Losing Details of a Sound when Recording

[varun213]

Hi guys,
I just got the prophet '08 desktop module and had one small issue that I could really use some help on. So I use FL studio 12.2 as my Daw and when I record a midi file that is routed to the Prophet '08 I for some reason lose details of the sound after it has been recorded. For example I can play the sound before recording and it will have all the details but once I record it in as an Audio clip I lose details like the decay amount, delay, or Upper harmonics of the original sound that was coming from the prophet.

This only happens when I manually enter in notes inside my daw on a piano roll. Which is linked to a midi out channel inside my Daw that acts a Midi keyboard in the box basically and triggers the hardware synth.

Anyways If I were to record something from the prophet via direct Audio clip like vocals it works just fine, but I want extra control of editing the timing or rhythm of a sound and thats why I have great use for editing recordings inside the piano roll of my midi channel in FL studio.

I reached out to Fl studio forums and they said it might have something to do with the Hardware, since I have no issues from the Daw connecting to my hardware synth. So I am here now hoping somebody may have an idea of what is going on since I just got my DSI synth a few weeks ago I am quite stuck here.

Could there be an option on the hardware that can maybe fix this?

Appreciate all the help!

[varun213]

would appreciate any help! I really wanna get this synth to work.

[BobTheDog]

Hi, I have not got a P8 and do not use FL but I can try to help.

Let me try to understand whats going on.

If you play the P8 from a keyboard and record the audio into FL then everything is ok?

When you play midi from FL to the P8 the audio is not correct?

Cheers

Andy

[varun213]

Hi, I have not got a P8 and do not use FL but I can try to help.

Let me try to understand whats going on.

If you play the P8 from a keyboard and record the audio into FL then everything is ok?

When you play midi from FL to the P8 the audio is not correct?

Cheers

Andy

Hi Andy,

Yes that is correct, except when I simply just play midi from FL to P8 it works just fine. But I cannot export it as an Mp3 unless I record that midi recording into an Audio clip, so when that takes place I lose detail of the sound after it is converted to an Audio clip.

Would you have any suggestions as to why the P8 loses quality in the sound when it coverts from Midi to Audio? I guess that is the shortened summary of what I am dealing with.
However, Going direct Input route (like you would vocals) the recording of the Audio clip is just fine with no quality loss.

I hope there is a fix to this.

[Sontag]

Hi, I have not got a P8 and do not use FL but I can try to help.

Let me try to understand whats going on.

If you play the P8 from a keyboard and record the audio into FL then everything is ok?

When you play midi from FL to the P8 the audio is not correct?

Cheers

Andy

Hi Andy,

Yes that is correct, except when I simply just play midi from FL to P8 it works just fine. But I cannot export it as an Mp3 unless I record that midi recording into an Audio clip, so when that takes place I lose detail of the sound after it is converted to an Audio clip.

Would you have any suggestions as to why the P8 loses quality in the sound when it coverts from Midi to Audio? I guess that is the shortened summary of what I am dealing with.
However, Going direct Input route (like you would vocals) the recording of the Audio clip is just fine with no quality loss.

I hope there is a fix to this.

I'm very confused about that "converting midi to audio"..I don't know if i get you right, but it sounds like you are trying to convert a midi file to audio?? this might work if you have a softsynth on that miditrack, but I don't think it's going to work with your P8..

[varun213]

Hi, I have not got a P8 and do not use FL but I can try to help.

Let me try to understand whats going on.

If you play the P8 from a keyboard and record the audio into FL then everything is ok?

When you play midi from FL to the P8 the audio is not correct?

Cheers

Andy

Hi Andy,

Yes that is correct, except when I simply just play midi from FL to P8 it works just fine. But I cannot export it as an Mp3 unless I record that midi recording into an Audio clip, so when that takes place I lose detail of the sound after it is converted to an Audio clip.

Would you have any suggestions as to why the P8 loses quality in the sound when it coverts from Midi to Audio? I guess that is the shortened summary of what I am dealing with.
However, Going direct Input route (like you would vocals) the recording of the Audio clip is just fine with no quality loss.

I hope there is a fix to this.

I'm very confused about that "converting midi to audio"..I don't know if i get you right, but it sounds like you are trying to convert a midi file to audio?? this might work if you have a softsynth on that miditrack, but I don't think it's going to work with your P8..

I am not too good with terminology but ill try to explain as accurately as possible.

For example lets say I manually click in A minor chord in a Piano roll editor that is routed to the P8. So what ever synth I have programmed on the P8 will play that A minor chord if i press play button inside the Daw or manually click one of the piano roll notes you will hear the synth being triggered.

This works great and I have no issues, but the problem comes in when I want to export the song as an mp3. It doesent export the synth unless I record this A minor chord patter into an audio clip. The Daw records that manually entered A minor chord into an audio clip file or stem.

Kind of like how if you had a cpu intensive vst instrument. To clear up ram and space you would convert that digitally recorded pattern to an audio clip/stem and then delete the Vst instrument to clear up space. The stem that you converted from the vst still has his characteristic and everything. With the P8 after i record it as an audio clip from the digital recording(MIDI), i lose quality in the sound or maybe details such as decays and delays that were originally part of the tone of the sound.

Sorry i'm not sure if that helped but please ask any questions ill try my best to explain in more depth. Its one of those tricky but potentially quick fix type problems lol

[BobTheDog]

Well to be honest I don't think this is anything to do with the P8, it must be something going on in FL.

I'm just downloading the FL demo to take a look.........

[BobTheDog]

Well FL is totally alien to me!

I managed to get a midi device setup and the audio routed into the mixer.

How are you then recording the audio?

[varun213]

Well FL is totally alien to me!

I managed to get a midi device setup and the audio routed into the mixer.

How are you then recording the audio?

You see where fl Studio shows the default Kick/Snare/Hi hat/ Channels? All you do is right click one of those and from the choices you will see there is one called "MIDI OUT" I select that one and then once the midi out channel opens up, on the upper right corner of the midi out window is a box called "Port Number"  I simply pick a random number say "3" as your port number. Then the idea is to select the port number of your Midi keyboard (midi keyboard port # is located in Audio settings in the output section.) that is connected to the P8 to be the same port number as your midi out channel in this case it would be "3". That way the P8/keyboard/and midi out channel are all connected.

So its like you can either trigger the p8 module from your external midi keyboard OR you can go in the box and trigger the p8 from the midi out channel since its all routed on the same port number.
So that is how I can manually enter in notes into the midi out channel so my timing and rhythm can be edited. It works great but the problem with the midi out channel is if you go to export any melody you just created it will be silent when you listen to your exported track. So If you press record on the top of the Main DAW screen and select record as audio clip it will convert the midi out pattern that you created like a softsynth to an audio clip. Then I can export and hear my melody but the sound of the original synth is NOT the same. Its not that bad but i am stickler to quality and dont understand why I lose some tonal characteristics of the sound

I am away from my fl studio setup but if you need any screen shots I can definitely provide them a bit later. Please let me know if that makes any sense. It might just be a Fl studio issue and not the P8 itself. I might have to go back and check with FL studio forums.

[varun213]

So  i think i found my solution. It is a pre amp issue. 

I tried it again inside my daw and everything works great I just got some advice that a pre amp would really help with my recordings.

thanks again for your help though. its really appreciated.