Amberwolf

I use the in-track peak markers as well, so I can use automation to deal with the peaks as well as the main level of each track. For further metering I use the old free version of Voxengo SPAN (which I use to find out things I need to EQ out either to fix problems or to just see what I need to make holes for in other tracks.). Sometimes I pop in the free version of EAS Inspector to see what it tells me for it's various preset levels of strictness on the master bus. @giant ll If I EQ out stuff that a particular track doesn't need, then there's more room for energy in other tracks that do need that stuff, so the whole thing doesn't have to be as "loud" to get the same result. It also makes the audio less muddy. I use automation for some tracks that do need the stuff in some places, to reduce or turn off the EQ in those places. I tend to push mixes as close to 0dB as I can, because if I don't, then my tracks are too quiet and the few people that listen to them won't because they have to turn their volume up for them and then back down for their normal music. To help with that, I use the ancient but simple Sonitus Multiband compressor on tracks and/or busses as needed, using automation to turn things on and off whereever needed, bypassing or soloing bands, changing knees or levels, etc. The actual levels I use will vary (a lot) depending on the specific project, as some will need louder drums, some need quiet ones, etc. If you want to hear the results I get to see if they are applicable to your mixing / project style, there are a variety of different projects over at http://amberwolf.bandcamp.com The only ones that are not done in the methods above are in and below the row starting with the ancient Uncommon Ground album. Everything above that is done with variations of the above methods, with the newest stuff at the top, which has the most developed versions of these methods and probably the best mixes.

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The NG is still there? (haven't visited for....feels like decades?)

Naming storms for targets now?

Given the confusion by users that don't have that yet, perhaps you could consider creating a simple update to the BA (that it would notify users exists, assuming it is built to update itself, etc) that causes it to tell users to use the CPC instead? Having seen some of the threads here on this forum about such things, it might save your support people some time, and almost certainly save users frustration. Keep in mind that I'm not a target user for such things, just a recently-visiting outside-bystander looking at a handful of recent threads/posts, so I don't have anything like the depth of experience y'all do with this.

If they'd put Kontakt itself up at that price, then I *might* be able to skip enough household budget stuff to swing it, and then be able to use some of the many deals out there I'd love to then starve for, but they nearly all require the full version of Kontakt to use, so $300 for that plus the deal cost means they're impossible. (some deals also require things like buying an iLok dongle, as they don't come with them, and that's another cost I can't swing). If anybody runs across a super deal on Kontakt in the two-digit (or less :lol: ) price range, please post it up!

This plugin is supposed to (I think) generate various vinyl sounds without any audio input https://www.samplescience.info/2023/03/vinyl-crackles-generator.html but I haven't tried it. For regular processing like the one this thread is about, have you ever tried this one? I don't need this sort of thing very often, but have used this freebie a few times over the last couple decades. (don't recall when I first got it, but it's been a long time) https://www.izotope.com/en/products/vinyl.html if you like the older interface (the only one I have used) it should be the one at the bottom of the page here https://www.izotope.com/en/products/legacy-products.html This freebie I got at some point but apparently never tried out; it's still in my "not installed" folder https://vetrixmusic.com/download_vstplugins.html There's others out there, too but haven't tried them out. When I need a different kind of lofi-ness or similar in most of my projects, I use BiFilter2 https://www.tone2.com/bifilter2.html I don't remember which software that came with (been years), maybe some version of SONAR? but you can buy it separately. I use it for the automated distortion/etc on the synth / e-guitar-like "lead" track that starts around 30 seconds in on TT # Nex Ool here https://amberwolf.bandcamp.com/track/tt-nex-ool the automation turns it off about a minute in. I've used it on quite a few projects as resonant filters and whatnot.

What is "the music player thingy"? How is it being used? Is it playing back rendered songs that are MP3, WAV or some other plain audio file? Or is it playing back Cakewalk / Sonar projects with their own internal effects? Within Sonar there is an Audio Option in the Advanced tab (in my version, it may be elsewhere in yours) for "Play Effect Tails After Stopping", that may affect the issue you see, depending on the specifics of what exactly you're doing. There is also an option (while freezing, bouncing, etc) for how long a tail to leave, IIRC.

Haha. Actually it's the terran environmental code the Chirpsithra use for us in the Niven's Draco Tavern story series.

I think both of those are about equally impossible. Stopping by to let you know that the "tweaked" versions of those plugins are still working in my ancient broken system. And that this piece of music wouldn't even exist if it weren't for the ir existence, and the problems encountered, because I wouldn't have created the test project that evolved into it. It's got several instances of CSHumanize on various tracks with assorted settings, and has had it applied to certain clips here and there permanently. So, thank you. I don't have much to offer, but if you need further artwork, etc., I can try to come up with something. I composited this banner for my bandcamp page out of some of the results from teh ai test kitchen, and a bit of hand drawing and other editing within my ancient PaintShopPro4. *** The music itself is TT # Nex Ool (tee tee hatch nex ool): https://amberwolf.bandcamp.com/track/tt-nex-ool *** over the last few weeks, i've tried several newer paint / photo editing programs, both online and installed types, but all of them either have NO way to do a simple selection of an area, or make it extremely complex to do this, or they can't scroll around the screen if you are zoomed in, etc., or they have some other major functionality lack to just do very simple edits with. They might still do what I want with several months or years of learning their poorly-designed GUIs, and misusing other functions to do these things, but I don't have that kind of time to mess with them, and they should not be that hard to use.

