Good day, anyone out there to pick this thread up…
Hi @Trumpet1958,
to my understanding, “Jazz Essentials” is still being sold as an extra style content package for Groove Agent 4 / 5 which - unless it has been bought separately (at an affordable price, that is) - wouldn’t be a co-licensed content within Groove Agent SE 5 and / or Cubase Elements 11 (please correct me if I’m wrong).
This is the URL to the current product page:
And this is what my installation of “Jazz Essentials” looks like in Steinberg Library Manager, but only after having bought the right to use this style preset pack a few years ago (10 presets for Groove Agent or Groove Agent SE, and for both versions 4 or 5 - both packages contain the same .vstsound container files, but only the Groove Agent 4 (SE) version has an additional MSI installer):
All of these style preset packages need to be activated via eLicenser after purchase.
If you don’t buy that preset pack, and if you don’t activate it, but still wanted to install it, there’d only be some place holder file with no further functionality (at least from a user’s perspective) - which lives somewhere deep within the default Steinberg Groove Agent VST Sound path - and which can’t be used without having licensed these *.vstsound container files:
(Windows 10, Windows Explorer path, German locale)
Both *.vstsound containers that can be acquired as “Jazz Essentials” are named as follows:
ADD_SMT_159_Jazz_Essentials_Presets.vstsound - (21.41 MB in size)
ADD_SMT_160_Jazz_Essentials_Presets.vstsound - (18.23 MB in size)
If you look into Steinberg Download Assistant under “Groove Agent Drum Kits and Styles”, you’ll find two different zipped content packages which both carry all data relevant to the functional style preset package. All 10 presets inside of these *.vstsound containers were designed for being used either with Groove Agent 5 (full), or with Groove Agent SE 5:
The 10 preset names [here: Groove Agent 5 SE, GA (full) has no “SE” addendum per preset]:
So the path to get “Jazz Essentials” running would be:
make a decision if you want to buy that content package, receive download code and / or activation key, activate the license to Soft eLicenser and / or USB eLicenser, download the Groove Agent 5 (SE) related *.vstsound file(s) (or installer, or zip file), extract / put both *.vstsound files to a folder of your choice, double click the first file.
Then Library Manager will open and ask you if you want to “move” the new content, or “register in place”. After you’ve made that last decision, “Jazz Essentials - 10 presets” should be available within Cubase Elements and Groove Agent SE 5 (respectively), within the Media Bay’s preset selector.
Hope that helps.
Cheers,
Markus
Hi Markus,
Thank you for responding, much appreciated. I think but am not sure if Jazz Essentials now comes packaged with CuBase I’m on Elements 11. I can see the Jazz Essential files on my C:drive they are the same ones you identified I can also it in the Steinberg Library I get the same image as the one you have sent. Also when I do a re-install I get a message saying that the VST is already registered.
So I’m thinking the files are there, however, I can not see the tracks in the media bay selector.
Perhaps I’m wrong and need to purchase the plug in to get the files to load and work, quite happy to do that as the Trad Jazz tracks in your image are exactly what I’m after to build backing tracks as getting to play with band members has not been possible for the last year.
I’ve now raised a support ticket with Steinberg so fingers crossed this will get resolved soon.
Once again thanks for the comprehensive and detailed response.
Cheers
Jim
I’m in the UK by the way
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Hi Jim / @Trumpet1958,
many thanks for your reply, you’re welcome.
Just so much: you can download and register any *.vstsound container files, but without an additionally bought license they wouldn’t run inside Cubase (any version) / Groove Agent (SE).
Please take another closer look with me:
Btw. as you can see, I also used Download Assistant to download these two again, just to make sure I don’t misguide you:
(1)
Groove Agent SE 5.0.40 - Instrument (recommended) - [93.78 MB]
(2)
Groove Agent SE 5 - Content (recommended) - [6.15 GB]
Those two downloads contain all Groove Agent 5 SE related installers, resource files and content files that are intended to be used within Cubase Elements 11 and Groove Agent SE 5 .
As to (1):
What you can see are simply some sort of embedded / internal resource files related to the general functionality of Groove Agent SE 5, in relation to “potentially bought” content files, but they’re not the full commercial content packages!
The resource file…
FCP_SMT_746_GA_Jazz_Essentials_SP.vstsound [ca. 16.5 MB]
…“has to do” with “Jazz Essentials”, but doesn’t contain the full presets and MIDI patterns.
Groove Agent SE 5 needs these additional resource files in order to connect any additionally bought style presets / MIDI patterns (/ VST sample library content) within that VST drum machine.
As to (2):
Among the *.vstsound standard content files, there’s also none of the two content files which additionally need to be licensed under the style package name “Jazz Essentials” (both content files 159 and 160). So I highly doubt that “Jazz Essentials” was ever part of Cubase Elements 11 (which comes with Groove Agent SE 5).
