Gig Performer Features
Core Features
Plugin Support
Gig Performer supports VST, VST3, and AU (macOS only) plugins, allowing seamless integration with third-party instruments and effects.
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Rackspaces
A rackspace is a collection of interconnected plugins and panels containing widgets to control plugin parameters in real time. It can represent a single sound or all the elements you need for an entire song – or just one part of a song.
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Variations
A variation is a preset within a rackspace that contains the same plugins and interconnections but with different widget settings. Variations allow you to leverage the plugins in a single rackspace to create many different sounds without having to duplicate the rackspace for each sound.
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Patch Persist
When Patch Persist is enabled,whenever you switch to another rackspace, notes that you are holding (either directly on your keyboard or via your sustain pedal) will continue sounding until you release the keys or the pedal. This feature works with any number of rackspaces.
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Audio Tail Length
Audio Tail Length sets the maximum time before a sound is cut off when you switch rackspaces. The maximum length is 10 seconds.
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Global Rackspace
The Global rackspace is an always-active rackspace that allows plugins to be shared and used by other rackspaces. It can be used for common effects processing, input pre-processing, or as a permanent instrument patch that remains available across all rackspaces and is bi-directional.
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The Global Rackspace can receive audio from whatever rackspace is currently active. Instead of inserting effects in every rackspace, simply insert them once in the Global Rackspace and all your local rackspaces will have access to them.
The Global Rackspace can also send audio to the currently active rackspace. So you can insert a looper that receives audio directly from your guitar (say) and then send the looped audio to different effects in different rackspaces. If a particular instrument such as a piano or organ is needed everywhere (or almost everywhere), put it in the Global Rackspace.
The MIDI To and From Global Rackspace feature allows you to centralize your MIDI effects, key splits and transpositions in the Global Rackspace and to send them to instruments across any Rackspace as desired, streamlining your MIDI processing.
Widgets
A widget is an object in Gig Performer such as a knob, slider, button, or meter used to control and/or display plugin parameters. Widgets can be controlled with your laptop’s mouse, remotely from a MIDI controller, through variations, song part/timeline actions, or with the use of OSC.
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Plugin Manager
The Plugin Manager lets you view all of the plugins installed in your system, and can be sorted by name, format , category, manufacturer name, enabled status, load type or user defined keywords.
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Having dozens, if not hundreds, of plugins at your disposal can open new avenues of creativity in performance. Still, these tools can easily become a cluttered mess if not managed properly.
Gig Performer provides improved plugin management, enabling keyword tagging for individual plugins and a filtering mechanism to find them instantly. Plugin collections, i.e., those used routinely in setups, can be added as “favorites,” which can then be recalled to quickly recreate sections of a system to streamline workflow with greater efficiency and organization.
Maximum Allowed Plugins
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Rig Manager
In Gig Performer, a “Rig” is a collection of three sets of information: a set of physical MIDI controllers, a set of virtual controllers that can be attached to widgets, and a map that relates the two sets, thereby connecting your physical controller, through widgets, to parameter controls. Rig Manager lets you save and switch between different MIDI hardware configurations, making it easy to adapt your setup when using different controllers or playing in different environments.
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Check out this article to read more about the Rig Manager…
Setlists
A setlist is a collection of songs arranged in a desired order. Each song contains multiple song parts that reference rackspaces, allowing quick access during performances. Gig Performer can create a as many setlists as needed
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Setlist Manager
The Setlist Manager provides a structured way to organize and manage performances, allowing musicians to prepare multiple setlists for different gigs and quickly switch between them.
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Wiring Activity
Gig Performer provides a visual representation of audio and MIDI signal flow, allowing for easy monitoring and troubleshooting of routing configurations.
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The Wiring Activity view displays connections as color-coded virtual MIDI and audio wires when any note is played, helping you to quickly understand and correct your audio and MIDI flow and audio levels.
Playing your instrument makes wires illuminate to visualize signal levels—“Green” indicates that your levels are OK, “Yellow” indicates that your levels are getting a little high, and “Red” means that your signal is running hot. Is a particular sound effect only coming out of one channel? Wiring Activity also reveals where the signal is broken so you can quickly and easily fix it.
Audio/MIDI Recording
Gig Performer features built-in audio and MIDI recording, allowing you to capture performances and review or edit them later.
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Record all incoming audio inputs and outputs easily for later post processing in a DAW. Saved wave files are automatically timestamped – perfect for touring bands. All incoming MIDI data can be saved to a Standard MIDI File, complete with tempo changes.
