Replace Track With Silence

gustebeast

Usually when I make a loop I start by recording a rough version of my first track to set the BPM, then I add MIDI drums, mute track 1 and record a more polished take on track 2. Track 1 then becomes wasted space.

The real issue for me though is that if I save it as a snapshot and load it later I need to remember to keep track 1 muted. The best workaround I can think of is to take the audio file out of mobius' snapshot directory, put it in an audio editing app and set the gain to -9999db.

One solution here would be to have an option in Mobius to replace the audio data of a track with silence, but that may be a niche under-used feature. Perhaps a better option could be to swap the audio files for two tracks. Then from now on when I make new loops I could swap 2 with 1 and erase the new track 2 before continuing forward. Ideally that process could be done without pausing the loop, but if need be that's not too big of a deal.

alexs1

gustebeast

Wasn’t there a function called Clear that did this back in 2.5? Alternatively, could you use Copy Timing when you switch to a new Loop or Track?

jeff

If I understand this correctly , the easiest thing is just to do a TrackReset in track 1 after you're done with it. There are three Reset functions:

Reset: Reset the selected loop in the selected track
TrackReset: Reset all loops in the selected track
GlobalReset: Reset all loops in all tracks

I usually keep all three of these as UI buttons to make them easier to use when doing post-performance editing.

When you save a snapshot, it won't save any tracks that are fully reset.

If you have an old snapshot with track 1 content in it and you want to remove that content, first load the snapshot. Then TrackReset the tracks you want to clear out, then Snapshot->Save to overwrite the loaded snapshot with whatever the tracks look like now.

gustebeast

do a TrackReset in track 1 after you're done with it

If track 1 is empty won't that break any bindings that are synced to track 1? Like in 1 wait loop

could you use Copy Timing when you switch to a new Loop or Track

How would that work? What would the series of steps look like

jeff

Okay, so you want to keep a loop in track 1 around as a time basis, just not have anything audible in it?

If so then yes, Clear will erase the audible content of the loop but keep it's length. It ends up being much like the Transport, just there to be a source of quantization points rather than contributing any sound.

CopyTiming is another way to create a loop that is empty but has length. You would start on the a loop that has something in it, have EmptyLoopAction set to CopyTiming, then switch to an loop that is Reset. Immediately after the switch an empty loop is created that is the same size as the one you came from. You could then switch back to the original loop and Reset it and switch back to the empty loop. It gets you to a similar place, but is a multi-step process, for your purposes Clear is easiest.

jeff

Reminds me...these are more terms that get used inconsistently that I really need to get better about: Reset, Empty, and Clear.

They sound like they're the same things, but they're not. When a loop has nothing in it, it is usually called Reset, or "in Reset". The loop has no audible .wav content and no MIDI events and it has no length.

A loop that is Empty has a length but has no content. An empty loop is not a Reset loop, it behaves like any other loop just very, very quietly.

A Clear loop I've also used before, and it means the same thing as Empty.

The problem word is Empty, which has been used to mean both Reset and Silent at various times. For example the parameter Empty Loop Action should really be Reset Loop Action.

As always, I'm open to suggestions here. Calling a loop "Reset" has always felt a bit awkward, but it's what you get after you use the Reset function so it stuck. A "void loop" is programmery and actually kind of cool, but is probably not as understandable. Most people think of Reset and Empty as being same thing, so we would need a different name for silent-with-length. Silent is actually pretty accurate, maybe a little more obvious than Clear. Though MIDI tracks are technically silent, so Clear is better there.

These are the things that keep me awake at night.

alexs1

jeff Empty Loop Action should really be Reset Loop Action

“Switch Loop Action”? 🤔

gustebeast

Clear is just what I needed thanks! As for the naming I think I would call it "Silence" and treat it as an action, not a status. A post-silence track would be treated just like any other track except it happens to be silent. Just like if you recorded a track with nothing going into mobius.

I would probably avoid the name "empty" if possible.

jeff

gustebeast

Yes, "Silent" wouldn't be a mode or status that you would see in the UI, but it would be the word we use when talking about loops in documentation and on the forum. Such as "if you use Empty Loop Action set to TimeCopy, and switch to an empty loop, it will create a new Silent loop that has the same size as the starting loop".

You might want to know this in scripts:

if isSilent LoadLoop("content.wav") else Silence
Overdub

jeff

alexs1 “Switch Loop Action”

But it's not just a Switch, it is a Switch into an Empty/Reset loop. If you Switch to loop that is not empty, then this parameter does not apply. Saying "Switch Loop Action" makes it sound like it will happen all the time.

In the UI I have some freedom to put whatever label I want in front of it. So it would be more obvious
if this were labeled "If Loop is Empty". But then there is a disconnect between the words you see in the UI
and the words you use in a script, and i like to keep them close to the same.

Reminds me...for Ultimate Power here, there should be a Switch Script that runs immediately after the switch
to allow you to think harder and do questionable things.

alexs1

jeff “Switch Loop Action” > jeff If you Switch to loop that is not empty, then this parameter does not apply

Yeah, blurted that before I had my morning coffee. Empty Loop Action still makes sense.

jeff there should be a Switch Script that runs immediately after the switch

Would that be the same as an
if mode == :Switch statement?

jeff

alexs1

No, mode == :Switch is a state that exists while you are waiting for a switch to happen because it was quantized or waiting for confirmation. During this state, you haven't left the original loop yet.

SwitchScript would be more like an "event script", it's a standalone script that you wouldn't run with a binding. It gets run automatically after something interesting happens, in this case the instant after the loop changes.

Having said all that, it is supposed to be possible to do this:

#name FancySwitch
NextLoop
wait switch
if  mode == :Reset Record

The trick here is "wait switch" which is supposed to suspend the script until after the NextLoop finishes. It wakes up in a new loop and can start thinking about it and doing things.

Assuming that worked, haven't tested that in a long while, that could be an alternative to EmptyLoopAction, but you always need scripts to be in control over the switch. You would never use SelectLoop, NextLoop, or PrevLoop, in bindings, you would use the Fancy script variants instead.

The advantage of a SwitchScript parameter is that you can just bind to SelectLoop/NextLoop/PrevLoop normally and the script gets involved only after the switch happens.