enter your music with "headless" notes (available from the toolbar)
define a user font as notehedz (I believe the correct size is 4/3's the staff size)
place your note heads using text entry
In another thread Robert and I have touched on the possibility of a user tool to do the note head placement. At this stage no tool exists to do the job and one must place the note heads by hand.
If there is sufficient demand, I'm sure one of the proficient programmers out there will come to the party with a user tool.
at the beginning of the Chorus Bar-Master Repeat Open Segno at the point the chorus changes for the 4th time through To Coda final part of the chorus [1,2&3] - No special ending here! Bar-Double - to make it visually separate Verse Special Ending 1&2 - Finishes with a Bar-Master Repeat close Special Ending 3 - Finishes with a DS al Coda, Bar-Section End Coda final ending
OR you could have:
at the beginning of the Chorus Bar-Master Repeat Open at the point the chorus changes for the 4th time through Special Ending 4 - Fine - Bar-Section End Special Ending 1,2&3 - finish the normal chorus Bar - Double Verse Staff finishes with a Bar-Master Repeat close
Both should work, I'd probably use the first method though your preference for all the chorus endings to be close together would suggest the second.
HI DGF, I'm guessing here, but you may have to go into folder options in windows and tell windows to show extensions for known files - I can't give you the exact click by click at the moment, my windows box is down with a case of "motherboardus cactusus" - should have the new one today, and I'm playing with my linux box in the meantime.
Anyhow, once you can see the full filename - including the extension - you should be able to rename the file successfully.
G'day Tony, In addition to the font suggestion from Robin, in NWC2 it is possible to transpose text chords using Andrew Purdam's Text Chord Transposing user tool available from the Scripto.
As far as leftovers in the registry are concerned, I think you are OK:
As with previous versions, AutoIt has been designed to be as small as possible [~115KB] and stand-alone withno external .dll files or registry entries required.Scripts can also be compiled into stand-alone executables with Aut2Exe.
I hope Andrew Purdam see this link, this product may resolve a couple of pet irritations he has with php...
G'day Rob, I take your point, but I'm not sure the CPU utilisation graph is actually [abbr=I've never trusted any CPU utilisation report, whether from Windows, Netware or *nix - none of 'em are dependable in my experience]accurate[/abbr]. We don't really know what it is registering. If it is an idle loop as I suspect then the processor is not actually any busier at all hence the power consumption would not change.
The point is pretty much moot in any case because as you said; there is no need to use the mouse much and even if you did, there is no need to hold a button down for extended periods.
I think there are more relevant enhancements/bug fixes to attend to. This is probably just an artifact from whatever mouse [abbr=probably M$ supplied]library[/abbr] Eric is using.
Hi Rob, umm, just which F# and Gnat was that again?
I see a minim Fb and semibreve E Chord (this is a unison of course) with a Gnat following (the E has a tie), a barline then a semibreve G#, E Chord (the E is the tie destination).
With my staff set to trumpet (Piano makes it hard to discern because of the normal decay) and the Yamaha softsynth selected, I hear what I expect, a sustained E with a G followed by a G# sounding.
However, with the MS Wavetable softsynth, or the Chaos 8Mb and the AirFont 340 soundfonts selected in the 2 hardware synths in my Audigy I do not hear the E after the Fb stops.
I suspect this is more a synth/midi issue rather than an NWC issue.
!you! I cannot confirm the phenomenon occurs as you state. In my system the CPU usage rises to approx. 55%, not 100%. (Hmm, hyperthreading - both virtual CPUs are reaching the same utilisation - XP is apparently not supporting NWC in an SMP model - makes sense, I don't think NWC has been written with SMP in mind - no reason it should have) I can also state that it does not appear to happen in M$Word 2003, XL2003, Groupwise 6.5, IE 6, notepad, wordpad or calculator.
I cannot confirm that it is a problem. My system behaves just fine whether I hold the mouse button down in NWC or not - the other applications I have running concurrently [and there are always several] do not reflect any kind of performance or other discernable problem.
You are likely just observing an idle loop awaiting a "mouse button up" event that happens to be being detected. Other applications are still generating interrupts and being serviced by the CPU as required. I do not see this as such a big deal. Why do you think it is one?
G'day Robert, I do, and did, understand the issue with the fonts internal name. I, perhaps mistakenly, assumed that the round note heads would be acceptable to Pat for either: a) the vast majority of what she used NWC for. or b) All of what she used NWC for.
