:
http://blog.ultimateoutsider.com/201...bleton_23.html

So i am very satisfied with that vst now.

Regards,
Alfonx

[Goldreap]

Originally Posted by Alfonx

Hi all!

I was searching for a good GM-VST 64 bit for Ableton (and perhaps REAPER; i am using REAPER too) and found this:

I am now using BassMidi VSTi 1.2 ( falcosoft.hu ) within Ablton live 9 (64 bit).
BassMidi is a great vst32/64 SoundFont Player (for free).
I’m using the player with SoundFont „Arachno“.
I add the vst instrument BassMidi on Track 1.
Then i load the midi-file to Track 2-15.
Then i map every Track (2-15) Output to: BassMidi.
I map the Output Channel of Track 2 to Channel 1 of Bassmidi.
I map the Output Channel of Track 3 to Channel 2 of BassMidi.
And so on. Just the Drum Track should mapped to Output Channel 10.
See here:
http://blog.ultimateoutsider.com/201...bleton_23.html

So i am very satisfied with that vst now.

Regards,
Alfonx

Totally agree. BassMidi is great. 64 bit and not abandonware. Pity its name is a bit misleading....nothing to do with the bass instrument..it's a GM soundfont player.
Also, the developer's MidiPlayer5 is a great standalone program to have on your desktop to play miscellaneous midi files with your favourite soundfonts rather than Microsoft's wavetable thing.

[torchlord]

I believe was the only old vst that I could find a few years back that would work inside a daw. I think it was made for Windows Vista. I've been using it in Reaper. Its sometimes funky but it sounds similar to guitar pro.

You can also use this program in windows but it isn't a vst. It is possible to connect it to a track using midi mapping but you'll have to work with a delay from windows and compensate for it.

http://coolsoft.altervista.org/en/virtualmidisynth

[Goldreap]

Originally Posted by torchlord

I believe was the only old vst that I could find a few years back that would work inside a daw. I think it was made for Windows Vista. I've been using it in Reaper. Its sometimes funky but it sounds similar to guitar pro.

You can also use this program in windows but it isn't a vst. It is possible to connect it to a track using midi mapping but you'll have to work with a delay from windows and compensate for it.

http://coolsoft.altervista.org/en/virtualmidisynth

Hi torchlord,
the coolsoft virtual midi synth you mention is actually what Falcosoft based their VST and standalone on (in terms of code or something).
About 3 years ago I had VirtualMIDIsynth installed. It replaced the default Windows MIDI player/sounds and sounded much better.
But Windows updates would break the install.
So now for miscellaneous MIDI file playing I use Falcosoft MidiPlayer standalone. You can set it up with any default soundfont you like, and in Windows choose it as the default app to play MIDI files. So just as with VirtualMIDIsynth, simply opening a MIDI file will jump straight to it.

[ashcat_lt]

Originally Posted by xtenkfarpl

Of course you wouldn't use it for any serious work...

Not sure how serious any of my work is, but I actually do use it all the time. Granted I usually mess it all up with effects and stuff, but a lot of times those crappy generic sounds can be a fine starting place.

[Maxume]

Originally Posted by biggator

This still seems to be available

https://contentstore.roland.com/soft...und_canvas_va/

Thanks for posting this. I've still got my hardware SC-88VL and I've been wishing for a VSTi of it. With a little stereo widening, the sounds on the module are absolutely spectacular. I could record the sound from the hardware but a VST would just be so much simpler.

[DarkStar]

SampleTank 3 ("ST3", even the free Custom Shop edition) plus Sonic Reality's OmniSynth 2 ($5) imported into the ST3 library.

https://esoundz.com/details.php?ProductID=4736

"Only" 16 instruments per ST3 instance at a time.

I mentioned ST3 as ST4 does not have an "Import Legacy library" function, but, once Imported into the ST3 library, you can access that from ST4.

[hopi]

is anyone still interested in this?

I have a GENERAL MIDI library for Kontakt [which will work in the free player] that I can make available by request to a few people.

It is rather detailed, moreso than most other GM stuff...

it is a 14 gb file...

[ashcat_lt]

The title of this thread seems pretty general (pun intended), but the actual OP aso was pretty specifically for something that sounds exactly like windows on board synth, so...

I personally have always wanted something where each individual instrument was as good and playable and tweakable as a quality dedicated instrument, but laid out like one GM library, but without killing the CPU or using all the RAM in the world.

[mschnell]

Originally Posted by hopi

I have a GENERAL MIDI library for Kontakt [which will work in the free player]

How did you do this ? AFAIK, you need to pay NI to allow a library to run in the Player,

Originally Posted by hopi

that I can make available by request to a few people.
It is rather detailed, moreso than most other GM stuff...
it is a 14 gb file...

I'd like to try it just for completeness here -> https://forum.cockos.com/showpost.ph...9&postcount=11.

You also might want to mention the library in this thread -> https://forum.cockos.com/showthread.php?t=234273

-Michael

[juliansader]

I am also interested in this GM Kontakt library.

[drtedtan]

Originally Posted by juliansader

I am also interested in this GM Kontakt library.

I'll second this.

[hopi]

interested people... check your pm's and emails

[ivansc]

Thanks, Hopi!

[mschnell]

No PM yet ...
-Michael

[hopi]

Originally Posted by mschnell

No PM yet ...
-Michael

yes you do have one

[juliansader]

Originally Posted by hopi

interested people... check your pm's and emails

Got it and downloaded, thanks!