<!-- XXX lots to do on this page -->
<section id="mixer-strips">
- <title>Mixer Strips</title>
- <para>
- Each track and bus is represented in the mixer window by a <emphasis>mixer
- strip</emphasis> that contains various controls related to signal flow.
- There are two places in Ardour in which you can see mixer strips. The mixer
- window is the obvious one (and the one we deal with here), but you can also
- view a single mixer strip in the editor window by clicking the
- <guibutton>editor mixer</guibutton> button.
- </para>
- <mediaobject>
- <imageobject>
- <imagedata fileref="images/mixerstrip.png"/>
- </imageobject>
- </mediaobject>
- <para>
- this image needs replacing with labels and better resolution The mixer strip
- for a bus is essentially identical to the one for an audio track, but it is
- missing certain controls that make no sense - you cannot record into a bus,
- so there is no record enable button, for example.
- </para>
-
- <para>
- The mixer strips are designed to visually model signal flow. The input
- button selects the input of the track that this mixer strip monitors. The
- outputs of the track (the 'tape recorder') are 'hard-wired' to the inputs of
- the mixer strip. Think of the input to the strip starting at the polarity
- switch, flowing down through the prefader inserts/plugins/sends section,
- through the gain fader, past the postfader inserts/plugins/sends section,
- the panner, and out through the output selector. In the case of a bus, there
- is no 'tape machine' inserted between the input selector and the actual
- input of the strip, but the signal flow is identical otherwise.
- </para>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-narrow-strip-button">
- <title>Narrow Mixer Strip Button</title>
- <para>
- the button on the top left of the mixer strip is labelled with two arrows
- separated by a line. Left clicking this button will reduce the horizontal
- size of the mixer strip. Clicking it again will restore the previous size.
- The first click also has the effect of shortening the names of controls.
- Plugin lists become very small in this mode, however more faders are
- accessible without scrolling. Your needs may vary, hence the existence of
- this button.
- </para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-hide-button">
- <title>Hide Button</title>
- <para>
- The button opposite the <emphasis>Narrow Mixer Strip Button</emphasis>
- hides the mixer strip from view. this button has no effect on signal flow
- or muting. When a mixer strip is hidden, it's entry in the strips list is
- darkened. To restore the mixer strip to the visible state, click it's entry
- in the strip list with the left mouse button.
- </para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-track-name">
- <title>Track Name</title>
- <para>
- The track name displays the current name of the track as displayed in the
- editor window. right-clicking on the name brings up a drop-down menu that
- allows you to rename, activate, deactivate and remove the track. Selecting
- <guimenuitem>Rename</guimenuitem> opens a new window displaying the name of
- the track. to change it, type your change and press ok. to leave it
- unaltered, press cancel. Selecting <guimenuitem>remove</guimenuitem> opens
- a new window asking for confirmation of your track removal request.
- removing a track removes that track from the project. If the playlist used
- by the removed track is not used by any other track, it will also be
- removed.
- </para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-group-button">
- <title>Group Button</title>
- <para>
- The group button displays the name of the currently selected mix group. if
- no group is selected, it will read no group. when clicked, a drop-down menu
- appears which lists the current mixer groups, along with the option no
- group. if a group is selected, any fader movement on one of the group
- member faders will be translated to the other members of the group.
- </para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-input-selector">
- <title>Input Selector</title>
- <para>
- The input selector allows you to assign hardware or software inputs to the
- track that this mixer strip monitors. clicking on the input box makes a
- drop-down menu appear which lists ready-made combinations of jack ports,
- along with the options disconnect and edit. You can either select a preset
- hardware input combination from the drop-down list, or select
- <guimenuitem>edit</guimenuitem> to open the input selector window which
- allows finer control, such as changing the number of inputs to the track or
- using software devices as inputs. For more information on this window, see
- <xref linkend="sn-other-windows"/>. <guibutton>Disconnect</guibutton>
- removes all input assignments while leaving the number of ports untouched.
- </para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-polarity-button">
- <title>Polarity Button</title>
- <para>
- The polarity button, when pressed, inverts the phase of the signal as it
- leaves the track and enters the mixer strip. it has no effect on the signal
- being recorded to disk. It has no effect on the timing of the signal,
- either.
- </para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-solo-button">
- <title>Solo Button</title>
- <para>
- The solo button puts the mixer strip in solo mode. the solo indicator in
- the editor window will flash if any mixer strip is set to solo, and only
- those tracks that are set in solo will be routed through the system.
- </para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-mute-button">
- <title>Mute Button</title>
- <para>
- The mute button mutes the output of the mixer strip.
