User 905133

I used to take the "Widget Filter"** for granted. It's usefulness solidified for me when I used the Track Control Manager. I think taking 3 -5 minutes on two different days creating my own Track Control presets [or "Widget Filters"] when I got back into Cakewalk in the summer really helped me. For each type of strip we can decide what "widgets" are useful to us personally. It helps me to focus by reducing visual distractions. For example my "==> MIDI" filter helps me focus when all I want to do is assign midi I/Os, banks, and/or presets. OK, now I can take the rest of the day off! ? ------------------------ ** Officially, I think its called "Track Control" in the Reference Guide. "Widget" is defined as being related to StudioWare panels, though "Widget Section" is the first column in the Manager, the Reference Guide refers to "Track view controls (widgets)," "Cakewalk knob or widget," etc. The term "widget" seems to have many uses (function overloading?). Anyhow, I think "Track Widget Filter" fits.

Thanks for confirming this. I have one range (C2 to C4) going to an instance of TTS-1 on a single midi channel. I will try another range to create a second zone. (I am more used to setting up zones on usb keyboards!) OK. Got two different ranges going to two different channels on TTS-1. Addendum: with overlapping ranges you can get layering. Thanks for asking about this @bertus weyers and thanks for the suggestions @scook This technique fits in with a couple of personal project templates I have been working on.

I have never used it, but maybe the MFX [Midi FX] Event Filter might help to route different note ranges to different soft synths. Edit: Before today I never used it, but the MFX [Midi FX] Event Filter can be used to route note ranges to the same or different soft synths. Sorry. If it can be done using the Midi Even Filter to route incoming midi data to VSTis, I haven't been able to figure out how. See below for other options per scook and for the "Proof of Concept" marked up screen shot.

There should be several options. Here's one: Insert a midi track, point the midi out of that track to Cakewalk Sound Center.

What ROMs for you have installed? Based on the screen shots, it looks like you have the Holy Grail ROM. If so, it looks to me like the Instrument Definition is set up correctly to have Cakewalk switch to the ROM's presets. [E-MU P2k: Holy Grail (8192)] . Do you also have ORCH1 and ORCH2 installed in the Virtuoso 2000 ROMpler? Are there any others installed? It looks like you have Cakewalk set up to use the User Banks 0, 1, 2, and 3. If those are filled with Virtuoso presets and you don't have ORCH1 and ORCH2 installed, they will produce no sound at all. Also, what MIDI MODE are you using (in the Virtuoso) omni, poly, multi? Out of curiosity, what OS does the virtuoso have install? As David points out, "Insert Instrument" is not for external gear. Addendum: Also, in one of the screen shots your track "widget" filter is set to "All" and in another "Custom." If you are missing some "widgets," try changing the filter to "All."

BTW, I am not sure I would call it an oddity (step 5) because that seems to be the way Sonar has been done at least since Sonar 3. Back in the day before I used soft synths, when creating multitrack recordings the way input echo/thru functioned seemed intuitive (at least to me). Lay down a line (separate track from other lines), mute playback of a recorded line, test other lines live, unmute to listen to interaction of previously recorded line and live overlays, etc. At that point there were options to undo previously recorded lines, make a new track for an overlay, etc. Perhaps with the addition over the years of different record modes, take lanes, the extensive use of soft synths, etc. my simplistic method makes the input echo/thru behavior seem less intuitive. Technological complexity can do that. Perhaps you want to request an option, something like "[ ] On track mute, always suppress input echo to external gear." Or perhaps the Mute-Solo-Record button array could have its own border to convey they relate to tracks and there could be some Input Echo/Thru buttons within a different border. If I understand why you are calling the behavior an "oddity" perhaps options like these (if possible) might help you and others. Just a thought. Just in case its not clear, I don't think one work flow is "better" than any other; ideally, we should all have what works best for us. One of the things I have appreciated about SONAR/Cakewalk is its flexibility. So if there is the possibility of adding optional work flow preferences, I think that's consistent with the history of the software. Clarification: Which insert soft synth method did you use? I have discovered that sometimes the methods [of inserting soft synths] used make a difference. Sorry I didn't emphasize that in the original post. What I mean was: How did you insert the soft synths you tested? For example, (a) from the Insert Menu, (b) by right clicking in the track area, (c) by dragging an instrument from the Browser, (d) from the Synth Rack, etc. I don't think your results would be different based on which method you used to insert each soft synth (it shouldn't), but I was wondering which method you used. Footnote: I try different things out when other people mention them because it helps me to make better use of the software. For example, while exploring your observations, I got an idea (and tested it) on how to use a particular soft synth/sampler I have that can have up to 19 output buses from a single instance of the VSTi. If I can make it work the way I want, that might mean I can make a smooth workflow transition--from developing tunes using my old school hardware to porting the tunes to the VSTi (same manufacturer and basic synth engine as the hardware) and possibly only needing a laptop to play out (a long time goal of mine). So, thanks for raising this issue!!

Regarding step 6 above: Which insert soft synth method did you use? I have discovered that sometimes the methods used make a difference. Not sure if it does here, but I was just wondering about this. Thanks.

