Operation Manual
Operation Manual by Ludvig Carlson, Anders Nordmark, Roger Wiklander The information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part of Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH. The software described by this document is subject to a License Agreement and may not be copied to other media except as specifically allowed in the License Agreement.
Table of contents
7 Introduction 49 Guided tour 8 9 Welcome! About the program and the manual 50 The main windows in V-STACK 57 VST Instruments 11 Installation and requirements for Windows 58 58 60 12 12 16 18 About this chapter Requirements Hardware installation Installing V-STACK Introduction Installing VST Instruments Activating and using VST Instruments 67 The Mixer 21 Installation and requirements for Mac OS X 68 68 69 70 76 82 85 89 93 About this chapter About the signal flow A word about window ha
141 File handling 142 File Operations 145 Menu reference 146 146 146 147 148 149 About this chapter V-STACK menu (Mac OS X only) File menu Edit menu Devices menu Help menu 151 Index Table of Contents V-STACK 5
V-STACK 6 Table of Contents
1 Introduction
Welcome! Thank you for purchasing V-STACK! Since Steinberg introduced the VST 2.0 plug-in format a few years back, there’s been a rapid development of VST Instruments – software synthesizers and other sound sources played and controlled from within a host application. There is now a huge number of VST Instruments available, ranging from simple synthesizers and drum machines to exact software replicas of vintage synths and extremely advanced sound modules with no equivalent in hardware.
About the program and the manual V-STACK comes for two different operating systems or “platforms”; Windows and Mac OS X. This manual describes all features in the program, for both platforms. While all features are available for both platforms, items and naming may differ slightly – whenever this is the case it is clearly mentioned in the manual text. In other words: • If nothing else is said, all descriptions and procedures in the documentation are valid both under Windows and Mac OS X.
V-STACK 1 – 10 Introduction
2 Installation and requirements for Windows
About this chapter This chapter describes the system requirements and installation procedures for V-STACK for Windows. Installing V-STACK for Mac OS X is described on page 21. Requirements To use V-STACK, you need the following: • A PC with either Windows XP or Windows 2000 installed. A USB Port is also required. For more details about the computer requirements, see below. • A compatible audio hardware.
Computer requirements Hardware The absolute minimum requirements for running V-STACK on a PC are as follows: • A 233 MHz Pentium computer with 128 MB of free RAM or an equivalent AMD processor. Recommended configuration for optimum performance: Dual PIII or Athlon procesor, 1 GHz or faster with 512 MB RAM. RAM VST Instruments don’t necessarily require a lot of RAM. However, if you are using a software sampler or drum machine, these typically play the samples from RAM memory.
Audio hardware V-STACK will run with audio hardware that meets the following basic specifications: • • • • Stereo. 16 bit. Support of at least the 44.1kHz sampling rate. Is supplied with a special ASIO driver, or a DirectX or Windows Multimedia compatible driver as described below.
If the audio card communicates via DirectX DirectX is a Microsoft “package” for handling various types of Multimedia under Windows. V-STACK supports DirectX, or to be more precise, DirectSound, which is a part of DirectX used for audio input and output. This requires two types of drivers: • • • A DirectX driver for the audio card, allowing it to communicate with DirectX. If the audio card supports DirectX, this driver should be supplied by the audio card manufacturer.
Hardware installation Installing the audio hardware and its driver 1. Install the audio card and related equipment in the computer, as described in the card’s documentation. 2. Install the driver for the card.
Testing the Card To make sure the audio card will work as expected, perform the following two tests: • Use any software included with the audio card to make sure you can play back audio without problems. • If the card is accessed via a standard Windows driver, use the Media Player application (included with Windows) to play back audio. Installing a MIDI interface Installation instructions for a MIDI interface should be included with the product. However, here’s an outline of the necessary steps: 1.
Installing V-STACK Defragment the hard disk If you plan to record audio on a hard disk where you have already stored other files, now is the time to defragment it. Defragmentation reorganizes the physical allocation of space on the hard disk in order to optimize its performance using a special defragmentation program. ❐ It is crucial to the audio recording performance that your hard disk is op- timized (defragmented). You should make sure to defragment regularly.
• V-STACK Operation Manual. Opens the manual you are reading right now. • ASIO DirectX Full Duplex Setup. This is where you make settings if your audio hardware uses DirectX for audio playback and recording. • ASIO Multimedia Setup. This opens a dialog with settings for the ASIO (Audio Stream Input Output) system, which handles audio playback in V-STACK if you are using the ASIO MME driver. This dialog can also be opened from within V-STACK. See the chapter “Setting up your system” in this manual.
V-STACK 2 – 20 Installation and requirements for Windows
3 Installation and requirements for Mac OS X
About this chapter This chapter describes the system requirements and installation procedures for V-STACK for Mac OS X. Installing V-STACK for Windows is described on page 11. Requirements To use V-STACK, you need the following: • A Macintosh computer running Mac OS X (version 10.2 or later). For more details about the computer requirements, see below. • Mac OS X compatible audio hardware.
Computer requirements Hardware – Mac The absolute minimum requirements for running V-STACK on a Macintosh are as follows: • Macintosh with a G4 processor, 256 MB RAM and OS X 10.2. We recommend 512 MB RAM or more. RAM Audio work requires a lot of RAM! In fact, there is a direct relation between the amount of available RAM and the number of audio channels that you can have running. As specified earlier, 256 MB is the minimum requirement, but as a general rule “the more the better” applies.
Audio hardware V-STACK will run with audio hardware that meets the following basic specifications: • • • • Stereo. 16 bit. Support of at least the 44.1kHz sampling rate. Is supplied with proper Mac OS X (Core Audio) drivers. A basic rule of thumb is: if the hardware works under Mac OS X, you can use it in V-STACK. • V-STACK also supports audio hardware with Mac OS X compliant ASIO drivers. ASIO drivers may provide special support for routing, monitoring, synchronization, etc.
