Current ways to deal with volume of a song seams to be:
Neither is handy for quick update.
How about having possibility to save volume level of a song in BB manager and apply as default for each song after project synch (i.e. 0 - 100%)
Let me know how you come out with this. I know that Daef is working on a new BB Manager with a lot of upgrades. Don’t know if he is doing anything with the volume in the Manager. Would be nice if he did. If you would like to know how I fixed this problem, let me know and I will download a diagram of the Volume/Tone box I built for the Beat Buddy.
Sincerely, Fingerstylepicker.
Volume control in BB manager would be killer. I am currently using an external volume pedal.
i’d be glad to see this, can you share
A Volume Control in the BB Manager would be great. Unfortunately, there already is a volume control in the Beat Buddy but the output is much too loud. The support team is aware of this. I drawed it to their attention when I received the pedal and probably 100 other people have also let them know about this. I am using the pedal in stereo so instead of puchasing a stereo volume pedal, I built a Control Box with two volume controls and two tone controls to not only antennuate the signal but to have control over the harshness of the cymbals as well. It works great and I rarely have to adjust it. Here is where it’s at. I have the volume of the Beat Buddy set at 40%. The control box has 500K ohm potentiometers in it set at 40% for the volume and 500K potentiometers set at 30% through .1mfd capacitors for tone. This means that the output of the Beat Buddy is at approximately minus 80% which is a lot. That’s how hot the signal is. I also have a volume control on an Alesis MultiMix4 Mixer that I also use to control the overall volume. Now the signal is down to a useable level to use with a looper and also for recording purposes. I have the “Control Box” permanently mounted on the pedalboard just above the Beat Buddy where it’s handy for adjustment.
I have also edited the individual midi notes for each song usng Beat Builder and lowered the volume of each note so that each song is now at a comfortable level for use in the Beat Buddy. The sounds are nice and mellow now but the riffs still stand out for accentuation. The “Harshness” of the cymbals is much better and the hard snap of the snare is a little easier on the ears. It took a while to get everything where it needed to be, but it is now at a nice level for audio output and also for recording.
The Beat Buddy is a terrific pedal but it takes a little doing to get it to that point. I now have over 100 songs that I have edited for volume and also for “Quantizing” so everything is OK for now. I noticed that the new songs available for a price are at maximum volumes and have some problems with “Double Bass Beats” at the ends of the fills so the fun is not over yet. They will have to be corrected as well.
Sincerely, Fingerstylepicker.
Yes! Here is a diagram of the Control Box that I built to control the output of the Beat Buddy.
Here is also a Composite Drawing of my Pedalboard and where the Control Box is located.
Sincerely, Fingerstylepicker.
I usually have the vol on the Beat Buddy vol set at about 55% for gigs, however, when I switch to something like a cajon kit, it’s just inaudible. I made the mistake of not checking the BB volume first during sound check last week and it was at 100%. That woke everyone up! My plan is to set the BB vol high, and the vol pedal at about 50% and go from there.
How are you liking the stereo output? Are you seeing any benefit there? You’re right about stereo vol pedals being an extra expense. I’ve resisted using stereo ouput for my guitar just to keep it simple. I’m constantly having corrosion/contact issues with my cables out here on the island, and I’m not sure I want to double my pleasure there… I’m also not using any panning delays.
Actually, the stereo output of the drums from the Beat Buddy are not all that great so I wouldn’t worry about it too much. I already had a stereo pedalboard set up with my stereo looper and two guitar amps so it was already there. I don’t notice too much of a stereo output on the drums at all. Some of the Hi-Hats and Cymbals are separated, oh, and some of the Toms will sweep across with a good roll. Other than that, it might not be worth the trouble. Are you running your sound into a mixing board and PA or out to some amps? The corrosion you are talking about can be minimized by using a good “Gun Oil” on the contacts. Clean them first (if you can) with a pencil eraser and then coat them with the oil and then wipe off the excess. There will be enough residue to prevent corrosion. Actually, any kind of oil will work OK. Good old WD-40 would do also. Don’t spray the sufaces too heavily though. The jacks in the Beat Buddy are kind of loose so you will probably have problems there too. You’ll have to live with those because of the design. They are not like the gool old “Switchcraft” jacks. Wiggle them once in a while before you turn the power on. I know what you mean about having the volume levels too high. I do that once in a while after my wife goes to bed. Of course, that wakes her up and I get in all kinds of trouble. I play her back to sleep though with my music so that helps a little bit. Ha-Ha.
I hope some of this helps. Hopefully, the people at Beat Buddy will continue to make things better for all of us. The Beat Buddy is a great pedal if we can get all the bugs out of everything including the BB Manager. Oh, as you will notice, on this page is a diagram of my pedalboard. I have a 3rd pedal for the Beat Buddy wired across the contacts for the “Main Pedal” so it’s rare that I even touch a button on the Beat Buddy other than to change the drumsets. Works great for me. It’s the Boss FS-5U on the left. The other two take the place of the original remote buttons. Regardless, just have fun. That’s what it’s all about. A true musician plays because he wants to. It has nothing to do with money, and the equipment is just a way to get the music out from within.
Sincerely, Fingerstylepicker.
play through feature…
Well, the volume pedal idea didn’t work out so well. The Dunlop pedal I was using was WAY too sensitive. I just went back to high vol on the BB and low vol on the board, and I just switched out the cajon kits to standard or rock. I really need to get off of my lazy butt and tweak the midis to equalize the volume in my songs for the kits I want to use. I most certainly owe you the biggest of apologies, as there is one particular song I really struggled with because it wasn’t quantized! It was fairly down tempo, and it really accentuated the need for quantizing. Drove me nuts!
Apology accepted. What you didn’t know is that I had already “Quantized” over 100 tracks and it was a long process. The system is not perfect and you will have problems trying to get everything in order. I am still trying to stress BB to put out a “Quantize” list. I have been playing music for over 60 years and I am very much a perfectionist when it comes to my music, so it has to be right. The BB is a great design but, there still are a lot of improvements to be made. You might want to build a Volume/Tone Box like I did to quiet the BB down. I don’t know why they built it with so high an output. A lot of people are using the “Headphone Out” jack but I removed mine to attach a pedal to the Main BB Pedal so now I don’t have to touch the BB only to change sets. Makes life much easier and it doesn’t mess up the warrantee. The Volume/Tone Box I am refering to is shown below if you want to build one. It does the job well and the Tone Control takes the “Harshness” out of the snare and cymbal crashes. It tones the signal down so you can actually make nice, balanced, recordings.
Sincerely, Fingerstylepicker.[ATTACH=full]1768[/ATTACH]