BankStep is a software emulation of analog synthesizer hardware bank sequencers that generates sound control signals as MIDI. It does not produce sound but can create standard MIDI music files.
BankStep is a software designed to emulate the hardware bank sequencers of large analog synthesizers, providing control for producing sound. This software produces MIDI instead of analog control voltages and also allows the creation of standard MIDI music files. BankStep is capable of emulating a large $50,000 bank of hardware sequencers and supporting modules. It can sit on top of a big Moog analog synthesizer, MIDI module, soft synth or sound card.
The main module in BankStep is the Bank module, featuring a 3 to 4 bank knob sequencer with a maximum of 48 columns. It is a "smart" module that sets sequence start and end points, with the ability to switch direction automatically. BankStep does not have dangling patch chords. Instead, module inputs connect to outputs with a selection from a popup menu of all available outputs. When an input is connected to an output, the input button label indicates the connection.
BankStep is modular in concept, but it doesn't create modules as part of the composing process as SoftStep and ArtWonk do. Users are free to create their module layouts, but it should not be part of the composing process, just as specifying the modules of a hardware modular synthesizer is separate from the use of the modules in creating music. This feature is less flexible than SoftStep and ArtWonk, but it's easier to get started and more familiar as you use the same layout over and over.
Users can create music with BankStep, but they are not creating an algorithmic music composition. Instead, they create music with a stack of sequencers, just as they would work with a stack of hardware sequencers. BankStep offers more sequencers to work with, contributing to a wider range of possibilities.
The main module in BankStep is the Bank module, featuring a 3 to 4 bank knob sequencer with a maximum of 48 columns. It is a "smart" module that sets sequence start and end points, with the ability to switch direction automatically. BankStep does not have dangling patch chords. Instead, module inputs connect to outputs with a selection from a popup menu of all available outputs. When an input is connected to an output, the input button label indicates the connection.
BankStep is modular in concept, but it doesn't create modules as part of the composing process as SoftStep and ArtWonk do. Users are free to create their module layouts, but it should not be part of the composing process, just as specifying the modules of a hardware modular synthesizer is separate from the use of the modules in creating music. This feature is less flexible than SoftStep and ArtWonk, but it's easier to get started and more familiar as you use the same layout over and over.
Users can create music with BankStep, but they are not creating an algorithmic music composition. Instead, they create music with a stack of sequencers, just as they would work with a stack of hardware sequencers. BankStep offers more sequencers to work with, contributing to a wider range of possibilities.
What's New
Version 2.1: Released as Freeware