New update to the AC7Editor program released (Version 1.2.1)

[Mclandy]

Note: Please download the latest version 1.2.1, which contains a fix for an error when saving AC7 files.

Direct link: https://sourceforge.net/projects/ac7editor/files/AC7Editor-1.2.1-2024-08-23.zip/download

 

An updated version of the AC7Editor program (1.2) has been released and is available on the SourceForge site.

For those familiar with it, here again is the project page link: https://sourceforge.net/projects/ac7editor/

For basic information about the program, where to find it, and how to install it, please see the earlier post for the initial release at:

 

 

This new version has a few minor bug fixes, along with these new functions:

• A check and warning if the size of the AC7 exceeds 64k in size, since this will cause it to fail to load on the keyboard. The file is still saved, but a warning is shown.
• The new Remix/Merge tool provides the ability to remix the variations in an AC7 (for example, swap Var1 and Var2), or optionally to select another AC7 file and “merge in” variations from that file into the AC7 in the editor.  This only operates on the current AC7 image in the editor, so the AC7 file must be saved for the changes to become permanent.
• The ability to import a properly structured MIDI file, much like the current program ability to import Style files. Just to be clear, this requires a MIDI file specifically built to meet certain requirements in order for the import to work, but it is something you should be able to do in almost any MIDI editor.  I will point out that putting one together takes some time, which limits the amount of testing I’ve been able to do, but I’m pretty confident that it generally works. Be sure to report any problems here.

 

For those looking for more information on the MIDI import function, read on.

(Update: I've added a diagram to this post, attached below, to hopefully make the following text clearer)

 

The import of MIDI files will ONLY work when the MIDI is properly structured according to the following rules. Trying to import a general MIDI music file will not produce any usable results. However, it should be possible to create an importable file using almost any MIDI editor, and of course content can be copied from other MIDI files to help create the tracks. Obviously, some knowledge of MIDI terminology, content, and editing will make this task considerably easier.

