VG-99 USB Driver Mac - Version 1.0.1

Started by Elantric, January 23, 2008, 07:37:42 PM

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Elantric

VG-99 USB Driver Mac - Version 1.0.1

http://www.roland.com/PRODUCTS/en/_support/dld.cfm?iCncd=2179&ln=en&SearchBy=RcId&dst=P&iRcId=0000021901&dsp=1

or

ftp://ftp.roland.co.uk/productsupport/Drivers/VG-99_USB_Driver(MAC).zip

Roland VG-99 Driver Ver.1.0.1 for Mac OS X

About this driver
This is a driver for using the Roland VG-99 on Mac OS X.
Features
Compatible with Apple's standards of CoreAudio and CoreMIDI Universal Binary Driver (This driver can work on both Intel and PowerPC processors.) Single/Multi processor support Can customize driver buffer size and managing precise recording and playback latencies
System requirements
This driver has the following requirements.
* Please also check the system requirements for the audio/MIDI application and the operating system you're using.
Operating System
Mac OS X v10.3.9 or later
* This will not operate in the Classic environment of Mac OS X. When using this, the Classic environment must not be running simultaneously.
Computer
Apple Macintosh series computer with on-board USB
CPU/Clock
Intel processor
or
PowerPC G4 / 800MHz or faster

* For Mac OS X 10.5 or later, an Intel processor or a PowerPC G4(1GHz or faster) or G5 processor is required.
* If you are using this driver with an application that requires a certain level of performance, that application must support the CPU that is installed in your Macintosh.
Memory
256MB or more (512MB recommended)
* This driver has been shown to function properly when used with average computer systems having specifications that conform to the above guidelines. You should be aware, however, that there are numerous other variables that can affect performance, including differences in hardware design, system configuration, and overall combination of software that are used. Therefore, the actual system requirements could be different than the above.
Cautions and Limitations
Before you start up your sequencer or related software, use a USB cable to connect the VG-99 to your
computer and turn on the power of VG-99.
Do not turn off the power of the VG-99 or disconnect the USB cable during playback or recording.
Doing so may cause your software or operating system to shut down abnormally.
You must first exit your sequencer or related software, and then switch off the VG-99's power or
disconnect the USB cable.
You must disconnect the VG-99 from the computer before performing a software update for Mac OS

X. If you performed the Mac OS X software update with the VG-99 left connected, you will need to re-install the driver.


Installation
* If the "Authenticate" dialog box appears during the installation, input the password and click [OK].
1.    Start computer with all USB cables disconnected.
(except the keyboard and mouse)

2.    Double-click "VG99USBDriver.pkg."
3.    In some cases, the display will indicate "This Installer package needs to run a program to determine if it can be installed. Do you want to continue?"; click [Continue].
4.    The display will indicate "Welcome to the Roland VG-99 Driver Installer"; click [Continue].
5.    The display will indicate "Select a Destination." Click the drive on which the system is installed, then click [Continue].
6.    The display will indicate "Easy Install"; click [Install] or [Upgrade].
7.    The display will indicate "Installing this software requires you to restart..."; click [Continue
Installation].

8.    The display will indicate "The software was successfully installed"; click [Restart]. Your computer

will then restart.
* It may take some time for restarting the computer. This completes installation of the VG-99 driver.


Before you begin
Settings for audio input and output on Mac OS X
1.    Use a USB cable to connect the VG-99 with your computer, and then turn the POWER switch of the VG-99 to the "ON" position.
2.    Open "System Preferences" and click [Sound].
3.    Select "Roland VG-99 44.1kHz" for each of the following settings:
"Play alerts and sound effects through" under the "Sound Effects" tab
"Choose a device for sound output" under the "Output" tab
"Choose a device for sound input" under the "Input" tab



