petemus

I'm suddenly experiencing constant crashes with exporting, also with projects that have been exporting ok earlier. Playing back the entire project works always ok, but export shows an error, sometimes in Windows components and sometimes plugins, but there seems to be no pattern to this. Also, trying to freeze instrument tracks might succeed, but there's a crash after that trying to freeze more instruments, or just starting playback. Sometimes CbB just quits with no error message box, sometimes it shows a message box.

I took a look at the debug dumps with WinDbg and the cause of every crash was "heap corruption". 

@Noel Borthwick, what do you need for checking it out? The debug dumps and the project file? Does audio need to be included as well?

Thanks,

        -Pete

Check out Bass Professor and Bass Professor mk II by Sonic Anomaly - they're very good and free! I've had success more than once to bring life to DI bass sound with these. The original site seems to be down, but these float around on various plugin sites for download.

Definitely worth a try, especially at that price... ?

    -Pete

15 hours ago, Colin Nicholls said:

At least for me, this is not the case. Just Focusrite Control, for either Mac or Win.

This is what happens if I check for drivers for my registered Scarlett 2i2 when logged in to Focusrite's site, only Focusrite Control:

The link I provided shows the driver only download, and seems to go to a different page. I guess the latest Focusrite Control already includes the said driver version 4.63.24.564. The link also shows the download possibility to download a suitable driver for 1st Gen Scarletts:

59 minutes ago, Colin Nicholls said:

At least for me, this is not the case. Just Focusrite Control, for either Mac or Win.

Hmm, strange. It might be that I wasn't logged in to my account, when I checked it, so it didn't know what I own and showed me everything. ?

The driver IS available separately (if I'm not completely wrong here):

https://customer.focusrite.com/support/downloads?brand=Focusrite&product_by_type=431&download_type=all

Open the Software container, and there it is, for you to download...

    -Pete

2 hours ago, Brian Walton said:

Wanted to try this one, but I detest the pop ups on the web site.  If this guy really is selling at the rate implied, he is filthy rich.  

What is the authorization and licencing system like?  

I see these "Someone just bought/added to cart this and that" on a few plugin sites... Might be legit, it's a global thing after all. The plugin IS good. Just take a look at the "Snake Oil" video  embedded on the True Iron page; that Wytse guy very rarely likes anything, but even he had to admit there's something there. This plugin is quite subtle, but it makes a difference. And, I don't work for Kazrog, I'm just a music hobbyist from Finland. 

The plugin itself doesn't seem to use iLok or other licensing mechanism. I recall just buying the thing, downloading it with the link and installing it. I don't remember entering any serial either.  Maybe someone with a better memory can help? ?  I just searched through my mails and didn't even see any serials being sent to me, only receipts and order confirmations. Quite relaxed, actually... 

True Iron from Kazrog:

https://kazrog.com/collections/audio-plugins/products/true-iron

I these days throw it almost on everything; tracks and buses.

While on the subject of aim assist, I'd like an option for moving audio clips:

When I have the aim assist on and start moving an audio clip, it would be nice to (optionally) have the aim line stay at the location where I click the clip when I start dragging it (a zero crossing, peak etc.). Now the aim line moves to the start of the clip, which doesn't alwayshelp much.

Say, if you're aligning two clips to be exactly in phase, you first have to drag a clip and then check with aim assist if the two are now ok relative to each other. If the aim assist would remain in the position I want to align to, this would be a bit easier.

I sometimes think these are some kind of timing problems. Open CbB "cold" with the project, and the first time leads into a crash, but the second time when most of the stuff already is in caches or whatever, having just been accessed, things go smoothly. I don't know what else could be different between the first and second launch.

But, this is software and there are a few possible orders things happen when multitasking...

4 hours ago, Starship Krupa said:

I just tried DD Compressor with the latest build of Cakewalk, Windows 10/1903 on my Core 2 Quad system with nVidia card and all functions worked fine, including the ones you mention. Man, I'm sorry to hear it. It's a good bundle of FX and fun to go through all of them.

You might post a message to the developer on KVR Forum, he's active on there and very responsive the last time I saw. He doesn't like bugs, either. Wants them to work for everyone.

Met with the Ducks again yesterday evening and they were working fine, pot values and meters. Must've been some strange thing with adding plugins in CbB the first time. Now everything was as you'd expect.

Must give the Duckies a new try soon - I think especially the chorus, phaser and flanger are very good and clean, the filter as well. The minimalism of the UI is a delight. As  a Finn, I value clear design a lot. ?

On 7/9/2019 at 10:23 PM, Starship Krupa said:

Finally, if Cakewalk didn't come with anything, or if someone just wanted or needed one each of every standard effect plug-in, The Dead Duck Free Effects Bundle has 25 essential no-frills FX, nothing fancy, just functional and easy on the eyes. Compressor, Gate, EQ, Phaser, Flanger, Chorus, Bit Crusher, Expander, Channel Strip, they're all there. I've tried them and they work. Nothing fancy about the GUI's, they're nice and attractive, no fake brushed aluminum. As for the sound, no attempts here to inject "mojo" or "vintage warmth" or anything, they do what they say they do.

Tried the Dead Ducks out yesterday, but there's something wrong with drawing the UI, at least in my system: the level meters don't work in any effect that have them and turning the pots only shows the value when I release the mouse. (Win 10 Pro 1903 with latest updates, Intel/nVidia combo with up-to-date drivers).

