4.7 Wishlist

[yofo]

I 've got one that is so obvious that I have to just be missing it . I primarily use the consolidated window with these two windows ,Tracks and Sequence editor. It drives me crazy that when I leave the Sequence editor and go to something else like Mixer or MIDI editor or SoundFile editor , and then return to Sequence editor , it doesn't return to the track I was on. It goes back to the top track so I have to scroll down and find the track I was on.

[stickwolf]

You know, now that you mention it, there's a major flaw with the whole function of the consolidated window:

It DOESN'T work like tabs in Safari, as it has been compared to. Instead, these tab/buttons do things and open new stuff in the same window but it functions more like CHANGING the window to something else, and there's always a button to change BACK to the sort of window you were in. What is really needed is for it to function like Safari tabs: there are multiple windows open that are all functional at the same time, just like the old days, only the tabs let you go between them so you don't have to use the windows menu or other weird issues. Point is, instead of going to the mixer and then returning to the tab you were at before, as though it was just hidden, instead DP activates a new command to open that window as though it were not already open. That's why things don't return to where they were. But without consolidated windows, of course everything would stay exactly as it were. So that should definitely be worked on.

[sdfalk]

I have a fairly small monitor at the moment and use consolidated
windows effortlessly.
In Consolidated prefs I have:
Scroll the mixing Board to the selection, Update the soundfile windows
to the selection, and Update the edit Windows to the play chunk and have
no problems at all.
I've been using Consolidated windows since the feature came about
and am very pleased with it.
Of course there's always room for improvement, but I rather like it.

[stickwolf]

Oh, don't get me wrong. I love the consolidated window!

But it is counter-intuitive that instead of there being tabs to access different windows, we have buttons (that kinda look like tabs and are called tabs) that essentially open a new window and close the old one. It is because of this that we can't always easily return to where we were a moment ago, which could be done fine in non-consolidated windows.

[sdfalk]

Oh, don't get me wrong. I love the consolidated window!

But it is counter-intuitive that instead of there being tabs to access different windows, we have buttons (that kinda look like tabs and are called tabs) that essentially open a new window and close the old one. It is because of this that we can't always easily return to where we were a moment ago, which could be done fine in non-consolidated windows.

Maybe I'm a rebel..
but I hardly find it counter intuitive.
it works fine for me

[stickwolf]

You must happen to have your preferred workspace set up in such a way that you don't have some unique setting that gets lost every time you move to a different tab and then back. Depending on how your custom workspace is done, it can happen that moving back and forth doesn't return to the way things were. This is because of the coding of the implementation that uses a command of opening the new edit window instead of returning to the old version. But if you don't try to set up a particular set of unique arrangements, then the new one opening will be the same, so it will functionally be fine. I guess "counter-intuative" is overly harsh. I guess I'll just say that if it worked like Safari where multiple windows were treated as open and retained their settings and positions and then the user could swap back and forth, I think everyone would end up finding that preferable to the current arragement, even though it is good as is.

[Just try and come up with a worse run-on sentence, I dare you!]

[Splinter]

stickwolf:

I like your tabs suggestion and think it would make the Consolidated Windows feature much more intuitive.

I currently use CW as a glorified Tracks Overview window with Chunks, and Audio Monitor displayed on the left when I need them and CPU, Markers, Soundbites, and Undo on the right.

My Mixer and Sequence Editor I leave in a separate window with the feet sticking out so I I can access them with a click.

My problem with the CW is it just makes everything too small and not easily visible or accessible. It's not really a limitation of CW I suppose - I guess it depends on your monitor - but the implentation could be better, like abbreviated info so you don't have to pop out the window. Stickwolf's idea could fix a lot of that.

[stickwolf]

I have a 20" iMac and I still ended up having barely any windows in the consolidated window. It was a nice idea, but I don't actually need to see 5 things all at once, I need to be able to easily switch back and forth without creating clutter.

I made a window set with just a master mixer on the edge and otherwise the full window is just one window. I then have my audio input monitor at the bottom of the screen under the consolidated window. I open the soundbites window and other accessory sort of windows seperately. But I LOVE going between editors and the track list and mixer without having multiple open windows. I would rather see a situation in which clicking the mixer tab opens the mixer in my main window and keeps a duplicate master fader where I had it on the side. I would rather see duplicate windows in general than have the tabs change anything other than what's in my main window. For the mixer, I'd actually love the option of having the master fader always open on the side while I'm fiddling around with the other mixer tracks. Kinda like how it was in Cubase VST, but far, far more user adjustable.

[tripit@earthlink.net]

When you light an audio region in the track window or seq window, I would like to be able to see the same region or part of region is high-lighted in the sound bite window so you can see what audio file you may looking at.

Please give us the ability to selection a range in the time line and get the total selected range length (in min, sec, time code, beats etc.) Protools does this and it's a real hassle to not be able to grab a range and see long long it is min and sec.