–
However, I feel you. I’ve been using the “Jazz Essentials”, “Modern Jazz Essentials” and the “Simon Phillips Jazz Drums” packages frequently, and I did so long before the pandemic, for the exact same purposes: to do my piano comping practice with them, to arrange my backing tracks, etc.
They’re really well made.
This is what the corresponding license entry for “Jazz Essentials” looks like in Soft eLicenser:
Hope this is of any help to you.
And sorry for that much detail.
Cheers,
Markus
Hi Markus,
Thanks for getting back so quickly, so whilst I’ve some of the Jazz Essentials files I do not have the complete file structure and need to make a purchase. No problem with that, just wish it was clearer from Steinberg. I see you also use the Simon Phillips Jazz Drums Package, I’ve looked at that and it seems very good. If I were to purchase that does it contain similar Trad Jazz tracks to those in Jazz Elements? I’m now happy to buy either of the packages just wonder which one would suit a Trad style player.
BTW where are you located?
Cheers
Jim
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Hi Jim / @Trumpet1958,
exactly. Right now, you’ve got something like a preconditional file, just in case you wanted to later purchase and use “Jazz Essentials” [or any other Drumkit and / or style pattern extensions to Groove Agent (SE)].
And yes, at first all of it seems a bit complicated. But once you get used to, it gets much easier.
There’s some kind of specific structured thinking behind it - so at first it may seem that “practical everyday logic” might not apply, but it still does!
The “Simon Phillips Jazz Drums” are excellent.
That GA extension also includes one of his sampled drum kits (ca. 7.58 GB).
And yes, there are trad. style patterns included, all of them with / without brushes:
I you decided to get the “Simon Phillips” kit & patterns, you might still also want the other two (much smaller) packages, “Jazz Essentials” and “Modern Jazz Essentials”.
All of them combined would make a very useful resource.
Oh, and I’m in Berlin.
Best,
Markus
Hi Markus,
Many thanks lots of excellent advice that is very much appreciated.
Very best wishes
Jim
Portsmouth England
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Hi Markus!
I am Ken with Cubase 11 Pro who’s recently purchased and installed Groove Agent 5 but have had a nightmare and wasted apx 5 hours a day for each of the last 5 days with installation issues (I won’t bore you with all the history but it was mainly file location related, until now).
I am hoping your super knowledge can help do the right next thing rather than continue backwards.
Before moving files in library manager, I had all drum sets showing in media Bay and in pllug-in Groove agent loading window and all seemed to be fine with just a few missing files.
Last night after tidying up file locations to C:\Users$USER$\AppData\Roaming\Steinberg\Content\Groove Agent
from C:\ProgramData\Steinberg\Content
I had messages saying licences only 2 hours to go and now expired, (including even cubase which is now ok after running elicencer maintenance) but on loading Cubase I still get the attached message re groove agent sets licence expired, although my USB licencer shows that Groove Agent 5 is fully licenced.
Also on opening a project I get messages saying certain .vstsound files cannot be found eg. ADD_SMT_169_Songwriter_Kit_Presets.vstsound, I can’t locate them on the drive either and in the Library Manager that file is not there, only files 165 to 168 so is that an extra not included in fully licenced Groove Agent 5? I need to know on loading Cubase whether I should click ‘ignore’ for now if I should be able to locate it or ‘remove’ if it’s a product I haven’t purchased.
Also on loading plug-in groove agent there are no drum sound sets showing, just ‘All Agents’ and nothing inside (presumably because it thinks my licences have expired). On right media bay window actually 7 sets are showing (Allen Morgan, Acoustic Agents, Rockpop toolbox, GA SE Library, Laser Beams, Production Grooves & The Kit SE). Perhaps those are ones included in SE that comes with Cubase 11 pro?
Where should I go from here please?
I tried entering my auth code again in Download Manager but it says ‘can only be activated once’. Should I reinstall my elicencer or could that cause more issues? At least I can use Cubase at present and can choose to click ignore or remove on an ongoing basis and write off the Euro 110 I spent on Groove Agent. That’s nothing to the time I’ve lost.
Also, to help me and all others who are confused by the existence of files that are not licensed, is there a Steinberg database of which sets (and preferably files) are included in each licence, for Groove Agent 5.0 in my case and each drum set package eg Jazz Essentials in other peoples cases?
Perhaps Steinberg could have that simple resource on their site and a quick guide on how to handle these anomolies to avoid these error messages.
Thanks a lot for your kind attention if you have time.
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Those are expansion packs that you can buy. All the stuff there in your screen shot has a separate license that you have to pay for. You can see them here on the website under Expansions:
There’s also VST loopsets:
This looks to be a complete list:
If you buy a license for each you won’t get this on start up. Halion SE and Groove Agent SE do come with some free stuff when you install them.