Tuner
A built-in tuner allows quick and accurate tuning of instruments directly within Gig Performer.
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Metronome
The metronome provides tempo guidance and can be routed to separate output channels for monitoring or synchronization.
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Ableton Link
Ableton Link support allows Gig Performer to synchronize tempo and playback with other Ableton Link-enabled applications and devices.
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Predictive Loading
Predictive Loading optimizes memory usage by preloading only a specified number of rackspaces, reducing RAM and CPU consumption while ensuring fast switching between rackspaces.
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Global MIDI Monitor
The Global MIDI Monitor displays incoming MIDI messages in real time, helping with troubleshooting and mapping MIDI controllers.
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Display Options
Gig Performer includes customizable display options, allowing users to configure interface layouts, color schemes, and visual organization for an optimized workflow.
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Core Plugins
MIDI In Block
The MIDI In Block allows incoming MIDI data from controllers to be routed to plugins within Gig Performer. It includes features like velocity scaling, keyboard splits, and filtering specific MIDI events.
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MIDI Out Block
The MIDI Out Block is used to send MIDI messages to external hardware and software instruments. It includes options for rechannelization, program change messages, and keyboard splits.
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Audio In Block
The Audio In Block routes audio signals from external audio interfaces into Gig Performer for processing.
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Audio Out Block
The Audio Out Block routes processed audio from Gig Performer to external audio interfaces for playback or further processing.
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MIDI Monitor Block
This plugin displays real-time MIDI messages for troubleshooting and debugging MIDI routing within Gig Performer.
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System Actions Block
The System Actions Block allows users to trigger system-wide functions such as switching songs, saving gig files, adjusting tempo, and setting global transposition.
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Comment Block
A simple text-based block for adding notes and comments within a rackspace for documentation or reminders.
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Gain and Balance
This plugin provides volume control, balance adjustments, and a mute function for audio signals.
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Audio Mixers
Audio Mixers allow multiple audio sources to be combined, adjusted, and routed within Gig Performer.
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MIDI Filter
The MIDI Filter plugin allows users to block or remap specific MIDI messages, such as pitch bend, aftertouch, or program changes.
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MIDI Transposer
This plugin transposes incoming MIDI note messages by a specified number of semitones.
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Audio File Player
The Audio File Player allows users to play back pre-recorded audio files within Gig Performer, with options for loop playback and syncing to tempo.
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MIDI File Player
The MIDI File Player allows playback of MIDI sequences within Gig Performer, with per-track routing options.
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Load up to 128 standard MIDI files into the MIDI File Player plugin. Enable or mute individual tracks. Route different tracks to different plugins for the best possible sound. Use Tap Tempo to control playback speed or let the song control Gig Performer’s global BPM.
Chord Maker
The Chord Maker plugin allows users to trigger entire chords from a single MIDI note, useful for performance setups.
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Chord Maker lets you create complex chords using different sounds or block unwanted notes in a performance simply by playing with a single finger on your keyboard. For example, now you can simultaneously perform bass, strings and choir, each part using different chords in different inversions, all with one finger on one hand, thus freeing up your other hand to perform a dedicated piano part.
Chord Maker features MIDI learn capabilities to speed up your workflow when you map notes to chords.
Advanced Features
OSC Implementation
Gig Performer provides extensive support for OSC (Open Sound Control), allowing remote control of widgets, plugins, and rackspaces from OSC-compatible applications and devices like Lemur, TouchOSC, and Ableton Live. OSC can be used to adjust plugin parameters, set Tap Tempo, toggle the tuner, and more.
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GPScript
GPScript is Gig Performer’s proprietary scripting language designed to automate tasks and create custom functionality. It allows advanced users to manipulate MIDI, automate plugin behaviors, and define complex performance interactions.
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Check out this article to read more about GPScript.
Tap Tempo Algorithms
Gig Performer offers multiple tap tempo algorithms to refine tempo detection: Legacy, Instant, Arithmetic Moving Average, Weighted Moving Average, Exponential Moving Average and Adaptive Exponential Moving Average.
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- Legacy – Original algorithm from Gig Performer 4.5.
- Instant – Uses only the last two taps.
- Arithmetic Moving Average – Averages recent taps.
- Weighted Moving Average – Gives more weight to recent taps.
- Exponential Moving Average – Biases tempo towards more recent taps.
- Adaptive Exponential Moving Average – More responsive to sudden changes.
Multi Instance Support
Gig Performer supports running multiple independent instances simultaneously on the same computer. Each instance can control different instruments, use separate audio interfaces, and even sync rackspace changes between instances.