- </para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-track-speed-control">
- <title>Track Speed Control</title>
- <para>
- The track speed allows a varispeed setting to be applied to the track. a
- setting of <literal>1.0</literal> corresponds to the normal playback speed
- of the session. a setting of <literal>0.5</literal> will play at half
- normal playback speed. when altered, the track will be redrawn to reflect
- the new position of the audio resulting from the speed change. The Track
- Speed Control has three decimal places of precision. A left or right click
- on the displayed number will raise or lower the track speed by 0.1%. when
- the speed is not exactly 1, the display will be coloured red. Hovering over
- the displayed number will allow you to use the mouse wheel to set the
- desired speed. A middle click on the displayed number will return the speed
- to exactly 1.
- </para>
-
- <para></para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-record-enable-button">
- <title>Record Enable Button</title>
- <para>
- The record enable button arms the track for recording. pressing this will
- change the way you monitor and meter the selected input signal depending on
- the state of the monitoring settings in the options editor, as well as the
- auto input setting in the editor.
- </para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-automation-mode-buttons">
- <title>Automation Mode Buttons</title>
- <para>
- The automation mode buttons allow you to select a fader or pan automation
- mode from a drop-down list. see <xref linkend="sn-automation"/> for more
- information about automation modes.
- </para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-redirect-boxes">
- <title>Redirect Boxes</title>
- <para>
- These dark areas above and below the fader allow you to place inserts,
- sends and plugins into the signal path before and after the fader
- respectively. you may also easily reorder them whilst playing.
- collectively, the objects that belong in these boxes are called redirects.
- If there are redirects present in the channel, they can be reordered by
- dragging them vertically. because plugins and inserts can have different
- numbers of inputs to outputs, sometimes you may reach a situation where the
- inputs and outputs cannot be all connected sensibly. in this case, your
- reordering change will be disallowed by the program.
- </para>
-
- <para>
- Right clicking within the dark area will bring up a drop-down menu which
- allows you to manipulate the redirects in various ways.
- </para>
-
- <variablelist>
- <title>Redirect Boxes</title>
- <varlistentry>
- <term><guimenuitem>new plugin</guimenuitem></term>
- <listitem>
- <para>
- selecting new plugin will open a dialog which lists the plugins
- available on your system. selecting a plugin which is compatible with
- the number of streams in the channel at that point will result in the
- plugin being placed in the redirect box in an inactive state. this is
- indicated by the brackets around the plugin name. double-clicking the
- plugin name will bring up a window that allows you to control the
- parameters of the plugin statically (including bypass) or using
- automation. all plugins that report their latency are time-compensated
- automatically in ardour.
- </para>
- </listitem>
- </varlistentry>
-
- <varlistentry>
- <term><guimenuitem>new insert</guimenuitem></term>
- <listitem>
- <para>
- places at least two new jack ports at that point in the mixer strip (one
- input, one output). these ports will then be available to any jack
- client (including Ardour itself), allowing another program (or channels
- within another program) to be inserted across the channel. hardware
- ports may also, of course, be used, allowing the insertion of outboard
- equipment. the insert will then appear in the redirect box in brackets
- indicating that it is inactive. to activate or deactivate an insert,
- right-click on it and select activate. double-clicking on the insert
- will bring up a dialog which allows to to assign its inputs and outputs
- to other jack ports.
- </para>
- </listitem>
- </varlistentry>
-
- <varlistentry>
- <term><guimenuitem>new send</guimenuitem></term>
- <listitem>
- <para>
- selecting new send will first bring up a dialog box that enables you to
- select the number of outputs the send has, along with the destination of
- each output. closing this dialog will reveal the name of the send in
- brackets, indicating that it is inactive. to activate the send, right
- click on it and select Activate. double-clicking on the send brings up
- the previous dialog, which will now include a fader which is provided
- for level control.
- </para>
- </listitem>
- </varlistentry>
-
- <varlistentry>
- <term><guimenuitem>clear</guimenuitem></term>
- <listitem>
- <para>
- selecting clear in the menu removes all redirects from the mixer strip
- (pre and post fader). you can remove an individual redirect by holding
- the shift key and right clicking it.
- </para>
- </listitem>
- </varlistentry>
-
- <varlistentry>
- <term><guimenuitem>cut</guimenuitem>, <guimenuitem>copy</guimenuitem>, <guimenuitem>paste</guimenuitem></term>
- <listitem>
- <para>
- these items allow you to cut, copy and paste plugins, including their
- current settings, between Redirect Boxes.
- </para>
- </listitem>
- </varlistentry>
-
- <varlistentry>
- <term><guimenuitem>rename</guimenuitem></term>
- <listitem>
- <para>
- selecting rename will bring up a dialog displaying the name of the
- selected redirect. change the name by typing into the text area and
- pressing ok.
