Custom kit: unassigned cymbal plays??

[David George]

I’m working on a project and intentionally using a very simple custom kit.

When I’m in the drums view there are times when the crash boxed in green here plays, but the little indicator light where the turquoise arrow is pointing (below the crash circled in red) flashes as if that unassigned cymbal were playing.

Why is that? Why isn’t the indicator light circled in red flashing? Is it because the pattern I am using uses that unassigned cymbal?

Just thought this was very weird.

If someone could clue me in I’d appreciate it.

Topic

[Henrik]

If you have an unassigned instrument (like the crash in the red circle), it still has MIDI notes assigned to it. If the MIDI file you are playing plays MIDI notes that belongs to the unassigned instrument, the MIDI notes will be forwarded to an appropriate instrument – in your case, the other crash. This is because most of the times, it’s better to play something instead of nothing.

In EZdrummer 2 – you can see what instruments a MIDI block will play on. Double click a block on the song track to enter Edit Play Style. In there, the instruments that is used in the current MIDI block will be highlighted, and the instrument that aren’t used are dimmed down. You can also check the instrument list in the bottom left. Used instruments has a green icon next to them.

If you want to remove, or move the hits that are played on a certain instrument, in Edit Play Style you can right click the instrument and choose “Remove” from the menu.

Did this make it more clear? 🙂

Henrik Ekblom - User Experience Designer
Toontrack

[David George]

Thanks! This is as suspected. I purposely set up a very sparse set and figured these MIDI notes were being sent to unassigned instruments. I’m very familiar with editing play style, etc., since I do this all the time, generally to add something like shakers or tambourine.

If you want to remove, or move the hits that are played on a certain instrument, in Edit Play Style you can right click the instrument and choose “Remove” from the menu. Did this make it more clear? 🙂  

What I’ll have to play around with later today is the part about moving hits. I guess in this case the pattern calls for the cymbal that’s grayed out, but it’s being played on the cymbal that’s active, right? That is exactly what I’d want to happen. OR, is it actually playing the grayed out one? If that’s the case then I want to move it.

Thanks for your help!

[Henrik]

“What I’ll have to play around with later today is the part about moving hits. I guess in this case the pattern calls for the cymbal that’s grayed out, but it’s being played on the cymbal that’s active, right?”

Yes, if you have an instrument with “none” loaded (represented with a grayed out image of the instrument) – all MIDI that is sent to that instrument will try to redirect to a suitable instrument. If you, for example, remove all cymbals and a cymbal receives a MIDI note, nothing will be played – since there are no “suitable” substitutions.

Henrik Ekblom - User Experience Designer
Toontrack

[David George]

Thanks, Henrik–makes sense. One more thought: Is there a way of determining whether there are no instruments playing a particular MIDI note? It’s easy to see what’s going on with regular kits. But, for example, I use the Latin Percussion and Hip Hop EZX sets, both of which have a ton of instruments. I may take a pattern from a different library and play that on one of those kits. Sometimes I’m not sure.

[Henrik]

In the bottom left of Edit Play Style, you have a list with label “Selected”. In that list – all instruments that are played in the selected MIDI block(s) have a green icon next to them. Is this the info you were looking for?

Henrik Ekblom - User Experience Designer
Toontrack

[David George]

Henrik–Yes: I’m sorry–I should have thought of this since I use Edit Play Style all the time. Thanks.

[Author]

Replies