Threeapproachestoinputmonitoring:anInputMonitorenabledaudiotrackhandlesthesignalfromReason4(above),whileanauxtrackissetuptoreceivethereturnfromaYamahaREV500effectsunit.Meanwhile,MOTU'sCueMixConsole(lurkingbottomleft)providesazerolatencymonitorofaKorgRadiassynth.

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PublishedinSOSMarch2008:Closewindow

InputMonitoringinDigitalPerformerDigitalPerformerNotes&TechniquesTechnique:DigitalPerformerNotes

There'smoreusefulstuffthanyoucanshakeastickatthismonth,includingadviceoninputmonitoring,waystogetaroundlatencyissues,andnewsofCDburningandaudionetworkingapplicationstomakeyourlifeeasier.RobinBigwood

Overthelastcoupleofmonthswe'vebeenlookingatmonitoring:whatitis,andhowtomakeitworkforyouinDigitalPerformerwitharangeoftypicalstudiosituationsandhardwaresetups.Inthisfinalinstalmentofourmonitoringextravaganza,DP5'sInputMonitorfunctionandauxtrackscomeunderthespotlight,andIoffersuggestionsforincorporatinghardwareeffectsunitsintoyourDPbasedrig.

NotJustForRecording

Youcouldbeforgivenforthinkingthatmonitoringisonlyrelevantforrecordingspecifically,forsupplyingaheadphonebackingtrackmixtoanartistrecordingaperformance.Butitencompassesmorethanthis,especiallyinthemodernstudiointegratinghardwareandsoftwaresynthsandeffects.

ToillustratewhatImean,imagineReasonandDParerunningonthesameMac.TheRewirelinkbetweenthetwoapplicationscarriesaudiofromReasontoDP,butinordertohearReasonatallsomesortof'openinput'isneededinDP.Anauxtrackisoftenperfectforthis,bringingtheReasonaudiointoDP'sMixingBoard,andallowingittobemixedalongsideothertracktypes.WhattheauxtrackisreallydoingismonitoringthelivesignalfromReason,allowingtheengineertohearitwhileworkingonotheraspectsofthemix,justasasingerwouldhearabackingtrackastheyrecordedvocals.

These'openinputs'areusefulforallsortsofthings,notjustReason.Youcouldusethemtomonitorthereturnfromahardwareeffectsunit,thesignalfromahardwaresynth,orasignalfromanotherMacarrivingdigitallyviaanADATconnectionoracrossanetwork.Alltheseneedtobemonitoredasyouworkonyourtrack,untilyouchoosetorecordthemandcapturetheirsignalstoanaudiotrack.Sowhataretheoptionsavailabletoyou?

Auxtracks:AuxtracksarealongstandingDPfeature.Youcan'trecordontheminsteadthey'realotlikemixingdeskchannels.Theycanbefedwithinputsfromyouraudiointerface,DP'sinternalbusses,ortheRewiresignalfromothersoftwareallofwhichisusefulfromamonitoringpointofview.What'sgreataboutthem,too,isthattheiroperationisnotaffectedbyDP5'sAudioPatchThrumodeyoucouldhaveitsettoOffandthey'dstillwork.Also,ifyouhaveaMOTUaudiointerfaceandareusingDirectHardwarePlaythroughmode,theystillallowyoutomonitoryourinputthroughanyeffectspluginsinstantiated.

Audiotracks:You'vealwaysbeenabletomonitorinputsignalsthroughaudiotracks,courtesyofDP'sAudioPatchThrufeature,bysimplyrecordenablingthem.ButinrecentversionsofDPyouhavemoreflexibility,thankstotheInputMonitorfunction.Thismeansthatanaudiotrackcanbemadetopermanently'patchthru'itsinputtoitsoutput,whetherthetrackisrecordenabledornot.Justclickthetrack'sInputMonitorbuttonintheTracksOverview(the'Mon'column),SequenceEditor(aloudspeakericoninthetrack'sinfopane)orMixingBoard(theInputbuttonnexttoRec,SoloandMute).AnInputMonitorenabledaudiotrackisnotquitethesameasanauxtrack,though.First,itdoesrespectDP5'sAudioPatchThrumode,soifthat'ssettoOfftheInputMonitorfunctionisessentiallydisabled.Also,ifyou'reusingDirectHardwarePlaythroughmodewithacompatibleMOTUaudiointerface,InputMonitorwillnotrunthesignalthroughDP(oranyeffectspluginsonthetrack),butinsteadsetupatemporaryCueMixzerolatencyrouting.

Inthisarticle:NotJustForRecordingARealworldExampleDealingWithLatencyDPToCD?Who'sRecommending

Soundfly?

