V3 glitch: voice patches not retained
I've been using V3 for a while without major problems. Earlier this week, I installed the latest version (3.1.0.7078). I now find that scores I've been working on no longer retain the soundfont voice patch I set in the Mixer. I can get the soundfont patch to work, but after saving the file and reopening Musescore, I have to set the patch again (and again and again).
Comments
Sample score please and name the patches that change.
In reply to Sample score please and name… by Jojo-Schmitz
Score attached. Soundfont patch used "Grand Piano", but any patch will exhibit the same problem: save file, but soundfont is not retain, and no sound is produced by MS until the patch (or any patch) is reassigned in the Mixer.
In reply to Score attached. Soundfont… by Bob_B
In case you want to know what soundfonts I've loaded, I've attached a screen shot. BTW, all worked fine prior to the latest update.
In reply to In case you want to know… by Bob_B
Remove all but the default one and check again. Add back in till it fails.
In reply to Remove all but the default… by Jojo-Schmitz
Okay, I'll try, and thank you for your reply. However, I wonder if that will work, since all files made prior to the latest V3 update work fine with any and all soundfonts, and save and restore those settings without issue. It is only files made after installing the latest V3 update that fail to save and restore soundfont patch information. These data suggest that it is not a soundfont issue, rather an issue with how musescore saves/restores soundfont patches for individual files. Maybe?
In reply to Okay, I'll try, and thank… by Bob_B
Just so you know, MuseScore only uses the first soundfont in the fluid list to look for sounds to match up with the score. If it doesn't find a sound in the bank defined in the instruments.xml it uses the first sound in the sound font. So my guess from your picture is that everything sounds like a sax on your system.
In reply to Just so you know, MuseScore… by mike320
Thanks mike320. That's a good point, and one that I know and employ routinely. However, for all new files made since the v3 update released a few days ago, no sound is produced until I select a soundfont patch from the pulldown in the Mixer. That patch works impeccably throughout the session. But, after saving that perfectly fine, nice sounding file and reopening it, the soundfont memory is empty, the patch has not been retained in the saved file, and I must reapply the original steps to setup the soundfont patch. I emphasize three salient points: (1) This soundfont-saving glitch affects only files made after the latest upgrade, and (2) files made prior to the upgrade have no problems with any and all soundfont patches I apply (and retain them upon saving), and (3) all the soundfont libraries in my Mixer work, i.e., they patch the intended voice appropriately, with all files pre- and post-upgrade: it is in the saving of the patch where the upgrade appears to have issues.
Right now, this glitch constitutes only extra work, but it would be nice to get it resolved, as the soundfont patches worked so well prior to the latest upgrade.
In reply to Thanks mike320. That's a… by Bob_B
I suspect this has to do with the automatic conversion of scores to employ the new Single note dynamics. I'm curious if you select the Dynamics tab and click Reset All if you will get the proper sound assignments. If you do, then I suggest that you 1. Click save to score so in the future this score will not reset 2. Click set as default and see if it fixes scores you open later as well.
In reply to I suspect this has to do… by mike320
I tried your suggestions (thanks!), but Reset All in Dynamics did not save the patch when the file was saved, and upon reopening the Mixer had the default (first) patch selected and didn't produce any sound until I manually selected a patch from the dropdown patch menu in the Mixer. I'm going to change the order of the libraries in "Fluid" so "MuseScore_General.sf3" is the first, with the thought that maybe that's part of the problem even though sf library order did not affect files made prior to the latest revision. Any other thoughts or suggestions? Please let me know.
In reply to I tried your suggestions … by Bob_B
From your list, I think you must have gone through the process to assign the sounds to the instruments in the past, otherwise I don't know how it would have worked. Changing the order so MuseScore_General.sf3 is first will definitely fix the problem. Considering where it is in the list, I would remove it from the synthesizer then add it back. Moving it with the arrows will take a couple of hours (slight exaggeration).
In reply to I tried your suggestions … by Bob_B
Moving "MuseScore_General.sf3" up to the top of the Fluid tap in the Synthesizer permitted MS to save a patch correctly, i.e, if Grand Piano (the first patch in that soundfont library) is selected, it plays a piano sound, and once saved and reopened, the file again plays the correct patch. That's all well and good. However, and here comes a curveball for you, if I select a patch from another library -- ex., Tenor Sax Hard, which is in the library below the 'General' library, while the patch plays correct after selection, following saving and re-opening the file, the patch is no longer Tenor Sax Hard, but "Bright Grand Piano", which is in the "General" library in the same position (third from the top of the library in patches) as is the Tenor Sax Hard (third from the top in the "Tenor Sax_Soft.sf2" library. The file plays the BGP patch correctly: it sounds like a bright piano, but that's not the patch that was saved. What on earth is going on? Again, none of this appears to affect files prior to those created after the latest revision, albeit now that I've messed up the order of the sf libraries everything is a mess, but WTH.