Excellent suggestions. I've wanted for these for quite a while.

There is a way to view the length of a selection even though it may not be so great.

First, make a selection. Then, go to the Region menu and select "Scale Time." You'll see the value in the "Length" field.

Now that I think about it, this really could be done in two steps if you set a custom key command for "Scale Time." You'd just have to make a selection, enter the key command and that's it. Why didn't I think of this earlier?

Thanks for that suggestion. I would still like to see it in the transport window, with out any additional steps. It would be nice to be able to see selections in any measurement (samples, time, bars, timecode etc.) - just like in Protools.

I just thought of another one for audio files. It would be nice to be able to select a region of audio file, hit a key (such as E in protools for extract) and create a new soundbite in place with a new name option. I use this to grab selctions when I'm comping vocals or guitar tracks. It's fast and really easy to get a selection and label it "good" and move on.

[Frodo]

Originally posted by cases05:
- The ability to drag multiple soundbites from the soundbites window on multiple tracks (like ProTools). First soundbite on the selected Track, the next soundbite on the next track...

- An easy way to perform the same action on multiple tracks, e.g. assign sends, inserts, volume pan etc. without creating a group first

We're almost there! You can select multiple soundbites and move them all to one track. From there you can drag each to an adjacent track. Saves a few cross-window moves.

You can create temporary groups very easily:
1) Group selected tracks by holding down T or tapping T twice. Then your actions will be performed on all tracks that were selected.
2) Group VISIBLE tracks (all tracks that are actually on screen at that moment) by holding down W or tapping W twice.
3) set up the actions you want to be affected under these groupings (or not affected) by opening the Group Editor (Project menu, or OPTION -SHIFT-G) then selecting "Set Temporary Group Type" under the mini-menu. The options you set will be performed on any group you make from that point on.
4) to ungroup, tap T or W respectively, one more time.

Beware... when changing things like track colors, a group will all go to the same color, and that's not undoable.

In regard to clearing clutter in the Tracks Overview Window, you may not be able to turn the tracks off, as in the Sequence Editor or Mixing Board windows, but you can MOVE the tracks quickly and easily. Select the tracks you would like to group together. They can be anywhere in your layout. Now click CONTROL-OPTION-HOME to group them together. Then CONTROL-HOME (or END, or PAGE UP, or PAGE DOWN) to move them around in the list. Control-Home = top. Control-END = bottom. Control-Up & down are self-explanatory)

You can quickly rearrange your Tracks Overview Window this way.

Shooshie

<small>[ August 09, 2005, 01:33 AM: Message edited by: Shooshie ]</small>

I'm still reading through the entire thread because it is one of the most gratifying to read--

If I repeat anything that has been said, please forgive me and just consider what I'm about to say for the record in support of feature requests.

First, the T & W method didn't work for me-- meaning, it was dysfunctional or, more accurately, non functional. Currently, the only way I have full control over group and delete group parameters is to use SHIFT+OPTION+G. Grouping and ungrouping a frequent enough tasks that a much simpler (and more reliable!) method of managing them is truly needed.

Request:
1) Have a feature in the Mixer menu that simply says Delete Group
2) Add to this menu an option that simply says Ungroup. The Temporary Group route is fine if you're dealing with just a couple of tracks, but it just takes too long and takes too much attention away from workflow to deal with the menus.
3) Selecting Tracks for groups is not as elegant as it might me. One single accidental click during the track selection process can change the mix.
4) Selecting Visible Tracks only works on my system if I individually click each track. This seems to be an unnecessary step-- perhaps it should work without having to click each channel strip fader, but presently it does not. (I'm using the latest version of OSX and DP). Again, this is fine if you're only dealing with a small group, but setting up 30 or more tracks at at ime can bring a session to a grinding halt.

Other:
5) DITTO on the wonky MIDI Editor-- haggling with moving MIDI note bars to their proper pitches is a more recent glitch-- don't remember having this problem prior to 4.5.

6) APPLE+OPTION+CLICK/DRAGGING notes in the QuickScribe window changes MIDI note positions by small increments? Even when they "appear" to display correctly? For that matter, the same procedure in the MIDI Edit window has the same result even when the Edit Resolution is set and active. Snapping to subdivisions is fine when everything gets quantized, but not everything gets quantized.

7) In the QuickScribe editor with the side track list window active, is there a way to stop the window from jumping around when selecting and deselecting tracks? While working with Consolidated Windows, there are a limited number of track names that are visible at one time. When I scroll to select or deselect tracks at the bottom of the list window, the list window suddenly jumps to the top. Each time I want to compare different combinations of tracks, I have to scroll back to the same place.

Also with QuickScribe, it seems I must have at least one track selected. This means if I'm working with a woodwind group and need to work with a percussion group, I need to first leave one of my woodwind tracks (staves) active before I can begin selecting other track staves. Once that's done, I go back to deselect the unneeded track.