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Check out this article for more detailed information.
Song Part Actions
Song Part Actions automate specific events when switching song parts, such as sending MIDI messages, changing plugin parameters, or triggering other system actions.
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Local GP Port
The Local GP Port allows internal MIDI routing within Gig Performer. It enables MIDI messages to be sent between widgets and plugins without the need for external MIDI ports, making it useful for handling SysEx messages and advanced MIDI configurations.
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Custom Velocity Curves
Custom Velocity Curves allow users to shape the response of MIDI controllers to better match their playing dynamics, ensuring more natural and expressive performances.
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Scaling curves allow you to control the shape of the output of a widget or convert an incoming note velocity to a new velocity. Various predefined curves are available and they can be tweaked as necessary. You can also just draw your own curve as well to achieve the effect you require.
Widget Scales
Widget scaling controls how a widget’s value is mapped to a plugin parameter, allowing for customized response curves.
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Widget Groups
Widgets can be grouped together to control multiple parameters simultaneously, such as blending between two different sounds or adjusting multiple EQ bands at once.
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Save/Load Audio Configuration
Gig Performer allows users to save and load audio interface configurations, making it easy to switch between different hardware setups without manually reconfiguring settings.
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Custom Fonts
Gig Performer allows users to customize text elements with different fonts for better readability and aesthetic design.
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Enhance readability and visual appeal by integrating your favorite fonts into Gig Performer, making your workspace truly yours.
Gig Performer’s custom font support allows you to incorporate your favorite fonts to enhance readability and visual appeal, design front panels that resonate with their unique style, imitate the design of your favorite hardware tools, or create a look that quickly grabs your attention. Every glance at your workspace provides inspiration and a personal touch to your live performance experience. See this feature in action in this video.
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Radio buttons make it easy to define mutually exclusive parameters such as the Fast-Off-Slow choices for the well-known Leslie rotary sound.
You can assign a radio group number to a collection of buttons and then click any button to turn it on while automatically turning off other buttons in the same radio group. Up to 99 radio button groups can be deployed. See this feature in action in this video.
Timeline and Actions
The Streaming Audio File Player and Song Part Properties allow users to trigger actions at specific points in a performance. Actions include switching rackspaces, sending MIDI messages, displaying on-screen messages, and controlling playback.
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The Streaming Audio File Player allows you to insert markers in song tracks and add actions triggered during audio playback as each marker is reached.
New to Gig Performer? You can easily take advantage of numerous actions to control widgets, set captions, send out MIDI events and switch rackspaces or song parts. Advanced users can leverage Gig Performer’s proprietary GPScript programming language to trigger custom actions and functionality developed by 3rd parties using Gig Performer’s SDK.
Extensions
Gig Performer supports third-party extensions, allowing users to expand its capabilities with additional plugins and hardware support.
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Extensions are basically libraries (.dll files on Windows and .dylib files on macOS) independently developed that Gig Performer can load so as to provide additional functionality, i.e., additional support for a hardware device, some new GUI functionality or even additional GPScript functions. For the first, an extension would make your hardware device usable directly from within Gig Performer as if it was already built-in.
Gig Performer exposes an API (application programming interface) that allows third-party developers to create libraries that can be used to interface with Gig Performer. The primary purpose of the API is to enable the creation of libraries to manage control surfaces and other hardware that one might want to use with Gig Performer but it is also possible to create 3rd party GUI tools as well.
Extensions are developed using Gig Performer’s SDK (software development kit) that is freely available under the GPL-3.0 license and can be downloaded from GitHub. Visit that link to learn more about SDK and fundamentals.
MIDI Helper Tool
The MIDI Helper Tool enables sending custom MIDI messages when a song part is activated. Users can create and store sequences of MIDI events to keep external devices in sync with their performance.
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MIDI Finger Tap
MIDI Finger Tap allows performers to manually step through a MIDI file in sync with a live band, eliminating the need for a rigid click track.
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Stay in perfect tempo as you step through a MIDI file with finger taps, freeing you from the constraints of a metronome.
MIDI Finger Tap, previously available only by using GPScript, is now easily accessible via the MIDI File Player plugin. With this feature, you can playback MIDI files with multiple tracks sequentially by simply tapping a key (or even a foot pedal) to trigger the next note or chord. Each time you tap, the Player will step by a quarter or eighth note (or any duration chosen), and the MIDI events in that range will be triggered.
This keeps your performance in sync with the rest of the band while enjoying freedom from click tracks. With one hand liberated, you are then free to embellish melodies or play other essential parts. See this feature in action in this video.
