Adding automation

[sixstringking]

Has anyone else noticed this behavior:

I have recorded a MIDI preset to be sent at the very beginning of an automation track. Upon adding additional actions I have noticed that this initial MIDI preset timing increases by a couple of milliseconds. Other actions already recorded later in the track don't seem to be affected as far as I can tell.

[arlo]

This could happen when overdubbing onto an existing automation track, but when I tested it I didn't see it actually happening. What actions are you recording on the second pass, and what kind of device do you have?

[sixstringking]

It's an iPad 1. I'm adding scrolling, page flips in my case.

[arlo]

I just tested this again and indeed, the timing of the existing automation events could drift a small amount while overdubbing new events. The drift is an inherent part of how it's built currently, but when I originally built it, it seemed so tiny that I didn't think it would be a problem. Now I can see that it could be up to .02 seconds each time you overdub onto the automation track, depending on the speed of your device. I don't think it affects only the first item; it may just be coincidence that those are the only items you saw moving more than .01 seconds so that the timing change would be evident in the edit window.

I don't have a solution for this currently, but I'll rework it if I can think of a better way to handle the overdubbing. Is the current setup creating a significant problem for you?

[Pongo]

I am also encountering this issue as well.

Previously recorded automation has changed slightly (the timing of the events), but I've yet to determine how far off it is from how it worked in SLM 3.4

I suspect that I will have a few songs where this is going to be an issue, but I'm sure I can figure out something.

[arlo]

In version 3.4, you could overdub onto an existing automation track, but your previously recorded events didn't play while you were recording. In version 4, the previously recorded events do play while you record new ones, but the downside is that a slight time shift is introduced during that process, somewhere around 1/100 of a second.

[Pongo]

Is this automation drift something that you have added to your list for a future update?

While it's not a huge issue, for most of my songs, there are a handful that have  precise MIDI patch change events (such as Comfortably Numb- Pink Floyd) that switches my vocal delay patch on/off, during the first lines of the verses. My only option now, is to write down the event timing (of the original automation events that work well) and then adjust the timing back to where they belong after overdubbing new automation.

For this particular song, I noticed the drift being between .01 - .54, with most being > .17
This is quite a bit more than 1/100 of a second.

Thanks,

[arlo]

Yes, it's on my list, but I haven't thought of a good solution yet.

I think the amount of delay would depend on the speed of your device and what other tasks it's performing at the time. I was measuring .01 seconds on an iPad 3.

[Pongo]

That would make perfect sense for the new data, but why would the speed of my device have anything to do with the event timing that was EXISTING, before the overdubbing of new automation events?

Isn't it sort of like a transparency, that just lays new automation over existing automation? If so, why would any of the old timing be changed at all?

[arlo]

In this case I don't think a further explanation of how the code works would help anyone, so I'm going to decline to spend time on that. We know the problem exists and it is on my to do list to address it.

[Pongo]

Hi Arlo,

Do you think that you'll have a fix for this prior to your release of SLM 4.1 ~ end of September?

[arlo]

Do you think that you'll have a fix for this prior to your release of SLM 4.1 ~ end of September?

I don't know, but if I find a solution I will notify you.

[Pongo]

*crossing fingers and toes*

That would be great...even if you can just resolve the issue with why previously recorded events are being shifted.

Thanks,

[Pongo]

Hi Arlo,

Have you had any luck figuring out how to prevent previously recorded automation events from drifting during overdubs?

This seems to be the last `hurdle' for me. Yay!!

[arlo]

As mentioned above, I will let you know when I have an update on that.