Hardware installation Installing the audio hardware and its driver 1. Make sure you have the latest Mac OS X drivers for the audio hardware! Please check the manufacturer’s web site for the latest versions. 2. Install the driver(s) for the audio hardware. This is usually done by running an installer application. 3. Install or connect the audio interface, as described in the card’s documentation. Installing a MIDI interface 1.
Installing V-STACK Defragment the hard disk If you plan to record audio on a hard disk where you have already stored other files, now is the time to defragment it. Defragmentation reorganizes the physical allocation of space on the hard disk in order to optimize its performance using a special defragmentation program. ❐ It is crucial to the audio recording performance that your hard disk is op- timized (defragmented). You should make sure to defragment regularly.
4 Setting up your system
About this chapter This chapter describes how to make the necessary connections and set up audio and MIDI in V-STACK. As already mentioned, there are two different ways to use the program: • • As a stand-alone VST Instrument host, played via MIDI from a regular MIDI interface. With VST System Link, where the VST Instruments are played by MIDI signals from another computer in the VST System Link network.
Setting up audio (stand-alone) This section describes how to set up your system for basic VST Instrument playback – setting up VST System Link is described on page 35. ❐ Always make all connections with all equipment turned off! Connecting audio Making audio connections is a relatively simply matter in V-STACK: you just need to connect the outputs on your audio interface to your listening equipment, recording devices, etc.
VST Multitrack setup – Basic Settings 1. In V-STACK, select Device Setup from the Devices menu and click on VST Multitrack in the list. Make sure the “Setup” tab is selected. The VST Multitrack panel in the Device Setup dialog. 2. Select your audio hardware from the ASIO Driver menu. There may be several options here that all refer to the same audio hardware: ❐ We strongly recommend that you access your hardware via an ASIO driver written specifically for the hardware, if available.
• Normally, you can open the control panel by clicking the Control Panel button in the VST Multitrack panel. The control panel that appears when you click this button is provided by the audio hardware manufacturer and not V-STACK (unless you use DirectX or MME, see below). Hence it will be different for each audio card brand and model. The settings may include options for buffering, synchronization, digital input and output formats etc.
If you are using audio hardware with a DirectX driver (Windows only) If your Windows audio hardware doesn’t have a specific ASIO driver, a DirectX driver is the next best option for stand-alone use. An ASIO DirectX driver is available with V-STACK, “ASIO DirectX Full Duplex”. ❐ Windows 2000 users should use DirectX version 8.1.
Setting up MIDI (stand-alone) This section describes how to connect and set up MIDI for basic VST Instrument playback – setting up MIDI with VST System Link is described on page 43. ❐ Always make all connections with all equipment turned off! Making connections Since V-STACK doesn’t control external instruments and sound modules via MIDI, we don’t have to worry about any MIDI devices other than the MIDI interface and the keyboard (or similar) you will use to play the VST Instruments: 1.
Setting up MIDI ports in V-STACK The Device Setup dialog lets you set up your MIDI system in the following ways: • Note: After changing a setting in the Device Setup dialog, you should click Apply and then click OK to close the dialog. Showing or hiding MIDI Ports Under Windows, the MIDI ports are listed in the Device Setup dialog on the DirectMusic page and/or the Windows MIDI page (depending on your system).
Setting up VST System Link Introduction VST System Link is a network system for digital audio that allows you to have several computers working together in one large system. Unlike conventional networks it does not require Ethernet cards, hubs, or CAT-5 cables; instead it uses the kind of digital audio hardware and cables you probably already possess in your studio. VST System Link has been designed to be simple to set up and operate, yet give enormous flexibility and performance gains in use.
Requirements The following equipment is required for VST System Link operation with V-STACK: • One computer running V-STACK. • At least one other computer running a VST System Link compatible application (e.g. Cubase SX, Cubase 5.2s or Nuendo 1.6 or later). The computers can be of the same type or use different operating systems. For example, you can link an Intel-based PC to an Apple Macintosh without problems.
Making connections Below, we will assume that you are connecting two computers. Should you have more than two computers, it’s still best to start with two and add the others one by one once the system is working – this makes troubleshooting easier if you run into problems. For two computers, you will need two digital audio cables, one in each direction: 1. Connect a digital audio cable from the digital output of the V-STACK computer to the digital input of the other VST System Link computer. 2.
Setting up clock sync Before you proceed you need to make sure that the clock signals on your ASIO cards are synchronized correctly. This is essential when cabling any kind of digital audio system, not just VST System Link.
❐ It’s very important that one and only one card is the clock master, other- wise the network cannot function correctly. Once you have set this up, all the other cards in the network will take their clock signal from this card automatically. The only exception to this procedure is if you are using an external clock – which could be from a digital mixing desk or special Word Clock synchronizer for example.
Setting up your software Now it’s time to set up your programs. For details on how to perform the steps below in the other VST System Link application, see its documentation. Setting up inputs and outputs 1. In the other VSL application, enable the desired number of outputs. You need one output bus (digital output) for VST System Link connected to the V-STACK computer, and one or more output buses (analog or digital outputs) connected to your listening equipment, mixer, etc. 2.
Activating VST System Link After setting up the inputs and outputs, you now need to define which input/output should carry the actual VST System Link information. The System Link networking signal is carried on only one bit of one channel.
3. Use the ASIO Input and ASIO Output pop-up menus to define which channel should be the networking channel (and thus become a 23-bit audio channel, in our example). Quite often you will be able to just leave these pop-ups the way they are. 4. Click the Active checkbox at the top of the panel. 5. Repeat the steps above for every computer on the network.
Setting up MIDI for VST System Link VST System Link supplies up to 16 MIDI ports, each with 16 channels. You set this up as follows: 1. In the VST System Link Setup tab in V-STACK, use the MIDI Ins and Outs value boxes to specify the number of MIDI input ports you need. For V-STACK you don’t need any MIDI output ports. 2. In the other application, specify the same number of MIDI output ports. 3.
