Recording MIDI using a MIDI keyboard

If you do not have a MIDI keyboard or MIDI controller, skip ahead to the next section.

Let’s continue to use the same program in Cakewalk Sound Center that we selected in the previous section.

First, try playing some notes to see if you hear any sounds. If not, open the Preferences dialog by clicking on the Prefs button in the Control Bar, and locate the MIDI - Devices section. Make sure your keyboard is enabled in the Input Port list. When you are done with the settings, click OK to close the Preferences dialog box. If you are still not hearing anything, let’s check the output of the track.

In the Track view, locate the track named Cakewalk Sound Center. This is the track that was created when you added Cakewalk Sound Center to your project. It will likely be the last track in the Track View. You should see the Inspector display additional controls for the Cakewalk Sound Center track. At the bottom, check the output. It should be going either directly to your sound card’s output or to the Master Bus.

The next step is arming the track for recording. Click the track's Record Enable button .

Now, click the Record button in the Control Bar. The Now Time cursor starts to roll. Play some notes and click the Stop button when you are done.

Press the Play button to hear it play back.

I don't hear anything when I click the keyboard or click the preview button

1.	Double check and verify that you have followed the instructions in Audio connections.

2.	Click on the Cakewalk Sound Center track icon to select it. In the Inspector, the corresponding track controls are displayed. At the bottom, under the label IN/OUT, you will find the input and output controls.

3.	Select the output that you want Cakewalk Sound Center to play through during playback. This is how you ultimately route the Synth audio to your speakers. Select the option that best describes the output connection.

Note: You can choose to send the output of a track to a bus, rather than directly to the output of your audio device or sound card. Sending the output to a bus, rather than out directly to your audio device or sound card will provide you with better options when you mix your song. To learn more about using buses, see Stereo buses.

I have a MIDI Keyboard, what do I do?

1.	Click on the Cakewalk Sound Center track icon to select it. In the Inspector, the corresponding track controls are displayed. At the bottom, under the label IN/OUT, you will find the input and output controls. The Input control is on the top and the Output control is on the bottom.

2.	Select the MIDI port that you would like to trigger Cakewalk Sound Center with.

3.	Click the track's Record Enable button .

Note: Music Creator only allows recording to tracks that have been record enabled. This is necessary since Music Creator allows for multi-track recording. This tells Music Creator what track you want your new material recorded to. Otherwise, every track would be recorded to during every take.

4.	Click the Input Echo button if you do not hear the synth during recording.

Note 1: When input monitoring, you may hear a delay due to latency. Latency is the delay caused by the time it takes a computer to process data. This can be adjusted by reducing the Buffer Size under Preferences > Audio - Devices. If you experience distorted audio or dropouts, increase your buffer size. Many sound cards and audio interfaces have an option to do this automatically on the hardware level. Please refer to the documentation that was included with your audio interface for more information.

Note 2: If your keyboard or MIDI device(s) are not showing up under your track inputs, double check and verify that you have followed the instructions in MIDI connections.

 

See:

Adding an instrument track to your project

Using MIDI loops