I don't use the console view (or inspector), so I'm not familiar with it's layout or controls. I only use the controls directly in the bus tracks and the automation envelopes I create for them. I only do export from the file menu, so I don't know what dialog options exist doing it from other places. My SONAR is also very old (list of reasons given in another post somewhere), so my options may be different from yours. For this scenario, I recommend creating a "headphone" or "monitor" bus that is what feeds your hardware output, with no fx or anything, you're simply using it as a fader for your ears. Then set your master bus to feed to that bus, instead of the hardware output. Then export using Bus instead of entire mix, and choose only the master bus. FWIW, there are small volume control boxes you can get for headphones. I used to use one that was part of an old computer-speaker set, but since the interface I'm presently using has a separate hp control I haven't had it connected in years (probalby in a box around here). A random google link to a page with some versions of this kind of thing https://www.amazon.com/headphone-volume-control/s?k=headphone+volume+control Some of them can be mounted / taped / glued to your desk/etc., some clip to the cord, and so on. Also, if it's still out there anywhere, I also recommend for just the phone/speaker bus's fx bin an old plugin called "Bill T Ear Protection", which has a shutoff function (protect) if the levels go above some amount (I forget what it is but it turns the outputs off for spikes that could damage your ears or speakers). Was made by a forum or newsgroup member. If it's not around, there's probably other things that do the same job. In that bin it can't affect your exports. I use this type of protection as part of my base template because I experiment with sounds a lot, and sometimes a synth or effect does something unexpected at an output level I would not expect possible. These things prevent that from blowing me or my equipment up. EDIT: Didn't get any hits at all searching for BTEP, but a similar free plugin shows up here https://www.kvraudio.com/product/ice9-automute-by-cerberus-audio the original site is gone, but freevstplugins still has it here: https://freevstplugins.net/cerberus-audio-ice9-automute/ If you leave them all selected, I think it creates a separate file for each bus. this is actually useful if you want to master or mix outside SONAR or collaborations, or just archive things for backup. You can do the same thing with Tracks and have it export each track as a separate file as well. I haven't used that function in a lot of years so I could be mistaken. (or it might have changed in all the versions since then).

Are you adjusting your monitor levels at the monitors, or at the master bus? If the former, it won't*** affect your export, but doing so at the master bus will, if that is the source for your export. ***(assuming they are typical and do not have a control surface type of control hardware feedback into SONAR) If your monitors have no volume control (at the monitors or the amp, etc), you can also create a separate monitor bus from your master bus, that the master bus feeds. The monitor bus then feeds the hardware output. Set the monitor bus to whatever levels/etc you want, but leave the master bus set for the final actual output levels you intend everyone to hear. Then when you export, choose the master bus as the source. For export in this case, I would normally choose "what you hear" as the preset, select the bit depth desired, give it a file name, and choose Buses as the source, and select just the Master bus, so you get only the output that has the correct mix. On my old M-audio FastTrackPro USB hardware, it has a headphone volume control separate from the main out volume control, but both of these only affect the output signal to the world, and don't change anything about the mix or levels inside the computer. So I use those knobs to alter my listening volume, and do whatever's needed at the busses inside SONAR for the mix itself to get the final file output volume I need, and the listening volume does not affect the exports. So I just use What you hear for the export preset and leave it set to "entire mix", and I get it just like I need it.

Not that this has anything to do with the metronome issue, but have you ever tried the mixdown or bounce to track function instead of realtime loopback recording? I ask because the quoted description sounds like you're just combining all the tracks you already have into a single track for a "mixdown". If that's the case, then selecting all your material (Ctrl-A for all, for instance) then choosing Edit - Bounce to Tracks (might be different menu in modern Sonar/etc), then in the dialog choose a new track for the destination, "what you hear" for the preset, entire mix for the source category, etc. If you're trying to record new material at the same time and require the metronome count-in, then that won't do what you want, since it's not realtime. There is an option to do it realtime, including with live input recorded along with it, but that's basically what you are already doing right now, and would probably have the same issue if it uses the metronome. I don't know if it does, as I don't use that option since I would always want to be able to edit the new material separately from the existing material, on it's own new track, and only mixdown eveyrhting to one track later after all the editing is done, but not everyone works that way.