Settings for MIDI input and output on Mac OS X
1.    Use a USB cable to connect the VG-99 with your computer, and then turn the POWER switch of the VG-99 to the "ON" position.
2.    In the Applications - Utilities folder, double-click "Audio MIDI Setup" to start it up.
3.    Click the "MIDI Devices" tab.
4.    In the "Audio MIDI Setup" dialog box, make sure that "VG-99" is displayed.
* If "VG-99" is not shown, or is shown in gray, the VG-99 has not been recognized correctly. Try clicking "Rescan MIDI." Alternatively, switch the power of the VG-99 off, then back on again.
* If you installed a different version driver, it is possible that the previous settings are still present. If so, click the grayed "VG-99" or "Roland VG-99" to select it, and then click "Remove Device" to delete the previous settings.
5.    Click "Add Device" 2 times. "new external device" icons will appear.
6.    For each "new external device," specify the "Device Name."
1.    Click the added "new external device" to select it, and then click "Show Info."
2.    In the "Device Name" field, enter the name as follows.
7.    Using your mouse, drag the up/down arrows indicating the input/output port to make the following connections.
The first up/down arrow of the "VG-99" to the up/down arrow of the added "VG-99"
The second up/down arrow of the "VG-99" to the up/down arrow of the added "VG-99 2"


8.    To verify that MIDI transmission/reception is occurring correctly, perform the following procedure.
9.    Click "Test Setup." The mouse cursor will change to the shape of a musical note.

* If a MIDI sound module is connected to the VG-99, the following step will cause a relatively loud sound to be produced by the sound generator, so it is a good idea to turn down the volume on the sound generator first.
10.    If a MIDI sound module is connected to the VG-99's MIDI OUT connector, click the corresponding icon in the Studio Setup window. If you hear sound, the settings have been made correctly.
11.    Click "Test Setup" once again to end the test.
12.    Close the "Audio MIDI Setup" dialog box. This completes the settings.

Before you use the VG-99 with software
1.    Use a USB cable to connect the VG-99 with your computer. Then, start up the software you will be using.
2.    Select "Roland VG-99 44.1kHz" in the audio driver setting of your software.

3. Select VG-99 in the MIDI driver setting of your software.
For details, refer to the manual that came with your software.



To change the settings
To change or verify settings
1.    Use a USB cable to connect the VG-99 with your computer, and then turn the POWER switch of the VG-99 to the "ON" position.
2.    Open "System Preferences" and click "Roland VG-99."
3.    The Driver Settings Panel is displayed.

About the items in the Driver Settings Panel
"Audio Buffer Size"
This changes the Buffer Size for Audio Input/Output of the driver. If sound dropouts or noise occur during playback or recording even after you've adjusted the audio buffer size in your software, you can increase this "Audio Buffer Size" setting.
* For some software, it may not be possible to adjust the buffer size.
"Recording Margin"
If the recorded audio data contains sound dropouts or noise even after you've adjusted the audio buffer size in your software and also adjusted the above "Audio Buffer Size," try increasing this "Recording Margin" setting.
* For some software, it may not be possible to adjust the buffer size.
"Recording Timing"
If the timing of the recorded audio data is not correct, adjust this value.
Note)
If you click the [Apply] while your audio software is running, the setting changes won't be immediately reflected. Only after all
audio software have been quit, and the software is then started once again will the settings become effective.



To uninstall
1.    Start computer with all USB cables disconnected.
(except the keyboard and mouse)

2.    Double-click "VG99_Uninstaller."
3.    The display will indicate "This uninstalls Roland VG-99 driver from this Macintosh."; click [Uninstall].
* If any other message appears, proceed as directed by that message.
4.    The display will indicate "Are you sure to uninstall the driver?"; click [OK].
5.    The "Authenticate" dialog box will appear; enter the password and click [OK].
6.    The display will indicate "Uninstllation is completed."; click [Restart]. Your computer will then restart.

* It may take some time for restarting the computer.


