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Sorry if this is difficult for you to get your head around. Learning to tie the laces on one’s shoes is simple, writing an instruction for it makes it seem far more difficult than it actually is and may indeed take a five paragraph explanation. But this does not change the fact that the function is quite simple, really.

If you have a legacy program with multiple Parts, (legacy Performance) and your goal is to use it in your MONTAGE or MODX, convert it using the “Import Option” = PERF. If you simply want to use it, fine you’re done. Easy-peazy

If however, you wish to convert it to make (assemble portions of it to) a new MONTAGE or MODX Library... one that is fit for distribution, or loading into a MONTAGE or MODX that does not have your specific Waveform catalog, you must construct a new Waveform catalog... that has the requirement that the Waveforms loaded to the User Waveform area.

Solution: load them directly to User, period.

This new catalog is constructed (only) when Single Part (legacy Voices) are the subject of initial conversion via “Import Option” = Voice.
When converting legacy Performances that contain custom Waveforms, all data is made playable in the most efficient manner. All Elements reference the one instance of Waveforms installed to the Library location. Or the User location if you wisely direct them there!

Fact: only Single Part data (legacy Voice) is repointed to copies of the original Waveform during Library Import (it’s been that way since early firmware)

Now, if you understood how the MOXF, Motif XS/XF worked, a Multi Part Performance that used Voices that housed custom Waveforms, might have those Same Waveforms used in many Performances... If the custom data was used in 16 XF Performances... the efficient thing for the MONTAGE/MODX to do when asked to convert this data is point all of the Part’s and their Elements, to the one instance of the data installed to Flash. And that is just what it does when you direct it to a Library.

In order to repoint Elements to Waveforms, (what happens in “Library Import” when the Single Part Data is converted), the Instruments work with the individually selected items (checked data). If you have checked multiple legacy Voices, the Import function dutifully resolves any duplication issues by sorting through the entire catalog of selected data. (If you imported them one at a time you’d potentially wind up with a ton of duplicated Waveforms). The fact that they are done in a single operation allows it to resolve the potential for duplication.

This begs the question WHEN would one want to repoint each Element that is used in the custom data... When? only, mind you, ONLY when you are building a new custom Library... using the selected data.

In a nutshell: If you were to Import the data from the legacy file one at a time, you would necessarily wind up with Duplicate Waveforms. By allowing the synth to review all selected programs in one single operation, it is then able to resolve all instances of each use, and avoid duplications.

It’s that simple and that complex, but makes sense when you know what it’s doing.

Adding Performance conversion (not in original firmware) easy enough to request, but came with this very important difference from converting legacy Voices. Most MOXF, Motif XS/XF owner’s understood very little about how Performances worked , they only knew that if the wrong Voices were loaded in Voice Bank, the Performances might not play right. How come I can’t just load a Single Performance was the frequently asked question... well, a Performance was not the Voice, was not the Waveform, the Performance was a set of pointers that pointed to a second set of pointers. (Are they going to fix that in an update?) well no, the Performances were pointers that pointed to other pointers. Performances made up of Parts, which pointed to Voices, which pointed to Waveforms.

Same story, difficult to understand but that’s how it worked. If you never understood the Voice and it’s relationship to the Part in the legacy products, you’d never get the Performance. And certainly you’d never understand why those crazy folks at Yamaha didn’t include Performance conversion...(Are they going to fix that in an update?) well, yes, (who knew, they did!) but if you never understood Voice/Performance, you’ll never understand Voice Import versus Performance Import. Alas, I had hoped you’d get it?

In other words, I guess if you never understood Legacy Performances it makes sense this would be a head scratcher...
Anyway let me handle questions, if this confuses you, until you can update to current firmware and experience all this yourself...

Granted: “LIBRARY IMPORT is a shortcut that allows the user to load and play legacy data without overwriting the User Workspace (USER BANK). As you know Loading a .X7U/.X8U File always overwrites all data in that target User Bank. Therefore, loading the legacy Voice data to a Library allows you to select what you want from that legacy file.

