Re: Xfade vs. zeroX / HW vs SW (was: dream box)

["Dennis W. Leas" <dennis@mdbs.com>]

Re: Xfade vs. zeroX / HW vs SW (was: dream box)----- Original Message -----
From: Matthias Grob

>>I think both Kyma and MAX/MSP provide solutions.  This is cool!  
>[Sometimes I
feel that, if I'm into this "looper >>religion" thing, then Kyma is like my
denomination. :)  That makes the MAX/MSP folks (and Orville users, etc.) 
>>like
a different denomination; same religion, they just use different words to 
mean
about the same thing!]

>please let me be member of such denomination!

I always thought you were one of the founders!  One of the "fathers of the
revolution"!!!  Viva la Loop!!!!!!  :)

>Doesnt the audibility depend on the sound material?
>Roughly: For percussive sound, the zero crossing is great but for 
>sustained
sound, cross fade is necessary, >otherwhise you hear a new attack which 
can be
about as annoying as a click.
>In a future HW solution such fades will be available and probably 
>controllable.
>The sound material could be analyzed to define characteristic.

Interesting...
Yes, I think the audibility depends on the sound material, but I would say 
just
the opposite!  I.e., I'd use zeroX for sustained sounds.  Here's my 
experience:
I wrote a zero-crossing adjuster for Kyma recently.  To test it, I created 
a
short loop by humming a continuous tone into the mic and punching in/out.  
Sure
enough, I heard a click at the loop point.  After being zero-adjusted, the 
click
completely disappeared.  But perhaps with other sounds, the zeroX would 
leave
artifacts.

My zero-crossing adjuster alters the loop length, even if by only a tiny 
amount.
It advances the start point and retreats the end point until a 
zero-crossing
splice is achieved (with the same signal slope on each side).  The nice 
thing
about Xfade is that the loop length can remain EXACTLY the same.  In 
thinking
about Alex's original question some more, I think maybe a cross-fade for 
the
sub-loop to eliminate clicks but trim the new material with a zero-crossing
adjustment.

I like your idea of selectable/controllable fades.

>Shure, HW is for the road and SW for the studio.
>I might try to use a notebook for a show, but then again, clicks are less
audible there, so we really need more >parameters and quality in the 
studio and
therefore a bigger display and time to operate - it fits together.
>All I am concerned with is that the HW and SW systems are not too 
>different so
the user can use the same >foot pedal with the same basic functions to 
create
the same music.

Yes!  Convergence!

Dennis Leas
-----------------------------
dennis@mdbs.com