Does anyone else have this problem with these? I'd actually like to use many of these, but the UI... ?

     -Pete

On 8/11/2019 at 1:11 PM, petemus said:

Vantaa, Finland. Ten miles north of Helsinki.

This is right next to my house...

I have it since last spring and wouldn't part with it ever. After calibrating my monitors (a pair of small Genelecs with the smallish "porridge pot" sub) I have gotten much better mix results, and I don't even have any treatment in the room whatsoever.

It used to be very hard for me to get the low end even near right (surprise!), but now I can better trust what I hear.  The Studio also comes with headphone calibration (I think)  and my Beyer 880 Pros are much more usable for mixing than before.

The calibration process is quite fun and you can do it easily whenever need be.

Sonarworks releases new versions surprisingly often and has a very responsive support, so you don't have to suffer from bugs for very long.

So, to answer your question, it really was and is worth the money in my opinion. I bought it at full price, but have seen some deals on it as well after purchasing it. Monitor the Coffee House V2.0/Deals subforum here, as you can spot good deals there without having to google so much...

This is what BassDrive looks like in Logic (snipped out of one of Airwindows' videos):

Something like this is all I'm after. I guess a few more pixels have been put into use here - with a proper scalable font and not the a-few-pixels-by-a-few-pixels bitmapped relic font that's still in use in Cakewalk.

Vantaa, Finland. Ten miles north of Helsinki.

6 hours ago, Starship Krupa said:

Hie on over to the Favorite Freeware FX thread and hit up Airwindows.

The guy is a brilliant DSP engineer, but likes to work alone, I think.  That extends to partnering with someone to do GUI's.

From what I've read in his blog, he's even a bit contemptuous of GUI's. Oh well.

That BassDrive IS an Airwindows plugin. These plugins are numerous and some are quite interesting... I guess the Airwindows motto is: "In the mix, no-one can hear your screen."   ?

@Chuck E Baby: Here's a default GUI example for you. Probably a blast right outta the 90's. The font height ain't too many pixels. Ahh, those were the times: screen resolution of 800 x 600 px, and you were rockin'!  You could read it well back then, not so much today.

21 minutes ago, scook said:

I find the Lens view most useful

Have to try it, seems quite useful! Thanks for the tip, @scook!

2 hours ago, scook said:

Already built into the OS Windows+Plus very useful for failing eyes

I know, @scook; maybe I have to try that. Until now it's been mainly an accident that I enter that magnified mode. Maybe it's time to admit I really need it. ?

1 hour ago, Noel Borthwick said:

Hi Pete,

The default ui hasn't been updated in a long time since it's rare that a plugin doesn't have a ui these days. Well look into improving it at some point.

 

Thanks @Noel Borthwick! Surely there are more pressing things in the backlog than this; just thought it "shouldn't be a biggie".  ?

@Chuck E Baby, I know plugins usually handle their own graphic output. Surely then all that is on screen is in the plugin library and controlled by the manufacturer. I guess the VST spec doesn't REQUIRE them to provide a GUI, however, and if this is the case the host DAW will query the plugin for the adjustable parameters and provides a generic GUI for adjusting them.

This would explain why e.g. the Airwindows plugins look different in Logic from what they look like in Cakewalk. And they especially are plugins that provide no UI of their own and leave any rendering for the host DAW to take care of. That's why I'm requesting it here, and not from Airwindows or other maker.

I might be all wrong here as well, since albeit being a software developer myself, I've never had a look at he VST API specification. I just understand the "default UI" concept as something the host DAW provides for the plugin if the plugin doesn't implement any itself.

Any VST developer here willing  to shed light on this?  ?

@pwalpwal, I have used the FX Chain method, but as I said earlier, it's just another layer of stuff to deal with, because you CAN have a default GUI. I guess I need to get me a magnifying glass soon, or get some glasses suitable for use with computer...

@Starship Krupa, your armchair guess could be quite correct there. That VST SDK code could be quite old...

Maybe the Cakewalk installer should ask for your age when installing?  0 - 40 or 40+   ?   Choosing the latter would lead you through an optician's sight test (or whatever it's called) with all the E's. Then, based on the results it would choose the appropriate element sizes for the GUI. For me, currently, that result would probably land in the Lego Duplo side of sizes...

Thank you! Here's an example of an impeccable feature change overview. You've really worked hard for this, I can tell!

Keep up the magnificent work @Noel Borthwick and @Morten Saether  (and other bakers)! 

1 hour ago, Starship Krupa said:

Forgot to say +1. I was "that forum geek" who reads a good feature request and then offers a workaround. ?

Thing is, of course, I wouldn't have had to come up with all that if the default UI were not so microscopic. Scalable would even be nice.

And you are so right about inability to guess at the complexity of the task. Opening the most likely ancient section of code that pertains to that UI could have unforeseen consequences. I think the only thing I'm willing to say "probably wouldn't be that tough" regarding is changing menu text or art with the same number of pixels.

?

"Should not be a biggie" is a sentence  you really learn to avoid during the course of the years as a software developer...

Since Cakewalk even uses a slider to present value list selection (Airwindows videos show Logic UI, which even seems to have dropdowns fot these), one would imagine it's just to update the slider drawing logic to use a truly scalable font and some nicer colors and bigger numbers. If we only could see the code... I would guess changing that wouldn't change other parts of the app, since I'm not aware of any screen that would have the same look.