The “Active ASIO Ports for Data only” setting If you are sending huge amounts of MIDI data at once, there is a small possibility that you might run out of bandwidth on your VST System Link network. This will manifest itself by notes “choking” or timing becoming erratic. If this happens, you can devote more bandwidth to MIDI by selecting Active ASIO Ports for Data only in the VST System Link Setup panel.
Optimizing audio performance This section of the chapter gives you some hints and tips on how to get the most out of your V-STACK system, performance-wise. Some of this text refers to hardware properties and can be used as a guide when upgrading your system. This text is very brief. Look for details and current information at www.steinberg.
System factors that affect performance CPU and processor cache It goes without saying that the faster the computer processor, the better. But there are a number of factors that affect the apparent speed of a computer: the bus speed and type (PCI is strongly recommended), the processor cache size and of course, the processor type and brand. V-STACK relies heavily on floating point calculations.
Making settings that affect performance Choosing a driver for your audio hardware As described on page 30, it is recommended to install and use a standard ASIO driver if available for your specific hardware. Check the manufacturers web site for the latest drivers etc. Making audio buffer settings Audio buffers affect how audio is sent to and from the audio hardware. The size of the audio buffers affect both the latency and the audio performance.
Optimizing processor scheduling (Windows only) To get the lowest possible latencies when using ASIO under Windows 2000 or XP (on a single CPU system), the system performance has to be optimized for background tasks: Windows 2000 1. Open the Control Panel from the Start menu and select System. 2. Select the Advanced tab and click the Performance Options button. 3. In the dialog that appears, select “Optimize performance for: Background services”. 4. Click OK to close the dialogs. Windows XP 1.
5 Guided tour
The main windows in V-STACK The Mixer The Mixer is where you mix your VST Instrument channels, that is, adjust the levels (volume), stereo panning, effect sends, EQ, insert effects, etc. There are also four group channels, for submixing, etc.
Channel Settings The Channel Settings window is used for adding effects and EQ to individual audio channels. Each channel in the Mixer has its own Channel Settings window. VST Instruments This is where you activate and set up your VST Instruments (up to 16). You can select a preset for the VST Instrument from the Preset popup menu or by clicking the arrow buttons. Note that each active VST Instrument slot has a MIDI input pop-up menu, allowing you to route MIDI directly to each VST Instrument.
VST Send Effects The VST Send Effects “rack” is where you select and activate send effects. You can have up to eight send effects in V-STACK. VST Master Effects This window allows you to add up to four master effects; effects inserted in the master output bus (affecting all instruments routed to the master bus). Note that the first three inserts are pre-fader, while the last insert is post-fader.
VST Outputs and Master Gain In the VST Outputs window you can set the output level of each output bus. The number of buses depends on your audio hardware. The output level of the master bus is controlled with the Master Gain fader in the Mixer.
Transport panel V-STACK provides you with a transport panel that allows you to control transport functions when using VST System Link. Also, when using V-STACK as a stand-alone host for VST Instruments and effects, you can set the tempo and time signature in the transport panel, allowing you to tempo-sync your instruments or effects. You can show or hide the transport panel by selecting the corresponding option from the Devices menu or by pressing [F2].
• The Tempo display is linked to the Tempo button and shows the tempo currently set in V-STACK. When you use V-STACK as a stand-alone application, you can switch off the Tempo button and set your own tempo. This allows you to tempo sync your VST Instruments and/or effects. When you use V-STACK with VST System Link, V-STACK “links up” with the tempo transmitted over the network, and this will be displayed in the transport panel. When you switch on the Tempo button, a default tempo of 120 bpm is set.
V-STACK 5 – 56 Guided tour
6 VST Instruments
Introduction VST Instruments are software synthesizers (or other sound sources) that are contained within V-STACK. They are played internally via MIDI, and their audio outputs appear on separate channels in the Mixer, allowing you to add effects or EQ. Technically, VST Instruments are VST 2 plug-ins, capable of receiving MIDI. Installing VST Instruments V-STACK doesn’t include any VST Instruments when you install it – you need to install these separately.
Windows Under Windows, VST Instruments are usually installed simply by dragging the files (with the extension “.dll”) into the Vstplugins folder in the V-STACK application folder (or into the Shared VST Plug-in folder – see page 104). When you launch V-STACK again, the new VST Instruments will be available for selection in the program. • If the VST Instrument comes with its own installation application, you should use this.
Activating and using VST Instruments 1. If the VST Instruments panel isn’t open, open it by selecting it from the Devices menu. The VST Instruments panel has 16 slots, each capable of holding a VST Instrument. 2. Pull down the pop-up menu for an empty slot in the panel and select the desired instrument. The selected instrument is loaded into the slot and a number of settings are shown: 3. Pull down the MIDI input pop-up menu to the left in the slot and select the MIDI input you want to use.
Depending on the selected VST Instrument, you may also need to send MIDI on a specific MIDI channel. For example, if the VST Instrument is multi-timbral (check its documentation for details) it can play back different sounds on different MIDI channels: • If you are using VST System Link, select the desired MIDI channel for the MIDI track in the host application. • If you are using V-STACK by itself, make sure your MIDI keyboard is connected to the correct MIDI port and sends on the desired MIDI channel.
Setting a key zone and transposition for your VST Instrument When loading a VST Instrument, you can specify a key zone that will be used to play the notes for the VST Instrument and also its transposition. The key zone setting works like a filter (similar to the settings for the MIDI port and channel): only notes falling into the specified key zone will be routed to the VST Instrument. These notes will be played using the transposition settings. Proceed as follows: 1.
