BM3 update, now with AU midi input and it's awesome

ExAsperis99

@MonzoPro said:

@AudioGus said:

@Samu said:
Writing a 'step by step' manual for BM3 would be like writing a 'step by step' manual for using a computer.
Things can be done in so many different ways that every single user would need their own custom manual...

Well said.

I see BM3 as a workshop with around a hundred tools in it and for a particular project I may just need five or six. Knowing what to ignore or skip is just as important as what to use.

Also, I recall spending a couple hours early on with the volume off, just jumping around BM3, not even listening to anything but just seeing what connected to what. When I took a break from making music and just did some UX exploration, setting up macros, modulating stuff, noodeling automation, messing with the piano roll simply for the sake of it, then I think it helped me learn without pressure to create. Why not? Jazz musicians would sometimes sit with their horn and just do finger work without blowing a single note.

That's not well said at all.

My pet hate, is software without proper documentation and tutorials. Why? Because it wastes my precious time.

I wasted an hour last night getting something to work, and couldn't because one option wasn't selected. An option I didn't know about, and no end of jazz horn-blowing would have led me to discover it. It wasn't in the tutorial, so until someone on here pointed it out I had no idea it even existed. I lost an hour just doing that one thing, and it made me cranky. Music software shouldn't make you cranky, it should make you smile - otherwise it's not doing it's job properly.

Hooray for people who have hours to spend learning a new app via a process of trial and error - fantastic, I wish I had time like that to waste. I don't. I need step by step guides so I can learn where everything is and then get on with the process of making music. I didn't spend twenty quid just to fuck about getting cross.

I feel you. Modstep frustrated me initially. But this was not wasted time for me. The lessons I took from that I have applied to other midi/software problems. Maybe you're further along that I am in midi production and have less patience for muddling through, but I seriously doubt you're busier than I am. Also — what are you talking about with the lack of tutorials!? There are TONS of tutorials out there. (Certainly compared with Modstep.) Also, there is a Beatmaker 3 manual of 100+ pages.

[Deleted User]

@ExAsperis99 said:

@MonzoPro said:

@AudioGus said:

@Samu said:
Writing a 'step by step' manual for BM3 would be like writing a 'step by step' manual for using a computer.
Things can be done in so many different ways that every single user would need their own custom manual...

Well said.

I see BM3 as a workshop with around a hundred tools in it and for a particular project I may just need five or six. Knowing what to ignore or skip is just as important as what to use.

Also, I recall spending a couple hours early on with the volume off, just jumping around BM3, not even listening to anything but just seeing what connected to what. When I took a break from making music and just did some UX exploration, setting up macros, modulating stuff, noodeling automation, messing with the piano roll simply for the sake of it, then I think it helped me learn without pressure to create. Why not? Jazz musicians would sometimes sit with their horn and just do finger work without blowing a single note.

That's not well said at all.

My pet hate, is software without proper documentation and tutorials. Why? Because it wastes my precious time.

I wasted an hour last night getting something to work, and couldn't because one option wasn't selected. An option I didn't know about, and no end of jazz horn-blowing would have led me to discover it. It wasn't in the tutorial, so until someone on here pointed it out I had no idea it even existed. I lost an hour just doing that one thing, and it made me cranky. Music software shouldn't make you cranky, it should make you smile - otherwise it's not doing it's job properly.

Hooray for people who have hours to spend learning a new app via a process of trial and error - fantastic, I wish I had time like that to waste. I don't. I need step by step guides so I can learn where everything is and then get on with the process of making music. I didn't spend twenty quid just to fuck about getting cross.

I feel you. Modstep frustrated me initially. But this was not wasted time for me. The lessons I took from that I have applied to other midi/software problems. Maybe you're further along that I am in midi production and have less patience for muddling through, but I seriously doubt you're busier than I am. Also — what are you talking about with the lack of tutorials!? There are TONS of tutorials out there. (Certainly compared with Modstep.) Also, there is a Beatmaker 3 manual of 100+ pages.

There are tons of unofficial tutorial videos (well, about 50) by tons of different people, mostly going over exactly the same thing. Believe me I searched through most of them today. The best I found was Doug’s getting started guide.

Can you point me to a tutorial, or guide that would have shown me the option I didn’t know about last night? Feel free to paste a link if you have one.

Yes there are a handful of ‘getting started’ type tutorials in the app itself, but it covers stuff already in videos, and huge chunks of stuff is missing.

@wim said:

@MonzoPro said:
Hooray for people who have hours to spend learning a new app via a process of trial and error - fantastic, I wish I had time like that to waste. I don't. I need step by step guides so I can learn where everything is and then get on with the process of making music. I didn't spend twenty quid just to fuck about getting cross.

However, you do have plenty of time to spend complaining about it here.

Sorry, just a jest. Please don't mind me. I can't help myself.

Look. I’m not having a go at you, or anyone else on the forum, so there’s no need to ‘jest’ about how I should spend my time. I’m pointing out there’s a gap in the knowledgebase for this app, and better guides would help a lot of people have a better experience with it.

As it turns out the time I spent on here ‘complaining’, helped me to solve the problem.

aaronpc

Where's the Audio Dabbler when you need him?

wim

@MonzoPro said:
Look. I’m not having a go at you, or anyone else on the forum, so there’s no need to ‘jest’ about how I should spend my time.