• The MIDI file must be a standard MIDI file, saved in Format 0 (one single track containing all channels, just like the MIDI content in Style files). You may need to force your MIDI editor to save it in this format. For the purpose of the following description, however, the note sequence in each channel is considered to be its own “track”.
• Track segments, and how they map to Variations: The MIDI must contain text markers that divide the tracks into multiple segments by time, where each sub-segment maps to a specific variation in the AC7. Text markers are MIDI Meta-events, and either the 06 (Marker Event, preferred) or 01 (Text Event) type are supported. These events must be inserted exactly on measure boundaries, so the duration of time between markers (the segment lengths) are precisely a whole integer number of measures. They should also be the first event to appear at that precise time (before other Control events and notes in the track). A marker event ends the previous segment and begins a new one, and the name defines which variation the new segment maps to, so each marker name should only be used once. The last segment is ended by the end of the track, so there is no need for a final marker. The program recognizes marker names based on either Style naming standards (for example, "Main A", “Fill In BB”, “Intro A”, "Ending B", etc.), or on terminology used in the AC7Editor program (Var1, Fill2, Intro1, Ending2, etc.). If using Style marker names, only Intro/Ending A and B are supported. The order in which markers/variations appear in the MIDI timeline is not critical, but precise placement and naming of the markers is.
• A given Part (within a variation) may consist of a single track which plays when any chord is played on the keyboard, or it is possible to create separate Major and Minor parts, which only play for major and minor chords, respectively. Major/Minor parts are mostly used in Intros and Endings, when a different melody and/or chord sequence is desired, depending on whether the song is to be played in a major or minor key.
• MIDI channels, and how they map to Parts: Parts/tracks in the AC7 file are imported based on a fixed mapping of channels 0-15 in the MIDI (this is the channel numbering per the MIDI spec, although many MIDI editors label these 1-16). Channels 8-15 import respectively to AC7 Parts 1-8 (Percussion, Drum, Bass, Chord 1-5), and generally provide the single (“both”) track for that Part. Channels 0-7 are only ever used to create minor tracks for Parts 1-8, and then only if the minor channel contains at least one "Note On" event within a given segment. If a Minor track segment exists in Channels 0-7, then the matching track segment in 8-15 is considered to be the Major track. So, for example, a MIDI may have some events in channel 6, but if no actual note events appear in the segment following marker “Var1”, then the Chord 4 part in Var1 will have no minor track. In that case, Channel 14 provides the one and only track for Chord 4 in Var1 (unless it doesn’t contain any note events either, in which case Chord 4 would just be empty in Var1).
• All note sequences in the channels must be defined in the key of C, just like when creating Rhythms on the keyboard. Intros and Endings can of course contain chord sequences, but still must all be defined relative to C.
• If the MIDI channels contain Program Change and MSB Bank Select Control events, these will be picked up to set the Mixer Tone values in the AC7 file. These events should be inserted among the first events in each section, before any note events, but after the marker. If a given section doesn't contain these events, the program looks back in the track for the next previous set of Bank Select/PC events in that channel. So, for example, if a given channel/part always uses the same instrument, just setting the bank/patch once at the beginning of the track will set the same instrument for that Part across all variations. If no bank/patch events are found, default tones (GM Piano, Std Kit 1) are used, but it is generally recommended to set them rather than depend on the defaults. Keep in mind that the editor program will treat all segments that use the same tone for a given part as a single Part/Tone group, so if you want the ability to edit some variations independently, they must have different tones assigned in the MIDI. You can usually use a patch file with your MIDI editor so it inserts actual Casio bank/patch values, or you can just use general MIDI bank/patch values and change them later in the editor.
• For major/minor channel pairs, only the bank/patch information for the major channel is used. This is because in AC7 files, both major and minor tracks are connected to the same mixer values, including bank/patch. So bank/patch settings in channels 0-7 (minor tracks) are certainly allowed, and can be useful when playing the sequence in the MIDI editor, but they will have no effect when imported.
• The MIDI must contain a valid time signature “58” Meta Event (4/4, 3/4, etc.). The MIDI editor should insert this by default at the beginning of the sequence.
• If volume/pan/reverb/chorus/delay Control Events are present (optional), they will get picked up to set the mixer values. Like with bank/patch, the program will search backward in the track, if necessary, to find these settings, and will use defaults if none are found.
• If a tempo “51” Meta Event is present (optional), that will set the default tempo for the AC7 (but the Editor also lets you change this). Many editors insert this by default at the beginning.
• Chord Conversion Table values for tracks are defaulted: introNoChange for most intro/ending parts, Bass Basic or Bass 7th for bass, Ch Basic or Ch 7th for other parts (depending on whether the track segment contains 7th/Bb notes or not). These can be changed on the keyboard, except when the Part contains a major/minor pair group.
• The Breakpoint values for tracks are defaulted to C, but the Editor lets you change this.
• No High/Low note limits are set for tracks, but the Editor lets you change these. High/Low limits force notes played as part of an accompaniment to stay within the range specified.
• Inversion is defaulted to Off. The Editor does not currently provide a means to change this, although it can be changed on the keyboard, except in Parts with major/minor pairs (which are usually used in intro/endings, and generally are not inverted anyway).

 

Edited August 26 by Mclandy
Added diagram

[mrmr9494]

This is a big step forward, because it means anyone with a MIDI editor can now create rhythms for the Casio keyboards from scratch. The main usage of the software may still be converting STY files, however for songs which don't have an existing STY file this now opens up a viable alternative to the very out-of-date tools which Casio provides.

 

I thought it might be useful to make an example to show off how to do it. You can check out the download link below, which has a AC7 file and also the source files which I started with and instructions on how to use AC7Editor for this particular rhythm. The AC7Editor part of the process is actually super easy! -- once the MIDI file is sounding good then basically all of the hard work is done.

 

The song is the 2023 release "Calm Down" by Rema featuring Selena Gomez. I chose this song because it distinctively uses the "Popular Pluck 1" sound which is definitely one of my favourite sounds on the CT-X This rhythm doesn't make use of all the range of features of AC7Editor - for example it doesn't use Var 3 & 4, major/minor split or remix features. It does use drum substitutions though.

 

I'd encourage anyone to try making their own rhythms with this software. You can start by having a look at the demo and let me know if any part of the process isn't clear.

[Mclandy]

Thanks, @mrmr9494!   I was noticing that there have been 8 downloads of the new version so far (and over 90 downloads across all releases), so I've been hoping to see a little more feedback and "community involvement" from the people using it.   As I mentioned, one of the general challenges I have is testing, because for some functions (like the MIDI import), creating the test files is almost as much work as the initial programming!  So my ability to make the program better somewhat depends on how much cooperation and feedback I get from the community.  Thank you for your collaboration!

