Copyright: 1996 - Innovative Quality Software


Contents

Innovative Quality Software

Release Notes

More Release Notes

Introduction

Overview

Features

System Requirements

A Tour Of The Interface

Overview

•	MultiTrack View Window

•	Full View Window

•	SoundFile View Window

•	Regions View Window

•	Sequence View Window

•	Markers View Window

•	Remote Transport Window

•	Recording Control Panel

Menu Items

Overview

•	File Menu

•	Edit Menu

•	Regions Menu

•	MultiTrack Menu

•	Mix Menu

•	Process/Mixdown Menu

•	Window Menu

•	SMPTE/MIDI Menu

•	Options Menu

•	Info Menu

Effects

Overview

FX Button

Effects Patch Builder

Effect Types

•	Vari-Pitch/Speed

•	Reverse Audio

•	Reverse Phase

•	Center Channel Eliminator

•	Graphic Equalizer

•	Echo/Delay

•	Gate/Compressor/Limiter

Learn How To Use SAW

Tutorial

Shortcut Keys

Additional Information

Win95 Users

SAW File Types

Training Video

Tips and Suggestions

Common Questions and Answers

SAW Application Programming Interface

Version 7/29/96


Introduction

IQS makes just what our name implies: Innovative - Quality - Software!  We specialize in audio-related applications for the Windows environment. Our award-winning software is used worldwide by people in every segment of the audio industry; from studios and broadcast facilities, to video post houses and schools, to corporations and governments, to musicians and DJs.  IQS products are extremely powerful, very affordable and are truly useful to anyone working with audio. They represent some of the best values in digital audio that can be found anywhere! Craftsmanship and commitment to excellence is what we're all about.

 We think you will find SAW  to be a great tool and lots of fun too!


Overview

SAW is the acronym for Software Audio Workshop The program runs in Microsoft Windows and turns your Windows PC into a powerful digital audio workstation.

SAW represents the next generation of digital hard disk editing software from Innovative Quality Software. SAW extends the power of the Software Audio Workshop to a maximum of four (sixteen for Plus)  mono or stereo tracks of simultaneous, live playback on any Windows-compatible sound card(s). It provides automatic live blending of different file formats (mono, stereo, 8-bit, 16-bit, etc.), live sample rate conversion and supports user-assignable, multiple sound card outputs.

Each track has controls for level, mute, solo, pan, effects patching and output assignments. The program contains several software-based processing tools including a seven band 'para-graphic' equalizer, noise gate, compressor, limiter, peak limiter and echo effects.

The stunning user interface is finely crafted, using realistic, 3-D graphics and features true 'drag and drop' editing. SAW delivers power, speed, efficiency, & design elegance like no other editor to date.

SAW allows you to accomplish a task practically as soon as your creative juices conjure up the idea.  It can save you many times the cost of the program in a very short period, perhaps even in one session!

Now you can easily record and edit up to 16 mono or stereo tracks of 16-bit resolution, CD and DAT-quality sound files directly on your computer's hard drive.  What's more, it supports up to four stereo sound cards and automatically converts 8-bit, 16-bit, mono or stereo files of any sample rate, playing them all seamlessly in sync. LIVE...IN REAL-TIME! The elegance of the SAW design offers unmatched efficiency in taking a project from conception to completion.

Each track has software controls for mute, solo, fader and pan. These controls give you nondestructive, PROGRAMMABLE mixing control with down-to-the-sample accuracy. And they work in real-time as if you had racks of expensive hardware to provide these functions.

Easily overlay vocals on music beds.  Easily add sound-effects to existing productions.  Easily create custom cross fades from one track to another.  Easily assemble & master complete album projects...  Perform fades and panning live during playback, recording every move for perfect reproduction. And do it all nondestructively!

And since SAW allows you to edit across up to 100 sound files at once in the same editing session, you can mix and blend sounds from pre-categorized libraries or easily assemble that perfect solo from many different musical takes.

The MultiTrack View allows you to copy, drag and drop Regions of audio to any position within the production, instantly!  This means you can change musical phrasing long after the original recording has been made, and hear the changes immediately.

