DigiDesign DigiRack Plug-ins, DigiRack User Manual

DigiRack™ Plug-ins

Version 7.3

AudioSuite, Avid, Avid DNA, Avid Xpress, Digi 002, Digi 002 Rack, Digidesign, Mbox, Mbox 2, Mbox 2 Mini, Mbox Pro, MultiShell, Pro Tools, Pro Tools|HD, Pro Tools LE, Pro Tools M-Powered, and RTAS are either trademarks or registered trademarks of Avid Technology, Inc. in the US and other countries. All other trademarks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.

Product features, specifications, system requirements, and availability are subject to change without notice.

PN 9329-55974-00 REV A 01/07

Chapter 1. Introduction

Plug-in Formats

System Requirements

Conventions Used in This Guide

About www.digidesign.com

Chapter 2. Installation and Configuration

Installing Plug-ins

Organizing Plug-ins

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Chapter 3. Working with Real-Time Plug-ins

Processing Power Requirements of TDM and RTAS Plug-ins

Delay in Signal Processing

Plug-ins as Inserts

Inserting Plug-ins on Tracks

The Plug-in Window

Clip Indicators

Using the Side-Chain Input

Tempo Sync

Automating Plug-ins

Instrument Plug-ins

RTAS Plug-ins on Auxiliary Input and Master Fader Tracks

HTDM Plug-in Conversion to RTAS

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Contents

iii

Chapter 4. Working with AudioSuite Plug-ins

The AudioSuite Menu

The AudioSuite Window

AudioSuite Processing Preferences

Using AudioSuite Plug-ins

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Chapter 5. Adjusting Plug-in Controls

Adjusting Plug-in Controls

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Chapter 6. DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins

EQ III

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EQ II

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Click

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Dither

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POW-r Dither

D-Verb

Dynamics III

Dynamics II

Mod Delay II

Signal Generator

SignalTools

Pitch

TimeAdjuster

Trim

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DigiRack Plug-ins Guide

Chapter 7. DigiRack AudioSuite Plug-ins

EQ III

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EQ II

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Dynamics III

Dynamics II

Chorus

Flanger

Multi-Tap Delay

Ping-Pong Delay

Invert

Duplicate

Delay

Normalize

Gain

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Reverse

Signal Generator

DC Offset Removal

Time Compression/ Expansion

Pitch Shift

Time Shift

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Chapter 8. Plug-in Settings

Using the Librarian

Plug-in Settings Dialog

DigiBase and Plug-in Settings Files

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Chapter 9. Using ReWire with Pro Tools

ReWire Requirements

Using ReWire

Tempo and Meter Changes

Looping Playback

Automating ReWire

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Contents

Appendix A. DSP Requirements for TDM Plug-ins

DSP Requirements

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Appendix B. DSP Delays Incurred by TDM Plug-ins

Index

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DigiRack Plug-ins Guide

chapter 1

Introduction

Plug-ins are special-purpose software components that provide additional signal processing functionality to Pro Tools

The DigiRack™ plug-ins included with Pro Tools provide a comprehensive suite of digital signal processing effects that include EQ, dynamics, delay, and other essential functions.

References to Pro Tools LE™ in this guide are usually interchangeable with Pro Tools M-Powered™ or Pro Tools Academic™, except as noted in the Pro Tools M-Powered and Academic Getting Started Guides.

Plug-in Formats

There are three formats of plug-ins:

• TDM plug-ins (real-time, DSP-based)

•RTAS

• AudioSuite™ plug-ins (non-real-time, ﬁle-

plug-ins (real-time, host-based)

based processing)

TDM Plug-ins

(Pro Tools HD Only)

TDM (Time Division Multiplexing) plug-ins function as track inserts, are applied to audio during playback, and process audio non-destructively in real time. TDM plug-ins are designed for use with Pro Tools HD software on Pro Tools|HD ing power of Digidesign DSP cards.

The number and variety of TDM plug-ins that you can use simultaneously in a session are limited only by the amount of DSP available. You can increase available DSP by installing additional DSP cards (such as HD Core, HD Accel, or HD Process cards) in your computer. This power-on-demand aspect is a significant advantage of Pro Tools|HD systems.

systems, and rely on the process-

Chapter 1: Introduction

RTAS Plug-ins

RTAS (Real-Time AudioSuite) plug-ins provide features and functionality similar to their TDM counterparts, but unlike TDM plug-ins, they rely on and are limited by the processing power of your computer. The more powerful your computer, the greater the number and variety of RTAS plug-ins that you can use simultaneously.

Because of this dependence on the CPU or

processing

currently in a session, the greater the impact it will have on other aspects of your system’s performance, such as maximum track count, number of available voices, the density of edits possible, and latency in automation and recording.

RTAS plug-ins can be used with Pro Tools HD, Pro Tools LE™.

, the more RTAS plug-ins you use con-

host

System Requirements

To use DigiRack plug-ins you need any the following:

• A Digidesign-qualiﬁed Pro Tools system running Pro Tools

• A Digidesign-qualiﬁed Pro Tools system and a third-party software application that supports the Digidesign TDM, RTAS, or AudioSuite plug-in standards

• A qualiﬁed Avid or Avid DNA™ system (AudioSuite only)

• A qualiﬁed Digidesign VENUE system (TDM only)

For complete system requirements visit the Digidesign website (www.digidesign.com).

Compatibility Information

Xpress®, Avid Xpress DV,

AudioSuite Plug-ins

AudioSuite plug-ins are used to process and modify audio files on disk, rather than nondestructively in real time. Depending on how you configure a non-real-time AudioSuite plug-in, it either creates an entirely new audio file, or alters the original source audio file. Audio-Suite plugins can be used on all Pro Tools systems and Avid software.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide

Digidesign can only assure compatibility and provide support for hardware and software it has tested and approved.

For a list of Digidesign-qualified computers, operating systems, hard drives, and third-party devices, visit the Digidesign website (www.digidesign.com).

Conventions Used in This Guide

All Digidesign guides use the following conventions to indicate menu choices and key commands:

Convention Action

File > Save Choose Save from the

File menu

Control+N Hold down the Control

key and press the N key

Control-click Hold down the Control

key and click the mouse button

Right-click Click with the right

mouse button

About www.digidesign.com

The Digidesign website (www.digidesign.com) is your best online source for information to help you get the most out of your Pro Tools system. The following are just a few of the services and features available.

Registration

the registration form included with your system for instructions.

Support

or Customer Service; download software updates and the latest online manuals; browse the Compatibility documents for system requirements; search the online Answerbase or join the worldwide Pro Tools community on the Digidesign User Conference.

Contact Digidesign Technical Support

The following symbols are used to highlight important information:

User Tips are helpful hints for getting the most from your Pro Tools system.

Important Notices include information that could affect your Pro Tools session data or the performance of your Pro Tools system.

Shortcuts show you useful keyboard or mouse shortcuts.

Cross References point to related sections in this guide and other Digidesign guides.

Training and Education

courses available online or find out how you can learn in a classroom setting at a certified Pro Tools training center.

Products and Developers

products; download demo software or learn about our Development Partners and their plugins, applications, and hardware.

News and Events Get the latest news from Digidesign or sign up for a Pro Tools demo.

To learn more about these and other resources available from Digidesign, visit our website (www.digidesign.com).

Study on your own using

Learn about Digidesign

Chapter 1: Introduction

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide4

chapter 2

Installation and Conﬁguration

Installing Plug-ins

The Digidesign DigiRack plug-ins are installed when you install Pro Tools. For more information about installing Pro Tools, see the Getting Started Guide that came with your system.

If installing multiple packages of plug-ins, do so in the following order:

1 DigiRack plug-ins (installed with Pro Tools).

2 Packs and other bundles included with your

Digidesign system.

3 Any additional plug-ins. Check with the man-

ufacturer of your plug-ins for compatibility information and support.

Organizing Plug-ins

You can customize how plug-in lists (plug-in menus) are organized in the Insert selector and Plug-in selector.

Plug-ins organized by categories

Plug-ins organized by manufacturer

Use the “Organize Plug-in Menus By” pop-up menu in the Pro Tools Display Preferences page to organize plug-in menus in a Flat List (with plug-ins in alphabetical order), Category, Manufacturer, or Category and Manufacturer.

Chapter 2: Installation and Conﬁguration 5

“Organize Plug-in Menus By” Option

Flat List Organizes plug-ins in a single list, in al-

phabetical order.

Category Organizes plug-ins by process category (such as EQ, Dynamics, Effects, and Delay), with individual plug-ins listed in the category submenus. Plug-ins that do not have a Category defined will appear in the Other Category folder. Plug-ins can appear in more than one category.

Plug-in categories include:

•EQ

• Dynamics

• Pitch Shift

• Reverb

• Delay

• Modulation

• Harmonic

• Noise Reduction

• Dither

• Sound Field

• Hardware

• Instrument

• Other

• Wrapped Plug-ins

• Effects

Manufacturer Organizes plug-ins by their manufacturer (such as Digidesign, Eventide, Line 6, McDSP), with individual plug-ins listed in the manufacturer submenus. Plug-ins that do not have a Manufacturer defined will appear in the “Other” manufacturer folder.

Category and Manufacturer Organizes plug-ins in two levels of menus. The top menus display plug-ins by process category (such as EQ, Dynamics, and Delay), with individual plug-ins listed in the category submenus. The bottom menus display plug-ins by their manufacturer (such as Digidesign, Eventide, Line 6, McDSP), with individual plug-ins listed in the manufacturer submenus.

To select how plug-ins are organized:

1 Open or create a session.

2 Choose Setup > Preferences, and click the Dis-

play tab.

3 Click the “Organize Plug-in Menus By” pop-

up menu, and select one of the view options.

Choosing Category view for plug-in menus

4 Click Done.

The current Organize Plug-in Menus By setting is saved with Pro Tools preferences (it is not saved with the Pro Tools session file).

Plug-in Favorites

To find a plug-in faster, a plug-in can be designated as a favorite. Favorite plug-ins are shown at the top of the plug-in menu.

Most Digidesign Development Partner plug-ins will be sorted as Digidesign when view by manufacturer is enabled.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide6

When a plug-in becomes a favorite, it is still shown in plug-in category and/or manufacturer sub-menus (if enabled) and its name appears in bold.

Favorite plug-ins

Default Plug-ins

You can set a default EQ plug-in and Dynamics plug-in, which places them at the top of the Insert selector pop-up menu on-screen, and first in the list of menu choices when assigning inserts on ICON worksurfaces.

Plug-in categories

Menu display of favorite plug-ins (Category view shown)

To designate a plug-in as a favorite:

■ Control-click (Windows) or Command-click

(Mac) on a plug-in Insert button, and select a plug-in from the menu (or sub-menus, if enabled) to designate it as a favorite.

To change the status of a plug-in favorite:

1 Control-click (Windows) or Command-click

(Mac) on a plug-in Insert button, a nd select a plug-in favorite that you no longer want to designate as a favorite.

2 When selecting the plug-in favorite to change,

you can select the plug-in from the list of favorites at the top of the plug-in menu, or in its plugin category/manufacturer sub-menu (where the plug-in appears in bold).

Default EQ plug-in

Default Dynamics plug-in

Default plug-in display in Insert selector menu

To set a default plug-in:

1 Choose Setup > Preferences and click Mixing.

2 Under Setup, choose a plug-in from the De-

fault EQ or Default Dynamics pop-up menu.

3 Click OK to close the Preferences window.

Chapter 2: Installation and Conﬁguration 7

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide8

chapter 3

Working with Real-Time Plug-ins

Real-time plug-ins process audio nondestructively in real time. They do not alter the original source audio, but only apply their effect during playback.

There are two formats of real-time plug-ins:

TDM Plug-ins Rely on the processing power of Digidesign DSP cards. TDM plug-ins run only on Pro Tools|HD systems.

RTAS Plug-ins Rely on the processing power of your computer. RTAS plug-ins run on Pro Tools|HD and LE systems.

Processing Power Requirements of TDM and RTAS Plug-ins

TDM and RTAS plug-ins differ in their processing power requirements.

TDM Plug-ins

You can add more mixing and processing power to your system by installing additional DSP cards, provided you have unused PCI (or PCIe) expansion slots in your computer or use a Digidesign-approved Expansion Chassis.

The System Usage window (Window > System Usage) shows how much DSP is available on your system, and gives an approximation of how it is currently being used.

For more information on the System Usage window, see the

Pro Tools Reference Guide.

Each real-time TDM plug-in that is inserted in a Pro Tools session uses a portion of your system’s total available DSP resources.

Since these DSP resources reside on the cards that make up your particular Pro Tools hardware configuration, the amount of DSP available depends entirely on the number and type of DSP cards in your system.

System Usage window

See Appendix A, “DSP Requirements for TDM Plug-ins” for relative numbers of instances of each DigiRack TDM plug-in that can be powered by a single DSP chip. DSP capacity differs with card type.

Chapter 3: Working with Real-Time Plug-ins 9

DSP Sharing Between TDM Plug-ins

With Digidesign’s MultiShell™ II technology, different types of TDM plug-ins can share the same DSP chip at the same time. This lets you simultaneously use a greater variety of plug-ins by efficiently managing the DSP available on each chip in your system.

To take advantage of this capability, plug-ins must be MultiShell II compatible. All DigiRack TDM plug-ins with the exception of Pitch are MultiShell II compatible.

Some third-party plug-ins may not be MultiShell II compatible. To check compatibility, contact the manufacturer.

RTAS Plug-ins

RTAS plug-ins rely on and are limited by the processing power of your computer’s CPU. The more RTAS plug-ins you use concurrently in a session, the greater the impact it will have on other aspects of your system’s performance, such as maximum track count, the density of edits possible, and latency in automation and recording.

Improving RTAS Plug-in Performance

You can increase the number of RTAS plug-ins your system can use concurrently by increasing the Hardware Buffer Size and CPU Usage Limit.

Hardware Buffer Size

The Hardware Buffer Size (H/W Buffer Size) controls the size of the hardware cache used to handle host processing tasks such as monitoring latency and using Real-Time AudioSuite (RTAS) plug-ins.

◆ Lower Hardware Buffer Size settings reduce

monitoring latency, and are useful when you are recording live input.

◆ Higher Hardware Buffer Size settings provide

more audio processing and effects, and are useful when you are mixing and using more RTAS plug-ins.

In addition to causing slower screen response and monitoring latency, higher Hardware Buffer Size settings can affect the accuracy of plug-in automation, mute data, and timing for Instrument or MIDI tracks.

The CPU meter in the System Usage window (Window > System Usage) shows how much of your computer’s processing power is currently being used by Pro Tools, and how much is still available.

For more information on the System Usage window, see the

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide10

Pro Tools Reference Guide.

To change the Hardware Buffer Size:

1 Choose Setup > Playback Engine.

2 From the H/W Buffer Size pop-up menu, select

the audio buffer size, in samples.

3 Click OK.

RTAS Processors

CPU Usage Limit

The RTAS Processors setting determines the number of processors in your computer allocated for RTAS plug-in processing.

With computers that have multiple processors, or that feature multi-core processing or hyperthreading, this setting lets you enable multi-processor support for RTAS processes. Used in combination with the CPU Usage Limit setting, the RTAS Processors setting lets you control the way RTAS processing and other Pro Tools tasks are carried out by the system.

◆ A higher number of processors reserves more

CPU processing capacity for RTAS plug-in processing. This is useful for sessions with large number of RTAS plug-ins.

◆ A lower number of processors leaves more

CPU processing capacity for automation, screen redraws, and video playback in Pro Tools, or for other application running at the same time as Pro Tools.

To set the number of RTAS Processors:

1 Choose Setup > Playback Engine.

2 From the RTAS Processors pop-up menu, select

the number of available processors you want to allocate for RTAS plug-in processing.

3 Click OK.

The CPU Usage Limit controls the percentage of CPU resources allocated to Pro Tools host processing tasks such as RTAS plug-in performance and screen redraws.

◆ Lower CPU Usage Limit settings limit the ef-

fect of Pro Tools processing on other CPU-intensive tasks, such as screen redraws, and are useful when you are experiencing slow system response, or when running other applications at the same time as Pro Tools.

◆ Higher CPU Usage Limit settings allocate

more processing power to Pro Tools, and are useful for playing back large sessions or using more real-time plug-ins.

Increasing the CPU Usage Limit may slow down screen response on slower computers.

To change the CPU Usage Limit:

1 Choose Setup > Playback Engine.

2 From the CPU Usage Limit pop-up menu, se-

lect the percentage of CPU processing you want to allocate to Pro Tools. (On dual-processor Mac computers, this setting controls the allocation of a single processor.)

3 Click OK.

For more information on the Hardware Buffer Size and CPU Usage Limit, refer to the

Pro Tools Reference Guide.

Chapter 3: Working with Real-Time Plug-ins 11

RTAS Error Suppression

You should only enable RTAS error suppression if you are experiencing frequent RTAS errors that are interrupting your creative workflow. When RTAS error suppression is enabled, you can experience a degradation of audio quality. However, this may be acceptable in order to avoid interrupting playback and recording when working with instrument plug-ins. Be sure to disable RTAS error suppression when you need to ensure the highest possible audio quality, such as for the final mix or audio layback.

Enabling Ignore Errors During Playback/Record only suppresses error reporting. RTAS errors can result in pops and clicks in the audio during playback and recording. To avoid this, try increasing the CPU Usage Limit and the HW Buffer Size, and reduce the number of RTAS plug-ins in use in the session.

To enable RTAS error suppression:

1 Choose Setup > Playback Engine.

2 Select Ignore Errors During Playback/Record.

3 If available, you can also select Minimize Ad-

ditional I/O Latency.

4 Click OK.

RTAS Error Suppression Options

Ignore Errors During Playback/Record When enabled, Pro Tools continues to play and record even if the RTAS processing requirements exceed the selected CPU Usage Limit. This can result in pops and clicks in the audio during playback and recording, but does not stop the transport.

Minimize Additional I/O Latency When enabled, any additional latency due to suppressing RTAS errors during playback and record is minimized to 128 samples. Suppressing RTAS errors requires at least 128 samples of additional buffering on some systems. If the Minimize Additional I/O Latency option is disabled, the buffer is half the H/W Buffer Size, or at least 128 samples (which ever is greater). If you are on an older, slower computer, you may not want to enable this option since doing so can adversely affect performance.

Playback Engine dialog, Mbox 2 (Mac OS)

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide12

The Minimize Additional I/O Latency option is only available if the Ignore Errors During Playback/Record option is enabled.

This option is only available on Pro Tools systems that require additional buffering for RTAS error suppression, as follows:

• Windows XP:

• Mbox

• Digidesign-qualiﬁed M-Audio interfaces

• Mac OS X:

• Mbox

• Mbox 2

• Mbox 2 Pro

• Mbox 2 Mini

• Digi 002

• All Pro Tools M-Powered systems

• All Pro Tools Academic systems

2 Pro

with Pro Tools M-Powered or Pro Tools Academic

and Digi 002 Rack

RTAS Plug-ins on Auxiliary Inputs or Master Faders

With Pro Tools HD, RTAS plug-ins can be inserted on Auxiliary Input and Master Fader tracks, or after TDM plug-ins on any kind of track.

This can affect voice usage and total latency, and limitations on inserting or removing plugins during playback. For more information, see “RTAS Plug-ins on Auxiliary Input and Master Fader Tracks” on page 27.

Delay in Signal Processing

DSP and host-based processing in digital audio systems incurs signal delay of varying amounts. Such delays can vary from as short as few samples to as long as several hundred samples, depending on the type of processing applied.