I too find the need to change back and forth a pain so instead of some of my charts looking "jazzed up" and some not, they all look "jazzed up". It just isn't important enough to me to change back and forth.
My guess is that Pat would feel the same about round note heads if it saved her a lot of work.
Alternative (non user text) symbol fonts in NWC is on the wish list. I know because I put it there, hopefully others have also. I agree that there could be users who expected NWC to come up with solutions for someone else's font to be fixed. This would not be a new phenomenon, there are ignorant people everywhere. The short answer should be - make your own, or check the scripto. I'm quite sure there are enough of us with the requisite skills to create/modify acceptable fonts for use with NWC should such a facility see the light of day, and be happy to publish on the scripto. Who knows, maybe even some commercial enterprise would take up the challenge and thus raise the profile of NWC.
On the other hand, I would gladly write a user tool to do the note head replacement thingy if I could. Unfortunately I don't have the time (and possibly not the talent) to become a programmer so I cannot.
The font modification I can do (with the right software) and have done for myself (the NWC2 jazz font I'm playing with). If my trial of Font Creator hadn't already expired I would also have already done the note head modification for Pat to try (about 10 minutes work). Getting the alignment right isn't hard. In any case, Pat has access to a font editor in Corel Draw (I believe) so this may well be the easiest answer for her. Otherwise, as soon as I can arrange to purchase the product (could be several weeks yet) I will do so and make the mod. available to Pat to try should she wish to.
...Shaped Notes... The request was made, then the requestors disappeared - It is ever thus, there are always demanding people who never really appreciate the time and effort that goes into fulfilling some of their "little pet projects/wishlists". You certainly have my sympathy.
G'day Robert, hmm, point taken. With the appropriate font as a source this is a good idea. I'm thinking primarily of your Shaped Notes in Notehedz.
However, for Pat, I think the wait for someone with the requisite skills may be overly long. I don't even know if she has NWC2, though that is no real problem in itself.
For that reason I think a modified font is more likely to be achieved and thus useful sooner.
As for that beer, go and have it anyway; with no sorrows to drown. Have one for me while you're at it.
You said: There is also the built-in font editing gadget you have in Windows XP ... - could you tell me the actual name of the .exe file?
I've looked for a M$ font editor and the only one I can find reference to on their support site is for Win3.1. Certainly my (English language) WinXP doesn't seem to have one.
Hi CDon, for the Yamaha try here and click the download link. It will download from the Yamaha UK site - I think it is a time limited trial - but will at least give you a taste of what I'm talking about.
Otherwise, the Air Font mentioned above is pretty darn close in many respects - I'm fairly impressed with it. The only thing is the levels of the instruments appears to be down so it doesn't sound as loud as the Yamaha thus if you do a side by side comparo the Yamaha still seems better because it's louder.
As a result of recent "auditioning" I've changed my default setup: Softsynth - Yamaha S-YXG50 Audigy Synth A - Air Font A340 (was S Christian Collins GS) Audigy synth B - Chaos 8Mb (was E-mu 8 Mb)
I primarily use the softsynth but the Air Font is very close...
Hi Robert, I beg to differ my friend. Pat's need is to regularly produce charts that her husband can read when shown on their large screen TV (perhaps you didn't see https://forum.noteworthycomposer.com/?topic=5105 where this has also been partly discussed)
While headless notes in NWC2 will allow one to then place a text alternative notehead it is a tedious practice. There could be hundreds of notes to be fixed. While I'm sure a user tool script could be written to do the job, I'm not sure it's the best solution...
My suggestion of modifying a copy of the standard NWC font to replace the oval note heads would allow Pat to simply key in her music with a normal configuration and the altered font would supply the round noteheads she desires automatically.
No additional work required, just 3 characters in the font to be modified. It would be different if this were a one off, but it is a regular requirement.
An altered font works well, I'm already using a modified font to get a more "jazzy" appearance for my charts that includes modified noteheads. I will say that I'm not completely happy with it though. The technique works fine, I'm just not satisfied with some of the modified characters. I "borrowed" most of them from other fonts and they look too "left handed" for my tastes. I guess I'm just gonna have to try to create my own from scratch - when I can buy the font editor I want to use...
Hi llucyy, can't say I've noticed an alignment problem. Just did a quick test and noticed in NWC1 that I had to make both notes "lyric syllable always" but thats about it.
In both editor and preview they seem alright to me.
G'day all, actually Rob, mixed key signatures are no problem - NWC allows for a user defined key signature... It's the first option in the key signature dialogue...
Linda, I add my recommendations to both llucyy and Rob, while no product is perfect, for the requirements you've listed you can't go wrong with NWC.
