@adminatron said:
Thanks, after some sleep I think i've got somewhat of a grasp of the basics at this point - but ill probably need some coaching on how to use velocity/speed as a variable.
By variable, I'll assume you mean way to control the way patches are selected and played. This is accomplished in Synchron Player by the use of what are called "Dimension Controllers". In essence, they are sliders that output a value of 0 to 127 that can be assigned to any Dimension (one of the columns in the player) as a method of selecting between the various slots in the dimension.
Each Dimension Controller can be assigned to be controlled by Pitch Wheel, CC, Speed, Velocity, and a few other things that don't come to mind right now. You get up to 8 Dimension Controllers which can be highly customized in the CONTROL tab at the bottom of the player.
Examples of how the Dimension Controllers can be used:
- Using CC1 to select between different folders (types of articulations) such as Legato, Sustain, etc. By doing this, you can use the modwheel to select your articulations rather than using keyswitches.
- Using a Dimension Controller controlled by Speed on a Dimension with progressively faster articulations down the column. Thus, if you have this dimension selected, the faster you play, the faster the articulation that sounds.
- Using the same Dimension Controller, but having it controlled by velocity. In this way, you could have a dimension that has softer dynamic articulations (Fp) at the top and louder (Sffz) at the bottom, thus allowing the attack of your playing to determine what articulation plays, as opposed to keyswitching.
Your imagination's the limit, really, as well as how you like to work. Important to note is that little button next to the title of the column - if you click it (it turns blue), that sets the dimension to Parallel Mode, meaning ALL the slots in the Dimension will play *at the same time* as opposed to needing to be individually selected. This is essentially how the Dim. Strings and Dim. Brass libraries can actually function in this player.
Furthermore, if you click on any slot in a dimension set to Parallel Mode and go to the EDIT tab, take a look at the Parallel Mode option (third from the top, left hand side). You have two options: XFade and Mix.
- XFade means that the Dimension Controller will crossfade into that slot, rather than play it in parallel. So, if all slots are patches that are set to XFade in a Dimension that is set to Parallel mode, then you can use that Dimension Controller to crossfade between all of them. This is most useful in libraries like FX Strings, but don't discount its uses in conjunction with Dimension Controllers that use Speed and Velocity! If you get real creative, you can effectively create one seamless column of an articulation made out of a bunch of discrete patches that blends depending on how hard you press a key or how fast you play.
- Mix, on the other hand, means that the patch in the slot will always play along with the other slots in the dimension. If all slots in the dimension are set to Mix, then they'll all play at the same time. This is the default setting for the Dimension Brass and Strings libraries (i.e. Trumpets 1-4 all play their individual patches at the same time in the "All Players" pathway of selection). BUT, if you set *some* patches to Mix and *others* to XFade, you can "layer" patches onto patches that will always play. For example, a Sustain patch that is set to Mix will always play, but if the slot below it is a Staccato patch set to XFade, you will use the Dimension controller to effectively turn a Staccato attack on and off.
I hope this, in detail, explains how the Dimension Controllers work and provides a few examples of how you can use them creatively, including with Velocity and Speed as the means of control. To really get a feel for it, you'll have to familiarize yourself with the patches themselves and get experiment with how you can combine/crossfade between them to get your desired effect.
HTH
- Sam