Looks like no one’s replied in a while. To start the conversation again, simply ask a new question.

Studio Horns dropping notes in Logic Pro X 10.4.1

I recorded a polyphonic horn section using Studio Horns in Logic Pro X 10.4.1 and when I play it back, it keeps dropping notes or cutting them short.


It sounds fine for the first few seconds of playback and then gradually deteriorates. If I stop playback and rewind a little, the same part will play back fine, so there seems to be a problem with MIDI playback for this instrument.


I have previously run into similar problems with Synth1 by Ichiro Toda.


OS: macOS 10.13.4

Audio: Focusrite 18i20 2nd Gen @ 44.1kHz, 64 samples

Keyboard: M-Audio Keystation 88 (USB)

Logic Pro X, macOS High Sierra (10.13.4)

Posted on Apr 21, 2018 10:57 AM

Reply
Question marked as Best reply

Posted on Apr 23, 2018 2:22 AM

Hi Thor.

You are experiencing these errors due to the number of samples used.

The Studio Horns instrument is based on the EXS24 sampler. The EXS has a voice limit of 64 samples.


The workaround is to use 2 instances of the horns and divide the lines between the two.

Try this:


  1. Duplicate the Track.
  2. Cut the bottom line (the one starting at C3) and paste it on the new track.


You should now be able to hear the whole piece as you had intended it.


Here's a small screen grab of two moved lines:


User uploaded file


Hope that helps.

Similar questions

13 replies
Question marked as Best reply

Apr 23, 2018 2:22 AM in response to Thor, the Norseman

Hi Thor.

You are experiencing these errors due to the number of samples used.

The Studio Horns instrument is based on the EXS24 sampler. The EXS has a voice limit of 64 samples.


The workaround is to use 2 instances of the horns and divide the lines between the two.

Try this:


  1. Duplicate the Track.
  2. Cut the bottom line (the one starting at C3) and paste it on the new track.


You should now be able to hear the whole piece as you had intended it.


Here's a small screen grab of two moved lines:


User uploaded file


Hope that helps.

Apr 21, 2018 3:23 PM in response to Pancenter

That didn't work.


This sounds like a fix for audio dropouts, whereas what I'm facing is random MIDI notes being muted, or being cut short as if a note-off was sent to the plugin immediately after a note-on. My audio rendering is glitch-free and I haven't had a dropout in months.


Let me emphasise that I have no problems with the rest of Logic Pro X, so there shouldn't be a need to change any global settings. This particular instrument just seems to be glitchy and I need to get that fixed somehow.

Apr 23, 2018 12:39 AM in response to Thor, the Norseman

Understood, however... virtual instruments are MIDI In, audio out, their latency response is approximately 1/2 that of recording a live instrument/voice through Logic's audio engine. The settings I posted can make a difference in certain circumstances. But you're correct, this sounds like an individual instrument problem. Is there by any chance a lot of automation on that track?

Apr 21, 2018 4:03 PM in response to Pancenter

That's one of the first things I checked. The only automation track is that for velocity. I recorded this straight from my M-Audio Keystation 88 and quantised it. Again, I can make mute notes come alive again by stopping, going back a bar and playing that section again. The MIDI notes only start to glitch after a few seconds of playback. It doesn't seem to depend on the playhead's position at all, only the duration of playback. In other words, I'm getting different results playing the same part of the song back a second time. To me it looks like a bona fide bug. I'm here to make sure I'm not making a mistake.

Apr 23, 2018 12:38 AM in response to Cuauhtemoc

Sure. Here's the section I'm having trouble with:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/bz0gs9xuv6n2sgn/Fanfare.zip?dl=0


It's a single track, copied into an empty project. It requires the Studio Horns library to be installed.


I also included an MP3 bounce to show you how it sounds on my end, in case you're not able to reproduce it. The notes shouldn't disappear and cut off like that (watch the piano roll for the track while playing it back to see what I mean if you can't hear what's wrong).


I thought it was an issue with MIDI note on/off or controllers at first, but I scrolled through the list editor and everything looked normal. Also, as I pointed out above, the problem seems to disappear temporarily if you halt and resume playback in the middle of it.

Apr 23, 2018 12:52 AM in response to Thor, the Norseman

It doesn't seem to affect the 3-piece horn sections. They have other minor glitches (randomly wrong horns being momentarily picked by the chord algorithm; perhaps not a bug, since I'm playing more than 3 notes at once) but at least all the notes play back and don't cut off early. 6-7 piece sections are where the problems start.

Studio Horns dropping notes in Logic Pro X 10.4.1

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple ID.