G'day Barry, I think you've mentioned this one before. For a little font it's not bad.
I went looking and found it on Hammer - I presume it's the same one. Saxes are _good_ as you say, but as usual, I'm not _that_ happy with the brass - maybe I'm just being unrealistic...
Hi CDon and others, thanks to a suggestion by David W on the NG I've downloaded a good soundfont to check out.
Initial listening has proved quite favourable
It is: AirFont 340, v1.01 Copyright 2004 by Milton Paredes
For those who are interested it is available at (the Hammersound link is wrong): http://www.ts-central.com/sounds.php You'll need to scroll the box a bit, use the "AirFont 340" link...
The download is nearly 40 Meg, the font itself is 78 Meg.
I am using it in place of my copy of S Christian Colins GS font for the moment. I'll post an update in a couple of days.
G'day Milton, thanks for the info. I had thought I'd read somewhere that the 100 had some improved sounds and additional patches to the 50 but it was late at night and I wasn't paying that much attention. Perhaps it was the other way 'round.
I do know that there is only 1 release of the 50 that works on XP but I don't know if prior releases worked on 2k.
Hopefully M$ will maintain WDM for a while - goodness knows what "longhorn" is gonna change... I really don't wanna lose this synth - I haven't found a sound font that comes even close.
From your description of available playback devices you don't have a sound card with a hardware synth so you can't check it out. Sorry.
I haven't played with synthfont but I'm guessing that you could use midiyoke to "connect" NWC to synthfont and playback with synthfont as your synth, although the M$ Wavetable synth in XP actually isn't too bad - I've certainly heard worse.
If you want to try midiyoke I seem to recall a discussion on it either here on the forums or perhaps in the NG.
Perhaps someone else can shed some light as to whether I'm on the right track RE midiyoke and synthfont.
OK - How do I get in the Windows "Volume Control Applet"? It should be one of the icons in the "System Tray" - that's the area in the task bar that looks like its sunken in a bit - where the clock is. The icon could one of several shapes depending on what sound card you have. If you hover the mouse pointer over each of the icons there you should find it from the descriptions that pop-up. If you can't find it there, go to | Start | (All) Programs | Accessories | Entertainment | Volume Control
- What is Van Basco ? This is a great midi/karoke player. I use it for all my straight midi playback.
- How do I change my midi output in NWC to hardware Synth ? | Tools | Options | Midi tab
I've assumed you're trying to use Synthfont for your midi output. Maybe I'm wrong?
I try to ensure I only have one selection in my "Devices used for playback" area at a time.
Hi Pat, let us know how you get on... I've some ideas that I want to try out myself but I'll need to buy a font editor first.
I've used up my trial period on the one I like (Font Creator) so I can't actually help at the moment, but if you're still having problems when I manage to buy it I'll see what I can do.
b) copy either the new wav file or the original to itself (or maybe do it to both) within recorder a couple of times to make it longer.
Another possibility is the actual format of the wav file - if it is odd - IE not 44.1 kHz 16 bit for example - or some format not properly recognised by the burning software that can cause problems.
This "output" format would be controlled by by your sound card.
Hi Josh, I took two of my mp3's and changed them to .wav files, and that worked fine on my CD player. And then I downloaded a .wav file, and burnt that, and that worked as well... To me it seems like the problem happened before i got my .nwc file to a .wav file. that's what i mean by starting over. If we can't find the problem from where I have things now, would you be willing to help me from the VERY beginning.
OK, it looks like I've been barking up the wrong tree.
Can you actually play the wav file?
I have a Creative Audigy sound card. It came with Creatives' Wave Studio software. When I need to create a wav file, I set this recording then hit play in NWC. When the song is finished I hit stop in Wave Studio and voila I have a wave file I can save.
It is necessary to have a reasonable recording level set in "Volume Control" (from the system tray/control panel)
I can also edit and play back in Wave Studio. Do you have something similar?
Recreating your wav file shouldn't be necessary if you can playback the current one however it is a worthwhile excercise.
Hi Josh, essentially, every time you burn another test CD you are "starting over".
Considering the copied CD was to different media type, it might be worthwhile to copy another commercially produced CD (one you own and want to have a backup of) to your current media type - just to be sure your CD player can actually read it at all.
Assuming the above worked OK, if you have some other wav files (from a different source altogether) try creating a CD with some of these and see how you go.
I haven't been able to find this option. Do you have any further instruction on how I might be able to find it?