While other systems rely heavily on complex and expensive hardware to manipulate digital audio, SAW relies extensively on hand-coded, 32-bit assembly language programming to efficiently manipulate the digital audio in software using the computer's CPU. This rare digital craftsmanship translates directly into incredible savings for you. Also, since the SAW system is not directly dependent on one proprietary hardware design, it offers much more flexibility and choice in selecting the exact configuration to fit your specific needs.

What's more, SAW can continue to grow and expand rapidly with software updates alone, allowing you to benefit from the post-release product enhancements that Innovative Quality Software has become famous for.

SAW makes excellent use of the Windows graphics operating system without getting bogged down with the typical overhead of resource-intensive dialog boxes.  In fact, SAW boosts Window's normal performance tremendously due to the assembly language code.

The editing environment offers simultaneous Full and Zoomed views of your audio waveforms making it fast and simple to move around within a sound file. Audio waveforms are true oscilloscope style allowing you to locate exact positions easily.

On-screen control buttons eliminate the need for learning complex keystroke combinations to perform the basic editing operations.  Keystroke commands are available for those who prefer to use the keyboard.  Though similar in some ways, SAW does not try to emulate a tape recorder, but instead delivers the full power of true, nonlinear, random hard disk access to take you way BEYOND the capabilities of a tape recorder, or even most other digital audio workstations!

Simultaneous Marker, Region and Play Sequence Views make it easy to select and audition various sections of your sound file and update edit lists with the click of the mouse.

The MultiTrack View graphically displays your entire session, from a zoomed out overview, to the most critical detail of a track's waveform, volume, pan and time information. Fully implemented drag and drop editing simplifies complex manipulation of large sessions beyond anything you ever thought possible or expected from a digital audio workstation.

The capability to instantly copy, move, delete, replace or otherwise reorder and compare data on multiple tracks INSTANTLY can save you hours of production time. In many cases, you can build productions that would not even be possible with standard audio equipment.

All windows can be rearranged and assigned to as many as twelve different function key views. This allows easy customization of the SAW interface so you can optimize it for the way you work. Change from a full view of all tracks - to a view of all windows perfectly tiled - to a zoom view on one section of your waveform, all in an instant!

SAW is designed to offer solutions to the most common problems associated with hard disk editing systems. One of the most common complaints about hard disk editing systems concerns slow screen updates when scrolling and zooming the waveform data. SAW can display complex, accurate waveforms on all  tracks during playback, maintaining accurate cursor positioning so what you see is exactly in sync with what you hear!

Also included in the interface design is Zoom Level Memory which can save you hours in a single editing session.  The precise waveform drawing maintains its integrity down to the sample level. This level of accuracy eliminates the need for outdated, imprecise scrubbing methods and cross-fade edits!

SAW offers real-time, nondestructive processing for many of the most common functions including EQ, compression, noise gate, limiting, echo, reversing, vari-pitch and more. These functions represent another breakthrough in high-quality, assembly language craftsmanship.  All of the functions are designed using special high-resolution routines that actually outperform the math co-processor and deliver the equivalent of 64-bit resolution, eight decimal point math.  These features manipulate digital audio data without the need for DSP (Digital Signal Processor) hardware, bringing the power of this technology to virtually any Windows-compatible sound card! When a file must be processed on disk, SAW provides instant, real-time preview before actually processing the data to the sound file.  A tremendous time savings results from being able to hear the effect without the usual repeated do/undo process.

Pop-up fader and pan controls allow adjustments in real-time, recording every move for precise duplication on playback. Set volume and pan offsets that work in addition to complex fades and pans, allowing you to adjust overall track levels without disturbing the details of your mix. Volume and pan information is displayed on the track so you can see, as well as hear, mix changes.


