v6.57+dev0513 - May 13 2022

[nofish]

v6.57+dev0513 - May 13 2022

* Includes feature branch: improve experimental silent-track CPU reduction option to include FX tail length
* Includes feature branch: improved render loudness charts
* Includes feature branch: render individual tracks via master track using render matrix
* Includes feature branch: media item fixed lanes
* Includes feature branch: internal pin management overhaul for future extension
* Includes feature branch: media explorer user-defined tags
+ FX: add per-instance option for auto-bypass on silence (auto-detects tail-length for synths and plug-ins that do not support tail length reporting)
+ Media explorer: support calculating loudness of media
+ ReaScript: add CalcMediaSrcLoudness function
+ Render: remove option to render to .wmv or .wma files, because there's no reason to use these file formats as containers for modern codecs [p=2557603]
+ Video: support rendering video-only or audio-only mp4 when using Windows Media Foundation
# FX: fix silence tail behavior for DX/LV2
# FX: more silence optimizations, more granularity on VST3 silenceFlag setting
# FX: silence detection now uses -160dB

Full changelog / Latest pre-releases

[Vagelis]

Originally Posted by nofish

v6.57+dev0513 - May 13 2022
+ FX: add per-instance option for auto-bypass on silence (auto-detects tail-length for synths and plug-ins that do not support tail length reporting)

Such an amazing feature thank you devs!
Not sure but maybe it would be better to appear at the same place with PDC mode and oversampling?
Also would it be possible to have this as an option for all the fx in the chain but to apply it to each one per-instance? (Just so we don't need to apply it on each one every time)

[PitchSlap]

Originally Posted by nofish

+ FX: add per-instance option for auto-bypass on silence (auto-detects tail-length for synths and plug-ins that do not support tail length reporting)
audio-only mp4 when using Windows Media Foundation
# FX: fix silence tail behavior for DX/LV2
# FX: more silence optimizations, more granularity on VST3 silenceFlag setting
# FX: silence detection now uses -160dB

This feels like Xmas! I'm very excited to test

Initial thoughts:
1) It would be ideal if we could choose to have this enabled by default or set the default plugin behavior for silence optimizations from the FX Browser (to set multiple plugins at a time) and use the per-instance menu option as an override. Showing the setting in Project Bay/FX would be a quick way enable/disable and know where it's active.

Like the oversampling options the setting isn't saved with Reaper presets so can't be saved as a default preset and needs enabling each time for every plugin.
Manually enabling this for 50-100+ individual instances in existing projects isn't quite my idea of fun

2) -160dB is better choice than perfect silence, but if there is a single global threshold it would be nice to be user definable.
It's still below the noise floor of 24-bit which is fine for most plugins but too low when there are multiple plugins in a signal path with cumulative low level noise (phony analog, amp sims, group tracks, sends etc.)

I've done a lot of measurements when this was being refined in DSEQ and was quite surprised at the number of plugins that output noise between -140dB to -80dB.
Also, I haven't tested yet, but -160dB might mean that the noise floor of an empty 16/24-bit audio file is above the silence threshold, or the feature would be incompatible with track mixing bit-depths of 24-bit or below.

3) In DSEQ -90dB is my preferred option from the fixed silence thresholds.
Bit-depth based options are logical, but a choice between Reaper's default and a custom defined setting in preferences from the right-click menu in the FX browser which can be overridden per instance from the + menu would cover nearly all cases with a few less menu items (it sounds more complicated than it is lol).


4) A workaround for when the noise is above the silence threshold is adding noise gates where needed, but this quickly becomes messy so more control would be a blessing.

5) Related to this feature it would be helpful if we had an option to treat non-audible tracks as silent, or to not process non-soloed tracks. This could free up a lot of CPU if we want to record a new MIDI part at low latency in projects that are too CPU intensive for low buffers. It's much easier to solo the tracks we want to hear while recording than to mute everything else and then remember not to accidentally unmute tracks that were supposed to be muted afterwards.

[Edgemeal]

+ FX: add per-instance option for auto-bypass on silence (auto-detects tail-length for synths and plug-ins that do not support tail length reporting)

Seems to be working good on many verbs and plugins I often use, except for some reverbs in SampleTank4 VST3i that never go completely silent ( ~ -163db), huh never even knew they did that!

Keep up the great work!

[juan_r]

Originally Posted by PitchSlap

5) it would be helpful if we had an option to treat non-audible tracks as silent, or to not process non-soloed tracks. This could free up a lot of CPU if we want to record a new MIDI part at low latency in projects that are too CPU intensive for low buffers.

I hadn't thought of this particular application, but it helps where it hurts the most. I subscribe to that!

[PitchSlap]

Originally Posted by Edgemeal

Seems to be working good on many verbs and plugins I often use, except for some reverbs in SampleTank4 VST3i that never go completely silent ( ~ -163db), huh never even knew they did that!

Keep up the great work!

