I can hear extra invisible notes being added to my string quartet score in MuseScore 4
Is this a bug or what? The playback in MuseScore 4 has been a pain in the behind since I downloaded it. Even when I add dynamics to a piece, it sounds very muted and unbalanced in all the parts. for example, the cello part in my string quartet suddenly jumps out of the piece I made at a certain point in the song, playing a bass note way to loud then suddenly going back to a balanced state with the other instruments... When I hear people on YouTube playback their symphonies with tons of instruments, I didn't hear anything disturbing but for me, MuseScore 4 doesn't playback my score good at all. Could it be that MuseHub's sound packs just don't work for playback? Frustrating...
Comments
Could you share your score (mscz file) here? Or maybe just a selection from the piece that shows the problem so others can try to figure out what’s going on there.
In reply to Could you share your score … by Malte_M
I encountered this problem as well in an orchestral score after a tempo change. I created a fresh excerpt that repeats the issue. This excerpt also seems to have created an additional bug. On two separate occassions, 1st violin plays when it shouldn't.
In reply to I encountered this problem… by sirblaise
Do you mean the way the sustained note carries into the tempo change? I think this is reported previously as https://github.com/musescore/MuseScore/issues/14369 and still under investigation.
In reply to Could you share your score … by Malte_M
Thanks for the reply! I don't know how to share an mscz file but someone below your comment posted a similar phenomenon and it's exactly what happens to my score when I play it back.
In reply to Thanks for the reply! I don… by Daniel B. K.
How to share (attach) an .mscz file - see https://musescore.org/en/node/289899
Welcome to the club.
I've given up hoping for quality BASIC playback in MS4.
And I'm tired of the redundant, and mostly useless replies from staff.
As well as the lack of a response from Musehub.
MS4 was CLEARLY released FAR too prematurely, and without sufficient QA.
Listen to the attached 5 measure .MP3. (A 20 second post-cadential Solo Violin figure, at 320 kBits/s),
using MuseFx Solo Violin. (It's even WORSE with the native MS4 Solo Violin font.)
The following link is to the .MP3 on my Google Drive for your listening "pleasure":
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1M2OEkL5WtuZaDdS0x-jLJqMW4G-JIfZa/view?…
The five measure screenshot is attached below and text noted where the .
dynamic changes and sudden scratchiness occur.
I can assure you it's NOT my iMac, nor my Google Drive, nor the upload process, nor re-installing MS4, nor re-installing MuseHub, or any of the absurd non-answer suggestions given to frustrated COMPOSERS with eight months of similar LEGITIMATE complaints experiencing similar issues.
The reason the String Section sounds acceptable, is that I am using Spitfire Audio's
"Epic Strings".
https://www.spitfireaudio.com/originals-epic-strings/?gclid=Cj0KCQjwk96…
INCREDIBLE AT $29 USD.
It puts the Native MS4 and MuseHub offerings completely to shame.
Note: It's NOT cost effective to use Spitfire's solo violin in MS4 unless you are using a DAW to manage articulations, etc.
Composers and Musicians are simply trying to get FUNDAMENTAL EXPECTATIONS resolved here.
Fundamental as in no sudden and MEANINGLESS changes in dynamics in BASIC passages.
I NEVER see much improvement in these blogs about similar issues, save where users are not using the software properly, or have a computer issue (lots of those).
It's just not happening.
I could not possibly be more disappointed after the three year wait.
I posted this in its own thread days ago and never heard a word back from the usual MS4 suspects.
As I've been told: "Oftentimes, silence is acknowledgment".
Good luck.
In reply to Welcome to the club. I've… by gary23andrews
Sorry to hear you're experiencing problems! It's impossible to tell much from just a pictures or audio files - we'd need the actual scores. So please give us links to the GitHub issues you submitted reporting the problems to the developers, we can check out the scores you attached and precise instructions you provided to check on the status of your issues.
In reply to Sorry to hear you're… by Marc Sabatella
Here's the .mscz excerpt from the score sketch, as well as a screenshot.
It SHOULD BE sufficient.
It's an incomplete commissioned piece, and I am not at liberty to attach the entire score.
Listen to the link provided above WITH HEADPHONES OR QUALITY EARBUDS to hear the problems.
Totally unacceptable for such a SIMPLE FIGURE.
Feel free to contact MuseHub. I am DONE with them, and have deleted that garbage.
Learning that MuseHub "Needs" access to my ROOT directory was the last straw.
(Please don't debate this. I'm a retired software engineer. There is no reason for this. None. Period.)
I'll be moving on from MuseScore and no longer recommending it.