SoundOnSound:Est.1985

TheTimeShiftplugincanhelptocompensateformonitoringlatencywithsynthsdrivenfromMIDItracks.

Zerolatencyhardwaremonitoring:There'snothingtosaywehavetocontrolallmonitorsignalsfromexternalhardwarewithDP.Inmanycasesthebestapproachistomonitorexternaleffectsreturns,andespeciallyhardwaresynths,viaahardwaremixeroranaudiointerfacewithzerolatencymonitoring,asyoumightwhensettingupmonitoringforavocaltake.TheexternalhardwaresignalscanbeincorporatedintoyourcontrolroommixindependentlyofDP,untilyouwanttorecordthemintoyourtrack.AtthispointyoujustrecordenablesomeaudiotracksinDPandroutethemin.

ARealworldExample

Here'sasituationI'vemockedupthatincorporatesallthreetypesofinputmonitoring,usingmyownsetupofaPowerMacG5andMOTUTraveler(whichhasCueMixzerolatencymonitoring).I'mrunningDP5.13andReason4,andalsohavesomeexternalhardware:aKorgRadiassynthandaYamahaREV500reverb.Thisishoweverything'scoordinated(seescreenatstartofarticle):

Input:Reasonsoftware

MonitoringMethod:InputMonitorenabledaudiotrack.

Description:Asit'sprovidingsomesynthandpercussionparts,IwanttomonitorReasonconstantlyasIworkonmysong.UsinganaudiotrackwithInputMonitorallowsmetodothis,andwhenI'mnearingcompletionI'llrecordenableittorecordthesignalsasaudioinDP

Input:Radiassynth

MonitoringMethod:CueMix

Description:AsI'musingtheRadiastoprovidethebasisofmyarrangement,includingbassandkeyrhythmicparts,Iwanttohearitcompletelyfreeoflatency.HenceI'vesetuphardwaremonitoringintheCueMixConsole:theRadiassignalisnotcomingintoDPatall.ButwhenI'vefinishedmysong,I'llrecordtheseparatepartsintoDPonaudiotracksforthefinalmixandanyfurthertreatment.

Input:REV500hardwarereverb

MonitoringMethod:Auxtrack

Description:TheREV500ispatchedintomysetupsothatit'sfedbyoneoftheTraveler'soutputs(withacorrespondingAuxsendinDP)andreturnsbackintoacoupleofinputs.I'mbringingitssignalintoanAuxtracksoIcanfurthertreatitwithaMASplugin.IsuffersomelatencybecauseoftheroundtripoutofDPandtheTravelerandbackintoDP,butit'snotaproblem,asitsimplybecomesabitofadditionalreverbpredelay.IfIneedtorecordtheREV500'ssignallater,Icouldroutetheauxtrackviaabuspairtoarecordenabledaudiotrack.

ThisallworksgreatformeasI'mdevelopingmysong.ForAudioPatchThruI'musingtheBlendmode,andI'veseta512buffersize.Themixofhardwareandsoftwaremonitoringpresentsnoproblemshere.Butit'snotalwayssoeasy...

DealingWithLatency

Aswe'veseenoverthepastfewmonths,latencycanbeaproblemwithcertainapproachestomonitoring.Musiciansgenerallyhateitiftheheadphonemonitormixoftheirliveperformanceisanythingmorethanafewmillisecondslatewhichiswhyzerolatencysolutionslikesuitablyequippedinterfacesandhardwaremixersareroutinelyusedformonitoring.Butwhatifyoudon'thaveaccesstooneofthese,orif,forotherreasons,youmustmonitoryourexternalgearthroughDPanddon'twantlatency?

InthecaseofmonitoringsynthsandsamplersdrivenbyMIDI,DPautomaticallysortsoutlatencyissuesforsoftwaresynthsithosts,orthosecomingintoanauxoraudiotrackviaRewire.Soevenifyouusealargebuffersize,suchas1024,playbackofDPhostedorRewireconnectedsynthswillbeperfectlyintime.Butyou'llstillneedtouseasmallbuffersizetogetacrispresponsewhenplayingthemlivefromyourcontrollerkeyboard.ThesamegoesforhardwaresynthsmonitoredinDP,butoncetheirMIDItracksareinplaceyoucancompensateforthelatencyassociatedwithswitchingbacktoalargebuffersizebymakingtheMIDIplayearly.JustputaTimeShiftpluginoneachMIDItrackandsetthetracktoplayearlybyanappropriateamount.Youcanstartbydefiningitinsamples,tomatchyourbuffersize,beforefinetuningfurther.

