| Author | Message | ||
     George Mills (mswlogo) Registered Forum User Username: mswlogo Post Number: 1 Registered: 2-2009 |
I just can't get this program to loop on measures or rehearsal marks. It starts ok on the specified measure or rehearsal mark and stops out putting sound on the specified measure of rehearsal mark but it just keeps on playing silently past the end until the end of the line or end of song. What am I doing wrong? Thanks for any tips | ||
| David Jacklin (dj) Senior Forum User Username: dj Post Number: 714 Registered: 4-2003 |
Hi, George: There's a dialogue box under Perform/Practice Setup that will let you set up the specifics you want. Then use Alt-Space to start your practice session. Good luck. David | ||
| George Mills (mswlogo) Registered Forum User Username: mswlogo Post Number: 2 Registered: 2-2009 |
I've concluded it isn't me and this program is just buggy as heck. I used the dialog box a 100 times. It never pops up with the last thing I set (seems almost random). I got it to work ONCE correctly with rehearsal marks. Then I go to do it again and with new marks and they are ignored. Most of the time it will always start at the right place but it rarely ends at the right place and has a mind of it's own where it decides to loop back. Most of the time it will go silent at the correct spot but it rarely will go back to the start of the loop where I tell it. By the way it should not allow you to add blank rehearsal labels. I even switched from a Vista machine to a XP machine and still it's not behaving right. Running 2.5.2 | ||
| Sherry Crann (sherry) Product Designer Username: sherry Post Number: 2193 Registered: 1-2004 |
Howdy George, It's indeed frustrating if the software is not doing what you want it to do, and what it should be doing! Can you please (1) upload a copy of the song file you're working with and (2) let me know what kinds of repeats/settings you're trying to use? A screen shot of your Practice dialog would be very helpful as well. We'll see if we can't get you up and running here. Thanks! Sherry | ||
| George Mills (mswlogo) Registered Forum User Username: mswlogo Post Number: 3 Registered: 2-2009 |
I was concerned it would be my midi file too and tried it using your sample files. Same problem. I start the program, open twinkle. I open the Practice Dialog. I say start Measure 2 end Measure 3 and select save and start now. Set both pauses to 0 seconds, set lead in 0 measures. Choose save and start now. It starts on measure 2 correctly, stops sound on Measure 3 (correctl place) but keeps on playing silently until the middle of measure 5 (it varies). Then it loops correctly and sound comes on correctly. It acts as if it has a random lead-out of n measures. I just tried MagicScore and it was so easy. I just drag a box around what I want, click repeat and click play. Done. It is a lot more money though. I appreciate the quick replies. I even tried the composer version and same thing. | ||
| Sherry Crann (sherry) Product Designer Username: sherry Post Number: 2194 Registered: 1-2004 |
Howdy George, I'm including part of a reply I just sent via the helpdesk since you gave me more info there than was included above. -------- The "zeroing out" is a problem with the Practice setup. If you want to repeatedly play a section with no pauses, it's best to use the Perform/Edit Repetition Instructions and just put in a lot of repeat instructions there. This problem is one that we're addressing in our next major release for later this year (putting these settings all together in one place, and making the whole Practice Setup easier to use.) ---------- ttfn, Sherry | ||
| Sherry Crann (sherry) Product Designer Username: sherry Post Number: 2195 Registered: 1-2004 |
p.s. That is until you replied while I still had my "reply" box open. I should move faster next time ;) ttfn, Sherry | ||
| George Mills (mswlogo) Registered Forum User Username: mswlogo Post Number: 4 Registered: 2-2009 |
Ok, I see how to setup repeat instructions but I can't see how you initiate it. Seems much more limited. It does not show on the screen what is going to be done. It is only by measure too. The practice stuff looks excellent but I can't get it to work consistently at all. I tried putting 1 lead-in and 1 second pause at start and 1 second pause between loops and it's still not behaving right. | ||
| George Mills (mswlogo) Registered Forum User Username: mswlogo Post Number: 5 Registered: 2-2009 |
It's not the zeroing causing the problems. I wiped the registry to get things back to factory install. I open a midi file. I Add two Rehearsal Tags. I go to practice setup and set it to start on one tag and end on the other and left everything else default. I hit "Save and Begin". It started the timer then started at the start of the song (music on) before first mark (completely ignored rehearsal mark) played right through both marks and stopped sound at second mark (so it knows it's there and set) but continues to play silently until about 10 measures later then does the pause timer correctly but starts at start of song. I have by accident got it to work once correctly. It's a bug somewhere that completely messes up this feature. Is there older versions I can try? | ||
| George Mills (mswlogo) Registered Forum User Username: mswlogo Post Number: 6 Registered: 2-2009 |
Correction the start was ok. I expected the leadin to be silent but it was going to start of song because first mark was at start of 2nd measure. But the end is what is the problem. And does see it correctly because the output music stops but it just keeps on playing. And at 25% tempo it takes like a full minute for it to loop. | ||
| Djim Tio (djimtio) Senior Forum User Username: djimtio Post Number: 373 Registered: 2-2007 |
Hi Sherry and George Just to mention that I gave up using the Practice Setup because of exactly the same problems using the start and stop in the Measures feature.Except for one or two "lucky" occasions it has never done as expected. Sorry for not reporting before, just being too lazy, I guess. Regards Djim | ||
