In this post I'll explain how to create your own Beat Buddy songs using the Beat Buddy Manager. You'll learn how to create, save, export and import songs and PBF files. A PBF file is simply a portable collection of songs. They make it very easy to share your work or create collections for different needs (practice, gigs, etc).
Looking for more beats and songs?
We currently have over two dozen MIDI packs that include ready to use Beat Buddy songs bundled into PBF files. Check them out here:
Groove Monkee Beat Buddy Collection
Important: This post assumes that you have already:
1) downloaded and installed the Beat Buddy Manager software
2) created a project in the Beat Buddy Manager
Please see the Beat Buddy Manager documentation for instructions.
OK, let's get started...
To create a song, you must have a folder to put it in. You can either create a new folder or use an existing one from your project. First, I explain how to create a new folder in your project.
Create a new Folder aka PBF (optional)
Note: this step is entirely optional. You can add new songs to ANY existing folder. Folders can contain up to 99 songs currently.
To add a new Beat Buddy folder go to the "Songs" menu and select "New Folder". This will add a new folder to the left hand side of the screen. Rename the folder by left-clicking on the name and replace it. See the video below where I create a new folder and an empty song in the new folder.
Shortcuts:
PC: Control + Insert
Mac: Control + Command + Enter
Video: Adding a new Folder File and new song
Create a new song
To add a new song, select a folder on the left side to open it. Go to the "Songs" menu and select "New Song". The video above shows how to add a song using the "+song" button.
Shortcuts:
PC: Insert button
Mac: Control + Enter
Configure Your Song Settings
The video below demonstrates how you can:
Rename a song
Set the desired tempo (default 120 bpm)
Select a drum kit for the song (you MUST do this!)
Build the song
To add MIDI files to your song simply click on any "song part", select a MIDI file and click OK.
In the video below, I'll show you how build a realistic Beat Buddy song. It contains 2 grooves, fills, intro and outro fills plus accent hits for each part.
Tip: The video also demonstrates how to add additional song parts. For example, a 2nd groove section. Each section has a groove slot, fill slots (up to 8) and a slot for an accent hit.
Video: Building a Beat Buddy Song
Finding Accent Hits
You can access all of the wave files from the Beat Buddy kits on your hard drive including cymbal crashes for accents.
They are located in the "BBWorkspace" folder you added when you created your project. Look for a folder called "wave_sources" inside a folder named "default_lib". Here are typical folder locations on both Mac and PC:
PC: C:\Users\{your user name}\Documents\BBWorkspace\default_lib\wave_sources
Mac: /Users/{your user name}/Documents/BBWorkspace/default_lib/wave_sources
Saving your Song
Don't forget to save your work regularly! Also, you won't be able to play any of the parts until you saved the project.
To save your project, go to the "File" menu select "Save project".
Here are the shortcuts for saving:
PC: control + S
Mac: Command + S
Export the song
Once you've completed your song, you can export it to share with others or to import into your other projects.
To export your song go to the "File" menu select "Export" and then "Song".
Note: Beat Buddy song files have a file extension of .sng and the Manager will automatically add the extension for you.
Video: Exporting a song file
Importing a song
To import a song into your project go to the "File" menu select "Import" and then "Song". Select a song file (.sng) and click "Open".
Shortcuts:
PC: ALT + Insert
Mac: Control + Option + Enter
Export the PBF (folder file)
You can export the entire folder as a "folder file" aka a Beat Buddy PBF file. This file can be easily imported into any other Beat Buddy Manager project.
To export the PBF file go to the "File" menu and select "Export" and then "Folder".
Video: Exporting a PBF file
Importing a PBF File
To import a PBF file go to the "File" menu and select "Import" and then "Folder".
Conclusion
You now know how to work with Beat Buddy Manger. You understand how to create, import and export songs and PBF files.
This gives you total control over your work flow and allows you to easily share your work with others. For example, you can send songs or an entire folder of songs to your band mates allowing everyone to practice using the same material.
Thanks for reading and rock on!