- </para>
- </listitem>
- </varlistentry>
-
- <varlistentry>
- <term><guimenuitem>select all/deselect all</guimenuitem></term>
- <listitem>
- <para>
- these two options select or deselect all plugins in the channel. this
- could be used, for instance, in preparation to copy all plugins from a
- channel to another one, along with the current settings.
- </para>
- </listitem>
- </varlistentry>
-
- <varlistentry>
- <term><guimenuitem>activate/deactivate</guimenuitem></term>
- <listitem>
- <para>
- selecting either of these will activate or deactivate the currently
- selected redirect(s) respectively. deactivate is the equivalent of
- <guimenuitem>bypass</guimenuitem>.
- </para>
- <note>
- <para>
- note that you can bypass a plugin from it's parameter window as well as
- from here.
- </para>
- </note>
- </listitem>
- </varlistentry>
-
- <varlistentry>
- <term><guimenuitem>activate all/deactivate all</guimenuitem></term>
- <listitem>
- <para>
- selecting either of these will activate or deactivate all redirect(s) in
- the mixer strip respectively. deactivate is the equivalent of
- <guimenuitem>bypass</guimenuitem> if you're a plugin.
- </para>
- </listitem>
- </varlistentry>
-
- <varlistentry>
- <term><guimenuitem>edit</guimenuitem></term>
- <listitem>
- <para>
- selecting edit brings up the controls relevent to the selected redirect.
- this is the equivalent to holding control and right-clicking on a
- redirect. note that the right click method will not bring up the
- controls of the selected redirect, only the one beneath the mouse
- pointer.
- </para>
- </listitem>
- </varlistentry>
- </variablelist>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-pre-post-input-button">
- <title>Pre/Post/Input Button</title>
- <para>
- This button cycles between three metering modes, which determine which
- signal is fed to the meters. the modes are pre-fader (the signal at the
- input to the fader), post-fader and input (the level at the track input).
- left clicking cycles through the three modes one step at a time, while
- middle-clicking alternates between the current setting and the setting two
- steps ahead. this allows one-click direct a/b comparison between all
- available monitoring points.
- </para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-gain-display">
- <title>Gain Display</title>
- <para>
- this control displays the current gain of the fader to the nearest 0.1dB.
- left clicking on the value will lower the gain by an amount dependent upon
- the fader position the graduations become smaller as the fader nears 0dB
- gain. right clicking increases the gain by the same amount. middle clicking
- resets the gain to 0dB.
- </para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-unit-selector">
- <title>Unit Selector</title>
- <para>
- Right clicking on the meter bars allows you to select the range of signal
- levels displayed by the meters. the selected range will be displayed as a
- column of numbers next to the meter. /*XXX this feature is currently not
- working*/ Gain Level Display
- </para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-peak-meter">
- <title>Peak Meter</title>
- <para>
- This control displays the highest peak since the last peak meter reset.
- Resetting the peak meter is achieved by left-clicking the displayed number.
- The peak meter monitors the signal selected by the <emphasis>Pre/Post/Input
- Button</emphasis> .. the same signal as the meters. It should be noted here
- that 0dBfs corresponds a value equal to the maximum input or output level
- of your audio hardware, independent of it's bit depth.
- </para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-gain-fader">
- <title>Gain Fader</title>
- <para>
- The fader changes the signal level within the mixer strip before the
- post-fader plugins, which are before the output ports. 6dB of gain is
- allowed. there are several shortcuts available for the fader. Using the
- scroll wheel of your mouse while hovering above the fader will coarsely
- change its position. Holding the control key whilst mouse wheeling will
- give you finer control. Holding the shift key and clicking the fader will
- reset it to unity gain. Holding control and pressing the middle mouse
- button whilst over the fader will allow you to bind a midi control to it,
- provided you have an available midi device set in the options menu.
- </para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-meters">
- <title>Meters</title>
- <para>
- The number of meters displayed next to the fader is dependent on the number
- of inputs or outputs the channel has, whichever is greater. The meters
- provide a colour-graduated scale from -50 dBfs to +6dBfs. They display the
- instantaneous value of the signal at the monitoring point selected by the
- Pre/Post/Input button. 0dBfs corresponds a value equal to the maximum input
- or output level of your audio hardware, independent of it's bit depth.
