Jamstix for Mac?

Dewdman42 · Post by **Dewdman42** » Sun Dec 07, 2008 2:45 am

ok!!!! I got it working again. I'm still looking forward to the real mac version, but at least until then, I have it working...

[img:971181620a]http://public.dewdman42.fastmail.fm/Jamstix%2BDP.jpg[/img:971181620a]

That is Jamstix2 with Digital Performer and Superior2. What you can't hear is that I am actually hearing Jamstix sounds and Superior2 sounds at the same time, in sync, tight, sounds great.

Here is the setup:

- Install Codeweavers CrossoverGames v7.0.0

- Install wineasio

- Install EnergyXT2

- Install Jamstix2

- Update jamstix.ini file with BlockMouseMouse=1

- Add Jamstix arcana skin

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Notes about setup
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The most recent versions of CrossoverMac and CrossoverGames are having wierd problems. But this version of CrossoverGames seems to work. There is a version of CrossoverMac that will work too, but I didn't look for it. You are free to download all the old versions from their website, you should be able to find out. 7.0.0 is the newst version of CrossoverGames that will work with Jamstix.

I use EnergyXT2 for the vst host. It works great. You are free to try something else. Think light.

That BlockMouseMove entry in the ini file does not work with jamstix 2.0. You have to update a few versions before it will recognize it and fix the problem that occurs otherwise.

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Notes about running it
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Digital Performer has a way to create virtual midi ports. I created a virtual midi port in DP and then sent the midi output from EnergyXT to DP through that virtual midi port. The Superior2 drums are being hosted inside DP and they are sounding.

You have to make sure you start JackOSX before trying to launch EnergyXT and using wineasio with it.

I have found that the midi out from EnergyXT or crossover is a little weird, sometimes it won't be established unless I start it playing and then while its playing go into setup and select the virtual midi port..then it started working. It took a lot of fooling around to get there, but it finally did and the timing of the midi is tight in sync with the audio I hear coming out of Jamstix.

I'm not sure what else there is to say about it. Took a while to figure this out, but its working. That being said, having the real JamstixOSX will be a million times easier so I look forward to it, but at least I can use Jamstix with DP still.

ps - I also got OP-X and Cobalt working on CrossoverGames as well, the only other two irreplaceable windows-only VST's I have.

funktional · Post by **funktional** » Sun Dec 07, 2008 8:13 am

Hi
I used to run jamstix with vmvare fusion and the parallels before my wife has bought a pc notebook.IMHO the jamstix is one of the best software
I have encoutered so far.Just for jamstix I had bought the vmvare fusion and the parallels.İ like fusions performance better and I had decent results with jamstix.[url]http://rayzoon.com/v-web/bulletin/bb/viewtopic.php?t=2872[/url]
I am looking for the native mac version and I think is not that easy to translate everything to mac.But the day becomes available it will be a good day for a mac user like me.But I think if Ralph says is gonna be done that means is gonna be done beautifully
peace
burak

Dewdman42 · Post by **Dewdman42** » Sun Dec 07, 2008 4:57 pm

Well I still found one more glitch in the Jamstix on Mac scenario. The vst host I am trying to use, EnergyXT, does not support any kind of midi sync. So there is no way for me to have it controlled by Digital Performer or visa versa for syncing up jamstix with the host.

I can still use it to work out some beats and copy the midi files out over to my house, that is fine.

Anyone have any suggestions for other vst hosts that can receive midi clock messages and start/stop messages from an external midi device and can host jamstix as well?

Brian · Post by **Brian** » Sun Dec 07, 2008 6:38 pm

I'm pretty sure Reaper will sync to incoming MIDI clock and Song Position Pointer messages.

Brian

Dewdman42 wrote:Well I still found one more glitch in the Jamstix on Mac scenario. The vst host I am trying to use, EnergyXT, does not support any kind of midi sync. So there is no way for me to have it controlled by Digital Performer or visa versa for syncing up jamstix with the host.

I can still use it to work out some beats and copy the midi files out over to my house, that is fine.

Anyone have any suggestions for other vst hosts that can receive midi clock messages and start/stop messages from an external midi device and can host jamstix as well?

