SM instruments, Akai EWI and Mainstage

amufid

Hello!

Can I run SM instruments through MainStage? And - is there a MainStage template for the Akai EWI 5000(or 4000)?

Kobir

Yes. Many wind controller musicians use mainstage with EWI and SM instruments. Check patchmanmusic forum for more details.

amufid

I will check the Patchmanmusic forum. i have not fond antydning abort SM Instrumenti there. May be it is bevares SM products Are a tæret to the Patchmanmusic Voicees? Is there a template close to an EWI to reklame the keyboard in Mainstage, or do I have to stick with the keyboard?

Kobir

I am not sure what template you are referring to since I don't use mainstage (I use Reaper). I know that it is a popular host for wind controller musicians and that it works well with both Kontakt and SWAM instruments with EWI.

Maddcow

I've been using MainStage with my EWI/WX5 (and acoustic saxes, vocals, other horns etc) for years since v1. As a platform, my opinion is that it's as close to perfect as you can get.....and I've tried a LOT of different hosts over the years. MainStage is ideal for using any softsynth with a wind controller, especially with the additional MIDI functionalities that were introduced in v3.



There's no need for an EWI template because MainStage is so easy to use, and you can do virtually anything you can think of.



I recommend starting with a standard keyboard template and substitute the softsynth in the first patch with your SM instrument (or any other softsynth you wish to use with your EWI). Once you're happy with that patch, move on to the next patch and so on. If you want to use multiple instruments from a single SM product (i.e. multiple with SWAM saxes, clarinets, flutes etc), you are generally best to use a separate instance of that SM product for EACH instrument/patch, rather than use a single SM product and manually load different instruments as you use them. I hope that makes sense.



I strongly recommend that you substitute resource-intensive FX plugins (e.g. Space Designer) for more efficient plugins unless you have a heavy-duty Mac.



Feel free to post back with any questions. There can be a fairly steep learning curve with MainStage if you're new to a product like this.



Because I use MainStage for live audio AND softsynths, I've created my own template using both mixer and synth elements. My wind controller patches are to the very left of the image below. I can select these via the EWI/WX5 itself, via the Mac keyboard or via my FCB1010 MIDI foot controller. I found it easiest to group the most commonly used patches in the top "Set" (using MainStage terminology) and the remainder by synth. I currently use SM, WIVI, Korg M1 LE, ES2 and a hardware Roland XV2020. However, I rarely use the XV2020 anymore....I keep it handy just in case I ever have a computer malfunction but that has never happened in the 6 years I've been using a software-based gig rig. I was always a PC-guy until I decided to go for a software-based rig and it's true what they way: once you've tried a Mac, you never go back. My rig is rock-solid and it has performed flawlessly for many hundreds of gigs and rehearsals.