MIDI Device for SoundFonts

Hi, Don:

There are a ton of Soundfont players for VST, many of them freeware. If you want an independent Soundfont device, there is a (rather 'round about) way to do it. Once you've done all the steps, though, it should be very simple to use.

1) Install Maple Midi by MarbleSound or similar to give you "virtual" midi devices. (www.marblesound.com) I recommend that one as it seems to me most configurable; there are others.

2) Install Hermann Seib's freeware program, VST host, (www.hermannseib.com) to host the Soundfont player. He has another freeware program called Savihost which is similar but which, by simply renaming it to the same name as your Soundfont player and dropping the Soundfont player's .dll file into the same folder, will automatically run that VSTi.

3) Install your choice of Soundfont player. A Google search for "Soundfont player" and "freeware" will bring up a couple of dozen to choose from. Try http://www.rgcaudio.com/sfz.htm as a starter.

4) Point both the host and Composer to the virtual midi port you want, which is simply a couple of clicks.

Having done all that, then simply run VST host and load the Soundfont player in it (or even more simply, run the renamed Savihost that runs your player) before running Composer.

Once all that is done, it should be only one extra click before running Composer to get your Soundfont player connected.

I hope this helps.

David