No need ... but it sure is fun.

Sorry. I know totally trollish. That's the last jab, I promise. Let me buy you a pint OK?

FWIW I agree. The approach they took with the "manual" and "tutorial" sections is really poorly thought out. A straightforward a-z manual is sorely needed. Those guys are surely so embedded with the thinking of the engineering and design of this thing that they've been mind-melded with for years that I'm sure its difficult to understand where we mere mortals are coming from. Also, though every complaint is valid, there's the sad fact that documentation don't write itself. It takes major time to write documentation. First they were getting screamed at for taking so long to release the software, then they were drowning in bugs from releasing it too soon. They're still getting hammered for needed bug fixes, feature requests, and the long awaited iPhone version.

That's not how I would do things, but I got no skin in this game. This is their livelihood. I can understand, if not agree with, their priorities. I have the luxury of enjoying decrypting crap like this almost as much as making music and of not taking any of this shit seriously. I'm kinda sensing that you don't feel the same way. I will be good now.

AudioGus

@wim said:

@MonzoPro said:
Look. I’m not having a go at you, or anyone else on the forum, so there’s no need to ‘jest’ about how I should spend my time.

No need ... but it sure is fun.

Sorry. I know totally trollish. That's the last jab, I promise. Let me buy you a pint OK?

FWIW I agree. The approach they took with the "manual" and "tutorial" sections is really poorly thought out. A straightforward a-z manual is sorely needed. Those guys are surely so embedded with the thinking of the engineering and design of this thing that they've been mind-melded with for years that I'm sure its difficult to understand where we mere mortals are coming from. Also, though every complaint is valid, there's the sad fact that documentation don't write itself. It takes major time to write documentation. First they were getting screamed at for taking so long to release the software, then they were drowning in bugs from releasing it too soon. They're still getting hammered for needed bug fixes, feature requests, and the long awaited iPhone version.

That's not how I would do things, but I got no skin in this game. This is their livelihood. I can understand, if not agree with, their priorities. I have the luxury of enjoying decrypting crap like this almost as much as making music and of not taking any of this shit seriously. I'm kinda sensing that you don't feel the same way. I will be good now.

I'm so in love with this thing I fantasize about being the third dev and even give feedback on the manual. Freakin nerd.

[Deleted User]

@wim said:

@MonzoPro said:
Look. I’m not having a go at you, or anyone else on the forum, so there’s no need to ‘jest’ about how I should spend my time.

No need ... but it sure is fun.

Sorry. I know totally trollish. That's the last jab, I promise. Let me buy you a pint OK?

FWIW I agree. The approach they took with the "manual" and "tutorial" sections is really poorly thought out. A straightforward a-z manual is sorely needed. Those guys are surely so embedded with the thinking of the engineering and design of this thing that they've been mind-melded with for years that I'm sure its difficult to understand where we mere mortals are coming from. Also, though every complaint is valid, there's the sad fact that documentation don't write itself. It takes major time to write documentation. First they were getting screamed at for taking so long to release the software, then they were drowning in bugs from releasing it too soon. They're still getting hammered for needed bug fixes, feature requests, and the long awaited iPhone version.

That's not how I would do things, but I got no skin in this game. This is their livelihood. I can understand, if not agree with, their priorities. I have the luxury of enjoying decrypting crap like this almost as much as making music and of not taking any of this shit seriously. I'm kinda sensing that you don't feel the same way. I will be good now.

For me a decent manual is part of the finished product, particularly if the workflow and UI are unique or complex - and both of those descriptions apply here.

But there you go, I guess I’ll just have to plough through it and ask questions on here when I get stuck.

I’ll have a packet of crisps as well if you’re in the chair....

charalew

@d4d0ug said:
@brambos any chance of some new 'templates'? for note mapping to 0,1,2,3 etc ? either that or a text box pop up to enter the notes manually (rather than lonnnng push on the arrow). Cheers.

Not sure whether this means the same thing as I've asked for or not, but I would love to see the option to change the layout of the MIDI notes in the pad (when using it in keyboard mode). At the moment it's too non-standard to be usable. I'd love it if the devs would allow the vertical interval from one row to the next to be a perfect fourth like Gesohred, Grid Instrument, Rolie Noise and the Linnstrument (it's the de facto standard for gridbased keyboard layouts).

I've bought the app but can't see myself using it until/unless the devs implement this.

[Deleted User]

Can somebody explain me how to set up beatstep to control bm3 with newly introduced relative mode, please.

gonekrazy3000

@charalew said:

@d4d0ug said:
@brambos any chance of some new 'templates'? for note mapping to 0,1,2,3 etc ? either that or a text box pop up to enter the notes manually (rather than lonnnng push on the arrow). Cheers.

Not sure whether this means the same thing as I've asked for or not, but I would love to see the option to change the layout of the MIDI notes in the pad (when using it in keyboard mode). At the moment it's too non-standard to be usable. I'd love it if the devs would allow the vertical interval from one row to the next to be a perfect fourth like Gesohred, Grid Instrument, Rolie Noise and the Linnstrument (it's the de facto standard for gridbased keyboard layouts).

I've bought the app but can't see myself using it until/unless the devs implement this.

I agree with this. I wish it used the push layout.