A note about VST Instruments and CPU power You can have up to 16 VST Instruments activated at the same time, different models or several instances of the same instrument. However, software synthesizers can consume quite a lot of CPU power – keep an eye on the VST Performance window to avoid running out of processor power. • Although it’s possible to deactivate a VST Instrument by clicking its “power button”, it will still require some processor power.
Editing VST Instruments To access the parameters for the VST Instrument, click the Edit (“e”) button in the VST Instruments window or in its channel strip (at the bottom of the fader strip) in the Mixer. This opens a “control panel” for the VST Instrument where you can view and adjust the parameters. For details about the parameters, see the documentation of the VST Instruments.
Common settings in the control panel Although the parameters are different for different VST Instruments, all control panels have a common area at the top (Windows) or bottom (Mac OS X). Here you can do the following: • Turn the VST Instrument on or off by clicking the power button. • Select a patch by using the patch pop-up menu or the arrow buttons. These are the same as in the slot in the VST Instruments window.
V-STACK 6 – 66 VST Instruments
7 The Mixer
About this chapter This chapter describes how to mix the sound from your VST Instruments, adjusting level and pan and adding EQ. • Effect handling is described on page 105.
A word about window handling All the “VST windows” (Mixer, VST Instrument windows, effect windows, etc.) are available on the Devices menu. • To show or hide a window, select it from the Devices menu. You can also use key commands, as listed on the Devices menu. • If you like you can also manage the windows from the Devices panel, opened by selecting “Show Panels” on the Devices menu. To hide or show a window, click on its button on the Devices panel.
Mixer overview There are three different basic elements in the mixer: • • • The channel strips. This is where you mix and adjust the sound of the VST Instruments. Here you will also find four group channels, for submixing several instrument channels. The common panel. This panel to the left of the channel strips contains global settings for the Mixer and the channels. The Master section. This is where you adjust the master level.
The channel strips Pan control Mute and Solo buttons Level fader Level meter This opens the control panel for the VST Instrument Edit button (opens the Channel Settings window, see page 75) Insert/EQ/Send indicators and bypass buttons. Channel name field Channel output routing pop-up A VST Instrument channel strip and a group channel strip. As you can see, these have the same controls except for the lower “e” button on the VST Instrument channel strip (which opens the control panel for the instrument).
The common panel The common panel appears to the left in the Mixer and contains settings for changing the look and behavior of the Mixer, as well as global settings for all channels. The View Option buttons for setting what to display in the extended channel strip. Not visible in Normal mode. View Options pop-up. Toggle between normal/extended Mixer display. Show/hide Master section. Global Solo/Mute Off, see page 83. Channel Settings Copy/Paste, see page 95. Channel Select pop-up.
The Master section The Master section allows you to control the output level of the Master bus (the main output bus). With the Mixer in extended mode, the Master section will also contain the Master effect slots. This section can be shown or hidden in the Mixer by clicking the Show Master button in the common panel. Master effect slots (shown in the extended mixer panel) Click this button to hide or show the Master section.
The VST Outputs window Activate bus Bus stereo link switch – deactivate this to set separate levels for the left and right bus channel. Bus name – click to change. Bus volume fader Bus output routing This is a separate window, opened from the Devices menu. If your audio hardware has several outputs (more than a single stereo pair), the VST Outputs window will show one stereo bus for each stereo output pair.
The Channel Settings window Each audio channel strip in the Mixer has an edit (“e”) button. Clicking this opens the Channel Settings window, in which you can make detailed settings for a single channel (level, pan, EQ, effects, etc.). The Channel Settings window always shows the settings for the selected channel.
Mixer View options The Mixer can be configured in various ways to suit your needs and to save screen space. Here’s a run through of the various view options: Normal vs. Extended channel strips There are two main modes for the Mixer: “normal” or “extended”. You switch between these modes by selecting the corresponding item on the View Options pop-up menu on the common panel, or by clicking the button just below it. Global View Options pop-up menu. Show/hide extended Mixer.
Selecting what to show in the extended audio channel strip You select what to display in the upper (extended) area for each channel by using the View Options pop-up menu (the down arrow above the fader section of each channel strips). The following options are available: • Option The upper panel shows: Narrow Nothing (narrow channel strip). Wide Nothing (wide channel strip). inserts Five insert effect slots. EQs The four-band EQ, shown with the controls as sliders (see page 85).
Selecting what channel types should be shown You can specify whether the Mixer should show VST Instrument channels, group channels or both. This is done by clicking the buttons in the lower part of the common panel – when a button is lit, the corresponding channel type is shown. • You can also change this setting on the View Options pop-up in the common panel. Pull down the pop-up menu and activate or deactivate the “Group” and “VSTi” options to show or hide channel types.
3. Repeat steps 1-2 for each channel that you wish to hide. 4. When you have activated “Hideable” status for all channels you wish to hide, pull down the Global View Options pop-up on the common panel and deactivate the “Hideable” option. When the “Hideable” item is deactivated (unticked) on the common panel View Options pop-up, all individual channel strips that are set to “Hideable” status will be hidden in the Mixer. 5.
Channel View Sets Channel View Sets are user definable configurations of the Mixer windows. If you are working with a large number of channels, it may be convenient to be able to hide certain channels (or channel types). Proceed as follows: 1. Set up the Mixer the way you wish to store it as a View Set. The following settings will be stored: • • • Settings for individual channel strips (e.g. narrow or wide mode and whether the channel strip is hidden or not).
• You can return to this saved configuration at any time, by clicking the Channel View Sets button and selecting it from the pop-up menu. • To remove a stored Channel View Set, select it from pop-up so that the View Set is active, pull down the pop-up again and select Remove. ❐ Some remote control devices (such as Steinberg’s Houston) feature this function, which means that you can use the remote device to switch between the Channel View Sets.
