Hey y’all, I have been working on this for 3+ days and have just about had enough, Please help me:

First off, I have a Yamaha Motif XS8, a Macbook Pro with Snowleopard, and am using Cubase AI 4. I am a ravid Motif XS user but would like to finally be able to use Cubase along with it’s mixing capabilities. I don’t want to use just the MIDI but i also want to have the audio from the Motif record straight into Cubase. I have purchased an mLan Firewire cord (IEEE1394) and have downloaded:

- Motif XS OS Updater V1.56

- Motif XS Editor V1.0.4

- Yamaha Steinberg FW Driver V1.5.1

- Yamaha USB - MIDI V1.2.1

- Studio Manager V2.3.2

I have updated the firmware on the Motif (lost all my songs as along with it) and now am trying to sync the Motif with Cubase AI 4. NOTHING IS WORKING. I have the editor working with the keyboard, but when I try to record nothing comes up.

Also, if there’s a way to use Garageband with the Motif, please let me know, I would prefer that much more than Cubase.

One more thing, is there a way I can post pictures on this forum? I have snapshots of all the error messages I’m getting from Cubase. Let me know…

Welcome to the forums.

Sorry to hear you lost some of your Song data attempting to update your Motif XS. You should not have lost all of your songs when you updated the firmware - the instructions tell you to how to SAVE your data in an ALL data file prior to doing the update.

We are going to assume you downloaded the Motif XS Editor VST V1.4.0 (as there is no such thing as “Motif XS Editor V1.0.4")

We also have to assume that you visited http://www.steinberg.net and updated your Cubase AI4 to the latest version 4.5.2 (as you do not mention this).

Also not mentioned (but helpful) would be the Motif XS Extensions V1.5.1 for Mac OS X (as these add setup templates that will greatly ease the task of getting up and running).

When you are using the Motif XS with the Yamaha Steinberg FW driver (YSFW) you need to verify the following settings in your Motif XS:
Press [UTILITY]
Press [F1] GENERAL
Press [SF4] AUTO LOAD
Ensure that the IEEE1394 Driver = FW
If not, change the setting, then press [STORE] to write this preference to your Flash ROM
You will need to reboot the Motif XS for this setting to take place.

Next, you want to make sure that the MIDI communication is set to mLAN:
Press [UTILITY]
Press [F5] CONTROL
Press [SF2] MIDI
Ensure that the MIDI IN/OUT = mLAN
Press [STORE] to write this preferecne to your Flash ROM.

I have updated the firmware on the Motif (lost all my songs as along with it) and now am trying to sync the Motif with Cubase AI 4. NOTHING IS WORKING. I have the editor working with the keyboard, but when I try to record nothing comes up.

We’ll need a bit more detail here. When you try to record what? MIDI or Audio? If MIDI please recount how far you have gotten… have you selected the DEVICES > VST INSTRUMENTS > EXTERNAL > MOTIF XS VST… it should ask you to create a MIDI track and make the assignment for you. Have you gotten that far?

If you are attempting to record audio - which of the 8 stereo outputs are you attempting to record on? Have you gone to FILE > VSTI SETUP and setup the Motif XS RETURNS to Cubase?

Let us know a few more details we’d be happy to help.

We have a tutorial showing some of the possibilities:
Motif XS Editor VST: A Getting Started Guide

Hey thanks for replying. Yeah, I knew about the possibility that I could lose my songs with the firmware update but took my chances with the hope that my firmware was recent enough not to have everything deleted.

Anyway, I apologize, I did download Editor V1.4.0, not 1.0.4, small typo. And I have the Motif XS Extensions V1.5.1 as well. I have done the setup on the Motif, changed the IEEE1394 Driver to FW and changed the MIDI IN/OUT to mLan but for some reason it won’t allow my Motif to connect to Cubase. When I open Cubase it shows a pop-up listing the Motif Ports but telling me that they are all unmapped (again, I would show you the snapshot I took of it if I knew how). 

I have gotten to the point where the Motif XS VST Instrument is connected and it has opened the editor which is working beautifully but I can’t figure out how to record the audio onto Cubase (to answer your question).

Also, at one point (about a month ago) I got to the point where it would record the MIDI but can’t get back to that point.

When I open Cubase it shows a pop-up listing the Motif Ports but telling me that they are all unmapped

You are, opening or attempting to open a file that was done previously. Cubase is reporting to you that when you saved that file the ports used were different than those now available… and it is offering you an opportunity to repoint the data to the new device.

You can either repoint the saved port assignment on that very screen or you do it manually later (on a track by track basis)… whichever is more convenient. You have not provided us with details about the file you are opening, so we cannot advise you.

If you are just learning the system, we suggest that you start by creating a New Project - just for the purpose of learning. Then when you save the data you will be able to open it and the ports will point to the ports as they were set when you saved.

When attempting to open a previous file with a different port setup, simply click on the “unmapped” word and point each to the appropriate ports on your Motif XS8 which should appear as options to select.

Bad_Mister,
This window comes up even when I do open a new project. I never save any of these projects because I am only trying to connect the Motif. Is there a certain project type I must open for it to be compatible with the keyboard? Most of the time I choose “Yamaha Motif XS8 multi channel recording”.

You would choose “Motif XS8 Multi-channel recording” when you wish to have Audio outputs from the the Motif XS assigned to audio tracks of Cubase. This does not engage the “Motif XS Editor VST” and that is what I thought you wanted to do.

When the screen comes up to remap the ports - if it is not finding your Motif XS8 at all then you need to go through the checklist to make sure your Motif XS8 is set to IEEE1394 Driver = FW, and that MIDI IN/OUT = mLAN.

I thought you wanted to use the Motif XS Editor VST - which I’m sure there is a template for; it automatically sets up the Motif XS Editor VST. (Just as the tutorial I linked you to does - with a few adjustments as noted in the accompanying text)

Try the NEW PROJECT template “Motif XS8 with VST Editor”

Thanks, I’ll try that and let you know as soon as I have time.