Features

•	Simultaneous playback of up to 16 mono OR stereo tracks

•	Complete Drag and Drop, nondestructive editing

•	Get the same high performance with any size project - from seconds to hours in length

•	Nine levels of Undo recalled completely independently in any sequence

•	MultiTrack display includes waveforms and adjustable width

•	MultiTrack select mode marking allows fast grouping of multiple regions for simultaneous editing operations

•	Virtual scrolling of sound file and MultiTrack displays

•	MultiTrack Edit Tools provide quick segment splicing or removal functions

•	Supports up to four stereo sound cards, up to 8 inputs and outputs

•	Record direct to MultiTrack or to sound file only

•	Record, edit and play stereo or mono sound files in the same session at the same time

•	Fast, accurate segmented bar graph meters in record panel with peak hold

•	Live, automatic splitting of L/R audio to two mono sound files while recording

•	Live, automatic mixing of L&R audio to single mono sound file while recording

•	Remote panel allows control of SAW from any other application

•	Software-emulated DSP functions provide parametric EQ, noise gate, limiter, compressor, echo effects and vari-pitch

•	Emulated DSP functions patchable to each track or sound card output for real-time processing during playback

•	Separate master volume controls for each sound card output

•	Live format conversion during playback (mix any combination of regions that are 8-bit or 16-bit, mono or stereo, and any sample rate)

•	Adjust volume, pans, mutes, solos and effects during playback (without additional expensive hardware)

•	Mix changes automatically recorded for exact duplication during playback

•	Programmable Function Key Views provide fast access to multiple workspaces

•	Simultaneous Sync Record/Play

•	Supports industry standard WAV file format

•	Backup & restore entire editing sessions with any standard audio DAT

•	Incredibly fast assembly language waveform displays & screen redraws

•	Νondestructive Region & Play Sequence list editing

•	SMPTE sync & generate capability with sub-frame accuracy

•	Actively LOCK to incoming SMPTE

•	MIDI Region & Play Sequence trigger capability

•	Reversing & Looping

•	Punch-In/Out

•	Loop Scrubbing

•	Supports DSP Plug-Ins (programming API available for free)

•	And much, much more..........


F1
SAW has the ability to save multiple versions of the current EDL File. This can replace the typical Undo List which can usually only step backward in a serial fashion. Multiple EDL Versions can be recalled completely independently in any sequence and up to 9 of them can be created. At any time (especially before attempting a major change in your session) simply press the CTRL-SHIFT Keys and a number key (1-9 on the main keyboard).  A version of the current EDL state will be saved to that number key. You may then restore that version by simply pressing the corresponding number key along with the CTRL key. You can update the original EDL File by simply recalling any version created and using the Update EditList Option. The versions will stay available with the original EDL even after exiting the program.


F2
To enter Loop Scrub Mode simply press the CTRL Key and then the Left Mouse Button in the SoundFile View. You have now grabbed the SoundFile Cursor while playback of a tight loop is activated. You may release the Ctrl Key but keep pressing the Left Mouse Button. You may change the length of the scrub loop by using the Up and Down Arrow Keys. You may also go back to the default loop size by pressing the Left Arrow Key. Pressing the Right Arrow Key will change the loop size to your last adjusted size. Pressing the Left Arrow Key Twice in a row will reset the adjusted size to the default. Releasing the Left Mouse Button exits Loop Scrub Mode. Note that you may also use the keyboard keys to adjust zoom and magnification level while Loop Scrub is active.


F3
Each of the twelve function keys on your keyboard can be assigned to recall a different view, each having different combinations of windows in various sizes and locations. To program a function key view, arrange the SAW display to your liking, creating combinations of windows that you wish to use in your editing sessions. This might include a generic display such as the default combination that comes with the program, as well as several views of the MultiTrack View with the maximum number of tracks, two tracks with a wider display and one single track at maximum width.

As you create each view, press the SHIFT key and the FUNCTION key that you wish to use to recall that view. That's it. SHIFT-Fkey stores the view and the Fkey by itself recalls it. When you've stored some views, use the Save Preferences option in the File menu to save your function key assignments. The view that is displayed when you save preferences will become the default view when you start SAW


System Requirements

•	Pentium 90 MHz or higher

•	16 MBytes RAM minimum

•	500 MB hard disk space - a fast disk controller and hard drive is recommended

•	16-bit Windows compatible soundcard

•	SVGA video 800x600@256 colors

•	Windows 3.x or Windows 95

NOTE: Your computer's processing power and hard drive data throughput capability greatly affects the speed at which SAW  will run and the number of tracks supported in real-time.   You can run SAW  on a 486DX50 Mhz with good results for many applications however it will not perform at its full potential.