Edited July 28 by Mclandy

[Silvano Silva]

 

Hello friend.

When I change a rhythm and save it, it gives an error. And when I save it using the (SAVE AS) option,

it doesn't save the rhythm, giving the message NO CHANGES

 

[Mclandy]

3 hours ago, Silvano Silva said:

 

 

Hello friend.

When I change a rhythm and save it, it gives an error. And when I save it using the (SAVE AS) option,

it doesn't save the rhythm, giving the message NO CHANGES

 

 

Silvano, thank you very much for reporting this!  I am surprised that no one else has reported it yet.  I have already created a quick fix release package which is available on Sourceforge, and will follow up with updates to the source code and release notes.  You can download the updated package directly from here:

https://sourceforge.net/projects/ac7editor/files/AC7Editor-1.2.1-2024-08-23.zip/download

 

Please let me know if everything works OK after this.  Sorry for the inconvenience.

[Silvano Silva]

6 minutes ago, Mclandy said:

 

Silvano, thank you very much for reporting this!  I am surprised that no one else has reported it yet.  I have already created a quick fix release package which is available on Sourceforge, and will follow up with updates to the source code and release notes.  You can download the updated package directly from here:

https://sourceforge.net/projects/ac7editor/files/AC7Editor-1.2.1-2024-08-23.zip/download

 

Please let me know if everything works OK after this.  Sorry for the inconvenience.

I'll take a look tomorrow and get back to you, buddy. 

I appreciate it and will be testing other features you have implemented. Thank you very much.

[Silvano Silva]

14 hours ago, Mclandy said:

 

Silvano, thank you very much for reporting this!  I am surprised that no one else has reported it yet.  I have already created a quick fix release package which is available on Sourceforge, and will follow up with updates to the source code and release notes.  You can download the updated package directly from here:

https://sourceforge.net/projects/ac7editor/files/AC7Editor-1.2.1-2024-08-23.zip/download

 

Please let me know if everything works OK after this.  Sorry for the inconvenience.

Hello friend.

The error disappeared but unfortunately the program is not saving the changes. I'm using the  Drum Remap I made and it's not having any effect.

The funny thing is that before the first version I tested the program and it worked.

And now not even the first version is saving

I'm leaving Style here for you to analyze.

'm using the remap on the DRUM channel on Bass Drum

 

80SONGfr.AC7

Edited August 24 by Silvano Silva

[Mclandy]

Silvano,

      I tried editing your AC7 file.  In that AC7, the Std4 Kick 1 drum note in the Drum track is currently mapped (using the Casio remap function) to the Dance1 Kick 3 note in the Kick Set (798).  Since there is an existing remap for that note, the first thing I had to do was delete that remap definition, by selecting that line in that "List of Drum note changes/substitutions" and then clicking the "Remove selected changes/substitutions" button.  Then the program will allow me to remap Std4 Kick 1 to something else - either another drum sound in the same kit, or in another kit.  In case it's not clear, you have to select the desired substitution target and then click on the "Add" button next to it to add that change to the change/substitution list (all changes must appear in the list, for them to take effect).  Then click on OK to commit the change(s), and then you should be able to save the file.   When I saved the modified AC7, it appears to save successfully, and the file is being updated.  If I exit and restart, and re-open the edited file, my changes are in there.  So as far as I can tell, everything is working.

 

If the above description doesn't help, and you still are unable to make changes, please try to give me a step-by-step of what you are doing, and I'll try to recreate whatever problem you are having.  Thanks!

Edited August 24 by Mclandy

[Silvano Silva]

On 8/24/2024 at 4:14 PM, Mclandy said:

Silvano,

      I tried editing your AC7 file.  In that AC7, the Std4 Kick 1 drum note in the Drum track is currently mapped (using the Casio remap function) to the Dance1 Kick 3 note in the Kick Set (798).  Since there is an existing remap for that note, the first thing I had to do was delete that remap definition, by selecting that line in that "List of Drum note changes/substitutions" and then clicking the "Remove selected changes/substitutions" button.  Then the program will allow me to remap Std4 Kick 1 to something else - either another drum sound in the same kit, or in another kit.  In case it's not clear, you have to select the desired substitution target and then click on the "Add" button next to it to add that change to the change/substitution list (all changes must appear in the list, for them to take effect).  Then click on OK to commit the change(s), and then you should be able to save the file.   When I saved the modified AC7, it appears to save successfully, and the file is being updated.  If I exit and restart, and re-open the edited file, my changes are in there.  So as far as I can tell, everything is working.

