Bank Selector for MIDI tracks in Cubase Pro 10?

[mikejm]

The Cubase documentation shows this as a screencap:

Yet I do not have this option in Cubase 10. I see people talking about it existing in Cubase 9, etc, but all I have is “program selector” which selects programs 0-127 or channel selector 1-16.

I have tried instead programming bank selection in the MIDI with MSB messages but this is glitchy. It only works sometimes and I can’t figure out why. Even when it does work, if I seek to a new point in the song, the bank selection all goes to hell. MSB messages only work (sometimes) if you play from the start to run through them and then not seek again after that.

What on earth are we supposed to do for programming bank selection that works in Cubase?

I also need to get the bank selection firmly into the MIDI also on export for external programs to read the MIDI bank change messages correctly as well, even if they start playing half way through the MIDI.

Do you have to put MSB messages constantly through the song for this to be possible?

Thanks

[steve]

@mikejm

It only works sometimes and I can’t figure out why

It depends on what the midi track is routed to. Maybe this is helpful:

Program Change Messages and Bank Select Messages

[Johnny_Moneto]

As steve wrote: The options will change according to the output the track is routed to.

Your track is routed to VSI instrument or an External Instrument. In this case you select all presets from the box presented to you as you do not need to hassle with bank select commands anymore (VST Instruments usually don’t have that concept).

@mikejm

I have tried instead programming bank selection in the MIDI with MSB messages

Not to be nitpicking here but MSB is short for Most Significant Byte and is not a message per se. You want to use MIDI controller #0, possibly in combination with MIDI controller #32. Which synth are trying to send this to?

[mikejm]

Thanks guys. I just made a blank project and noticed when the Windows GS Wavetable Synth is selected as output, the bank select shows up. So it is clearly something with my VSTi.

I am doing something unusual in that I am trying to export from my project MIDI that has the bank/patch information encoded into it so it will work in another system that requires this to get the right instruments per MIDI.

The synth I’m using in Cubase for building the songs is open source so I will have to go dig through the code likely and figure out why it’s not processing or allowing bank selections from there.

If Windows GS Wavetable Synth can be made to accept bank selection there, so too should a custom VSTi presumably be capable of it, right? If it is encoded to allow it?

Thanks

[steve]

@mikejm

If Windows GS Wavetable Synth can be made to accept bank selection there, so too should a custom VSTi presumably be capable of it, right? If it is encoded to allow it?

Not necessarily.

@mikejm

I am doing something unusual in that I am trying to export from my project MIDI that has the bank/patch information encoded into it so it will work in another system that requires this to get the right instruments per MIDI.

Then don’t route the midi tracks to a VST, and you will have the field you need.

[Johnny_Moneto]

@mikejm

If Windows GS Wavetable Synth can be made to accept bank selection there, so too should a custom VSTi presumably be capable of it, right?

VST tries to overcome some of the shortcomings of MIDI. Using BankSelect and ProgramChange messages are such shortcomings. In VST you simply select the preset, host and plugin communicate directly with each other. This has one backdraw, though: We cannot program a change of presets for a VST effect or instrument.
We would simply create a new track with a new instance or change parameters through automation.

Anyway, set the output to “No Instrument” and the bank selection fields will become available.

NB: This is what it looks like if you “program” a preset switch via automation to a VST synth…