SAW File Types

The following is a list of file types used by SAW  :

.PRF	SAW preference file - has settings of the program - see File Menu for values that are saved

.EDL	Edit Decision List - contains all referencing and timing values of a production

.ED0 - .ED9	Different versions of the EDL saved

.WAV	pcm ecnoded soundfile - standard Windows format

.SND	pcm encoded soundfile

.WPD	Wav Peak Data file - used to draw waveforms

.SPD	Snd Peak Data file - used to draw waveforms

.ARK	Archiving settings

.EKO	Echo settings

.EQ	Equalizer settings

.CL	Compressor/gate/limiter settings

SAWPLUS.ED0 	EDL file created when an EDL name has not been given


Win95 Users

SAW and Windows 95

 Windows 95 has difficulty with real time applications because of the dynamic disk caching it does to support its multitasking.  Make sure a Windows 95 driver exists for the sound card, video card, midi/smpte card (if you are using one for your sequencer).

IQS Suggestions

If you run SAW  under Windows 95, you may need to set the device interrupt hook to NONE in the Audio Hardware Setup. This special hook maynot work under Windows 95.   You should get everything working with it set to NONE then try the interrupt hook.

Here are some changes suggested by our users:

•	In SYSTEM.INI, after the [386ENH] section, add one for [VCACHE]. In it, enter MaxFileCache=xxxx where xxxx is the number of kilobytes. A suggested setting is 4096.  This keeps VCACHE from growing beyond that point. There is also a MinFileCache that can be set.

•	Disable the Audo CD Detect in control/system/device/CDROM to avoid clicks and pops during playback.

•	Press CTRL-ALT-Delete and make sure nothing else is running in the background such as virus checkers or video panels.

•	One fix for having hiccup's in your audio is to go to Control Panel/System/Performance/File System/Read Ahead optimization OFF (move slider all the way to the left). Select something different on the same screen (File System) where it says 'typical role of this computer' choosing Mobile or Docking System instead of Desktop Computer might give a little less virtual memory activity.

•	Disable write behind caching by going to the Control Panel/System/Performance/File System/Troubleshooting and click on disable write behind caching for all drives.

•	Modify the Virtual Memory SwapFile size by going to the Control Panel/System/System Properties/Performance/Virtual memory and set the max and min to the same value to prevent repeated resizing of the swapfile. 16Meg is a good value for a 16 Meg RAM system.

•	If you have a hard disk controller card that requires a driver to work try the following. Click Start and choose 'Shut Down' and then 'Restart the computer in MS-DOS mode'. At the dos prompt load the driver into ' DOS ONLY '. If you put driver into windows as well the Win95 will shut the driver off. If you use ON TRACK (setup program that comes with western digital & other drives) 'DON'T USE ON TRACK DISK MANAGER' it is not compatible with Win95.

•	Disabling the 'wave audio device' in 'media control devices' (control panel/multimedia/advanced/media control devices) gets rid of the clicks with the CardD+. The 'wave audio device' allocates a certain amount of memory to buffer between 2 and 9 secs-worth of audio, which introduces a double buffering situation when enabled at the same time as SAW+.

From the DOS prompt

C:\ type ATTRIB -H -R -S MSDOS.SYS

and Edit the c:\msdos.sys file and make sure the DoubleBuffer=0. Then save changes and type

 ATTRIB +H +R +S MSDOS.SYS


Training Video

THE DIAMOND SERIES

Hard Disk Editing on SAW

Welcome to the exciting world of digital audio editing. This instructional video tape takes you inside the Award Winning SAW hard disk editing system and shows you how to start creating your audio project right away.

Some of the Topics Covered in the Diamond Series 1 Video

•	Creating Custom Windows with Function Keys

•	Keyboard Shortcuts to Various Windows

•	Remote Transport Window

•	Recording Control Panel

•	Recording A Soundfile

•	Using Full View and Soundfile View Together

•	Using Markers

•	Creating Regions from Soundfile View

•	SoundFile View

•	Regions View

•	Multitrack View

WOW! SHOW ME HOW TO DO THAT!

