Chord finder app/VST

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Sing4me88

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« on: February 03, 2021, 08:04:35 PM »
Stupid question possibly (probably?!) but does anyone know of any VST that can track he chords in a loop? Most of the loops I have only have the key marked but no chord progressions listed, plus in any event I like to splice and chop loops up and rearrange the chords to get a 'new' feel. Just curious if there's a VST (preferably free or cheap(ish)) that the loop could be fed into that would identify the chord progression as this would help when laying a bass line, looking at melody lines etc. I'm really getting into loops and have some great ones I'm looking to use so a VST like the above would be really helpful. I know there's a free VST called MAnalyzer but I think this only identifies certain notes in a loop - usually the lowest note so not quite what I'm looking for though it might serve that purpose in a really long assed round about way I guess....

Boydie

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« Reply #1 on: February 04, 2021, 09:23:14 AM »
@Sing4me88

I know I have said this before but I think you have truly “outgrown” your current setup and if you can raise the cash I think an investment in a proper DAW would take you to the next level as what you are describing is just a “drag and drop” in Studio One Professional, which would analyse the loop, tell you the chords AND you can set other loops to follow these chord changes - it would take less than a minute to do

Studio One is much more than a loop manipulator so there may be better (and cheaper) options that focus on loops

Although, I would then fear you would quickly outgrow one of these packages and want to programme your own basslines, lead lines etc. - so will then be looking for something with these features

I can’t rate / recommend Studio One enough and if you want something to grow in to

The full package is £344.40 or they do a continual £13.46 a month for the Presonus Sphere (which gives a load more goodies) - but if you stop paying you loose access so I prefer the “buy outright” option

There are cheaper options so check out the usual candidates (Cubase, protools etc.) as well as Cakewalk Sonar by Bandlab, which I also highly rate and I believe it is free now - although I am not sure if it has the “chord track” thing you are after

If you will stay “loop based” I would definitely check out Acid Pro, Ableton, Fruity Loops
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Sing4me88

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« Reply #2 on: February 04, 2021, 03:47:21 PM »
I completely agree about needing to progress on to a more 'grown up' DAW.

I've actually got a version of Abelton 10 lite that I've been trying to wean myself on to - I got the free demo version as a 'try before you buy' to see if it's for me or not. Honestly, while Abelton has got some amazing features I'm not sure it's the most user friendly and I'm fining it hard to get into it. It doesn't really suit my natural workflow and I find it a bit clunky

I might see about a demo version of Studio One so I can try it out before committing to a purchase - it might be a more natural fit than Abelton is at the moment. I guess before delving into all the bells and whistles and cool features I wanna see if it 'clicks' with me at the more basic level.

Maybe I really just need to suck it up and get to grips with new ways of doing new things in a new DAW

Boydie

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« Reply #3 on: February 05, 2021, 09:31:30 AM »
@Sing4me88

I have not used the “loop based” DAWs - but I have noticed the more “standard” DAWs have improved the loop handling dramatically over the years

The downside is that the “black magic” type tools are usually reserved for the higher tier versions of DAWs - so although you may only need a few killer features, you often need to have everything else as well

This may not be such a bad thing if you are looking to grow in to something

There is a stripped down free version of Studio One, which will give you a taste

I am not sure if there is a free trial of the Pro version - but there are LOADS of vids on YouTube that will show you exactly what it is capable of and how it works

The search phrase you are looking for is “chord track”
To check out my music please visit:

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Sing4me88

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« Reply #4 on: February 06, 2021, 11:05:34 AM »
Have checked out a few YouTube vids of the chord tracker feature in Studio One on t'internet and gotta say it looks like a powerful bit of stuff. I'm going to give the demo a shot and if I can get a feel for Studio One I'll likely go whole hog and upgrade to a full paid version. I need a more grown up DAW and haven't managed to get into Abelton no matter how hard I try so hopefully Studio One will not only better suit my needs but also be more user friendly for me.

Wish me luck - and thanks to Boydie for his continued advice and encouragement on this front!

man made material

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« Reply #5 on: March 18, 2021, 06:24:52 PM »
@Sing4me88  if you’re searching for a DAW and haven’t decided yet, as a Reason user I’d recommend giving it a go, there’s a number of different levels to try out, they’ve also just started a subscription based way to use the software... not sure I’d recommend that route though... it’s super powerful and flexible, and if you come from real analogue synths and racks it may have some similarities, especially as you can flip the rack and (virtually) recable the devices if you want... good luck though!
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