[SparkLE] Imported samples don't sound as original wav file (RESOLVED)

[Seiishu]

Hi,

I've asked this same question in another thread started by someone else, but since it's buried deep into oblivion, I've decided to start another thread about it.

I just downloaded D.I.Y Sample Templates Vol.1 and tried starting from scratch. Everything works nice, no problems at all. The only problem I am getting is, I am trying to load my own sample into one of the pads where another sample is sitting currently. I don't need that sample and I simply wanted to overwrite it with my synthesizer pad instrument, long around 3-4 seconds. When I load it and press pad to hear my sound, sound starts playing and after one second simply fades away. It also does not sound anything like original wav file I loaded. It has bunch of filters applied and I've tried resetting them manually, but never managed to get it sound as the original wav file.

Is there any way to start clean with all effects/filters/settings reset to factory default, whenever I load my instrument to sound exactly as original wav file sounds? That's what I want, and then later if I want to apply some filter to any of those instruments, I'd add that later in post-production.

Truly hope someone from Arturia can shed some light on this and help me with this problem.
Thanks in advance!

[Kosmology]

The Drum Template Presets are not straight WAV players, to do that you need to go to the 'LOAD' Button at the top in standalone mode and choose new project. Offhand I'm not sure where it is in the plugin, but it's most likely on the library tab. This will give you a clean slate with 16 WAV slots with no WAVs loaded and all set to play whole sample (Full Decay).

[Seiishu]

Thank you so much, your respond is greatly appreciated. I actually didn't start with D.I.Y. Drum Template, I used D.I.Y. FX Template. I thought those are closer to what I needed.

Anyway, I just tried your suggestion and it's exactly what I wanted. Clean start from scratch. Of course it was in front of my nose, but it's always easier when someone else finds it for you 

Thank you so much for your time and effort, you definitely solved my problem.

[CC4]

Yeah;  As far as I know the templates don't start completely clean.  One of the first presets I often make with a new synth product is to make a completely centered, zeroed, empty, clean, blandish preset for reasons just like this....

[Kosmology]

Glad to help I think the templates just offer a few new models with different FX designed for samples as opposed to the standard Freq Shift/Range. Not entirely sure though..

anyhow glad you are up and running with it.

[Seiishu]

Good to know, super useful information from both of you. Thumbs up!

It looks like we're keeping these forums look active

[Seiishu]

Just one more thing... I know SparkLE is primarily live-act controller for performing live. I am more of a home-producer, I like to sit in my room and spend some time polishing my little audio creations. I understood there is no way of exporting your whole song as wav/aiff audio file, only patterns and banks. Is there any specific reason why Arturia developers team would think full song export isn't a good idea?

I'd rather be able to do that, than going to have to connect my audio out from PC/Mac to some external recorder. Of course that's a wonderful way, there is plenty of room to "color" your creation with some external effect processor or something along those lines... but in the same time it would be great to have "export whole song to wav" as an option.

[Kosmology]

I don't use song mode but in a host have you tried just mixing the track down to audio whilst Song Mode is active? Seems like it should work.

[Seiishu]

Sorry... Not quite sure I understood you properly, but there is no way of exporting whole song to audio file on your HD at the moment. You can only export separate patterns and banks, and then you can load those wav chunks into some external DAW or something and mix them in there. Since SparkLE has dedicated song mode already, I can arrange all my patterns into one compact unit at the end, into final song. I can even play it, and it plays perfectly, exactly as I arranged all those patterns. But unfortunately, there is no way to export that song to your HD as WAV file. For example, I want to put my little compilation together, say 5-10 tunes, and burn them to CD or something. I'd like to be able to load those 5-10 tunes into Spark program (as we already can), and then export each one of them as separate WAV song, making it ready for burning to CD.

[Kosmology]

Yes, what I mean is insert the VST Version of Spark into any DAW, select the length of your song in the DAW and then mixdown the song with the DAW audio export/mixdown, it should achieve exactly the same thing. As far as I understand, the song mode is hard synced to the DAW clock so you just need to select enough bars for the mixdown in the DAW that you have used in Spark. It's just a VST Instrument so it is just like mixing down any DAW Project using VST Instruments as far as I'm aware, I haven't tried it myself but I would imagine it would work fine.

What DAW do you use when not using Spark in standalone?

[Seiishu]

Oh, even though I've never tried it, that should work. It's just that I'm trying to have everything inside Spark UI, at least that's what I'd prefer to do. As far as DAWs go, I'm quite familiar with Propellerheads Reason and little bit with Ableton. I actually never played a lot with VSTs except when I needed something for vocoder effects (Orange Vocoder). I'm 1970s generation, and in my time the only option was Cubase which was incredibly expensive in my old country... Most of us used instruments that could run as standalone machines... Heck, I even remember having some old Kawai Q-80 sequencer to push and sync my old Korg X3, Roland XP10 and some old Akai rhythm machine.

I'd say, even though I understand concept of DAWs, I'm still DAW Dummy

All that being said, my own logic tells me your idea should definitelly work. I am just interested to find out if there are any plans and possibility to integrate "export song as wav" option into Spark software. Maybe someone from Arturia software team could comment on this too? How do we draw their attention to this question?

Thanks again, you've been so polite and helpful. Greatly appreciated.

[Kosmology]

You are welcome. I think you will have to wait to see what v2 brings, the song mode looks much better and useful (at least for my needs).

BTW, you could get hold of Audacity or similar and see if you can record your soundcard output, it all depends on your soundcard really. I have an M-Audio and I can record my ASIO output directly into sound forge. If that doesn't work, yet another option in Windows is using cantabile Lite and putting a VST WAV recorder plugin immediately after it. I have a 32-bit one I built many years ago here, but there are quite a few around these days. That will record what you hear.

[Seiishu]

Wow, I completely forgot and didn't take it into account... I have SoundBlaster Z, I can chose "what-you-hear" as recording device. It will record anything that's also coming through audio out, plus if you connect mic, you can record that too on the top of everything. I have 64-bit system and OS, with plenty of RAM, so everything runs super smooth here. Besides, this card has optical out and in. Supports ASIO 2.0, super low latency, makin my SparkLE one very responsive controller. More about this card here: http://www.soundblaster.com/products/sound-blaster-z.aspx

Look under Technical specs section. I have never been so happy with one audio card like I am with this one, and my computer history started with my old ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64C, Amiga 500/1200, over PC386/486 all the way up to today's monsters... I literally tried everything