 

If the above description doesn't help, and you still are unable to make changes, please try to give me a step-by-step of what you are doing, and I'll try to recreate whatever problem you are having.  Thanks!

Hello my friend! I come with this message to say that I don't know how the program started working normally again and changing the parts of the kits.

It could be some detail I missed. Sorry

I would also like to point out a change that you could make, such as allowing editing of the chord table.

You left it all as a C chord by default,

and by default the keyboard works on the Bass on the Break point E chord and on the harmonic and solo instruments on the A chord.

Another detail is that when converting a midi with the appropriate markers, the INTRODUCTION and ENDING only work in Major chords.

Which requires us to edit the Chord Table on the CT-X itself.

 

Two adjusts Break Point and Table Chords editable on Software

Edited September 16 by Silvano Silva

[Mclandy]

Hi, Silvano.  Just to make sure we are talking about the same thing, let me define some terms:

• The tracks in an AC7 must be recorded in the "key" of C.  That means C is the root note of the chords.  In the case of Intro and Ending tracks, which can actually contain a sequence of chords, the sequence must still be defined relative to, and resolve in, the key of C.  This is true when recording on the keyboard, and there are no settings in an AC7 to allow for recordings in anything other than the key of C.
   
• The Chord Conversion Table (CCT) defines the "chord type" that was used when recording the tracks.  Normally this would be a Major chord, or maybe a 7th chord (actually, 7th chords seem to work the best).   Again, the requirement is that the tracks are recorded in the key of C.  Intros and Endings are kind of a special case, where the normal CCT setting is "IntroNoChange".  This setting means that the playback of the Intro or Ending is adjusted based on the root of the chord being played, but with no other note transpositions (basically, the chord "type" being played is ignored).  This is to allow for the creation of a full chord/melody sequence that leads into the song.  So, for example, if you are playing an E chord during an Intro, all the notes will be raised by 4 half-steps (to raise the root from C to E), but the track will otherwise be played exactly as recorded.  For Variations and Fills, however, you usually do want the chords to "transpose", that is, to adjust according to the chord type (Major, Minor, 7th, etc.) being played.
  
  During the import process, I do set the CCT for each track based on whether or not it is an Intro/Ending (IntroNoChange), and whether it is a Bass or Chord 1-5 part.  For Bass and Chord parts in Variations and Fills, I set the CCT to Bass/Chord Basic -- unless the track contains Bb notes (the 7th note in the key of C), in which case I set it to Bass/Chord 7th.  These settings should be correct for the vast majority of cases.  As you point out, however, I don't currently provide a way to change the CCT setting in the Editor.  One reason I haven't is because the CCT is not a "whatever you think sounds best" kind of setting.  It tells the keyboard specifically how to interpret the notes as they are recorded in the track.   If you change it so that it doesn't match the structure of the recorded notes in the track, that will just cause problems.
   
• There is another separate setting for "Breakpoint", and that simply defines the point where all the notes in the track drop an octave, as you are playing and work your way up from the C chord.   So, for example, if that is set to E, chords from C to Eb go upward in tone, but after that they drop an octave and go upward from there.  There actually is no proper "default" here.  That is, it's truly a "whatever sounds best" setting, since it depends on the instrument being used and how it sounds relative to the other parts.  Right now, I just leave that at C, but I do provide a way to change that in the Editor (the Track Settings tab).

So I believe your question was mostly about the Breakpoint setting.  I think you are saying that the keyboard defaults the Breakpoint to E for Bass parts, and A for Chord parts.  That may be true, but there is nothing special about those defaults.  For example, if you look at the pre-recorded rhythms in the keyboard, you'll see that Breakpoints are all very different.  It just depends on what sounds good.  And as I mentioned, you can change these Breakpoint settings in the Editor, on the Track Settings tab.

 

Regarding the Major/Minor parts on Intros and Endings, I believe that is working, as far as I can tell.  For MIDI import, a pair of Major/Minor tracks for a part is automatically created only if a given section of the MIDI tracks (like the Intro section) has content in both the upper channel (10-15) and matching lower channel (2-7).  If you have an example where this is not working, please post it and I'll be happy to take a look.  Thanks.

