Modartt user forum - Standalone hardware version of Pianoteq?

Re: Standalone hardware version of Pianoteq?

2009-06-30T22:58:29Z

The netbook tips are great, but my philosophy is that it's easy (ie. relatively cheap) to throw decently powerful hardware in a standalone desktop system. The netbook works great for portable keyboards and non-dedicated applications, but if it's for a non-portable digital piano, it's almost nothing to throw a used dual core AMD system (and even a powerful Intel system) into an old case and run PT, especially if you're like me and keep your old hardware whenever you upgrade.

Command-line tools would be a great option. Not for editing, adjusting, or recording, like the standalone GUI program, but for just running a set of FXP's controlled by MIDI. Maybe have a way to export the basic configuration from the GUI program to the command-line or daemon version.

EDIT: Yes, on my linux machines, having the CPU overload protection enabled frequently causes load spikes out of nowhere, which causes horrible skipping. Also, the CPU overload protection setting is enabled every time the program is started, no matter what it's set at when the program is closed.

Re: Standalone hardware version of Pianoteq?

2009-06-30T18:51:50Z

And check this thread about setting up PianoTeq on a Netbook:

http://www.forum-pianoteq.com/viewtopic.php?id=671

Re: Standalone hardware version of Pianoteq?

2009-06-30T12:12:20Z

For a headless Pianoteq Linux PC, I'd find useful:

* Add a command line switch to run Pianoteq without the GUI, just as a daemon like Apache or anything else. Maybe (for a future release) a Pianoteq GUI could be started separately to act as a control center for the actual Pianoteq daemon.

* Make disabled CPU Overload Protection persistent (see http://www.forum-pianoteq.com/viewtopic.php?id=666). Overload Protection seems to be buggy within Linux and causes complete dropouts of several seconds in length.

Re: Standalone hardware version of Pianoteq?

2009-06-05T20:19:15Z

I'm actually in the process of using some old (post-upgrade) computer parts to make a stand-alone Linux box (THANK YOU MODARTT FOR THE LINUX VERSION SINCE 3.0.3!!)

It's just a dual-core Athlon64 with enough memory and a leftover hard drive. If I were buying new hardware I would probably get one of those cases that looks like a media console device (Tivo, DVD, etc).

All included, you could probably build a linux machine for less than $500, with a relatively powerful processor and a modest amount of memory. You could almost boot off of a thumb-drive, since once the program is in memory it doesn't need big/fast storage.

Throw Ubuntu on it, maybe even use some kind of a remote desktop (VNC) to manage presets (use MIDI events to do the main preset switching, etc.) Have Jackd set to autostart. I might look into being able to suspend so it starts up fast. (Wake on USB when the piano is turned on? hmmmm..)

Seriously, this is going to be easy and really cheap.

Re: Standalone hardware version of Pianoteq?

2009-06-01T14:49:26Z

m.tarenskeen wrote:

If I take a look on the Pianoteq website under "News" I see a picture from the Frankfurter Mess in april showing a demonstration of Pianoteq. I see the Pianoteq screen projected on the screen, I see a CME masterkeyboard, I see a laptop, and I see ... a V-Rack. But I can't tell from the picture if the Pianoteq sound is coming from the laptop or from the V-rack.
--
Martin

Hi Martin,

The sound came from our laptop. The V-Rack was not yet configured for a Pianoteq installation. I'm sure the V-Rack would have performed with elegance.

Regards,
Niclas

Re: Standalone hardware version of Pianoteq?

2009-06-01T14:01:34Z

If I take a look on the Pianoteq website under "News" I see a picture from the Frankfurter Mess in april showing a demonstration of Pianoteq. I see the Pianoteq screen projected on the screen, I see a CME masterkeyboard, I see a laptop, and I see ... a V-Rack. But I can't tell from the picture if the Pianoteq sound is coming from the laptop or from the V-rack.

Martin

Re: Standalone hardware version of Pianoteq?

2009-05-30T21:28:51Z

V-Machine (V-Box was previous name) can't run Pianoteq well - only a few notes of polyphony...

V-Rack is gonna be available before autumn (I think they said August)... Price would be around 1300 $.

Which is a bargain considering there's more power inside than a Receptor 2. Which costs well over 2k.

Re: Standalone hardware version of Pianoteq?

2009-05-30T20:43:04Z

On a Dutch serious music store the V Machine is now for sale for 349 euros
http://www.feedback.nl/?b=SMPVBOX&a=

German site has it online too
http://www.musik-produktiv.nl/(s(8qefza...10608.aspx

Re: Standalone hardware version of Pianoteq?

2009-05-30T17:49:33Z

So has the V-Rack actually made it to retail yet?
Any price announced?

The V-box seems to have been a bit of a farce,
so I'd want to be very such the V-Rack wasn't rubbish too!

Muse is bring out this "Musebox" thing later in 2009, with a pricepoint under $1000 apparently, so that might be a more robust option.

Re: Standalone hardware version of Pianoteq?

2009-05-30T17:31:26Z

The above-mentioned V-Rack should be awesome.

Or the Muse Musebox, maybe.

Re: Standalone hardware version of Pianoteq?

2009-05-30T17:05:46Z

I´m thinking of building a box for pianoteq because it´s not so nice to have Laptop+external Audio interface for to play the piano.

This should be a preferably small PC with a good sound card inside. I would only need MIDI in and Stereo sound out, preferably as two jacks.
The sound card should have a very low latency.

Additionally you could connect a monitor, mouse and computer keyboard for testing and management, but you should not need this for running the box.

The box would run Windows or Linux, where Linux would be the better choice because there would be no need to buy a licence for the operating system. Until now I wasn´t able to get pianoteq running under Ubuntu Studio, but it should run.

I would not need buttons for controlling pianoteq as all settings can be made on a pc and saved on a USB drive.

Do you know any PCI soundcard with MIDI jack integrated in the slot bracket?

These are first ideas for this project. Is there anyone already running something like that? Or can you give me hints which hardware would be promising?

Re: Standalone hardware version of Pianoteq?

2009-05-30T08:15:47Z

Now V-Rack seems to be out for real.

Have you guys checked this out:

1. http://www.macmusic.org/news/view.php/lang/en/id/7866/
2. http://www.smproaudio.com/produkte/v-ma...-rack.html

3. Wizard File for Pianoteq 3.0.3 Demo
http://www.smproaudio.com/deutsch/produ...ugins.html

http://www.smproaudio.com/fileadmin/pro...20Demo.zip

Has SM Pro Audio finally made it?

Re: Standalone hardware version of Pianoteq?

2009-02-24T02:30:01Z

I agree with E.V. Has anyone checked out the price of Receptor?

This is the cheapest one:

http://www.plugorama.com/customer/produ...ductid=607

When I saw this a while back I d@mn near fell of my chair.

Glenn

Re: Standalone hardware version of Pianoteq?

2009-02-23T18:47:25Z

I think you can build yourself your own rack unit PC for cheaper than Receptor, with a good dualcore CPU and 4 gigs of RAM, and a big SATA hard drive (which you can later swap with a fast solidstate drive). Then run Brainspawn Forte as a host on Windows XP Embedded. Would probably be cheaper than 2000 euros they ask for Receptor. And you would be able to run Pianoteq flawlessly.

Re: Standalone hardware version of Pianoteq?

2009-02-23T18:18:36Z

Apparently the Muse Receptor has been able to natively run Pianoteq for a while now. Its a beast. Has anyone used it? How's the latency? I just want something I can put under the Piano's keyboard and route the USB/midi into, and then back into the piano's sound system.