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Using D-SoundPRO

5.1. Windows

D-SoundPRO handles different types of windows, accessible via menu selection or a click on a command button. Some are floating windows (these are always active and unique), one type (the Sound Document) is activable and multiple.

Some are floating windows of fixed size, other are scrollable, i.e. they can be zoomed and resized. Dragging, where applicable, will make the window scroll.

All windows can be moved and closed.

5.1.1. - The Sound Document Window

The Sound Document Window

It is the main window, where D-SoundPRO displays the sound wave. Units of X-axis are samples (smpl on the bottom right of the window) or Time (msec), depending on what you have set using the Preferences dialog. You can select portions of sound wave by clicking on it and dragging with the mouse. Most commands work on the selection (if any), otherwise on the global sound wave. This window can be resized.

Zooming In the sound wave, you turn on the scroll bar at the bottom of the sound wave pane. In this case, you can scroll the sound wave pane to left and right, as you need.

If the loop isn't turned off, two markers show the start loop point (L) and the end loop point (E). You can move them forward or backward just clicking over them and dragging.

If the Moving Marker options is turned on, D-SoundPRO, playing a sample from the speaker button on the Tool Floating Window, shows a marker moving according to the portion of the wave which is sounding. If the Autozero option is turned on, D-SoundPRO moves automatically the mouse selection to the next wave point, which will cross the zero level. It is very useful for a very fast setting of marker's position. If you need for finer adjustments, turn off the Autozero option.

If the Fast Wave Display option is turned on and if the Sound Document pane is not Zoomed In at maximum level, D-SoundPRO uses a faster graphic routine, but not all samples are displayed. If Fast Wave Display is turned off, D-SoundPRO shows all the sound wave samples, but the graphic routine is slower. Turn this option on if you require a very high definition of the sound wave display.

5.1.2. -Tool Palette floating Window

The Tools Floating Palette

It is the Commands window, by which D-SoundPRO allows the input of the most common commands. From here you can apply a command just pushing on a graphic button. You can edit or play the sound or a selection of it, open or save Sound Documents, import sound waves, open or close floating palettes. For the relationships between commands and actions, please refer to the next sections.

5.1.3. - The Loop floating Window

The Loop Floating Window

This is the Loop window, where, if the loop is turned on, D-SoundPRO shows to you graphically how the sound will play the loop transaction. It is a very useful and irreplaceable tool to set correctly the start and end loop points. The left pane shows the portion of the sound wave just before the end point, the right pane the portion of the sound wave just after the start loop point. For the best loop points selection, you must preserve the continuity of the sound wave fundamental cycle. You can move the start or end loop points forward or backward just clicking on the scroll bar at the bottom of the panes. Enjoy, the right selection of the loop points is the difference between a veteran sampler programmer and a rookie one!

Fortunately D-SoundPRO gives you the opportunity of a simple Auto Loop and of an advanced Cross-Fading auto loop algorithms. If the sound is very poor in terms of harmonic contents, the Auto Loop algorithm works fine to find good inaudible loop points. But generally, for complex sounds, first you must manually find a quite good loop selection: if it is still sounding with some click at loop transaction, apply the X-Fading Loop algorithm and listen the result. If you don't like the result, undo it and try it again using some different X-Fade Looping parameters. This is the best way to find the inaudible loop.

Use the + button to Zoom In on the y-axis the sound wave, the - button to Zoom Out. The number on the left bottom shows the Zoom In factor.

5.1.4. - The Info's floating Window

The Info's Floating Window

This is the Info window, where D-SoundPRO shows to you the information about the active Sound Document and the marker position. From here you can know which is the sampling frequency, midi parameters and other parameters that characterize the sound wave. You can edit some of them clicking on the Edit button and entering new values into the relevant dialog boxes. Clicking on and dragging the position or a loop marker, D-SoundPRO uses the Info Floating Window to show in real time its current coordinates.

