3
Table Of Contents
- MainStage 3 User Manual
- Contents
- Chapter 1: Introducing MainStage
- Chapter 2: Set up your system
- Chapter 3: The MainStage interface
- Chapter 4: Get started with MainStage
- Chapter 5: Work in Edit mode
- Edit mode overview
- Work with patches in Edit mode
- Select items in the Patch List
- Copy, paste, and delete patches
- Reorder and move patches in the Patch List
- Create a patch from several patches
- Set the time signature for patches
- Change the tempo when you select a patch
- Set program change and bank numbers
- Defer patch changes
- Instantly silence the previous patch
- Change patch icons
- Change the tuning for a patch
- Work with channel strips in Edit mode
- Channel strips overview
- Show signal flow channel strips
- Show the metronome channel strip
- Create an alias of a channel strip
- Add a patch bus
- Channel Strip Inspector
- Choose channel strip settings
- Rename channel strips
- Change channel strip colors
- Change channel strip icons
- Use feedback protection with channel strips
- Work with software instrument channel strips
- Use the EXS24 mkII Instrument Editor in MainStage
- Use multiple instrument outputs
- Use external MIDI instruments in MainStage
- Delete channel strips
- Create keyboard layers and splits
- Work with graphs
- Create controller transforms
- Work with plug-ins in Edit mode
- Map screen controls
- Screen controls overview
- Map screen controls to channel strip and plug-in parameters
- Map screen controls to actions
- Map a screen control to multiple parameters
- Edit the saved value for a mapped parameter
- Set drum pads or buttons to use note velocity
- Use parameter mapping graphs
- Map screen controls to all channel strips in a patch
- Undo screen control parameter mappings
- Remove screen control mappings
- Work in the Assignments and Mappings tab
- Edit screen control parameters in Edit mode
- Screen control parameters in Edit mode overview
- Replace parameter labels
- Choose custom colors for screen controls
- Change the appearance of a background or grouped screen control
- Set screen controls to show the hardware value
- Set parameter change behavior for screen controls
- Set hardware matching behavior for screen controls
- Reset and compare changes to a patch
- Override concert- and set-level mappings
- Work with sets in Edit mode
- Share patches and sets between concerts
- Record the audio output of a concert
- Chapter 6: Work with concerts
- Open and close concerts
- Save concerts
- How saving affects parameter values
- Set the time signature for a concert
- Use tempo in a MainStage concert
- Define the source for program change messages
- Set the pan law for a concert
- Change the tuning for a concert
- Silence MIDI notes
- Mute audio output
- Work at the concert level
- Control the metronome
- Chapter 7: Work in Layout mode
- Layout mode overview
- Work with screen controls in Layout mode
- Assign hardware controls to screen controls
- Edit screen control parameters
- Screen control parameter editing overview
- Lift and stamp screen control parameters
- Common screen control parameters
- Keyboard screen control parameters
- MIDI activity screen control parameters
- Drum pad screen control parameters
- Waveform screen control parameters
- Selector screen control parameters
- Text screen control parameters
- Background screen control parameters
- How MainStage passes through MIDI messages
- Export layouts
- Import a layout
- Change the aspect ratio of a layout
- Chapter 8: Perform live with MainStage
- Before the performance
- Use Perform mode
- Select patches in performance
- Screen controls in performance
- Tempo changes in performance
- Tips for performing with keyboard controllers
- Tips for performing with guitars and other instruments
- Tune guitars and other instruments with the Tuner
- The Playback plug-in in performance
- Record your performances
- After the performance
- Tips for complex hardware setups
- Appendix A: The Playback plug-in
- Playback plug-in overview
- The Playback interface
- Use the Playback waveform display
- Playback transport and function buttons
- Playback information display
- Playback Sync, Snap To, and Play From parameters
- Use the Playback group functions
- Use the Playback Action menu and File field
- Use markers with the Playback plug-in
- Use the Playback plug-in in a concert
- Appendix B: The Loopback plug-in
- Appendix C: MainStage preferences
- Appendix D: Key commands
- Appendix E: MainStage actions
Appendix A The Playback plug-in 140
Tips for using the Playback plug-in
The design of the Playback plug-in allows you to use it in many dierent ways. You should plan
how you intend to use the Playback plug-in when you are designing your concert to use it most
eectively. You can try out dierent placements and settings to decide how you want to use the
Playback plug-in in your concerts.
You start playback by sending a Play command to the Playback plug-in using a screen control,
such as a button, mapped to the Play/Stop parameter of the plug-in. To stop playback, you
send a Stop command using the same parameter. Alternatively, you can set the plug-in to
start when you select the patch or set, or when the Play action is triggered. You can control
other parameters of the Playback plug-in while you perform, including the Fade Out and Cycle
parameters. If the audio le contains marker information, you can use the Go To Previous Marker
and Go To Next Marker parameters to shift playback to dierent parts of the audio le, or use the
Go to Marker action to shift playback to a specic marker.
Note: When mapping a screen control to the Go to Marker action (in the Markers submenu), set
both the Button On and Button O parameters in the Screen Control Inspector to the value of
the marker, to ensure that the mapping works correctly.
A Playback plug-in in a patch plays only while the patch is selected. If you are using a Playback
plug-in at the set level, you can select dierent patches in the set (for example, dierent lead
synth or guitar solo patches) and have the audio le continue playing. If you are using a Playback
plug-in at the concert level, you can select dierent patches in the concert and have the audio
le continue playing.
Assign Playback plug-ins to groups
The Playback plug-in provides an additional form of control using groups. If you use multiple
instances of the plug-in in your concert, you can use groups to control which instances play
together and which are mutually exclusive. When Playback instances are in the same group, a
change to the Play/Stop, Cycle, Fade Out, Return to Start, Go to Previous Marker, or Go To Next
Marker parameters in one instance changes that parameter for every member of the group. You
can use up to 100 groups, each identied by a dierent letter. Starting one group stops all other
groups, while ungrouped instances of the plug-in continue playing.
If you are using multiple instances of the Playback plug-in in a group, you can start and stop
their playback together by starting or stopping any member of the group using a screen
control mapped to the Play/Stop parameter. When playback instances are grouped, playback is
“locked” so changes in position aect all members of the group. You can control other aspects
of playback, such as having the group fade out or loop playback, using screen controls mapped
to the corresponding controls in the plug-in window of any member of the group. Playback
instances that are not members of a group are not aected.
You assign an instance of the Playback plug-in to a group from the Group pop-up menu, located
in the lower-right corner of the plug-in window.
Assign a Playback plug-in to a group
1 If the Playback plug-in window is not open, double-click its name in the Input slot to open it.
2 Choose the letter of the group you want to assign the instance to from the Group pop-up menu.