Basic mixing procedures Setting volume in the Mixer In the Mixer, each channel strip has a fader for volume control. • The fader settings are displayed numerically below the faders, in dB. You can click in the fader value fields and enter a volume setting by typing. • To make fine volume adjustments, hold down [Shift] when you move the faders. • If you hold down [Ctrl]/[Command] and click on a fader, it will automatically be set to position 0.0 dB.
Using Solo and Mute The Mute (top) and Solo buttons. You can use the Mute and Solo buttons to silence one or several channels. The following applies: • The Mute button silences the selected channel. Clicking the Mute button again un-mutes the channel. Several channels can be muted simultaneously. A muted channel is indicated by a lit Mute button, and also by the lit Global Mute indicator on the common panel. A Muted Channel in the Mixer.
Setting pan in the Mixer The pan control The Pan controls in the Mixer are used to position a channel between the left and right side of the stereo spectrum. For stereo channels they control the balance between the left and right channels. • To make fine pan adjustments, hold down [Shift] when you move the pan control. • To select center pan position, hold down [Ctrl]/[Command] and click on the pan control.
Making EQ settings Each channel has a built-in parametric equalizer with four bands or “modules”. You make settings for this in the upper area of the channel strips (extended mode) or in the Channel Settings window. The parameters are the same in both cases, but only the Channel Settings window gives you access to EQ presets and the Reset function. To make equalizer settings, activate as many EQ modules you need (up to four) by clicking their power buttons and adjust the gain, frequency and Q parameters.
Here’s an overview of how the EQ parameters are laid out in the different panels: EQ on/off (individual for each EQ band). The outer ring of the dial controls the frequency, while the inner controls gain. The small dial sets the Q parameter. The top value slider controls the gain, the middle controls frequency and the lower sets the Q parameter for each EQ band. The EQ in the extended mixer panel, “EQ+” mode (left) and “EQs” mode (right). The EQ in the Channel Settings window.
Using the EQ curve display In the Channel Settings window you can also make EQ settings in the graphic EQ curve display above the parameter section. • Double-click (or click and drag) in the display to add a new “EQ point” (activate an EQ module). Each point in the curve corresponds to an EQ module, as indicated by the number next to the point. Up to four points can be added, one for each module. • Click a point and drag it to change the EQ curve.
EQ reset The Reset button in the lower left corner of the EQ section in the Channel Settings window will reset all EQ parameters to their default values and turn off all EQ modules. Using EQ presets Some useful basic presets are included with the program. You can use them as they are, or as a starting point for further “tweaking”. To call up a preset, pull down the presets pop-up menu at the bottom of the EQ section in the Channel Settings window, and select one of the available presets.
Routing Using group channels You can route the outputs from multiple VST Instrument channels to a group channel. This enables you to control the channel levels using one fader, apply the same effects and equalization to all of them etc. There are four group channels in V-STACK. Proceed as follows: 1. Pull down the Output routing pop-up menu for the VST Instrument channel you want to route to a group. This is the pop-up menu at the very bottom of the channel strip. 2.
Activating and routing buses The number of buses shown in the VST Outputs window depends on the number of physical outputs you have on your audio hardware. As with inputs, you need to activate the buses you want to use, and assign each bus to an output pair on your audio hardware. This is done in the VST Outputs window: 1. Pull down the Devices Menu and select VST Outputs. The window will contain a number of stereo “channel strips”, one for each bus: 2.
3. Use the pop-up menus at the bottom of the window to route each active bus to an output pair on your audio hardware. 4. To rename a bus, click on its label and type in a new name. 5. Set the output levels for each active bus. Dragging one of the faders for a bus will automatically move the other fader as well. To move the left or right fader for a bus independently, hold down [Alt]/[Option] and drag, or deactivate the stereo link switch for the fader pair.
Routing an effect send to a bus or group All group channels and active buses will also appear on the effect send pop-up menus. This allows you to route a send directly to a group (for stereo send effects – see page 116) or to an output, for use with external effects, etc. The routing is done by selecting a group or bus on the send pop-up menu in the send section (extended mixer panel or Channel Settings window).
Utility functions Link/Unlink channels This function is used to “link” selected channels in the Mixer so that any change applied to one channel will be mirrored by all channels in that link group. You can link as many channels as you like, and you can also create as many groups of linked channels as you like. To link channels in the Mixer, proceed as follows: 1. Press [Shift] and click on the channel name field for all the channels that you want to Link.
What will be linked? • The following rules apply for linked channels: Fader levels will be “ganged”. The relative level offset between channels will be kept if you move a linked channel fader. The three channels shown are linked. Pulling down one fader changes the levels for all three channels, but keeps the relative level mix. • Any individual channel settings you have made before linking will remain until you alter the same setting for any of the linked channels.
Copying settings between channels It is possible to copy all channel settings for a channel and paste them into another channel. This applies to both channel types (you can e.g. copy EQ settings from an instrument channel and apply these to a group channel or vice versa). Proceed as follows: 1. Select the channel from which you want to copy settings by clicking its channel name field (a highlighted name indicates a selected channel).
Initialize Channel The Initialize Channel button can be found at the bottom of the Channel Settings common panel. It resets the selected channel to the default setting. Default settings are: • • • • All EQ, Insert and Send effect settings are deactivated and reset. Solo/Mute is deactivated. The fader is set to 0dB. Pan is set to center position.
Saving Mixer settings It is possible to save complete Mixer settings for selected or all audio channels in the Mixer. These can then later be loaded into any project. Channel settings are saved as Mixer settings files. These have the Windows file extension “.vmx”. Right-clicking (Win) or [Ctrl]-clicking (Mac) somewhere on the Mixer panel or in the Channel Settings window brings up the Mixer context menu where four Save/Load items can be found.
Loading Mixer settings Load Selected Channels To load Mixer settings saved for selected channels, proceed as follows: 1. Select the same number of channels in the new project to match the number of channels you saved settings for in the previous project. For example, if you saved settings for six channels, then select six channels in the Mixer. • Mixer settings will be applied in the same order as they appear in the Mixer, when saved.
