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Cakewalk - Knowledge Base - Instrument Definitions
Cakewalk - Knowledge Base - Instrument Definitions
Cakewalk - Knowledge Base - Instrument Definitions
Instrument Definitions
Last updated on 3/22/2016
Please select a topic from the links below to jump to a section in this article:
What are Instrument Definitions?
My Cakewalk software doesn't have Instrument Definitions for my hardware
How do I import an Instrument Definition?
How do I assign my imported Instrument Definitions?
How do I Create or Modify an Instrument Definition?
Help Determining Bank Selection Methods
Instrument definitions are a powerful feature that make it easier for you to find the banks, patches, and controllers of your MIDI instruments. An
instrument definition is a file that contains the names of the banks, patches, note names, bank select method, and controllers of an instrument.
Instrument definitions for many popular MIDI instruments are included with Cakewalk software. If an instrument definition is not available for
your instrument, and you are familiar with MIDI and how it works, you can import or create your own instrument definition.
Most MIDI instruments available today are General MIDI (GM) compatible, which means that they come with the standard set of sounds or
patches defined by the GM standard. Your Cakewalk software initially assumes that your MIDI instruments are GM compatible. The names of
patches and controllers that you initially see displayed throughout your Cakewalk software are drawn from the GM specification.
At the same time, many MIDI instruments provide additional sounds and controllers beyond those required by the GM standard. In addition,
some older MIDI instruments are not GM compatible. If you are using one of these instruments, you can use instrument definitions to make sure
that the names of banks, patches, and controllers that you see in your Cakewalk software are the same ones you see on the display screens of
your MIDI keyboards and modules.
Please Note: More in-depth information about creating/importing/assigning Instrument Definitions specific to your Cakewalk software can be found in
your Help documentation. Press F1 to load your Help document and see the Topic and Sub-Topics under "Instrument Definitions" displayed on the
Content tab.
If you are trying to locate Instrument Definitions for your hardware, you should first check to find out if it was already included with your
Cakewalk software. If you cannot locate the correct ones for your hardware, you can use the downloads below to see if our archive has them
available.
Download Download Instrument Definitions included with the latest Cakewalk software
Download Download User Created Instrument Definitions
If you cannot locate the appropriate Instrument Definitions for your hardware, try contacting your hardware manufacturer to see if they have
them available. Some manufacturer's have utilities that will generate the file for you.
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14-01-2022 16:42 Cakewalk - Knowledge Base - Instrument Definitions
One SUPPORT
example HOME
of this is Roland Backstage,
KNOWLEDGE BASE which
FAQhas aMY
script that builds
ACCOUNT instrument definitions for various Roland devices. You will need to create
CONTACT
an account at http://www.rolandus.com/backstage/login.php to be able to access this. Afterwards, you can access the script builder at
http://www.rolandus.com/support/patch_script_builder/index.php
Please Note: More in-depth information about creating/importing/assigning Instrument Definitions specific to your Cakewalk software can be found in
your Help documentation. Press F1 to load your Help document and see the Topic and Sub-Topics under "Instrument Definitions" displayed on the
Content tab.
1. Go to Edit > Preferences > MIDI - Instruments (Options > Instruments in legacy software)
2. Click Define to display the Define Instruments and Names dialog box.
3. Click Import to display the Import Instrument Definitions dialog box.
4. Choose the file that contains instrument definitions for your manufacturer, and then click Open. Your Cakewalk software will display a list of
all the instrument definitions in the file.
5. Choose one or more instruments from the list, and click OK.
6. Click Close to close the Define Instruments and Names dialog box.
The instrument definitions you imported should now appear in the Uses Instrument list in the Assign Instruments dialog box.
Please Note: More in-depth information about creating/importing/assigning Instrument Definitions specific to your Cakewalk software can be found in
your Help documentation. Press F1 to load your Help document and see the Topic and Sub-Topics under "Instrument Definitions" displayed on the
Content tab.
If you want your MIDI tracks in your Cakewalk software to use an instrument definition that you have imported, you need to specify which MIDI
ports of your hardware you wish to use the instrument definition. You can do this by doing the following:
1. Go to Edit > Preferences > MIDI - Instruments (Options > Instruments in legacy software
2. Select one or more MIDI outputs and channels from the Output/Channel list (use SHIFT-click and CTRL-click to select multiple outputs and
channels). You can also drag through a bunch of channels to select them. For example, if you want to assign the first 16 MIDI channels on
output 1 to a certain MIDI module, drag through the first 16 items in the Output/Channel list to select them.
3. Choose the instrument definition to which the selected outputs and channels should be assigned from the Uses Instrument list. A black line
connects the two lists. If your MIDI module’s name doesn’t appear in the list and you don’t want to use General MIDI bank and patch names
for it, see Importing instrument definitions.
4. To save these changes permanently, check the Save Changes for Next Session box.
5. Click OK to apply your changes.
From now on, the bank, patch, controller, and note names from the assigned instrument definition are used throughout your Cakewalk software
on any track that uses one of the output/channel combinations you selected in the Output/Channel list.