[Silvano Silva]

On 9/17/2024 at 3:08 PM, Mclandy said:

Hi, Silvano.  Just to make sure we are talking about the same thing, let me define some terms:

• The tracks in an AC7 must be recorded in the "key" of C.  That means C is the root note of the chords.  In the case of Intro and Ending tracks, which can actually contain a sequence of chords, the sequence must still be defined relative to, and resolve in, the key of C.  This is true when recording on the keyboard, and there are no settings in an AC7 to allow for recordings in anything other than the key of C.
   
• The Chord Conversion Table (CCT) defines the "chord type" that was used when recording the tracks.  Normally this would be a Major chord, or maybe a 7th chord (actually, 7th chords seem to work the best).   Again, the requirement is that the tracks are recorded in the key of C.  Intros and Endings are kind of a special case, where the normal CCT setting is "IntroNoChange".  This setting means that the playback of the Intro or Ending is adjusted based on the root of the chord being played, but with no other note transpositions (basically, the chord "type" being played is ignored).  This is to allow for the creation of a full chord/melody sequence that leads into the song.  So, for example, if you are playing an E chord during an Intro, all the notes will be raised by 4 half-steps (to raise the root from C to E), but the track will otherwise be played exactly as recorded.  For Variations and Fills, however, you usually do want the chords to "transpose", that is, to adjust according to the chord type (Major, Minor, 7th, etc.) being played.
  
  During the import process, I do set the CCT for each track based on whether or not it is an Intro/Ending (IntroNoChange), and whether it is a Bass or Chord 1-5 part.  For Bass and Chord parts in Variations and Fills, I set the CCT to Bass/Chord Basic -- unless the track contains Bb notes (the 7th note in the key of C), in which case I set it to Bass/Chord 7th.  These settings should be correct for the vast majority of cases.  As you point out, however, I don't currently provide a way to change the CCT setting in the Editor.  One reason I haven't is because the CCT is not a "whatever you think sounds best" kind of setting.  It tells the keyboard specifically how to interpret the notes as they are recorded in the track.   If you change it so that it doesn't match the structure of the recorded notes in the track, that will just cause problems.
   
• There is another separate setting for "Breakpoint", and that simply defines the point where all the notes in the track drop an octave, as you are playing and work your way up from the C chord.   So, for example, if that is set to E, chords from C to Eb go upward in tone, but after that they drop an octave and go upward from there.  There actually is no proper "default" here.  That is, it's truly a "whatever sounds best" setting, since it depends on the instrument being used and how it sounds relative to the other parts.  Right now, I just leave that at C, but I do provide a way to change that in the Editor (the Track Settings tab).

So I believe your question was mostly about the Breakpoint setting.  I think you are saying that the keyboard defaults the Breakpoint to E for Bass parts, and A for Chord parts.  That may be true, but there is nothing special about those defaults.  For example, if you look at the pre-recorded rhythms in the keyboard, you'll see that Breakpoints are all very different.  It just depends on what sounds good.  And as I mentioned, you can change these Breakpoint settings in the Editor, on the Track Settings tab.

 

Regarding the Major/Minor parts on Intros and Endings, I believe that is working, as far as I can tell.  For MIDI import, a pair of Major/Minor tracks for a part is automatically created only if a given section of the MIDI tracks (like the Intro section) has content in both the upper channel (10-15) and matching lower channel (2-7).  If you have an example where this is not working, please post it and I'll be happy to take a look.  Thanks.

Now I understand the issue of Intro and Ending only in a major chord. I believe that updating your program requires recording the other channels below channel 9 (Percussion) in the same proportion but in minor chords. Am I right?

As for the Breakpoint, you left it in C for me, it was OK.

On the Casio MZX, the breakpoint in rhythms created from scratch is in E for Bass and A for other instruments.

Thanks!!!

[Mclandy]

21 hours ago, Silvano Silva said:

Now I understand the issue of Intro and Ending only in a major chord. I believe that updating your program requires recording the other channels below channel 9 (Percussion) in the same proportion but in minor chords. Am I right?

As for the Breakpoint, you left it in C for me, it was OK.

On the Casio MZX, the breakpoint in rhythms created from scratch is in E for Bass and A for other instruments.