Thats the goal of every Diamond Series video tape. Everyone that works on the Diamond Series is a musician. They know what you want to know. They know what you want to accomplish. This Series 1 video is the first in a four-part series that will teach you the SAW system from A to Z.

Innovative Quality Software and The Diamond Series instructors are in daily contact concerning the upgrades, new effects, the best way to show you the new changes and information from other users. Our goal is not only to bring you the best information, but the most timely information, including the latest shortcuts, hotkeys and innovations that Innovative Quality Software is creating weekly for the SAW system.

This Series 1 video covers the essentials of SAW. It covers recording, editing and mixing on the SAW system. The SAW system is one of the most sophisticated hard disk editing systems on the market. In fact, there is so much in the SAW program that the Series 2 video will be a necessary extension of Series 1. The Diamond Series videos will help eliminate the usual frustrations and slowdowns associated with learning a new program. If your goal is spending your time working on your projects, instead of spending your time on a learning curve, then this is the video for you.

Who is Steve Diamond

A Music Professional for over twenty years. Ten years in Las Vegas as a first call guitarist, Music Director for a Major Las Vegas show, Owner of New Market Media Services (an independent production house). Not a rocket scientist, which shows that anyone can learn this SAW.

Obtaining the Video

To Purchase this video in the U.S. call  800.365.8688 and mention the Internet Special. International orders please call 702.898.7070 .


SAW Application Programming Interface

SAW Plus and SAW 6.0

Application Programming Interface

Version 1.1 - 4/25/96

Welcome to the SAW Plus API. This document provides all the necessary information to build FX Modules that plug into the SAW Plus MultiTrack Playback Loop. These FX Modules can process each track's audio data during RealTime Playback or during non-RealTime Processing Functions. This API requires SAW Plus 2.5 or higher, the SAW Plus 2.5 Demo or SAW 6.0 or higher as a base.

The FXDemo code example provides a simple to use shell written in C that allows you to compile and see the inner workings of a simple FX Module. You can also use this shell as a model for designing your own simple or complex plugins.

If your module is performing RealTime FX during playback, speed of buffer manipulation is critical. We suggest doing the actual buffer handling using assembly language. Each FX Module patched into a track takes time away from all tracks as it processes. Sluggish code will affect the overall track playback performance of the entire MultiTrack.

If your Module needs to display 256 color bitmaps, please use the enclosed IQSPAL.BMP as a source for the color palette. This will keep all module bitmaps in sync with the SAW Plus screens.

There is no licensing fee of any kind required for the use of this API. Simply build a plugin for SAW Plus and distribute it via Shareware or produce it and market it as a third party add-on for SAW Plus. We simply request that you send IQS a copy via our BBS, Compuserve or the Net so that we can tell our customer base about it. We will even consider shared royalty deals if you feel you would like us to produce and market your plugin for you. You may contact us by voice at 702-435-9077 or by email at tech@iqsoft.com.

FX Module Function Descriptions

The API is designed to communicate with standard Windows DLL Modules. The module must include each of the defined Function Procedures as exported functions. Even if a particular function is not needed by your module, you should include it as an empty function with just a RETURN statement.

You may use Visual C++, Borland C++, Symantec C++, Visual Basic, or any Windows development platform that allows the creation of a standard Windows DLL.

The example code is a complete simple module that will compile into a working plugin. In order to use the finished module, place the compiled DLL in the SAW Plus directory and edit the SAWPLFX.INI file to include, at the end, the name of the DLL. Make sure to include a carriage return at the end of the line. Please do not change the original order of listed DLLs or insert the new one in the middle as this will affect all previously created EDL files.