Troubleshooting
Cannot select the VG-99 device
Did the computer enter a Sleep mode while the VG-99 was connected with its power turned on?
If the computer entered a Sleep mode while the VG-99 was connected with its power turned on, it may not operate correctly. In this case, after resuming, exit all software that are using the VG-99, and then turn on the power of the VG-99 once again.
Cannot playback or record
Could you have entered Sleep mode during playback or recording?
If you entered Sleep mode during playback or recording, it will no longer be possible to play back or record from the VG­
99. Exit all currently playing or recording software, and switch the power of the VG-99 off, then back on again.
Occasional disruptions in the sound or noises occur.
Try adjusting the audio buffer size for the software you're using.
First, try adjusting the audio buffer size for the software you're using.
If sound dropouts or noise still occur during playback or recording, try adjusting the "Audio Buffer Size" in the Driver
Settings panel.

* For some software, it may not be possible to adjust the buffer size.
Try setting "Processor Performance" to the "Highest" setting.
Making the following settings may eliminate sound dropout.
* Some Macintosh computers may not have the "Processor Performance" setting.
1. In "System Preferences," click "Energy Saver."
2. Click "Options."
3. In "Processor Performance," choose "Highest."

Could you have performed a Mac OS X software update while the device was still connected?
If you performed the Mac OS X software update with the device left connected, drop-outs may occur in the sound. If this occurs, please re-install the driver.
Is the VG-99 connected to a USB hub?
Try connecting the VG-99 directly to the USB connector of your computer itself.
Occasional disruptions in the sound or noises are in the recorded audio data.
If the recorded audio still contains sound dropouts or noise even after you've adjusted the audio buffer size as described in "Occasional disruptions in the sound or noises occur" (above), try increasing the "Recording Margin" in the Driver Settings panel.
* For some software, it may not be possible to adjust the buffer size.

Copyright (C) 2007 Roland Corporation. All rights reserved.

Elantric

I am currently programming up some sounds for two bands with the VG-99
communicating with a Macbook pro (via the USB) running Logic Mainstage
hosting Guitar Rig 3 alongside the Logic emulators and other plug-ins.

Latency is acceptably low with the VG as interface, better than my
MOTU 828MKII, I think because the A/d in the Roland is faster. The
best timing results are with the VG as a stand-alone.

Once you've got around the slightly clunky routing of signals the
system is a dream to use. As I maxing out the 2.16GHZ processors in
the Mac, I am glad that the VG can share the processing load.

Comparing the effects and amp emulations, I would roughly characterise
the VG as "tidy" and the Guitar Rig "warm and big". GR wins on
patchability (EG making up multi-band compressor using the splits and
crossovers) and the VG on the extraordinary possibilities of the COSM
guitars, tunings etc. I don't use the logic amp simulations much.

Crashes are rare but beware of unplugging the USB cables, tape it on
to the computer. The VG-99 has been very stable.

I was using Kore and I ugraded to Kore 2 but it seems that the new
version has dropped accepting program changes (in the "Presets")so is
fairly useless live. Kore is better at selecting what MIDI to accept.
Mainstage accepts all inputs which was a problem when I tried to run
keyboards at the same time as using an FC-300 - using the expression
pedals caused hanging notes in Mainstage.

Martyn

hausmann

I'm trying a similar configuration.  So far, my results haven't been quite as good as positive.  Since I got the VG99, I saw no reason to keep my Guitar Rig 3 and Rig Kontrol unit, which are soon destined for an Ebay listing.  I also gave up my Roland GI-20, GR-20 guitar synth and PreSonus Firebox.  I feel quite comfortable with the interface in Logic's Soundstage, but I'm yet to get it running well enough for me to use live.  I've been triggering pianos, strings and saxes for years with outboard gear, but I like the flexibility (and tweakability) of patches and samples on an actual computer.  I'm running a MacBook Pro (2.16 Ghz) with 2 GBs of RAM.  Recording the VG into Logic works great, but I run into all kinds of latency, drop outs, and hanging notes and false triggers when trying to Soundstage it.  After a few minutes of playing, it deteriorates rapidly....like an old bus in the right lane with a flat.  Anybody else having similar experiences?
-Eric
I wanna join your band
erichausmann.bandcamp.com

aliensporebomb

#3
At the time I posted this response I was running a 2.5 ghz G5 dual with 7 gigs of ram and about 1.7 tb of disc running 10.5. 
I am now running a Corei7 iMac 2.8 ghz with 16 gigs of memory and about 6TB of disc.

