VST System Link

Virtual instruments Virtual Effects and Add-ons
1

I’m a completely new user to the forum, so I’m not sure if this is where to post this, but…

I love Cubase very much. Me and a couple friends from school will be starting an electronic band, using Cubase as our Software program, if we can get everything set up. And yes, Kraftwerk influenced us.

I said IF :slight_smile: , because, well, I’m making songs, and loving the program, but, I’m trying to figure out how to make VST System Link work. I thought I finally figured out how to get it to work, but I got an error saying there were too many receive errors.

Note, I’m a complete beginner at MIDI through computers and Keyboards, so none of the documentation in the Cubase Documentation I couldn’t really understand, of course, maybe it’s just me.

I’m wondering if there’s a somewhat beginning VST System Link tutorial that could teach me how to get System Link up and running and being able to work with around 3 more computers.

If you tell me I have to invest in something that is over $100 or more, It’s okay, it’s just that I’ve spent nearly $400 to get Cubase for my friends so we can have something to work with(yes, we have keyboards to :slight_smile: ), I’ve spent weeks trying to get this to work, and I’m not ready to give up yet. :slight_smile:

If this is the wrong forum, please move it to the appropriate forum.

Thanks, appreciate any help ya’ll can give me.
Ryder

2

Interesting. I have no experience with VST system link, but I do wonder what exactly you are trying to achieve with that. Simply recording 3 keyboards at the same time doesn’t require 3 computers.

3

This is a very good example of what we would like to achieve. We each have our own computer, and we each have keyboards and sliders, knobs, etc. to play with to allow full customizing for synthesizer options. Just like kraftwerk, each guy has his own desk with a keyboard on it that he can play bass notes, synth sounds, drum sounds, etc. And with Cubase (not sure if they used VST System Link or not), They were able to sync their computers together so they can play their parts manually without having to play every part required. Yes, 3 or 4 keyboards don’t require computers, but it would just allow us to make better and cheap music(also we wouldn’t have to buy hardware sequencers :slight_smile: )

Of course, we’ll never achieve something as great as they have, it would be a fun hobby and to be able to hang out with friends with.

4

Ok I get the fact that I don’t need computers… I get it, seriously. The whole point of showing the video was to give you an example of how me and my friends would want some sort of setup. We connect our computers so one computer can be dedicated for one or two instruments per member. That way we each have our own parts to learn and play and the others can focus on his own parts of the band, and we don’t have to play all the parts manually.

Also, the reason we each would like a computer on our own desk is so that we can make more and better sounds. We don’t want 300 sound files from our piano/keybaord that we can’t change or edit.

We also want a computer is so that we wouldn’t have to buy a hardware sequencer to manually program in drum loops, bass lines, etc. With a computer, we can tell it with one click whether we want to play our part manually or have the computer play it.

And we are not going to be Kraftwerk. We’ll make our own songs. With computers, we can expand on our song-making capabilities. I’m sorry if this sounds like a rant, but it’s not supposed to be.

Regards,
Ryder

5

Sorry if my reply sounds like a rant, because it’s also not :slight_smile:
Thing is, as far as I know VST system link is used for streaming midi and audio live between computers. I still don’t understand what kind of streaming you need between the computers to get this to work. You want to use 4 pc’s, that’s cool. But what is it that you need to connect them together with? What is it you want to do which can’t be done with 4 standalone PC’s?

I’m just trying to imagine what functionality you are expecting VST system link to do in your setup. I guess it’s mainly this line that I just don’t understand:

They were able to sync their computers together so they can play their parts manually without having to play every part required.

Note that I might be wasting your time, because I personally know very little about VST system link. Just trying to get the info laid out so someone else can follow up and tell you what to do :wink:

6

or use JackAudio (netjack), have ONE PC with a soundcard, have the others hooked up via asio jackrouter over net, use VST System Link to sync hosts, or have one PC as MIDI SMTPE master and the others in sync to the master (with each host having a copy of the same tempo track, as you can’t sync cubase to MIDI Clock…

Vienna Ensemble Pro isn’t in development, it is available in version 5 and working superb. But not appropriate for syncing hosts :wink:

To the OP: Maybe you should think about using ONE host and having VST(i)s only on the other PCs, for example using VE Pro and Maschine, Kore2, Bidule, Reaktor, you name it… IMHO, Cubase is not really the host you want to sync multiple instances on multiple PCs to for live usage… :wink:

7

Steve, You’re right. I would like to try to stick with VST System Link; I’m in a tight budget, so I don’t want to spend more money than I have to :slight_smile:

Also, I just don’t want each of our members to have to press play on all of our computers and make the music sound incredibly off-beat and off-target. With VST System Link or something else that would help, I myself(the leader) can just press the play button at the beginning of the song and the song would play and we go along with it(we play along with prerecorded tracks)

TabSel, That’s a good idea. What I was thinking, Since I’m the leader, My computer would host the actual song(all of the prerecorded tracks(drums, bass, etc) and my prerecorded tracks(to which I could play along with my keyboard), my “drummer” :slight_smile: would have his tracks on his own screen, my backup keyboardist would have his tracks on his screen, etc. etc. This is just an example, we’ll figure out our configuration when come practice time.

I hope this has given you guys an image in your mind of what we would like to do.

Oh, and yes, I hope to perform live.

Thanks for all your help everyone, we appreciate it!