In reply to Moving "MuseScore_General… by Bob_B
That is making no sense to me, I have several sound fonts loaded and MuseScore remembers what sounds I have assigned to instruments. By the way, my default is not GM standard, so I have to manually assign several of the sounds to the instruments.
Perhaps someone else can help you.
In reply to That is making no sense to… by mike320
I also manually assign patches, as I mainly write scores for saxophones, trumpet, and jazz comping instruments. And, as you can see, my default is not GM standard either.
I appreciate your replies, and I hope others will chime in with their ideas on fixes (and reasons why this is now a problem). I plan to delete all the soundfont libraries in the Synthesizer and re-install them one by one, as JoJo suggested. That may solve the problem with the latest revision not saving patch assignments, but could end up making all of my previous written charts useless until I manually reassign patches on an individual basis to each and every one of them. Uggh!
In reply to I also manually assign… by Bob_B
FWIW (and that ain't much, I'm afraid): I deleted all soundfont libraries from within the Synthesizer, and then added back one at a time. Just as soon as I added any library in front of (aka on top of) the default "MuseScore_General.sf3" library I lost the ability to save a patch on files made after the most recent revision. (Patch saving was fine on pre-revision files.) Of course, as I had selected patches on most of my recent scores pre- or post-revision, I also had to repatch each instrument as a consequence of deletion and readdition of the libraries. :(
One remaining idea is to retain the default MS soundfont library as the first library in Synthesizer, and add all others afterwards. This may solve the memory problem, but adds more searching time when a patch that isn't in the default library needs to be applied to a new file and instrument. Thought: A search function in the patch menu would be a very welcomed addition to future versions.
That's about all I have.
In reply to FWIW (and that ain't much, I… by Bob_B
You have to save the list of soundfonts you make in the synthesizer. If you don't do this, the next time the list will revert to its previous state.
I have no idea why else it wouldn't save you channels. You set the sound in the mixer, save the score, and as long as the same list is loaded in your synthesizer, you'll get the same sounds.
One thing to keep in mind, you can only have one list of soundfonts loaded at a time. If you have score A with one list of sound font, and score B that you set up with a different list of sound font, when you switch the order of the sound font, either by loading them from a score or reordering them in some other way, you will need to reset any channels that are not automatically assigning sounds. Any sound that is not defined in the first soundfont you have listed in you synthesizer, will default to the first sound in the first soundfont. It doesn't matter what the next 25 sound fonts are.
Here's the best way to operate. Set your list of soundfonts and save as default. If you have a soundfont you want added to the list, take the long time necessary to move it to the bottom of the list, then all of the existing sound assignments will remain. You can then save this list as the default and existing scores will be unaffected. Now every time you start MuseScore you will always have the same list of soundfonts. Keep in mind that if your first score is not GM compatible, like the default MuseScore soundfont, any score you get from anywhere else will probably need to have all sounds reset manually by you. I say probably, because there is at least a chance the user who created it will have used the same soundfonts as you.
In the future MuseScore will remember the sounds.
In reply to You have to save the list… by mike320
Thanks. I am aware of the required save for the soundfont list, and have done so. No problems there. The problem is in assigning a given instrument to a patch and retaining that patch in the file's memory for later retrieval after the program has been shutdown and relaunched. All my files made prior to the latest revision retain the patch memory of any and all instruments I select, this includes files with 6-8 individual instruments. No problem with those files; however, files made after I installed the latest MS3 update fail to retain any and all patches in memory, and upon playing fail to produce a sound, that is until I select a patch in the Mixer. Once manually selected, the instument plays and produces an appropriate sound as dictate by the patch. But, close the file and the specific patch designated in the previous use is lost, and must be reselected manually.
I am weighing the option of just using the default soundfonts to avoid this problem, but I hesitate as I much prefer certain patches (esp. for saxophones) found in other libraries.
In reply to Thanks. I am aware of the… by Bob_B
I need a paper bag for my head to hide my shame.
You are correct about the mixer not remembering changes in the channels. I just closed and reopened MuseScore and it forgot all of my settings. I guess I hadn't closed MuseScore in a few day since my 3.1 upgrade.
Could you create an issue for this at https://musescore.org/en/node/add/project_issue?pid=1236 and set the severity to S2 - Critical? That way the programmers, probably TheOtherJThistle, will be sure to see it so it can be fixed.
In reply to I need a paper bag for my… by mike320
I have created the issue, as you suggested. Thanks!
In reply to I have created the issue, as… by Bob_B
Thanks for #290147: Mixer not remembering changes in the channels
Should be fixed by https://github.com/musescore/MuseScore/pull/5094