The band doesn't follow

This page is for when the sound is arriving, and the band will not join you, or fills will not come back. If there is no sound at all, start with No sound.

Check in order

1. Is the In number moving? … at the top of the screen, bars and numbers read In · Return · Out. If you play and In stays still, the sound is not arriving. Go back to the cables (Connect your PC and audio interface)
2. Are you on Play? … while stopped, the band does not join you
3. Is Pitch in Mix on? … off means Feelism does not listen for the pitch of sound from a mic or a line (the key is Y)
4. The readout beside Pitch in Mix … if a note name appears when you play, listening is working. If it does not, see “Sounds that are hard to catch” below
5. Are Fills on? … off means no answer comes back. Also check that the start chorus is not still a later time through (Fills)
6. Is Fills in Mix at 0? … the answer is playing, and you cannot hear it

Sounds that are hard to catch

Pitch tracking expects one note at a time. Sounds like these are unreliable.

• Chords (held on guitar or piano)
• A heavily distorted guitar
• A whisper, breath alone, or an extreme growl
• A distant mic that is mostly picking up the room
• A sound so loud it is clipping, or so quiet it disappears

Once, play (or sing) a slow single-note scale and check. If note names appear, listening is working.

What suits which instrument

Wind instruments are what Feelism is set up for first. Low notes take time before the pitch settles, so upright bass and electric bass can feel slow to respond. Hearing yourself, and then feeling the band “come in late,” comes from that.

When you want a sure response, there is a path that sends which keys you pressed (MIDI keyboard). That path does not go through pitch tracking, so chords arrive accurately too.

The space before a fill

The band answers when you have left a little space. While you keep playing, it stays on backing. When you want an answer, rest for about a beat after the phrase.