FXpansion BFD Supplemental - Manual (Page 11)


ii. Playing BFD via MIDI
• BFD can be triggered via MIDI either as a standalone application, or as a plugin in a host
environoment.
• If you’re using a host sequencer, you can use its MIDI editors (such as the ‘piano roll’) to
program drum parts instead of playing them in live.
• See section 4:3 of the reference manual for a list of default MIDI notes used in BFD.
• Using the Grooves is a very quick and easy way of getting a drum part going in BFD. You can
either use the Groove Librarian inside BFD (see below) or import some BFD Groove MIDI files
into your sequencer, and play them on a track routed to the BFD plugin.
• Read through chapter 7 of the reference manual for details on how to customize how BFD
responds to MIDI input.
• If you intend to use an electronic drum system with BFD, please also see chapter 4 of this
manual for a guide to configuring BFD for best response.
Humanization
When playing BFD using MIDI, you can add randomization to incoming MIDI in order to
simulate the slight variations in striking velocity in a real drumming situation.
Humanize velocity panel (ref. manual 8:10)
1. Click the Humanize velocity button.
2. This panel takes the form of a Graph with a curve, representing probability of velocity deviations
from input values. See page 53 for an explanation of the curve shapes.
3. As you change the curve shape, the velocity randomization changes in realtime. Experiment to
see the difference it can make.
Anti-machinegun mode
The Play Options panel contains the Anti-machinegun mode option, which causes
BFD not to play the same velocity layer twice in succession. This can eliminate the
‘machinegun effect’, common with conventional sampled drum libraries.
VRnd function
The Advanced tab of the Hit Options panel allows you to set the VRnd amount per
Kit-Piece Hit type. You may not want the Humanize velocity panel or Anti-machinegun
mode to affect certain Hits. Setting this parameter to 0% results in the Hit type not being
affected by the velocity randomization functions.
BFD supplemental manual Chapter 3: Tutorial