OMPT vs. MadTracker2

[johndoe007]

hey guys ... dumb question time.

i've been using MadTracker since i started tracking last year.  it's a fantastic program, i love it, and would keep using it .... if it had updates.  last update i believe was in 2004 to version 2.6.1.  it's a great program with a lot of nice features.

couple weeks ago, i downloaded modplug tracker, and i like the program.  there's a lot of stuff in it that isn't in madtracker, and you get a hell of a lot more samples and midi to work with.

i'm not sure if i just haven't played around with it enough, or if the features i'm looking for aren't in OMPT.  has anybody done a side by side comparison of different trackers?

biggest thing i miss from madtracker is the main mixer, where you can level and EQ each channel/timbre/track (whatever you wanna call it ...).  i personally like to tweak my stuff while listening to it, and that mixer helps a lot.

thanks!

[Rakib]

Yes, a good mixer would be great to have in modplug. But there are a lot you can achieve with vst-effects.
Madtracker have also built-in effects.

[johndoe007]

mmm ... i know the effects ... madtracker2 i believe comes with about 6 or 7 of them embedded into the program.

i'm more interested in the EQ sections of the mixer ... it can set the main volume for each channel, along with low, mid, high range, range points, between the three.  a real nice set up on the mixer.  looks almost like a vst itself.  maybe it is, and i just don't know it.  but there's also a function in the pattern window, graphical, where you can change all 5 of those settings on each channel

[Saga Musix]

I've never had a problem with simply putting VST effects on tracks for this purpose; the advantage over a built-in channel mixer is obviously that you can freely decide which kind of EQ/Compressor/whatever you want to apply; If I feel that a channel needs to be EQed, I simply put an EQ (Electri-Q in my case) plugin on that channel. That said, MT2 probably also has slightly more sophisticated VST support, but if something doesn't work in OpenMPT, there almost always the possibility to use a "Chainer" VST for getting things to work.

Edit: Typo

[LPChip]

And there's a chainer called: Xlutop Chainer, which allows you to route everything in it. Doing that will give you a mixer environment with volume and the ability to add effects to channels.

[Harbinger]

Yes, i would use Chainer for what you're looking for. Its interface allows you to plug in up to 10 initial VSTs, and chain 10 more into each of those slots. You can even chain to another instance of Chainer, making it virtually unlimited in expandibility!

There are 3 disadvantages to Chainer which you should keep in mind:
1. It ain't free (well, LEGALLY).
2. It's CPU intensive. I have a 2 Ghz machine, and after about 5 VSTi's, the player takes a second or two to start up.
3. There's not alot of help on using it to its full potential. Most everyone has to learn on their own, or from someone who's worked with it awhile.

But even with these, it's VERY worth the trouble and cost. It's gives a turbo-boost to MPT's functional engine. It doesn't have an EQ interface you describe, but you can use an EQ plugin of your choice in one of Chainer's slots, route each channel or everything to it, and leave the Chainer and EQ plugin GUI windows open and be able to monitor and adjust on the fly. (You can even record changes made during playback.)

Be sure and get the OHM if you haven't already. It should give you a good idea of what you can do with plugins.