- Exceeding 0dBfs does not correspond to running out of headroom within the
- mixer, or in any signal path subsequent to that point within the Jack
- server. It merely means that if that signal is connected directly to a
- hardware port whose resolution is less than the 32-bit floating point
- resolution that Ardour uses (i.e. a soundcard), then that port will exceed
- it's maximum output level, resulting in distortion. hitting 0dB within the
- mixer (or any point in the Jack server) means that you have approximately
- 100dB of headroom remaining. as it is unlikely that you will reach this
- point, it is not represented in any special way by the meter. Naturally, if
- the input is selected as the monitoring point for the meter, exceeding
- 0dBfs means that the input of your a/d converter has clipped.
- </para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-panner">
- <title>Panner</title>
- <para>
- The panner in Ardour is actually two panners. Because any mixer strip in
- Ardour can route any number of streams of audio anywhere, the idea of
- panning can be a complex one. To allow for the current stereo-centric
- mainstream world as well as the multi-speaker experimental one, one of two
- styles of panner will appear here depending on the number of outputs the
- channel strip has. In the simple case of mono channel input / stereo
- output, a single panner will be present. The current pan position is
- represented by a dot (the dot is the audio stream) which lies between the
- letters 'L' and 'R', which represent the left and right outputs
- respectively. To change the panning position of the stream, move the mouse
- while holding down the left mouse button. the dot will follow your mouse
- pointer. To introduce sudden changes to the pan setting, place the mouse
- pointer over the desired position and click the middle mouse button. The
- pan control will immediately snap to the mouse pointer position. The panner
- may be bypassed by right-clicking the control and selecting
- <guimenuitem>bypass</guimenuitem> from the drop-down menu. The panner will
- immediately be bypassed. The increased level you notice when the panner is
- bypassed is due to the way panning works. It is not a bug. <emphasis>XXX
- what gain law is used in the panner?</emphasis>
- </para>
-
- <para>
- In the case of a stereo input / stereo output combination, two panning
- controls will appear, one corresponding to each audio stream. You can
- <emphasis>link</emphasis> the controls together in two different ways in
- this situation, using the direction arrows next to the
- <guibutton>link</guibutton> button. Panners can be linked to travel either
- in opposite directions or to maintain a consistent stereo width across the
- travel of the control. These two modes are represented by the orientation
- of the two arrows next to the <guibutton>link</guibutton> button, which
- point in either the same or opposite directions. The
- <guibutton>link</guibutton> button must be engaged before you can change
- the <emphasis>link</emphasis> mode. To link all the panners in a mixer
- strip, left-click the <guibutton>link</guibutton> button, then select the
- desired link mode by pressing the button marked with arrows.
- </para>
-
- <para>
- Let's get a little more complicated by adding another output to the mixer
- strip. From this point onwards, the panning positions are represented with
- numbered dots on a square field. Orange dots represent the outputs, and the
- numbered dots represent the streams. the position of the outputs change
- according to the number of outputs in the strip. This happens in order to
- allow the most useful arrangement of the available space. At some point,
- adding an output will cause the outputs to line up from the top left of the
- panning square towards the centre. this is to allow for the 'multi-speaker
- big sweep' to occur - where the sound is panned from speaker to speaker
- around the room in sequence.
- </para>
-
- <para>
- Don't forget that you can bypass the panner by right clicking and selecting
- <guimenuitem>bypass</guimenuitem> from the drop-down menu. this may
- simplify your multi-speaker setup, as often in this type of project panning
- between all speakers or outputs is not required on all tracks.
- </para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-output-selector">
- <title>Output Selector</title>
- <para>
- The output selector allows you to assign the outputs of each mixer strip.
- left-clicking the output selector causes a ready-made list of output ports
- to appear in a drop-down menu, along with edit and disconnect options.
- Selecting <guimenuitem>Edit</guimenuitem> will allow you to change the
- number of outputs the channel has, as well as select software and hardware
- ports to route signals to. For more information on the window that appears
- when you select this option, see the <xref linkend="sn-other-windows"/>.
- <guimenuitem>Disconnect</guimenuitem> will leave the number of output ports
- unchanged, but remove all assignments to output ports.
- </para>
- </section>
-
- <section id="mixer-strip-scratch-pad">
- <title>Scratch Pad</title>
- <para>
- This is the text area below the <guibutton>output</guibutton> button. it
- allows you to enter any notes that you feel may be relevant to that track.
- The notes are stored when you save the session.
- </para>
- </section>
+ <title>Mixer Strips</title>
+ <para>
+ Each track and bus is represented in the mixer window by a
+ <emphasis>mixer strip</emphasis> that contains various controls related
+ to signal flow. There are two places in Ardour in which you can see
+ mixer strips. The mixer window is the obvious one (and the one we deal
+ with here), but you can also view a single mixer strip in the editor
+ window by clicking the <guibutton>editor mixer</guibutton> button.