Thanks!!!

Yes, that's correct. To have intros and endings with different major/minor sound, you must create the Major track in the appropriate channel above 8, and the Minor track in the matching channel below 9.  If they are both present (contain notes), the program will automatically "group" them into a single Part with major/minor variations.

 

As for the best default for Breakpoints, I can kind of understand E for Bass, since that's the lowest root note on a real stringed bass.  For other instruments, it's not as clear.  But in any case, you can edit them to whatever you want in the Editor.

[JohanC]

This really is a nice piece of software! I am used to Yamaha keyboards but now I intend to purchase a Casio ct-s400 (because it is very compact), so this program seems a perfect solution to be able to keep using some of my styles. Although I can of course not yet test the resulting AC7 rhythms, the remapping of the Casio tones to Yamaha voices seems to work very well. Also very nice is the fact that the program supports importing styles in the newer SFF2 style format.

 

I have compared the tones of the ct-s400 with the ct-x700/800 and there are only some minor differences, so I can use the setting of the ct-x700/800. The ct-s400 is actually very similar to the ct-x models with the same AIX soundchip and the same reverb/chorus settings, but just with a different look.

 

The ct-s400 (and s500/s1000v) does however allow to use 12 characters for the rhythm name, so it would be nice if the program supports more than the current 8. I have also noticed that the program can only export intro/ending 1 and 2, while most Yamaha styles have 3 intros/endings.

 

For anyone who is interested in using this wonderful program for a ct-s400, here some more info based on my “research”:

- the ct-s has 5 tones that are not on the ct-x700/800 (mainly synth/pluck sounds): these are tones 272 to 276 in the tones list of the ct-s400

- in turn, the ct-x has 5 additional drum kits (tones 596 to 600 in the ct-x700 list)

- the remaining tones all use the same MSB/Program code, so the program should show them in a correct way, although the sequence number as from tone 272 will not match with the number as indicated in the user guide of the ct-s

- the current remap.txt contains 26 remappings to tones of the ct-x 3000/5000 that are not on the ct-s400 (nor on the 700/800). I have the list if someone is interested.

 

Thank you!

[Mclandy]

On 9/24/2024 at 12:10 PM, JohanC said:

The ct-s400 (and s500/s1000v) does however allow to use 12 characters for the rhythm name, so it would be nice if the program supports more than the current 8. I have also noticed that the program can only export intro/ending 1 and 2, while most Yamaha styles have 3 intros/endings.

Hi, @JohanC.   In the AC7, a rhythm name of up to 12 characters is allowed (and that's the limit), but on the CT-X keyboards (which this program is mainly designed for), the display only shows 8 character rhythm names.  So allowing more could cause some confusion on the CT-X, since the temptation would be to make the names longer (more descriptive), but then you can't tell rhythms apart on the keyboard if they have the same first 8 characters.  So that's why I left the limit in place for now, since longer names are not really helpful on CT-X.  But I suppose I could make it a configuration choice, to support other keyboards.

 

With regards to the intros/endings, Casio AC7 format only supports up to 2 sets, plus the CT-X keyboards can actually only use Intro/Ending #1 (and it appears that CT-S400 has that same limitation).  In many Styles, Intro/Ending A is typically very minimal (like a 4-beat intro and a single chord ending), so by default the program tries to use B and C if they are present, but will "fall back" to converting A and B, or just A, depending on what is available in the Style content.

 

Since CT-X can actually only play Intro/Ending #1, the program includes a special Export function for AC7s that contain 2 intros and endings (typically, created through conversion).  This Export creates two separate AC7 files by mapping intro/ending #1 and #2, respectively, into the #1 slots of each.  That way, CT-X users can try both exported AC7 files, and keep the one they want (or both).  And to support keyboards that can only play 2 variations (which I believe the CT-S400 falls into that category), there is another Export function where you can choose the intro/ending/variation combination that you want.  Some high-end Casio keyboards (like MZ-X) actually do support 2 intros/endings, so they can just use the AC7 as is.

Edited September 30 by Mclandy

[JohanC]

Thank you for you detailed response, Mclandy. Allowing 12 characters as an option would certainly be nice and it would make the program more “future proof”. As an alternative to making this on option, the program could foresee 12 characters and color the characters that exceed the limit of 8 in red, so that ct-x users are warned that those characters will not be shown on their current keyboard.

