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Old 12-19-2009, 04:09 AM   #1
EvilDragon
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Default Add support for MFX to Reaper!

So I can use EastWest WordBuilder in REAPER without using lame virtual MIDI cables. There are other MFX plugins that are excellent and could be very useful!

Thank you very much

Vote: http://forum.cockos.com/project.php?issueid=411
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Old 12-19-2009, 07:13 AM   #2
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Yes! Exactly the same for me! Please please and please!
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Old 12-19-2009, 07:54 AM   #3
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And since dub3000 posted this:

Quote:
Originally Posted by dub3000
they're similar to directx, apparently:

What are DXi and MFX?

DXi is a DirectShow-based software synthesizer plug-in architecture, which combines audio DSP with MIDI event handling. MIDI effects (MFX) is a COM-based plug-in architecture designed for real-time processing of MIDI events in applications like SONAR. MFX was used to help extend DirectShow into what became the DXi architecture. The download below includes a standalone MFX wizard to facilitate the development of MIDI-only plug-ins. Click here to learn more about MFX.

http://www.cakewalk.com/devxchange/dxi/default.asp
MFX should be most definitely included!
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Old 12-19-2009, 08:57 AM   #4
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Default Transfer from IID#411

Quote:
Originally Posted by musicbynumbers
Me too, just wordbuilder!
Quote:
Originally Posted by dub3000
they're similar to directx, apparently:

What are DXi and MFX?

DXi is a DirectShow-based software synthesizer plug-in architecture, which combines audio DSP with MIDI event handling. MIDI effects (MFX) is a COM-based plug-in architecture designed for real-time processing of MIDI events in applications like SONAR. MFX was used to help extend DirectShow into what became the DXi architecture. The download below includes a standalone MFX wizard to facilitate the development of MIDI-only plug-ins. Click here to learn more about MFX.

http://www.cakewalk.com/devxchange/dxi/default.asp
Quote:
Originally Posted by EvilDragon
Does this mean that MFX is not locked only to Sonar?
12345
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Old 12-22-2009, 08:48 AM   #5
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Any comments on this by anyone? Devs?
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Old 12-22-2009, 10:44 AM   #6
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Bump

Or any converters that actually work?

I so badly want to get choirs but since they don't seem to care about a vst sneaky adaptation version I'll just have to hope that our uber devs will save the day once again!
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Old 12-22-2009, 11:36 AM   #7
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mfxshell (part of the dxshell package) works a treat in reaper x64 - I specifically use it with WordBuilder.

http://xlutop.com/buzz/zip/dxshell_v1.0.2b.zip
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Old 12-22-2009, 11:52 AM   #8
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Holy shit!

This should get integrated with Reaper!

Thanks Rob, you rock!
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Old 12-22-2009, 12:16 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by EvilDragon View Post
Holy shit!

This should get integrated with Reaper!

Thanks Rob, you rock!
Nah, I classical!!! :-)
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Old 12-22-2009, 06:53 PM   #10
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OK, I tried mfxshell.dll in Reaper, I don't get any interface... Just this:



How do I use this? :/
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Old 12-22-2009, 07:06 PM   #11
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Remembering that I use Reaper x64, I installed WordBuilder and dropped mfxshell.dll into the install folder (the one containing WordBuilder.exe and WordBuilderMFX.dll). Then I added that directory as a VST path in Reaper options and rescanned. It appears as a VSTi.
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Old 12-23-2009, 12:23 AM   #12
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I get "the following effect couldn't be loaded" message Are those shells 64-bit perhaps?


See, this is why I say this should be integrated natively in Reaper... no hassle! :/

Last edited by EvilDragon; 12-23-2009 at 12:37 AM.
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Old 12-23-2009, 12:38 AM   #13
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I agree it'd be great if Reaper could host MFX directly. Hmm I'm not sure why it works for me and not for you. I'm sure it's using the built in bridge - I could never get it working with JBridge.

For what it's worth - I have version 1.16 of WordBuilder.
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Old 12-23-2009, 12:44 AM   #14
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Yeah, 1.1.6 here as well.

I tried all Run As options, no go

Could you perhaps try running it in 32-bit Reaper build? I'm really stumped...