Over the past several months I have been working on designing some personal Workspaces [formerly Lenses]. For the past week I have been using a something I got from another user--locked screen sets. It seems to be helping me to move things around in a project and then return to my desired visual arrangement. Not sure if this will work for you (if you haven't tried it yet), but maybe. Workspaces are global and Screen sets are per project,. So, in several projects I have saved my preferred initial screen set in slot 01. and locked it. I also make an unlocked copy in another slot so if I tweak it, I have both the original locked version and the one I last had prior to saving the project. I am still experimenting but thought this might be useful. BTW, I trying to figure out where the width of the control bar (collapsed or expanded) gets restored from--or if there is a bug (sometimes it gets restored properly; sometimes I have to manually expand it and then collapse it). I usually just use the default track icons, so I just tested this by changing two if my icons. Depending on which Workspace I chose, either the track icons were shown or hidden. If shown, the new ones were there. It seems to me that specific track icons are saved with different projects, not screen sets or Workspaces. Now that you mentioned this issue, maybe I will start using custom icons.

I don't use them, but I have Sonar 3 and Sonar 8.5 installed on my Win 10 PC. I have to shovel more snow, but if no one else tests those in the meantime, I am interested. I don't remember which version does what in which way(s). I just let my ||: eyes-brain-ears-brain-hands :|| bio-feedback mechanism do its thing as best it can. Earlier today (based on your observations) I also tested for the effects of record-armed mode, counting down period, and midi recording for the PRV keyboard and note display (as well as for the echo/thru to ext gear path when the track is muted and the midi input track level leds). With the Sonar 3 and Sonar 8.5 tests, that should represent a good sample of versions. If not, I think I still have more versions on my XP PC. Uh Oh. Its snowing as hard as it did yesterday and overnight into today. ? (An hour or so later) Initial Results re: SONAR 3: track echo/thru (midi input echo on & auto thru modes) work as expected: (1) usb keyboard -> external sound module [track mute is irrelevant for this test; not testing recorded track data, just midi input echo/auto thru]. (2) when recorded, notes get placed into PRV in real time; PRV keyboard doesn't show usb keyboard key presses as I believe that feature came later, IIRC. (3) midi data does not seem to trigger track leds in any condition (and I didn't see an option to make this happen). (4) midi-track-i/o-channeling functions as expected; usb keyboard on midi channel 2 (a) is echoed to external gear midi channel 2 (b) except when forced to a specific midi channel by the track i/o routing and (c) in both cases, the data gets recorded as midi track 2 data. Tentative Conclusion: I expect if I were to test other post SONAR 3 versions, the track echo/thru would function the same way when routed to external gear--except for any new options or features that might have been added. Footnote: It took longer than I expected to remember where things were in the pre-X SONARs.

Just tested a few simple things (listing projects from different sources/folder locations, and launching projects and *.mid files to test). Seems to work just fine. Thanks again for adding the silent skip-unsupported-older-versions feature!!

re: XP: not an issue for me; I was just wondering. Allowing the launcher to run by skipping older non-Producer SONAR variants sounds like a good plan. Glad I can now use it! I ran some quick launches. For the most part, programs seem to launch as expected (including appropriate warnings about files being made on newer versions, missing plug-ins, etc.). Thanks for the launcher as well as your other tools!

Yes! I haven't done any complex tasks, just browsed which files show up via the different sources with several different versions I have installed (Sonar 3 Producer, 8.5 Producer, Cakewalk Core). I could test some specific tasks if it would help. I assumed that if I got this far, the other functions should work. I don't have X1 Producer on this PC; not sure I can have both X3 Studio and X1 Producer. (X1 Producer is on my XP SP3 PC--and still works!! Will the tool work under XP?

Although Windows Defender was stopping it from running, once I looked at the file properties, I saw this: So, unblocking it there solved the Windows Defender problem. I don't think its a problem with your files.

It now runs! TY!!

After reading through the thread, I went back to your original question. It seems like there are several explanations for why snap-to-grid does what it does. In addition, it seems like several possible solutions were offered. I think the one you really want is to turn off snap-to-grid (just guessing here). That way you can place notes anywhere within a cell or even overlapping cell boundaries. Plus, it's super fast!!!

Re: LaunchPad: Do I need to uninstall unsupported versions, or can I just exclude them from being searched somehow? If so, is there a list of supported and unsupported versions? Thanks.

First of all, thanks for raising this question and for all the responses. Though I have used Cakewalk for ages, I do not use PRV and so my experience with snap-to-grid is with the Staff View. So, I decided to use the Q&As here to teach myself about PRV--to add to my Cakewalk skills one small step at a time. To me it looks like there is sort of a quantizing effect built into the PRV's implementation of snap-to-grid. That is, if I place a note event in the left hand side of the "cell" [the space between two grid lines for a specific note], it "snaps" to line up with the left grid line. If I place a note event in the right hand side of the cell, it snaps to line up with the right grid line. As I understand the snap-to-grid feature, this is what it is designed to do. And as such the alignment to me seems to be a starting-point quantizing effect with the duration being constant (i.e., the duration I have pre-selected/chose). Is it possible you can get the behavior you want by customizing the snap-to-grid tool? OK. I think I got it. Let me know if you want to know the settings I used to get this: Addendum: With my method, I still get a quantizing effect--approx 25% of the cell before and after "snaps" to the nearest grid (based on my duration and resolution. See the following post for what seems to be a better solution.