+ </para>
+ <mediaobject>
+ <imageobject>
+ <imagedata fileref="images/mixerstrip.png"/>
+ </imageobject>
+ </mediaobject>
+ <para>
+ this image needs replacing with labels and better resolution The mixer
+ strip for a bus is essentially identical to the one for an audio track,
+ but it is missing certain controls that make no sense - you cannot
+ record into a bus, so there is no record enable button, for example.
+ </para>
+
+ <para>
+ The mixer strips are designed to visually model signal flow. The input
+ button selects the input of the track that this mixer strip monitors.
+ The outputs of the track (the 'tape recorder') are 'hard-wired' to the
+ inputs of the mixer strip. Think of the input to the strip starting at
+ the polarity switch, flowing down through the prefader
+ inserts/plugins/sends section, through the gain fader, past the
+ postfader inserts/plugins/sends section, the panner, and out through the
+ output selector. In the case of a bus, there is no 'tape machine'
+ inserted between the input selector and the actual input of the strip,
+ but the signal flow is identical otherwise.
+ </para>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-narrow-strip-button">
+ <title>Narrow Mixer Strip Button</title>
+ <para>
+ the button on the top left of the mixer strip is labelled with two
+ arrows separated by a line. Left clicking this button will reduce the
+ horizontal size of the mixer strip. Clicking it again will restore the
+ previous size. The first click also has the effect of shortening the
+ names of controls. Plugin lists become very small in this mode,
+ however more faders are accessible without scrolling. Your needs may
+ vary, hence the existence of this button.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-hide-button">
+ <title>Hide Button</title>
+ <para>
+ The button opposite the <emphasis>Narrow Mixer Strip Button</emphasis>
+ hides the mixer strip from view. this button has no effect on signal
+ flow or muting. When a mixer strip is hidden, it's entry in the strips
+ list is darkened. To restore the mixer strip to the visible state,
+ click it's entry in the strip list with the left mouse button.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-track-name">
+ <title>Track Name</title>
+ <para>
+ The track name displays the current name of the track as displayed in
+ the editor window. right-clicking on the name brings up a drop-down
+ menu that allows you to rename, activate, deactivate and remove the
+ track. Selecting <guimenuitem>Rename</guimenuitem> opens a new window
+ displaying the name of the track. to change it, type your change and
+ press ok. to leave it unaltered, press cancel. Selecting
+ <guimenuitem>remove</guimenuitem> opens a new window asking for
+ confirmation of your track removal request. removing a track removes
+ that track from the project. If the playlist used by the removed track
+ is not used by any other track, it will also be removed.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-group-button">
+ <title>Group Button</title>
+ <para>
+ The group button displays the name of the currently selected mix
+ group. if no group is selected, it will read no group. when clicked, a
+ drop-down menu appears which lists the current mixer groups, along
+ with the option no group. if a group is selected, any fader movement
+ on one of the group member faders will be translated to the other
+ members of the group.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-input-selector">
+ <title>Input Selector</title>
+ <para>
+ The input selector allows you to assign hardware or software inputs to
+ the track that this mixer strip monitors. clicking on the input box
+ makes a drop-down menu appear which lists ready-made combinations of
+ jack ports, along with the options disconnect and edit. You can either
+ select a preset hardware input combination from the drop-down list, or
+ select <guimenuitem>edit</guimenuitem> to open the input selector
+ window which allows finer control, such as changing the number of
+ inputs to the track or using software devices as inputs. For more
+ information on this window, see <xref linkend="sn-other-windows"/>.
+ <guibutton>Disconnect</guibutton> removes all input assignments while
+ leaving the number of ports untouched.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-polarity-button">
+ <title>Polarity Button</title>
+ <para>
+ The polarity button, when pressed, inverts the phase of the signal as
+ it leaves the track and enters the mixer strip. it has no effect on
+ the signal being recorded to disk. It has no effect on the timing of
+ the signal, either.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-solo-button">
+ <title>Solo Button</title>
+ <para>
+ The solo button puts the mixer strip in solo mode. the solo indicator
+ in the editor window will flash if any mixer strip is set to solo, and
+ only those tracks that are set in solo will be routed through the
+ system.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-mute-button">
+ <title>Mute Button</title>
+ <para>
+ The mute button mutes the output of the mixer strip.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-track-speed-control">
+ <title>Track Speed Control</title>
+ <para>
+ The track speed allows a varispeed setting to be applied to the track.
+ a setting of <literal>1.0</literal> corresponds to the normal playback
+ speed of the session. a setting of <literal>0.5</literal> will play at
+ half normal playback speed. when altered, the track will be redrawn to
+ reflect the new position of the audio resulting from the speed change.
