Mod Archive Forums
Music Production => MilkyTracker => Tracking => MilkyTracker Community => Topic started by: urban soul on June 19, 2008, 13:14:39
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It seems like a silly question, but I could not find out how to play back more than one module in sync with each other. Did I miss something?
greetz
Urban
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Not yet possible. Source code is available though ;)
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Source code is available though ;)
I had a quick look at it. Perfecly organized. Wow. Understanding that code is too much of a hacker job for me. The only thing I have written in c are some externels for pd.
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If you make suggestions how it should work I will see what I can do.
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I thought about it. Will be a bit tricky..
a) have a start command and start the tabs more or less simultanously and let them run free. Could be a implementation of MIDI In start/stop/continue.
This is realistic but of course not completely satisfying. Or have the possibility to start tabs by other tabs. There would be a command like Zxy where x is the tab number and y a pattern offset maybe.
b) Avoid syncronization by temporarily creating a 'super-module' (copying all data together). This would be some work, but keeps the code base untouched. Problem: different pattern length in different modules. Also editing will not be possible while playback. 32 tracks may also be a limit.
Edit: This could be a export filter, too. "Export tabs to new module" e.g.
Thanks for the generous offer.
I have some theoretical thougts about the relation of composition and programming. Musicians can learn a lot from programmers. E.g. using links to resources instead of physical copies. ('once and only once'). This is how trackers work. As we work in the time domain, there should be objects that can overlap in time. This is exactly what the playback of tabs offer.
Urban
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i think no extra command is needed, since you aim for live performance. a simple checkbox on a tab could init a timed start.. NOT the pattern itself is to be sync'd but the start of the pattern relative to the start of another pattern (or maybe 1/4, 1/8 etc...).. this would happen only ONCE (not on every pattern cycle, wich doesnt make sense) until stop is pressed on that pattern..
btw: an override button for Fxx and maybe (Exx) would make sense..
i use milky to play live and if you raise your computers key-delay/rate settings to adequate high rates and have a slippy thumb you can sync patterns that way very easily.. ;] but a sync checkbox would make tha whole thing alot ... um...more... techno... _-*'-. _-*'-. _-*'-. _-*'-.
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an override button for Fxx and maybe (Exx) would make sense..
i meant EEx (pattern delay) of course..
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My idea of use Milky as a DJ tool needs the following playback mode with these features:
1) A tab start to play when the play button is pressed
2) If other tab is playing, the new tab does not start to play until the current playing pattern ends.
3) A Xfade between the volume of these two tabs would make the mix between them better. ( a box/slider to select the amount of rows (X) to make the fade in and fade out would be nice.... X/2 row for the fade out X/2 for the fade in)
3a) The Xfade could be optional... so if you dont check it, when you play a new track when other is already playing.. the two tabs would play at same time and they would play in "row" sync. You would need to use tracks with same speed/BPM settings to not destroy the sync between them.
4) If a module ends in a tab.. the next tab start to play with a Xfade (This feature would allow people to load new tabs and prepare the session and the next songs to play). We could name this mode "jukebox" ;)
5) A checkbox in each tab to "arm" them would allow you to play the "armed" tabs at same time with a single play song/pattern key press
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Sorry Kmuland, but I dont feel like this dj thing fits into the concept of MT. Take two computers and a mixer instead. Or one computer with four channels of output.
Edit: This is just my personal humble opinion...
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i agree with kmuland.... and milky is already a "tj-tool" (track-jockeying) and the tab-feature makes this even easier.. before the introduction of tabs it was a pain in the back to "tj" tracks having multiple instances of milky running even on hi-resolution displays. not to speak of latency problems and alt+tabbing whole the time..
"conventional tracking" won't be affected if those enhancements get implemented..
think of the possibility to sync patterns (resulting in kind of what you call "super-module") along with the ability to render tracks to a sample slot (eg loops). this is a very effective way to just jam and test things without the need to make permanent changes whole the time. this is in fact already possible but hard to "hand-sync" esp. when having to deal with beat-dominant tracks.. try to hand-sync three tabs at 160/03 (bpm/spd)...
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I re-read the tread and I agree it would be nice to have; But automated crossfades between tabs? I dont know. Isn't DJing about having these transitions at your own fingertips?
I would like to see a command to start one tab from another, though.
To give an example: I programmed a break, a reverse effect with 8 tracks and saved it as a separate module. To include this break in the final song I had to mix it down and play the wav file back. So... if this module could be started from the main song this would be nice.
The only two persons who got in touch with the c code are pailes and deltafire, am i right?
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Actually, being open, the source code is free for anyone to poke.
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The only two persons who got in touch with the c code are pailes and deltafire, am i right?
Just a short note, MilkyTracker is written in C++ not in C.
But yes, MilkyTracker is mainly written by myself although Deltafire did contribute quite some code on the Unix/Linux-side.