User Style Trobleshooting in PA50 Diskette/SD and Micro Arranger

We often face problems with our PA50 /  Micro Arranger that the User Style can not be loaded, read, moreover played. We just can say that the user style of the our keyboard is error or broken. But don't worry. There are a lot of way to fix the problem. First you can format and reinstall the OS, but it's recommended that the keyboard must be backed up first to avoid an error during the re-installation progress.


If after the reinstallation the user style still error, here I provide you a trick to fix the problem. Hopefully this trick can solve your problem.

1. Open Disk, select Erase, if there is no floppy disk / SD, inevitably arises: No Disk / Unformatted - Press Exit. You just hit the exit. 
2. Press F1 [SSD], then you will see the Global, Perform, Program, and Style. If you want to remove all the style, just press F2 [Delete]. 
3. To delete a bank 1-16. Open the disk, select the Utilities menu, scroll by pressing the Page button, once again. Select the Fact. Style Protect, then switch ON mode to OFF. That way, the default style keyboard can be removed or replaced all. 
4. If when you select a style in the user still appear "It is not PA Series", load user style with label 24, 25, 26, 27 (Normally it's just need 24, 25, 26 to replace the 3 broken users). To create the 24, 25, 26, & 27 user styles, you can just rename your ordinary 1, 2, 3 user styles to 24, 25, 26 on your computer. Then load on the user. 
5. To delete just 1 style, go to the step one above, then delete one by one style in each users.

In this way, actually we do not need to format the OS.

How to use 3 Set of User Style in 1 Floppy Disk (Diskette) Without Loading. The trick might be also useful for the PA50SD

For users who still use the KORG PA50 Floppy Disks, there are a few tricks that may be helpful here.

Functioning Direct FD is the fastest way to access a style in KORG PA50. This function is very phenomenal in the KORG's family. Here I share a special tricks for users KORG PA50.

If we see, fellow gentlemen who use PA50 Diskette has always lacked for style storage, thus making the floppy disks are piled up. If you use the function of Direct FD, obviously each disks must be filled by only one set of style. It's because the Direct FD can't read more than one style set. This feels very difficult alright? Moreover diskette is a rare commodity today.

Here the trick to solve the problem.
 
Save the three sets of style to the floppy. Named the set differently, for example:
     6Pop.set
     7Regae.set
     8Mix.set
 
Actually the function of the Direct FD is reading a set of style with the earliest alphabetic sequencing, both numbers and letters. By changing the base name of the style set, then we can specify which set that will be read on Direct FD. Suppose we want to get style from 7Regae.set, then we just rename it to 5Regae.set. By changing 7 to 5, then when we press the Direct FD's button, the 5Regae.set will be read on, and so on for the other style set. As long as we do it fast, the process of finding the desired style will be more faster, even without loading.

Actually this trick also can be applied on the KORG PA50SD. Although the keyboard type has been using SD CARD as its storage data, but still the Direct FD function only reads one style set file with earliest alphabetic.

Hopefully useful..

The difference of Recording, Mixing, and Mastering

I just want to share information about the meaning and difference of Recording, Mixing and Mastering, in general, and in the outline of the practice.

• RECORDING

Recording is a sound taking activities, in practice it can be done through recording equipment (guitar connected via a mixer), or pointed directly to the speakers. So we can find a sound that we want, if it's fit, just recorded it, either through audio filter (mixer, etc) or directly. The results of the recording depends on the tool and how we record it.

• MIXING

Mixing is the advanced stage of the recording process. Mixing is also a phase of correction, remove, manage and add effects, even choose the sound you want. For example, you want to create a vocal sound like a robot, put the guitar sound on the right side, and etc. The process of presenting musical concepts in more details are in this stage. It takes a lot of imagination and references. Not only the sound, but also its arrangement. So mixing process can not be done in a hurry. It is better to consult often with a Sound Engineer expert to explore more idea and experience.Result of this mixing just enough to hear, do not be too loud. Because the gain and volume of this mixing process are both limited. It's important to avoid over peak in the mastering process later. So you should not be surprised if the sound results of the mixing is small, as they should be.

• Mastering

Mastering is the final stage in the process of professional recording. Mastering is the process of equating the gain and volume in accordance with international broadcast standards. There are specific indicators in volume leveling, not just rough up the volume at random.
There are certain rules in mastering that make the result is not broken if played on the radio, television, etc. So that in all media, your songs sound still stable in balance with the other songs.
If you don't follow these standards, it's funny if after the radio played a top song and played your song, then the sound's shrinking and not good.