If you have recorded an instrument on multiple tracks using multiple microphones (a drum kit for example) and process the different tracks with different plug-ins, the tracks may go out of phase. You will then need to compensate for these delays to avoid phase cancellation problems.

See Appendix B, “DSP Delays Incurred by TDM Plug-ins” for information on delays inherent in specific DigiRack TDM plugins. See the guide to calculating DSP-induced delays.

Compensating for Delay

Use the following methods, as available, to compensate for processing delay.

Delay Compensation

Use Delay Compensation to automatically calculate and compensate for processing delay. For more information on Delay Compensation, see the Pro Tools Reference Guide.

Delay Compensation is automatically enabled on Pro Tools LE systems and cannot be turned off.

Pro Tools Reference Guide for a

Chapter 3: Working with Real-Time Plug-ins 13

TimeAdjuster

You can compensate for TDM or RTAS plug-ininduced delays by using the TimeAdjuster plugin. This plug-in lets you apply a specific number of samples of delay to the signal path of a Pro Tools track. TimeAdjuster provides settings files that apply the correct compensation time in samples for delay introduced by one or more plug-ins. See “TimeAdjuster” on page 90 for more information about the TimeAdjuster plugin.

dio track, Instrument track, or Auxiliary Input on which the instrument plug-in is inserted. This allows for latency-free monitoring of the instrument plug-in during recording.

Delay Compensation for instrument plugins works only when all MIDI and audio connections take place inside of Pro Tools. For example, Pro Tools does not suspend delay compensation when you are using ReWire to connect software synthesizers and samplers.

For information about TimeAdjuster in Delay Compensation sessions, see the Pro Tools Reference Guide.

Manual Delay Compensation

You can manually compensate for processing delay by first calculating the amount of delay on each track, and then nudging other track’s playlists later or earlier in time. This method is useful when Delay Compensation is unavailable, or when you want to conserve resources.

You can also compensate for offsets incurred by processing delays by using the same plug-ins on all tracks.

Low-Latency Recording with Instrument Plug-ins

When an Instrument track containing an instrument plug-in (or a MIDI track routing MIDI data to an instrument plug-in) is record enabled, Pro Tools automatically suspends delay compensation through the main outputs of the au-

MIDI and Audio Processing Plug-ins

Some plug-ins, such as Bruno and Reso, process audio while allowing MIDI data to control processing parameters. When you record enable an Instrument or MIDI track that is controlling an Audio processing plug-in, the track the plug-in is inserted on will go into low-latency mode, effectively making the processed audio play early.

To keep audio time-aligned when using a MIDI controlled plug-in on an audio track:

■ Start-Control-click (Windows) or Command-

Control-click (Mac) the Track Compensation indicator for the audio track to apply delay compensation.

To keep audio time-aligned when using a MIDI controlled plug-in on an Auxiliary Input:

1 Start-Control-click (Windows) or Command-

Control-click (Mac) the Track Compensation indicator for the Auxiliary Input to bypass delay compensation.

2 Enter the total system delay into the User Off-

set ﬁeld.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide14

Plug-ins as Inserts

Real-time plug-ins are available as in-line inserts on audio tracks, Auxiliary Inputs, and Master Faders. A maximum of 5 real-time plug-ins can be used per track.

When more than one insert is used on a track, they process the audio in series, each effect being added to the previous one, from top to bottom in the Mix window.

Inserts can be used in two ways:

On Single Tracks An insert can be applied to an individual audio track or Auxiliary Input using the Insert selector on that track.

With in-line inserts, you control the level of effect by adjusting the controls of the plug-in.

As Shared Resources An insert can be used as a shared resource in a send-and-return arrangement by bussing signals from several tracks to an Auxiliary Input, and applying the insert to the Auxiliary Input track. With such an arrangement, you can control the send level for each track and the overall level of the effect can be controlled from the Auxiliary Input track.

Shared arrangements let you make more efficient use of your system’s processing power.

Pre-Fader Operation

Real-time plug-ins function as pre-fader inserts (except on Master Fader tracks, where inserts are post-fader), meaning that their input levels are not affected by a track’s volume fader.

Real-time plug-ins are pre-fader, but post-disk. This means that if you record to disk with a plug-in inserted on the record track, you will hear the effect of the plug-in, but the effect will not be recorded to disk.

To record with a plug-in effect, create an Auxiliary Input, insert the desired effect on the Auxiliary Input track, then route the Auxiliary Input to the audio track to which you want to record. Alternatively, bounce the audio track with the plug-in after recording in order to write the effected audio to disk.

Mono, Multi-Mono, and Multichannel Plug-ins

Plug-ins can be used in mono, multi-mono, or multichannel formats, depending on the type of plug-in and whether the destination is a mono or multichannel track.

In general, when working with stereo and greater-than-stereo tracks, use multichannel plug-ins. If a multichannel version of a plug-in is not available, use a multi-mono version.

Plug-in formats

Mono Plug-ins Used on mono tracks. Some mono plug-ins (such as Mod Delay) can generate stereo or greater-than-stereo output from a mono channel. Plug-ins that occur on a track after a stereo plug-in are used in stereo as well.

Multi-Mono Plug-ins Used on stereo or greaterthan-stereo multichannel tracks when a multichannel version of the plug-in is not available. Multi-mono plug-ins can analyze and process each channel independently without regard to each other. Controls for all channels are linked by default so that you can adjust them in tan-

Chapter 3: Working with Real-Time Plug-ins 15

dem. You can unlink controls for independent adjustment using the Master Link button. See “Linking and Unlinking Controls on MultiMono Plug-ins” on page 21.

Multi-mono plug-ins, such as dynamicsbased or reverb plug-ins, may not function as you expect. Use the multichannel version of a multi-mono plug-in when available.

To insert a plug-in on a track:

■ Click the Insert selector on the track and se-

lect the plug-in that you want to use.

Multichannel Plug-ins Used on stereo and greater-than-stereo multichannel tracks. On greater-than-stereo multichannel tracks, the controls for all channels are always linked together.

Inserting Plug-ins on Tracks

To use a real-time plug-in in a Pro Tools session, insert it on a track. Before doing so, make sure the Inserts View is shown in the Mix or Edit window.

To show inserts in the Mix window:

■ Choose View > Mix Window > Inserts.

To show inserts in the Edit window:

■ Choose View > Edit Window > Inserts.

Inserting a plug-in with Plug-ins by Category enabled

click here

Inserting a plug-in (standard view)

You can also drag and drop plug-in settings files (.tfx) from DigiBase browsers, or Windows Explorer or the Mac Finder, to Inserts to insert the corresponding plug-in with those settings.

Removing an Insert from a Track

To remove an insert from a track:

■ Click the Insert selector and select No Insert.

Removing a plug-in

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide16

Conﬁguring Plug-ins During Playback

You can change, add, or remove real-time plugins and hardware inserts during playback. On Pro Tools|HD systems, adding or removing RTAS plug-ins that change voicing assignments (for example, inserting an RTAS plug-in after a TDM plug-in) temporarily interrupts playback, but without stopping the transport.

Plug-in Changes During Record

Changing plug-ins during audio recording is disallowed so that you don’t inadvertently interrupt audio recording. However, you can make changes while recording MIDI only.

Moving and Duplicating Inserts

You can move or duplicate an insert by dragging it to a different position on the same track or a different track. Inserts that are moved or duplicated retain their original settings and automation.

To move an insert:

■ Drag the insert to a new insert location.

To duplicate an insert:

■ Alt-drag (Windows) or Option-drag (Mac) the

insert to a new insert location. The duplicated plug-in retains its original settings and automation.

Making Plug-ins Inactive

You can set plug-ins as inactive in order to free up DSP resources for other plug-ins and processing. When a plug-in is inactive it retains its assignment, position, and related automation playlists. However, it will not pass audio and does not consume any DSP or TDM resources.

To toggle a plug-in active or inactive, do one of the following:

■ Control-Start-click (Windows) or Command-

Control-click (Mac) the Insert button.

– or –

■ Make the track inactive.

For more information about making tracks inactive, refer to the

Guide

To toggle plug-ins in the same insert position on all tracks active or inactive:

■ Control-Start-Alt click (Windows) or Com-

mand-Control-Option click (Mac) an Insert button in the position you want to toggle.

Pro Tools Reference

Moving a plug-in

Dragging an insert on top of an existing insert replaces it.

To toggle plug-ins in the same insert position on all selected tracks active or inactive:

■ Control-Start-Alt-Shift-click (Windows) or

Command-Control-Option-Shift-click (Mac) an Insert button in the position you want to toggle.

Chapter 3: Working with Real-Time Plug-ins 17

The Plug-in Window

The Plug-in window appears whenever you click a plug-in Insert button on a track. This floating window lets you set the controls of any realtime plug-in insert in use on a track.

Insert button

Insert selector

Convert Plug-in Selector Lets you convert the insert from a TDM plug-in to an RTAS plug-in of the same type (or vice-versa). This feature can only be used on plug-ins that are available in both TDM and RTAS formats.

Clip LED Lights red to indicate if any meter in a plug-in has clipped (not available on all plugins). The Plug-in Clip LED follows Pro Tools settings for clip indication (see the Pro Tools Refer- ence Guide for more information).

Settings Menu Lets you copy, paste, save, and import plug-in settings.

Insert button and selector on track

Next Setting

Settings Select

Compare

Auto button

Automation Safe

Target

Effect

button

Bypass

Convert plug-in

Settings menu

Track selector

Librarian menu

Insert Position selector

Plug-in selector

Previous Setting

Plug-in window (mono Trim shown)

Track Selector Accesses any non-MIDI track in a session.

Insert Position Selector Accesses any insert on the current track.

Plug-in Selector Lets you select any real-time plug-in installed in the Plug-ins folder (that is created when you install Pro Tools).

Effect Bypass Button Disables the currently displayed plug-in. This lets you compare the track with and without the effect.

Librarian Menu Recalls settings files saved in the plug-in’s root settings folder or in the current session’s Settings folder. See “Using the Librarian” on page 115.

Next (+) and Previous (–) Setting Buttons Let you select the next or previous plug-in setting from the Librarian menu.

You will lose the current settings if they are not saved before you use the Next and Previous Setting buttons. Always save your settings to the Librarian menu.

Plug-ins Settings Select Button Accesses the Plug-in Settings dialog, which lists the settings files for the current plug-in. From this list, you can select a new setting, or audition a series of settings.

Compare Toggles between the original saved plug-in setting and any changes you have made to it so you can compare them.

Auto Lets you enable individual plug-in controls for automation recording. See “Automating Plug-ins” on page 24.

Safe When enabled, prevents existing plug-in automation from being overwritten.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide18

Target Button When multiple Plug-in windows are open, clicking this button selects that plugin as the target for any computer keyboard commands.

Key Input Selector Lets you select audio on a particular input or bus and route it to trigger the plug-in. This menu only appears on plug-ins that feature side-chain processing. Key inputs are monophonic.

MIDI Node Display Shows MIDI node information for MIDI-enabled plug-ins. MIDI nodes are virtual connections from Pro Tools to software instruments and other MIDI-enabled plug-ins. MIDI nodes are useful for routing multiple MIDI tracks to different channels of a single virtual MIDI device. MIDI node numbers are also displayed in the plug-in header and in a track’s MIDI Output selector.

MIDI Node

Midi Node display in a plug-in header (Bruno shown)

Link Enable Buttons Let you selectively link or unlink the controls of specific channels of a multi-mono plug-in. Each square represents a speaker channel. The Master Link button must be disabled to use the Link Enable buttons. See “Linking and Unlinking Controls on MultiMono Plug-ins” on page 21.

Channel Selector Accesses a specific channel within a multichannel track for plug-in control editing. This menu appears only on multi-mono plug-ins inserted on tracks with more than one channel. Shift-clicking this selector opens a separate Plug-in window for each channel of the multichannel track on which the plug-in is inserted.

Phase Invert Button Inverts the phase polarity of the input signal on some plug-ins.

Phase Invert

button

LFE Enable

Master Link Button When enabled, links the controls on all channels of a multi-mono plugin so that they can be adjusted in tandem.

Phase Invert

Plug-in window (multi-mono 1-Band EQ shown)

Link Enable buttons

Channel selector

Master Link button

Plug-in window (multichannel Compressor/Limiter shown)

LFE Enable Enables plug-in processing of the LFE (low frequency effects) channel on a multichannel track formatted for 5.1, 6.1, or 7.1 surround formats on some plug-ins. To disable LFE processing, deselect this button. For more information on the LFE channel, refer to the Pro Tools Reference Guide.

Chapter 3: Working with Real-Time Plug-ins 19

Tempo Sync Enables compatible plug-ins to automatically synchronize to the session tempo, for rhythmic delay, echo, and similar effects. See “Tempo Sync” on page 23 for more information.

Plug-in Window Controls

All plug-ins provide standard Pro Tools controls for track and insert selection, bypass, and other controls, in addition to plug-in-specific controls.

Opening Plug-in Windows

To open a Plug-in window:

■ Click the plug-in button in the Mix or Edit

window channel strip.

By default, each plug-in you open will appear in the same location as a currently open plug-in, replacing it in the same window location.

Opening Multiple Plug-in Windows

Pro Tools normally displays a single Plug-in window from which you can adjust the controls of any plug-in in a session. You can also open additional Plug-in windows for specific plug-ins.

Once you begin working with multiple Plug-in windows, you will need to click the Target button on the plug-in whose controls you want to adjust using keyboard commands.

To open an additional Plug-in window:

■ Shift-click the Insert button for the additional

plug-in.

To select a different plug-in on the same track:

■ Click the Insert selector and select a plug-in

from the pop-up menu (or Category sub-menu).

Selecting a plug-in from the Plug-in window

To choose a different track:

■ Click the Track selector and choose a track

from the pop-up menu.

To open Plug-in windows for each channel of a multi-mono plug-in:

■ Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac) the

Channel selector in the Plug-in window of the multi-mono plug-in.

To close all currently open Plug-in windows:

■ Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac) the

close box of any currently open Plug-in window.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide20

Choosing a track from the Plug-in window

To choose a different insert:

■ Click the Insert Position selector and choose

an insert from the pop-up menu.

Linking and Unlinking Controls on Multi-Mono Plug-ins

When a multi-mono plug-in is used on a multichannel track, the controls are normally linked. Adjusting the Gain control on one channel, for example, will adjust it for all channels.

If necessary, you can unlink plug-in controls on specific channels of a track and edit them independently. You can also selectively link the controls of specific channels.

Choosing an Insert from the Plug-in window

Bypassing Plug-ins

To bypass a plug-in, do one of the following:

■ Click the Plug-in window’s Bypass button.

– or –

■ Control-click (Windows) or Command-click

(Mac) the plug-in’s Insert button in the Mix or Edit window.

When a plug-in insert is bypassed, the Insert selector in the Mix window changes its color to blue for easy visual reference. If some, but not all channels of an unlinked multi-mono plug-in are bypassed, the Insert selector appears purple.

Some channels bypassed (purple)

Bypassed (blue)

Bypass states indicated by color

Unbypassed (gray)

Phase Invert

Link Enable buttons

Channel selector

Master Link button

Plug-in window (multi-mono 1-Band EQ shown)

To unlink controls on a multi-mono plug-in:

■ Deselect the Master Link button.

To access controls for a speciﬁc channel:

■ Select the channel from the Channel selector.

To link the controls of speciﬁc channels:

1 Deselect the Master Link button if it is not al-

ready deselected.

2 Click the Link Enable buttons for the chan-

nels whose controls you want to link.

Chapter 3: Working with Real-Time Plug-ins 21

Clip Indicators

Using the Side-Chain Input

Many plug-ins provide meters that let you see when the processed signal is clipping.

In addition to clipping displays that are a part of a plug-in’s individual interface, some plug-ins also report the clipping in the plug-in header. The insert button in the Mix and Edit window also turns red if a plug-in has clipped.

Clip LED

Plug-in Clipping indicator in the plug-in header

clipped

Plug-in Clipping indication in the Mix window

To clear plug-in clipping:

■ Click the clip LED in the plug-in header

To clear a clip indicator:

■ Click the clip LED in the plug-in header

You can also clear plug-in, send, and, and track window clip indicators simultaneously.

The side-chain input is the split-off signal used by a plug-in's detector to trigger dynamics processing, and is generally drawn internally from the input signal. However, some plug-ins let you switch between internal and external side-chain processing.

With external side-chain processing, a plug-in's detector is triggered by an external signal (such as a separate reference track or audio source) known as the key input.

A typical use for external side-chain processing is to control the dynamics of one audio signal using the dynamics of another signal (the key input). For example, a kick drum track could be used to trigger gating of a bass track to tighten it up, or a rhythm guitar track could be used to gate a keyboard pad.

Side-Chain Filters

Some plug-ins feature key high-pass and lowpass filters. These controls let you define a specific frequency range in the side-chain signal with which to trigger the plug-in effect. A common production technique is to use these controls to filter a drum track so that only specific high frequency sounds (such as a hi-hat) or low frequency ones (such as a tom or a kick) trigger the effect.

To clear all clip indicators, do one of the following:

■ Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac)

any meter.

■ Press Alt-C (Windows) or Option-C (Mac).

■ Choose Track > Clear All Clip Indicators.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide22

Using a Key Input for External SideChain Processing

To use a key input for external side-chain processing:

1 Click the plug-in’s Key Input selector and se-

lect the input or bus carrying the audio you want to use to trigger the plug-in.

Selecting a key input

2 Click External Key to activate external side-

chain processing.

3 Press the Spacebar to begin playback. The

plug-in uses the input or bus that you chose as a key input to trigger its effect.

4 During playback, do any of the following to

ﬁne-tune side-chain triggering:

• To hear the audio source you have selected to control the side-chain, enable SideChain Listen or Key Listen (depending on the plug-in). When ﬁnished, disable SideChain Listen/Key Listen to resume normal plug-in monitoring.

• To ﬁlter the side-chain so that only speciﬁc frequencies trigger the plug-in, use the ﬁltering controls (if available) to select the desired frequency range.

Tempo Sync

Pro Tools provides Tempo Sync to enhance MIDI Beat Clock support and overall tempo capabilities of plug-ins (such as ReWire client applications) that utilize MIDI Beat Clock.

Tempo Sync provides a direct connection between session tempo and plug-in parameters that support MIDI Beat Clock. This direct connection lets plug-in parameters such as delay, auto-pan, and other time-domain effects automatically synchronize to and follow changes in session tempo.

Tempo Sync simplifies MIDI Beat Clock configuration by making session tempo available to relevant plug-in parameters directly from within the plug-in window. For plug-ins that do not support Tempo Sync, the original MIDI Beat Clock window (Setup > MIDI > MIDI Beat Clock) remains available in Pro Tools.

Compatibility and Settings

When opening older sessions that included plug-ins that subscribe to MIDI Beat Clock, Tempo Sync will be automatically enabled. Any plug-ins that used automation for tempo change should have that automation suspended or deleted to avoid conflict with Tempo Sync.

Tempo Sync is not available in plug-ins with which it would limit functionality. For example, for the Access Music Virus Indigo and IndigoV40 plug-in, use the Pro Tools MIDI Beat Clock window (Setup > MIDI > MIDI Beat Clock). See the Pro Tools Reference Guide for more information.

5 Adjust the plug-in’s Threshold control (if

available) and other controls as needed.

Chapter 3: Working with Real-Time Plug-ins 23

To utilize Tempo Sync:

1 Insert a plug-in that supports Tempo Sync,

such as the DigiRack Mod Delay II.

