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Topic: File conversion: NWC or MIDI to .wav (Read 6955 times) previous topic - next topic

File conversion: NWC or MIDI to .wav

Are there any utilities for converting NWC or MIDI files to
.wav files?

Thanks.

Re: File conversion: NWC or MIDI to .wav

Reply #1 –
Most cards come with sampling software (or even use Microsoft's crappy Sound OLE), or purchase something really groovy like CoolEdit.
Then it is simply a case of recording the sample and playing your NWC or midi file.
Points to remember:
1) Make sure that you have set up your mixer so that you can record from your midi player (either on-board card or external midi player plugged back into the soundcard's line-in)
2) If it is a long piece, you may need to reduce the sampling rate to keep the resulting wav file small enough
3) Ditto for "stereo-ness", ie you may need to record in mono to halve the size of the resultant file
4) Best signal-noise ratio is obtained with onbard midi cards, but most external midi players plugged back in will still be fairly noise free. Avoid recording with a microphone.
If any of this is confusing, it really comes down to using some software to do a wave recording whilst playing the midi file.
If you have any further questions, feel free to ask.

Andrew

Re: File conversion: NWC or MIDI to .wav

Reply #2 –
I don't suppose there's anyway to copy a .wav file to nwc or to midi, is there?

Re: File conversion: NWC or MIDI to .wav

Reply #3 –
Answer to dip's question:
---------------------------------------

No, I have a hard time believing there is. The two data styles for Wave and MIDI/NWC are totally different. MIDI/NWC gives signals to the sound card to play a certain note with a certain instrument, while Wave format just is the way it all sounds. And since a Wave file as well could contain noise or speech, I doubt there is a way to do this. I might be wrong, since I am no sound engineer or anything, but to me it all seems impossible.

You could, if you have a Sound Blaster AWE card, merge Wave files into your MIDI's with the SoundFont technology. This is cool stuff.
Also, if you have Cakewalk sequencer software, I've heard that you could combine Wave and MIDI signals without SoundFonts. But I've also heard that Cakewalk is EXPENSIVE. NWC isn't.

Per

Re: File conversion: NWC or MIDI to .wav

Reply #4 –
There is some English software which converts miked sounds to
midi, and thus will develop pitch and duration from your own
voice singing into the mike, and so it follows that your input
could be a symphony, though how well this could resolve the
chords and instruments is open. I believe the price is about
a hundred bucks, and I think Phil Collins is named as one of
the principals in this outfit . . . I found them once under
midi via a Yahoo search . . . I have not tried it or heard
from anyone else who has . . .

Re: File conversion: NWC or MIDI to .wav

Reply #5 –
I have had great success using a shareware utility called
'WAVmaker', which converts MIDI files into brilliant sounding
WAV files.
When I last looked, the homepage of this software was:
http://www.abc.se/~m9303/index.html
The shareware version will only convert MIDIs using a few
instruments: strings, piano, drums, slap bass. It sounds
brilliant though, so it might be worth a try.

Re: File conversion: NWC or MIDI to .wav

Reply #6 –
The best programs to convert midi to wav are:
WavMaker
Akoff Music Recognition

Re: File conversion: NWC or MIDI to .wav

Reply #7 –
I have great success using Steinberg's Cubasis VST sequencer. Import the midi file with all its various parts. The midi sound bank output(i.e. midi keyboard) should be plugged into your sound card's mic/line in. (you can pan the midi to the left if using the left output cable.) Create a new midi track adding just a click for a second. This can be any note from a drum bank, for example. This momentary "click" track will be played along with each midi track one by one to allow you to line up all the .wav's in perfect time once recorded.
Select an audio track on which to record. Then play one midi track and the "click" at a time until you have an audio track for each midi track. Use Cool Edit to edit the wave files, deleting everything in front of the click, then silencing the click, and import them one by one back into a new song in Cubasis. Your computer and software need to be able to accommodate the number of audio tracks you will end up with. For help on editing the .wav's feel free to e-mail.

Re: File conversion: NWC or MIDI to .wav

Reply #8 –
I'm having trouble creating a good wav from midi. I have Cakewalk music Creator which allows me to make wavs and mp3's, But the files record like an old cassette on its last dying attempt to play (speeds up, slows down). I have Cool Edit and it works great for minor glitches, velocity changes however, I wouldn't know how to begin. Could someone tell me if its my computer(good files play back fine-and I've tried every possible setting I can think), or my program... or the way I go about recording. Maybe better still, is there a program out there that lets you convert midi to wav without playing it to record? Thanks to you who responds!

Re: File conversion: NWC or MIDI to .wav

Reply #9 –
The best possible solution is to buy GigaStudio. MP3 samples of the sounds produced are here:
http://www.nemesysmusic.com/sounds/mp3.html

This program will directly write to a wav file with sound quality WAY beyond anything a sound card can produce. Just listen to the samples and see for yourself.

I just received my copy two days ago, so I'm still learning how to use it, but so far it's just blowing me away!!! The sound quality is way better than my Korg N5 external synth.

Especially listen to DDSSDEMO.mp3, fanfare.mp3 and track01.mp3. Actually, they're all really well worth listening to. And they show you EXACTLY what the program can produce because they were actually produced by the program.

Re: File conversion: NWC or MIDI to .wav

Reply #10 –
I once came across a development version of a program that worked this way: It had its own MIDI reader, its own sound fonts, and its own MP3 converter. You simply read the MIDI file, and the program would read its own sound fonts, electronically create the WAV file, then (if requested) compress it to MIDI. It was all done digitally, meaning that your computer did not even need a sound card in order to create the files. Since no "music" was played at any point, there was no problem with speeding up or slowing down due to program interruptions.

I don't know what happened to it (I have no need for it), but that's the way to go.

Re: File conversion: NWC or MIDI to .wav

Reply #11 –
Well, go to www.google.com go to serch box, then type turn midi into wav, and wala, sites for you to choose

Re: File conversion: NWC or MIDI to .wav

Reply #12 –
Try timidity++ if you are computer-geeky. Great drum sounds, tenor sax, strings, brass sections - great - the acoustic piano sounds nice but not fabulous.