EDIT: amazingly, MFXshell works in FL9. When I open it, a popup shows with a list of installed MFX plugins, and they all load! It actually works amazingly well with no hiccups there!

I hate FL

Last edited by EvilDragon; 12-23-2009 at 01:02 AM.
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Old 12-23-2009, 01:08 AM   #15
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Will do, if you don't mind waiting half a day or so (it's 1 AM here).
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Old 12-23-2009, 01:19 AM   #16
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No biggie, I'm going to my gf's, I'll be out for a day

It works a treat in FL. But I almost uninstalled FL 2 days ago. I dunno why I didn't :P I'm not using it anymore anyways.

So... anxiously awaiting any new insight! (Devs could join in this topic as well!)
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Old 12-23-2009, 03:03 PM   #17
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Well, I just tried using Reaper 3.16 x86 (32 bit) and it works just fine.

Here's a shot of the wordbuilder install directory.



and 32 bit reaper prefs (same as x64 prefs)



and, finally, what it looks like when loaded.



[Edit - proving I know nothing about HTML]
Attached Images
File Type: png ReaperPrefs.png (34.6 KB, 3107 views)
File Type: png WB.png (53.4 KB, 3145 views)
File Type: png WordBuilder.png (52.8 KB, 3170 views)

Last edited by rob.manderson; 12-23-2009 at 03:11 PM.
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Old 12-23-2009, 03:09 PM   #18
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Just use [ ] braces instead of < > spikey ones Also no need for src. Just:

[IMG]direct link to image[/IMG]

I'll try copying your settings and inform you then, thanks
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Old 12-23-2009, 03:11 PM   #19
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Got it!
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Old 12-23-2009, 03:20 PM   #20
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I reinstalled WB. Put mfxshell.dll in WB directory. Added WB dir to VST paths. Refreshed cache. Pressed F5 on Add FX screen. Selected WordBuilderMFX. This is all I get:



EDIT: doesn't matter if I set it as VST or VSTi.
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Old 12-23-2009, 03:44 PM   #21
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Wow, glad you have it working rob as "proof of concept"

If evildragon gets it working then i'm all up for going and buying it! Keeping my eyes on this thread and.. Good luck!
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Old 12-23-2009, 03:46 PM   #22
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Also what operating system you both on? Could that be the factor?

I'm on windows 7 64bit here.
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Old 12-23-2009, 03:51 PM   #23
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I'm on Win7 64 bit.

I wonder if it's possible EvilDragon doesn't have the mfc71.dll, mfc71u.dll and msvcr71.dll files in the folder that Reaper scans? That might explain why it can't load the effect.
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Old 12-23-2009, 03:57 PM   #24
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XP SP2 here. Wordbuilder directory has all those files. If it didn't have, it would already throw me an error.

Beyond sad

I copied Wordbuilder in ALL KINDS OF PLACES. It just doesn't effin' work. 'Scuse my language.


BTW; do I load mfxshell, or just WB dll, into Reaper? Once again - it WORKS in FL via mfxshell! Proof:




I am getting completely desperate


Also, Rob, can you post a pic of your Add FX screen, and what exactly are you loading, please?

And please try to load a test project which fails here (attached: Attachment 6796).

New info - my friend who has XP SP3 and R3.15 has this WORKING! I'm very, very pissed right now. I don't wanna update to SP3 (I'd rather go directly to W7, but to reinstall 150 GB of VSTs and samples...)

Last edited by EvilDragon; 10-14-2017 at 04:07 PM.
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Old 12-23-2009, 07:16 PM   #25
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Interesting. I loaded your test project and sure enough, I get the same result as you. So I added an instance to the same chain from my configuration which does load. It looks as though you're loading the WordBuilderVST.dll file, which is a VST-MA file, not a standard VST file. I attach the modified version of your test project file so you can see the difference.

And here's the screen shot of the FX browser (this is from 32 bit - almost all my stuff is 64 bit which is why some entries are empty).

Attached Images
File Type: png wbfxchain.png (15.3 KB, 2997 views)
Attached Files
File Type: rpp WordBuilder FAIL.RPP (3.6 KB, 413 views)
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Old 12-23-2009, 08:11 PM   #26
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Hm, I opened the modified project, and it works, although it floats the window (bridged mode, which I don't use since I'm still on 32-bit OS).