[Mclandy]

Unfortunately, the libraries in the UI package don't provide that level of character formatting control in an entry field.  But at least with the configuration option, you can tailor the editor function to enforce the constraints of whatever keyboard you use.

 

Just one other note on SFF2 format styles - they do contain expanded functionality that is not always easy to "stuff into" the limits of the Casio AC7 format.  As a result, conversion of newer Style files will often generate more warnings, resulting in some content being dropped.  Newer style files also tend to use an expanded list of Mega voices, for which Casio often doesn't have a good equivalent.  But in some ways, the Style format is over-engineered to the point where you can do things in ways that just don't make sense, yet still have them function on the keyboard (you see a lot of examples of this in User and 3rd Party styles on the Internet).  In contrast, Casio rhythms are a little more constrained, but in ways that make them simpler and more practical, and yet ultimately can produce results that are just about as good.  But it's that difference that often makes conversion quite complicated, or sometimes even impossible.

Edited September 30 by Mclandy

[Silvano Silva]

Thanks to Mclandy I managed to automate the rhythm conversions on the Yamaha Genos 2. Of course, the original Rhythms were simplified for perfect conversion by removing some cc commands that Casio doesn't know about in the rhythm part.

I was able to load parameters especially on the Bass where the CTX is a deficiency compared to the Yamaha which is the lack of body.

Mclandy managed to make a dream come true.

I hope it still unlocks the function of changing the chord table because by making this change in the Ctx the keyboard freezes when the rhythm is played as it is a known bug in the Ctx Keyboard.

This feature working in the program would already avoid this bug that ctx does not address. Still, due to laziness, I prefer to leave just one introduction in a major key of Yamaha rhythms, which means I end up being forced to change the chord table so the keyboard can make both introductions, respecting the major and minor keys in the same arrangement.

Edited October 1 by Silvano Silva

[Mclandy]

@Silvano Silva, very nice!!

 

Can you explain a little more about what the "known bug" is with the chord table (CCT), which causes the keyboard to freeze?   You can send me a private message if you want me to take a look at a problem with a specific rhythm conversion.

 

Update:  In the case where you only have a single (major) track in a Part of an Intro/Ending, I've been thinking about it some more, and I think the default CCT should be "Intro n-minor".  That's actually what is used in most of the built-in rhythms that don't have separate major/minor tracks on the intro/ending.  That setting gives you the minor chord effect when you play a minor chord, but also allows for melodic content that will "bend" into the natural minor scale.  It's preferable to using a CCT of Chord Basic or Chord 7th, which tend to "force" notes into the main chord -- that can cause some issues, especially if your intro/ending contains any kind of chord sequence to start or finish the song.   So in the next release I plan to make "Intro n-minor" the default when importing single-track intro/ending parts, although I'm still considering the ability to change the CCT directly.

Edited October 1 by Mclandy
Additional thoughts on CCT default for single-track intro/ending parts

[JohanC]

Silvano, indeed this is a very, very nice performance!

 

Mclandy, it is not my intention to convert a lot of Yamaha styles, but it is good to know that if needed, it is possible, even for (basic) SFF2 styles with some megavoices. Also interesting, is that with your program, you can easily change tempo, Tones and mixer settings like for instance volume  of each Tone in a rhythm. These things are not possible on the ct-s400/ct-s500.

[Silvano Silva]

22 hours ago, JohanC said:

Silvano, indeed this is a very, very nice performance!

 

Mclandy, it is not my intention to convert a lot of Yamaha styles, but it is good to know that if needed, it is possible, even for (basic) SFF2 styles with some megavoices. Also interesting, is that with your program, you can easily change tempo, Tones and mixer settings like for instance volume  of each Tone in a rhythm. These things are not possible on the ct-s400/ct-s500.

Even for me, who also has the Casio MZ-X, the program helps me automate tasks and add DSP directly and change drum sounds is the icing on the cake.

In terms of megavoices, Casio has its sounds articulated but the positions of the dynamics are in different locations. To create this in software it would be necessary to map most of the Yamaha instruments for proper exchange. I already anticipate that it is possible to reach almost 90% or even more by knowing how to interpret Yamaha instruments and the big differences can be found in Drums and Guitars. Even though it sounds strange in midi, everything is there, you just need to understand it to convert.

 

 

 

Its same STYLE convert.