I’m trying to Use my motif XF as a external instrument with cb 13 Pro, Windows 10. I think I set up everything right in audio connections, etc.
But when I play the motif I don’t hear anything on the channel, unless… I change the patch on the motif either from the synthesizer or from the inspector, doesn’t matter. Then, voilà, I hear the patch. However, if I try to record, it goes silent again.
Switch patch again: audible.
Press Record: silence.
Etc
Also, it looks like you should be able to do all kinds of fancy stuff with the midi device manager, (There’s a whole separate PDF called midi devices)but I don’t get it. I read the manual, I’ve watched videos…
What are you supposed to be able to do??
All I What is to be able to seamlessly select the motif as an instrument when I add a track, And it would be nice if cubase would remember which patch I had selected on the motive so that if I open the project again it automatically goes to the correct patch on the motif.
for Cubase to recognize your patches, you must install the motif xf patches from the midi device manager
or you are lucky since it is part of the list of patches available and configured in Cubase.
I appreciate the responses, but as far as I can tell I’ve done everything as shown. I think I’m gonna just set it up with a midi channel and audio channel. Then I’ll save the set up as a template. Life’s too short for this.
Could be a solution, but I wouldn’t give up on that one, at your place : long ago, it’s been one of the reason (with the extended routing) that I went from Cubase 4 Studio to the Cubase 4 full version. and @Freudon has done quite a good job about showing what’s needed to be done.
After this, if there is still an issue about it, and after being sure thet the patches included in your <MIDI Device>.xml file are actually displayed as expected in your Program dropdown list, and that both MIDI channel(s) and MIDI output port are correctly set, could you post a screenshot of the tracks supposed to be using your external instrument ? You should have something like this :
set your external instrument as an instrument rack, this, to be able to export the MIDI signals on a dedicated MIDI output port that will trigger the sounds on your Motif.
be sure that the Preferences > MIDI > MIDI Thru active setting is ticked.
be also sure that your Preferences > VST > Auto Monitoring is set correctly (I usually set it as Tapemachine style). The fact that you have issue when attempting to record makes me think that there could be an issue in this department.
Thanks For your encouragement! OK, I’m going to give it another go. My first question relates to the picture above. In the bottom right corner of the device manager, what should I select here?
(It’s not clear to me whether this is about audio or about midi. Actually on second thought I’m going to guess that it’s midi, since the other option is windows midi.)
Studio 1824 C is my Audio interface.
Mid note data etc should be sent from motif XF8-1.
For the MOTIF XF you need to load the VST(3) and XF Extension. Follow the setup instructions. With the extension configured (legacy), works great as a Cubase 14 control surface too.
Thanks. I’ve used it, and I don’t like it. It takes forever to load, and then if you close the project you gotta load it again, plus I find it to be glitchy. I put a lot of time into trying to figure it out, on the Yamaha forum with bad Mr. and all that, and I’ve had to cut my losses. I’d rather just use the motif as a regular midi. instrument, If that’s possible.
You must be referencing the “syncing”. That and other nasty quirks with this setup are a real turnoff. It’s even relatively easy to brick your MOTIF. All that being said, it’s possible to get by all that and use it effectively. For me it’s been the best way to get other than GM sequences into the MOTIF. I use mine for transport, mixer and QC all the time when I’m woodshedding.
(I just looked up brick. No, that does not sound good. Might be a good reason not to do it.)
Yes, I do believe sync is the main issue for me. Do you have any suggestions on that? Do I really have to load the entire contents of the motif every time? Any tips you have would be appreciated.
I have reached a frustration point with some of this and I know it’s showing. I’m a musician not an engineer, and I feel like every second spent getting gear to talk to one another is a second not making music. I knew I’d have to put some time in, but sometimes I wonder.
But people on this forum are so helpful and encouraging. I really do appreciate it, and hope I can pay it forward at some point when I know a thing or two.
I would select the first one, as it obviously is the MIDI output of your interface, provided that it is connected to the Motif XF MIDI input.
Yep, but then it should be connected to your interface MIDI Input. In this configuration, I guess that you are able to set MIDI Local as On, among the Motif XF parameters, this, to prevent any MIDI loopback.
No, in the right zone of the main (arrange) page of Cubase, select the VSTi tab and click on the Rack dropdown list. After having chosen the instrument among the listed ones, you should get a dialog asking you if you want to add a MIDI track associated to it : do so.