Advanced Plugins
Probabilistic Sound Designer
This tool allows users to generate new sounds by applying controlled randomization to selected plugin parameters.
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Create completely new sounds or tweak existing ones using controlled randomization of selected parameters of any plugin.
Parameters you select in an open plugin are captured into the Probabilistic Sound Designer dialog window. When you click Randomize, you’re only adjusting those selected parameters.
Each entry in the PSD dialog has a curve but unlike widgets where the curve controls scaling, in the PSD the curves are used to define the probability of particular values being selected.
Make sure the filter cutoff never gets too slow so as to block all sound. Perhaps adjust the max range of the VCA attack parameter so that the sound doesn’t have too much delay. Constrain the octave ranges of the oscillators, perhaps ensuring that 1/3rd of the time we select 8′ and 2/3rds of the time we select 4′. The possibilities are endless.
MIDI Channel Constrainer
The MIDI Channel Constrainer allows users to block or remap MIDI channels selectively.
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MIDI Rechannelizer
The MIDI Rechannelizer provides a grid-based mapping system for reassigning MIDI channels.
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Ideal for external gear integration and internal channel reconfiguration, MIDI Rechannelizer is a powerhouse in flexible routing, enhancing your ability to manipulate and streamline MIDI flows.
Using an intuitive grid-based interface, you can easily redirect MIDI signals to and from any channel or send multiple channels simultaneously. For example, playing your MIDI keyboard on MIDI channel 1 will send multiple copies of the MIDI message on four different channels to your external hardware and multi-timbral soft synths.
GP Relayer
GP Relayer enables real-time sharing of MIDI and audio between multiple instances of Gig Performer or between Gig Performer and a DAW.
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To use it, simply place one or more of these plugins in your DAW (req. MacOS 10.14 or newer on Mac), one or more in Gig Performer, and you’re ready to seamlessly move audio and MIDI data back and forth.
You can directly record high-quality, low-latency audio from Gig Performer for your next album. Alternatively, use your DAW’s proprietary plugins and MIDI effects within Gig Performer for an unparalleled live performance experience. GP Relayer supports up to 10 relays simultaneously.
Streaming Audio File Player
The Streaming Audio File Player plays large audio files directly from disk with minimal RAM usage, allowing real-time stretching and pitch shifting.
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Load thousands of songs into your Gig files without depleting RAM resources, removing the ceiling on backing tracks available during a show.
Seamlessly integrate thousands of backing tracks into your gig files while preserving your precious RAM resources. The Streaming Audio File Player plugin, which supports multiple audio formats including MP3, WAV, OGG, and FLAC, lets you switch instantly from one song to another as needed, and, of course, it supports host automation for easy control via Gig Performer widgets.
This player offers remarkable playback and intuitive control while your tracks are running.
Scriptlets
Scriptlets allow users to create custom MIDI processors using GPScript, enabling complex MIDI manipulation and routing.
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Scriptlets make creating custom MIDI processors easy. You don’t have to be a programmer to use them – you can just download scriptlets from our ever-growing collection on our website and drop them right into your rackspaces to use them.
Use scriptlets for simple operations such as turning your single notes into chords, modifying, duplicating or converting one kind of message into another, automatic chord latching (AutoSustain), threshold detection, sysex manipulation… imagination is the limit.
Envelope Follower
The Envelope Follower converts incoming audio signals into MIDI control messages, useful for effects like auto-wah or dynamic filtering.
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The Envelope Follower plugin lets you use audio volume to control envelope parameters in real-time—for example, wah-wah effects, which are particularly useful for guitarists.
Or, if you wish to talk while playing music, Envelope Follower will let you automatically duck the audio, lowering the music volume as you speak. Using widgets, you can use audio volume to virtually control any parameter within your setup.
Auto Sampler
The Auto Sampler allows users to sample and resample sounds from hardware and software instruments, creating reusable patches.
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Effortlessly capture CPU-intensive synth sounds and play them on your preferred sampler, reducing CPU usage and creating new sound possibilities.
The Auto Sampler allows you to create a set of samples from your plugins that, if used together, would demand too much CPU to be practical for live performance. Alternatively, you can sample sounds from your external synths, eliminating the need to bring them to a show.
The image illustrates how we simultaneously create samples from three sources—two VST plugins, each followed by effects, and an external synthesizer. You can play the sounds manually from your keyboard to create the desired mix and then run the Auto Sampler to capture the results for individual notes. The Auto Sampler can also capture multiple velocities if desired. See this feature in action in this video.