Invalid file location

[Jeremy1959]

Hi there buddies,

Trying to edit in BBmanager without pedal attached (this used to work fine).
It won’t load my songs which should be stored on the computer.
Get message “Invalid file location…Project SMcardonBB.bbp is not in a valid location”.
Any ideas?

[persist]

• You should have a bbworkspace folder located in your computer user/documents folder and if you can’t find it, search your computer for it and then move it to your Documents folder.
• Insert your SD card in your computer SD slot reader and use the BBM File - Open Project and navigate to your SD card and select Open
• The BBM should open the project from your SD card and then prompt you to save it to your computer; use the BBM screens to navigate to your bbworkspace folder/user_lib/projects and select Save

If you cannot find your bbworkspace folder, download this one, unzip and save to your user/documents folder: Download default BBWorkspace 2.1 backup folder

[Jeremy1959]

Thanks so much for the quick reply. I already had a bbworkspace folder in user/documents (I don’t know why it couldn’t read it)… I then connected the pedal to my computer and this allowed the computer to open the file. I edited songs and clicked save project, but I don’t know where it saved it to. I then tried to synchronize project but it was greyed out so I tried the trick of exporting the project to the SD card. However, whereas that worked last time, this time it wanted me to choose whether to skip each file on the project, including all the drumbeats and effects, which I of course had not touched. This is an enormous number of files to triage so I am again stuck.

[persist]

I suggest that you use your computer’s internal SD slot reader instead of connecting your pedal and SD card via the USB cable method. Why? Because some users report that the USB connection method transfer data erratically. If your computer does not have an internal slot reader, it might be money well spent to buy an external USB SD slot reader and use that instead of connecting your pedal to export or sync the data.

Now, on to your situation. I’m guessing that the BeatBuddy Manager (BBM) is opening the project on your SD card and not in your bbworkspace folder. This is probably why the Synchronize Project to SD card on the BBM - File menu is grayed out. I’m not quite sure what’s going on that you can’t successfully use the BBM export function. Try these steps:

• Quit the BBM and then relaunch it;
• To find out where your project is being saved, hover your cursor over the Project Explorer bar that’s directly underneath the Virtual Machine and the tool tip will display where your project is saved:
  
  
• If it’s not located within your bbworkspace folder, you can use the BBM File - Save Project As and navigate to where your project belongs in the bbworkspace folder and save it there; once you do so, use the hover/tool tip to confirm that you have saved your project to the correct location;
• Once you’ve confirmed that the project is saved to your bbworkspace, you should use your computer OS to disconnect the pedal by ejecting the SD card.
• Make all edits to your project using the project saved in the bbworkspace. To avoid confusion in the future, consider leaving your pedal disconnected until you are ready to export or sync your data. If this isn’t a a part of your workflow, consider making it so.

Keep us posted.

[Jeremy1959]

Wow thanks again for that very rapid and detailed reply.

Still no luck, though. Still unable to transfer my edited songs back to the pedal.

When I open BBManager on my MacBook Air without the pedal connected it is now opening my project.
When I hover over the project explorer bar as you suggested it gives me this location:

/users/myname/Documents/BBWorkspace/user_lib/projects/SMcardonBB - Project/SMcardonBB.bbp

Then when I connect the pedal “synchronize project” is grayed out. When I then try “export project to SD card” instead, and select the pedal (“NONAME”) it returns with a list of folders on the pedal (data, drumsets etc) but with the file SMcardonBB.bbp and other files grayed out. If I then type “open” it goes through files one by one asking whether I want to delete first, skip or abort, like before.

BTW I have ordered an external slot reader from Amazon as you suggested - they are not too expensive, about $20.

[persist]

Sorry you’re still having issues. Are you by chance using a Mac? If so, there is a known BeatBuddy Manager (BBM) bug that grays out the BBM File - Synchronize Project to SD card and users have to rely on the export process to get their project on to their SD card.

Since there’s no telling what might have happened with the data on your card during your previous attempts, here’s what I would try:

• open the BBM and verify that the project/folders/songs/drum sets are still intact
• select all the content on your SD card and delete all contents then Empty Trash or the Recycle Bin
• use the BBM to Export Project to SD card and if on a Mac and when prompted for future syncs, select either No or Yes since it won’t matter anyway; if you’re on a Windows PC, select Yes.

In the future when exporting your updated project to an SD card with an outdated project, the BBM should prompt you with a dialog to the effect that the card already contains a project and do you want to overwrite? When you get this prompt, it’s okay to overwrite as this is part of the process.

[Jeremy1959]

Yes, Im using a Mac.
OK, I checked the BBM to make sure files are intact.’
Then I have deleted all the content on the SD and emptied the trash, as you suggested.
(This is a bit scary, because I have a live gig in two weeks and now an empty pedal).
Then when I try Export Project to SD card I get the message “Unable to create destination folder Volumes/NONAME/DRUMSETS What would you like to do retry or abort?” Same message reappears if I press retry.

BTW the export DID work with the overwrite prompt a week or so ago. Has stopped now though.

[Jeremy1959]

OK. Correction. It turns out my drumsets are empty on the BBManager. I don’t know how that happened. That explains the message.However the songs are still working. That means the songs don’t need the drumsets to work? I guess I’ll need to get the drumsets back somehow, but don’t want to overwrite any of my laboriously created songs

[Jeremy1959]

Would you know of a place where I can download the drumsets so I can repopulate them in BBM?

[persist]

Okay. Sounds like you’re slowly making some progress. Are you using one-press (OPB) songs or the default content drum sets? I’m assuming your songs are edited versions of the default BB content.

There are a couple of ways you can go about this. Not knowing what additional issues you face with an incomplete project, I would take the prudent route of backing up your setlist folder(s) and then restoring the default content in its entirety. To do this:

• export each setlist folder from your BBM to your desktop;
• download and unzip the SD card default content 2.1 from Software Download | Premium Library for BeatBuddy
• delete the contents from your SD card
• select all of the files and folders from within the SD card backup folder you just unzipped and drag or copy/paste to your card
• BBM - File - Open Project and navigate to your card and select Open
• accept prompt to save to your computer (navigate to the location of your current project and you might want to give this project a new/different name) and when done, press No for future sync
• BBM - File - Import - Folders (the setlist folders you previously exported to your desktop);
• audition the songs in the BBM to make sure that they now have the correct drum sets affiliated with each song
• now you can export your project to your SD card, eject the card from your Mac and test it on your pedal.

This is the other method and although there may be fewer steps, since there’s no way to know what may be missing from your original project, you are much safer using the first method.

• download the packaged default content drum set file from Software Download | Premium Library for BeatBuddy
• download, unzip and use BBM-File-Import-Drum sets and then activate the drum sets you just imported in the BBM by clicking on the Drum Sets tab, scroll down the list and check the box for each drum set.

[persist]

@Jeremy1959

That means the songs don’t need the drumsets to work?

The songs will require the drum sets.

@Jeremy1959

but don’t want to overwrite any of my laboriously created songs

If you exported your setlist folder(s) to your desktop, you should have a good safety net.

Let me know how this turns out and if you need more help, holler.

[Jeremy1959]

Worked perfectly! You are genius. We’re ready to perform