5.1.5. - The Virtual Keyboard floating Window

The Virtual Keyboard Floating Window

D-SoundPRO offers a complete Virtual Synthesizer Module, which can be played in real time using the Mac keyboard, an external midi keyboard, and external midi sequencer or an OMS compatible sequencer running on the same Mac. D-SoundPRO Virtual Synthesizer responds to the following midi messages:

• Note ON
• Note OFF (also as Note ON message with Vel = 0)
• Velocity
• Pitch Bender
• Hold (Sustain) pedal on/off (0x64)

Using also a complete ADSR Amplifier Envelope module, you can set the evolution during the time of the volume of the sound that is playing.

This is the first step to a complete Synthesizer, including also Split and Patches memories, to be released in the very next future.

Clicking on the AmpENV button, the following floating window appears:

The Amp Envelope ADSR Floating Window

Use its controls to set:

• The Volume of the sound
• Atk - Attack Time (hundredths of sec) - when the key is pressed, this is the time to reach the maximum level starting from the silence. Set high values for a slower sound attack (i.e. pianissimo string sections)
• Dec - Decay Time (hundredths of sec) - as soon as the maximum level is reached, this is the time to go down to the Sustain Level. Set high values for long sound decay (i.e. long percussion)
• Sus - Sustain Level - the sound will decay up to this level. Set high values if the sound must not decay in time (i.e. flute), a zero value if the sound must decay up to silence (i.e. percussion)
• Rel - Release Time (hundredths of sec) - As soon as the key is released, this is the time to reach the silence. Set high values for a long sound release (i.e. long percussion).

Use the preset popup menu for setting some examples. Each time is expressed in hundredths of second, the maximum value is 500 = 5 secs for each Attack, Decay or Release stage.

Clicking on the MIDI button, the following floating window appears:

The MIDI parameters Floating Window

Use its controls to set:

• The MIDI IN channel - to play the D-SoundPRO Virtual Synthesizer from a sequencer (also running on the same Mac) or from an external MIDI keyboard using a specific MIDI channel
• Velocity IN On/Off - to set if D-SoundPRO must use the midi velocity parameter playing a sound from an external midi message. If this parameter is ON, D-SoundPRO will assign in real time the velocity value of the incoming Note On midi message to the audio volume of the sound to be executed.
• Pitch Bender - to set the Pitch Bender range (as semitones). Receiving the pitch bender midi message from an external or internal OMS midi connection, D-SoundPRO will modify in real time the pitch of the sounds playing.
• The MIDI OUT channel - to set the Midi Channel on which D-SoundPRO will transmit a note message playing on the Mac Keyboard or clicking with the mouse on its Virtual Keyboard
• The midi Velocity Out parameter - to set the velocity parameter written in the midi Note On out message.

Clicking on a key of the Virtual Keyboard floating window will produce a command to:

- Play the selected Sound Document (if any): it will play at the frequency of the note clicked if:

• The MIDI note range in the Sound Document internal parameters allows it (see the Tone Info floating window) and if the Mac will be able to play it (the Mac is able to play sounds up to 64 kHz, and it transposes up the sounds setting an higher sampling frequency. For example, a sound sampled at 44.1 kHz can be transposed up of only 6 semitones).
• You set the Keyboard Local On from the 'Synth' Menu.

- Play the corresponding note over MIDI, if MIDI Out is ON (click on the relevant button to change its state). The MIDI note will have a velocity value you set by the Velocity Control and will be transmitted over the MIDI channel you set by the Channel Control in the MIDI parameters floating window.

You can set the audio volume and the Time Variant Amplifier Envelope (ADSR) of the sound using the control on the Amp Envelope Floating Window.

Clicking on a key from your MIDI keyboard will produce a command to:

- Play the selected Sound Document (if any): it will play at the frequency of the note clicked, if:

• MIDI In is ON (click on the relevant button to change its state),
• The MIDI note range in the Sound Document internal parameters allows it (see the Tone Info floating window) and if the Mac will be able to play it (the Mac is able to play sounds up to 64 kHz, and it transposes up the sounds setting an higher sampling frequency. For example, a sound sampled at 44.1 kHz can be transposed up of only 6 semitones).

You can set the audio volume and the Time Variant Amplifier Envelope (ADSR) of the sound using the control on the Amp Envelope Floating Window.

The In / Out led on the left of the keyboard make a monitor of the MIDI activities if MIDI Out or In are On

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