I'm sorry Josh, it may no longer be there. I just checked with my son's PC and while he has Nero express the only option is to enable overburn which we definitely don't want.
My Ulead software seems to not have the option either...
I'm now a bit stumped. One thing you could try is to see if you can get hold of some 74 minute blank CDs... Actually that encourages a thought. Just how much are you putting on this CD, only the one file or are you filling it up?
If only one, see if you can put 2 or 3, even if you only copy the same file several times. Or perhaps you could rip a couple from another CD and try to burn those.
If you're filling it up, try putting less on it, maybe you're going just over the limit of your CD players ability to read it.
Another thing, you said earlier that you've successfully copied a commercial CD. Was that during this series of tests? What I'm getting at is was the copy on the same media as you are trying to use now? Unlikely as it may seem, sometimes certain blank media types cannot be read by CD players in stereo systems. I've also seen CD-R being OK but CD-RW not working.
Has anyone else thought of something I've missed? I'm currently out of ideas.
Depends on the software, but you can usually tell it that the CD has a maximum capacity of 74 minutes...
I've just quickly checked in media player and can't find anywhere to adjust it - lousy micro$oft product.
Nero does. It's somewhere in the device setup... Don't have a copy to check at the moment and I don't want to install the trial on my system as I don't want to risk breaking my current config. In any case, I have a DVD burner and they can be "different". Have a hunt around - check the help files - look for setting maximum CD capacity.
This is _not_ and absolute guarantee that we've found the problem but I think we are certainly on the right track.
Ok, that sounds a bit odd, I've never seen the printed result differ from print preview on my system.
Try this for a work around:
Select each 3rd barline and change its properties to include a system break. E.G
Highlight barline, <Alt-Enter>, <Alt-F>, <Enter>
This will force a system break every 3rd barline thus forcing 3 bars per system.
As for the real problem: If the Windows OS is NT based (NT, Win2k, WinXP) then there are several locations where the printers default paper size can be edited. Ensure they are ALL the same, either US Letter or A4, whatever is appropriate for where you are.
The places to check are: Printing Preferences (Right click menu on the printer) Device Settings (In the printer properties)
PLUS, explore a little - NT based printer management is NOT as straight forward as it seems nor as it should be!
This sounds like you are ejecting the CD before the burn is finished!
Normally the burner software will eject the CD itself when it is complete.
However you also said: I put in one of the CD's I burnt with my wav. file on it, and right clicked, then pressed open, and it did say "Track 1.cda".
This is a correct result... Perhaps you could put that CD into another PC (if you have one available) and try. This is because XP _might_ be looking at the buffer folder rather than the CD itself. XP does some weird things.
...But, when it prints, a measure or so is all out of whack and either above or below where it had been in the print preview.
Umm, what do you mean here? Above or below - do you mean it (the entire bar [measure]) has moved to the system (staff) above or below? Or are the contents of the bar [measure] moving around within the same basic location?
I'm pretty sure I'm not burning Data CD's because I'm using Windows Media Player to try and burn the .wav songs onto a CD, and I don't even think Data CD's are an option with that program.
I've seen Media Player get it badly wrong and burn data structures that work fine on your PC but not on a CD plyer in your stereo because they are not actually audio CDs. I suspect this may be what's happening. If you right click the CD in "My Computer"/Explorer and "Open" it rather than "Play/Autoplay" it, what files or error messages do you see. This is to try to determine absolutely what is happening.
If it is a proper audio CD you should see "Track01.cda" etc.
If it is a Media Player screw-up you'll probably see a bunch of " .wma " files, a "Playlist.wpl" and possibly a "HIGHMAT" folder.
Sorry for misunderstanding. But yes, I have the copy option and that works as well. and yes that copy does work when i play it in my stereo.
Excellent, burner itself is working OK and you can burn correctly formatted audio CDs.
... No special burning software came with my computer.
This is surprising. All the PC's we sell are provided with burner software by our manufacturer (we don't bother assembling, its cheaper and we get a better warranty if we let our supplier do it!) Could you check to see whether there is a CD hiding somewhere that hasn't been installed that has burning software on it?
Is there any burning software I can get either for free or low cost?
If you have a hunt around the net (insert fav. search engine here) is your friend, you may find something to your liking.
Even so, I'd still check to make sure there isn't a CD hiding somewhere... Even OEM drives come with burner software licences from the burner manufacturer. If yours didn't, check with your PC supplier, I think they _may_ have (possibly inadvertantly) short changed you.
Do you think it would be better to start this from the beginning, because I don't even know if I've done everything completely right..