| Sherry Crann (sherry) Product Designer Username: sherry Post Number: 2196 Registered: 1-2004 |
Howdy Guys, I do see that there's a problem with the practice looping if you use measure numbers. What I'm seeing (and hearing) is the following: 1. Playback sound and marker follow the Practice setup directions for the first loop BUT 2. While the sound stops at the specified measure, the marker continues for 2 additional measures. 3. The Playback marker then stops briefly (for the "pause" between repetitions) then resumes the Practice at the second time through (and continues in the same fashion til the end). Is this the problem you guys are seeing? This is written up as task 1854, currently scheduled for a fix with the next release. However, using Rehearsal Marks rather than measure numbers, I found that the Practice feature worked for me. I just tried the following Practice setup, after putting in two rehearsal marks in the score:  When I clicked "Save and begin practice", the highlighted area played through (notice that I have a 2-measure lead-in set) 3 times, with a 1 second pause between each playback. Does it work for you guys if you use Rehearsal marks? I found that both observations (problem with using measures and it works using rehearsal marks) for both Musician and Composer. Thanks for your report and help! Sherry | ||
| George Mills (mswlogo) Registered Forum User Username: mswlogo Post Number: 7 Registered: 2-2009 |
Yes, it's sort of like that but it also goes beyond when using Rehearsal marks too. It also seems to go a lot further than 2 measures beyond (it varies). What ever the bug is the amount it goes beyond is function of something else I can't figure out. It's not consistent. Sometimes it even rarely works correctly (as expected). This is the such a major feature of the program to me. Is there an older version that perhaps used to work I can try? When is the next minor release due out? | ||
| George Mills (mswlogo) Registered Forum User Username: mswlogo Post Number: 8 Registered: 2-2009 |
For reference I am using this MIDI file. http://www.hetzlersfakebook.com/files/Swallow_Tail_Jig.mid But I saw problems with your Twinkle example too but I have not looked at it so closely with Twinkle as I have with SwallowTail. That is, I may have only used measures when testing Twinkle. | ||
| Djim Tio (djimtio) Senior Forum User Username: djimtio Post Number: 374 Registered: 2-2007 |
Hi Sherry My problem with the MEASURE practice setup is that, after hitting Save and exit or save and begin, the END measure is ingnored.After checking the Practice Setup again, I often see that the REHEARSEL MARK is checked, which must have happened automatically after hitting Save exit/begin. I will try the Rehearsel Mark feature, although not being sure whether I am going to like it working........meaning that I have no excuse anymore to start practising again ;( . Regards Djim | ||
| George Mills (mswlogo) Registered Forum User Username: mswlogo Post Number: 9 Registered: 2-2009 |
Djim, I've seen that issue too and I think it is related to the problem (and it's randomness from one user to another and one use to another). Every time I go back into the dialog the settings are not what I last left them at (but not always). This is why I first said that the this whole feature seems buggy to me. Using Rehearsal marks is just as flaky as using measures for me. It is a great practice tool. Currently I'm manually initiating it over and over and have to put the bow down, hit space, atl+space pick up the bow quickly and get ready. The two most important features of this program are displaying it as live sheet music and looping on a portion of the song with leadin and controlling timing. | ||
| Djim Tio (djimtio) Senior Forum User Username: djimtio Post Number: 375 Registered: 2-2007 |
Hi George I canīt help wondering why only few Composer/Notation users in this Forum have ever mentioned problems using the Practice Setup. It might be that most users, unlike me, donīt have any problems nailing down complicated parts/measures after having seen/heard it once ,or just too lazy. like me. to report. Anyway, I am quite convinced that Sherry and Mark will "cure" this great practice tool ASAP. Regards Djim | ||
| George Mills (mswlogo) Registered Forum User Username: mswlogo Post Number: 10 Registered: 2-2009 |
Remember as a rule of thumb for every one person that complains there is probably 10 that ran into it and didn't take the time to communicate it. I think Sherry did describe a "variation" of it but I think there are more variations. I'm sure a bunch of users don't even use the feature. It may be how you do things, the order you click things for example. It could even be the version of OS and libraries that can make subtle bugs appear on not appear. I write software for a living and I've had my share of mysteriously behaving dialogs. Makes perfect sense once you find the cause  | ||
| Sherry Crann (sherry) Product Designer Username: sherry Post Number: 2197 Registered: 1-2004 |
Howdy George, You're right about the "1 in 10" rule, which is why we take all reports seriously. I appreciate your understanding here regarding how weird bugs can be. I'm going to do some more thorough testing here of the feature, because it is a big feature in both Musician and Composer. We did some work on the feature in the last release, and I did "sanity testing" of it then (but obviously now not thoroughly enough). Just for some background info, what does your system setup look like? (eg. OS, memory, etc.) For example, my machine has XP SP2 (tried SP3 but it goofed up a lot of my stuff, so I reverted) 1.5 GB RAM Pentium 4 @ 2.66 GHz Intel 82865G Graphics Controller SB Audigy 2 sound card Thanks! Sherry | ||
| George Mills (mswlogo) Active Forum User Username: mswlogo Post Number: 11 Registered: 2-2009 |
I tried it on 2 computers. An older Toshiba Satellite Laptop (1.0 Ghz) 1 GB Memory running XP SP3 A newer Thinkpad T60 Laptop (1.83 Ghz) 1.5 GB Memory running Vista Business SP1. SoundMax Integrated Sound Card (I think these are AMD). ATI Radeon Mobile X1300 Both are fully up to date automatic updates. |