Load Master Fx This item allows you to load Master effect combinations and settings. 1. Right-click (Win) or [Ctrl]-click (Mac) the mixer panel to pull down the context menu, and select “Load Master Fx”. A standard file dialog appears, where you can locate the saved file. 2. Click “Open” to recall the saved Master Effects.
V-STACK 7 – 100 The Mixer
8 Audio effects
Background V-STACK allows you to process your VST Instruments through VST effect plug-ins in various configurations. There are three basic “effect types”: • Send effects Up to eight send effects can be used. When you use send effects, audio is routed through the effect processors via independent effect sends for each channel, just like on a “real” physical mixer. The output from each effect processor is then routed to one of the buses or the master fader, where it is mixed with the “dry” signal, if any.
Installing effect plug-ins V-STACK doesn’t include any effect plug-ins when you install it – you need to install these separately. There is a wide range of effect plug-ins available in the two formats supported by V-STACK (VST and DirectX). The two formats are handled differently when it comes to installation: VST plug-ins Under Windows, VST plug-ins are usually installed simply by dragging the files (with the extension “.
About shared VST plug-ins (Windows only) While V-STACK’s own plug-ins reside in the Vstplugins folder within the V-STACK program folder, the program can also access plug-ins in an additional location, called the shared VST plug-ins folder. This lets you use plug-ins installed by other VST compatible applications, etc. You can change what folder is considered the “shared” vstplugin folder at any time in the Plug-In Information window, see page 118.
Using effects Using send effects This procedure is divided into three steps: Activating effects, setting up the send section and making effect settings. ❐ Note that it’s also possible to route sends to groups, and use the insert effects for the groups as additional effect racks. See page 115. Activating send effects 1. Pull down the Devices menu and select VST Send Effects. The VST Send Effects panel opens. You can have up to eight separate “processors” arranged on top of each other.
4. By default, the effect processor is activated when selected. This is indicated by the On button. Make sure this is lit. 5. Make sure the effect output is routed to the desired output bus, by checking the Bus pop-up (below the File pop-up). 6. If you wish to activate more effects, repeat steps 2 to 5. Remember that the effects rely heavily on the CPU power in your computer. The more activated effect units, the more computer power will be used for effects.
Setting up the sends This can be done in the upper panels for the channel strips in the (extended mode) or in the Channel Settings window. The figures below show the Channel Settings window, but the procedures are similar for all three sections: 1. Bring up the Channel Settings window or the “Sends” or “Sends+” pane in the extended Mixer.
4. Select an effect from the pop-up menu. 5. If you want the signal to be sent to the effects before the fader, click on the Pre fader button for the send. With pre-fader effect sends, the amount of effect for the channel is not affected by the volume fader. With post-fader effect sends (Pre/Post button not pressed), the amount of effect is proportional to the channel volume, and will change with the volume fader movements. 6.
3. You can switch between different effect program presets by pulling down the Program pop-up in the VST Send effects panel. The number of program locations depends on the selected effect type. Clicking here... ...opens the Program pop-up. 4. If you have several effects activated, repeat steps 1 to 3 for these. • You can also edit the effect parameters. See page 113.
Using insert effects • You can apply up to five different insert effects per channel. • The signal passes through the effects in series from the top downwards. • Each channel (group or VST Instrument channel) has its own set of insert effects, totally independent of the other channels. ❐ Insert effects require the same processing power as any other effect type.
Routing an audio channel through insert effects Insert effect settings are available in the Mixer (extended mode) and the Channel Settings window. The figures below show the Channel Settings window, but the procedures are similar for all three send sections: 1. Bring up the Channel Settings window or the “Inserts” pane in the extended Mixer. In the Channel Settings, the inserts are located to the right of the channel strip. 2.
Using Master effects There are four Master effect slots, available in a separate window or in the Master section in the extended Mixer. To select and activate Master effects, proceed as follows: 1. Either select the “Extended” mode for the Mixer and show the Master section, or pull down the Devices menu and select “VST Master Effects” to bring up the Master effect window. You can also bring up the VST Master Effects window by clicking the “e” button above the Master gain fader. 2.
Editing effects All inserts, master effect slots and effect sends (except in the “Sends+” pane in the extended Mixer) have an Edit (“e”) button. Clicking this opens the selected effect’s control panel in which you can make parameter settings. The contents, design and layout of the control panel depends on the selected effect. However, all effect control panels have an on/off button, a program selection pop-up menu and a File pop-up menu for saving or loading programs.
Naming effects If you edit the parameters for an effect, these settings are saved automatically in the project. If you want to name the current settings, the following points apply: • The basis for the current settings may have been a preset effect program, in which case there is a name in the Program Name field. • The basis for the current settings may have been a default setting program location in which case “Init” is displayed in the Program Name field.
Effect routing – a few tips A note about stereo effects Some plug-in effects affect the stereo image, in the form of panning, stereo enhancement or stereo ambience. However, for this to be heard, the output of the effect must be routed to a stereo channel or bus (since otherwise, the output will be mixed to mono). In short: Stereo image effects will not be heard if the effect is used as an insert effect for a mono audio channel.
Using stereo sends and insert effects Send effects are practical because you can control the dry/effect balance individually for each channel. Insert effects offer the advantage of “chaining” effects, meaning that the output of an effect can be further processed by another effect. If you route a channel send directly to a group channel, this allows you to use insert effects (applied to the group channel) much like “send effects”.
4. Open the effect’s control panel by clicking the Edit button and use the Mix parameter to adjust the balance between “dry” and effect signal, to 100% effect. This is because the effect/dry balance can now be controlled using a combination of send level and the group channel fader – see below. 5. Press [Alt]/[Option] and click on the Solo button for the group channel to activate Solo Group. In this mode, the group channel will not be muted if you solo another channel in the mixer (see below). 6.