+ The Track Speed Control has three decimal places of precision. A left
+ or right click on the displayed number will raise or lower the track
+ speed by 0.1%. when the speed is not exactly 1, the display will be
+ coloured red. Hovering over the displayed number will allow you to use
+ the mouse wheel to set the desired speed. A middle click on the
+ displayed number will return the speed to exactly 1.
+ </para>
+
+ <para></para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-record-enable-button">
+ <title>Record Enable Button</title>
+ <para>
+ The record enable button arms the track for recording. pressing this
+ will change the way you monitor and meter the selected input signal
+ depending on the state of the monitoring settings in the options
+ editor, as well as the auto input setting in the editor.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-automation-mode-buttons">
+ <title>Automation Mode Buttons</title>
+ <para>
+ The automation mode buttons allow you to select a fader or pan
+ automation mode from a drop-down list. see
+ <xref linkend="sn-automation"/> for more information about automation
+ modes.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-redirect-boxes">
+ <title>Redirect Boxes</title>
+ <para>
+ These dark areas above and below the fader allow you to place inserts,
+ sends and plugins into the signal path before and after the fader
+ respectively. you may also easily reorder them whilst playing.
+ collectively, the objects that belong in these boxes are called
+ redirects. If there are redirects present in the channel, they can be
+ reordered by dragging them vertically. because plugins and inserts can
+ have different numbers of inputs to outputs, sometimes you may reach a
+ situation where the inputs and outputs cannot be all connected
+ sensibly. in this case, your reordering change will be disallowed by
+ the program.
+ </para>
+
+ <para>
+ Right clicking within the dark area will bring up a drop-down menu
+ which allows you to manipulate the redirects in various ways.
+ </para>
+
+ <variablelist>
+ <title>Redirect Boxes</title>
+ <varlistentry>
+ <term><guimenuitem>new plugin</guimenuitem></term>
+ <listitem>
+ <para>
+ selecting new plugin will open a dialog which lists the plugins
+ available on your system. selecting a plugin which is compatible
+ with the number of streams in the channel at that point will
+ result in the plugin being placed in the redirect box in an
+ inactive state. this is indicated by the brackets around the
+ plugin name. double-clicking the plugin name will bring up a
+ window that allows you to control the parameters of the plugin
+ statically (including bypass) or using automation. all plugins
+ that report their latency are time-compensated automatically in
+ ardour.
+ </para>
+ </listitem>
+ </varlistentry>
+
+ <varlistentry>
+ <term><guimenuitem>new insert</guimenuitem></term>
+ <listitem>
+ <para>
+ places at least two new jack ports at that point in the mixer
+ strip (one input, one output). these ports will then be
+ available to any jack client (including Ardour itself), allowing
+ another program (or channels within another program) to be
+ inserted across the channel. hardware ports may also, of course,
+ be used, allowing the insertion of outboard equipment. the
+ insert will then appear in the redirect box in brackets
+ indicating that it is inactive. to activate or deactivate an
+ insert, right-click on it and select activate. double-clicking
+ on the insert will bring up a dialog which allows to to assign
+ its inputs and outputs to other jack ports.
+ </para>
+ </listitem>
+ </varlistentry>
+
+ <varlistentry>
+ <term><guimenuitem>new send</guimenuitem></term>
+ <listitem>
+ <para>
+ selecting new send will first bring up a dialog box that enables
+ you to select the number of outputs the send has, along with the
+ destination of each output. closing this dialog will reveal the
+ name of the send in brackets, indicating that it is inactive. to
+ activate the send, right click on it and select Activate.
+ double-clicking on the send brings up the previous dialog, which
+ will now include a fader which is provided for level control.
+ </para>
+ </listitem>
+ </varlistentry>
+
+ <varlistentry>
+ <term><guimenuitem>clear</guimenuitem></term>
+ <listitem>
+ <para>
+ selecting clear in the menu removes all redirects from the mixer
+ strip (pre and post fader). you can remove an individual
+ redirect by holding the shift key and right clicking it.
+ </para>
+ </listitem>
+ </varlistentry>
+
+ <varlistentry>
+ <term><guimenuitem>cut</guimenuitem>, <guimenuitem>copy</guimenuitem>, <guimenuitem>paste</guimenuitem></term>
+ <listitem>
+ <para>
+ these items allow you to cut, copy and paste plugins, including
+ their current settings, between Redirect Boxes.
+ </para>
+ </listitem>
+ </varlistentry>
+
+ <varlistentry>
+ <term><guimenuitem>rename</guimenuitem></term>
+ <listitem>
+ <para>
+ selecting rename will bring up a dialog displaying the name of
+ the selected redirect. change the name by typing into the text
+ area and pressing ok.
