Hi All,
Forgive my lack of knowledge as I am new to MIDI and Cubase and sorry for the length of this post.
I have tried multiple forums, YouTube, Cubase ref books/manuals etc and cannot get either my DTXtreme3 (upgraded to DTX900 firmware), or the older DTXpress4 Edrum modules to trigger any sounds in Cubase El 10. I have tried with both Groove Agent SE and HALion Sonic SE instruments with different (and"any") channels and have been trying for many hours now - it also doesn’t trigger the on screen keyboard in either Cubase Instrument. I (think) I understand the concepts yet I cannot get it to work. I have tried both USB and MIDI cables on DTXtreme3 and the MIDI cable on DTXpress4 (no USB option). I know it can be fairly complex to manage settings in the Edrum module with settings in Cubase and the instrument settings, however thought with all Yamaha/Steinberg hardware it would not be so difficult.
I can trigger with external dumb controller (LKP25) but not with Edrums. I am getting a MIDI in Activity signal in the Cubase transport bar so I think I am close. I am only trying with one pad (snare drum on D1) so I don’t think it is a drum map issue but I have tried changing this as well.
I have altered settings on the Edrum modules as well as those in Cubase and GA/HALion Sonic, played around with MIDI device settings, drum maps etc. I would be MOST GRATEFUL for any assistance as I am now losing sleep over this issue (LITERALLY !!). I am sure it shouldn’t be this hard and following link suggests it should just be plug and play - I followed this but don’t know what other stings (if any) are required.
My longer term aim is to record MIDI from the Edrums in Cubase (and trigger sampled sounds that I will load from my Edrum module) and at the same time send this real-time MIDI signal back to the Edrum module to trigger on board sounds to then record as an audio track in Cubase (I only have 4 output channels with UR242 so MIDI will give me more control in editing). thanks for any help.
Hi All,
Forgive my lack of knowledge as I am new to MIDI and Cubase and sorry for the length of this post.
I have tried multiple forums, YouTube, Cubase ref books/manuals etc and cannot get either my DTXtreme3 (upgraded to DTX900 firmware), or the older DTXpress4 Edrum modules to trigger any sounds in Cubase El 10. I have tried with both Groove Agent SE and HALion Sonic SE instruments with different (and"any") channels and have been trying for many hours now - it also doesn’t trigger the on screen keyboard in either Cubase Instrument. I (think) I understand the concepts yet I cannot get it to work. I have tried both USB and MIDI cables on DTXtreme3 and the MIDI cable on DTXpress4 (no USB option). I know it can be fairly complex to manage settings in the Edrum module with settings in Cubase and the instrument settings, however thought with all Yamaha/Steinberg hardware it would not be so difficult.
I can trigger with external dumb controller (LKP25) but not with Edrums. I am getting a MIDI in Activity signal in the Cubase transport bar so I think I am close. I am only trying with one pad (snare drum on D1) so I don’t think it is a drum map issue but I have tried changing this as well.
I have altered settings on the Edrum modules as well as those in Cubase and GA/HALion Sonic, played around with MIDI device settings, drum maps etc. I would be MOST GRATEFUL for any assistance as I am now losing sleep over this issue (LITERALLY !!). I am sure it shouldn’t be this hard and following link suggests it should just be plug and play - I followed this but don’t know what other settings (if any) are required.
My longer term aim is to record MIDI from the Edrums in Cubase (and trigger sampled sounds that I will load from my Edrum module) and at the same time send this real-time MIDI signal back to the Edrum module to trigger on board sounds to then record as an audio track in Cubase (I only have 4 output channels with UR242 so MIDI will give me more control in editing). thanks for any help.
These suggestions assume you have connected your audio sound interface (or card) correctly in the Cubase Studio>Studio Setup>VST Audio System menu and the Cubase Studio>Audio Connections>Outputs tab menu.
You have connected your DTX to the computer per the instructions in your DTX op manual. Especially steps 3 thru 5 on page 22.
In a Cubase project you have created an Instrument Track and set the Input Routing to “All Midi Inputs” or to the one specifically listing the DTX.
You have set the Instrument to Groove Agent SE.
You opened the Groove Agent editing screen and chose (for starters) a preset sound bank from the list.
The Groove Agent instrument “Activate Effect” button is enabled (button at the top left corner should be blue).
You enabled the “Record Enable” and “Monitor” functions on the Instrument Track.
The volume setting for your Instrument Track and your Main Stereo Out channel are set at a proper level.
Volume settings on your audio interface and/or monitors (or earphones) are set correctly.
At this point you should be hearing something when you hit the drum pads.
Hello and thanks for your detailed response. I think I can answer yes to all of your suggestions and have already got a copy of the DTXT3 user manual that you sent me the link for. I have tried again tonight to get it to work and have still been unsuccessful. This time I have taken screenshots or photos of all of the DTXT3 settings and the settings in Cubase as I realise that without this you can only guess as to what I am actually doing. I have also taken screenshots of the relevant Cubase screens so you can see what is happening.
Following are some of the key shots and I can upload more if needed
09 feb channel settings.JPG
09 feb dtxt3 still not record midi - diff drum map.JPG
I cannot record any MIDI when hitting the pads and cannot hear any sound. When I use my Akai LKP25 MIDI keyboard I have no problems and it all works well. I have tried different drum map settings and also used the Simon Phillips Studio drums which has so many active MIDI notes that I am sure the snare pad I am using would have triggered something if it were just a mapping issue.