It's a decent tool for beginners.
You aimed high but fell horribly, horribly short for musicians and composers who prefer engraving to DAW composing.
The Bug Blog is ABSURD in terms of both quantity and types of problems.
It should never have been released.
I would love to know the REAL secret as to WHY it was.
In reply to Here's the .mscz excerpt… by gary23andrews
If you're not interested in using MsueScore or helping the developers improve it, that's your right. Meanwhile, when people who are able to converse respectfully do ask for help, we are always happy to assist!
In reply to If you're not interested in… by Marc Sabatella
Respectfully, Marc: Patience wears thin reading Bug reports in July 2023 of ELEMENTARY issues that did not exist in MS3, and remain unsolved since MS4 was released. I just sent one in. Basic. Elementary. Did not happen in MS3.
And NO ONE WILL GIVE A SANE REASON AS TO WHY MuseHub MUST have access to the ROOT Directory. It's all very weird.
In reply to Respectfully, Marc: Patience… by gary23andrews
Again, if you can provide a link to the specific issue on GitHub that you are wondering about, I can check on its status. Not all bugs are fixed instantly - that's true of all versions of all software - but again, if there is a specific issue you submitted that you are still awaiting a response on, I can check on its status for you.
As for why a software installer needs root access, that's indeed common to all installers. Systems provide that level of security that that ordinary user programs don't copy files into system locations. But software installers by their nature do, unless they are going to be limited to only installing into user space, which wouldn't be typical for most software. but if you have further questions about Muse Hub, please ask on their dedicated support site, musehub.zendesk.com.
In reply to Here's the .mscz excerpt… by gary23andrews
Gary,
Sorry, but your mp3 ( really, you rely on an mp3) Does not show a volume increase on the double A but not the G. I put it through an analyzer. I do agree that there is an increase on the staccato notes. That is the opposite of what usually happens.
Though it doesn't seem to bother you that you have hairpins that don't (and can't) have any affect because of the way you have used dynamics. Or not used them. Plus you have panned both violin section on top of each other. That changes how recorded sounds playback.
We are all different. I find Spitfire strings....lacking.
Personally, I learned long ago that to compose in notation software, you need at least two scores. One to get the playback you want. And one to hand real players. Not possible to make one score work.
In reply to Gary, Sorry, but your mp3 (… by bobjp
.MP3 is a quick and convenient format in the MS4 drop down export list. (Really. It is. Check for yourself.)
Used simply so that I could post a link to my GDrive for the convenience of anyone that wished to hear it .
And at 320 kBits/Sec, the resolution is sufficient. Being an audio stud with an analyzer you should know that. Feel free to export it in another audio file format and show me ANY significant improvement.
I'll wait.
What is your point about the (non functional) hairpins inserted to remind me of something in an excerpt from a draft sketch? Your comment about it "not bothering me" is irrelevant at best.
The pan positions are temporary, as is the interim orchestration. Once again, you obviously missed my previous point this is merely an extract of a SKETCH. So go ahead and pan Violins1 and 2 any way you'd like. I've already tried it. Show me that it makes a difference and post the .mscz (or preferably the audio file in a resolution format that does not hide the issue).
I'll wait.
You never addressed the scratchiness. Why not? It's easy to hear. Even in lowly 320 kBits/Sec .MP3 format.
I'm far from alone in that regard. I've read a ton of you replies* to other bug reports, so I'm sure you're aware that I'm not the first one to report this PERSISTENT and UNSOLVED bug.
"Personally, I learned long ago that to compose in notation software, you need at least two scores. One to get the playback you want. And one to hand real players. Not possible to make one score work."
No Kidding? Geeeeeze. Really? OMG. Thanks for the ProTip.
I'd love to hear a composition of yours utilizing Spitfire's Epic Strings. Include notes elucidating how they are "lacking".
I'll wait.
*Your (long ago) apologist reply about MuseHub's use of the RootDirectory was so absurd, I didn't bother wasting my time replying. And your reply to my concern here was pretty much par for your game.
Keep up the good work.
If you're not on the payroll, you should be.
