Kontakt Rendering MIDI Stems Issue...

[Stephen Butler]

Hello:

I have a number of issues. First, I live in the UK, and the weather is crap.

Second, I've been using Reaper full-time for about three months, and it seems that every time I solve one problem after several days of trying, another one pops up to waste my time even further. I have now been staring at the computer screen like a zombie for two days.

Third, and the specific issue here is that I cannot for the life of me figure out why, when I am attempting to create audio stems from MIDI out of Kontakt, all I get is silence. In fact, Reaper doesn't even bother to create an audio file on the track itself. The MIDI track just disappears.

Now, it worked fine when I froze the track from Addictive Drums. Now, I have checked and triple-checked the settings for both VSTs, and they are IDENTICAL (apart from the track numbers, of course).

Finally, all of this makes me firmly believe that there is no God, and he hates me. It's all conspiring to turn my life's joy, making music, into a meaningless, unutterably dull experience of drudgery, to the point where I actually am losing confidence in Reaper as a realistic alternative to Cubase, into whose arms I may well return if issues like this keep cropping up.

Sorry to be so negative, but I am fed up.

Cheers,
Stephen

[Stephen Butler]

A bit of an update:

After further struggling, I made sure I highlighted the tracks I wanted, and making sure that the paths were correct, I made another attempt to freeze the four drum tracks I made in Addictive Drums (bass drum, snare, toms and cymbals). Previously, on another setting in AD, a different kit basically, it had worked. But now...nothing from this VST either (the original problem was in Kontakt - or from it, at least. I begin the exporting process, no movement in the four VU meters as it exports, and then Reaper simply deletes the four MIDI tracks from the screen without replacing them with anything. I looked at the two AD kits I was using for any differences in the routing, and I could find none. I looked at Kontakt to check that the MIDI channels on which it was exporting matched those in Reaper's send/receive boxes. They matched exactly. I tried exporting one further time from both AD and Kontakt.

Nothing. Silence. Heartbreaking, despairing, miserable silence.

As I said in my original post, there is either a malevolent, pernicious God which is out to get me, or I am missing something obvious. Any clues? Anyone?

Cheers,
Stephen

[DarkStar]

Yep, it's the latter.

If I understand correctly, for either plug-in you have several audio outputs routed to separate "audio" tracks. If so then set those tracks to RecArm and select one of the "Record Output" choices (right-click the RecArm button for the menu. Click Record and off you go.

If that does not do it, then please compress a simple problem project file (no audio samples needed) into a ZIP file and post it here as an attachment so that we can have a look at it and see what's (not) happening?

How to post attachments (in Post #1)

[Stephen Butler]

OK thank you so much DarkStar, I will look into it.

Cheers,
Stephen

[Stephen Butler]

Oh, one thing I forgot to mention just now was that each plugin had an additional 8 tracks (one for each pair of MIDI channels). These were set up automatically by Reaper because I selected the option to add a MIDI track with a new VST instrument.

A further update:

Somehow, I managed to export the drum tracks by selecting not only the tracks with the MIDI files on, but also all of the additional routing tracks. What Reaper did next will live long in my memory; it duplicated those MIDI tracks on to the routing tracks, which meant I was forced to delete one copy of each track. I think this is KIND OF what you asked me to do in your post, DarkStar. This 'method' worked, but it's not how I've exported tracks before in earlier songs. Then I was able to select the tracks I wanted, export them and get the stems back. There was no problem - even with the VSTs I am currently stuck with on this song. This is why I am both surprised and mystified that it is happening now.

I don't know if this is the most idiotic MIDI question you've ever dealt with, but it certainly must be up there. Among my social circle I like to brag about how good my stuff is; I think whatever being controls the Universe, call it God if you want, is most definitely forcing me into humiliation and bringing me down to Earth with the solid realisation that I am not the musical genius I thought I was.

Cheers,
Stephen

[DarkStar]

I'm a bit confused.

Can you post a small project and talk us through each step you take to export the stems? We might be able to suggest a better way.

[Stephen Butler]

Yes, I can do that, but it will not be until later now or possibly tomorrow.

I hope that's OK.

I feared you would be struck by confusion; my powers of explanation are somewhat limited, sadly. Usually, this stems (ho, ho, ho...zzzz) from an uncontrollable addiction to using 250 words where perhaps two will do. I can only apologise.

I'll be in touch soon.

Cheers,
Stephen

[Herr Nox]

You've probably watched how to route Kontakt on Youtube (so did I).

The way Kontakt works is you create MIDI channels and route them to Stereo channels. What you're trying to render are proabably the MIDI tracks, which are only "triggers" for your Kontakt instruments. What you want to render are the Stereo tracks to where the sound is sent to.

If you did your routing like the Youtube tutorial suggested, you probably hid the Stereo tracks from the TCP, so you only have your MIDI tracks showing. Just press ctrl-shift-m and make those Stereo tracks visible in your TCP. Those are the tracks you want to render.

Hope that helps!