The Plug-in Information window On the Devices menu, you will find an item called “Plug-in Information”. Selecting this opens a dialog listing all the available VST and DirectX compatible plug-ins in your system (including VST Instruments). Managing and selecting VST plug-ins To see which VST plug-ins are available in your system, click the “VST Plug-ins” tab at the top of the window. The window now displays all plug-ins in the V-STACK and the shared vstplugins folder.
❐ Please note that a plug-in may be in use even if it isn’t enabled in the left column. You might for example have opened a Song containing effects that currently are disabled on the menu. The left column purely determines whether or not the plug-in will be visible on the Effect menus. • All columns can be resized by using the divider in the column header. The rest of the columns show the following information about each plug-in: Column Description Name The name of the plug-in.
Changing the Shared Plug-ins Folder (Windows only) If you like, you can change what folder is to be the “shared” Vstplugins folder. For example, if you have Steinberg’s Cubase SX installed on your computer, you can get access to the Cubase SX-specific plugins in V-STACK by switching to the Vstplugins folder within the Cubase SX folder. The currently selected Shared Folder is displayed in the text field at the top of the window. Clicking the “Choose...
Managing and selecting DirectX plug-ins (Windows only) To see which DirectX plug-ins are available in your system, click the “DirectX Plug-ins” tab at the top of the window. • To enable a plug-in (make it available for selection), click in the left column. Only the currently enabled plug-ins (shown with a check sign in the left column) will appear on the Effect menus.
V-STACK 8 – 122 Audio effects
9 Remote controlling the Mixer
Background It is possible to control the V-STACK Mixer via MIDI.
4. Now click the Setup tab and select your MIDI control device model from the Devices list. Depending on the selected device, either a list of programmable function commands or a blank panel is shown in the right half of the dialog window. A JL Cooper MCS-3000 selected as remote control device. 5. Select the correct MIDI input from the pop-up menu. 6. If necessary, select the correct MIDI output from the pop-up menu. 7. Click OK to close the dialog.
Assigning remote key commands For some of the supported remote devices, you can assign V-STACK functions to generic buttons, wheels or other controls. As of this writing, these devices are: • • • JL Cooper MCS 3000 JL Cooper CS-10 CM Automation Motor Mix Proceed as follows: 1. Open the Device Setup and select one of the remote devices that support this feature. On the right side of the window there are three columns. This is where you assign commands. 2.
Remote control device specifics Steinberg Houston Houston is a MIDI/USB remote control device designed especially for use with VST audio applications such as V-STACK. With clearly laid out controls (including touch sensitive motorized faders, rotary knobs, transport controls and a jog/shuttle wheel) Houston allows you to control virtually every Mixer parameter in V-STACK, without having to use the computer keyboard or mouse.
CM Automation Motor Mix The CM Motor Mix can control any number of channels in groups of 8. • Fader level, mute, solo control the equivalent V-STACK functions. • Left and right View buttons: select channels 1-8, 9 -16 etc. • Top button row (above the rotary knobs) selects channel. • The two rows of buttons on each side of the faders can be assigned functions in the Device Setup dialog. All except the Shift button, which acts like [Shift] on your computer keyboard.
JL Cooper CS-10 The CS-10 can remote control 32 channels (in groups of 8).
JL Cooper MCS-3000 The MCS-3000 can control 32 Mixer channels remotely (in groups of 8).
Roland MCR-8 ❐ Before you can initiate remote control operation, the MCR-8 “Mode” switch must be set to “4”. The Roland MCR-8 can control 16 Mixer channels. The “A/B switch” is used to switch between controlling channels 1 - 8 and 9 - 16. The following MCR-8 parameters control the equivalent parameters for each channel strip: • Fader level, mute, solo and pan. ❐ The MCR-8 does not support “MIDI feedback”, that is, the current status of parameters in V-STACK is not indicated on the MCR-8.
Radikal Technologies SAC-2K The SAC-2K can control 32 channels (in groups of 8). The following SAC-2K parameters control the equivalent parameters for each channel strip: • Fader: volume • Solo and Mute: solo and mute (depending on the solo/mute state switch) • Select: select channel for editing in Channel Strip mode Encoder operation modes and display layout The SAC-2K supports two operation modes for the encoder dials and the display.
When pressing an encoder dial the currently selected band of EQ or FX-Send will be activated or deactivated.
Tascam US-428 The US-428 can remote control up to 64 Mixer channels. • When the Tascam US-428 device is added in the Device Setup dialog, you can open the Remote Status window by selecting “Tascam US-428” from the Devices menu. This indicates which bank (group of eight channels in V-STACK) is currently being controlled by the remote device. To select another bank, use the pop-up menu in the window or use the Bank Left/Right buttons on the remote device.
• EQ-Freq Controls the EQ frequency for each band selected with the Low, LoMid, HiMid and High buttons. These correspond to the four EQ bands in V-STACK, starting from the leftmost band. • EQ-”Q” Controls the EQ “Q” for each band selected with the Low, LoMid, HiMid and High buttons. These correspond to the four EQ bands in V-STACK, starting from the leftmost band. • Aux 1 to Aux 4 and shuttle wheel: The effect send levels for sends 1 to 4.
The following parameters are remote controllable for Channels 1-32 in the Mixer: ❐ The value ranges for the parameters in the 01V may not match the ranges for the corresponding parameters in all cases. • Fader level, mute and pan. 01V controls for these parameters control the equivalent V-STACK parameters. • Effect sends 1 - 6. 01V Aux 1 - 4 control effect send 1 - 4, 01V effect 1 and 2 control effect send 5 and 6. • EQ Frequency, Gain and Q (4 Bands).