I’m just a user and didn’t build the software and I find out everything by Googling. From what I know they do seem to put everything in the download manager. You have to know whether you have a license to use it or not. There isn’t much in there that is free to use. They do give you Halion Sonic SE and Groove Agent SE.
A few free ones I know of are:
^^^^ with these you still need to request a license key which they send you via email when you click on the ‘Download for Free’ links.
There is another one called Engine Roar which is sampled engine noises.
Here is a vid that shows the free libraries for Halion SE:
If you want to uninstall the ones you don’t have licenses for you can do it from the Steinberg Library Manager by clicking the ‘Remove’ button:
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Thanks a lot wildschwein for your prompt reply and explanation.
I realise now my mistake was on entering the authorisation code at the top of the Steinberg Download Assistant, I wrongly assumed that the all Groove Agent kits listed under the Groove Agent section, were ones the licence had given me access to, whereas in reality they must have already been there and we are supposed to guess which ones we have been given access to, to then download same?
So I’ve spent days downloading all the stuff I hadn’t bought.
I have Googled for days and Googled some more but still unsure which kits are included. Looking at the Steinberg Groove Agent
New in Groove Agent 5 | Steinberg under ‘every new feature’ it only mentions ‘The Kit’.
The complete list you kindly posted Sound Content Downloads | Steinberg
looks comprehensive but I can’t tell which ones are included in GA5 (unless it the ones that have in their title 'for Groove Agent SE 4/5"?)
Thanks for posting the free ones you know about.
I believe another mistake was that I downloaded sets that stated Groove Agent 4 assuming they were needed and included all up to GA5, which some were .exe files which has created a lot of programs on my PC so I believe I need to uninstall those using Windows control panel.
In media bay only 7 kits appear (as attached jpg) for some reason.
Do you think they are the kits that are included or just the ones that are not installed incorrectly - presumably the latter because yesterday I had about 20 kits in the media bay 
Do you know the simplest and safest way I can start again with uninstalling everything (all of GA5) and reinstalling , or do you expect I will have problems with the licences as I’ve already had messages at times saying the auth code can only be used once?
Thanks for your help with this mess.
Also when I load the plugin and try to load a kit (=click down arrow to opn ‘load multi-program’) & click down arrow on ‘All INstrument sets’ , & reset the filter, none appear in the drop down menu like they did yesterday but I can drag them from the media bay. Maybe it’s a user error as I’m still learning.
Hi @KenD,
my apologies for not having been able to respond right away (health related time lag).
As @wildschwein correctly stated, this is all a matter of having chosen and acquired any additional commercial content made by Steinberg, or not (including all occasional freebies, including more or less regular discount campaigns).
Besides, you’ve got one very good point: there still doesn’t seem to be a complete, comprehensive and continually updated list (or public database) created by Steinberg which names all currently offered products by their product names, in relation to their categories, content file names and software versions, like “ADD_SMX_12345_Instrument_Sounds_ABC.vstsound”, or preset collections, or sample / pattern packs, etc. And although there usually are more than enough meta data in the Media Bay after purchase of such a content package (if tagged by Steinberg), one still has to search for any file names and catagory manually and then put any *.vstsound files into their respective category folder (highly recommended).
Something that I’d always do, so I’d always know whenever a newer version of a sample container file would appear - just one example: with the release of Dorico 4 on Jan. 12th, the choir library “Olympus Choir Micro”, which is part of Dorico’s Pro and Elements package, had been raised from v5 to v6 and has a slightly smaller *.vstsound file size - some detail easily to be missed, at least if in a hurry. In Download Assistant, the file shows no version number, so one might be tempted to think “oh, I already have that one, don’t need to download this again”).
Very best wishes,
Markus
Hi Martin,
I hope you’re feeling better - please don’t aplogise for replying later - I’m so grateful to all you guys who take your precious time to reply with any and all helpful direction!
I think with yours and @wildschwein help I’m all sorted now.
I used the list of sets that Cubase warning told me I hadn’t a licence for and first used control panel to uninstall those, then whatever was left in that list that hadn’t been removed thru control panel I used the library manager to remove them. Then on opening Cubase I also chose ‘remove’ on the presets it couldn’t find (1 or 2 were part of free or GA5 which I had to choose ‘locate’ and find them).
I then downloaded and installed the free ones @wildschwein informed me of and after a few hours, all seems fairly ok - no warnings and Cubase, Groove Agent and Halion are working fine.
The only strange thing is that the right hand media window doesn’t have the same Halion sets as Halion ‘load’ window has (see jpg below).
Also the Alto Glockenspiel doesn’t appear in either window even tho it shows in the Library manager (all in view on the jpg) but I’m not too worried now I can get back to making music again 
Thanks again all! Have a great day!