Itseemssuchaniceidea,tohaveyourfavouritehardwarecompressororreverbunitpatchedintoyouraudiointerface,readytobeaddressedviaanauxsendonyouraudiotracks,andyetlatencyoftenspoils

Itain'tallthatpretty,butWaveEditorisanaffordableaudioeditorandCDburningapplicationthatcomplementsDPbeautifully,andincludesheavyweightfeatureslikeMBITditheringandDiscDescriptionProtocol(DDP)export.

IincorporatemyREV500reverbunitintomyDPmixesbyhavingitpatchedintomyTravelerinterface.Icanthenroutetracksignalstoitviaanauxsend(asontheVocalstrackhere),andIalsoneedanauxtracktohandleitssignalcomingbackintoDP.UsingtheLatencyFixerAUpluginIcancompletelyeradicatethelatencythatwouldotherwiseoccurinthisarrangement.

theparty.Inmyearlierexample,whereI'musingmyREV500forsomereverb,Icantakeabitoflatencyonitssignalbecauseitcomesoutsoundinglikepredelayonthereverb.Butforatrueprocessortreatment,likeEQorcompression(orifIjustdon'twantanypredelayonareverb)anyamountoflatencyiscompletelyunacceptable.Evenafewmillisecondscouldmessupthemusicaltimingofthemixorproducenastyphasinginsomecircumstances.Andazerolatencymonitoringschemedoesn'tfixit,becausethere'slatencyinherentinthesignalpassingoutofDP.What'sneededissomesortoflatencycompensation.

Now,ifyou'rethinkingDP5hasbuiltinlatencycompensationyou'reright,butit'sonlyforhostedplugins,notexternalrouting.However,afreewareAudioUnitplugindoesexistthatdoesexactlywhat'sneededforexternalroutinglatencycompensation:it'sLatencyFixer,fromwww.collective.co.uk/expertsleepersandit'saniftylittlething.Itworksbyfirstreportingalatency(which,usingthecontrols,yousetmanuallyintermsofsecondsorsamples)toDP.DPthencompensatesforthislatencybysendingtrackaudiotothepluginaheadoftime,butthepluginactuallyappliesnodelayatalltotheaudiopassingthroughit.Consequently,ifyouplaceitonanauxtrackthat'sbeingusedtofeedyouraudiotrackstoanexternaleffectsunit,thelatencyaccumulatedinthetripoutofDPandbackinagaincanbepreciselycompensatedforafterabitofexperimentation.ThescreensaboveshowhowIuseittorouteaudiotrackstomyexternalhardwarecompressor,theoutputofwhichcomesrightbackintomyDPMixingBoard.

DPToCD?

IntheAugustandSeptember2007PerformerworkshopsIlookedatsomewaysinwhichDPcanbeusedtoprepareanalbumlengthprojectforCDburning.DP'smultitrackaudiocapabilities,flexibleeffectsandautomationmakeitverygoodforthistask,eventhoughitdoesn'thaveanyfeaturesspecificallydesignedforit.DPcan'tdoCDburning,soyouhavetotransfertheresultingaudiofilestoanotherapplication,andit'sherethatyoucanhavedifficulties.Forexample,theapplicationsthatcanworkwithDP'snativestereoaudioformat,SplitSoundDesignerII,areeitherdiscontinued(Roxio'sJam),notavailableseparately(AppleWaveBurner),don'treadregioninformation(i3DSPQuattro)orareveryexpensive(BiasPeakProandSonicStudioPreMasterCD).Wouldn'titbegreattohaveanaudioeditorthatcouldloadanyaudioformat,includingSD2,correctlyreadregioninformation,andofferheavyweightediting,dithering,exportandburningoptions?Now,intheformofanupdatedWaveEditorbyAudiofileEngineering,youcan.

WaveEditor1.3isathoroughlyuptodateapplication,utilisingOSX'sCoreAudiofeaturesandpresentingaslick,customisableuserinterface.Itsreallyuniquefeatureisamultilayer(asopposedtomultitrack)approachtoediting,wherebyyoucanassembleonatimelinedifferentsectionsofaudioatanysamplerateandresolution,applyingfades,crossfadesandotherprocessingonorbetweeneachlayer.WhenthetimecomesforburningaCDorexportingyouraudiotoanotherformat,WaveEditortreatsanylayersatdifferingaudiospecswithiZotope'shighlyregardedSRCsamplerateconversionandMBIT+dithering.ForDPusers(andothers)thisapproachbordersontherevelatoryyou'llalmostneverneedtothinkaboutditheringyour24bitprojectsforCDagain,andifyou'recompilingmixesdoneatdifferentsampleratesyoucanletWaveEditordealwiththattoo.