2 Click the Tempo Sync icon. The tempo shown

will change to match the current session tempo.

Tempo Sync

Tempo Sync icon (Mod Delay II shown)

3 To set a rhythmic delay, click a note value

(whole, half, quarter, eighth, or sixteenth), then do any of the following to further adjust the rhythm:

• To enable triplet delay timing, click the 3 button so that it is lit.

• To set a dotted delay value, click to enable the dotted icon.

• To apply some swing to the delay value, adjust the Groove slider.

Automating Plug-ins

You can automate changes to plug-in controls. Because Pro Tools creates a separate playlist for each plug-in control that you automate, you can later edit and modify each automated control individually. This lets you to build up complex automation in stages.

To create automation for a stereo plug-in with separate controls for each channel, (such as Mod Delay), record the automation for one channel, then copy and paste it to the other channel.

For complete instructions on Pro Tools automation, refer to the

Guide.

Preference Setting to Auto Enable All Plug-in Parameters

You can configure Pro Tools to enable all parameters for automation when you first assign a plug-in insert.

Pro Tools Reference

To auto-enable all parameters on newly inserted plug-ins:

1 Choose Setup > Preferences, and click the Mix-

ing tab.

2 In the Automation section, click to select the

Plug-in Controls Default to Auto-Enabled setting.

• When selected, all applicable controls of newly added plug-ins are enabled for automation.

• When not selected, the controls of newly added plug-in must be manually enabled for automation.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide24

Enabling Plug-in Parameters for Automation

To enable plug-in controls for automation:

1 Open the Plug-in window for the plug-in you

want to automate.

2 Do one of the following:

• Click the Automation Enable button in the Plug-in window.

Plug-in Automation button

Accessing the Plug-in Automation dialog

3 Select the controls to automate and click Add.

If there are multiple plug-ins on the same track, you can select from among these by clicking their buttons in the Inserts section of this dialog.

– or –

• Control-Alt-Start-click (Windows) or Command-Option-Control-click (Mac) the Track View selector in the Edit window.

You can also Control-Alt-Start-click (Windows) or Command-Option-Control-click (Mac) any plug-in control in the Plug-in window, then choose Open Automation Dialog from the pop-up menu.

Plug-in Automation dialog

4 Click OK to close the Plug-in Automation dia-

log.

As an alternative to using the Plug-in Automation dialog, you can enable individual plug-in controls directly from the Plug-in window by Control-Alt-Start-clicking (Windows) or Command-Option-Control-clicking (Mac) the control.

Shortcut for enabling plug-in automation

Chapter 3: Working with Real-Time Plug-ins 25

To automate a plug-in:

1 In the Automation Enable window, make sure

plug-in automation is enabled.

Record Saﬁng Plug-in Automation

You can protect plug-in automation from being overwritten by using Automation Safe mode.

To enable plug-in safe mode:

1 Open a plug-in.

Plug--in Automation Enable button

Automation Enable window

2 Select an Automation mode for each track

containing plug-ins you want to automate. For the initial automation pass, choose Auto Write.

3 Click Play to begin writing automation, and

move the controls you want to automate.

4 When you have ﬁnished, click Stop.

After the initial automation pass, you can write additional automation to the track without completely erasing the previous pass by choosing Auto Touch mode or Auto Latch mode. These modes add new automation only when you actually move the control.

2 Click the Safe button so that it is highlighted.

Safe enabled

Automation Safe enabling a plug-in

To disable plug-in safe mode:

■ In the Plug-in window, click the Safe button

so that it is unhighlighted.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide26

Instrument Plug-ins

Instrument plug-ins are unique from other plugins in that they generate audio by synthesis or sample playback, and are controlled by MIDI. Typically, plug-in instruments are inserted on Instrument tracks.

Main and Auxiliary Plug-in Outputs

When a plug-in that has both main and auxiliary outputs is inserted on a track, the plug-in’s main outputs are routed through the track that the plug-in is inserted on, and the plug-in’s auxiliary mono or stereo outputs are available in the track input pop-up menu on other tracks.

You can also insert plug-in instruments on Auxiliary Input tracks and control them with an additional MIDI track. In some cases you may want to insert and instrument plug-in on and instrument track, assign any additional audio outputs in may have to additional Auxiliary Input tracks, and control it from not only the Instrument track on which it is inserted, but also from multiple MIDI tracks (for example, if you are using a multiple output–capable drum machine plug-in).

For more information on Instrument tracks, see the Pro Tools Reference Guide.

Multiple Outputs for Instrument Plug-ins

You can route the output of an instrument plugin to the main track outputs and to individual track inputs on other tracks. This lets you route multiple samples or synth sounds through separate outputs for individual processing.

For specific information about using multiple plug-in outputs with third-party plugins, consult the documentation from the plug-in manufacturer.

If none of the inserted plug-ins has auxiliary outputs, the plug-in category in the track input pop-up menu is grayed out.

RTAS Plug-ins on Auxiliary Input and Master Fader Tracks

(Pro Tools HD Only)

In Pro Tools HD, RTAS plug-ins can be inserted on Auxiliary Input and Master Fader tracks, or after TDM plug-ins on any kind of track.

While HTDM plug-ins have a fixed buffer size, latency caused by RTAS plug-ins is adjustable via the HW Buffer Size setting in the Playback Engine dialog. For more information, see the Pro Tools Reference Guide.

When you use a previous version of Pro Tools to open a session originally created in Pro Tools 7.0, any RTAS plug-ins inserted on Auxiliary Input or Master Fader tracks—or after TDM plug-ins on any kind of track—are made inactive.

This also affects the following RTAS-related behavior in Pro Tools:

• Voice usage and total latency for RTAS plug-ins

• Limitations on inserting or removing plugins during playback

Chapter 3: Working with Real-Time Plug-ins 27

Voice Usage and Total Latency for RTAS Plug-ins

Ordering RTAS and TDM Plug-ins on an Audio Track

With Pro Tools HD, the initial insert of an RTAS plug-in may cause additional latency, and will take up two additional voices per channel (1 voice for input and 1 voice for output) in the following conditions:

• When inserted on an Auxiliary Input or Master Fader track

• When inserted on an Instrument track that does not contain an instrument plug-in

• When inserted after a TDM plug-in on any kind of track

For example, the initial insert of an RTAS plugin on a mono Auxiliary Input track uses two voices (one channel with two voices), while the initial insert of that plug-in on a stereo Auxiliary Input track uses four voices (two channels with two voices each).

Subsequent RTAS plug-ins on the same track do not take up additional voices unless a TDM plug-in is inserted between other RTAS plug-ins.

Avoid inserting TDM plug-ins between RTAS plug-ins on any kind of track—this causes unnecessary voice usage and may cause additional latency.

Furthermore, one additional voice is used for each occurrence of any of the following conditions when using voices for RTAS plug-ins on a track:

• When you use an external side-chain for an RTAS plug-in on that track

• When you select multiple outputs for that track (one voice used for each output)

• When you select an AFL/PFL Path output in the Output tab of the I/O Setup dialog (one voice used for each channel)

With Pro Tools HD, when RTAS and TDM plugins are combined on an audio track, the order in which they are inserted has different results:

RTAS Plug-ins Grouped Before TDM Plug-ins No additional voices will be used, and no processing latency will occur. RTAS plug-ins will be bypassed when Record Enable or TrackInput monitoring is enabled for that track.

TDM Plug-ins Grouped Before RTAS Plug-ins Each initial insert of an RTAS plug-in after a TDM plug-in will cause processing latency, and will use voices as described in “Voice Usage and Total Latency for RTAS Plug-ins” on page 28. RTAS plug-ins will stay active while Record Enable or TrackInput monitoring is enabled for that track.

As a rule, always group plug-ins of the same type together, especially if inserting RTAS after TDM plug-ins. Otherwise, additional voices may be unnecessarily used, and unnecessary latency may result.

Ordering Recommendations

When combining RTAS and TDM plug-ins on an audio track, use one of the following two strategies based on your recording needs:

• To ensure that RTAS plug-ins stay active when you record enable a track or use TrackInput monitoring, group all TDM plug-ins before RTAS plug-ins.

– or –

• To conserve voices and minimize processing latency, group all RTAS plug-ins before TDM plug-ins.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide28

Limitations for Inserting or Removing Plug-ins During Playback

When playing back tracks containing RTAS plug-ins, the following limitations on inserting or removing plug-ins apply:

• Inserting RTAS and TDM plug-ins on or removing from Auxiliary Input, Master Fader, or Instrument tracks temporarily interrupts playback, but without stopping the transport.

• Inserting an RTAS plug-in after a TDM plug-in on an audio track, or removing an RTAS plug-in from an audio track if it comes after a TDM plug-in, temporarily interrupts playback, but without stopping the transport.

• Inserting a TDM plug-in before an RTAS plug-in on an audio track, or removing a TDM plug-in from an audio track if it comes before an RTAS plug-in, temporarily interrupts playback, but without stopping the transport.

HTDM Plug-in Conversion to RTAS

When you use Pro Tools 7.0 or higher to open a session that was last saved in a version of Pro Tools prior to 7.0, most HTDM plug-ins will be automatically converted to their RTAS counterparts.

However, in rare cases as with some third-party plug-ins, these plug-ins will not automatically convert to RTAS and display as inactive. This means that the plug-in either has not been configured for automatic conversion or that no RTAS version is available.

In such cases, you must manually convert each individual HTDM plug-in to its RTAS counterpart by selecting it’s RTAS version from the Insert selector or the Convert Plug-in pop-up menu. If an RTAS version is not available, the HTDM version will remain inactive.

When HTDM plug-ins are converted to RTAS, any RTAS plug-ins that precede TDM plug-ins on audio tracks will be bypassed if you enable Record Enable or TrackInput monitoring on that track. See “Ordering RTAS and TDM Plug-ins on an Audio Track” on page 28 for details.

Chapter 3: Working with Real-Time Plug-ins 29

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide30

chapter 4

Working with AudioSuite Plug-ins

AudioSuite plug-ins differ from TDM and RTAS plug-ins in that they are used to process and modify audio files on disk rather than nondestructively in real time. Depending on how you configure a non-real-time AudioSuite plug-in, it will either alter the original source audio file or create an entirely new audio source file.

The AudioSuite Menu

AudioSuite plug-ins are accessed through the AudioSuite menu.

Plug-ins can be organized in the AudioSuite menu in Pro Tools by Flat List (with plug-ins in alphabetical order), Category, Manufacturer, or Category and Manufacturer.

For more information, see “Organizing Plug-ins” on page 5.

AudioSuite Plug-ins

1-Band EQ III Processes audio with selectable EQ filters in a 1-band module.

2–4 Band EQ III Processes audio with two, three, or four selectable EQ filters.

7-Band EQ III Processes audio with up to seven selectable EQ filters.

Click Creates an audio click as a tempo reference for performing and recording.

Compressor/Limiter III Processes audio with compression, or limiting.

Chorus Processes audio with chorusing.

Flanger Processes audio with flanging.

Expander/Gate III Processes audio with ex-

pander-gating.

De-esser III Processes audio with de-essing to remove sibilance.

Duplicate Creates a new, continuous source audio ﬁle (and region) from the selection.

Delay Adds up to 10.9 seconds of delay.

Multi-Tap Delay Adds up to four independently-

controllable delays to the original audio signal.

Normalize Uniformly adjusts all levels in a region or regions to a user-deﬁnable level, using the loudest peak in the audio ﬁle as the reference.

Ping-Pong Delay Adds a stereo, ping-pong delay to the audio signal by feeding back the original signal to its opposite channel.

Gain Adjusts gain (volume) change, in decibels or percentage before clip.

Invert Inverts phase (polarity).

Pitch Shift Changes an audio ﬁle’s pitch with or

without changing its duration.

Chapter 4: Working with AudioSuite Plug-ins 31

Reverse Rewrites selected audio in reverse.

Plug-in Selector

DC Offset Removal Recognizes and removes DC offset from audio ﬁles.

Signal Generator Generates audio tones for equipment calibration purposes.

Time Compression/Expansion Changes an audio ﬁle’s duration without changing its pitch.

Time Shift Changes an audio ﬁle’s duration and pitch independently or together (Varispeed).

The AudioSuite Window

When you choose a plug-in from the AudioSuite menu, the AudioSuite window appears. From this ﬂoating window you can access and edit the controls for any non-real-time AudioSuite plug-in.

Settings menu

Librarian menu

File Mode selector

Plug-in selector

Previous Setting

Next Setting

Selection Reference

Stereo Processing Mode button

Process Mode

Use in Playlist button

From this menu you can select any AudioSuite plug-in installed in your Plug-ins folder. (The Plug-in selector follows the Pro Tools preference for Organize Plug-ins Menu By.)

Plug-in selector menu (ﬂat list, non-categor y view)

Selection Reference

This menu aims the selected process at either regions selected in an audio track or playlist, or at regions selected in the Audio Regions List.

When you select a region on-screen (in either a track/playlist or the Region List) Pro Tools normally selects both occurrences of the region. Since you may not want to process both, this menu provides a convenient means of limiting the AudioSuite process to regions selected in one or the other.

Preview

Bypass

button

AudioSuite window

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide32

Settings Select

Process button

Playlist Applies AudioSuite processing only to regions currently selected in tracks/playlists in the Edit window. Processing will not be applied to regions in the Audio Regions List.

Selection Reference pop-up menu (Invert plug-in shown)

Region List Applies AudioSuite processing only to regions currently selected in the Audio Regions List. Processing will not be applied to regions located in tracks and playlists in the Edit window.

If the Use In Playlist option is enabled in addition to Region List being selected in the Selection Reference pop-up menu, the processing will be applied to the selected region in both the playlist and the Regions List.

Use In Playlist Button

This button determines whether the AudioSuite plug-in will replace all instances of the selected regions everywhere in the session, or only the occurrences of the regions that are currently selected.

Use in Playlist button

Use In Playlist Off When Use in Playlist is disabled, a new, processed version of the selected region will be added to the Regions List. No original regions will be replaced or overwritten anywhere in the session.

Use In Playlist On, Reference = Region List When Use in Playlist is enabled and the Se-

lection Reference pop-up menu is set to Regions List, all copies of the selected region will be replaced everywhere in the session.

Use In Playlist On, Reference = Playlist When Use in Playlist is enabled and the Selection Reference menu is set to Playlist, only regions selected in tracks in the Edit window will be replaced. If the session includes other copies of the region used in other playlists, those copies of the original, unprocessed region will not be replaced.

If the Selection Reference pop-up menu is set to Region List, the Use in Playlist button will automatically be disabled to ensure that you do not accidentally replace every occurrence of the region in a session.

File Mode Selector

This menu lets you select whether or not the AudioSuite plug-in will process the selected audio destructively or nondestructively, and how the original ﬁles will be modiﬁed.

File Mode pop-up menu (Invert plug-in shown)

There are three options:

Overwrite Files Processes the selected regions destructively, overwriting the original audio. Not all AudioSuite plug-ins can be used destructively.

Create Individual Files Processes the selected regions nondestructively, creating a new audio file for each region. The new audio ﬁles are added to the session, leaving the original source audio ﬁles in the Regions List unchanged. (Whether the processed audio is added to the current playlist or only to the Regions List, is determined by the Selection Reference setting, as explained earlier.)

Chapter 4: Working with AudioSuite Plug-ins 33

Create Continuous File Processes the selected regions nondestructively and creates a new audio file consisting of the selected regions consolidated into a single, unbroken region. This mode is particularly useful if you are assembling a composite track from multiple takes. This mode is not available when the Selection Reference is set to Region List.

The Create Continuous File option is not available with some time domain plug-ins. To achieve a similar result, use the Duplicate plug-in to consolidate regions processed with these plug-ins.

Chan/Track Process Mode Selector

If you have made a selection that includes regions from multiple tracks, the Normalize AudioSuite plug-in (as well as some third-party AudioSuite plug-ins) lets you choose whether you want to perform processing on a channelby-channel/track-by-track, or an all-channel/all-tracks basis using the Chan/Track Process Mode selector.

Process Mode Selector

If you have made a selection that includes multiple regions, this pop-up menu lets you specify whether AudioSuite processing is performed on a region-by-region, or entire-selection basis.

Process Mode selector (Invert plug-in shown)

Region by Region Analyzes each region in a selection individually, rather than over the entire multi-region selection as a whole.

Entire Selection Uses the entire selection for analysis. All regions will be analyzed and processed relative to the entire selection.

Chan/Track Process Mode selector pop-up menu (Normalize plug-in shown)

Peak On Each Chan/Track Analyzes and processes each selected track individually. If you apply the Normalize plug-in to multiple tracks or a multichannel track in Peak On Each Chan/Track mode, each channel or track will be normalized independently, without regard to the other selected tracks.

Peak On All Chans/Tracks Uses all currently selected channels and tracks for analysis. If you apply the Normalize plug-in to a multichannel track or multiple tracks in Peak On All Chans/Tracks mode, the tracks will be analyzed as a single entity and regions will be normalized relative to the averaged peak level within all selected channels and tracks.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide34

Preview

Bypass

The Preview button lets you audition the effect of a plug-in before you process the audio. By adjusting the plug-in controls while you listen to this audio preview, you can ﬁne-tune the effect. Not all AudioSuite plug-ins support this feature.

The Preview function routes audio to the specific outputs you have chosen with the Audition pop-up menu in the Outputs page of the I/O Setup dialog. Make sure you have configured this option correctly for your system or you may not be able to hear previewed audio.

For more information on using the I/O Setup dialog to configure your system’s audio outputs, refer to the

Guide

Pro Tools Reference

Before you use Preview, be aware that:

◆ The performance of the Preview function de-

pends on the speed of your CPU. Faster computers preview AudioSuite effects better than slower computers.

◆ Regardless of how many tracks and regions

are currently selected, the Preview button will audition only the ﬁrst selected stereo track or the ﬁrst selected pair of mono tracks.

◆ If you are using Region-by-Region processing

mode, the Preview function will preview only the ﬁrst region within a multi-region selection. To hear all selected regions, temporarily select Create Continuous File from the File Mode menu before previewing.

◆ The Preview function is affected by the

AudioSuite Buffer Size option (on the Processing page of the Pro Tools Preferences dialog). See “AudioSuite Processing Preferences” on page 37.

When Bypass is enabled, the selected audio is auditioned without AudioSuite processing. The Bypass button applies only to previewing. It does not affect actual AudioSuite processing.

Process

Clicking this button begins AudioSuite processing of the selected audio. Processing can occur during playback (though it may take slightly longer). Processed ﬁles are auto-named with the region or audio ﬁle’s name plus an acronym for the chosen AudioSuite process.

New files are written to the hard disk specified for that track in the Disk Allocation dialog, or to the same drive as the original file if the region is not currently on a track. See “Auto-File Naming of AudioSuite-Processed Audio” on page 36.

Multichannel Processing

Most DigiRack AudioSuite plug-ins can process up to 48 channels of audio simultaneously.

When processing multiple regions of different formats (mono and multichannel surround, for example), all channels will be processed according to the channel format of the AudioSuite plug-in. Mono AudioSuite plug-ins can process stereo regions and stereo AudioSuite plug-ins can process mono regions.

Chapter 4: Working with AudioSuite Plug-ins 35

Undoing AudioSuite Processing

Other AudioSuite Controls

If you have processed an audio selection nondestructively, the Undo and Redo commands let you undo the selected AudioSuite process. You can undo or redo an AudioSuite process during audio playback.

