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cubic13 · 06-27-2015, 12:37 AM

Hi, all !

Well, as Reaper 5 is at its RC stage (which means that there will be no more theming options added for v5.00), I think it's time to deliver the adaptation of my former Cubase like 'Piolit' theme to it. Actually, I made so many changes (and yes, improvements...) that I named it differently. So, here we go...

1) This theme is supposed to be used with Reaper 5 (including 'pre' and 'RC' releases). Don't expect it to be efficiently usable with Reaper 4.xx...
In a near future, I'll probably upload a last version of the 'Piolit' theme to adjust or improve few things, but this one will certainly not implement all the changes done for 'Eyssina' : my laziness says to me that there is too much work for a deprecated version...

2) The 'Piolit' theme was declined in two separated versions : one with fixed mcp panels vertical sizes and the other with adjustable ones. I kept this, but bundled the two in the same .zip file, as they are both sharing the same toolbars, actions, etc... I guess that, this way, it will be more easy for you to switch from one version to the other if needed. Beside this, it will only appear as one item in the stash and, consequently, ease the maintenance of it. Should have done this much sooner, I think...

3) Addition of Reaper 5 compliant way of displaying the track colors in the tcp/mcp panels. This gives a 'Cubase 5.5 look' that I was liking a lot, at the time.

4) Countless cosmetic changes and graphic optimizations. Absolutely unable to list them all, honestly. The main things I could think of, though, are the redesign of the 'Toolbar1', with removal and additions of few functions, tcp panel controls display optimizations, and the way the folder tcp panels are indented, among many others...

5) Addition of the 'fxparm' controls in the tcp panels, which were still missing in the last version of the 'Piolit' theme.

6) Addition of 'Reduced' tcp layouts for each of the previously existing types of track. This, to allow a true 'Cubase like' display of the tcp panels by masking volume, fxparm and pan/width controls. Additionaly, it will help giving the overall arrange view a little less clogged aspect.

7) Addition of a VCA/GM layout, specifically designed for use of VCA, as well as Group Master control tasks. The controls available in the panel are the ones that can be 'linked' via the grouping matrix window.

8) Last but not least and, as this one is a kind of test, I would really like specific feedback and comments from you about it : I redesigned the way folder tracks are displayed in both tcp and mcp panels, by removing some controls in them. Why so ?
- First, and the Reaper manual clearly states it in its dedicated paragraph, a folder track is designed to be used as a submix bus. Consequently, I removed from the tcp/mcp panels of it all the controls used for any direct recording tasks.
- Second, the result is visually much better and coherent, IMO, as we end up with folder tracks appearing more or less as the 'Master' one. I really like seeing and using folder tracks like this since I achieved this change, just few days ago.
But everything comes at a cost : doing this with folder tracks display requires from the user to set the all the controls in a relevent way first, before setting a track as a folder, and I'm thinking mainly of the 'record arm' button, here. This is probably the weak point of the approach, even if you can toggle the involved track 'folderstate' status anytime as usual to make the appropriate settings for a folder usage as a submix bus. But yes, I reckon that this way of arranging folder track controls could be the subject of a debate...

At this point, I must admit that I haven't try to use the new 'macro' features that appeared in the Reaper 5 'pre' versions : they are not documented, yet. So, and to be honest, this theme is basically an improved 'Piolit' theme that also takes account of the few added and easily accessible features newly available in Reaper 5. Let's see what future will bring with the new instructions...

An important thing, I think, needs a reminder : for the ones patient enough to fully test this theme, and as for the 'Piolit' one, be sure to install everything bundled in the .zip file, by following the instructions listed in the Readme.txt one. I admit that some of them are tedious, especially the ones related to the layout actions, as there is no way to save these in a dedicated file which would considerably ease the theme distribution process, but well... At the end, the whole theme (which could be thinked as an environment) makes really sense if everything is installed and ready to work. I have thought about using a .ReaperConfigZip file to ease its installation, but am still unsure about the eventual consequences for any potential user of 'Eyssina' : more tests to do before truely considering it.

I just hope that this theme will be useful for some, here, and I'm especially thinking of the ones who took interest of the previous 'Piolit' theme and interviened in its dedicated thread : thanks again, as you allowed me to keep the motivation to release the present one.

Any issue report, feedback or comment is welcomed, and sorry for the (probably too) long presentation...

