Sonar Platinum Volume Automation question

[Larry T.]

I'm really enjoying Sonar Platinum. But, I'm not a fan of Volume Limiting tools so I use Sonar's Volume Automation and manually set the high volume cut off points. 

The issue I'm having is repeatability or consistency in the audio level after I've made a level change. Sometimes the audio adjustment aligns with the audio level reading, sometimes it's off by like 2.3dB's, so I adjust but then the next audio level doesn't correlate to the change I made.

This happened the last few years with the CbB version so I thought it wouldn't happen with Sonar.

Is this just a normal hiccup in all DAW's or something that can be fixed by the Sonar team?

TIA.

[Amberwolf]

I'm not sure I understand exactly what you're doing vs what you're seeing.  So I will just explain my understanding of the control I think you're using, and see if this matches your expectations of it:

You can set a track volume with automation, but this doesn't change the audio itself *to* that volume, it just moves the volume fader to that position, essentially either subtracting that many dB (-values of automation) or adding that many dB (+values).  

So just like having a track volume at 0dB doesn't mean your audio will be output at 0dB, setting the volume to say, -3dB doesnt' make it -3dB, it just reduces whatever volume the audio actually is at by -3dB.   If your audio is peaking up at +4.3dB at that point, it will now peak at +1.3dB if the volume is set to -3dB, because it reduced it by that much. 

Does that help, or am I misunderstanding what you're doing and seeing?

 

 

 

[Larry T.]

Hi man. Yes, I understand what your saying. That is how I perceive and use the Volume Automation, as the volume fader of that track. It works as I expect it to most of the time.

But, I will take another look at what you posted to see if my understanding of Volume Automation is faulty. Thanks.

 

Edit:

So, you don't have this problem, then?

Edited 15 hours ago by Larry T.

[Amberwolf]

Just now, Larry T. said:

That is how I perceive and use the Volume Automation, as the volume fader of that track. It works as I expect it to most of the time.

What do you see, exactly, when it does not work as expected?   More detail is better, to see if we can figure out what's going on.  

[Bristol_Jonesey]

Volume automation and limiting are not really the same thing, and there are other tools you could use, such as compression.

But, just like Amberwolf, I'm struggling to really understand the problem so further clarification would be welcome.

[Larry T.]

Thanks so much for the replies.

The problem is inconsistent stability after making a Volume adjustment up or down in the volume adjustment line. 

I get different readings in the fader volume level, sometimes in the red, sometimes in the yellow, sometimes not red nor yellow after making a calculated audio level adjustment based on the fader level reading.

Obviously, you guys don't have this problem. I had it previously in the last few years with the free CbB version. 

It's intermittent, impossible to predict, rendering the tool useless at that point in time.

Usually I get frustrated and try later which sometimes works. It's not a deal breaker as I can always try other ways to make the correction.

Edited 7 hours ago by Larry T.

[Bristol_Jonesey]

There are at least a couple of really good compressors at your disposal.

If you're on the paid Sonar, check out the Core Compressor, which supersedes  the old Sonitus Compressor

You get instant visual feedback on what you're doing and if you're new to compression, there are hundreds of videos on Youtube

[David Baay]

3 hours ago, Larry T. said:

I get different readings in the fader volume level, sometimes in the red, sometimes in the yellow, sometimes not red nor yellow after making a calculated audio level adjustment based on the fader level reading.

It's still not clear to me what you're saying. To me '"fader volume level" is the position of the fader control and has no direct relation to meter colors. And when you say "calculated audio level adjustment based on the fader level reading", this is the opposite of the way I would express it which would be "calculated fader position based on audio level reading (vs. desired reading). That 'reading' could be either an estimated peak or RMS level in the meter or the precise numeric peak value shown at the top of track meters and the bottom of console meters.

Also, aside from custom themes in CbB, Sonar's track and console meters don't really have what I would call a "yellow" range or a red range that you can be "in", only green below -6dBFS  and orange above it with red clipping indicators at the very top that light when you hit them, and don't reset until you restart the transport.

It might be best to share a small demo project and tell us exactly what to look at, where in the timline, and what you expect to remain stable over time or from one session to another.

[Larry T.]

3 minutes ago, David Baay said:

It's still not clear to me what you're saying. To me '"fader volume level" is the position of the fader control and has no direct relation to meter colors. And when you say "calculated audio level adjustment based on the fader level reading", this is the opposite of the way I would express it which would be "calculated fader position based on audio level reading (vs. desired reading). That 'reading' could be either an estimated peak or RMS level in the meter or the precise numeric peak value shown at the top of track meters and the bottom of console meters.

Also, aside from custom themes in CbB, Sonar's track and console meters don't really have what I would call a "yellow" range or a red range that you can be "in", only green below -6dBFS  and orange above it with red clipping indicators at the very top that light when you hit them, and don't reset until you restart the transport.

It might be best to share a small demo project and tell us exactly what to look at, where in the timline, and what you expect to remain stable over time or from one session to another.

Thank You David. I will see about uploading a video. 

 

[David Baay]

10 minutes ago, Larry T. said:

Thank You David. I will see about uploading a video. 

An actual project would be best.