MIDI specific procedures
This section describes basic procedures for MIDI channels in the mixer.
Selecting what to show in the extended MIDI channel strip
When using the extended channel strip view options (see “Normal vs. Extended channel strips” on page 126), the upper panel can be set to show different views for each MIDI channel strip. You select what to display for each channel by using the View options pop-up menu at the top of each channel strip. The following views are possible:
• The MIDI insert effects.
MIDI inserts can also be found in the Inspector and the Channel Settings window for MIDI channels. How to use MIDI insert effects is described in the chapter “MIDI realtime parameters and effects” on page 342.
• The MIDI send effects.
The sends can also be found in the Inspector and the Channel Settings window for MIDI channels. How to use MIDI send effects is described in the chapter “MIDI realtime parameters and effects” on page 342.
•The “Meter” option shows large level (velocity) meters in the extended panel.
•You can also select the “Overview” option – this shows a graphic overview of which insert effect slots and effect sends are activated for the channel.
You can click the indicators to turn the corresponding slot/send on or off.
•The “User Panel” option allows you to import MIDI device panels – this is described in the separate PDF document “MIDI Devices”.
•Selecting “Empty” will display a blank panel in the extended strip.
•By selecting from the View options pop-up on the common panel, you can set the view for all channels in the mixer.
Selecting EQ or Surround Panners (which apply to audio channels only) will not change the view for MIDI channels. Selecting inserts or send effects from the common panel will change the view for all channel types.
Using Channel Settings
For each MIDI channel strip in the mixer (and MIDI track in the Track list or the Inspector), there is an Edit (“e”) button.
Clicking this opens the MIDI Channel Settings window. By default, this window contains a duplicate of the mixer channel strip, a section with four MIDI inserts and a section with four MIDI send effects.
You can customize the Channel Settings window, by showing/hiding the different panels and/or by changing their order:
•To specify, which panels should be shown/hidden, right-click in the Channel settings window, and activate/deactivate the respective options on the Customize View submenu on the context menu.
•To change the order of the panels, select “Setup” on the Customize View pop-up menu and use the “Move up” and “Move Down” buttons in the dialog that opens.
Every MIDI channel has its own channel settings.
The MIDI Channel Settings window.
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The mixer
Utilities
Link/Unlink channels
This function is used to “link” selected channels in the mixer so that any change applied to one channel will be mirrored by all channels in that group. You can link as many channels as you like, and you can also create as many groups of linked channels as you like. To link channels in the mixer, proceed as follows:
1. Press [Ctrl]/[Command] and click on all the channels you want to link.
[Shift]-clicking allows you to select a continuous range of channels.
2.Right-click somewhere on the gray mixer panel.
The Mixer context menu appears.
3.Select “Link Channels” from the context menu.
• To unlink channels, select one of the linked channels and select “Unlink Channels” from the Mixer context menu.
The channels are unlinked. Note that you do not need to select all the channels that are linked, only one of them.
Ö It is not possible to remove individual channels from Link status.
To make individual settings to a linked channel, press [Alt]/[Option] when changing the setting.
What will be linked?
The following rules apply for linked channels:
•Only level, mute, solo, select, monitor and record enable will be linked between channels.
Effect/EQ/pan/input and output routing settings are not linked.
•Any individual channel settings you have made before linking will remain until you alter the same setting for any of the linked channels.
For example, if you link three channels, and one of them was muted at the time you applied the Link Channel function, this channel will remain muted after linking. However, if you mute another channel all linked channels will be muted. Thus, the individual setting for one channel is lost as soon as you change the same parameter setting for any of the linked channels.
•Fader levels will be “ganged”.
The relative level offset between channels will be kept if you move a linked channel fader.
The three channels shown are linked. Pulling down one fader changes the levels for all three channels, but keeps the relative level mix.
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• By pressing [Alt]/[Option], you can make individual settings and changes for channels that are linked.