Dewdman42 · Post by **Dewdman42** » Sun Dec 07, 2008 6:42 pm

(sigh), I will try Reaper then. I was trying to avoid Reaper because its WAY overkill for this situation and I don't really want to have to learn it, just to host jamstix.

I have been messing around with VSTHost and Savihost for the past hour or two and they host Jamstix fine, but have little to no control over starting and stopping it, and I doubt can sync to an external sequencer either...

EnergyXT apparantly does not sync with external sequencers either.

Anyone know anything about PlogueBidule or any other [u:98424f901a]simple[/u:98424f901a] vst hosts that can handle Jamstix appropriately such that jamstix will sync with an external sequencer? I will try writing to the author of VSTHost to see if he will get more interested in adding support for this into VSTHost, but I will need to know more about how Jamstix syncs with a sequencer-as-host in order to be able to ask them for help.

Next stop, Reaper...

Dewdman42 · Post by **Dewdman42** » Sun Dec 07, 2008 6:46 pm

Oh by the way, I found out another new thing that just came out, someone may want to try it out.

Basically, these guys made a new hardware box for hosting VST's. They also came out with some free software that can audition your vst's on your computer before loading into the hardware, but the really cool thing is that they are making that audition software for PC, Mac and linux, which basically means you can host a windows vst dll on Mac and Linux without using Wine, their little host does all the wrapping for you and just hosts the underlying VST directly.

THey have released the windows version of this software already, and supposedly a beta version for the mac out in a couple weeks.

http://www.smproaudio.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=94

Dewdman42 · Post by **Dewdman42** » Sun Dec 07, 2008 9:34 pm

Tried Reaper. It doesn't work. I lost count how many times I froze the program and was unable to start it again without completely reinstalling my CrossoverMac bottle from scratch.

Seems like its having problems with virtual midi ports too. Very tempermental. Much too complicated. Not the right solution.

I'm pretty much ready to give up in syncing jamstix to a mac sequencer. Wasted way too much time on it. I hope ralph ports the plugin and then I can use it again that way. I still at least can work out some drum beats, I just can't easily do it sync'd up to other music...sadly. I suppose I can get an old PC somehow hooked up to run Jamstix inside Sonar or something and send the midi over the network to the other machine to jamstix and then midi back to my main host. More latency that way, but it might at least work, I will try later.

BoxOfSnoo · Post by **BoxOfSnoo** » Sun Dec 07, 2008 10:59 pm

Thanks for your efforts, Dewdman... it also helps to know what not to try.

I have run Reaper with Jamstix fairly well, but I have to be careful what audio device I use. If it crashes, next time you run it use the icon that says "Show audio configuration on startup". Even WaveOut seems to be OK.

I have not been able to send MIDI, over the IAC driver or ReaStream (the Reaper plugin in sender). I haven't sent audio either, except through a separate networked Windows machine. Even a VM can't seem to do this.

I think the key is to render in Reaper Windows (via whatever machine), then open the project in Reaper Mac - the Jamstix VST goes offline of course but the audio is still there. If you render keeping the MIDI in another track you can even go back and use JS in drum module mode to change the existing song.

Crossover is a bit frustrating, though pleasant when it does work.

Dewdman42 · Post by **Dewdman42** » Sun Dec 07, 2008 11:04 pm

well at that point, EnergyXT works much better. EnergyXT actually works very very well. the only downside is that it can not send or receive midi clock to sync up with another sequencer. Supposedly Reaper could do that, but if Reaper can't deal with the IAC midi buss or virtual midi ports in order to send that midi clock sync, then its all a moot point. At which point EnergyXT is much lighter weight, has not crashed on me even once and works totally great otherwise.

I am looking into one other possibility. Supposedly there may be some plugins that can run inside EnergyXT which can SEND MTC sync type data out over midi. If that's true I might be able to have Digital Performer be the slave and EnergyXT can be the master (while working with jamstix). Its worth a shot.

Thanks for the tip about the audio configuration on start, noted. I give up on Reaper though for this task.

Dewdman42 · Post by **Dewdman42** » Mon Dec 08, 2008 12:43 am

Tried a few different very old vst's I could find that are designed to do nothing else but send midi clock and sync info over midi, derived from whatever the VST plugin can get from the host to determine tempo and location, etc. None of them worked. Seemed like a good idea.

Dunno, I'm out of ideas.