Auto organize channel strips

A while ago I created this post:

viewtopic.php?f=41&t=139466&p=744005#p744005

 

Meanwhile I was thinking: what if channel strips would organize themselves when we delete plugins, so we wouldn’t have empty slots at all?

For those who know Ableton, it would work the same way. You insert plugins one after the other and when you delete one, it adjusts. There’s no space for empty plugins. This would save so much time and make the projects way cleaner

 

What do you guys think?

It would have to be an option. Some of us like to organize the mixer with specific plug-ins in specific slots (compressor in slot#1 EQ in slot#2 etc...):

 

It would have to be an option. Some of us like to organize the mixer with specific plug-ins in specific slots (compressor in slot#1 EQ in slot#2 etc...):

 

plugin-order.png

 

Yes it could be an option.

It would have to be an option. Some of us like to organize the mixer with specific plug-ins in specific slots (compressor in slot#1 EQ in slot#2 etc...):

 

plugin-order.png

This one something I never liked in Live. I prefer to have control over the plugin layout. Not so much to always have the same effect in certain slots but more for easier visual recognition. Like I sometimes leave a space between groups of effects of different types. So I have a visual grouping of the filter section, time based effects, modulations, etc.

 

Also the layout then has a pattern that is easily recognizable and it’s easier to identify tracks (than in Live) because all the tracks don’t look exactly the same (aside from a tiny color bar at the bottom of the mixer).

I would personnaly be more interested in removing Unused Auxes in the mixer, like you load a patch from the library to test a synth sound, a whole set of sends to auxes comes with that, then your're not satisfied and load another patch, and after a while you've got 7 auxes with 4 different reverbs and 3 delays or whatnot sitting there and you don't even know whether anything else in your mix is using them (unless you take the time to play your mix from end to end and see whether there's any signal flowing thru these auxes). Sort of a PITA if you want to keep things tidy. Speaking about tidy things, I like your suggestion, with the optional part of it of course as David suggests. But one key thing: please, please pray the Apple dev team gods that they don't mess up automation in the process (like automated parameter XYZ of plugin 4 should become automated parameter XYZ of plugin 3 when you delete plugin 3 and plugin 4 becomes plugin 3, and everything else downstream, incl. automation, should be upped one slot and down one number, so to say). Lots of things to happen behind the scene, and lots of occasions for more bugs... But cool idea anyway

I would personnaly be more interested in removing Unused Auxes in the mixer, like you load a patch from the library to test a synth sound, a whole set of sends to auxes comes with that

You most likely already know that but just in case, you can click the cog wheel at the bottom left of the Library, enable patch merging and deselect "Sends" to avoid the Auxes being added to the Mixer.

So I have a visual grouping of the filter section, time based effects, modulations, etc

 

I wonder how many times you group plugins by type, just for organization sake... I mean, I have an EQ, a compressor, then another EQ, maybe a chorus, then a reverb, etc... So I would have 5 plugins and then 4 empty spaces in between them, totaling 9 slots, taking too much space...

As much as I understand what you mean, I don't see myself doing it and from tutorials I see online, I see that 99% of the time people just have random empty spaces and I don't see any relation to type of plugins and stuff. I would at least make this an option, as David mentioned, because I would personally benefit a lot from this.

 

ike you load a patch from the library to test a synth sound, a whole set of sends to auxes comes with that

As David mentioned, you can use the Merge feature.

Also, when you have auxs that you are not using, if you go to the mixer and select ALL auxs and hit Delete, it will ask you if you want to delete all of them or just the ones not being used. Since each patch will create new auxs, if you end up not using any of the patches, those new auxs will be seen as unused and you can delete them. Have you tried this?

ike you load a patch from the library to test a synth sound, a whole set of sends to auxes comes with that

As David mentioned, you can use the Merge feature.

Also, when you have auxs that you are not using, if you go to the mixer and select ALL auxs and hit Delete, it will ask you if you want to delete all of them or just the ones not being used. Since each patch will create new auxs, if you end up not using any of the patches, those new auxs will be seen as unused and you can delete them. Have you tried this?

 

David, 3ple, thanks a lot for your answers!