I am hoping you can help me as I have spent so much time on this and am getting very frustrated with the whole thing. I am sure I doing something simple incorrectly although it did cross my mind that maybe I have a fault in the DTXT3 module with MIDI out ? I have had the module for a long time however have never used the MIDI mode. I am also very new to MIDI and to be honest I don’t really know what I am doing !!
I am also going to try again tonight using the MIDI out cable (instead of USB) from DTXT3 going to MIDI in on my Steinberg UR242 to see if this works. I realise I need to change the DTXT3 MIDI IN/OUT setting to “MIDI” to do this. thanks Again for your help.
My observations… so far:
In your 1st photo it looks like some midi is being recorded but you are not hearing it… correct?. And you have another screenshot showing that it is not recording midi. So what settings changed between the two?
On your track you have the button for “Write Automation” activated. At this point you really don’t need automation to be active. So for now, I would disable it.
I see you have something active under “Quick Controls”. That could be an issue too and again, at this point, I don’t see why it would be active.
I see you do have “All Midi Inputs” selected. Is there an input available that is labeled specifically for the DTX? If yes, change it to that input.
Here is what I suggest…
1st, let’s make sure your sound card is setup correctly. As I mentioned above I was assuming it was but, maybe it is not. So… provide a screen shot showing the Cubase Studio>Studio Setup>VST Audio System menu and the Cubase Studio>Audio Connections>Outputs tab menu.
2nd, Do a quick check in the Cubase Edit>Preferences>MIDI menu and ensure the “MIDI Thru Active” option is enabled. Also in the Preferences>Record> MIDI menu make sure the “Record-Enable Allows MIDI Thru” option is enabled.
3rd, Start a new project with an Instrument track. Set the input to the DTX (if available). If not, then “All Midi Inputs”. Again set the VST Instrument to Groove Agent and pick a sound. Of course activate the “Record Enable” and “Monitor” functions.
4th, Before you record anything make sure the “Write Automation” and “Quick Controls” are not active.
Thanks again for your help.
1st photo is actually with MIDI keyboard LKP25 and this works OK. I can record MIDI AND I get sound using this controller.
Other screen that shows MIDI activity is using DTXT3 pads however it DOES NOT record MIDI or give any sound.
There is no write automation (I think you have seen the “edit instrument” icon on the instrument track)
The 2nd photo shows studio setup and there is one MIDI output (DTX900-3) and 3 DTX inputs (DTX900-1, DTX900-2 and DTX900-3) along with LKP25 which is the MIDI keyboard controller that works OK. I have tried setting MIDI input to DTX900-3 and it still does not work.
In terms of your suggestions.
This is the VST setup and Here is the audio connections output screenshot. Can you confirm if this is OK ?
In shot above I have also deactivated quick controls and write automation is not active. Unfortunately is still does not work. The shot is taken half way through recording and what looks like the MIDI event disappears when recording is stopped - it also looks like write automation on as it all goes red during recording but goes back once recording stopped.
Are you maybe accidentially filtering MIDI channel 10 in Cubase…?
Apart from that - what are you actually trying to record - MIDI or audio?
You can not record audio to any instrument track.
Sorry about thinking that the “Edit Instrument” button was the “Automation Write” button.
The VST audio and audio connections screenshots look ok to me. And this setup seems to work properly as you stated when midi recording and playback using the LKP.
Maybe something “svennilenni” asked will help. So please comment on those.
A few last thoughts/ideas from me…
I want to once again confirm that you have set the DTX Local Control to “Off” (see pg 24 in the op manual) and that you have the DTX set as required in steps 3, 4 & 5 in op manual page 22 to enable MIDI thru USB .
You installed the latest DTX driver for Windows 10:
You are connecting to a USB 2 port versus USB 3. Regardless, try connecting to a different USB port.
I am actually trying to record MIDI and realise I cannot record audio into instrument track.
I think you may have the answer in the filter settings although I am not familiar with this. I have attached a copy of my current settings which I have never touched or changed (at least I don’t think I have). I see that MIDI channel 10 (drums) is actually selected so I will try and play with this. If you can let me know if this is correct it will help and if I solve it in the meantime I will post back. thanks for the suggestion.
Thanks “Prock” for the suggestions. You may also have something here. My computer only has 4 x USB 3.0 (one with power share) although it also has one on the back (that I haven’t used) which is eSATA/USB 2.0 connector so I will try this as well.
DTX local ctrl is definitely off.
Yes to all points on manual P.22 and yes to latest version of DTX driver. thanks
HOORAY !!!
“svennilenni” has fixed my issue. I was actually (incorrectly) filtering out MIDI channel 10 from recording or thruput and didn’t even know about it. As we all know MIDI channel 10 is the key for drums !!
Thanks to All for the many suggestions. I am very impressed with how everyone is very respectful to a newcomer with a lack of knowledge. As a result my issue is fixed, I have learnt a lot more about Cubase (and the DTX) and can now look forward to moving on to my next challenges.
hi, i just bought a yamaha dtx920k and am trying to set up my drums too.
i can’t pm ondjpayn as i only just created my account.
i am a total noob at cubase so i dk what im doing wrongly. i have a kit set up - i am using the kit from “Walking while Sleeping”. What are my next steps???
edit: i didn’t install the Yamaha MIDI software. It’s fixed now but i have extra questions:
I added two Alesis cymbal pads to my Yamaha kit for input 12 and 13.
How do I map notes to these two cymbal pads? The Cubase software doesn’t seem to pick up the hits on the 2 pads too.
