Playback for Set. Multiple Instances or Multiple Patches?

Hey all,

Looking to maybe use MS2 for loop playback instead of itunes. Our setup is pretty bare bones; stereo tracks with click on one side and loops/tracks on other. If I were to set up an environment for a typical set (12-15 songs) what would be the most efficient way to set it up to load those tracks into playback? Would i need separate patches with playback loaded for each song?

You could certainly do it that way. It would be more flexible if you aren't taxing you computer. I just tried loading 16 channel strips with only the playback plug-in. There was no noticeable bump on the CPU activity meter. There were also no effect plug-ins on any of the strips, nor any audio in the Playback plug-ins. I don't think adding the audio would greatly affect the CPU.

I'd suggest creating a patch per song, with a Playback plug-in for each patch. Create your first patch and use it as a template - copy /paste as needed. You then would have the flexibility of easily switching from song to song and you could use markers on each song if you need to navigate within the song.

Hey all,

 

Looking to maybe use MS2 for loop playback instead of itunes. Our setup is pretty bare bones; stereo tracks with click on one side and loops/tracks on other. If I were to set up an environment for a typical set (12-15 songs) what would be the most efficient way to set it up to load those tracks into playback? Would i need separate patches with playback loaded for each song?

Hi there, a bit late on this, so how's it going? My suggestion, which I have been using for a while now in a similar set-up to you it this:

Create a Concert containing a number of Sets (NB this is the Apple meaning of the word 'Set', and in this case it would mean 'song'). Within each Set, you can then add the required number of patches for your sounds - for instance, I generally have a patch for my rhythm guitar part, then another for the lead sound. Then, at the Set level (ie click on the Set in the patch inspector window) add a software instrument strip with the Playback plug-in selected - this allows you to change patches (sounds) within a Set (song) without interrupting the Playback. In fact, in my set-up I use a number of instrument strips in each Set as my backings consist of separate files, one for each instrument, allowing me to tweak my backing mixes live, if necessary.

This takes a bit of setting up, but it is well worth it, as it gives a fair degree of flexibility. The only caveat I would add, is that you shouldn't put too many sets (songs) into a concert, as this eats up your RAM, and leads to latency in the activation of the Playback transport controls. I use a max of 10 per concert, but a bit of experimentation should help you determine your optimum amount.