 

@David: yes I knew about that "merge" function, but it will only merge Auxes with the same preset on it (e.g. Reverb Snare Chamber 0.4s), but will of course create some new Auxes when a new Patch uses an Aux preset that isn't already present. Admittedly Logic's own Patches only use a limited number of presets, but 1/ this number is not that small and 2/ that's not necessarily the case of non-Factory ones we may have created. Thus easily 6 or 7 different Auxes sitting there after some "trial & error", "let's see how this would sound on that track", "err, no, let's have another one" kinda patch-loading process.

 

@3ple: Hey, thanks a lot, this I was not aware of. Being the kind of cautious guy I've always been testing myself that Auxes are not used, I'll check this feature out as it could be a time-saver and be a cool solution to this sort of non-official feature-request sharing that takes place here. Even cooler, nonetheless, would be a feature where, along with the "merge" feature, there would be another one like "auto-remove unused Auxes on patch unloading". With the two together, you'd automatically get exactly those Auxes that are used given the last Patch you've loaded.

 

Cheers!

You’re welcome!

 

Regarding what David said, I guess you’re not talking about the same thing.

When you load a patch (or before you do) you can select what kind of sections are loaded when you select a new patch from the library. That being said you can load patches but choose not to load the auxs at all. Or if you have a specific chain when it comes to MIDIfx, maybe you want to load a full patch, but leave the MIDIfx section intact.

 

Open the library, and on the bottom left side you will see the gear icon, click and then choose Enable Patch Merging. Unselect what you don’t need. In this case “Sends”. Now when you load a patch, no send will be loaded so you can keep whatever sends you already have on that channel strip.

 

If this doesn’t work for you, because you want to be able to listen to the full patch with the sends, then the option I mentioned of hitting Delete, will be your best friend.

 

A trick you can use that I use myself in certain situations is: before you load any patch, use a certain color on your auxs strips (orange for example). Now when you load a patch, by default I think they are yellow, the new auxs. So once you are done with picking the patch you want, you will see all the new auxs because they are yellow. Select the ones that are not being used by the picked patch and delete them

I'm similar to David in that I organize my plugins to all line up across the mixer. For example:

 

Slot 1: Gain

Slot 2: Channel EQ

Slot 3: Compressor

 

If I choose not to open the Gain plugin on a track, I'd prefer Logic not collapse empty slots to save room. The current system is great for staying organized. Occasionally I poke around in Studio One, and it drives me bonkers that the plugin chains don't allow for empty slots.

 

My humble 2 cents

A trick you can use that I use myself in certain situations is: before you load any patch, use a certain color on your auxs strips (orange for example). Now when you load a patch, by default I think they are yellow, the new auxs. So once you are done with picking the patch you want, you will see all the new auxs because they are yellow. Select the ones that are not being used by the picked patch and delete them

 

Cool trick 3ple, thanks!

@David: yes I knew about that "merge" function, but it will only merge Auxes with the same preset on it (e.g. Reverb Snare Chamber 0.4s), but will of course create some new Auxes when a new Patch uses an Aux preset that isn't already present.

No: it won't merge anything. If you follow my instructions, loading a patch no longer creates any Aux channel strips.

David, there's a misunderstanding (or at least I was misunderstanding what you were saying). When testing a Patch sound, I DO need the Auxes. I simply want them to be automatically removed from the mixer (free that Aux, free that buss, return them back to their "unused" / "virgin" state)) if no other track than the one I was loading the patch on is using that Aux, and that I change the Patch on that track.

 

Now, 3ple's tip is a good one to solve things after the facts. My point is, it would be even better is Logic was behaving the way I describe (at least, it could be an option).

 

Simple case study: Make the default patch a simple FM1 synth with no fx, send, or whatever (anything, actually, with a plain vanila instrument and nothing else). Make a new project with only one track and load that patch on it, you know what you get, and in your mixer you get only one channel strip (the tract's channel) besides Main Out and Master. Lean & mean. Then load any fancy, Apple factory patch. You get plenty of stuff, including probably one Aux in your mixer (possibly even several different ones if you browse through a number of patches). And that what you want, because when you load a patch you want to hear this whole patch (including what's coming from the sends), not just part of what makes that sound. Now load back your default patch. You should be back to original state, right? Well, actually no, because your mixer is still clogged with one or more auxes that no longer have anything to do there. My point is : Logic, please give me an option to remove them automatically. Patches should not leave their mess behind when you discard them, so to say.