+ </para>
+ </listitem>
+ </varlistentry>
+
+ <varlistentry>
+ <term><guimenuitem>select all/deselect all</guimenuitem></term>
+ <listitem>
+ <para>
+ these two options select or deselect all plugins in the channel.
+ this could be used, for instance, in preparation to copy all
+ plugins from a channel to another one, along with the current
+ settings.
+ </para>
+ </listitem>
+ </varlistentry>
+
+ <varlistentry>
+ <term><guimenuitem>activate/deactivate</guimenuitem></term>
+ <listitem>
+ <para>
+ selecting either of these will activate or deactivate the
+ currently selected redirect(s) respectively. deactivate is the
+ equivalent of <guimenuitem>bypass</guimenuitem>.
+ </para>
+
+ <note>
+ <para>
+ note that you can bypass a plugin from it's parameter window
+ as well as from here.
+ </para>
+ </note>
+ </listitem>
+ </varlistentry>
+
+ <varlistentry>
+ <term><guimenuitem>activate all/deactivate all</guimenuitem></term>
+ <listitem>
+ <para>
+ selecting either of these will activate or deactivate all
+ redirect(s) in the mixer strip respectively. deactivate is the
+ equivalent of <guimenuitem>bypass</guimenuitem> if you're a
+ plugin.
+ </para>
+ </listitem>
+ </varlistentry>
+
+ <varlistentry>
+ <term><guimenuitem>edit</guimenuitem></term>
+ <listitem>
+ <para>
+ selecting edit brings up the controls relevent to the selected
+ redirect. this is the equivalent to holding control and
+ right-clicking on a redirect. note that the right click method
+ will not bring up the controls of the selected redirect, only
+ the one beneath the mouse pointer.
+ </para>
+ </listitem>
+ </varlistentry>
+ </variablelist>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-pre-post-input-button">
+ <title>Pre/Post/Input Button</title>
+ <para>
+ This button cycles between three metering modes, which determine which
+ signal is fed to the meters. the modes are pre-fader (the signal at
+ the input to the fader), post-fader and input (the level at the track
+ input). left clicking cycles through the three modes one step at a
+ time, while middle-clicking alternates between the current setting and
+ the setting two steps ahead. this allows one-click direct a/b
+ comparison between all available monitoring points.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-gain-display">
+ <title>Gain Display</title>
+ <para>
+ this control displays the current gain of the fader to the nearest
+ 0.1dB. left clicking on the value will lower the gain by an amount
+ dependent upon the fader position the graduations become smaller as
+ the fader nears 0dB gain. right clicking increases the gain by the
+ same amount. middle clicking resets the gain to 0dB.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-unit-selector">
+ <title>Unit Selector</title>
+ <para>
+ Right clicking on the meter bars allows you to select the range of
+ signal levels displayed by the meters. the selected range will be
+ displayed as a column of numbers next to the meter. /*XXX this feature
+ is currently not working*/ Gain Level Display
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-peak-meter">
+ <title>Peak Meter</title>
+ <para>
+ This control displays the highest peak since the last peak meter
+ reset. Resetting the peak meter is achieved by left-clicking the
+ displayed number. The peak meter monitors the signal selected by the
+ <emphasis>Pre/Post/Input Button</emphasis> .. the same signal as the
+ meters. It should be noted here that 0dBfs corresponds a value equal
+ to the maximum input or output level of your audio hardware,
+ independent of it's bit depth.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-gain-fader">
+ <title>Gain Fader</title>
+ <para>
+ The fader changes the signal level within the mixer strip before the
+ post-fader plugins, which are before the output ports. 6dB of gain is
+ allowed. there are several shortcuts available for the fader. Using
+ the scroll wheel of your mouse while hovering above the fader will
+ coarsely change its position. Holding the control key whilst mouse
+ wheeling will give you finer control. Holding the shift key and
+ clicking the fader will reset it to unity gain. Holding control and
+ pressing the middle mouse button whilst over the fader will allow you
+ to bind a midi control to it, provided you have an available midi
+ device set in the options menu.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-meters">
+ <title>Meters</title>
+ <para>
+ The number of meters displayed next to the fader is dependent on the
+ number of inputs or outputs the channel has, whichever is greater. The
+ meters provide a colour-graduated scale from -50 dBfs to +6dBfs. They
+ display the instantaneous value of the signal at the monitoring point
+ selected by the Pre/Post/Input button. 0dBfs corresponds a value equal
+ to the maximum input or output level of your audio hardware,
+ independent of it's bit depth. Exceeding 0dBfs does not correspond to
+ running out of headroom within the mixer, or in any signal path
+ subsequent to that point within the Jack server. It merely means that
+ if that signal is connected directly to a hardware port whose