Thus the mastering stage is very important. Besides for volume leveling, the result are audible, the detail will be more clear, more warm, and majestic, likes professional song that you often hear generally.

The thing to remember is after this stage there should be no editing stage anymore. This stage should be the final stage. Your songs have to be fixed before entering the mastering stage.
After mastering process, your song deserves to be played in all media.

Don't be wrong again. Mastering is not putting/copying Song into the form of audio CD/DVD, in fact it is the process of Duplicating.

How to fix Joystick trouble for KORG PA50SD, PA500, Micro Arranger

Many of the KORG PA-Series users experience problems with his joystick. Joystick movement in PA-series generally X (- / + or left / right) for Pitch Bend, and Y (+ / - or front / rear) for Modulation. Actually, in this case the problem is always on the Pitch Bend. Problems with the Pitch Bend is caused by the movement of the Modulation, the Y forward and backward movement causing wires of the Pitch Bend stretched and tightened. It breaks connection between the Panel Board and the Pitch Bend Connector.

Here's I show you how to solve the joystick problem for the KORG PA500 (it's might be analogically same for the other PA-Series), 

• Once the chassis is opened we go directly to the joystick! 
• Open 4 screws that locked up the joystick shell.
• Open one screw that's in the middle of the joystick shell.
• Then remove the pitch bend potentiometer.   
• Uninstall / off the male connector from the potentiometer PCB of the Pitch Bend  
• Cut the three cables precisely at the base of the female connector. In this case, it is recommended for the beginners to mark the position of the cord to prevent reverse in the installation back
• Tape the cable back to the potentio PCB! In this point we do not use connector anymore. 
• IMPORTANT: Give leeway cable spacing, so it's not stuck when the joystick move back (Y-)

Hopefully useful ..

Sampling without PC/Laptop

"Sampling = Capture = Record"
Well .. this is one of the important features that must be owned by the keyboard that we will buy if we want Sampling without a PC / Laptop.
To support the above features, a Keyboard must integrate,
-Memory RAM and ROM.
-Audio Input.
These features are so important in order to record the sound sources or instruments that will be sampled, and then sampling can be played per Part / Not (Per-keys) later. 

Keyboards that already supported sampling without need the other supporting media such as Laptop, etc., would have been integrated with Sound Internal (ROM) and Sound Sampling (RAM), which is usually called PCM data. Unfortunately it might be high in the cost. So that the Keyboard Vendors just embed this technology in a particular series.
 
For KORG Pa-Series include the following,

• KORG Pa 80 (requiring PCM Card Option)
• KORG Pa 800
• KORG Pa 1X & 1X Pro
• KORG Pa 2X Pro
• KORG Pa 3X

 For  YAMAHA PSR-Series,

• YAMAHA PSR-S950

 * NB:
KORG Pa 600 can only Reading and Playing sampling through media Flash Disk, similar as YAMAHA PSR-S910.

Fixing Latency or Delay with ASIO4ALL

Latency is a short time delay (usually measured in milliseconds) required for the conversion processes between analog and digital representations of data. Computers can only process a digital data, so that an analog data received on the microphone or line-in input must be converted into a digital data. After processing, the data must be processed or converted back to an analog signal before it can be hear in the output speaker. (Source: Wikipedia)

The such converting process makes the data comes out to the output speaker with a delay time. 
For example: In recording, when you're strumming a guitar, you hear that the sound comes out on the monitor speaker is delay few millisecond late, or worse can be calculated in seconds. This problem is so called the Latency issues. Annoying isn't it?

For the users who use a dedicated sound card recording may not have to worry about the latency issues. Because the device usually have an appropriate soundcard driver (ASIO) in order to avoid the latency problems. So, how if the soundcard that we use for recording don't have an ASIO driver, for instance the our on-board sound card? 
To fix the problem, now we can use the ASIO4ALL driver.

What is ASIO? 
Audio Stream Input / Output (ASIO) is a computer soundcard driver for digital audio founded by Steinberg, providing low latency and precise interface between the application software and the computer sound card. Meanwhile Microsoft's DirectSound (standard driver) is commonly used as input and stereo output for non-professional users, but ASIO allows musicians and sound engineering to process their audio via Windows computer software.

