More modular router

[hamish]

Originally Posted by Jeffos

I'm not talking about fancy jacks & blinking stuff everywhere but about an efficient component.

Great! I also like chips idea of making the matrix skinnable.

To me the thing works fine, its just two clicks to re-route a track to a different hardware I/O. as opposed to right click, scroll, select etc in the main view TCP.

If the labels could just be readable, if the tracks were the same colour as in the main view...

[chip mcdonald]

Originally Posted by hamish

To me the thing works fine, its just two clicks to re-route a track to a different hardware I/O. as opposed to right click, scroll, select etc in the main view TCP.

It *works* great, but it has two fundamental flaws:

1) It's text based. It's like trying to order at a drive through, that has a lit-up menu that looks like a Mexican restaurant's. I know I want two chicken enchiladas with rice and bean dip, I don't have time to search the menu to figure out it's "Lunch Special 3C";

2) The selections themselves are too close together. This is sort of a GUI problem on the TCP/MCP, if you put too much stuff close together you're likely to make a mistake, or have to slow down so much your attention is diverted away from what it should really be on.

[imMute]

I vote -1 for the graphic router. Things like that get ugly and confusing very quickly. The current matrix router is good, but I like labyrinth's suggestion of adding FX routing to the display; +1 to that.

[Jeffos]

Originally Posted by imMute

I vote -1 for the graphic router. Things like that get ugly and confusing very quickly.

Woo! Thanks for that brillant argumentation. The only pb is that I can say exactly the same sentence but for the routing matrix. You're probably comparing that idea with similar components in other DAWs and - here - I agree, they're just PITA!!
But there's something great to do here... something different.
___

But that's not why I'm replying... I said earlier that I'll post a mock-up here. So, I've got some good and bad news about that.
Good news: I've changed my mind, the code I already own is so close that I'll not do mock-up but a plugin-extension! I also go in that direction 'cause I think this should NOT be a priority for Cockos (did you see me put a "plus one" here ? :-)
Bad news: you'll have to wait... and I even don't know how much time...
- Contrary to what I was thinking some posts above, reaper's API does not simply allow routing editing. I realize that lately (while coding) but this one should be solved "at some point" as one of the extension-king is giving a hand about that (SWS).
- Runtime license. I've to switch one of my components to GPL. That's some work but this one will be fixed, for sure.
- I'm quiet busy...

So, just to let know that I didn't forget that. I'll post something here after some concrete progress (or if a show-stopper appears).

[DuX]

This thread really deserved a bump. Thanks Jeffos! d=

Down with the matrix routing!

We want modular routing!

)

Cheers!

[Jeffos]

oh! sh*t!! It reminds me someone saying "I think Thomas Pynchon said that it's always embarrassing to read something you wrote in the past, even if it's just a canceled check."

this is a "background project", don't count on it soon, really! especially in the forthcoming times..

that said, I went a bit ahead since that post. Routing at track level is no more an issue but digging into pin connections would be windy. I gave up the external component idea and choosed LICE for the view and for the fun.. Meaning doing it from scratch.. I was there last time I saved this project..

[DuX]

Routing at the track level is kinda bearable, yap. One gets used to it after some time, even though it is more confusing than if it were graphically presented.

But the routing matrix still reminds me of the MS Excel .

[zLiquidancer]

Originally Posted by soma

Enjoying my first trip down reaper lane. Wow! Such a great arranger.

I come from an XT/BUZZ/SE/Reaktor type background. I would REALLY love to see a modualr view that better visualized how tracks and even effects are connected.
One view that showed all effects and sources, allowed one click access to changing amounts to other deveices, etc.
Some thing like:

or this with a place to ckick to adjust each line's volume
[img]http://img138.**************/img138/7453/compviewyj9.png[/img]
or this if they were effects and had a place to click to adjust each line's volume

+1
I came from these programs too, I miss this in reaper so much...

[drakeblood]

bump bump, missing modular routing here too... i'm sick to have to load energyXT in each track that needs some routing (and doing so i lose all the cool drag'n'drop and easy access to VSTs from the mixer))

[MacFizz]

Is there a FR yet ?

[sebas777]

Logic Environment anyone ;-)
http://vimeo.com/4220063

[mr_spine]

Originally Posted by mse

++1
Must be "Tracktion" or "Reason" style routing in "Reaper".

Too many cooks....
-1 -1 -1. Reaper should aim to be a professional DAW. Democracy can be a great thing, but being too liberal might have a negative effect..

[trueparadox]

Any word on this? It would truly be an amazing feature. I agree with the above poster, too many cooks... But in this case, it would be a feature which could be close to the surface, and therefore easily accessed. It would certainly not complicate matters - and besides, if it is made an "either/or"-option, everybody is happy (except the coders, hehe)...

Link to FR page:
http://forum.cockos.com/project.php?issueid=1326

edit: i am talking about a buzz-style routing of vsts, like in the original post, the images. just to clarify.

[foxAsteria]

i too come from buzz (via cubase and many others) and sometimes find the routing system in reaper a bit confusing and long for a modular routing view.

the best solution to my mind would be a visual signal flow chart connecting all the tracks to one-another. this could take the form of cables like on a mixing deck. if we see all of the routings at once we would have an interesting (maybe) looking spaghetti junction, but if we could toggle between that view and seeing only the connections pertaining to the selected track (and be able to clearly distinguish the direction of flow), this would be really useful i think.

to make this view even more handy, clicking on a "cable" should give a little gain/pan popup and whatever else it would need to completely replace the super unintuitive tcp routing dialog...

many of you may have noticed that you can click drag between the io buttons on the track control panels to route audio between then and a little image of a cable jack even appears. that little tease is actually what made me think of this possibility.

p.s. im too lazy to do a mock-up of what this would look like. hopefully my description will suffice.

[Liborius]

This FR is something I proposed ages ago, so let me add one more screenshot. This one is from Console which likely noone knows here:-)

http://console.jp/en/about/image/sc2_l.gif

I like this approach more convenient for complex routing schemes because you can spot something wrong with a glimpse. The two systems would not be mutually exclusive; the graphic representation would be just its higher level abstraction.

[Joystick]

I already use Plogue Bidule as an insert and make my routing from there, in a channel domain, on higher levels something similar could be nice...

[DuX]

I almost forgot about this one, even though when my projects get a bit complicated I always wish I could check things in a modular view of some kind, because whenever I try the matrix view all I can do is cringe...

Something like Bidule, Energy XT, Darkwave Studio, Usine would be perfect. I even remember Podium having it, but the last time I checked out Podium I couldn't find it. I found the Podium implementation the most perfect because you had a "connections view" on a separate tab that you could check at any time. It also assembled all the connections itself perfectly without my interference. You make a new track and it shows itself in the "connections view", you add a send and it shows all by itself there, you add a VSTi... etc. the view grew all by itself perfectly. I don't understand why Podium doesn't have it any more, or maybe I just couldn't find it as I don't use it. Of course, you could also click on the FX and instruments and edit them, you could change different volumes and sends... it was just perfect. Except, I think you couldn't make new connections in it, but I'm not sure. That would be its major drawback if it's true.

Anyway, you get the picture. Cheers!