VSampler 2 FAQ

VSampler 2 is a "DXi version 1" instrument, and the original DXi 1 version didn't support multiple audio outs per instrument. VSampler itself supports it (the Standalone and the VSTi version), but not the DXi 1 interface, the DXi version of VSampler mixes all audio data down to one stereo stream. But users told us there's a workaround: use the VST instrument version of VSampler through DirectiXer, the VSTi to DXi wrapper, it translates the VSTi into a DXi2 instrument and Sonar 2 is able to use the up to 16 individual outputs of VSampler.

VSampler 3 will of course support the DXi2 interface directly.

Sonar 2 added it to the list of excluded plugins. We don't know why Sonar 2 excludes some DXi's sometimes, this is not a VSampler-specific issue. Either get the Cakewalk plugin manager (free for registered Sonar 2.x customers) or just run this registry-file to reset Sonar's list of excluded plugins.

No, it's just disabled by default to save a few CPU cycles, since most "electronic musicians" probably don't even know what a sustain pedal does and if their mouse got one or not :) If you want to permanently enable a certain MIDI controller or pedal, go to VSampler's menu Preferences --> New Bank / Preset Defaults --> Controllers and activate the respective checkbox - that's it. Now when creating new Presets (this includes importing from SF2 or AKAI CD) VSampler automatically activates those controllers for the new Preset. Important: existing Presets will not be affected afterwards.

The controller settings in VSampler are not a general machine setting but a Split setting - every instrument and every Split can have other controller settings. You can always check at the "Ctrl" page whether a controller is activated for the current Split or not. If you want to enable or disable receiving a certain controller (e.g. sustain pedal) for an existing VSampler instrument first select all Splits of this instrument (upper right corner, set the Edit Group to "All Splits of Preset"), then activate the checkbox of the respective controller at the "Ctrl" page.

You didn't activate it for all Splits of your instruments: The controller settings in VSampler are not a general machine setting but a Split setting - every instrument and every Split can have other controller settings. Your instrument probably got more than one Split but you forgot to select all Splits before you activated the sustain pedal controller, you just activated it for *one* of the many Splits. To enable or disable receiving a certain controller (e.g. sustain pedal) for a complete VSampler instrument first select all Splits of this instrument (upper right corner, set the Edit Group to "All Splits of Preset"), then activate the checkbox of the respective controller at the "Ctrl" page.

Check out this Logic special by Dausenkunz: www.soundbytes.de/tutorials/VSampler_Logic47/index.htm
If you want to record a sequence from an external MIDI keyboard, be sure it sends at the right MIDI channel.

No it isn't. Officially. VSampler is a multitimbral instrument, in opposition to "smaller" instruments VSampler is able to receive MIDI commands on all 16 channels at once and play 16 different instruments at once (and it's easy to stuff several instruments into one by using different keyzones), and to output every of those 16 instruments through it's 16 individual outputs into separate mixer channels of the host sequencers mixer, so you can add different effects to every of those 16 sounds. After all that's the same as if you would run 16 VSampler instances and each of them could play just one instrument, but you would have to manage 16 different instruments instead of having it all at one central interface.

Anyway, some users reported they run multiple instances of VSampler by simply making a suitable number of copies of the VSamplerVST.dll (VSamplerVST1.dll, VSamplerVST2.dll ...) inside the vstplugins directory. However, while this might work, it is not officially supported.

The following is important, you should understand what the "Multi" mode does, otherwise the confusion will not end. Check the green MIDI IN LED at the upper right corner of VSampler, it should flash when you play your MIDI keyboard. If it doesn't, either the keyboard is not connected properly or you didn't activate a MIDI input under Preferences --> MIDI Settings --> MIDI Inputs yet. If the MIDI IN LED does flash but the Voices LED doesn't (and the Voices number remains 0) that means VSampler reveices the incoming MIDI data, but it ends in nowhere. The reason: you are running VSampler in MIDI mode "Multi" but didn't assign a sound to the MIDI channel of your keyboard yet. In MIDI mode "Multi" VSampler receives MIDI data on all 16 channels at once (hence "Multi"), but you have to tell VSampler which MIDI channel should play which sound, exactly as you would do with a multitimbral hardware synth. For instance you could setup VSampler to play a piano on MIDI channel 1, a bass sound on channel two, a string on channel 3 ..., each sound triggered by it's own sequencer track or keyboarder, separated by the MIDI channel number. So if your keyboard sends on MIDI channel 1 you have to assign a sound to MIDI channel 1 first, that's done at VSamplers "Multi" page by doubleclicking slot #1 and then selecting a sound.

Or if you just want to test some sounds and don't need the "Multi" mode you should activate the MIDI mode Preset at VSamplers "Preset" page (see picture), now VSampler will ignore the MIDI channel of the incoming MIDI data and always play the current preset, independent of the MIDI channel settings of the "Multi" page.

Same problem as above (read it too, please), you are running VSampler in MIDI mode "Multi" but didn't assign a sound to the MIDI channel of your sequencer track yet. So if your sequencer sends on MIDI channel 1 you have to assign a sound to MIDI channel 1 first. That's either done at VSamplers "Multi" page by doubleclicking slot #1 and then selecting a sound, or by selecting a program (or "patch" in some sequencers) in the sequencer's track properties (the "Inspector" in Cubase).

Better do not use the MIDI mode "Preset" when running VSampler inside the sequencer, because usually you want to play different sounds from different sequencer tracks by using different MIDI channels, so you need the Multi mode to distinguish between the different MIDI channels, otherwise all tracks would play the same sound, namely your current Preset :)

The reason is simple, once you know it :) The sequencer is just sending program changes to VSampler! And VSampler reacts, as every well-behaved instrument. Usually you can set "track properties" for a sequencer track (e.g. in Cubase it's the "Inspector"), e.g. the volume, panning ... and also the bank- and program number. And whenever the sequencer "resets" all output devices it will send those track settings to all active instruments.  This happens if you press PLAY in your sequencer. But it also happens in certain other situations you probably wouldn't except, such as when you press STOP, or when the part ends or ...... just check MIDI preferences of your sequencer, usually you can enable or disable options like "Reset-on-stop", "Reset-on-Part-End", "Reset-on-Track-Change" etc.

If your "Multi" settings "disappear" that simply means the sequencer told VSampler to change to a program number which is empty in VSampler.

Solution: you have two different methods to assign VSampler sounds to MIDI channels, and better do not mix those two methods:

Either choose the programs in the sequencers track properties (e.g. Cubase and Sonar show the real Preset names of VSampler, not just numbers) and don't care about VSampler's "Multi" page. Or do it vice versa, setup everything at VSampler's "Multi" page and tell VSampler to ignore program changes from the sequencer (Preferences --> MIDI Settings --> MIDI Settings --> MIDI Filter ).