Topic: MIDI Keyboard Trouble

If you’re familiar with MIDI, then I suppose you’d know most (all?) hosts require the MIDI controller to be on and connected before opening them, for them to recognise and use it.

I’m sure you knew that, so on to my other concern!

It sounds like, after some time, the controller is, perhaps, disconnecting? If you aren’t using a USB device for some time, there’s a chance it’s being put to sleep, I believe. If that happens, Podium may see it as a disconnect, and reconnecting the USB device would presumably mean needing to restart Podium with the device on again.

If you go to Device Manager in Windows 7, and check some of your USB device properties, you’ll find an option that you can disable, whereby Windows can’t power down USB to save power. See if disabling those helps you at all.

In regards to MIDI, I think what is meant is that Podium will only allow one input device in the setup, and one output. But I could be wrong, Frits might have to answer that one.

Gtrldy, a RESCAN? as in “clear cache and rescan” in a DAW such as REAPER? Not exactly. It’s not really needed in this system, because Podium handles all of this in its own unique manner. It never loses anything from its database. Once understood and set up to your liking, you’re good to go and can add or delete plugins at any time. Furthermore, Podium offers a few other VST/VSTi handling abilities that no other system I know of employs. (You’ll find a dropdown menu list of all device options of this sort at top on the right where your devices are shown.)

I’m still a Podium semi-newbie, and initially, I found the setup of my plugins a bit time-consuming but is paying great dividends now. Part of what took me longer was that I am a perfectionist in how I arrange features and devices in a fully user customizable DAW, and also, Podium inspired me to do a complete overhaul and re-organization of all my plugins and folders when I got using it. Add to that the fact that I didn’t really know exactly how I wanted them set up when I began and decided this as I got to work.

Basically, here is the deal: Podium will allow you have a custom plugin setup for each and every project you are doing if you so desire. However, I almost always set things up universally and globally, so I may never use this option. And there is a way to do this as well.

First of all, you let Podium find all your plugs by linking in all their residence folders in your program files. You do this in your Preferences. MY next step was to click to open properties of each and rename there any plugs that had long, goofy names or version numbers, etc., that I just didn’t need to see. My next step was to decide and customize all in’s and out’s for each one. I rarely need 16 MIDI outs on my plugins, so I cut down most to exactly what I’ll use (can always change these later, if needed). Then I brought together by dragging the few instruments, for example, that had self-installed into their own Program Files folders to my main instruments folders — Synths, Drums — whatever system you’ve created that works well for you. Did the very same for my effects — Guitar Stuff, Delays, Reverbs, Mastering Plugins, etc.

Once you have things exactly how you want them — with every dang plugin you’ve got! — this is your complete Big Database. POdium stores this as a .pod file in AppData. You want to go to Explore Setup Folder. There, you will want to save (or re-save) all this as PluginDatabase.pod.

There! You now have all your current goodies (I have a tonne of free ones, mainly) saved safely just the way you named and arranged them. You can always add/delete plugs later to be saved in individually customized arrangements in any project pod file, but the main Database will contain everything you’ve got. Think of it as your generic full collection I guess.

That ought to go a long way in getting you going. Setting all this up is sort of a tedious deal, but I’ll tell you, once you’ve customized to your liking practically everything about Podium, you’ve got your self one lean and powerful monster of a recording/editing system. You control it, not vice versa, like some other brands. Ultra-efficient, super-fast future setups of each project, awesome workflow (because it is YOUR perfect and suited workflow now).

Don’t know if it was mentioned above, but with any DAW you should optimize your PC so that things like Sleep Mode never, ever kick in and mess stuff up. Same idea with these power saver things that come on so many PCs now. Always employ full power. You never want anything to change while Podium is UP — if only ’cause you never want anything like AutoUpdate to phone home and suck CPU and power or, even more important, you never want to have something kick in which just very likely might place a nasty pop or click on your track while recording the most amazing awesome solo you will ever play in your entire life. Green footprints and saving the planet by running a hobbled PC are for desk jobs, telemarketers, pencil pushers and internet bloggers. You are an engineer, producer and musician and your existence and respect depends on a top-notch system that does it right the first time every time (we all hope).

Sorry I had to cover those basics, you never know what people do and don’t know. I did miss one of your points, it’s quite hard to use mobile devices to read properly I find! 🙂

I am not familiar with the Nanokeys, but most MIDI devices are class compliant, meaning default drivers should be fine. However, if installing vendor-specific drivers helps you, there’s nothing wrong with that either, and at least it helps you!

I usually find most programs won’t recognise my Remote SL if I don’t have it plugged in and powered on before loading the program. Some programs do have a rescan feature, but because I have to at least rescan with any program, I always just try to have it on before opening any audio softwareI think that’s the best way, since programs don’t dynamically react to USB devices being plugged in.