No matter if I load WordBuilderMFX.dll or WordBuilderVST.dll, I get the same screen The one that I loaded in the supplied project was MFX (I'm not crazy that much to load VST version when I want mfxshell to work...)

Could you post a non-bridged project with WB loaded (so the interface is not floating)... then I could save that as track template which would work...

I'm really stumped as to why it doesn't work as it's supposed to, to me! Works on 2 other PCs, and in FL as well!

Last edited by EvilDragon; 12-23-2009 at 08:18 PM.
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Old 12-24-2009, 04:44 AM   #27
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New info - when I try to load WordBuilderMFX into Reaper for the first time after reboot, it says that mfc71.dll is missing or can't be found!

But I HAVE mfxshell.dll in the SAME folder as other WordBuilder stuff, just like you do!!
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Old 01-03-2010, 02:54 PM   #28
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Quick question: I have this working too!! I can't believe it. I can load the Symphonic Choirs AND WordBuilder...but. I haven't really got it running though. How do you load it in Reaper? Do you load it in the same track as Symphonic Choirs as a plug in? Or...do you load it in a separate track and use a MIDI send to that track from the Choirs track?

Thanks for the help on this. Amazing to see it actually load...after what? 6 months of waiting???!!!!
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Old 01-04-2010, 01:21 AM   #29
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Load Wordbuilder on the same track as S/Choirs.

Wordbuilder comes first in the chain so that midi is routed from Wordbuilder to Choirs.
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Old 01-04-2010, 11:22 AM   #30
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Thanks PJS!! I will give that a try. I was just amazed to see it pop up as a VSTi in the first place. I'm not to sharp with MIDI patching. So... I guess MIDI Channel 1 (my keyboard) into Wordbuilder, then what? Channel 2 out of Wordbuilder into Symphony Choirs? Then set the Channel to record the output of the Play engine? Which is selectable on the Play interface? I would appreciate very much if you could share you patch info with me. Thanks!
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Old 01-05-2010, 02:22 AM   #31
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Not complicated. Just keep everything on the track on the same midi channel and you should be good to go. So if your keyboard controller transmits midi channel 1 make sure the track receives midi channel 1 - likewise Wordbuilder and Choirs.

Keep in mind that Choirs will not respond unless you've got words or phrases loaded in Wordbuilder.

Good luck.
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Old 01-05-2010, 01:27 PM   #32
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Default Stupid me....

Well, I'm really upset. I've gone and screwed things up and now I cannot get the WordBuilder to load inside the FX chain in Reaper-x64 like I could yesterday. I'm really pissed at myself now. I KNOW this will work as it DID work yesterday. The only thing I was doing wrong yesterday was that I was loading WordBuilder on one track and Play on another track and trying to get them to work together by creating sends from the WordBuilder track to the Play track. Inside the FX window of the WordBuilder Play instance I could see the MIDI IN/OUT's flashing showing WorldBuilder was working, AND triggering, but I was hearing TWO samples being played at the same time. One sample was the WordBuilder choir words that were actually the words that I typed into WordBuilder, and the other voice playing was the Symphony Choir without WordBuilder FX. Darn... AND, all I did to yesterday to get this to work was to drop mfxshell.dll in the folder where the WorldBuilder_x64.exe file was located and I was able to launch WordBuilder right inside one of Reapers tracks in the FX chain. I did not know, nor did I try to Launch WordBuilder in the same track that the Play engine was on.

