For the files that MMM can't read, yes, according to the seller they are standard MIDI files. I briefly checked out out Anvil Studio and the complete file opens and plays without any problem, working on renaming and seeing if MMM can read.

For the other files I mentioned that will load, but appear blank and compressed into a small area of the track, I have no idea how to fix. I have screenshots of the 2 different problems I'm dealing with, not sure how to post them to the forum or if I can.

@DanM. Can you send me two files via private message that will not work for you? For example one file that will not load and one file where large parts are missing after loading it?

Sure, just let me know where to send pm to, or if I can through this forum

screenshots of both sent

@DanM.

I think @SP. wants the actual files, not screenshots of them!

Jeff
Forum Moderator

@DanM. Yes, because I want to try to load them in other music software and to re-save them and then trying to load them into Music Maker.

Jeff and SP.,

Sorry about that, thanks for letting me know, will send the actual files in a few minutes

When I try to upload and send .mid files through PM, it says the file type is not supported to send. Let me know if there's another way, I've never sent through the Forum

@DanM. You can use a free service like https://wetransfer.com/

Ok, I'm at wetransfer.com, where can I send files to?

@DanM.

Send the WeTransfer link in a PM to @SP.

Jeff

Thanks Jeff,

the transfer link with MIDI files has been sent to SP., I think one file may have been a WAV file by mistake.

All files contained in these folders are reacting the same

@DanM. Thanks for the files. For me, all files load fine. It could be a problem with the file name. I saw on your screenshot, that the filenames start with ._ Maybe this is causing problems with your installation of Music Maker.

The other files are really having huge chunks of empty space in them. I don't know what the creators used to make them, but maybe their software removed the empty space automatically so they didn't notice the problem. I tested it with different programs and most of them load the files with empty space, too. For me it looks like, Music Maker loads them correctly.

Hi SP, the files with _ in front of them won't load at all in my MMM. Regarding the files missing large chunks out of them, after you told me about Anvil, I was able to open 2 of them and all the data Was there, from bar 1 to the end of the file. I'm not sure how I did it and can't duplicate it now. Would you mind trying them in Anvil and let me know what you find? I purchased these files from a reputable source in the UK that I've used several times before. Thanks, DanM.

@DanM.

Hi SP, the files with _ in front of them won't load at all in my MMM.

There is also a small dot, not only an underscore. Do they load if you open them in Anvil Studio and save them again as a MIDI file? This file loaded fine in all of my tests.

Would you mind trying them in Anvil and let me know what you find?

Yes, it tried them in Anvil Studio and all of them have huge parts of empty bars in them until the melody starts. For example 40 bars or even 100 bars of silence, then plays the melody for some bars, then again silence for many bars.

You can see I the Magix MIDI editor in the event list, that the first notes start not at bar 1.

I tried multiple other programs like SynthFont, GuitarPro, Samplitude, Windows Media Player and they all load the files with the same empty parts.

The only program that removed the empty parts automatically was RapidComposer, but I think that had more to do with the way the program import function is optimized to remove such parts automatically.

Thanks SP.,

I'm wondering if the problem with these partial files is possibly because of how the downloaded Zip File containing them is opened, is that a possibility?

@DanM. I extracted the ZIP file with 7zip.

I’m re-posting the same problem again with additional information..  

I recently purchased 3 downloads of .mid and WAV files from a source in the UK that I've used before without any issues. The files download directly from the vendor's website as a zipped download with MIDI in a separate folder and WAV files for MACOSX or PC in separate folders in the download.

For DAW's I'm using Music Maker 2021 Premium and Acid Pro 10 Suite. After I drag and drop these files into the track composer of either DAW, the .mid files have 20-40 blank bars before any playable music data. The file properties show 02min 34s 500ms (for example), while the actual play time is only 3-8 seconds (3-4 bars). There are a number of solid white files with prefix name of ._ and .DS_Store, which are for MACOSX and I’m not sure if these are causing any problems. I don’t load the MACOSX file into my music folder, just the WAV and .mid files.

I’ve contacted the company where I purchased the files, they are standard (SMF) files and no problems have been reported by other customers similar to mine. I have purchased several product downloads from this company and all previous purchases are working fine in both DAW's. The vendor didn't find any file errors on the 3 recent downloads that I'm having problems with.

My PC (HP desktop) was purchased new last year: Intel Core i7, 64-bit, Quad Processor, 32GB RAM, 1.5TB Storage, 2.90GHz. I've completely reloaded Windows 10 with updates/drivers and ran every diagnostic, update and repair tool available with HP Support. I've been trying to get this issue fixed for several weeks and have tried everything I know. I've considered loading a Midi File repair program, but I don't know and unsure which one is best to fix my specific issue, or which are safe. If anyone can help, I'd greatly appreciate it. Thanks

@DanM. I looked at the files you sent me to test out and I can load all files (WAV and MIDI) without any problems.

It just odd, that these files contain empty parts. For example, if I load the MIDI guitar loops one by one, you can see that each loop has more empty space than the loop before and that the notes of each loop line up,

The producers probably created on huge loop (the one that loads fine for you) and split it into parts without correcting the position of the notes for each part. Like I said, it could be, that the DAW (on MacOS it is probably Logic?) they are using is automatically removing the empty space if they import the parts back into it and they thought it is fine.

They need to correct the note position for each loop in their DAW or you need to do it once for every loop by yourself and save the files over. For example, you can open the loops in Music Makers MIDI editor and select all notes and then just scroll through the time in the event list.

On the other hand, I have no idea why you cannot open the MIDI or WAV files. Maybe the folder you are using is read or write protected? There are also no  ._ and .DS_Store files in the zip you sent me.

Thank You SP,

It's interesting that you don't see any ._ or .DS_Store files and that you can load without any problems. I wonder why these files show up on my end? I've been reading about midi channels, sequences and computer partition problems, but I don't know enough about these. Do you think that any of these subjects have to do with my issues?

I can open most of the files, but there is very little playable data in each file, moreso in the midi files than wav.

I will try as you suggest and open the .mid files in MMM midi editor and scroll across the timeline of the event. This seems like a lot of unnecessary work, but I'm willing to try anything at this point.

It's very odd to me that I've previously purchased numerous files from the same company that work without any problems. Although my PC is new and my DAW's are working fine, I think something is going wrong somewhere during the direct download from the source to my computer.

I have posted the same questions on a couple other forums and also reached out to some musical artists who compose .mid file bundles for sale as zip downloads.

If I find a more definitive answer or a fix to this problem, I will comment back to you here on the forum so it can be of benefit to anyone else experiencing these issues.

If you discover anything else, or have any additional ideas, please let me know. I sincerely appreciate your help and time with this.

Thank You,

Dan

@DanM. What do you use to extract the zip files? I use 7zip.

I've always just done a right click on the zip file and chose extract all, which used to work fine for me.

Do you think that the way the download is unzipped could be the problem?

I can easily download any file extractor program, or I'll try 7zip a try, unless you think I should try another. Are you using the free or paid version of 7zip?