I personally define silence as anything quieter than my tinnitus so don't mind a more aggressive threshold.
You'll be surprised how many plugins never actually go silent. If you change the minimum meter value to -165dB you can more easily see where stray noise is coming from and stick a gate on if desired so it doesn't prevent later plugins in the chain/send/group from staying active.

I went an enabled silence bypass on a large number of plugins in an existing project, but oddly the render time was roughly the same. 8:53 vs. 8:56 for a 2:57 project.
Many of the plugins are on tracks that are majority silent so I thought maybe it was disabled on rendering but it worked well in a test project.

The following 3 track project has one instance of FireClip (128x OS) on each track.

Render Times:
-1:49 with silence bypass disabled
-0:54 with silence bypass enabled. 0:50 and 0:51 running the plugins as a dedicated/separate process (margin of error?)
-1:06 with the same plugin inside BC Patchwork using it's built-in silence bypass so Reaper's native version is more efficient.

Using silence bypass was over 100% faster to render which is a very nice improvement.


Now I just need to figure out why it didn't seem to work with my existing project (sends? group tracks? sidechain input?)

[operator]

Originally Posted by PitchSlap

-160dB is better choice than perfect silence, but if there is a single global threshold it would be nice to be user definable.

I would also love to takle this nasty "noise-carpet" between -160dB and -80dB. When working with the auto-bypass from Melda I always used a Gate after those "special" plugins to prefent the noise from flowing further down the chain... still the Gate and the "analog" VST remain active. [:-]


BTW --> THANK YOU Devs... for working on this amazing feature. Many users will benefit from this one.

[operator]

After enabling 1.)"Reduce CPU of Silent Tracks" some Plugins can still be more optimized by using 2.)"auto-bypass plug-in on silence". (e.g.Uhbik from U-he or Vital Synth)

Would be nice if on the 2.) we could have a global option too, and then make exceptions via dropdown to exclude single plugins from the "auto-bypass". --> I would use more plugins with "auto-bypass" than without.

Or are these two one and the same option but still not interlocked with each other? I guess this is still in conceptphase and will be decided down the road if they merge or not.


EDIT: Also here... the option is cutting some Reverb- and Delaytails --> Valhalla Delay, Valhalla Vintageverb and Valhalla Shimmer.

[operator]

When a Synth or an FX is opened, the "auto-bypass" should better be disabled. Otherwise some visuals and parametervalues are frozen up until sound passes. Then you get some gltiches from the parameter update --> Filter (e.g. Vital or U-He Hive) and other Paramters (u-he Bazille and Hive).

EDIT1: I also checked with U-he Uhbik, Fab Filter Q3,... it seems all FX could benefit from "disable auto-bypass when opened" otherwise some glitches could occour --> EQ points or curves suddenly change.

EDIT2:
And with automations it also has the same problems. Some glitches could occur when jumping through the project. (I didn´t checked with "Automation Items" yet, but I guess they could take a seperate role in this here)

Maybe there could be some exceptions in this feature: when "FX is opened", "MouseInput" or "variable AutomationInput" --> disalbe "auto-bypass".
Bitwig seems to disable the "auto-bypass" at the moment you click a track or the FX is opened or even automated. When automated it disables it for the whole timespan of the project =bad . AND with Melda you can automate the plugin and it gets into "auto-bypass" back after there is some silence =good Hopefully we can use something like "variable automation value" to trigger the "auto-bypass" to make it adaptive.

[ovnis]

When a Synth or an FX is opened, the "auto-bypass" should better be disabled. Otherwise some visuals and parametervalues are frozen up until sound passes. Then you get some gltiches from the parameter update --> Filter (e.g. Vital or U-He Hive) and other Paramters (u-he Bazille and Hive).

We can have lots of FX chain windows docked. So it would be nice to only disable "auto-bypass" for plug which is in the FX chain window that can see on the screen.

If a FX chain window docked is not visible => auto bypass.

If a FX chain window docked is visible => disable auto bypass for the plug which we can see.

For exemple:
Here, only "duck" auto bypass is disabled.

[lavmort]

Originally Posted by ovnis

We can have lots of FX chain windows docked. So it would be nice to only disable "auto-bypass" for plug which is in the FX chain window that can see on the screen.

If a FX chain window docked is not visible => auto bypass.

If a FX chain window docked is visible => disable auto bypass for the plug which we can see.

For exemple:
Here, only "duck" auto bypass is disabled.

+1, really like this proposal.

[Phazma]

Originally Posted by nofish

+ Media explorer: support calculating loudness of media

Wow if we could have an option to display LUFS-I as a column in the media explorer that would be super helpful.

[Dragonetti]

Originally Posted by Phazma

Wow if we could have an option to display LUFS-I as a column in the media explorer that would be super helpful.

+1

[Dstruct]

Originally Posted by PitchSlap

I've done a lot of measurements when this was being refined in DSEQ and was quite surprised at the number of plugins that output noise between -140dB to -80dB.

Some plugins output noise to avoid denormals.