I have one version saved as part of some custom Workspaces [formerly Lenses]. When I switch to factory Workspaces, the factory default custom buttons get loaded. If you know this, maybe it won't confuse you when you do stuff with Workspaces. I suspect its because the factory Workspaces (at least Basic and Advanced) have either the Custom Module and/or the Control Bar Layout saved (maybe). I haven't explored the specifics--yet. Footnote: Thanks for this discussion. In my Staff Entry Workspace I have an empty, narrow Control Bar band, but this discussion leads me to want to add some small horizontal modules (screensets and custom) if I can. Now I just need to change the images so I can see them! BTW, if a function in a custom module is not in a personalized Workspace, it appears grayed out. (I have a reduced View Set in my Staff Entry Workspace. I might add back Event List, but I really want to stay away from micromanaging ticks--too easy to get side tracked from doing notes in favor of tweaking.)

Same here; had to log into BandLab on my PC. (Now I need to find out how to direct BandLab's audio to my current audio device.)

I believe this is one of the suggestions made in one of the other threads related to noise, distortion, crackling, etc. If I stumble on the link, I will add it here. It might have been in the feedback thread for the 2019.11 release. I believe there are comments posted in some of the various threads that explain some aspects of the distortion, noise, crackling, etc. problem(s). They might help answer the "why" question (i.e., why switching audio driver modes helps in some cases). I am just a plain old user (i.e., not staff or even a power user) and couldn't explain it, but I remember seeing explanations. Not sure if someone can tag the posts/threads posts with "distortion," "noise," "crackling," etc. so they might be easier to find than just doing a keyword search of all the times those words are used. This might interest you. It includes a link to the feedback thread, too.

@David Baay Thanks for opening up the opportunity for me to clarify. I should have emphasized the method, not the specific numbers. The method was to start low with problematic audio and increase each of the two parameters a notch until the problem went away and to confirm the solution by backing the numbers down. I had those graphics handy from looking at MME mode (based on another noise issue, IIRC). @Tim White Sorry if I misled you with those specific numbers. I am sure at some point I used the same process to set the settings for ASIO mode. I recall tweaking numbers to get rid of an audio glitch that occurred when I had audio playing back and switched Workspaces (formerly Lenses). Generally, I have my sound card's ASIO Control Panel set to the lowest value possible--usually 2. For many tasks, that is sufficient. (See screenshots below.) I will change it notch at a time depending of what else my computer is doing--such as when I am designing a Workspace and I don't want the glitch. For that I moved the setting to 3 then 4, again using the ASIO Control Panel for my Sound Card. (See screenshots below.) Today, I discovered something unusual with a Workspace I have been working on and decided to grab real time video using OBS Studio. That upped the distortion quite high since my PC was working much harder running both. I didn't grab any screenshots, but I did bump up my settings so Cakewalk would play smoothly and I could capture the visual oddity I was experiencing. After that I put back the lower settings. Again, apologies for not spelling out the method and appearing to be recommending what is probably a higher latency than you need. <== My usual ASIO panel setting <== Cakewalk's settings based on 2 ms in ASIO panel [44.1KHz] <== Manually upped as needed <== Cakewalk's settings based on 4 ms in ASIO panel [48KHz] Please note: These screenshots are from 2 different projects, one at 44.1 KHz and another at 48 KHz. Not suggesting you use these numbers; just trying to show one method (I am sure there are others!) for reducing noise/distortion while trying to maintain low latency as needed for specific tasks. If this helps meet your specific needs, great. Steve

Three things: I find searching the pdf sometimes get me to the info I want more quickly and more accurately than the on-line search. Not sure if you would have a similar experience. I also find sometimes the online ToC and Index are often more helpful than the search box results. The problem that I generally have with the online search is that it usually lists links and descriptions of those links for pre-CbB products. As for asking about Workspaces, since I am making a concerted effort to teach myself the ins and outs, benefits, and disadvantages, etc. of Workspaces [formerly Lenses], as a plain old user [i.e., not staff or even power user], when I see questions/comments about them, it gives me an excuse to explore them more and maybe discover things I hadn't explored yet. Footnote: yesterday and today I have been working on developing/refining a "Staff Entry" Workspace for my personal use.

Not sure if the RTZ / Transport issue affects your workflow, but I just noticed this and thought it might.

You can choose to have W to function as "Rewind + Stop." While the default is to return to the beginning and continue, I was able to change it back. I tested it before I posted my screen shot (above). I will test it again. ADDENDUM: YUP!!! Track View > Options > Click Behavior > Transport Seeking Stops Behavior

Amen!!!!