IfyouliketoburnyourCDsfrommultiregionaudiopreparedinDP(asdescribedintheSeptember2007column),WaveEditor(below)offersastraightforwardworkflow.AfteropeningyourmultiregionSD2files,makesure'Regions'istickedinWaveEditor'sWaveformmenu.Then,intheLabelsdrawer,selectallyour

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audio'sregionlabelsandrightclick(orcontrolclick).ChooseConvertTo/Tracks,andyouinstantlyhaveaburnreadydocument,withCDtrackboundarieswhereyourDPregionboundarieswere.What'smore,everythingamasteringapplicationshouldbeabletoeditCDTEXTmetadata,ISRCandUPC/EANcodes,DDPannotationandPQsubcodescanallbeedited,eitherbyclickingonindividualtracksintheLabelsdrawer,orenteringdatainthePropertiespalette.YoufinallyburnyourCDbychoosingBurnDiscintheFilemenu.

WaveEditormightnothavetheinstantuserfriendlinessofconsumerlevelapplicationslikeToastandJam,andareadthroughitsPDFmanualisamustforthefirsttimeuser.Butit'shardtoimagineamorepowerful,flexibleandusefulaudioeditorcertainlynotonethatdovetailssowellwithDP,andissoaffordable.WaveEditorcomesasadownloadfromwww.audiofileengineering.com,andcosts$250(butonly$200until31stMarch).Ifyou'reeligibleforeducationalpricingit'sonly$100,anda$150crossgradeisavailableforownersofmostothermajoraudioeditors. .

Who'sRecommendingSoundfly?WritingthemonthlyPerformerworkshopcanoccasionallyfeellikesomethingoutofaDickensnovellong,darkeveningsspentwithjusttheplaintivechirpsofmyG5PowerMacforcompany,andonlyaredhotMacbookforwarmth.Soit'salwaysnicetogetsomefeedbackfromreaders,andIwasespeciallypleasedtohearfromPeteTownshend(oftheWhofame)recently.HeveryhelpfullydrewmyattentiontoalittlefreewareapplicationIhadn'tcomeacross,whichmightbeofinterestifyou'reusing(asPetedoes)astudionetworkofMacstooffloadvariousprocessingandvirtualinstrumentduties.It'scalledSoundflyandcomesfromAbyssoft,thecompanythatalsomakesthesuperbTeleport'mouseandkeyboardsharingacrossanetwork'software.SoundflyexiststosendaudiofromoneMactoanother,acrossanEthernet,Airportorothernetworkconnection.ItreliesonCycling74'sSoundflowerinterapplicationaudioutility,soyouneedthatinstalledfirst.ItalsoutilisestwooftheAudioUnitsbuiltintoOSXAUNetSendandAUNetReceivethoughyouneverinteractwiththesedirectly.Inuse,Soundflyisverystraightforward.OntheMacfromwhichyouwanttosendaudioperhaps

onerunningsomestandalonesoftsynthsyourunSoundfly.OntheMacthatneedstoreceivethisaudioyourunSoundflyReceiver.Bothapplicationsaresosimplethatnormallytheydon'tevenhaveauserinterface.ButyoucanforceonetoappearbyholdingdowntheAltkeyasyoulauncheachapplication,andIfindit'susefultodo.Firstoff,youcanconfiguretheaudioformatusedbySoundflytobroadcastacrossthenetwork.A'fullmonty'uncompressedPCMformatisselectable,butincaseyournetworkcan'tcopewiththatmuchdatathroughputvariouscompressedformats,likethedependableAAC,canbechoseninstead.Someexperimentationmaybeneededtofindwhatworksbestforyournetwork.IalsofoundIneededtoconfigureSoundflyReceiveronmyG5inordertomanuallymaketheconnectionwithSoundflyrunningontheMacbook.Thisisstraightforward:justselecttheaudiostreamfromSoundflyinthedirectorylist,andclickConnect.Soundflywon'tgiveyouamultichannelaudioconnectionbetweenyourMacs,onlyastereoone.Also,

theSoundflyconnectioncan'tbebroughtdirectlyintoDP'smixingenvironmentonthereceivingMac.Butit'sstillausefullittlething,andacrossawirednetworkthatisn'tboggeddownwithothertrafficitcanoperatewithlowlatencyanddependableaudioquality.Itcanbedownloadedfree,withtheoptionofmakingadonation,atwww.abyssoft.com.Don'tforgettoinstallSoundflower,fromwww.cycling74.com/products/soundflower,ifyoudon'thaveit.