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SoundFont Instruments
When you are using the built-in synth, the SoundFont Instruments window lays out every instrument in the bank that is currently loaded, so you can see exactly what you have to play with.
- Open it from Display → SoundFont Instruments.
What it shows#
- A scrollable grid of every preset in the active bank, grouped under bank headers, with each instrument's position and name.
- Each instrument's polyphony cost: a small
×2-style figure on the right of the cell showing how many voices a single note of that preset uses. Stereo and layered instruments use more voices per note, so they reach the voice limit sooner. Hover over a cell for the full wording. (Shown when you have loaded your own SoundFont; the bundled Apple bank does not report it.) - The bank header stays pinned as you scroll, and the grid pans sideways if there are many columns.
- A summary of how many instruments the bank contains.
The window always follows whatever the built-in synth is using: the bundled Apple sound bank by default, or your own SoundFont once you load one. Swap in a different SoundFont and the list updates to match, no refresh needed.
When it is useful#
A few moments where it earns its keep:
- Checking which instruments a SoundFont actually provides before relying on it.
- Finding the bank and program of a sound you want to use, for example when choosing a voice in Performance Mode or the Mixer.
- Spotting which instruments are the expensive ones on a busy file: the higher the voices-per-note figure, the faster they fill the POLY meter.
Related pages#
- MIDI Output & Devices to load a SoundFont.
- The Mixer to give a single channel its own SoundFont.
- Unique SoundFont to pair a file with its own bank.