Undo is not available when a plug-in is configured for destructive editing since the process has already overwritten the source audio file.

Auto-File Naming of AudioSuiteProcessed Audio

When new audio ﬁles are created as a result of AudioSuite processing, Pro Tools will auto-name these ﬁles according to the type of plug-in used. The name of the region determines the preﬁx, while the type of AudioSuite plug-in determines the sufﬁx.

Auto ﬁle-naming follows these rules:

◆ New regions are named beginning with the

region name, followed by an abbreviation of the current AudioSuite process, followed by standard Pro Tools ﬁle and region numbering.

◆ If a plug-in’s File Mode pop-up is set to Over-

write, the original region’s name will not be changed.

◆ If a plug-in’s File Mode pop-up is set to Create

Individual Files, the resulting regions will have an abbreviated version of the plug-in name appended to them.

In addition to the standard AudioSuite controls, there are a number of special-purpose controls found on certain plug-ins:

Plug-in Librarian and Settings Menus

The Settings and Librarian pop-up menus that appear in some AudioSuite plug-ins provide a means of saving, loading, copying, pasting and organizing custom plug-in settings ﬁles. See “Using the Librarian” on page 115.

Analyze Button

This button analyzes a selection without actually processing it. On the DigiRack Gain plug-in, you can use the Analyze feature to determine the maximum peak level on a track at a speciﬁc gain value before you process the audio.

Key Input Selector

Selects a track/bus to be used to trigger processing. In order to use this feature, the key input source audio must occur at the same time as the target audio. Side-chain input is monophonic. See “Using the Side-Chain Input” on page 22.

Side-chain inputs for plug-ins have no effect on AudioSuite processes when the Selection Reference is set to Region List.

Channel Mode Button

The Channel Mode button lets you process contiguous channels within a selected region as though they were mono or stereo tracks (and in some cases greater-than-stereo tracks), regardless of the type of tracks they occupy.

Mono Mode Processes each contiguous channel within a selected region as a separate mono track. For example, a region comprised of six mono tracks would be processed as six mono tracks.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide36

Stereo Mode Processes each contiguous pair of channels within a selected region as a stereo track. When applied to an odd number of channels, the plug-in processes the last odd, unpaired channel as mono, using the left channel settings of the stereo plug-in. If you want the last track to be processed in stereo, you must select an additional track to pair it with—an empty one if necessary.

For example, a region comprised of two mono tracks would be processed as a stereo track, with the first mono track processed as the left channel and the second mono track processed as the right channel.

Multi Mode Processes each set of three or more contiguous channels within a selected region as a multichannel greater-than-stereo track, with the number of selected channels determining the type of track. For example, five contiguously-selected channels would be processed as a

5.0 track, while seven contiguously-selected channels will be processed as a 7.1 track.

Multi mode is available only for certain plug-ins, such as Dynamics III.

AudioSuite Processing Preferences

Before you begin using AudioSuite plug-ins, use the Preferences dialog (Setup > Preferences > Processing) to conﬁgure default AudioSuite options according to your needs. These options include the default dither setting, a dither on/off checkbox and the AudioSuite buffer size option, as well as TC/E options.

Processing Preferences page

AudioSuite

Buffer Size Selects the size of Pro Tools memory buffer for processing and previewing AudioSuite plug-ins. Choices are Mini, Small, Medium, Large, or Jumbo. In general, choosing a smaller buffer speeds up AudioSuite previewing functions. Choosing a larger buffer speeds up AudioSuite processing of audio ﬁles.

Chapter 4: Working with AudioSuite Plug-ins 37

To conﬁgure the AudioSuite Buffer Size:

1 Choose Setup > Preferences.

2 Click Processing.

3 Select an AudioSuite Buffer Size.

Though the default setting will work well for most situations, you may want to set the buffer according to your current task. Before you audition an AudioSuite plug-in, set this buffer to Mini or Small. Then, when you are ready to process a file, reset it to Large or Jumbo.

4 Click Done.

TC/E

The TC/E section lets you choose the plug-in used for AudioSuite time compression and expansion processing, as well as its default settings.

TC/E Plug-in Selects the Time Compression/Expansion plug-in and default settings used when editing with the TCE Trim tool. If you own a compatible third-party time compression and expansion plug-in, you have the option of using it for Pro Tools time compression and expansion processes by selecting it here.

Use AudioSuite Dither When selected, dither is applied during certain AudioSuite processes (such as Normalize and Gain), using the dither algorithm selected in the Dither Plug-in pop-up menu. Dither is most useful when working with low-level files that contain a fade in or fade out.

Dither Plug-in AudioSuite plug-ins always create ﬁles that inherit the session’s bit depth. With the Dither Plug-in pop-up menu you can choose the dither algorithm used for dithering higherbit source ﬁles during AudioSuite processing.

Settings Accesses options for the currently selected Default Dither plug-in. In the case of the Digidesign Dither plug-in, this lets you to turn noise shaping on or off.

See “Noise Shaping” on page 60 for more information.

Bit Depth Selects the default bit depth used by the dither function during AudioSuite processing. Bit depth can be set to 16-, 18-, 20-, or 24bit.

Default Settings Selects the settings used by the selected AudioSuite TC/E plug-in.

Refer to the Pro Tools Reference Guide for more information about the Time Compression/Expansion Trim tool.

For an explanation of dither, See “Dither” on page 59.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide38

Using AudioSuite Plug-ins

AudioSuite plug-ins can be applied to whole regions, partial regions, or selections that are made up of whole and partial regions across one or more tracks.

When audio selected in the Edit window includes partial regions, the regions will automatically be split into two or more regions when they are processed. Processing will occur only on the selection, leaving other regions unchanged.

Processing a locked region will cause the region to become unlocked, and processing a muted region will cause it to become unmuted. For more information on locked and muted regions, refer to the Pro Tools Reference Guide.

Only audio files on locally connected hard drives can be processed with AudioSuite plugins. You cannot process audio files on remote hard drives over a network (unless it is a Unity network).

Selecting Tracks for AudioSuite Processing

Because AudioSuite processes are performed on the specific regions that you select, it is important that you select only those regions, or parts of regions, you actually want to process.

Selecting a region in the Audio Regions List will automatically select it in a track (if it currently resides on one). This is the default behavior for Pro Tools. However, you can change this using the Region Selection Follows Track Selection, or

Track Selection Follows Regions List Selection options in the Editing page of the Preferences dialog. Refer to the Pro Tools Reference Guide for an explanation of these Preferences.

When processing a single audio channel with an AudioSuite plug-in, make sure that the plug-in is set to Mono mode, if available.

Selecting Tracks for Delay or Reverb Processing

Because some AudioSuite effects such as delay and reverb add additional material to the end of the selected audio, it is important that you make a selection that is longer than the original source material so that the plug-in can write it to the audio file. If you select only the original material, without leaving additional space at the end, any reverb decay or delay that occurs after the end of the region will be cut off.

To compensate for this, place the region in a track and select the desired audio plus an amount of blank space at the end of the region equal to the amount of delay or reverb decay that you have added in the plug-in. The plug-in will then have space at the end of the region in which to write the final delay or decay. If you select more blank space than you need, you can remove it using the Trimmer tool after applying AudioSuite processing.

To process audio with an AudioSuite plug-in:

1 Do one of the following:

• Make an Edit selection of the audio you want to process.

– or –

• Select audio regions in the Region List that you want to process.

2 Choose an AudioSuite plug-in from the

AudioSuite menu.

Chapter 4: Working with AudioSuite Plug-ins 39

3 Adjust the plug-in controls for the effect you

want. These settings determine how the ﬁle is processed and what effect the processing has on the original regions.

Follow these guidelines:

• To process the selected region only in the track in which it appears, select Playlist from the Selection Reference pop-up. Alternatively, if you want to process the selected region in the Audio Regions list only, choose Region List from this pop-up.

• If you want to process and update every occurrence of the selected region throughout your session, enable the Use In Playlist button (and also select Region List from the Selection Reference pop-up). Alternatively, if you do not want to update every occurrence of the selected region, deselect the Use In Playlist button.

• To conﬁgure the plug-in for destructive processing, select Overwrite Files from the File Mode pop-up menu. This will overwrite and permanently modify the original source audio ﬁles.

• Alternatively, to conﬁgure the plug-in for nondestructive processing, select Create Individual Files from the File Mode pop-up menu. This will create new audio ﬁles that have been processed with the AudioSuite Plug-in and leave the original source audio ﬁles untouched.

• If you have selected multiple regions for processing and want to create a new ﬁle that connects and consolidates all of these regions together, select Create Continuous File from the File Mode pop-up menu.

4 Click the Preview button to begin audition

processing of the selected material.

5 Make further adjustment to the plug-in pa-

rameters based if necessary.

6 When you are satisﬁed with the Preview re-

sults, click the Process button.

The selected audio is processed according to the settings you have specified. Pro Tools appends an acronym to the region’s name indicating the AudioSuite process that has been applied. The new audio files then appear in your session.

Using AudioSuite Plug-ins in Stereo

Some AudioSuite plug-ins can be used in either mono or stereo. If you plan to use them in stereo, be aware of the following:

◆ To process a mono track and obtain a stereo

result, select the desired track or region plus an empty track or region. Then set the plug-in to Stereo mode and select the Sum Inputs button (if present) to center the dry signal. When you process the audio, the result will be two tracks or regions that represent the right and left channels of the processed audio. You should then pan these tracks hard right and hard left in your mix.

◆ If you set a plug-in to Stereo mode, then select

an odd number of Pro Tools tracks for processing (as opposed to an even number), the plug-in will process the selected tracks in pairs, in stereo. However, the last odd, unpaired track will be processed as mono, using the left channel settings of the stereo plug-in. If you want the last track to be processed in stereo, you must select an additional track to pair it with—an empty one if necessary.

For more information, see “Channel Mode Button” on page 36.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide40

chapter 5

Adjusting Plug-in Controls

You can adjust plug-in controls by dragging the control’s slider or knob, or by typing a value into the control’s text box. Additionally, some plugins have switches that can be enabled by clicking on them.

To adjust a plug-in control:

1 Begin audio playback so that you can hear the

control changes in real time.

2 Adjust the controls of the plug-in for the effect

you want. Refer to “Editing Parameters Using a Mouse” on page 41 and “Editing Parameters Using a Computer Keyboard” on page 41.

Closing the plug-in will save the most recent changes.

Plug-in controls of similar category (such as EQ or Dynamics plug-ins) can follow track groups. See the more information.

Pro Tools Reference Guide for

Editing Parameters Using a Mouse

You can adjust rotary controls by dragging horizontally or vertically. Parameter values increase as you drag upward or to the right, and decrease as you drag downward or to the left.

Keyboard Shortcuts

◆ For ﬁner adjustments, Control-drag (Win-

dows) or Command-drag (Mac) the control.

◆ To return a control to its default value, Alt-

click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac) the control.

Editing Parameters Using a Computer Keyboard

Some controls have text boxes that display the current value of the parameter. You can edit the numeric value of a parameter with your computer keyboard.

If multiple Plug-in windows are open, Tab and keyboard entry remain focused on the plug-in that is the target window.

Chapter 5: Adjusting Plug-in Controls 41

To change control values with a computer keyboard:

1 Click the text box corresponding to the con-

trol that you want to adjust.

2 Change the value by doing one of the follow-

ing:

• To increase a value, press the Up Arrow on your keyboard. To decrease a value, press the Down Arrow on your keyboard.

– or –

• Type the desired value.

In fields that support values in kilohertz, typing “k” after a number value will multiply the value by 1,000. For example, type “8k” to enter a value of 8,000.

Editing Parameters Using a Scroll Wheel

Some controls have text boxes that display the current value of the parameter. You can edit the numeric value of a parameter using a scroll wheel.

To change control values using a scroll wheel:

1 Click the text box corresponding to the con-

trol that you want to adjust.

2 To increase a value, scroll up with the scroll

wheel. To decrease a value, scroll down with the scroll wheel.

Toggling Switches

3 Do one of the following:

• Press Enter on the numeric keyboard to input the value and remain in keyboard editing mode.

– or –

• Press Enter on the alpha keyboard (Windows) or Return (Mac) to enter the value and leave keyboard editing mode.

To move forward through the different control fields, press the Tab key. To move backward, press Shift+Tab.

To toggle a switch:

■ Click the switch.

Groups and Linked Plug-in Controls

(Pro Tools HD Only)

Plug-ins can follow Pro Tools Groups (Mix, Edit, or Mix/Edit) for linked control of multiple inserts. For more information, see the Pro Tools Reference Guide.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide42

chapter 6

DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins

EQ III has a Frequency Graph display that shows

EQ III

The EQ III Plug-in provides a high-quality 7 Band, 2–4 Band, or 1 Band EQ for adjusting the frequency spectrum of audio material.

EQ III is available in the following formats:

• 7 Band: TDM, RTAS, AudioSuite

• 2–4 Band: TDM and RTAS only

• 1 Band: TDM, RTAS, AudioSuite

EQ III supports all Pro Tools session sample rates: 192 kHz, 176.4 kHz, 96 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 48 kHz, and 44.1 kHz. EQ III operates as a mono or multi-mono plug-in only. Stereo and multichannel tracks are supported through multimono operation.

EQ III can be operated from the following control surfaces:

• Digidesign D-Control

• Digidesign ProControl

• Digidesign Control|24

• Digidesign 002

• Digidesign Command|8

• Mackie HUI-compatible controllers

the response curve for the current EQ settings on a two-dimensional graph of frequency and gain. The frequency graph display also lets you modify frequency, gain and Q settings for individual EQ bands by dragging their corresponding points in the graph.

By choosing from the 7 Band, 2–4 Band, or 1 Band versions of the EQ III plug-in, you can use only the number of EQ bands you need for each track, conserving DSP capacity on Pro Tools|HD systems.

EQ III Conﬁgurations

The EQ III Plug-in appears as three separate choices in the plug-in insert pop-up menu and in the AudioSuite menu:

7 Band (“7-Band EQ 3”)

2–4 Band (“4-Band EQ 3”)

1 Band (“1-Band EQ 3”)

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 43

7 Band EQ and 2–4 Band EQ

EQ III Controls

The 7 Band EQ is available in TDM, RTAS, and AudioSuite formats. The 2–4 Band EQ is available in TDM and RTAS formats only.

The 7 Band EQ and the 2–4 Band EQ share the same window and identical controls, but with the 2–4 Band EQ, a limited number of the seven available bands can be active at the same time.

7 Band EQ and 2–4 Band EQ window

1 Band EQ

The 1 Band EQ is available in TDM, RTAS, and AudioSuite formats.

Adjusting EQ III Controls

You can adjust the EQ III plug-in controls by any of the following methods:

Dragging Plug-in Controls

The rotary controls on the EQ III Plug-in can be adjusted by dragging over them horizontally or vertically. Dragging up or to the right increments the control. Dragging down or to the left decrements the control.

Dragging a plug-in control

Typing Control Values

You can enter control values directly by clicking in the corresponding text box, typing a value, and pressing Enter (Windows) or Return (Mac).

The 1 Band EQ has its own window, with six selectable filter types.

1 Band EQ window

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide44

Typing a control value

Inverting Filter Gain

(Peak EQ Bands Only)

Gain values can be inverted on any Peak EQ band by Shift-clicking its control dot in the Frequency Graph display, or its Gain knob in the plug-in window. This changes a gain boost to a cut (+9 to –9) or a gain cut to a boost (–9 to +9). Gain values cannot be inverted on Notch, HighPass, Low-Pass, or shelving bands.

Dragging in the Frequency Graph Display

Using Band-Pass Mode

You can adjust the following by dragging the control points directly in the Frequency Graph display:

Frequency Dragging a control point to the right increases the Frequency setting. Dragging a control point to the left decreases the Frequency setting.

Gain Dragging a control point up increases the Gain setting. Dragging a control point down decreases the Gain setting.

Q Start-dragging (Windows) or Control-dragging (Mac) a control point up increases the Q setting. Start-dragging (Windows) or Controldragging (Mac) a control point down decreases the Q setting.

You can temporarily set any EQ III control to Band-Pass monitoring mode. Band-Pass mode cuts monitoring frequencies above and below the Frequency setting, leaving a narrow band of mid-range frequencies. It is especially useful for adjusting limited bandwidth in order to solo and fine-tune each individual filter before reverting the control to notch filter or peaking filter type operations.

Band-Pass mode does not affect EQ III Gain controls.

To switch an EQ III control to Band-Pass mode:

• Hold Start+Shift (Windows) or Control+Shift (Mac), and drag any rotary control or control point horizontally or vertically.

Dragging a control point in the Frequency Graph display

Adjusting Controls with Fine Resolution

Controls and control points can be adjusted with fine resolution by holding the Control key (Windows) or the Command key (Mac) while adjusting the control.

Resetting Controls to Default Values

You can reset any on-screen control to its default value by Alt-clicking (Windows) or Optionclicking (Mac OS) directly on the control or on its corresponding text box.

EQ III interactive graph displaying Band-Pass mode

When monitoring in Band-Pass mode, the Frequency and Q controls function differently.

Frequency Sets the frequency above and below which other frequencies are cut off, leaving a narrow band of mid-range frequencies.

Q Sets the width of the narrow band of midrange frequencies centered around the Frequency setting.

To switch an EQ III control out of Band-Pass mode:

• Release Start+Shift (Windows) or Control+Shift (Mac).

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 45

Using a Control Surface

EQ III can be controlled from any supported control surface, including Digidesign’s D-Control, D-Command, ProControl, Control|24, Digi 002, or Command|8. Refer to the guide that came with the control surface for details.

I/O Controls

The following Input and Output controls are found on all EQ III configurations, except where noted otherwise.

Input and Output Meters

Clip Indicators

Input

Polarity

Control

Input Gain Control

Output Gain Control

(7 Band EQ and 2–4 Band EQ Only)

The Output Gain control sets the output gain after EQ processing, letting you make up gain or prevent clipping on the channel where the plugin is being used.

Input Polarity Control

The Input Polarity button inverts the polarity of the input signal, to help compensate for phase anomalies occurring in multi-microphone environments, or because of mis-wired balanced connections.

Input and Output Meters

(7 Band EQ and 2–4 Band EQ Only)

The plasma-style Input and Output meters show peak signal levels before and after EQ processing, and indicate them as follows:

Green Indicates nominal levels

Yellow Indicates pre-clipping levels, starting at

–6 dB below full scale

I/O controls and meters for 7 Band EQ and 2–4 Band EQ (top) and 1 Band EQ (bottom)

Input Gain Control

The Input Gain control sets the input gain of the plug-in before EQ processing, letting you make up gain or prevent clipping at the plug-in input stage.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide46

Red Indicates full scale levels (clipping)

The clip indicators at the far right of each meter indicate clipping at the input or output stage of the plug-in. Clip indicators can be cleared by clicking the indicator.

EQ Band Controls

Band Gain Control

The individual EQ bands on each EQ III configuration have some combination of the following controls, as noted below.

EQ type selector

Frequency

control

EQ Band controls (7 Band EQ Low-Mid band shown)

Q control

Band

Enable

button

Gain

control

EQ Type Selector

On the 1 Band EQ, the EQ Type selector lets you choose any one of six available filter types: High-Pass, Notch, High-Shelf, Low-Shelf, Peak, and Low-Pass.

On the 7 Band EQ and the 2–4 Band EQ, the HPF, LPF, LF, and HF sections have EQ Type selectors to toggle between the two available filter types in each section.

