Komplete Kontrol not loading instrument when opened on another computer

1337notes

I collaborate and share Cubase 13 projects with another user (on a different computer) on a daily basis. Nearly every time we open the project after the other user modified it, Komplete Kontrol instances are completely reset to a plain state, as if the instrument was just freshly added to the track. There's no error message or anything, Komplete Kontrol just says "Use the Browser or + button above to load an instrument".

For example, let's say we configure an instrument track to use "Studio Drummer" in Komplete Kontrol. Once the project is saved and synced/opened by the second user, Komplete Kontrol does not open Studio Drummer and does not play any sound until manually re-configured with Studio Drummer.

We've tried saving and exporting a preset to a .nksn file and putting it at the same relative path (Native Instruments folder/User Content in Documents) on the other computer, but it doesn't seem to help. Note that basically all other plugins (mostly Cubase-bundled VST plugins) work fine when sharing and correctly recall their settings without needing to export presets or anything.

I'm open to nearly any solution, even as far as messing with the Komplete Kontrol SQLite database, as something like this can be trivially integrated into our project synchronization workflow. Or if there's another way to use all of my instruments without Komplete Kontrol.

We're both on Windows 11, Komplete Kontrol 2.8.1, and have the exact same NI plugins installed, so it's possible for either of us to correct the issue and put the correct instrument back, at least until the other user opens it. I am aware that the best workaround may be to bounce to audio once we're happy with the sound, but this is still annoying. Any ideas?

1337notes

https://community.native-instruments.com/discussion/comment/229543#Comment_229543

Thanks for the reply and sorry for delay in feedback as it took longer than expected for my collaborator to send back some stuff using Kontakt.

It is looking like it is a KK issue and using Kontakt 7 directly appears to alleviate things so far. I was only using KK because when I first installed the NI stuff years ago, there were so many new plugins in my DAW, and I just stuck with the first one I found that let me use all of the instruments I had installed. Going forward, I will use Kontakt, and hopefully things will continue to work!

Vocalpoint

https://community.native-instruments.com/discussion/45721/komplete-kontrol-not-loading-instrument-when-opened-on-another-computer

Clearly all the "settings" from you to your target are not being replicated.

This is the same deal as in Studio One. Just because I save a song - does not mean that every extraneous setting for every instrument I use in a project - is baked into that singular song file.

Assuming Cubase is similar - you might need to be replicating your entire local settings for Komplete Kontrol and potentially a lot more - like it's database files and who knows what else.

Komplete Kontrol is a "host" itself and probably has a lot more baggage to it than simply including the plugin in a song.

VP

JesterMgee

The way it should work is the same as it would if you just shared a project without KK in the loop at all.

All KK does is sit in the middle and wrap a plugin inside itself however the way it loads the plugin is what matters and this comes down to your database and plugin version (if you use VST2/VST3)

I can only confirm all of this using KK V2, I have no clue if KK V3 messes anything up, would not at all surprise me if it does but in V2:

When you save a project in any DAW (the DAW should not matter) it does a plugin state request for all loaded plugins and when KK is requested for the state, it in turn then requests the state of the loaded plugin and this stores the actual plugin state (the position and settings of the plugins controls) as well as the PLID so it knows what plugin to load.

When you reload the project it will first load KK which in turn will check the PLID it stored when it was saved. This is then used to lookup and match to a plugin it has stored in its database which is why it is important for KK to scan your plugins so it knows what is available. If the PLID is found, the plugin is then loaded and the plugin state is then passed to the plugin where it will then check it is valid and of course if any library content is requested, it is installed.

Where things can go wrong is:

• If you do not have the plugin installed or scanned into KK on another system, the instance will not load.
• If the plugin is installed but the PLID does not match. This can sometimes happen between mac and PC for instance as some developers are a little sloppy and the PLID should be the same for both PC and Mac so a project can be cross platform however I have seen some developers set a different PLID for mac and PC meaning, a project will never migrate between these systems
• If a project used VST2 but the VST2 is not available on the second system instead VST3 is used. Some plugins can migrate between VST2 and VST3 but most do not so either the plugin does not load or it loads but the preset data is not loaded or the controls are not set correctly.

Questions / Suggestions:

Have you confirmed that both of you are using:
- The same Cubase version?
- The same Kontakt (or other plugin) versions?
- The same version of KK?

Are you both using VST3 only plugins? VST2 and VST3 will not exchange between each other so both of you need to be using not just the VST3 version of KK but also the VST3 version of the plugins.

Since this is happening with Studio Drummer as an example this is Kontakt based so there are sometimes issues between versions of Kontakt, both need to be at the same version.

Have you attempted to do some simplified tests. Create a blank project with KK loaded (with Studio drummer) and another track with just kontakt and Studio Drummer (no Komplete Kontrol). Save this and send it and see if it opens. If you find the instance of Kontakt outside of KK is also not loading, your issue is not KK it is the plugin.

Have you tested with a non-kontakt based plugin also? If you load a 3rd party plugin and do the same test as previous, does this load on the other end?

Basically, a project should load up the same as it was saved IF all the versions and plugins are the same between systems. I assume you can open your own project on your system just fine after saving which means it is saving correct, to me it sounds like an issue between versions of something so this is where you should be checking first.

Jeremy_NI

@1337notes Any feedback?

1337notes

https://community.native-instruments.com/discussion/comment/229543#Comment_229543

Thanks for the reply and sorry for delay in feedback as it took longer than expected for my collaborator to send back some stuff using Kontakt.

It is looking like it is a KK issue and using Kontakt 7 directly appears to alleviate things so far. I was only using KK because when I first installed the NI stuff years ago, there were so many new plugins in my DAW, and I just stuck with the first one I found that let me use all of the instruments I had installed. Going forward, I will use Kontakt, and hopefully things will continue to work!