I know it can be frustrating when an app doesn't work perfect yet... But just think about what the people who created this amazing software have done, giving the world-wide web the opportunity to have beautiful, realistic, playback for free! People now days are so used to having things for free and when something doesn't work just the way they expected it to, they can get a little edgy... There are plenty of other notation apps out there but you can't beat the option that MuseScore has offered concerning realistic playback for free. Now, if you really want good playback, that's gonna cost you some money... (a lot, actually)... I'm 22 and I would have been thrilled 10 years ago when I started composition if I had realistic playback like this. A funny scenario to think about: lets say you are a young composer, aged 10, a musical prodigy living at home with no cash to spend on realistic sounds and your parents don't have the $$$ to spend right now so you're stuck with Noteflight's Honky violin sounds... Then somebody tells you about MuseScore 4's realistic playback. You check it out, and you are hooked. I have hope for MuseScore's future development and improvements. I'm sure they have a budget just like the rest of us. Give them some more time! :)
Idk if this is gonna work but I'm trying to upload part of one of my compositions with bad playback issues. Let me know if it works for ya'll.
In reply to I know it can be frustrating… by Daniel B. K.
Thanks for the comments! It seems you attached a MusicXML field; attaching the actual score would be more useful to make sure we hear what you hear. Anyhow, I've loaded it and played it but didn't notice any particular problem either than viola needing to be pushed up in the mixer to balance. is there a specific note in a specific measure you are having trouble with? Or maybe the problem occurs only with the actual score instead of the MusicXML file? This is a very short except and contains no dynamics at all - maybe it's even the wrong score entirely?
In reply to Thanks for the comments! It… by Marc Sabatella
I can't figure out how to share mscz still... But if I upload it under my account scores on my page, will that allow you to hear it the way I do? If you know how I could share it as an mscz, let me know!
In reply to Thanks for the comments! It… by Marc Sabatella
https://musescore.com/user/57711751/scores/11529877/s/5LHNL5?share=copy… Let me know if it works
In reply to Thanks for the comments! It… by Marc Sabatella
I finally figured it out how to get an mscz file! I didn't download the score to my computer. :P It was in the MuseScore cloud! Haha. Here it is! Note that I don't have any dynamic markings in the score. In the first measure the first note the cello plays is quite softer than the viola and violin I and the middle C violin II is playing jumps out very loudly and unbalanced. Measure 2 seems to have an invisible decrescendo on all the instruments but the last two 8th notes the cello plays is very soft, then, VERY loud... Haha! There is a strange phenomenon taking place in m. 3 to where it seems viola and violin II get quiet. There are more things I could write but I'm sure you can probably hear it, (hopefully), now. Thanks for your time! Hopefully the team can find the issues. I might send over some more examples of glitches in my other scores if that's something you guys are in need of. Btw, I'm using a 2021 iMac if that helps. Yahweh bless! :)
In reply to I finally figured it out how… by Daniel B. K.
If this is your score, you should definitely be saving it to your computer normally and not relying on the save to cloud. It's a convenience, except when it's not :-)
Anyhow, in a score with no dynamic, it's a little odd to be wondering about balance, so first step should be to add some - if nothing else, an mf on all instruments to start.
Also, don't trust your computer speakers to reproduce music accurately, especially at the upper and lower ranges. Mine make the cello seem more quiet but my headphones have it closer. Also, the violin 1 has the moving line, and that would naturally be brought out in real life too. The second measure sound quieter, but that's what you wrote - one one note sounding at a time instead of four will do that.
Anyhow, my take is, you're over-thinking this; it sounds pretty natural overall to me.
In reply to If this is your score, you… by Marc Sabatella
Thanks! I've been in the habit lately to store things on the cloud to save room on my Mac for vst instruments for my DAW. I know what you mean though! Lol. I didn't add dynamics to my score because dynamic markings make the playback worse than in the first place (without dynamics). I've been using a decent pair of Sony MDR7506 stereo headphones while composing/editing and playing playback but everything is still way off balance. I even unplugged it from my audio interface and plugged the headphones into the little headphone jack on the side of the computer but it doesn't affect the quality. Just now I added dynamics to the score and made violin I mp while the other instruments p. Now when I play it back, violin II is the loudest while the dynamics of the other instruments are very quiet... It is constantly shifting each instrument's dynamics like a wave as it plays from beginning to end. It also seems to make random notes throughout the composition to pretty much disappear in velocity. I'll send the same score as I sent earlier with added dynamics. I don't know if we are hearing things exactly the same or if that's even possible since we have different devices.
In reply to I know it can be frustrating… by Daniel B. K.
Well written. I appreciate and agree with most every point you've made.
Nevertheless, you perhaps are missing the general point I am making about BASIC issues which did NOT exist in MS3. BASIC issues which exist now, and have since it was released in 4Q22. Take some time and read as much as you can in the Bug Reports. It's SAD. It's beyond any doubt MS4 was rushed out. And beyond doubt that MuseHub is problematic (are you aware that installing it gives the App access to your ROOT directory?).
Wishing you well in Music.