Ö Linked channels have individual automation subtracks. These are completely independent, and are not affected by the Link function.
The Window submenu
The Mixer context menu, opened by right-clicking anywhere on the Mixer window background, provides the Window submenu. Its options are handy for quickly switching to another open mixer window, showing/hiding the different mixer panes etc. It contains the following options:
• Show Routing View
Allows you to show/hide the topmost section of the mixer which contains the input/output routing settings.
• Show Extended View
Allows you to show/hide the middle section of the mixer, where you can display different settings for the channels (EQs, Send effects, etc.).
• Next Mixer
This displays the next mixer window (if you have several mixer windows open).
It is possible to save complete mixer settings for selected or all audio channels in the mixer. These can later be loaded into any project. Channel settings are saved as mixer settings files. These have the Windows file extension “.vmx”.
Right-clicking somewhere in the mixer panel or in the Channel Settings window brings up the Mixer context menu where the following Save options can be found:
•“Save Selected Channels” will save all channel settings for the selected channels.
Input/output routings are not saved.
•“Save All Mixer Settings” saves all channel settings for all channels.
When you select any of the above options, a standard file dialog opens where you can select a name and storage location on your disk for the file.
Loading mixer settings
Load Selected Channels
To load mixer settings saved for selected channels, proceed as follows:
Saving mixer settings
Saving/Loading mixer settings does not apply to MIDI channels in the mixer – only audio-related channels (group, audio, instrument, effect return, VSTi and ReWire) are saved with this function!
1. Select the same number of channels in the new project to match the number of channels you saved settings for in the previous project.
For example, if you saved settings for six channels, select six channels in the mixer.
• Mixer settings will be applied in the same order as they were in the mixer.
Thus, if you save settings from channels 4, 6 and 8 and apply these settings to channels 1, 2 and 3, the settings saved for channel 4 would be applied to channel 1, the settings saved for channel 6 to channel 2 and so on.
2.Right-click the mixer panel to open the context menu, and select “Load Selected Channels”.
A standard file dialog appears, where you can locate the saved file.
3.Select the file and click “Open”.
The channel settings are applied to the selected channels.
If you choose to apply mixer settings to fewer channels than you saved, the order of the saved channels in the mixer applies – i.e. the saved channels that are “left over” and not applied will be the channels with the highest channel numbers (or furthest to the right in the mixer).
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Load All Mixer Settings
Selecting “Load All Mixer Settings” from the context menu allows you to open a saved mixer settings file, and have the stored settings applied to all channels for which there is information included in the file. All channels, master settings, VST Instruments, sends and master effects will be affected.
Ö Please note that if the saved mixer settings were for 24 channels, for example, and the mixer you apply it to currently contains 16 channels, only the settings for channels 1 to 16 will be applied – this function will not automatically add channels.
About the VST Performance window
The VST Performance window is opened from the Devices menu. It indicates the current load on the CPU and the hard disk transfer rate. It is recommended that you check this from time to time, or keep it always open. Even though you have been able to activate a number of audio channels in the project without getting any warning, you may run into performance problems when adding EQ or effects.
•The upper bar graph shows the CPU (processor) load.
If the red Overload indicator lights up, you need to decrease the number of EQ modules, active effects and/or audio channels playing back simultaneously.
•The lower bar graph shows the hard disk transfer load.
If the red overload indicator lights up, the hard disk is not supplying data fast enough to the computer. You may need to reduce the number of tracks playing back by using the Disable Track function (see “About track disable/ enable” on page 62). If this doesn’t help, you need a faster hard disk. Note that the overload indicator may occasionally blink, e.g. when you locate during playback. This does not indicate a problem, but happens because the program needs a moment for all channels to load data for the new playback position.
Ö The CPU and Disk load meters can also be shown on the Transport panel (as “Performance”) and on the Project window toolbar (as “Performance Meter”).
There they are shown as two miniature vertical meters (by default at the left side of the panel/toolbar).
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The mixer