Band Enable Button

(7 Band EQ and 2–4 Band EQ Only)

Each Peak and Shelf EQ band has a Gain control for boosting or cutting the corresponding frequencies. Gain controls are not used on HighPass, Low-Pass, or Notch filters.

Frequency Control

Each EQ band has a Frequency control that sets the center frequency (Peak, Shelf and Notch EQs) or the cutoff frequency (High-Pass and Low-Pass filters) for that band.

Q Control

Peak and Notch On Peak and Notch bands, the

Q control changes the width of the EQ band. Higher Q values represent narrower bandwidths. Lower Q values represent wider bandwidths.

Shelf On Shelf bands, the Q control changes the Q of the shelving filter. Higher Q values represent steeper shelving curves. Lower Q values represent broader shelving curves.

Band Pass On High-Pass and Low-Pass bands, the Q control lets you select from any of the following Slope values: 6 dB, 12 dB, 18 dB, or 24 dB per octave.

The Band Enable button on each EQ band toggles the corresponding band in and out of circuit. When a Band Enable button is highlighted, the band is in circuit. When a Band Enable button is dark gray, the band is bypassed and available for activation. On the 2–4 Band EQ, when a Band Enable button is light gray, the band is bypassed and unavailable.

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 47

Frequency Graph Display

(7 Band EQ and 2–4 Band EQ Only)

The Frequency Graph display in the 7 Band EQ and the 2–4 Band EQ shows a color-coded control dot that corresponds to the color of the Gain control for each band. The filter shape of each band is similarly color-coded. The white frequency response curve shows the contribution of each of the enabled filters to the overall EQ curve.

control dot

Frequency

response

curve

High-Pass

control dot

(gray) (brown) (green) (gray)

Frequency Graph display for the 7 Band EQ

Low

(red)

Low-Mid

control dot

Mid

control dot

(yellow)

High-Mid

control dot

High

control dot

(blue)

Low-Pass

control dot

1 Band EQ

The Frequency Graph display in the 1 Band EQ shows a control dot that indicates the center frequency (Peak, Shelf and Notch Filters) or the cutoff frequency (High-Pass and Low-Pass filters) for the currently selected filter type.

Control dot

Frequency

response

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide48

curve

7 Band EQ

Input/Output Level meters

Input/Output Level

Polarity controls

7 Band EQ and 2–4 Band EQ window

and

High-Pass/

Low Notch

Low-Pass/

High Notch

Low

Shelf/Peak

Low-Mid

Peak

Mid

Peak

High-Mid

Peak

Frequency Graph

Display

High

Shelf/Peak

The 7 Band EQ has the following available bands: High-Pass/Low Notch, Low-Pass/High Notch, Low Shelf/Low Peak, Low-Mid Peak, Mid Peak, High-Mid Peak, and High Shelf/High Peak.

All seven bands are available for simultaneous use. In the factory default setting, the High-Pass/Low Notch and Low-Pass/High Notch bands are out of circuit, the Low Shelf and High Shelf bands are selected and in circuit, and the Low-Mid Peak, Mid Peak, High-Mid Peak bands are in circuit.

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 49

High-Pass/Low Notch

Low-Pass/High Notch

The High-Pass/Notch band is switchable between High-Pass Filter and Notch EQ functions. By default, this band is set to High-Pass Filter.

High-Pass Filter Attenuates all frequencies below the Frequency setting at the selected slope while letting all frequencies above pass through.

Low-Notch EQ Attenuates a narrow band of frequencies centered around the Frequency setting. The width of the attenuated band is determined by the Q setting.

High-Pass Filter

button

Frequency

control

Band

Enable

button

Slope

control

Low Notch EQ

button

Band

Enable

button

Frequency

controlQcontrol

The Low-Pass/Notch band is switchable between Low-Pass Filter and Notch EQ functions. By default, this band is set to Low-Pass Filter.

Low-Pass Filter Attenuates all frequencies above the Frequency setting at the selected slope while letting all frequencies below pass through.

High-Notch EQ Attenuates a narrow band of frequencies centered around the Frequency setting. The width of the attenuated band is determined by the Q setting.

Low-Pass Filter

button

Frequency

control

Band Enable button

Slope

control

High Notch EQ

button

Band

Enable

button

Frequency

controlQcontrol

High-Pass ﬁlter (left) and Low Notch EQ (right)

The High Pass and Low Notch controls and their corresponding graph elements are displayed onscreen in gray.

High-Pass Filter and Low Notch EQ control values

Control Value

Frequency Range 20 Hz to 8 kHz

Frequency Default 20 Hz

HPF Slope Values 6, 12, 18, or 24 dB/oct

Low Notch Q Range 0.1 to 10.0

Low Notch Q Default 1.0

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide50

Low-Pass ﬁlter (left) and High Notch EQ (right)

The Low Pass and High Notch controls and their corresponding graph elements are displayed onscreen in gray.

Low-Pass Filter and High Notch EQ control values

Control Value

Frequency Range 120 Hz to 20 kHz

Frequency Default 20 kHz

LPF Slope Values 6, 12, 18, or 24 dB/oct

High Notch Q Range 0.1 to 10.0

High Notch Q Default 1.0

Low Shelf/Low Peak

The Low Shelf/Peak band is switchable between Low Shelf EQ and Low Peak EQ functions. By default, this band is set to Low Shelf.

Low-Shelf EQ Boosts or cuts frequencies at and below the Frequency setting. The amount of boost or cut is determined by the Gain setting. The Q setting determines the shape of the shelving curve.

The Low Shelf and Low Peak Gain controls and their corresponding graph elements are displayed on-screen in red.

Low Shelf EQ and Low Peak EQ control values

Control Value

Frequency Range 20 Hz to 500 Hz

Frequency Default 100 Hz

Low Shelf Q Range 0.1 to 2.0

Low Peak EQ Boosts or cuts a band of frequencies centered around the Frequency setting. The width of the affected band is determined by the Q setting.

Low Shelf EQ

button

control

Band Enable button

Gain

control

Frequency

control

Low Shelf EQ (left) and Low Peak EQ (right)

Low Peak EQ

button

control

Band Enable button

Gain

control

Frequency

control

Low Peak Q Range 0.1 to 10.0

Q Default 1.0

Low Shelf Gain Range –12 dB to +12 dB

Low Peak Gain Range –18 dB to +18 dB

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 51

Low-Mid Peak

Mid Peak

The Low-Mid Peak band boosts or cuts frequencies centered around the Frequency setting. The width of the band is determined by the Q setting.

control

Band

Frequency

control

Gain

control

Low-Mid Peak EQ

Enable button

The Low-Mid Gain control and its corresponding graph elements are displayed on-screen in brown.

Low-Mid Peak EQ control values

Control Value

Frequency Range 40 Hz to 1 kHz

Frequency Default 200 Hz

Low-Mid Peak Q Range 0.1 to 10.0

Low-Mid Peak Q Default 1.0

Low-Mid Peak Gain Range –18 dB to +18 dB

The Mid Peak band boosts or cuts frequencies centered around the Frequency setting. The width of the band is determined by the Q setting.

control

Band

Frequency

control

Gain

control

Mid Peak EQ

Enable

button

The Mid Gain control and its corresponding graph elements are displayed on-screen in yellow.

Mid Peak EQ control values

Control Value

Frequency Range 125 Hz to 8 kHz

Frequency Default 1 kHz

Mid Peak Q Range 0.1 to 10.0

Mid Peak Q Default 1.0

Mid Peak Gain Range –18 dB to +18 dB

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide52

High-Mid Peak

The High-Mid Peak band boosts or cuts frequencies centered around the Frequency setting. The width of the band is determined by the Q setting.

control

High Peak EQ Boosts or cuts a band of frequencies centered around the Frequency setting. The width of the affected band is determined by the Q setting.

High Shelf EQ

button

control

High Peak EQ

button

control

Band

Frequency

control

Gain

control

High-Mid Peak EQ

Enable button

The High-Mid Gain control and its corresponding graph elements are displayed on-screen in green.

High-Mid Peak EQ control values

Control Value

Frequency Range 200 Hz to 18 kHz

Frequency Default 2 kHz

Mid Peak Q Range 0.1 to 10.0

Mid Peak Q Default 1.0

Mid Peak Gain Range –18 dB to +18 dB

High Shelf/High Peak

The High Shelf/Peak band is switchable between High Shelf EQ and High Peak EQ functions. By default, this band is set to High Shelf.

High-Shelf EQ Boosts or cuts frequencies at and above the Frequency setting. The amount of boost or cut is determined by the Gain setting. The Q setting determines the shape of the shelving curve.

Band

Enable

button

Gain

Frequency

control

High Shelf EQ (left) and High Peak EQ (right)

control

Frequency

control

Band Enable button

Gain

control

The High Shelf and High Peak Gain controls and their corresponding graph elements are displayed on-screen in blue.

High Shelf EQ and High Peak EQ control values

Control Value

Frequency Range 1.8 kHz to 20 kHz

Frequency Default 6 kHz

High Shelf Q Range 0.1 to 2.0

High Peak Q Range 0.1 to 10.0

Q Default 1.0

High Shelf Gain Range –12 dB to +12 dB

High Peak Gain Range –18 dB to +18 dB

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 53

2–4 Band EQ

The 2–4 Band EQ uses the same plug-in window as the 7 Band EQ, but on the 2–4 Band EQ, but a limited number of the seven available bands can be active at the same time.

In the factory default setting, the High-Pass/Low Notch, Low-Pass/High Notch and Mid Peak bands are out of circuit, the Low Shelf and High Shelf bands are selected and in circuit, and the Low-Mid Peak and High-Mid Peak bands are in circuit.

For Pro Tools HD, using a 2–4 Band EQ instead of a 7 Band EQ saves DSP resources.

When any combination of these filter types uses the four-filter maximum on the 2–4 Band EQ, the remaining bands become unavailable. This is indicated by the Band Enable buttons turning light gray. When filters become available again, the Band Enable button on inactive bands turns dark gray.

Switching Between the 2–4 Band EQ and 7 Band EQ

When you switch an existing EQ III plug-in between the 2–4 Band and 7 Band versions, or when you import settings between versions, the change is subject to the following conditions:

Changing from 2–4 Band to 7 Band

After switching from a 2–4 band EQ to a 7 Band EQ, or importing settings from a 2–4 Band EQ, all control settings from the 2–4 Band EQ are preserved, and the bands in the 7 Band EQ inherit their enabled or bypassed state from the 2–4 Band plug-in.

Additional EQ bands can then be enabled to add them to the settings inherited from the 2–4 Band plug-in.

Filter Usage with 2–4 Band EQs

With a 2–4 Band EQ, a maximum of four filters may be active simultaneously, with each of the five Peak bands (Low Shelf/Peak, Low-Mid Peak, Mid-Peak, High-Mid Peak and High Shelf/Peak) counting as one filter. Each of the Band-pass and Notch filters (High-Pass, Low Notch, LowPass and High-Notch) counts as two filters.

Changing from 7 Band to 2–4 Band

After switching from a 7 band EQ to a 2–4 Band EQ, or importing settings from a 7 Band EQ, all control settings from the 7 Band EQ are preserved in the 2–4 Band EQ, but all bands are placed in a bypassed state.

Bands can then be enabled manually, up to the 2–4 Band EQ four-filter limit.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide54

1 Band EQ

EQ Types

Input Level and

Polarity controls

EQ Type selector

1 Band EQ window

Gain, Freq and

Q controls

Frequency Graph

display

The 1 Band EQ may be set to any one of six EQ types: High-Pass, Notch, High-Shelf, Low-Shelf, Peak, and Low-Pass, by clicking the corresponding icon in the EQ Type selector.

Band Controls

The individual EQ types have some combination of the following controls, as noted below.

1 Band EQ control values

Control Value

High-Pass Filter

The High-Pass filter attenuates all frequencies below the Frequency setting at the selected rate (6 dB, 12 dB, 18 dB, or 24 dB per octave) while letting all frequencies above pass through. No gain control is available for this filter type.

1 Band EQ set to High-Pass Filter

Notch Filter

The Notch Filter attenuates a narrow band of frequencies centered around the Frequency setting. No gain control is available for this EQ type. The width of the attenuated band is determined by the Q setting.

Frequency Range (All) 20 Hz to 20 kHz

Frequency Default (All) 1 kHz

Q Range (Low/High Shelf) 0.1 to 2.0

Q Range (Peak/Notch) 0.1 to 10.0

Q Default (All) 1.0

Gain Range (Low/High Shelf) –12 dB to +12 dB

High Peak Gain Range –18 dB to +18 dB

1 Band EQ set to Notch Filter

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 55

High-Shelf EQ

Peak EQ

The High-Shelf EQ boosts or cuts frequencies at and above the Frequency setting. The amount of boost or cut is determined by the Gain setting. The Q setting determines the shape of the shelving curve.

1 Band EQ set to High-Shelf EQ

Low-Shelf EQ

The Low-Shelf EQ boosts or cuts frequencies at and below the Frequency setting. The amount of boost or cut is determined by the Gain setting. The Q setting determines the shape of the shelving curve.

The Peak EQ boosts or cuts a band of frequencies centered around the Frequency setting. The width of the affected band is determined by the Q setting.

1 Band EQ set to Peak EQ

Low-Pass Filter

The Low-Pass filter attenuates all frequencies above the cutoff frequency setting at the selected rate (6 dB, 12 dB, 18 dB, or 24 dB per octave) while letting all frequencies below pass through. No gain control is available for this filter type.

1 Band EQ set to Low-Shelf EQ

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide56

1 Band EQ set to Low-Pass Filter

Automating EQ III Controls

All EQ III plug-in controls can be automated in Pro Tools.

To automate a control directly from the plug-in window:

■ Control-Alt-Start-click (Windows) or Com-

mand-Option-Control-click (Mac) the control, and choose Enable Automation.

Enabling automation for a control

To automate multiple controls:

■ Control-Alt-Start-click (Windows) or Com-

mand-Option-Control-click (Mac) the control, choose Open Plug-in Automation Dialog, and choose the controls you want to automate.

The automation-enabled status of EQ III plug-in controls is indicated by the colored LED beneath each on-screen knob and colored outlines around each on-screen button.

Even if an EQ III band is bypassed, for example, when the filter capacity of a 2–4 Band EQ is surpassed, its controls are still available for automation. This lets you continue to update settings in a session in preparation for the next time the bypassed band is enabled.

For complete instructions on automating plug-ins in Pro Tools, see the Pro Tools Reference Guide.

EQ II

For information, see the DigiRack Legacy Plug-ins Guide.

Automation-enabled buttons

Automation-enabled knobs

Automation-enabled controls

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 57

Click

The Click plug-in creates an audio click during session playback that you can use as a tempo reference when performing and recording. The Click plug-in receives its tempo and meter data from the Pro Tools application, enabling it to follow any changes in tempo and meter in a session. The Click plug-in is a mono-only plug-in. Several click sound presets are included.

Click plug-in

Click Controls

MIDI In LED Illuminates each time the Click plug-in receives a click message from the Pro Tools application, indicating the click tempo.

2 Do one of the following:

• Choose Track > Create Click Track. Pro Tools creates a new Instrument track named “Click” with the Click plug-in already inserted. In the Edit window, the click track’s Track Height is set to Mini.

– or –

• Create new a mono Auxiliary Input track and insert the Click plug-in.

3 Select a click sound preset.

4 Choose Setup > Click and set the Click and

Countoff options as desired.

The Note, Velocity, Duration, and Output options in this dialog are for use with MIDI instrument-based clicks and do not affect the Click plug-in.

Accented Controls the output level of the accent beat (beat 1 of each bar) of the audio click.

Unaccented Controls the output level of the unaccented beats of the audio click.

Creating a Click Track

To use the Click plug-in:

1 Choose Options > Click to enable the Click

option (or enable the Click button in the Transport window).

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide58

Click Options dialog

5 Begin playback. A click is generated according

to the tempo and meter of the current session and the settings in the Click/Countoff Options dialog.

Refer to the Pro Tools Reference Guide for

information on configuring Click op-

tions.

Automatically Create Click Track In New Sessions

To have Pro Tools automatically create a click track when you create a new session, enable the Automatically Create Click Track In New Sessions option in the MIDI Preferences page (Setup > Preferences).

Selecting the Automatically Create Click Track In New Sessions option in the MIDI Preferences page

Dither

The Dither plug-in is designed for reducing quantization noise when mixing or fading lowlevel audio signals during word size reduction to 16-, 18-, or 20-bits.

For more advanced dithering, use the DigiRack POW-r Dither plug-in. See “POW-r Dither” on page 61.

Dither is a form of randomized noise used to minimize quantization artifacts in digital audio systems. Quantization artifacts are most audible when the audio signal is near the low end of its dynamic range, such as during a quiet passage or fade-out.

The introduction of dithering can reduce these quantization artifacts with very low-level noise, minimizing artifacts as audio reaches low level. With dithering there is a trade-off between signal-to-noise performance and less-apparent artifacts. Proper use of dithering squeezes better subjective performance out of 16-bits (or whatever the destination bit-depth).

The most common application of dithering is to use it on a master output mix as the last processor in the signal path when preparing a 24-bit session for CD mastering. In this case, you would insert the Dither plug-in on a Master Fader to reduce session bit-depth from 24-bits to 16-bits. The inserts on a Master Fader track are always post-fader.

Insert the Dither plug-in (or any dithering plug-in, such as Dither, POW-r Dither, or Maxim) on a Master Fader track when using Bounce to Disk to create a 16-bit file (or any bit depth lower than 24-bit) from a 24bit session; otherwise the resulting 16-bit file will be truncated at the destination bit depth. For more information on Bounce to Disk, refer to the Pro Tools Reference Guide.

Dither plug-in

The Dither plug-in has user-selectable bit resolution and a noise shaping on/off option.

If outputting 24-bit audio to an analog destination with a 96 I/O, or 192 I/O, you do not need to use Dither. This allows maximum output fidelity from the high-performance 24-bit digital-to-analog convertors of the interfaces.

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 59

Noise Shaping

The Dither plug-in features a technique known as noise shaping to further improve audio performance and reduce perceived noise in lowlevel signals. Noise shaping utilizes ﬁltering to reduce noise that falls in the middle of the audio spectrum (speciﬁcally, around 4 kHz). This is the range where human hearing is most sensitive.

In reality, since the noise plays an important role in reducing quantization artifacts, the noise is not reduced, rather it is shifted into a frequency range where it is harder to hear. Essentially, noise shaping lessens our perception of the noise inherent in dithering schemes by shifting audible noise components into a less audible range.

Dither and Output Bit Resolution

Dither has two user-selectable settings for optimizing its operation:

Bit Resolution

Use this pop-up menu to choose one of three possible resolutions for the Dither processing. As a general rule, set this control to the maximum bit resolution of your destination.

16-bit Recommended for output to digital devices such as DAT recorders and CD recorders, since they have a maximum resolution of 16bits.

18-bit Recommended for output to analog devices if you are using an 18-bit audio interface, such as the 888 I/O or 882 I/O audio interface; this is the maximum resolution available from the 18-bit digital-to-analog convertors of these devices.

20-bit Recommended for output to digital devices that support a full 20-bit recording data path, such the Sony PCM-9000 optical mastering recorder, or the Alesis ADAT XT 20. Use this setting for output to analog devices if you are using a 20-bit audio interface, such as the 882|20 I/O audio interface. The 20-bit setting can also be used for output to digital effects devices that support 20-bit input and output, since it provides for a lower noise floor and greater dynamic range when mixing 20-bit signals directly into the TDM environment.