In order to ADD new data to the User Bank without overwriting the data already assembled in there, you can install temporarily to a Library, then repoint the data... using the Library Import.

If (sorry, I know “IF” is a big troublesome word) you want to shortcut the shortcut, you CANNOT. IF you want to assemble data from a legacy Performance file, the solution is SIMPLE: you must load the data directly to the User Bank. You must START with this file in USER... it is the ONLY way to create the Single catalog entries you’re going to need to manage the data. (This is how it works in 2.5, if later that changes I will update my 5-paragraph explanation with a new one!)

This allows the synth to create an efficient catalog entry for each Waveform (with no duplicates). And it does not have to sort out all uses of the data scattered among all the multiple Parts which is the potential situation with legacy Performances... It is possible in a legacy file that the same samples are used in dozens and dozens of Performances... when installing that data initially, it does so in the most efficient manner (one instance of the data) and all Elements reference that installation.

If you pay no attention to all of this, your data will work... you may wonder why you run out of memory, prematurely, though, if you fail to grok when to use the Library Shuffle and when NOT to... it’s in kind of an odd time signature, but once you ‘get it’ it really swings! Y’dig?

Hope that helps!

Suggestion is merely to modify the documentation to match the behavior as a service to users and support.

Documentation can match by adding text or by changing the feature to match. I have no suggestion on which is better.

I can say that lack of indication on the Library Import screen (some different color, for example, for Performances that will not have the Waveform imported) is part of what makes usage of the feature difficult. The benefit of such an indicator would be: after loading your Library ages ago, of knowing if content is legacy and is multi-vs-single PART (legacy single-PART content not flagged, legacy multi-PART is flagged if user samples will not be re-pointed).

Users do not only think to use "Library Import" directly after loading content (into user or library areas) - but sometimes use import long after content was loaded into the device. The preferred set of steps - where you have control over when and how users load their data can fall apart if they follow a different path. And this isn't their fault or mine for pointing out that documentation or design could be better.

There's a difference in understanding the limitations and knowing there's a pitfall and wanting to make strides to eliminate pitfalls. Or, at least, provide reasonable official documentation which outlines the limitations.

Thank you for your commitment to customer satisfaction.

There is no real mystery about *where* the Element is looking for its Waveform. It can be easily verified (highly recommended when preparing any data). So even if at a later time one addresses the Library... again it’s simply a matter of navigating to where the Element meets the Waveform... and take a look. This is so highly recommended, I cannot see proceeding without knowing the source of all AWM2 Elements.

From HOME:
Press [EDIT]
Select the AWM2 Part
Touch “Osc/Tune”
Touch Elem1-Elem8 along the bottom of the screen or if on a MONTAGE, press buttons 1-8 on row four - right front panel - to view the Elements 1-8 assignments. The Waveform “Bank” is always clearly indicated along the top of the screen. Touching that box will let you look for the other Waveforms in the Bank, or even Category Search through any of your Waveform Banks.

A Performance can reference a Preset, a User or a Library Waveform... in any combination.
Before saving any data, the wise programmer knows which way is up... which Bank is currently being accessed. And again, it only matters when moving your data to a MONTAGE that is not your own.

I want folks who do export their data to other units to know how to ensure the location of their Waveforms. So that they don’t wind up with surprises at the gig. In general, even if you have data pointing three different places in your Performances... creating a BACKUP File .X7A will take care of everything.

Hy to all!
I was asking the same question abut library vs user file area.
I understand that something with the sample robot it's not all right.
But also this explanation of libraries and user area is to long and seems to me that yamaha is in the '90 with the store and load proces.All other keyboard can connect to the Pc like a usb and then you can do what you want.
I bought Montage for playing not for reading this long instructions that said nothing....
For the future:Just let us load and save Performance(one at the time) and Sample robot need to let us save one performance. And do like the others:Connect the Montage on Pc and give us some editing programs(we paid 3500 euro) instead of buyin John Melas software. Why you(Yamaha)don't pay the John Melas software? Didn't we alredy paid a lot?