EDIT - 21st december 2015 - no longer updated as an independent theme - see here for updates : https://stash.reaper.fm/theme/1689/CubicPack.zip

06-27-2015, 12:37 AM	#1
cubic13 Human being with feelings Join Date: Dec 2013 Location: Near Serre-Ponçon lake, french Alps Posts: 856	Eyssina for Reaper 5... Hi, all ! Well, as Reaper 5 is at its RC stage (which means that there will be no more theming options added for v5.00), I think it's time to deliver the adaptation of my former Cubase like 'Piolit' theme to it. Actually, I made so many changes (and yes, improvements...) that I named it differently. So, here we go... 1) This theme is supposed to be used with Reaper 5 (including 'pre' and 'RC' releases). Don't expect it to be efficiently usable with Reaper 4.xx... In a near future, I'll probably upload a last version of the 'Piolit' theme to adjust or improve few things, but this one will certainly not implement all the changes done for 'Eyssina' : my laziness says to me that there is too much work for a deprecated version... 2) The 'Piolit' theme was declined in two separated versions : one with fixed mcp panels vertical sizes and the other with adjustable ones. I kept this, but bundled the two in the same .zip file, as they are both sharing the same toolbars, actions, etc... I guess that, this way, it will be more easy for you to switch from one version to the other if needed. Beside this, it will only appear as one item in the stash and, consequently, ease the maintenance of it. Should have done this much sooner, I think... 3) Addition of Reaper 5 compliant way of displaying the track colors in the tcp/mcp panels. This gives a 'Cubase 5.5 look' that I was liking a lot, at the time. 4) Countless cosmetic changes and graphic optimizations. Absolutely unable to list them all, honestly. The main things I could think of, though, are the redesign of the 'Toolbar1', with removal and additions of few functions, tcp panel controls display optimizations, and the way the folder tcp panels are indented, among many others... 5) Addition of the 'fxparm' controls in the tcp panels, which were still missing in the last version of the 'Piolit' theme. 6) Addition of 'Reduced' tcp layouts for each of the previously existing types of track. This, to allow a true 'Cubase like' display of the tcp panels by masking volume, fxparm and pan/width controls. Additionaly, it will help giving the overall arrange view a little less clogged aspect. 7) Addition of a VCA/GM layout, specifically designed for use of VCA, as well as Group Master control tasks. The controls available in the panel are the ones that can be 'linked' via the grouping matrix window. 8) Last but not least and, as this one is a kind of test, I would really like specific feedback and comments from you about it : I redesigned the way folder tracks are displayed in both tcp and mcp panels, by removing some controls in them. Why so ? - First, and the Reaper manual clearly states it in its dedicated paragraph, a folder track is designed to be used as a submix bus. Consequently, I removed from the tcp/mcp panels of it all the controls used for any direct recording tasks. - Second, the result is visually much better and coherent, IMO, as we end up with folder tracks appearing more or less as the 'Master' one. I really like seeing and using folder tracks like this since I achieved this change, just few days ago. But everything comes at a cost : doing this with folder tracks display requires from the user to set the all the controls in a relevent way first, before setting a track as a folder, and I'm thinking mainly of the 'record arm' button, here. This is probably the weak point of the approach, even if you can toggle the involved track 'folderstate' status anytime as usual to make the appropriate settings for a folder usage as a submix bus. But yes, I reckon that this way of arranging folder track controls could be the subject of a debate... At this point, I must admit that I haven't try to use the new 'macro' features that appeared in the Reaper 5 'pre' versions : they are not documented, yet. So, and to be honest, this theme is basically an improved 'Piolit' theme that also takes account of the few added and easily accessible features newly available in Reaper 5. Let's see what future will bring with the new instructions... An important thing, I think, needs a reminder : for the ones patient enough to fully test this theme, and as for the 'Piolit' one, be sure to install everything bundled in the .zip file, by following the instructions listed in the Readme.txt one. I admit that some of them are tedious, especially the ones related to the layout actions, as there is no way to save these in a dedicated file which would considerably ease the theme distribution process, but well... At the end, the whole theme (which could be thinked as an environment) makes really sense if everything is installed and ready to work. I have thought about using a .ReaperConfigZip file to ease its installation, but am still unsure about the eventual consequences for any potential user of 'Eyssina' : more tests to do before truely considering it. I just hope that this theme will be useful for some, here, and I'm especially thinking of the ones who took interest of the previous 'Piolit' theme and interviened in its dedicated thread : thanks again, as you allowed me to keep the motivation to release the present one. Any issue report, feedback or comment is welcomed, and sorry for the (probably too) long presentation... EDIT - 21st december 2015 - no longer updated as an independent theme - see here for updates : https://stash.reaper.fm/theme/1689/CubicPack.zip __________________ DAW: Ryzen 3700X\|Asus X-470Pro\|32Gb\|2 SSD512(M2)+1024\|W10Pro(64)\|RME Fireface UCX+ADA8200 Soft: Reaper\|Cubase 10\|Emulator X3 & several other VSTis (2 bridged)... Gear: VMK-188+\|MPD32\|ME30P\|Korg 05R/W\|Roland D110\|Yamaha TX802\|Pre-MIDI stuff... Last edited by cubic13; 12-21-2015 at 04:27 AM.