If you want, you can choose not to use the Dither plug-in and instead utilize the full 24-bit resolution of Pro Tools’ digital output, depending on your destination device. If you are using a 24-bit audio interface (such as the 192 I/O, 96 I/O, or 888|24 I/O) and are outputting audio to an analog destination, we recommend that you do not use dither.

The DigiRack Dither plug-in only provides eight channels of uncorrelated dithering noise. If DigiRack Dither is used on more than eight tracks, the dithering noise begins to repeat and dither performance is impaired. For example, if two Quad DigiRack Dithers are used, both Quad instances of Dither will have all of their dither noise uncorrelated. However, any additional instances of the Dither plug-in will begin to repeat the dithering noise.

Noise Shaping

This button engages or disengages Noise Shaping. Noise shaping is on when the button is highlighted in blue. See “Noise Shaping” on page 60 for more information.

Refer to the Pro Tools Reference Guide details on using the Dither plug-in during mixdown.

for

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide60

POW-r Dither

(Pro Tools HD and Pro Tools LE Only)

The POW-r Dither plug-in is an advanced type of dither that provides optimized word length reduction. It is designed for ﬁnal-stage critical mixdown and mastering tasks where the highest possible ﬁdelity is desired when reducing bit depth. For more information on dithering, see “Dither” on page 59.

POW-r Dither plug-in

The POW-r Dither plug-in does not run on third party applications that use DAE.

The multichannel TDM version of the POW-r Dither plug-in is not supported at 192 kHz. Use the multi-mono TDM or RTAS version instead.

Noise Shaping

Noise shaping improves audio performance and lessens our perception of the noise inherent in dithering schemes by shifting audible noise components into a less audible range.

The POW-r Dither plug-in is not appropriate for truncation stages that are likely to be further processed. It is recommended that POW-r Dither be used only as the last insert in the signal chain (especially when using Type 1 Noise Shaping).

The POW-r Dither plug-in provides three types of noise shaping, each with its own characteristics. Try each noise shaping type and choose the one that adds the least amount of coloration to the audio being processed.

Type 1 Has the flattest frequency spectrum in the audible range of frequencies, modulating and accumulating the dither noise just below the Nyquist frequency. Recommended for less stereophonically complex material such as solo instrument recordings.

Type 2 Has a psychoacoustically optimized low order noise shaping curve. Recommended for material of greater stereophonic complexity.

POW-r Dither Controls

Bit Resolution

Use this pop-up menu to choose either 16- or 20-bit resolutions for POW-r Dither processing. Set this control to the maximum bit resolution of your destination.

16-bit Recommended for output to devices with a maximum resolution of 16-bits, such as DAT and CD recorders.

20-bit Recommended for output to devices that support a full 20-bit recording data path.

Type 3 Has a psychoacoustically optimized high order noise shaping curve. Recommended for full-spectrum, wide-stereo field material.

Refer to the Pro Tools Reference Guide for details on using the Dither plug-in.

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 61

D-Verb

D-Verb is a studio-quality reverb provided in TDM, RTAS, and AudioSuite formats.

The TDM version of the D-Verb plug-in is not supported at 192 kHz; use the RTAS version instead.

D-Verb Controls

Clip Indicator

The Clip Indicator shows if clipping has occurred. It is a clip-hold indicator. If clipping occurs at any time during audio playback, the clip lights remain on. To clear the clip indicator, click it. With longer reverb times there is a greater likelihood of clipping occurring as the feedback element of the reverb builds up and approaches a high output level. See also “Clip Indicators” on page 22.

Input Level

The Input Level slider adjusts the input volume of the reverb to prevent the possibility of clipping and/or increase the level of the processed signal.

Mix

The Mix slider adjusts the balance between the dry signal and the effected signal, giving you control over the depth of the effect. This control is adjustable from 100% to 0%.

D-Verb plug-in

Output Meter

The Output Meter indicates the output level of the processed signal. With the stereo version of D-verb, it represents the summed stereo output. It is important to note that this meter indicates the output level of the signal—not the input level. If this meter clips, it is possible that the signal clipped on input before it reached D-Verb. Monitor your send or insert signal levels closely to help prevent this from happening.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide62

Algorithm

This control selects one of seven reverb algorithms: Hall, Church, Plate, Room 1, Room 2, Ambience, or Nonlinear. Selecting an algorithm changes the preset provided for it. Switching the Size setting changes characteristics of the algorithm that are not altered by adjusting the decay time and other user-adjustable controls. Each of the seven algorithms has a distinctly different character:

Hall A good general purpose concert hall with a natural character. It is useful over a large range of size and decay times and with a wide range of program material. Setting Decay to its maximum value will produce infinite reverberation.

Church A dense, diffuse space simulating a church or cathedral with a long decay time, high diffusion, and some pre-delay.

Plate Simulates the acoustic character of a metal plate-based reverb. This type of reverb typically has high initial diffusion and a relatively bright sound, making it particularly good for certain percussive signals and vocal processing. Plate reverb has the general effect of thickening the initial sound itself.

Diffusion

Diffusion sets the degree to which initial echo density increases over time. High settings result in high initial build-up of echo density. Low settings cause low initial buildup. This control interacts with the Size and Decay controls to affect the overall reverb density. High settings of diffusion can be used to enhance percussion. Use low or moderate settings for clearer and more natural-sounding vocals and mixes.

Room 1 A medium-sized, natural, rich-sounding room that can be effectively varied in size between very small and large, with good results.

Room 2 A smaller, brighter reverberant characteristic than Room 1, with a useful adjustment range that extends to “very small.”

Ambient A transparent response that is useful for adding a sense of space without adding a lot of depth or density. Extreme settings can create interesting results.

Nonlinear Produces a reverberation with a natural buildup and an abrupt cutoff similar to a gate. This unnatural decay characteristic is particularly useful on percussion, since it can add an aggressive characteristic to sounds with strong attacks.

Size

The Size control, in conjunction with the Algorithm control, adjusts the overall size of the reverberant space. There are three sizes: Small, Medium, and Large. The character of the reverberation changes with each of these settings (as does the relative value of the Decay setting). The Size buttons can be used to vary the range of a reverb from large to small. Generally, you should select an algorithm first, and then choose the size that approximates the size of the acoustic space that you are trying to create.

Decay

Decay controls the rate at which the reverb decays after the original direct signal stops. The value of the Decay setting is affected by the Size and Algorithm controls. This control can be set to infinity on most algorithms for infinite reverb times.

Pre-Delay

Determines the amount of time that elapses between the original audio event and the onset of reverberation. Under natural conditions, the amount of Pre-Delay depends on the size and construction of the acoustic space, and the relative position of the sound source and the listener. Pre-Delay attempts to duplicate this phenomenon and is used to create a sense of distance and volume within an acoustic space. Long Pre-Delay settings place the reverberant field behind rather than on top of the original audio signal.

Hi Frequency Cut

Hi Frequency Cut controls the decay characteristic of the high frequency components of the reverb. It acts in conjunction with the Low-Pass Filter control to create the overall high frequency contour of the reverb. When set rela-

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 63

tively low, high frequencies decay more quickly than low frequencies, simulating the effect of air absorption in a hall. The maximum value of this control is Off (which effectively means bypass).

Low-Pass Filter

Adjusting Dynamics III Controls

You can adjust Dynamics III plug-in controls by clicking and dragging the control’s slider or knob, or by typing a value into the control’s text box.

Low-Pass Filter controls the overall high frequency content of the reverb by setting the frequency above which a 6 dB per octave filter attenuates the processed signal. The maximum value of this control is Off (which effectively means bypass).

Dynamics III

Dynamics III provides three modules:

• Compressor/Limiter

• Expander/Gate

• De-Esser

All Dynamics III modules are available in TDM, RTAS, and AudioSuite formats.

Dynamics III supports 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz,

88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz and 192 kHz sample rates. Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate modules work with mono, stereo, and greater-than-stereo multichannel formats up to 7.1. The De-Esser module works with mono and stereo formats only.

In addition to standard controls in each module, Dynamics III also provides a graph to track the gain transfer curve in the Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate plug-ins, and a frequency graph to display which frequencies trigger the De-Esser and which frequencies will be gain reduced.

Editing Parameters Using a Mouse

You can adjust rotary controls by clicking and dragging horizontally or vertically. Parameter values increase as you drag upward or to the right, and decrease as you drag downward or to the left.

Dragging a plug-in control

Keyboard Shortcuts

◆ For ﬁner adjustments, Control-drag (Win-

dows) or Command-drag (Mac) the control.

◆ To return a control to its default value, Alt-

click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac) the control.

Typing Control Values

You can enter control values directly by clicking in the corresponding text box, typing a value, and pressing Enter (Windows) or Return (Mac).

Typing a control value

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide64

Editing Parameters Using a Computer Keyboard

Some controls have text boxes that display the current value of the parameter. You can edit the numeric value of a parameter with your computer keyboard.

If multiple Plug-in windows are open, Tab and keyboard entry remain focused on the plug-in that is the target window.

Enabling Buttons

To enable a button, click it.

Using a Control Surface

Dynamics III can be controlled from any supported control surface, interface, and worksurface. Refer to the appropriate controller product guide for more information.

To change control values with a computer keyboard:

1 Click on the text box corresponding to the

control that you want to adjust.

2 Change the value by doing one of the follow-

ing:

• To increase a value, press the Up Arrow on your keyboard. To decrease a value, press the Down Arrow on your keyboard.

– or –

• Type the desired value.

In fields that support values in kilohertz, typing “k” after a number value will multiply the value by 1,000. For example, type “8k” to enter a value of 8,000.

3 Do one of the following:

• Press Enter on the numeric keyboard to input the value and remain in keyboard editing mode.

– or –

• Press Enter on the alpha keyboard (Windows) or Return (Mac) to enter the value and leave keyboard editing mode.

To move forward through the different control fields, press the Tab key. To move backward, press Shift+Tab.

Shared Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate Features

The following parts of the user interface are shared between the Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate Dynamics III plug-ins.

Levels Section

This indicator let you track input, output, and gain reduction levels, as well as work with phase invert and the threshold setting.

See “De-Esser Levels Section” on page 75 for more information on De-Esser III Input/Output Level controls.

Phase Invert

Input

meter

Peak hold indicators

Threshold

arrow

I/O Meter display (stereo instance shown)

Output meter

Gain Reduction meter

Peak hold indicators

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 65

Input and Output Meters

Gain Reduction Meter

The Input and Output meters show peak signal levels before and after dynamics processing:

Green Indicates nominal levels.

Yellow Indicates pre-clipping levels, starting at

–6 dB below full scale.

Red Indicates full scale levels (clipping).

The clip indicators at the top of the Output meters indicate clipping at the input or output stage of the plug-in. Clip indicators can be cleared by clicking the indicator.

The Input and Output meters display differently depending on the type of track (mono, stereo, or multichannel) on which the plugin has been inserted.

When Side-Chain Listen is enabled, the Output meter only displays the levels of the side-chain signal. See “Side-Chain Listen” on page 77.

Toggling Multichannel Input and Output Meters

With multichannel track types LCRS and higher, both Input Level and Output Level meters cannot be shown at the same time. Click either the Input or Output Meter button to display the appropriate level meter. The Input/Output level meters display is toggled to Output by default.

The Gain Reduction meter indicates the amount the input signal is attenuated (in dB) and shows different colors during dynamics processing:

Light Orange Indicates that gain reduction is within the “knee” and has not reached the full ratio of compression.

Dark Orange Indicates that gain reduction is being applied at the full ratio (for example, 2:1).

Threshold Arrow

The orange Threshold arrow next to the Input meter indicates the current threshold, and can be dragged up or down to adjust the threshold. When a multichannel instance of the plug-in has been configured to show only the Output meter, the Threshold arrow is not displayed.

Phase Invert

The Phase Invert button inverts the phase (polarity) of the input signal, to help compensate for phase anomalies that can occur either in multi-microphone environments or because of mis-wired balanced connections.

Input and

Output Meter

buttons

Input and Output meter buttons

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide66

LFE Enable

(Pro Tools HD Systems Only)

The LFE Enable button (located in the Options section) is on by default, and enables plug-in processing of the LFE (low frequency effects) channel on a multichannel track formatted for

5.1, 6.1, or 7.1 surround formats.

Use this graph as a visual guideline to see how much dynamics processing you are applying.

Threshold

Output signal level (y-axis)

LFE Enable button (Compressor/Limiter III shown)

To disable LFE processing, deselect this button.

The LFE Enable button is not available if the plug-in is not inserted on an applicable track.

Dynamics Graph Display

The Dynamics Graph display—used with the Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate plugins—shows a curve that represents the level of the input signal (on the x–axis) and the level of the output signal (on the y–axis). The orange vertical line represents the threshold.

Input signal

level (x-axis)

Dynamics graph display

The Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate plug-ins also feature an animated, multi-color cursor in their gain transfer curve displays.

The gain transfer curve of the Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate plug-ins shows a moving ball cursor that shows the amount of input gain (x-axis) and gain reduction (y-axis) being applied to the incoming signal.

Gain transfer curve and cursor showing amount of compression

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 67

To indicate overshoots (when an incoming signal peak is too fast for the current compression setting) the cursor temporarily leaves the gain transfer curve.

The cursor changes color to indicate the amount of compression applied, as follows:

Dynamics III Plug-in Compression Amount

Cursor Color Compression Amount

white no compression

light orange below full ratio

Compressor/Limiter III

dark orange full ratio amount

See “De-Esser Frequency Graph Display” on page 76 for information on using the DeEsser’s graph display.

Side-Chain Section

For information on using the Side-Chain section of the Compressor/Limiter or Expander/Gate, see “Using the Side-Chain Input in Dynamics III” on page 76.

Compressor/Limiter III

The Compressor/Limiter plug-in applies either compression or limiting to audio material, depending on the ratio of compression used.

About Compression

Compression reduces the dynamic range of signals that exceed a chosen threshold by a specific amount. The Threshold control sets the level that the signal must exceed to trigger compression. The Attack control sets how quickly the compressor responds to the “front” of an audio signal once it crosses the selected threshold. The Release control sets the amount of time that it takes for the compressor’s gain to return to its original level after the input signal drops below the selected threshold.

To use compression most effectively, the attack time should be set so that signals exceed the threshold level long enough to cause an increase in the average level. This helps ensure that gain reduction does not decrease the overall volume too drastically, or eliminate desired attack transients in the program material.

Of course, compression has many creative uses that break these rules.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide68

About Limiting

Compressor/Limiter III Controls

Limiting prevents signal peaks from ever exceeding a chosen threshold, and is generally used to prevent short-term peaks from reaching their full amplitude. Used judiciously, limiting produces higher average levels, while avoiding overload (clipping or distortion), by limiting only some short-term transients in the source audio. To prevent the ear from hearing the gain changes, extremely short attack and release times are used.

Limiting is used to remove only occasional peaks because gain reduction on successive peaks would be noticeable. If audio material contains many peaks, the threshold should be raised and the gain manually reduced so that only occasional, extreme peaks are limited.

Limiting generally begins with the ratio set at 10:1 and higher. Large ratios effectively limit the dynamic range of the signal to a specific value by setting an absolute ceiling for the dynamic range.

This section describes controls for the Compressor/Limiter plug-in.

Input/Output Level Meters

The Input and Output meters show peak signal levels before and after dynamics processing. See “Levels Section” on page 65 for more information.

Unlike scales on analog compressors, metering scales on a digital device reflect a 0 dB value that indicates full scale (fs)—the full-code signal level. There is no headroom above 0 dB.

Compressor/Limiter Graph Display

The Dynamics Graph display lets you visually see how much expansion or gating you are applying to your audio material. See “Dynamics Graph Display” on page 67.

Threshold

The Threshold control sets the level that an input signal must exceed to trigger compression or limiting. Signals that exceed this level will be compressed. Signals that are below it will be unaffected.

This control has an approximate range of –60 dB to 0 dB, with a setting of 0 dB equivalent to no compression or limiting. The default value for the Threshold control is –24 dB.

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 69

An orange arrow on the Input meter indicates the current threshold, and can also be dragged up or down to adjust the threshold setting.

Threshold

arrow

Attack

The Attack control sets the attack time, or the rate at which gain is reduced after the input signal crosses the threshold.

The smaller the value, the faster the attack. The faster the attack, the more rapidly the Compressor/Limiter applies attenuation to the signal. If you use fast attack times, you should generally use a proportionally longer release time, particularly with material that contains many peaks in close proximity.

Threshold arrow on input meter

The Dynamics Graph display also shows the threshold as an orange vertical line.

Threshold

Threshold indicator on Dynamics Graph display

This control ranges from –60 dB (lowest gain) to 0 dB (highest gain).

Ratio

The Ratio control sets the compression ratio, or the amount of compression applied as the input signal exceeds the threshold. For example, a 2:1 compression ratio means that a 2 dB increase of level above the threshold produces a 1 db increase in output.

This control ranges from 10 μs (fastest attack time) to 300 ms (slowest attack time).

Release

The Release control sets the length of time it takes for the Compressor/Limiter to be fully deactivated after the input signal drops below the threshold.

Release times should be set long enough that if signal levels repeatedly rise above the threshold, the gain reduction “recovers” smoothly. If the release time is too short, the gain can rapidly fluctuate as the compressor repeatedly tries to recover from the gain reduction. If the release time is too long, a loud section of the audio material could cause gain reduction that continues through soft sections of program material without recovering.

This control ranges from 5 ms (fastest release time) to 4 seconds (slowest release time).

This control ranges from 1:1 (no compression) to 100:1 (hard limiting).

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide70

Knee

Gain

The Knee control sets the rate at which the compressor reaches full compression once the threshold has been exceeded.

As you increase this control, it goes from applying “hard-knee” compression to “soft-knee” compression:

• With hard-knee compression, compression begins when the input signal exceeds the threshold. This can sound abrupt and is ideal for limiting.

• With soft-knee compression, gentle compression begins and increases gradually as the input signal approaches the threshold, and reaches full compression after exceeding the threshold. This creates smoother compression.

The Gain control lets you boost overall output gain to compensate for heavily compressed or limited signals.

This control ranges from 0 dB (no gain boost) to +40 dB (loudest gain boost), with the default value at 0 dB.

For more information on the LFE channel, refer to the Pro Tools Reference Guide.

Side-Chain Section

The side-chain is the split-off signal used by the plug-in’s detector to trigger dynamics processing. The Side-Chain section lets you toggle the side-chain between the internal input signal or an external key input, and tailor the equalization of the side-chain signal so that the triggering of dynamics processing becomes frequencysensitive. See “Using the Side-Chain Input in Dynamics III” on page 76.

Hard knee Soft knee

Graph examples of hard and soft knee compression

For example, a Knee setting of 10 dB would be the gain range over which the ratio gradually increased to the set ratio amount.

The Gain Reduction meter displays light orange while gain reduction has not exceeded the knee setting, and switches to dark orange when gain reduction reaches the full ratio.

This control ranges from 0 db (hardest response) to 30 db (softest response).

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 71

Expander/Gate III

The Expander/Gate plug-in applies expansion or gating to audio material, depending on the ratio setting.

Expander/Gate III Controls

This section describes controls for the Expander/Gate plug-in.

Input/Output Level Meters

The Input and Output meters show peak signal levels before and after dynamics processing. See “Levels Section” on page 65 for more information.

Expander/Gate Dynamics Graph Display

The Dynamics Graph display lets you visually see how much expansion or gating you are applying to your audio material. See “Dynamics Graph Display” on page 67.