 

But thanks for the help anyway!

Ok so here's what I just noticed and that's weird: when loading default patches created by Apple, it indeed cleans up the mess. The issue is with patches created by us, the users.

Try it yourselves:

Open an empty project with no auxs at all and create an Instrument track.

Load the patch: Synthesizers > Lead > 70s Analog Lead

It will create 2 auxs for effects.

Now load the next patch (80s Sync Lead)

The extra auxs are now unloaded and you get just one channel strip.

 

So, Apple really needs to work on the Patches feature in order to behave like the factory presets.

Load patch, test, undo (busses created with patch are removed open undoing), load next patch, repeat.

Load patch, test, undo (busses created with patch are removed open undoing), load next patch, repeat.

 

As much as this can be a workaround, Apple should address this issue so we can just go through Patches without that extra step (the undo).

But yes, this can be an effective (temporary) way of doing things for now, at least with the user patches, since the default patches delete the auxs

Here's what I just noticed:

I saved a patch with sends 1 and 2 (Bus 1, Bus 2) sending to Aux1 and Aux2. Aux1 is a Chromaverb, Aux2 is a StereoDelay.

For the sake of this example, I set the chromaverb knobs all the way to the right (just as a visual aid). The same for the Stereo Delay. Amount of sends: all the way to the right (maximum, not unity).

Saved the patch (test1.patch)

Now went back to chromaverb and stereo delay and set all knobs to middle. The same for the sends amount.

Saved the patch (test2.patch).

 

When I load test1.patch, the sends amount indeed change to maximum, but since it's using the same sends and auxs and the exact same effects, it's using the effects settings from test2.patch (all knobs in the middle on both chromaverb and stereo delay), meaning Logic is not analyzing each plugin's settings when loading the patch, which can be a problem, because the patch will definitely sound different. It's clearly an issue and I will report it.

The patches have so much potential, but always had issues

 

Please report it here: https://www.apple.com/feedback/logic-pro.html

Ok so here's what I just noticed and that's weird: when loading default patches created by Apple, it indeed cleans up the mess. The issue is with patches created by us, the users.

(...)

So, Apple really needs to work on the Patches feature in order to behave like the factory presets.

 

Funny, I'll have to test it again when I have a moment because I have NOT experience this behavirour with factory patches on numerous (and I mean hundreds at least) of occasions. Here Logic isn't cleaning up the mess. But I'm 10.4.4, maybe things were change in .5 or .6 (to be checked)?

Here's what I just noticed:

(...°

When I load test1.patch, the sends amount indeed change to maximum, but since it's using the same sends and auxs and the exact same effects, it's using the effects settings from test2.patch (all knobs in the middle on both chromaverb and stereo delay), meaning Logic is not analyzing each plugin's settings when loading the patch, which can be a problem, because the patch will definitely sound different. It's clearly an issue and I will report it.

The patches have so much potential, but always had issues

 

Please report it here: https://www.apple.com/feedback/logic-pro.html

 

Yeah, this is something else I'd noticed (and reported a while ago).

But I'm 10.4.4, maybe things were change in .5 or .6 (to be checked)?

 

Yes, maybe it's a fix in 10.4.5

Please test it again and let us know. Hopefully other people with 10.4.5 can check if this is a fix in this version.

 

Yeah, this is something else I'd noticed (and reported a while ago).

Good to know I'm not alone on this one. As I said, the patches have so much potential, but I'm surprised to see that people at Apple always seem to work on features without really testing them 100%, all the options. I mean, who wouldn't test this feature and save patches as a user to see if the plugins would keep the same settings? It should be obvious...

And thanks for reporting!

I was just looking for a similar solution...a way to delete blank slots without manually moving all the plugins up. Good to know it doesn't exist yet, thank you!

I wish there was, so I’m not glad there isn’t haha