The Generic Remote device If you have a generic MIDI controller, you can use this for remote control of V-STACK by setting up the Generic Remote device: 1. Open the Device Setup dialog on the Devices menu. If the Generic Remote device isn’t on the Devices list, you need to add it: 2. Click the “Add/Remove” tab and select the “Generic Remote” device in the list to the right. 3. Click the Add button.
5. Use the MIDI Input and Output pop-up menu to select the MIDI Port(s) to which your remote device is connected. 6. Use the pop-up menu to the right to select a bank. The concept of banks is based on the simple fact that most MIDI devices can control a limited number of channels at a time (often 8 or 16). For example, if your MIDI control device has 16 volume faders, and you are using 32 Mixer channels in V-STACK, you would need two banks of 16 channels each.
• If you find that the upper table holds too many or too few controls, you can add or remove controls with the Add and Delete buttons to the right of the upper table. • If you are uncertain of which MIDI message a certain controller sends, you can use the Learn function: Select the control in the upper table (by clicking in the Control Name column), move the corresponding control on your MIDI device and click the Learn button to the right of the table.
9. If needed, select another bank and make settings for this. Note that you only need to make settings in the lower table for this – the upper table is already set up according to the MIDI remote device. • If you need, you can add banks by clicking the Add button below the Bank pop-up. Clicking the Rename button lets you assign a new name to the currently selected bank, and you can remove an unneeded bank by selecting it and clicking the Delete button. 10.
10 File handling
File Operations New Project A “project” in V-STACK contains all information about loaded VST Instruments and effects, Mixer settings, window positions, etc. The New Project command on the File menu allows you to create a new empty project, either empty or based on a template. Note: • V-STACK can only have one open project at a time – creating a new one will close the current project. If there are unsaved changes in the current project you will be asked whether you want to save this before proceeding.
A word about file extensions Under Windows, file types are indicated by three letter file name extensions (such as *.cpr for V-STACK Project files). Under Mac OS X, it is not necessary to use file name extensions, since the file types are stored internally in the files. However, if you want your V-STACK Projects to be compatible with both platforms, you should make sure the option “Use File Extension in File Dialog” is activated in the Preferences dialog (User Interface page) – this is the default setting.
V-STACK 10 – 144 File handling
11 Menu reference
About this chapter This chapter lists all main menu items in V-STACK, for quick reference. However, you won’t find deeper explanations, backgrounds or procedures here – for this, please refer to the previous chapters in the manual. V-STACK menu (Mac OS X only) About V-STACK This opens a window with information about the V-STACK version number etc. Quit V-STACK This quits the program.
Save This saves any changes made to the project since you last saved. The Save command stores the project under its current name and location. Save As… Save As allows you to specify a new name and a new project folder for the project. Linear Knob Mode Use this menu item to change the operating mode of knobs from circular to linear. In circular knob mode, when you want to change the setting of a knob on the V-STACK user interface (e.g.
Devices menu Mixer This opens the Mixer. All VST Instrument output channels have a corresponding channel strip in the Mixer, along with the four group channels. The Master bus fader can also be shown in the Mixer. Plug-in Information The Plug-in Information window lists all installed VST and DirectX plug-ins, and shows various information about them. VST Instruments This opens the VST Instruments window, where you can select up to 16 VST Instruments.
Show Panels This opens a panel where you can directly select any of the current devices on the Device menu. Device Setup… This dialog allows you to add or remove remote control devices and to make various basic settings for audio and MIDI such as selecting ASIO drivers and MIDI ports etc. This is also where you set up and activate VST System Link.
V-STACK 11 – 150 Menu reference
Index
A B ACPI 48 Active ASIO Ports for Data only 44 All MIDI Inputs 34 Alt/Option key 9 ASIO DirectX driver About 15 Setup 32 ASIO driver About 14 Installing 16 ASIO Multimedia driver About 15 Setup 32 Audio Buffer Size 47 Audio Channels Copying Settings 95 Linking 93 Making Settings for 75 Saving Settings 97 Audio Effects About 102 Editing 113 Installing 103 Loading 114 Naming 114 Organizing in subfolders 103 Pre/Post fader sends 108 Saving 114 Sends 107 Audio Hardware Connections 29 Installing (Mac) 25 Insta
E K Effects, see “Audio Effects” EQ Bypassing 87 Presets 88 Setting 85 Exclusive Solo 83 Expert Settings 47 Key command conventions 9 Knob modes 147 L Faders 82 Latency Optimizing 45 VST System Link 39 Level Faders 82 Low shelving filter 85 Low-pass filter 85 G M Generic Remote Device 137 Group Channels Routing audio to 89 Using effects with 115 Mac OS X drivers 24 Mackie Control 127 Master Effects 112 Master Gain Fader 84 Memory Requirements Mac 23 Windows 13 Meter characteristics 96 Metronome Se
Mixer Activating Buses 90 Common Panel 72 Extended channel strips 76 Group Channels 89 Link/Unlink Channels 93 Loading Settings 98 Master Gain Fader 84 Pan 84 Saving Settings 97 Solo and Mute 83 View Options 76 Volume 82 Modifier keys 9 Multimedia driver 15 Mute 83 N New Project 142 Project Creating 142 Opening 142 Saving 142 R Radikal Technologies SAC-2K 132 RAM Mac 23 Windows 13 Release ASIO Driver in Background 31 Remote Control Assigning Remote Key Commands 126 Devices 127 Roland MCR-8 131 S Open 1
V VST Instruments Activating 60 Channels 61 Installing 58 Keyzone 62 Restore last settings 64 Routing MIDI to 60 Selecting patches 63 Transposition 62 VST Multitrack Setup 30 VST Outputs 90 VST Performance Window 55 VST Plug-ins 103 VST System Link About 35 Activating 41 Connections 37 Latency 39 MIDI 43 Requirements 36 Setting up sync 38 Settings 40 Y Yamaha 01V 135 Yamaha DM2000 127 Index V-STACK 155
V-STACK 156 Index