This might not be the issue but: If the sound being used for the metronome is long enough to extend past the end of the count-in bar(s), it's going to be in the recorded part. Same if it passes into any effects that reverb or delay or echo it, etc., causing it to continue past the end of the count-in. A hack to work around this is to leave a blank measure (or more) in front of your project to give time for the count in sound to die out. Some of the count in sounds may be longer than others, so depending on what you're using you might need more time after the count in for the sound to fade out. I use the very short sound I sent in to the bakers many years ago that is listed as Metro Click 2, which was recorded off the even more ancient Ensoniq ASR88 / EPS16+ workstation keyboards. I also have it routed directly to the output hardware, not thru any bus (or else thru it's own bus (to give me an easy-to-access volume control) that is routed to the hardware out, and never to the master bus), so it doesn't get included in anything I record, and won't be included in any mixdown that stops at the master bus. I used to have it routed to a separate audio output with it's own speaker back when I was using the ancient (but still working even now!) GadgetLabs Wave 8*24 on a desktop computer, but I have not had that computer working for years, and just have a stereo in/out USB interface now, so it doesn't have that option. When it was on it's own output I could simply turn the speakers for it off and never mess with any options in SONAR itself, leaving it enabled for everything (playback, recording, count-in, etc), and I could easily adjust the volume as needed, too.

This isn't a solution to the problem, but a "hack", if it is usable for you. (I use it sometimes because I have poor fine motor control and perception and sometimes can't reliably click on things in small spaces.) Assuming the newer Sonar works like the ancient one I use, there is the option to set the Now time by left (or right, or both) clicking in a track, in the track view clips pane options, IIRC. So you can create an empty track wherever is convenient for you to use as a now time setter, and just click in it when you want to set the now time there. It's a waste of screen space and whatnot, but it does work, and you can make the track minimized or as tall as you want, to make it convenient to click in. You can also put the track in the middle of your workspace, at the top, the bottom, or anywhere between other tracks. (you can also just click within a track to do this, even on clips, but if you don't want to select or touch anything in a track that it less convenient).

Thanks! I convinced the ai art program to give me something closer to what I wanted for cover art, but it's not whimsical enough, it kept taking too many things literally, so i have a couple hundred junk images. So this is the new art for this one. https://amberwolf.bandcamp.com/track/the-moon-it-read-to-me-and-it-was-bright and this is the new art for the original all-electronic version https://amberwolf.bandcamp.com/track/the-moon-it-read-to-me-and-it-was-bright-original-electronic-version

Thanks! Still working on the mix; trying to find out where my bass went. I have two "identical" vizio soundbars; one on my (self-custom-built) trike that I listen to sometimes while commuting to/from work, and one glued to the top of my computer monitor. For all the other songs, they sound the same, allowing for the riding conditions drowning stuff out. But on this song, it has virtually no bass on the trike while riding, while it sounds about right on the one at home. Not sure what is causing the difference.... The artwork process I described in one of these song threads. I just posted this one over here with a bunch of variations I am trying to choose from to better represent the chaos of that song.

Thanks! Been experimenting with getting the ai test kitchen to make a better cover art; here's a few possibilities; haven't decided which to use, or if I should keep trying. There is not quite enough chaos in them of the right kind. There were some better ones for composition and attitude, but they all have really wierd stuff going on in them that I'd have to edit by hand, which could take hours or days.

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It's certainly not gluteus free.

Thanks! Still working on it; next step is to experiment with the EQs on various parts, see if I can bring out the bass and kicks (there are two separate drumsets playing different parts and sections).

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ok. sorry.

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Well, until CbB came out as a free thing, I couldn't get newer versions. I can't afford or justify spending more on that since even though creating music is one of the most important things in the universe to me, nothing I could possibly ever create would be good enough to earn even a tiny fraction of the money to pay for it (much less earn me even the most barebones living). So I use what I have that does enough things for me to do what I want. Sonar Platinum had a free (or super-cheap, don't recall which) offer at some point, and I tried that but it broke my VST adapter setup, etc, breaking synths and effects and whatnot so my projects wouldn't work, and years of my created presets either broken or missing, so between these issues it took a very long time of tedious file and registry entry research and experimentation for me to scrub it all out and put it back to a state I could even do anything with music; it's still not fully fixed, and probably never will be but I can use it for what I have to, mostly (I can no longer scan for new plugins, because it will always break all the old ones in the process). (and naturally the OS system restore stuff didn't actually put it back the way it had been, and broke even more stuff, so that was very unhelpful.) After CbB came out I tried it, but it also screwed things like Platinum did in my existing setup, and I had to painstakingly scrub it and hack things back again like before. After that I wasn't going to try anything new on this system that could break my ability to use it, since I had by this point wasted months of manhours being unable to work on or play with music, and I'm just not going to do that anymore. (I used to fix computers for a living, and am really good at it, but it's tedious and exhausting and I hate doing it; they're tools to be used and if I can't use mine rather than tinkering with it all the time, there's no point to having it). Relatively recently I got a backup machine to set things up on and try out new things, but that's still a work in progress, and I have little free time to mess with it so it'll be a while before I can explore CbB and it's new features. I wish I was someone that could afford to just spend time, energy, and money on new things just because they're new things (or pay someone else to do it for me) but I don't have enough of any of them to go around as it is.