9) Using OS X's ZOOM feature (OPTION+APPLE+EQUAL SIGN or MINUS SIGN) has helped, but it's an awkward workaround. The Tracks Window really needs a better ZOOM feature like the Sequence Editor. People work with these two Windows different ways, so having to work in the Sequence Editor when the Tracks Window is preferred (or vise verse) is more awkward than it needs to be.

10) DP is still too slow when quitting.; and now while using VI's, the simple process of copying and pasting MIDI note information in the Tracks Window is sluggish.

11) The Scroll Bar is still unsteady, and in the Sequence editor during close zoom it is almost non functional

12) CPU Audio Performance still seems to be more sensitive than need be even with a minimum of audio or even one VI instance. Even when idle and with no sounds loaded into a single VI instance, the CPU meter is hovering around 65%. Even at the highest buffer setting, the clips seems to be a bit out of control. This and item numer 10 above make me wonder whether DP is falling short of making the most efficient use of its hardware resources.

As said, I've not gotten through the entire thread just yet, so perhaps these issues have been addressed. This is going to take a lot more reading and testing- and the list, like the thread, is likely to grow.

[GvdB]

I would like to see an improved version of "Freeze tracks".

A long time ago, I already made a post on this and then some users replied they liked how it is implemented, but there were also users who like it to be different.

As there are so many opinions on how it should be I would think that the program needs to have it both ways. In the drop menu's on top a feature called "Freeze to new track", maybe with some added options like selecting mono or stereo tracks as destination. This is just an extra sort of Bounce to disk feature, which it actually already is.

But in addition a freeze button on every channel which just renders the inserted plugins to the same track and gray them out after the render, but keep the fader, pan and sends with its current automation data. Maybe just as the current freeze feature freezes to a new track maybe this feature can freeze to a new "take" on a track or actually better make an extra drop down menu for freezes on each track (see the comments on this further on). A freeze layer. Where maybe you can have more freezed versions of a track. Whenever such a layer is selected the plugins are automatically disabled.

The first freeze method could be used to really save processor power, but as the automation data takes much less processor power than say a linear phase equaliser, the second option is also much prefered as it keeps your session organized and less cluttered. Also I don't want to end up with stereo tracks as I tracked the instrument mono, I understand that the current freeze renders to stereo as it also renders the panning (yes I know it can also render to mono, but then I would first have to route all the tracks I want to freeze to a mono buss and then on the freezed tracks setting the pans to the position I want).

I also would like to see that the newly rendered file is not a continues file. Or at least make it an option that it isn't. I understand that a continues files preserves less cpu, or actually causes less disk seek activity, but it makes the project look less organized. This is the least important for me by the way, maybe makes the whole process overly complicated (skip this one, it was just a thought).

Another thing I would really like is that the non-freezed audio on a freezed track is also editted along the freezed track when you make an edit. This would be in contrast to freeze to a new "take" since takes underneath aren't editted along each other, but maybe that can implemented in an added preference or maybe an extra freeze layer on each track would solve that problem and keeps the "take" feature streamlined as it is.

I understand all this is rather complex and probably not first priority, but I've seen a couple of requests for a better freeze in this wishlist already. Anyway other users please comment on this, as for me this would be the perfect approach.

Another feature I've seen requests for and which I also would like to see is hardware inserts and a way to "ping" the latency and takes this into account with the delay compensation.

I rather see less windows. Not by making things smaller and putting them in one window, but maybe see if some windows can be left out of the program. Audio Monitor comes to mind, as someone already mentioned. Why not monitor the audio on the meters in the sequence or mix window.

I also doubt the importance of the tracks editor, offcourse there are things which can be done from there, but maybe those could be done from the sequence editor. So I would like to see a merge of the track and sequence editor.

Higher resolution faders and also smaller increments of fader settings would also be nice.

If you made it till here in this post, thanks for the time reading this!

Cheers,
Geert van den Berg

[GvdB]

As some have also said already. I would also like to see the option of dragging 2 mono files tracks into stereo tracks, or more into multichannel tracks.

And the option of having projects in other file formats, BWAV. But I think that is already coming anyway.

I've seen many ask for a faster Freeze feature, but I guess that's more or less dependant on how fast your computer is.

[bakery]

A vertical control panel would be a good idea for the consolidated window dont you think?javascript:emoticon(':idea:')

[GvdB]

Another thing came to mind.

I really like the Masterworks EQ, unfortunately I don't think DP has a compressor plugin which equals its quality. The Masterwork comps don't do much for me.

Offcourse a convolution reverb would be great too!

it's a wishlist, right?

[bongo_john_uk]

Merge soundbites to also merge a little infront and behind like some other functions do.. Right now I have to remember to drag it out, merge and put it back again..