I think we may be on a roll now, lets see how we go.
Hi Josh, a) After I burn a CD with my .wav songs on them, My computer does read them as music files.
Umm, I 'm really trying to find out if you are creating an audio CD or a data CD with audio files. This sounds like the latter which is not what you need.
b) I have burnt a data CD before that can be read by other computers.
Good! Means your burner is working OK.
c) Yes I've ripped music from Commercial CD's
Not what I asked. What I meant was that all the burner software I've seen have an option to copy a CD. That is make an exact duplicate, with no ripping involved...
d) And I'm not too sure what you mean in 4a. The commercial CD will play in my stereo, and if i burn the songs from the commercial CD they will also play on my stereo.
This sounds like a different answer to the copy [c] question.
I know you're 100% certain you've been burning audio CD's but a) really sounds like you're actually creating data CD's with wav files stored as data rather than as music tracks. Please forgive me if I'm misinterpreting your answers.
From reply #8 I know you're running XP home. Are you using the XP "copy to CD" features or are you using the actual burning software that would have come with your burner? E.G. Nero, ULead, Prassi etc.? Also which type? E.G. full release or "lite" release etc.
The reason I ask is I've never been happy with the results from the Windows burning functions. I would prefer you tried the specific burner software if you are not already using it. I'm sure you'll get a better, more predictable result. As for the product/release information, if I'm familiar with the specific product I should be able to give you "step by step" directions to try.
2) does your computer read the music CD's you've created as music CDs or does it show you files instead of tracks?
3) can you burn a data CD that can be read on another computer?
4) can you copy a music CD E.G. a commercially produced CD that you already own?
4a) If so will it play back in your stereo?
If you are burning at full speed, perhaps you should slow the burning speed down. We've found that some burners simply won't perform at the speeds they say they will.
Also, what OS are you running and what burner software?
Hi Josh, if you've successfully created .wav files from your NWC music, then the next step should be easy.
The most common mistake I've seen is people burning a data CD instead of a music CD.
You will need to checkout the capabilities of your CD burning software, somewhere there will be an option to create a music CD.
This is important as the CD format is quite different between a music CD and a data CD.
The other problem I've seen is the good 'ol CD player in the stereo can't read burnt CDs. Not uncommon, in fact we used to often hear of Sony CD players not reading burnt CDs. I've been told this was a deliberate crippling policy to try to combat piracy. Dunno if its true, but my Sony has no trouble with burnt CDs or DVDs (which is good as my son is a budding film maker) so if it was the case it was short lived.
Another alternative is MP3. If your CD player can handle MP3s then you could convert your wav files to mp3 and burn them as data instead of audio...
Ok folks, just gave three new sound fonts a very short audition...
Merlin_elite - Not bad - guitars a bit loud - don't like the brass Merlin_vienna - also not bad - guitars a bit loud - don't like the brass My Own - Good "voice" patch - guitars a bit loud - still don't like the brass
Brass: maybe I'm being overly fussy...
Remember - this was a very quick and dirty audition - All three aren't bad, the Merlin_vienna is probably just a tad ahead of the other 2 overall, but the "My Own" definitly has the best voice patch.
Never the less, I think I'll stick to the GS 1.4 mentioned in a previous post, that is when I'm not using the Yamaha softsynth - would LOVE to see the Yamaha sounds in a font!
G'day CDon, there are many relatively good soundfonts out there, Merlin is one I like... The thing is, what you are looking for is really a matter of personal taste. Certainly many of us could say don't use this font or that font because it has limited range on the whatever instrument or the brass sounds lousy etc., but at the end of the day you need to listen for what you prefer.
Kevin's suggestion of "Big Merlin" is a good one. I personally use "Merlin GM Pro V9.20" when I do use the Merlin font. I think it is the one contained in "Big Merlin" on Hammersound, but I'm not completely sure.
Hmm - seem to have over emphasised this one... Anyhow...
Personal taste, always personal taste - I downloaded over a Gigabyte of fonts to try before I gave up - "Merlin" and "GeneralUser GS" are the ones I was most satisfied with, then I discovered the Yamaha Softsynth...
Hi Pat, the most effective answer I can think of would be to use a font editor to modify a copy of the NWC font file and change the actual characters used to create the noteheads.
For NWC2 this would be the NWC2STDA.TTF and for NWC1.75 the file is NWCV15.TTF. There is precedent for this with the Jazz font available for NWC1 on the scripto...
Of course you would need to make sure you have backups in case anything went wrong...