In this case, ASIO that oftenly use is ASIO4ALL. It is a driver which is probably best known in the world of audio recording. ASIO4ALL driver has better performance than the standard windows ASIO (ASIO multimedia). It is also compatible with the mostly onboard soundcard or some external soundcard that isn't for recording purpose. To download ASIO4ALL, you can directly have it from its website at http://www.asio4all.com/. After you download it, you just have to set up your DAW sound card driver to the ASIO4ALL driver. 

Bellow I show you how to set the ASIO4ALL driver for some DAW.

For Steinberg Cubase (which may be the same as Steinberg NUENDO):

• First you must open the Cubase,
• Select DEVICE menu.
• After that, select DEVICE SETUP
• And then select VST AUDIO SYSTEM
• click the TAB besides ASIO DRIVER
• Select ASIO4ALL V2

For Fruity-loops Studio users:

• First you must open fruity loops / FL her studio,
• Select OPTION menu
• Then select AUDIO SETTINGS
• Then on the input / output select ASIO4ALL V2

If you are already using ASIO4ALL drivers but still experiencing latency issues, you should set up its buffer size in ASIO4ALL. But remember, more small buffer size you choose, more burdensome the performance of your computer.

Hopefully useful.

The advantages creating Sampling Modules with Kontakt 5.0

The tricks to make keyboard sampling modules can be done with varieties of the host softwares, such as Reaper, Reason, Sonar, Kontakt, Hypersonic, etc., depending on the tastes and familiarization of the user. For instance, I have tried to use the Reaper, Reason, Sonar and Kontakt as my sampling host software. Apparently, after I compare, Kontakt has its own advantages for use as the sampling host, especially for the version 5.0. Kontakt 5.0 is lighter than Reaper. In Reaper, we need to inject the other software such as Battery to put an external sound to be sampled, meanwhile Kontakt has its own feature to replace the Battery.  Even using the internal sound card, it is capable to get 5.8 ms latency with the condition that the PC/Laptop doesn't use any Anti-Virus or the other heavy software. Besides of that kontakt 5.0 available in portable version, so that it's handy to install.

Here I share some features of the Kontakt 5.0 that might be useful as consideration to optimize our sampling modules,

1. Can be used as style sampler.
2. Can be used midi sampler.
3. Support with a lot of file extension that can be useful for sampling module, such as SF2, format file from Battery 2 or 3, Wav, Mp3.
4. The features are simple and easy to set up.
5. Easy to edit the note positions for the injected sound samples in order to build the set of Percussion, Drum & Gendang, etc.
6. Kontakt 5.0 support with ASIO4ALL
7. It is a standalone software, so that we don't need the other host software (such as Reaper, Sonar, etc)

Hopefully useful

Removes vocal on a song (MP3, Wav, etc) using Adobe Audition

Here I share you a tutorial how to remove Vocals on a Song (Mp3, Wav, etc) using Adobe Audition:

1. Choose a song you want to change, then open Adobe Audition.
2. Import the song that already prepared.
3. Then select Favorites> Vocal Remove.
4. Adobe Audition Vocal Remove
5. Save As  
6. And then you can rename the song name and change the audio format as you wish.
7. If after the Vocal Remove process the result sound is less loud, you can choose Effects> Normalize> Change it becomes greater than 100%.

Making different Voice per-Oktaf in KORG PA-500

Be able to include different voice in each octaves on the keyboard tuts is one of the special features provided in KORG PA-500. The keyboard has 5 octaves with each octaves can be filled by various sounds.

For example:
Octaves 1 to 2 are usually used as the SPLIT POINT limits.
We can fill Octave 3 with PIANO only (UPPER 1),
Octave 4 with STRINGS only (UPPER 2),
and then Octave 5 can be filled with GUITAR (UPPER3).

1. Choose one voice to put in UPPER 1. For example we choose PIANO  
2. Choose the other voice to put in UPPER 2. For example: STRINGS
3. Choose a different voice with the preceding UPPERs. For example: GUITAR
4. Click the MENU
5. Choose KEYBOARD ENSEMBLE 
6. At the bottom tab, select KEY VELOCITY. TOP KEY means how long the octaves that will be occupied by the chosen voice. BOTTOM KEY means the early keys to be sounded. TOP VELOCITY  means the maximum touch volume of each chosen voice.
7. Once done, save it by clicking the triangle button on the top right
8. Select WRITE PERFORMANCE.
9. Put into User (PERFORMANCE BANK)

As the result, you will hear different sound in each octaves on the keyboard turts.

MicroArranger Sampling Performance Example, Selalu RIndu - Ine Sintia

Here I show you an example performance of my sampling module. I record it directly without studio mixing. And it's not from a Song or Sequencer, this is really my live performance, but in this case without vocal of course. One can clearly find how I did the recording perform.