Look Ahead Button

About Expansion

Expansion decreases the gain of signals that fall below a chosen threshold. They are particularly useful for reducing noise or signal leakage that creeps into recorded material as its level falls, as often occurs in the case of headphone leakage.

About Gating

Gating silences signals that fall below a chosen threshold. To enable gating, simply set the Ratio and Range controls to their maximum values.

Expanders can be thought of as soft noise gates since they provide a gentler way of reducing noisy low-level signals than the typically abrupt cutoff of a gate.

Normally, dynamics processing begins when the level of the input signal crosses the threshold. When the Look Ahead button is enabled, dynamics processing begins 2 milliseconds before the level of the input signal crosses the threshold.

Look Ahead control

The Look Ahead control is useful for avoiding the loss of transients that may have been otherwise cut off or trimmed in a signal.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide72

Threshold

Ratio

The Threshold control sets the level below which an input signal must fall to trigger expansion or gating. Signals that fall below the threshold will be reduced in gain. Signals that are above it will be unaffected.

An orange arrow on the Input meter indicates the current threshold, and can also be dragged up or down to adjust the threshold setting.

Threshold

arrow

Threshold arrow on Input meter

The Dynamics Graph display also shows the threshold as an orange vertical line.

The Ratio control sets the amount of expansion. For example, if this is set to 2:1, it will lower signals below the threshold by one half. At higher ratio levels (such as 30:1 or 40:1) the Expander/Gate functions like a gate by cutting off signals that fall below the threshold. As you adjust the ratio control, refer to the built-in graph to see how the shape of the expansion curve changes.

This control ranges from 1:1 (no expansion) to 100:1 (gating).

Attack

The Attack control sets the attack time, or the rate at which gain is reduced after the input signal crosses the threshold. Use this along with the Ratio setting to control how soft the Expander’s gain reduction curve is.

This control ranges from 10 μs (fastest attack time) to 300 ms (slowest attack time).

Hold

Threshold

Threshold indicator on Dynamics Graph display

This control has an approximate range of –60 dB to 0 dB, with a setting of 0 dB equivalent to no compression or limiting. The default value for the Threshold control is –24 dB.

The Hold control speciﬁes the duration (in seconds or milliseconds) during which the Expander/Gate will stay in effect after the initial attack occurs. This can be used as a function to keep the Expander/Gate in effect for longer periods of time with a single crossing of the threshold. It can also be used to prevent gate chatter that may occur if varying input levels near the threshold cause the gate to close and open very rapidly.

This control ranges from 5 ms (shortest hold) to 4 seconds (longest hold).

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 73

Release

The Release control sets how long it takes for the gate to close after the input signal falls below the threshold level and the hold time has passed.

This control ranges from 5 ms (fastest release time) to 4 seconds (slowest release time).

Range

The Range control sets the depth of the Expander/Gate when closed. Setting the gate to higher range levels allows more and more of the gated audio that falls below the threshold to peek through the gate at all times.

This control ranges from –80 dB (lowest depth) to 0 dB (highest depth).

Side-Chain Section

See “Using the Side-Chain Input in Dynamics III” on page 76.

De-Esser III

The De-Esser reduces sibilants and other high frequency noises that can occur in vocals, voiceovers, and wind instruments such as flutes. These sounds can cause peaks in an audio signal and lead to distortion.

The De-Esser reduces these unwanted sounds using fast-acting compression. A Threshold control sets the level above which compression starts, and a Frequency control sets the frequency band in which the De-Esser operates.

Using De-essing Effectively

To use de-essing most effectively, insert the DeEsser after compressor or limiter plug-ins.

The Frequency control should be set to remove sibilants (typically the 4–10 kHz range) and not other parts of the signal. This helps prevent deessing from changing the original character of the audio material in an undesired manner.

Similarly, the Range control should be set to a dB level low enough so that de-essing is triggered only by sibilants. If the Range is set too high, a loud, non-sibilant section of audio material could cause unwanted gain reduction or cause sibilants to be over-attenuated.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide74

To improve de-essing of material that has both very loud and very soft passages, automate the Range control so that it is lower on soft sections.

The De-Esser has no control to directly adjust the threshold level (the level that an input signal must exceed to trigger de-essing). The amount of de-essing will vary with the input signal.

De-Esser III Controls

This section describes controls for the De-Esser plug-in.

The clip indicators at the top of each meter indicate clipping at the input or output stage of the plug-in. Clip indicators can be cleared by clicking the indicator.

Gain Reduction Meter

The Gain Reduction meter indicates the amount the input signal is attenuated, in dB. This meter shows different colors during de-essing:

Light Orange Indicates that gain reduction is being applied, but has not reached the maximum level set by the Range control.

De-Esser Levels Section

These controls let you track input, output, and gain reduction levels.

Input

meter

De-Esser III I/O Meter display

Output meter

Gain Reduction meter

Input and Output Meters

The Input and Output meters show peak signal levels before and after dynamics processing:

Green Indicates nominal levels.

Yellow Indicates pre-clipping levels, starting at

–6 dB below full scale.

Dark Orange Indicates that gain reduction has reached the maximum level set by the Range control.

Frequency

The Frequency control sets the frequency band in which the De-Esser operates. When HF Only is disabled, gain is reduced in frequencies within the specified range. When HF Only is enabled, the gain of frequencies above the specified value will be reduced.

This control ranges from 500 Hz (lowest frequency) to 16 kHz (highest frequency).

Range

The Range control defines the maximum amount of gain reduction possible when a signal is detected at the frequency set by the Frequency control.

This control ranges from –40 dB (maximum deessing) to 0 dB (no de-essing).

Red Indicates full scale levels (clipping).

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 75

HF Only

When the HF Only button is enabled, gain reduction is applied only to the active frequency band set by the Frequency control. When the HF Only button is disabled, the De-Esser applies gain reduction to the entire signal.

Use this graph as a visual guideline to see how much dynamics processing you are applying at different points in the frequency spectrum.

Current gain

reduction

Frequency

Listen

When enabled, the Listen button lets you monitor the sibilant peaks used by the De-Esser as a side-chain to trigger compression. This is useful for listening only to the sibilance for fine-tuning De-Esser controls. To monitor the whole output signal without this filtering, deselect the Listen button.

De-Esser Frequency Graph Display

The De-Esser Frequency Graph display shows a curve that represents the level of gain reduction (on the y-axis) for the range of the output signal's frequency (on the x-axis). The white line represents the current Frequency setting, and the animated orange line represents the level of gain reduction being applied to the signal.

Gain

(y-axis)

Frequency

(x-axis)

De-Esser graph display

Range

Using the Side-Chain Input in Dynamics III

(Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate Only)

Dynamics processors typically use the detected amplitude of their input signal to trigger gain reduction. This split-off signal is known as the side-chain. The Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate plug-ins feature external key capabilities and filters for the side-chain.

With external key side-chain processing, you trigger dynamics processing using an external signal (such as a separate reference track or audio source) instead of the input signal. This external source is known as the key input.

In Pro Tools TDM 6.9.x and lower, RTAS plug-ins do not provide external key sidechain processing. If you want to use sidechain processing, use the TDM versions of plug-ins on Pro Tools|HD systems.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide76

With side-chain filters, you can make dynamics

processing more or less sensitive to certain frequencies. For example, you might configure the side-chain so that certain lower frequencies on a drum track trigger dynamics processing.

Side-Chain Section

The Side-Chain section lets you toggle the sidechain between the internal input signal or an external key input, listen to the side-chain, and tailor the equalization of the side-chain signal so that the triggering of dynamics processing becomes frequency-sensitive.

External Key Side-Chain Listen

HF Filter Enable

Side-Chain Listen

When enabled, this control lets you listen to the internal or external side-chain input by itself, as well as monitor its levels with the Output meter. This is especially useful for fine-tuning the plugin’s filter settings or external key input.

Side-Chain Listen is not saved with other plug-in settings.

HF and LF Filter Enable Buttons

The HF Filter Enable and LF Filter Enable buttons toggle the corresponding filter in or out of the side-chain. When this button is highlighted, the filter is applied to the side-chain signal. When this button is dark grey, the filter is bypassed and available for activation.

ow-

Pass

Frequency

Control

LF Filter Enable

Compressor/Limiter and Expander/Gate Side-Chain

External Key

The External Key toggles external side-chain processing on or off. When this button is highlighted, the plug-in uses the amplitude of a separate reference track or external audio source to trigger dynamics processing. When this button is dark grey, the External Key is disabled and the plug-in uses the amplitude of the input signal to trigger dynamics processing.

Band-

Pass

Band-

Pass

HighPass

HF and LF Filter Side-Chain

Frequency

HF Filter Enable

LF Filter Enable

High-Frequency (HF) Filter Type

The HF filter section lets you filter higher frequencies out of the side-chain signal so that only certain bands of high frequencies or lower frequencies pass through to trigger dynamics processing. The HF side-chain filter is switchable between Band-Pass and Low-Pass filters.

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 77

Band-Pass Filter Makes triggering of dynamics processing more sensitive to frequencies within the narrow band centered around the Frequency setting, and rolling off at a slope of 12 dB per octave.

Low-Pass Filter Makes triggering of dynamics processing more sensitive to frequencies below the Frequency setting rolling off at a slope of 12 dB per octave.

HF Frequency Control

The Frequency control sets the frequency position for the Band-Pass or Low-Pass filter, and ranges from 80 Hz to 20 kHz.

Low-Frequency (LF) Filter Type

The LF filter section lets you filter lower frequencies out of the side-chain signal so that only certain bands of low frequencies or higher frequencies are allowed to pass through to trigger dynamics processing. The LF side-chain is switchable between Band-Pass and High-Pass filters.

Using an External Key Input for SideChain Processing

To use a ﬁltered or unﬁltered external key input to trigger dynamics processing:

1 Click the Key Input selector and select the in-

put or bus carrying the audio from the reference track or external audio source.

Selecting a Key Input

2 Click External Key to activate external side-

chain processing.

External Key Side-Chain Listen

Band-Pass Filter Makes triggering of dynamics processing more sensitive to frequencies within the narrow band centered around the Frequency setting, and rolling off at a slope of 12 dB per octave.

High-Pass Filter Makes triggering of dynamics processing more sensitive to frequencies above the Frequency setting rolling off at a slope of 12 dB per octave.

LF Frequency Control

The Frequency control sets the frequency position for the Band-Pass or High-Pass filter, and ranges from 25 Hz to 4 kHz.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide78

Side-Chain section

3 To listen to the signal that will be used to con-

trol side-chain input, click Side-Chain Listen to enable it (highlighted).

4 To ﬁlter the key input so that only speciﬁc fre-

quencies trigger the plug-in, use the HF and LF controls to select the desired frequency range.

5 Begin playback. The plug-in uses the input or

bus that you chose as an external key input to trigger its effect.

6 Adjust the plug-in’s Threshold control to ﬁne-

tune external key input triggering.

7 Adjust other controls to achieve the desired ef-

fect.

Using a Filtered Input Signal for SideChain Processing

To use the ﬁltered input signal to trigger dynamics processing:

1 Ensure the Key Input selector is set to No Key

Input.

Key Input selector

2 Ensure that the External Key button is dis-

abled (dark grey).

External Key Side-Chain Listen

Mod Delay II

Mod Delay II plug-in (Long Delay shown)

Side-Chain section

3 To listen to the signal that will be used to con-

trol side-chain input, click Side-Chain Listen to enable it (highlighted).

4 To ﬁlter the side-chain input so that only spe-

ciﬁc frequencies within the input signal trigger the plug-in, use the HF and LF controls to select the desired frequency range.

5 Begin playback. The plug-in uses the ﬁltered

input signal to trigger dynamics processing.

6 To ﬁne-tune side-chain triggering, adjust the

plug-in controls.

Dynamics II

For information, see the DigiRack Legacy Plug-ins Guide.

There are five different Mod Delay II plug-ins, capable of different maximum delay times:

• The Short Delay provides 43 ms of delay at all sample rates.

• The Slap Delay provides 171 ms of delay at all sample rates.

Short Delay and Slap Delay do not have Tempo, Meter, Duration, and Groove controls.

• The Medium Delay provides 341 ms of delay at all sample rates.

• The Long Delay provides 683 ms of delay at all sample rates.

• The Extra Long Delay provides 2.73 seconds of delay at all sample rates.

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 79

The TDM versions of the Extra Long Delay mono-to-stereo and stereo plug-in are not supported at 96 kHz. All TDM versions of the Extra Long Delay plug-in are not supported at 192 kHz. RTAS versions of the Extra Long Delay plug-in are fully supported at all sample rates.

Mod Delay II Controls

Input Controls the input volume of the delay to prevent clipping.

Mix Controls the balance between the delayed signal (wet) and the original signal (dry). If you are using a delay for flanging or chorusing, you can control the depth of the effect somewhat with the Mix setting.

Tempo Sync Tempo Sync provides a direct connection between session tempo and plug-in parameters that support MIDI Beat Clock. This direct connection lets plug-in parameters such as delay, auto-pan, and other time-domain effects automatically synchronize to, and follow changes in, session tempo. For plug-ins that do not support Tempo Sync, the original MIDI Beat Clock window (Setup > MIDI > MIDI Beat Clock) remains available in Pro Tools.

Tempo Sync is not available in plug-ins with which it would limit functionality. For example, for the Virus Indigo and IndigoV40 plug-in, use the Pro Tools MIDI Beat Clock window (Setup > MIDI > MIDI Beat Clock). See the Pro Tools Reference Guide for more information.

LPF (Low-Pass Filter) Controls the cutoff frequency of the Low-Pass Filter. Use the LPF setting to attenuate the high frequency content of the feedback signal. The lower the setting, the more high frequencies are attenuated. The maximum value for LPF is Off. This lets the signal pass through without limiting the bandwidth of the plug-in.

Delay Sets the delay time between the original signal and the delayed signal.

Depth Controls the depth of the modulation applied to the delayed signal.

Rate Controls the rate of modulation of the delayed signal.

Feedback Controls the amount of feedback applied from the output of the delay back into its input. It also controls the number of repetitions of the delayed signal. Negative feedback settings give a more intense “tunnel-like” sound to ﬂanging effects.

For more information, see “Tempo Sync” on page 23.

Tempo Available in some plug-ins that do not support Tempo Sync, Tempo selects the desired tempo in beats per minute (bpm). This setting is independent of Pro Tools’ tempo. When a specific Duration is selected (see “Duration” below), moving this control will affect the Delay setting. Likewise, the range of both controls will be limited to the maximum available delay with the currently selected Duration. To enter very short or long delays it may be necessary to deselect all Duration buttons.

Use Event > Identify Beat or Event > Beat Detective to determine the tempo. For more information about Identify Beat and Beat Detective refer to the Pro Tools Reference Guide.

Meter Use this to enter either simple or compound time signatures. The Meter control defaults to a 4/4 time signature.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide80

Duration Specifies a desired delay from a musical perspective. Enter the desired delay by selecting appropriate note value (whole note, half note, quarter note, eight note, or sixteenth note). Select the Dot or Triplet modifier buttons to dot the selected note value or make it a triplet. For example, selecting a quarter note and then selecting the dot indicates a dotted quarter note, and selecting an eighth note and then selecting the triplet indicates a triplet eight note.

Duration

Tempo, Meter, Duration, and Groove controls

Groove Provides fine adjustment of the delay in percentages of a 1:4 subdivision of the beat. It can be used to add “swing” by slightly offsetting the delay from the precise beat of the track.

Dot modifierTriplet modifier

It is not possible to exceed the maximum delay length for a particular version of Mod Delay II. Consequently, when adjusting any of the tempo controls (Tempo, Meter, Duration, and Groove) you may not be able to adjust the control across its full range. If you encounter this behavior, switch to a version of Mod Delay II that has a longer delay time (for example, switch from Medium Delay to Long Delay).

Multichannel Mod Delay II

The Tempo and Meter controls are linked on multichannel versions of Mod Delay II. Each channel has its own Duration and Groove controls, but the Tempo and Meter controls are global.

Tempo, Meter, Duration, and Groove controls for a stereo instance of Mod Delay II

Signal Generator

The Signal Generator plug-in produces audio test tones in a variety of frequencies, waveforms, and amplitudes. It is particularly useful for generating reference signals with which to calibrate Pro Tools|HD interfaces (such as the 96 I/O or 192 I/O) and other elements of your studio.

Refer to the Pro Tools|HD Getting Started Guide for instructions on using Signal Generator to calibrate the 96 I/O, or 192 I/O audio interfaces, as well as older audio interfaces.

Signal Generator plug-in

The TDM Signal Generator produces a tone as soon as it is inserted on a track. To mute the Signal Generator, use the Bypass button. When using the RTAS version of Signal Generator, start playback to generate.

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 81

Signal Generator Controls

Frequency Sets the frequency of the signal in hertz. Values range from a low of 20 Hz to a high of 20 kHz in a 44.1 kHz session. The upper limit of the frequency range for this setting will increase to match the Nyquist frequency (half the sample rate) in 96 kHz and 192 kHz sessions (HD-series systems only).

Level Sets the amplitude of the signal in decibels. Values range from a low of –95 dB to a high of 0.0 dB.

SurroundScope

(Pro Tools HD Only)

SurroundScope is a plug-in that provides surround metering for multichannel track types from 3 channels (LCR) to 8 channels (7.1 surround). Stereo and mono tracks are not supported.

This version of SurroundScope is compatible with sessions that used the previous versions of SurroundScope.

Signal These buttons select the waveform. Choices are sine, square, sawtooth, triangle, white noise, and pink noise.

The Signal Generator plug-in is not intended for rigorous test purposes; it is a simple level calibration tool.

Peak Generates signal at the maximum possible level without clipping.

RMS Generates signal at levels consistent with the RMS (Root-Mean-Square) value, or the effective average level of the signal.

SignalTools

DigiRack SignalTools metering plug-ins provide two metering modules: SurroundScope and PhaseScope.

The SignalTools plug-ins support TDM and RTAS plug-in formats at all sample rates.

Surround DisplayMeters

Display Options Phase/Leq(A) Display

SurroundScope

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide82

Surround Display

PhaseScope

SurroundScope detects the multi-channel format of the track and displays each channel in the signal in a circle around the Surround Display.

SurroundScope Surround Display (5.0 shown)

The Surround Display generates a composite image that indicates relative signal strength in the displayed channels.

◆ A circle in the center of the display indicates a

surround signal that is panned equally to all channels.

◆ An irregular shape that is closer to one side of

the display indicates that the channels on that side have a stronger signal.

◆ A teardrop shape that points toward a single

channel indicates that the signal is panned to that channel.

PhaseScope is a multichannel metering plug-in that provides signal level and phase information for stereo tracks only. (Mono and LCR or greater multichannel tracks are not supported.)

Meters

Display Options Phase/Leq(A) Display

PhaseScope

Lissajous Meter Display

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 83

Lissajous Meter Display

SignalTools Display Options

The PhaseScope Lissajous Meter displays the relationship between the amplitude and phase of a stereo signal, enabling you to monitor stereo imaging graphically.

A “Lissajous curve” (also known as a Lissajous figure or Bowditch curve) is a type of graph that is able to describe complex harmonic motion. To learn more, search the Web or your local library for information on its origins and its two principal developers, Jules Antoine Lissajous, and Nathaniel Bowditch.

Both SignalTools plug-ins offer two display options: Phase Meter Display and Leq(A) Meter Display.