+ resolution is less than the 32-bit floating point resolution that
+ Ardour uses (i.e. a soundcard), then that port will exceed it's
+ maximum output level, resulting in distortion. hitting 0dB within the
+ mixer (or any point in the Jack server) means that you have
+ approximately 100dB of headroom remaining. as it is unlikely that you
+ will reach this point, it is not represented in any special way by the
+ meter. Naturally, if the input is selected as the monitoring point for
+ the meter, exceeding 0dBfs means that the input of your a/d converter
+ has clipped.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-panner">
+ <title>Panner</title>
+ <para>
+ The panner in Ardour is actually two panners. Because any mixer strip
+ in Ardour can route any number of streams of audio anywhere, the idea
+ of panning can be a complex one. To allow for the current
+ stereo-centric mainstream world as well as the multi-speaker
+ experimental one, one of two styles of panner will appear here
+ depending on the number of outputs the channel strip has. In the
+ simple case of mono channel input / stereo output, a single panner
+ will be present. The current pan position is represented by a dot (the
+ dot is the audio stream) which lies between the letters 'L' and 'R',
+ which represent the left and right outputs respectively. To change the
+ panning position of the stream, move the mouse while holding down the
+ left mouse button. the dot will follow your mouse pointer. To
+ introduce sudden changes to the pan setting, place the mouse pointer
+ over the desired position and click the middle mouse button. The pan
+ control will immediately snap to the mouse pointer position. The
+ panner may be bypassed by right-clicking the control and selecting
+ <guimenuitem>bypass</guimenuitem> from the drop-down menu. The panner
+ will immediately be bypassed. The increased level you notice when the
+ panner is bypassed is due to the way panning works. It is not a bug.
+ <emphasis>XXX what gain law is used in the panner?</emphasis>
+ </para>
+
+ <para>
+ In the case of a stereo input / stereo output combination, two panning
+ controls will appear, one corresponding to each audio stream. You can
+ <emphasis>link</emphasis> the controls together in two different ways
+ in this situation, using the direction arrows next to the
+ <guibutton>link</guibutton> button. Panners can be linked to travel
+ either in opposite directions or to maintain a consistent stereo width
+ across the travel of the control. These two modes are represented by
+ the orientation of the two arrows next to the
+ <guibutton>link</guibutton> button, which point in either the same or
+ opposite directions. The <guibutton>link</guibutton> button must be
+ engaged before you can change the <emphasis>link</emphasis> mode. To
+ link all the panners in a mixer strip, left-click the
+ <guibutton>link</guibutton> button, then select the desired link mode
+ by pressing the button marked with arrows.
+ </para>
+
+ <para>
+ Let's get a little more complicated by adding another output to the
+ mixer strip. From this point onwards, the panning positions are
+ represented with numbered dots on a square field. Orange dots
+ represent the outputs, and the numbered dots represent the streams.
+ the position of the outputs change according to the number of outputs
+ in the strip. This happens in order to allow the most useful
+ arrangement of the available space. At some point, adding an output
+ will cause the outputs to line up from the top left of the panning
+ square towards the centre. this is to allow for the 'multi-speaker big
+ sweep' to occur - where the sound is panned from speaker to speaker
+ around the room in sequence.
+ </para>
+
+ <para>
+ Don't forget that you can bypass the panner by right clicking and
+ selecting <guimenuitem>bypass</guimenuitem> from the drop-down menu.
+ this may simplify your multi-speaker setup, as often in this type of
+ project panning between all speakers or outputs is not required on all
+ tracks.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-output-selector">
+ <title>Output Selector</title>
+ <para>
+ The output selector allows you to assign the outputs of each mixer
+ strip. left-clicking the output selector causes a ready-made list of
+ output ports to appear in a drop-down menu, along with edit and
+ disconnect options. Selecting <guimenuitem>Edit</guimenuitem> will
+ allow you to change the number of outputs the channel has, as well as
+ select software and hardware ports to route signals to. For more
+ information on the window that appears when you select this option,
+ see the <xref linkend="sn-other-windows"/>.
+ <guimenuitem>Disconnect</guimenuitem> will leave the number of output
+ ports unchanged, but remove all assignments to output ports.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="mixer-strip-scratch-pad">
+ <title>Scratch Pad</title>
+ <para>
+ This is the text area below the <guibutton>output</guibutton> button.
+ it allows you to enter any notes that you feel may be relevant to that
+ track. The notes are stored when you save the session.
+ </para>
+ </section>
</section>
projects / ardour.git / blobdiff