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14-01-2022 16:42 Cakewalk - Knowledge Base - Instrument Definitions
Please Note: More in-depth information about creating/importing/assigning Instrument Definitions specific to your Cakewalk software can be found in
your Help documentation. Press F1 to load your Help document and see the Topic and Sub-Topics under "Instrument Definitions" displayed on the
Content tab.
If you find we don't currently offer the definition for your MIDI device and you cannot locate it online, you may want to create the definition
yourself. These instructions will direct you in that task. SONAR lets you create and edit instrument definitions. To create an instrument definition,
you must answer these types of questions:
Define Instruments
The Define Instruments and Names dialog box contains two trees:
The Instruments tree in the left half of the dialog box lists all defined instruments and their characteristics
The Names tree in the right half of the dialog box shows all the resources you use to define an instrument
You expand or collapse the folders and lists in each tree by clicking on the or - key shown to the left of each item. You can also right-click on an
item and choose Expand or Collapse from the menu, or double-click on an item to expand or collapse it.
To define an instrument, you drag resources from the Names tree to the name of an instrument on the Instruments tree. Each resource is color-
coded—you can only drag a Names list to an Instrument tree branch of the same color. For example, you can only drag a list from the Patch
Names folder in the Names tree to a Patch Names for Banks folder in the Instruments tree.
If youSUPPORT
want your changes
HOME to be remembered
KNOWLEDGE BASE the nextMY
FAQ time you run SONAR,
ACCOUNT make sure the Save Changes For Next Session option in the Assign
CONTACT
Instruments dialog box is checked before clicking OK. Otherwise, to make only temporary changes, be sure to remove the check from that option.
1. In the Define Instruments and Names dialog box, right-click the word Instruments at the top of the Instrument tree, and choose Add
Instrument from the pop-up menu.
2. Type a name for the new instrument and press ENTER.
3. The new instrument is provided with default settings for all of its characteristics.
Synthesizer manufacturers will provide different methods for changing banks via MIDI. Some manufacturers use a simple patch change message
to change banks, while others use a MIDI Controller 32 message, or a Controller 0 message. Some MIDI instruments use a combination of
Controller 0 and Controller 32; this last method is also known as the Normal Bank Select method.
This document addresses the four different Bank Select methods used in Cakewalk's Tools, Instruments, Define menu. First, we'll look at the
Normal Bank Select method.
Determining the Correct Bank Number - Normal Bank Select Method (Ctl 0 and Ctl 32)
You will have to do some calculations to determine the correct "Normal" bank numbers to use in Cakewalk. The good news is that Cakewalk will
save the bank numbers as part of your Instrument Definition.
For this example, let's determine correct Bank Number for the Preset A bank of the Roland JV-1080 synthesizer. The JV-1080 uses the Normal Bank
Select method.
For synths using the Normal Bank Select method, you need to calculate the bank number based on the values of Controller 0 and Controller 32.
There's a simple formula for doing this. The formula works for all instruments that use the Normal Bank Select Method of Controller 0 and 32:
NOTE: Some Synthesizer manufacturers refer to Controller 0 as the MSB, or Most Significant Byte, and to Controller 32 as the LSB, or Least
Significant Byte.
According to Roland's documentation, the JV-1080 PR-A Bank has a Controller 0 value of 81, and a Controller 32 value of 0. Plug these numbers
into the formula:
So 10368 is the correct bank number for the PR-A Bank. Use this formula to calculate the correct numbers to enter in the Instrument Definition
walk-through above.
Some synthesizers, such as many Ensoniq and Kurzweil models, use a patch change event (also known as a program change) to change banks.
Keyboards manufactured by Roland, Korg, and E-mu can use any combination of Controller 0 Only, Controller 32 Only or Normal (Controller 0 &
Controller 32). This information is usually located in the back of the synth's Users Guide in the "MIDI Implementation Chart." Consult the
keyboard manufacturer for further information.
Controller 0 Only:
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14-01-2022 16:42 Cakewalk - Knowledge Base - Instrument Definitions
When using Controller 0 Only, simply type the value of the Controller 0 into the Add Patch Names Bank Number window.
SUPPORT HOME KNOWLEDGE BASE FAQ MY ACCOUNT CONTACT
An example of this is the Roland JV-80. It uses a Controller 0 value of 81 to change between A and B banks. Type 81 in the Bank Number window
that appears after you drag & drop Patch Name List onto the Patch Name for Banks folder.
Controller 32 Only:
If your synth uses Controller 32 only, type the Controller 32 value into the Bank Number window and associate that number with the patch list
you created earlier.
Patch 100..127:
If your instrument accesses its banks via patch events, you will select Patch 100..127 in the Bank Select Method window. Remember that the
actual patch number used to change banks will be offset by 100 when you type the number into the Bank Number window. For example, certain
Ensoniq keyboards use a patch change number of 124 to change to a specific bank. Instead of typing 124 into the Bank Number window, you will
type 24. Associate the number 24 with the patch list you created in the Uses The Patch Names menu.
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