So far, no problems with the audio - what I've been doing is using Garageband for troubleshooting rather than Logic itself since GB tends to be a bit more simple.

Seems to track guitar-to-midi faster than any other system I've ever used before.

It's definetely good fun but I'll be trying the bigger DAWs later to see if I run into some issues.

I have ideas for using the system with a laptop live processing the VG internally and using the VG for output. 

I've heard some have problems changing patches cause a cutout of audio but I wonder  if turning certain effects on and off within the same patch might not allow a workaround for this (I.E. stay on the same patch but maybe turning off certain features in that patch to change the sound sufficiently).
My music projects online at http://www.aliensporebomb.com/

GK Devices:  Roland VG-99, Boss GP-10, Boss SY-1000.

pjwassermann

PJ Wassermann
http://www.pjwassermann.com/
Last album "Space Drone Salad": https://pjwassermann.bandcamp.com

Elantric


aliensporebomb

Is this 1.01 a new update to prepare for Mountain Lion which will be out pretty quickly now?  I could have sworn I already had 1.01 but mine says 1.00 but I think their developers neglected to update the version field.

According to this: http://wallstcheatsheet.com/stocks/leaked-apples-mountain-lion-release-date.html/

Mountain Lion will be available on the Mac App store on July 19th.

My music projects online at http://www.aliensporebomb.com/

GK Devices:  Roland VG-99, Boss GP-10, Boss SY-1000.

Elantric

The initial 2007 VG-99 OSX USB Driver was called 1.00

Thats the version on the Roland VG-99 Driver CD-ROM that ships  with the unit

THROW THAT CD-ROM AWAY!!!
Its full of buggy software.


Then in Late 2007 Roland released a  OSX USB Driver was called "VG-99 Driver Ver.1.0.1 for Mac OS X (10.3.9 to 10.5)"

Today there are actually three different VG-99 OSX drivers available.

Be sure to ONLY use the correct version VG-99 USB Driver for your version of OSX!

ALL current VG-99 drivers  and Editor  / Librarian can be located here:

http://www.roland.com/support/article/?q=downloads&p=VG-99



Elantric

#8
QuoteMountain Lion will be available on the Mac App store on July 19th.

Which translates into Roland shipping Mountain Lion USB drivers for VG-99 / GR-55 sometime next year.

It took them 6 months to finally ship the OSX Lion driver.

IF you are in the market for a new Mac - I would get one now, as that will still have OSX Lion.

If you wait until mid July, you may be stuck for a while until the hardware vendors deliver working Mountain Lion Drivers. 

Heres a Mountain Lion Software compatibility Guide
http://roaringapps.com/apps:table/order/updated_at%20desc/p/3

aliensporebomb

And what do you know - I update this again and now it does say 1.01 so I must have been running 1.00 for the last year or so.  Strange.

Seems to work well enough.
My music projects online at http://www.aliensporebomb.com/

GK Devices:  Roland VG-99, Boss GP-10, Boss SY-1000.

Elantric


Brent Flash

Quote from: Elantric on September 06, 2012, 06:52:43 AM
VG-99 Driver for OSX 10.8 Mountain Lion
http://www.roland.com/support/article/?q=downloads&p=VG%2D99&id=62472215
This works on my system in case anyone was waiting for someone to try it. Mountain Lion up and running on VG-99 Editor and Librarian.  :)


Elantric


Elantric


Elantric