What is worrying me, though, is that I don’t see your Yamaha Motif XF in the list shown in your second screenshot. Are you sure that you have a valid .xml file loaded for it in the MIDI Device Manager ?
I’m not too clear on what an xml file is, or what it is for, but it seems to have something to do with controlling parameters of an external instrument from cu base, am I right?
It looks like the motif is a “preset device”, according to the manual, which “are simple patch name scripts that do not include any device mapping of parameters and controls and no graphic panels.”
Is that script my XML file?
I’m not using my interface for midi. USB midi goes from the motif directly to the computer. Is there a reason I need to go through the interface?
… as mine is exactly this : a file that contains in xml language all the presets of each of my three external instruments.
As a reminder, html pages uses predefined markups to structure the way they are displayed and define their behavior. The xml language also uses markups, but custom ones to structure a file which can have any text content. Actually, it’s too difficult to create your own from scratch, but the MIDI Device Manager can do this. There is a Motif XF file in the list of bundled devices available (using the Install Device button) : I would start with this one. After this, you’ll probably need to change the presets names listed in the Patch Banks left panel of this window, accessible via the Open Device command :
I’m not used to USB when MIDI connections are involved : evrything here is connected with MIDI DIN cables, including my audio interface which has two MIDI DIN in/out ports : I’ve always been mistrustful about USB with MIDI. This said, it isn’t mandatory to connect MIDI to your interface, I guess, if your Motif XF is seen in Cubase as an actual added MIDI port. Can’t say much more on the subject, I admit.
Actually, it’s too difficult to create your own from scratch, but the MIDI Device Manager can do this. There is a Motif XF file in the list of bundled devices available (using the Install Device button) : I would start with this one. After this, you’ll probably need to change the presets names listed in the Patch Banks left panel of this window, accessible via the Open Device command :
I thought I already did this, when I selected Yamaha motif xf from the drop-down In the install device section of the midi device manager. Is that not the case?
I see in your screenshot, that a patch list has appeared underneath the install devices window. Did that happen automatically when you selected your device? I’m not sure if such a list appeared when I selected Yamaha motif XF from install device. It doesn’t look familiar, but I’ll check. As for the presets, I doubt I need to change them since My motif contains the standard factory presets, which appeared to be the same as the presets listed in the media bay screenshot in my previous post. By the way, doesn’t the fact that the presets are listed in the media Bay indicate that they have been recognized by cubase in some form?
This where you lose me. What do you mean by select patch banks? What is it I am trying to do? There’s nothing in those yellow folders. And why are they listed as channels? Midi channels? What are panels ? What are variables? Ahhh!
Update:
Sorry for the meltdown.
I see the patch banks now. I don’t need to change anything, so everything should be in place. I was able to add An instrument track with the motif as a rack instrument, but I’m still not hearing anything. It looks like it created an instrument track and a midi track in a folder called VST instruments.
Below you can see that the option of the motif is now turning up when I click on the rack drop-down: (By the way, why does it say “used” if I haven’t loaded the instrument yet?)
I think I figured it out. Well, with a lot of help.
I had a lot of settings out of whack, And carefully following the steps people provided and watchingGREG Ondo’s video help me set them straight, but the last one was In the image above. I had The midi device set to the presonus studio 1824C, but then it Dawned on me, I don’t use my interface for midi. I use my motif for midi. Duh. Switch the setting and, Voilà, sound! Cubic13, When you Confirmed my selection of the studio 1824C as My midi device, you didn’t know that I wasn’t using it as a midi device. So that’s totally on me.
Again, thanks for your help, and everyone Else who Contributed. So many helpful tips and pointers.
So after all that work, and it seemed to be working, I realized that Still had problem that I initially posted about. The midi channel Would be in focus And I could hear the external instrument, but when I moved to another channel and back again, There was silence. I Could get the sound back by switching the midi input channel in the inspector or sometimes by switching to another patch and back. But basically The midi connection just couldn’t seem to hold.
I was prepared to say OK, I guess I’ll just use the motif as a controller, Which seems like a waste of a lot of good sounds, But how much more time can I spend on this?
But then I remembered that a while back, over a year ago, I was having a similar problem with the Yamaha editor VST. And it was Solved by deactivating some midi functionality. Just on a hunch, I deactivated the old generic remote, which I was using with a midi stream deck plugin ( trevliga spel). Won’t you know it? the whole issue was resolved.