To choose a display option:

■ Click the corresponding button in the Op-

tions section of the plug-in window.

SignalTools display options

Phase Meter Display

The Phase Meter indicates the phase coherency of two channels of a multi-channel signal.

SignalTools Phase Meter

The Phase Meter is green when the channels are positively out of phase (values from 0 to +1) and red when the channels are negatively out of phase (values from 0 to –1).

PhaseScope Lissajous Meter Display

The Lissajous Meter display is divided into four quadrants, with left and right channels arranged diagonally. When audio is panned predominantly to a particular speaker channel, a diagonal line appears, indicating the channel.

The Lissajous Meter displays in-phase material as a vertical line and out-of-phase material as a horizontal line.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide84

At the center or zero position, the signal is a perfect stereo image. At the +1 position, the signal is a perfect mono image. At the –1 position, the signal is 100% out of phase.

SurroundScope With SurroundScope you can select the two channels to compare by clicking the channel buttons around the Surround Display. Selected channels are indicated in blue.

Selecting SurroundScope channels for phase metering

PhaseScope With PhaseScope, the left and right channels are always compared.

Selecting Channels for Leq(A) Metering

SurroundScope With SurroundScope, you can

select any combination of channels for Leq(A) metering by clicking the channel buttons around the Surround Display. Selected channels are indicated in green.

Selecting SurroundScope channels for Leq (A) metering

Leq(A) Meter Display

The Leq(A) Meter display lets you view the true weighted average of the power level sent to any

channel or combination of channels (except the LFE channel) in a multichannel track.

The Leq(A) Meter display shows a floating average for the level over the interval chosen in the Window menu. For example, with a setting of 2 seconds, the display shows the average value for the most recent 2 seconds of audio playback.

SignalTools Leq(A) meter and controls

PhaseScope With PhaseScope, you can select either or both channel for Leq(A) metering by clicking the channel buttons in the corners of the Lissajous display. Selected channels are indicated in green.

Selecting PhaseScope channels for Leq(A) metering

Leq(A) Metering Controls

Window The Leq(A) window menu lets you

choose the length of time the signal is measured before an average value is calculated. Settings range from 1 second to 2 minutes.

When the Leq(A) meter is in INF (infinite) mode it is constantly averaging the signal without a floating averaging window.

Reset The Reset button lets you manually reset the start time of the Leq(A) measurement window.

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 85

Auto Reset When enabled, causes the start time of the Leq(A) measurement window to be automatically reset whenever playback starts in Pro Tools.

Hold on Stop When enabled, causes the Leq(A) measurement window timer to pause when playback stops, and resume when playback begins again.

Meter Types

Peak (Default meter type) Uses the metering scale in DigiRack EQ III and Dynamics III plugins.

RMS (Root Mean Square) was used in previous versions of the Digidesign SurroundScope plugin and uses the same “true” RMS metering scale.

In any of the Loop Transport modes, the measurement start time is automatically reset each time playback goes back to the beginning of the loop.

SignalTools Level Meters

The SignalTools plug-ins let you choose the type of metering to use. Each meter type has a different metering scale and response.

Meter Type selectorPeak Hold

selector

Reference mark

The “true” RMS meter scale is not the same as the AES 17 RMS scale. For a sine wave with a peak value of –20 dBFS, the “true” RMS meter will show a value of –23 dBFS. (The same sine wave will show a value of –20 dBFS on an AES 17 RMS meter.‚

Peak + RMS Uses a multi-color display to show both types of metering. Peak metering is shown in conventional green color, while RMS metering is shown in blue.

VU (Volume Unit) Uses AES standards for signal level indication.

BBC Uses IEC-IIa standards for signal level indication. This style of metering suppresses short duration peaks that would not affect broadcast program material. Reference calibration (4 dB) is –18 dBFS.

Nordic Uses IEC Type I standards for signal level indication and provides greater resolution for readings between –10 dBu and +4 dBu. Reference calibration (0 dB) is –18 dBFS.

SignalTools level meters

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide86

DIN Uses IEC Type I standards for signal level indication and provides greater resolution for readings between –10 dBu and +5 dBu. Reference calibration (–9 dB) is –18 dBFS.

VENUE Provides Peak metering behavior with a meter scale calibrated specifically for Digidesign VENUE systems. Reference calibration (0 dB) is –20 dBFS.

Meter values are always displayed on control surfaces in dBFS values, regardless of the Meter Type setting.

Meter Peak Hold Options

Each of the SignalTools plug-ins lets you choose the style of peak hold when peaks are shown in the plug-in meters.

3 Second Displays peak levels for 3 seconds

Inﬁnite Displays peak levels until meters are

cleared

No Peak Hold Does not display peak levels

Reference Mark Options

Each SignalTools meter type lets you adjust the level of the reference mark on the side of the meter display. The mark is set by default to the reference level for the corresponding meter type.

SignalTools meters also change color to show different ranges of level. The relative range of color automatically adjusts to follow the current Reference Mark setting in all meter types (except Peak+RMS).

To change the reference level of a SignalTools meter:

■ Drag the reference mark to a different location

on the meter scale.

Pitch

(Pro Tools HD Only)

The Pitch plug-in is designed for a variety of audio production applications ranging from pitch correction of musical material to sound design.

Pitch plug-in

Pitch processing uses the technique of varying sample playback rate to achieve pitch transposition. Because changing audio sample playback rate results in the digital equivalent of varispeeding with tape, this is an unsatisfactory method since it changes the overall duration of the material.

Pitch transposition with the Pitch plug-in involves a much more complex technique: digitally adding or subtracting portions of the audio waveform itself, while using de-glitching cross-

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 87

fades to minimize undesirable artifacts. The result is a processed signal that is transposed in pitch, but still retains the same overall length as the original, unprocessed signal.

of repetitions of the delayed signal. You can use it to produce effects that spiral up or down in pitch, with each successive echo shifted in pitch.

The Pitch plug-in was formerly called DPP-1. It is fully compatible with all settings and presets created for DPP-1.

Pitch Controls

Input Level Attenuates the input level of the Pitch plug-in to help prevent internal clipping.

Signal Present Indicator LED Indicates the presence of an input signal.

Clip Indicator Indicates whether clipping has occurred on output. It is a Clip-Hold Indicator. If clipping occurs at any time, the clip light will remain on. To clear the Clip Indicator, click it. Long delay times and high feedback times increase the likelihood of clipping.

Mix Adjusts the ratio of dry signal to effected signal in the output. In general, this control should be set to 100% wet, unless you are using the Pitch plug-in in-line on an Insert for an individual track or element in a mix. This control can be adjusted over its entire range with little or no change in output level.

Delay Sets the delay time between the original signal and the pitch-shifted signal. It has a maximum setting of 125 milliseconds. You can use the Delay control in conjunction with the Feedback control to generate a single pitch-shifted echo, or a series of echoes that climb in pitch.

Feedback Controls the amount and type of feedback (positive or negative) applied from the output of the delay portion of the Pitch plug-in back into its input. It also controls the number

Coarse Adjusts the pitch of a signal in semitones over a two octave range. Pitch changes are indicated both in the Semitones field and in the Musical Staff Relative section below this slider. Using the –8va and +8va buttons in conjunction with the Coarse slider provides a full 4-octave range of adjustment.

–8va and +8va Buttons Clicking the –8va button adjusts pitch down one octave from the current setting of the coarse and fine pitch controls. Clicking the +8va button adjusts pitch up one octave from the current setting of the coarse and fine pitch controls.

Relative Pitch Entry (Musical Staff)

Clicking on any note on this musical staff selects a relative pitch transposition value that will be applied to an audio signal. If Middle C is illuminated, it indicates that no pitch transposition has been selected. If a pitch transposition is selected, the note interval corresponding to the selected transposition value is indicated in yellow. Alt-clicking (Windows) or Option-clicking (Mac) on the staff will set the coarse pitch change value to zero.

Relative pitch entry

Fine Controls the pitch of a signal in cents (hun- dredths of a semitone) over a 100 cent range. The range of this slider is –49 to +50 cents. Precise Pitch change values are indicated in the Cents field. The flat, natural, and sharp signs below this slider indicate deviation from the nearest semitone.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide88

Ratio Indicates the ratio of transposition between the original pitch and the selected transposition value.

Crossfade Adjusts crossfade length in milliseconds to optimize performance of the Pitch plugin according to the type of audio material you are processing. The Pitch plug-in performs pitch transposition by replicating or subtracting portions of audio material and very quickly crossfading between these alterations in the waveform of the audio material.

Crossfade length affects the amount of smoothing performed on audio material to prevent audio artifacts such as clicks from occurring as the audio is looped to generate the pitch shift.

In general, small, narrow-range pitch shifts require longer crossfades and large shifts require smaller ones. The disadvantage of a long crossfade time is that it will smooth the signal, including any transients. While this is sometimes desirable for audio material such as vocals, it is not appropriate for material with sharp transients such as drums or percussion.

The default setting for this control is Auto. At this setting, crossfade times are set automatically, according to the settings of the Coarse and Fine pitch controls. The Auto setting is appropriate for most applications. However, you can manually adjust and optimize crossfade times using the Crossfade slider if necessary. For audio material with sharper attack transients, use shorter crossfade times. For audio material with softer attack transients, use longer crossfade times.

Minimum Pitch Sets the minimum fundamental pitch that the Pitch plug-in will recognize when performing pitch transposition. Use this to optimize the Pitch plug-in’s performance by adjusting this control based on the lowest fundamental pitch of the audio material that you want to process.

On audio material with a low fundamental pitch frequency content (such as an electric bass guitar) setting this control to a lower frequency such as 30 Hz will improve the Pitch plug-in’s performance. The most important thing to remember when using this control is that the fundamental frequency of audio material you want to process must be above the frequency you set here.

The range of this slider is from 15 Hz to 1000 Hz. The default setting is 60 Hz. Adjustment is tied to the current setting of the Maximum Pitch control so that the minimum range is never less than one octave, and the maximum range never more than five octaves.

Maximum Pitch Adjusts the maximum fundamental pitch that the Pitch plug-in will recognize when performing pitch transposition. To optimize the Pitch plug-in’s performance, adjust this setting (and the Minimum Pitch setting) based on the highest fundamental pitch of the audio material that you want to process. The range of this slider is from 30 Hz to 4000 Hz. The default setting is 240 Hz.

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 89

TimeAdjuster

The TimeAdjuster plug-in provides three functions:

• Compensation for delays due to TDM- or RTAS-based routing

• Gain compensation (+/– 24 dB)

• Phase inversion for correcting out-of-phase signals

TimeAdjuster plug-in

For special information on Delay Compensation and Time Adjuster, see the Pro Tools Reference Guide.

The TimeAdjuster plug-in is an efficient way to compensate for DSP or host-based processing delays in your Pro Tools system.

There are three versions of the TimeAdjuster plug-in, each of which supports different sample delay ranges:

Short Supports a maximum delay of 256 samples at all sample rates.

Medium Supports a maximum delay of 2048 samples at all sample rates.

Long Supports a maximum delay of 8192 samples at all sample rates.

TimeAdjuster Controls

Phase Invert Inverts the phase (polarity) of the input signal. While most Digidesign plug-ins supply a phase invert button of their own, some third-party plug-ins may not. Phase inversion is also useful for performing delay compensation by tuning unknown delay factors by ear (see “Using TimeAdjuster for Manual Delay Compensation” on page 91).

Gain Provides up to 24 dB of positive or negative gain adjustment. This control is useful for altering the gain of a signal by a large amount in real time. For example, when you are working with audio signals that are extremely low level, you may want to adjust the channel gain to a reasonable working range so that a fader is positioned at its optimum travel position. Use the Gain control to make a wide range of gain adjustment in real time without having to permanently process the audio ﬁles, as you would with an AudioSuite plug-in.

Delay Provides up to 8192 samples of delay compensation adjustment, or general adjustment of phase relationships of audio recorded with multiple microphones, depending on which version of TimeAdjuster is used. It defaults to a minimum delay of four samples, which is the delay created by use of the TimeAdjuster plug-in itself.

While phase inversion controls have been used for many years by engineers as creative tools for adjustment of frequency response between multiple microphones, sample-level delay adjustments provide far more control. Creative use of this control can provide a powerful tool for adjusting frequency response and timing relationships between audio signals recorded with multiple microphones.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide90

Using TimeAdjuster for Manual Delay Compensation

DSP and host-based processing in all digital systems incurs delay of varying amounts. You can use the TimeAdjuster TDM plug-in to apply an exact number of samples of delay to the signal path of a Pro Tools track to compensate for delay incurred by speciﬁc plug-ins. TimeAdjuster provides presets for common delay-compensation scenarios.

To compensate for several plug-ins in-line, use the delay times from each settings file as references, and add them together to derive the total delay time.

Some plug-ins (such as Digidesign’s Maxim and DINR BNR) have different delays at different sample rates. Refer to the Digidesign Plug-ins Guide for more information about these plug-ins.

Alternatively, look up the delay in samples for the plug-ins you want to compensate for, then apply the appropriate amount of delay.

A delay table for DigiRack plug-ins appears in Appendix B, “DSP Delays Incurred by TDM Plug-ins.”

the polarity (phase) of one of them, the signals will be of opposite polarity and cancel each other out. This technique is convenient for finding the exact delay setting for any plug-in.

To determine the delay of a plug-in by inverting its signal phase:

1 Place duplicate audio regions on two different

audio tracks and pan them to the center (mono).

2 Apply the plug-in whose delay you want to

calculate to the ﬁrst track, and a Time Adjuster plug-in to the second track.

3 With TimeAdjuster, invert the phase.

4 Control-drag (Windows) or Command-drag

(Mac) to ﬁne-tune delay in one sample increments, or use the up/down arrow keys to change the delay one sample at a time until the audio signal disappears.

5 Change the polarity back to normal.

6 Save the TimeAdjuster setting for later use.

Comb-Filter Effect Cancellation

Adjust the delay with the signal in phase until any comb-filter effects cancel out.

To manually compensate for DSP-induced delays, try one of the following methods:

Phase Inversion

If you are working with phase-coherent track pairs, or tracks recorded with multiple microphones, you can invert the phase to negate the delay. If you don’t hear any audio when you invert a signal’s phase, you have precisely adjusted and compensated for the delay. This is because when you monitor duplicate signals and invert

Viewing Channel Delay

Because plug-ins display their delay values in the channel delay indicators, this can be used as another method for determining delay compensation.

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 91

To view time delay values and use TimeAdjuster to compensate for the delay:

1 Control-click (Windows) or Command-click

(Mac) the Track Level Indicator to toggle between level (that appears on the display as “vol”), headroom (“pk”), and channel delay (“dly”) indications. Delay values are shown in samples.

Determining the DSP delay of track inserts (Mix window shown)

2 Apply the TimeAdjuster plug-in to the track

whose delay you want to increase, and Controlclick (Windows) or Command-click (Mac) its Track Level indicator until the channel delay value is displayed for that track.

3 Change the delay time in TimeAdjuster by

moving the Delay slider or entering a value in the Delay ﬁeld, until the channel delay value matches that of the ﬁrst track.

4 Test the delay values by duplicating an audio

track and reversing its phase while compensating for delay.

However, this may not always be necessary. You may only really need to compensate for delays between tracks where phase coherency must be maintained (as with instruments recorded with multiple microphones or stereo pairs). If you are working with mono signals, and the accumulated delays are small (just a few samples, for example), you probably needn’t worry about delay compensation.

For more information about delays and mixing with Pro Tools HD, see the Pro Tools Reference Guide.

Trim

The Trim plug-in can be used to attenuate an audio signal from –∞ (Infinity) dB to +6 dB or –∞ (Infinity) dB to +12 dB. For example, using a multi-mono Trim plug-in on a multi-channel track provides simple, DSP-efficient muting control over the individual channels of the track.

This capability is useful, since Track Mute buttons mute all channels of a multi-channel track and do not allow muting of individual channels within the track.

When to Compensate for Delays

If you want to compensate for delays across your entire system with Time Adjuster, you will want to calculate the maximum delay incurred on any channel, and apply the delays necessary to each channel to match this channel.

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide92

Trim plug-in

Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac) the Trim selector to open a Plug-in window for each channel of a multi-channel track.

Trim Controls

Phase Invert Inverts the phase (polarity) of the input signal to change the frequency response characteristics between multi-miked sources or to correct for miswired microphone cables.

Gain Provides –∞ dB to +6 dB or +12 dB of gain adjustment, depending whether the Gain toggle is set to +6 or +12.

+6/+12 Gain toggle Switches the maximum level of attenuation between –∞ dB to +6 dB and –∞ dB to +12 dB.

Automation data adjusts to reflect the current Gain setting. When working with automation data from an older version of the Trim plug-in, ensure the Gain setting is set at +6 dB.

Output Meter Indicates the output level, including any gain compensation added using the Gain control.

Mute Mutes the signal output.

See also “Linking and Unlinking Controls on Multi-Mono Plug-ins” on page 21.

Chapter 6: DigiRack Real-Time TDM and RTAS Plug-ins 93

DigiRack Plug-ins Guide94

DigiDesign DigiRack Plug-ins, DigiRack User Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual

contents

Introduction

Plug-in Formats

TDM Plug-ins

RTAS Plug-ins

System Requirements

AudioSuite Plug-ins

Conventions Used in This Guide

About www.digidesign.com

Installing Plug-ins

Organizing Plug-ins

Processing Power Requirements of TDM and RTAS Plug-ins

TDM Plug-ins

DSP Sharing Between TDM Plug-ins

RTAS Plug-ins

Improving RTAS Plug-in Performance

Hardware Buffer Size

RTAS Processors

CPU Usage Limit

RTAS Error Suppression

RTAS Error Suppression Options

RTAS Plug-ins on Auxiliary Inputs or Master Faders

Delay in Signal Processing

Compensating for Delay

Delay Compensation

TimeAdjuster

Manual Delay Compensation

Low-Latency Recording with Instrument Plug-ins

Plug-ins as Inserts

Pre-Fader Operation

Mono, Multi-Mono, and Multichannel Plug-ins

Inserting Plug-ins on Tracks

Removing an Insert from a Track

Plug-in Changes During Record

Moving and Duplicating Inserts

Making Plug-ins Inactive

The Plug-in Window

Plug-in Window Controls

Opening Plug-in Windows

Opening Multiple Plug-in Windows

Linking and Unlinking Controls on Multi-Mono Plug-ins

Bypassing Plug-ins

Clip Indicators

Using the Side-Chain Input

Side-Chain Filters

Tempo Sync

Automating Plug-ins

Preference Setting to Auto Enable All Plug-in Parameters

Enabling Plug-in Parameters for Automation

Instrument Plug-ins

Main and Auxiliary Plug-in Outputs

Multiple Outputs for Instrument Plug-ins

RTAS Plug-ins on Auxiliary Input and Master Fader Tracks

Voice Usage and Total Latency for RTAS Plug-ins

Ordering RTAS and TDM Plug-ins on an Audio Track

Limitations for Inserting or Removing Plug-ins During Playback

HTDM Plug-in Conversion to RTAS

Working with AudioSuite Plug-ins

The AudioSuite Menu

AudioSuite Plug-ins

Plug-in Selector

The AudioSuite Window

Selection Reference

Use In Playlist Button

File Mode Selector

Chan/Track Process Mode Selector

Process Mode Selector

Preview

Bypass

Process

Multichannel Processing

Undoing AudioSuite Processing

Other AudioSuite Controls

AudioSuite Processing Preferences

AudioSuite

TC/E