Sampling in Live Performance, Iming-iming Rita Sugiarto

Here, I show you my sampling works in a live performance with some additional manual instruments (Live Gendang, Lead Guitar, and Suling Bambu). 

Katakanlah - Yunita Ababiel, Januar Sampling performance to demonstrate Soneta's kind of tabla (Dolak). But unfortunately not too clear

I try to demonstrate Soneta's kind of Tabla (Dolak). This Song is fit the sound color of Dolak. But unfortunately its not too clear, because I used my mobile phone camera to capture it and I didn't use a Mixer to record the music perform.

Yeahh,, At least I can show you the color of sound, although generally its not friendly to hear. I really apologize about it.

Create an Own Style in KORG PA50SD / Micro Arranger PS50SD .

• Make sure your position on the 'STYLE PLAY'.
• Press the RECORD button,

1. Select 'New Style' if you want to create a new style, or
2. Select 'Current Style' if intending to edit \ create a style by taking the style from the internal keyboard.

• Press any key volume / value that is there beside the left and right to adjust the display:

1. E: V1 (Variations 1-4), use the cursor F2 to go to the CV:CV1 (Chord Variations 1-6). CV2-6 can be used if needed,
2. CV Len: 4 (CV Length 1-16 bar)
3. Resol: 1/16 (resolution/quantize HI, 1/32, 1/24, 1/16, 1/12, 1/8)
4. Arrange chord that will be used as the basis for recording is C Maj. When recording a minor in intro/ending, major chord position have to change to a minor chord position, ex: C m.
5. RL: 2 (Rec Length is always associated with CV: Len and shows the number of bars which will be recorded)
6. Metronome: On1/On2 (interval of one or two bars just started recording)
7. Meter: 4 / 4 (Time signature)
8. NTT: 5th (Root, i series, no transpose)

• To set the tempo can be done by pressing the 'SHIFT', hold and use the controls Tempo/Value, to change this.
• Press the 'TRK SELECT' to select the type of instrument sounds that will be used each of his tracks.
• When all was ready, press the Start/Stop to start recording. Press the Start/Stop once again to stop it.
• If you want to delete the data per-track press the TRK SELECT buttons to display 8 tracks instrument, then press and hold the DELETE button (Synchro Start/Stop) and then select the tracks to be removed ("Are You Sure?), Press Enter/Yes. And if you want to delete the data per-note (usually on the drum track or Percusion) can be done in a way; let the style keep it running, press the DELETE (Synchro Start/Stop) and hold down then press note which will be removed.
• If you want to do editing like Event Edit, Copy or Delete the instruments data, one or overall variation, press MENU:

1. Select Delete if you want to delete the data, set data to be deleted, press Enter/Yes 2x. Press page (+) once again if you want to delete it entirely.
2. Select the copy if you want to copy the data per-track, per-element style, as well as good overall variation of internal style and another copy of the style. Use the Volume/Value, or Down/- Up/+ to set or change parameters.
3. Select event edit if you want to edit the data per note/event on the desired track as the drums, bass etc. How: specify the track, press the Start/Stop (use the buttons such as STS and Volume/Value that is there besides the left and right cursor displays as well as the play button to change the parameters)

• Before recording the next track, you can exercise first using sounds that have been selected, except on the drum track or percussion,

1. Make a sound that was in position selected mute (temporarily dead) by pressing both buttons volume / value besides the left / right display at the same time.
2. Press the Start/Stop and start to practice (this process is not in recording position). If you want to record again press both buttons volume / value so that the position was once again back to normal. Press the Star/Stop buttons and start recording.

Note: If you want to record a minor Intro/Ending minor chord arrangements should also be changed to a minor after that open the page to see Chord Variations Table. Arrange minor (m) changed from one to two digits.

• When it all completed, the recording process for storing the user can be done by:

1. Press the "Record" or "write the disc in use".
2. Press any key Volume/Value on the left displays that associated with the style.
3. Make the desired style name with moving or turning controls Tempo/Value, to search for letters, and press the Down/Up whenever you want to shift the cursor.
4. Press any key Volume/Value (Bass/Perc) and then press the Down/Up to select the user's style that will be overwritten, for example as the Mazurka.
5. Press Enter/Yes 2x, then the mazurka position will change with the new style.

• If the style that was created did not want to be included into the user's style or canceled, then select 'Abort' and press Enter / yes 2x.

