Hello there, Scaler community!
I enjoy improvise melodies with Scaler, by recording “white keys only” melodies in the context of the scale I am working with.
However, the DAW records (of course!), in the Scaler line, the whites I am pressing, rather than the actual notes which Scaler outputs.
Result is that, once I drag the midi in the actual VST I want to play it with, it will play with the whites, wrong and out of scale notes.
How do I solve this problem? Many thanks!
Fist idea: Most DAWs have some similar feature as Scaler, where you can quantize the note pitch by defining which notes are allowed. Usually this is done by either defining the notes or the scale.
Example: In Bitwig you can do this with “Key Filter” note device (can either constrain or filter notes) or in the Note Grid with Pitch Quantize Module (only constrains). I assume that (if you use 7 note scales at least?), the mapping from white keys to the scale would work identical.
Second Idea: Route the MIDI output of scaler to the other instrument / MIDI track and record the scaler MIDI output there. Then you should get the correct MIDI notes.
Hi Fannon, thanks for your answer!
My DAW (Studio One) allows key lock but…just for drawing the midi in the editor! This doesn’t exist if I want to play the actual instrument. It is a huge limitation, which Scaler helps me solve it.
Regarding your second solution, I can try to do that, but I am afraid the midi will output as the keys I press rather than the ones that Scaler processes and outputs?
Cheers, Francesco
Hi there, thanks - this is what I am doing.
Problem occurs when I record the midi with a solo, and I drag it onto another VST. The midi records as what keys I press and not the ones that Scaler outputs.
Scaler can not only have Audio output but also MIDI output and it will be the “correct” one, after the scale has been applied. In my DAW (Bitwig), I can actually mute the sound of Scaler and just place the actual instrument I want to play “after” Scaler in the plugin chain. But I’m not sure this works in every DAW, so routing output should work in general.
Of course your DAW records the notes as you play it. But from there you can record the “transformed” MIDI output of Scaler. You can also record both at the same time, or convert the final midi after the fact.
You can also setup Scaler and the target track in parallel and route the output of Scaler into the MIDI input of your other track. Here is how the setup looks like in Bitwig:
Both approaches work without well for me.
Hi @Francio
Just to clarify you want to record the midi out from Scaler so that you can then modify the midi clip.
I am not familiar with Studio One but it is easy to record the midi output from Scaler 2 in both Ableton Live and Reaper, and I assume that Studio One has similar midi routing functionality.
In Ableton Live you have to route the midi from the Scaler track to a new midi track and enable recording on the new midi track.
In Reaper simply set the Output to record midi
You can also use midi routing to directly drive a soft synth on another track in both DAWs.
Hi, thanks - this works!
Sadly I have to record it instead of just drag and drop it - but it is indeed a third party plugin, no way my DAW understands how it’s processing the midi.