Build two racks with different plugins.

[bigalminal]

The title says it all - how can I build two different racks with different plugins? I started with Rack 1 and loaded the minimum number of plugins needed. Then I buillt Rack 2 with a completely different set of VST's. When I came back to Rack 1, the plugins from Rack 2 were in there as well. Would it work if I used Forte 3 for Rack 1 and Forte 4 for Rack 2? All I'm trying to do is load the minimum number of plugins per rack to ease load time and scene change time. What is the answer here please?

[evilantal]

That's very weird....

I use many different racks, some with a lot of plugins, some just 1.
Are you sure you're not overwriting anything?

[bigalminal]

Ahh, so it can be done. Does the list of scanned VSTs differ from rack to rack? I haven't got my laptop at the moment as it's away under warranty, but I was pretty sure that the VSTs list was common to both racks. However, I may be missing something, so how do I go about doing what I want to do?

[evilantal]

I have the same list of scanned VSTs for all racks as this is shaed among racks/forte instances.
I just create a new rack and start adding plugins and busses. Nothing fancy.

Maybe you should share the offending rack files with Mike so he can take a look...

[bigalminal]

If I remove a plugin from one rack, it disappears from the other one too. Does this happen as a normal occurrence?

[MikeG]

That is not normal - I think somehow you are using the same file. Please verify and/or exit Forte and restart with the different file.

VST plugin lists are global to the installation (not per file).

[bigalminal]

They are two different files - one is for a wireless guitar controller and the other is for a wireless keytar. I'd like to install Kontact in the keytar rack, but my worry is that Kontact will also be available in the guitar controller rack thus considerably increasing load times. Or bogging it down with VSTs it doesn't need. Can what I want to do be done? Is it possible to prevent plugins loading on one rack but allow them to load in another?

[MikeG]

Please visit the support site and upload both racks. There is clearly something in your configuration that is unusual. Forte handles rack files as separate documents.

[bigalminal]

Guitar and Keytar racks both uploaded Mike.

[bigalminal]

Ok this seems to have stalled. I experimented with the keytar rack by selecting a few plugins in the VST Manager window and then actioning the command "Ignore selected plugins". However, when I loaded the Guitar rack, those same plugins were ignored there also. This begs the question - "is there no way that I can have some plugins available for one rack but not another?" Seems to me that this is an oversight. If I do go ahead and install Kontact 5 for use in the Keytar rack, then it is also going to load in the guitar rack where it will never be needed and will drastically slow down load times, also causing possible glitches and drop outs.

Will the following solutions work?
1. Intall a 32 bit version of Forte (will it run alongside of the 64bit version and intall its own plugins?)
2. Install Forte 3 in addition to Forte 4 (will both run together and independently of each other with their own plugins?)

[evilantal]

[bigalminal]

Hi evalantal,
Thanks for replying. I uploaded the the two racks to Mike but I seem to have dropped off the radar, hence reposting here. What can I do? I have a replacement Surface Pro 4 (new about a month ago under warranty) with a new Win 10 install etc etc. Forte is a new install and I have the Surface set to high performance. I keep having Forte tell me that it has stopped working, so I know there is a problem. But unless I know where the problem is, I can't fix it. I have spent many hours (probably over 200) programming over 210 scenes in the guitar rack so there are just too many to go back to the start and begin again. I have also stressed the rack without any problems and trim the rack quite often. How can I check my configuration? Are there hidden settings somewhere in Forte that I can tweak? I'm really at my wits end over this, and recently looked at Cantabile as an alternative and seriously considered dumping Forte. What stopped me was Forte's performance mode using scene view, and also that fact that Cantabile seemed more complicated and harder to use. Please - help required:)

[MikeG]

Sorry - you've not dropped off the radar. You are front and center in my list but I have been slammed with other stuff and was out of Thanksgiving break.

[MikeG]

I think one of the fundamental misunderstandings here is terminology.

In an email to me asked "When a rack is loaded in safe mode, we have the option of loading only certain plugins by ticking them". Forte actually does not LOAD any plugins unless you add them to an instrument module or a bus insert in a rack file. Just because they are in the plugin list doesn't mean they are loaded. In fact, that list is created when you run the plugin manager to scan for plugins, and Forte does not touch the plugin DLL files after that until you actually choose it for use in a rack.

Does that clarify things? Its the rack plugin instances that matter.

About the only time a plugin matters in that global list is when it conflicts with another plugin. That's all managed in the plugin manager.

Mike