So, stupid me... I got the brilliant idea I would clean up my VSTi / VST dll files and folders because they are spread all over the place---and now I've lost it. No matter WHERE I put the mfxshell.dll and the WordBuilder VST/VSTi/MFX dll's nothing works. I have moved as best as I can remember EVERYTHING back the way it was, rescanned the VST folders in Reaper and I've spent hours on this. WAY late last night, and so far most of today. It's driving me nuts because somewhere, somehow, there IS a combination that works on this machine and stupid me has screwed it up. Any ideas????? Anyone???
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Old 01-05-2010, 02:43 PM   #33
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Damn... seems like you're in the same position as me

So please Cockos, could you make MFX support native?
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Old 01-05-2010, 03:14 PM   #34
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Well, the really strange thing is that I had it loaded and working. The ONLY thing wrong was my MIDI routing. I was getting the WordBuilder Choir at the same time I was getting the regular Play Choir. I had them loaded into two separate Reaper tracks. Now, no matter what I do (I just finished repairing WordBuilder from the DVD) I cannot repeat my setup from yesterday---talk about being pissed. Now...I'm sitting here with LoopBee or whatever it's called trying to get the internal virtual MIDI cables to work. So far I just don't grasp that concept. Have you had any luck with virtual MIDI cables like Loopbee or MidiYoke? Thanks for even noticing this. Seems like there are "few" of us in this mess.
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Old 01-05-2010, 04:28 PM   #35
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I used Maple Virtual MIDI cable with success. It's not hard. But it's much more complicated than...








...yeah, you guessed it.














HAVING MFX SUPPORT NATIVELY IN REAPER!
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Old 01-05-2010, 05:10 PM   #36
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I've heard Maple virtual mide cables works, but I'm running Reaper in 64 bit so I can access my 8 gigs of RAM with the EWQLSO orchestra libraries. So I'm stuck with figuring out LoopBe30. What a pain. Could I impose on you for a routing example? I'm going to try to figure this out tonight. I'm guessing that I should run Wordbuilder 64 and the Symphonic Choirs both in stand alone and then take the output of SC into Reaper with as many tracks as I get coming out of SC. Or, I could load instances of Play 64 in each track which makes more sense memory and resource wise. I'm just not too sure of all this. I'm certainly open for suggestions about where to start. Thanks for any help...
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Old 01-05-2010, 06:09 PM   #37
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Basically, MIDI routing should be easy:

1. in Wordbuilder, for MIDI In port you choose your keyboard
2. for MIDI Out port you choose first available virtual MIDI out.
3. in Reaper, you choose the same port but MIDI Input, on the track with your PLAY instance.

This should definitely work, as it works here with Maple.
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Old 01-05-2010, 06:17 PM   #38
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Thanks for making it sound simple. I think as I learn this I'll just work on one single instance rather than all the complete choir examples/voices I've seen posted. I'll give it a try later tonight. Fingers crossed!
Cheers!
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Old 01-06-2010, 01:28 AM   #39
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Well that's weird. I've got it working via mfxshell in Reaper without virtual midi cables or complicated midi routing.

In fact I was impressed that it's so easy to use in Reaper:



1 Drop W/builder followed by Choirs on the same track.

2 Set track input to midi channel 1.

3 Check that W/Builder receives channel 1.

4 Check that Choir receives the same channel as W/Builder's out channel.

5 Load a phrase, play some keys and Choir should respond accordingly.



I'm at work at the moment so the above steps are off the top of my head but I'll double check the steps this evening.

Sorry I can't be of more help - I'm probably just adding to your frustration!

Btw I agree that it would be great to have native MFX support in Reaper.
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Old 01-06-2010, 01:18 PM   #40
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Well that is truly awesome you've got it working inside Reaper. I did too, except I had WordBuilder on one Reaper track and Symphony Choirs on another track, so my MIDI was messed up and I got two choirs at the same time. Could you do me a HUGE favor and let me know where you store your VST's and the directory structure that is working, i.e., where you have the mxfshell.dll and all those files. Like I said, I had the PLAY version of WB and the PLAY version of SC loaded, but now I have screwed something up and can't load the PLAY version of WordBuilder at all, no matter where I put the MFX dll OR where I put the WB PLAY VST's (MXF,or VST).

This also may have to do with what software versions we are running. (I forgot to ask if you are running 32 or 64 bit...)

Here's my setup:
Reaper 64 bit, EWQLSO Gold Complete 64 bit Play, and Symphony Choirs/WordBuilder Play 64 bit, and my OS is Windows Vista 64 with SP1.
My card (M-Audio Delta 1010LT PCI slot) is set to 48KHz 24 bit.

I also have the same setup all 32 bit but I've been trying to get away from that so I can use all my 8 Gigs of RAM, and it really makes a difference.
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