4 Output Recommended Sound Card for Dangdut Sampling

Adding more output is a better way to have more real quality for live performances in a One Man Band event. If we able to separate our instrument output as many as we can, it will provide us a better sound quality. Because we can independently adjust different EQ for each instrument we played on. For instance, in Dangdut musics, we have 3 mayor instrument that might be difficult to have their real sounds in an ordinary keyboard, that is Gendang, Bass and Drum. In gendang itself, it should be had two separate different character of output, that was called Tak and Dut. So that, if we focus our concern to have real arrangement on dangdut, so that we should make at least 4-output in our sampling to get better sound quality. Here, I recommend a cheap 4 output soundcard, but has good sound quality.

Here I give you the description of the product. I copied it directly from its original website.

Scarlett 2i4

Scarlett 2i4 is a 2 in / 4 out USB audio interface featuring two award-winning Focusrite pre-amps and four high-quality audio outputs. Housed in an anodised aluminium unibody chassis, the Scarlett 2i4 is the perfect audio interface for musicians and digital DJs.

Get Started

Connect Scarlett 2i4 to your Mac or PC and get ready to make music! With the very best in digital audio technology and a variety of input and output options, the Scarlett 2i4 will capture and playback your sound with superb quality.
Click here to watch the 2i4 tutorial video

 

 

 

 

 

Plug straight in

The front panel has two combo XLR inputs so you can connect microphones, guitars and line level signals with absolute confidence that your sound is in safe hands. Use the “PAD” function for loud guitars or microphones, and use the “DIRECT MONITOR” control for a low-latency mix of input and playback signals.

 

 

Keep an eye on your levels

Unique signal halos let you know that you’ve got a good audio level for recording. Green is good and red means that your audio is too loud, and that your should lower the level control.

 

 

 

 DJ-ready outputs

With 4 RCA outputs, a high-level headphone output and pristine audio quality, in a package ready for the road, the Scarlett 2i4 is ideal for today's digital performers and laptop DJs.

 

 

 

 

 

25 years of experience

Since 1985, Focusrite has been a leading manufacturer in the professional audio field. Focusrite mic pres are the choice of leading artists, recording studios and engineers around the world. Those years of audio experience ensure the Scarlett 2i4 sounds as beautiful as it looks.

Patch Instrument Yamaha PSR-S900 and PSR-S700 for Cakewalk/Sonar

For a keyboard player who have a Yamaha keyboard PSR-S900/S700 well of course are familiar with voices from the keyboard instrument patch. This keyboard has advantages in that instrument patch has been labeled "Mega Voices" and also "Super Articulation Voices", which means the voices of these instruments is really almost like their originals. Using of these sounds can certainly add the harmonize and humanize impression on the song being played.

But unfortunately, the voices are not included into the category of General MIDI, so if you play the Standard MIDI Files on the keyboard, these voices will never be automatically selected to be played by the Standard MIDI Files. Moreover, for "Super Articulation Voices" is not recommended for your performance, but only for use on Song and Style on your keyboard. So what if you want to use the voices of "special" on MIDI files (Song) or also made your own style? If you are a user of Cakewalk (SONAR), then this page is the answer.

In Cakewalk, if you create a MIDI Channel, then you open the patch instrument, thus perform of the standard voices are included in the category of General MIDI. If you want the instrument patches are displayed on Cakewalk so that all the sounds found same as in keyboard Yamaha PSR-S900/S700, then you have to add the Cakewalk/SONAR Instrument Definition to your computer.

First you have to download the Cakewalk Instrument Definition Yamaha PSR-S900/S700. The file can be downloaded at here.

If you've downloaded the files, the next step you should do to stay to extract it from the zip file, and then import that file on your Cakewalk instrument patch. The steps are:

1. Click on Options, then select the Instrument.
2. Then will display Assign Instruments, select Define.
3. Then will display the Define Instruments and Names, select Import.
4. Import Instrument Definition (browse) to location where the Cakewalk Instrument Definition that you have downloaded, and select the file "yamaha_kbds_1.20", then Open. 
5. Then in Define Instruments and Names you will see several types of keyboard, select the S900 (if your users Yamaha PSR-S900) or S700 (if your users Yamaha PSR-S700), then click OK, then Close.
6. The display will return to the Assign Instruments, then block all output/Channels, and click on the column S900/S700 Uses Instrument, click OK.

If you've done all the steps as described above, so now you can display the sounds of  Yamaha PSR S900/S700 instruments in your Cakewalk (SONAR).