1) FX Initialization

void __export FAR PASCAL	FXInit(SawDataPtr)

SAWDATA far*    SawDataPtr: 	Pointer To Shared Memory Structure

This function is called once when SAW Plus first initializes itself and all FX Plugins. This function passes a pointer to a shared memory data area that is defined as a structure in the Module Header File. This structure contains variables that are used for communication between SAW Plus and the FX Module. It is defined as follows (variable descriptions are later in the document):

typedef struct

    {

    HWND	hWndMain;

    HFONT	IQSSysFont;

    WORD	MTSampleRate;

    char	FXTitle[24];

    WORD	FXParamSet;

    WORD	FXCurTrack;

    DWORD	CurSamplePos;

    DWORD	CurSMPTEPos;

    HWND	hWndSoundFile;

    HWND	hWndMultiTrk;

    char	szNameEditListFile[128];

    int	HandleSoundFile;

    WORD	SoundTop;

    WORD	SoundCenterLeft;

    WORD	SoundCenterRight;

    WORD	SoundBot;

    WORD	DBScaleSound;

    DWORD	CurSamplesPerPix;

    DWORD	CurFileFactor;

    DWORD	CurBytesPerSample;

    DWORD	CurSFSampleRate;

    DWORD	SoundStartSamplePos;

    DWORD	SoundCursorSamplePosition;

    WORD	SoundCursor;

    WORD	FXPreScanRequest;

    DWORD    CurSmpteFrameCount;

} SAWDATA;

This function should store the SawDataPtrpointer for future use, as this is the only time it will be passed. The hWndMainvariable should also be stored, for this is the main SAW Plus Window handle which you should use for displaying your module's windows and messages. The IQSSysFontvariable is the handle to the system font used by SAW Plus and should be used in all Window's buttons and dialog boxes so that screen displays remain consistent in different screen resolutions.

This function should also set the FXTitleShared Memory Variable to your module's description. This is the string that will appear in the FX Patch Builder Window in SAW Plus. The maximum length is 24 characters including the zero byte terminator at the end. We recommend keeping the string length to a maximum of 20 actual characters which should fit nicely inside the Patch Builder Listbox.

This function should also perform all necessary module initializations and set variable defaults so that the module is ready to be used.

2) FX ShutDown

void __export FAR PASCAL	FXShutDown(void)

This function is called when SAW Plus is about to be shutdown. Any cleanup required, such as destroying windows and freeing memory etc., should be done here.

3) FX Begin Process

void __export FAR PASCAL	FXBegProcess(ParamSet, ProcessFlag)

WORD    ParamSet:	Current Parameter Set

WORD    ProcessFlag:	Current Type Of Process

This function is called at the beginning of any process that uses the FX Modules. The parameters passed include the Parameter Set to be used and the current type of Process being performed.

If a module can be used on more than one track at the same time, it must have different variable parameter sets that define all settings for each track assignment. The ParamSetvariable tells the module which parameter set to work with on this call. All variables that would constitute a complete parameter set should be defined as arrays indexed from zero up to the MAX_PARAM_SETS define in the Module Header File.

The ProcessFlagtells the function which type of process is happening on this call. They are defined in the Header File as follows:

#define REALTIME_PLAYBACK	1

#define BUILD_TO_MIX_FILE	2

#define PROCESS_TO_SOUND_FILE	3

If this call defines a RealTime Playback process and your module does not perform in RealTime, you should either ignore this call or warn the user with a message.

If your module requires a Data Pre-Scan to gather information about the entire track's data, it should set the FXPreScanRequestShared Memory Variable to 1 before returning. This should only be done during Non-RealTime Process Loops. If the ProcessFlagequals RealTime Playback, you should notify the user that this module can not process because it needs a data Pre-Scan.

This function should also initialize any variables it needs just prior to buffer processing.

4) FX End Process

void __export FAR PASCAL	FXEndProcess(ParamSet)

WORD    ParamSet:	Current Parameter Set

This function is called at the end of any process that uses the FX Modules. The parameter passed is the current Parameter Set that should be worked with on this call.

This function should cleanup any variables that it needs to clear at the completion of data processing.

5) FX Begin Pre-Scan

void __export FAR PASCAL	FXBegPreScan(ParamSet, ProcessFlag)

WORD    ParamSet:	Current Parameter Set

WORD    ProcessFlag:	Current Type Of Process

This function is called at the beginning of a Data Pre-Scan process. The parameters passed include the Parameter Set to be used and the current type of Process being performed.

If any module requests a Data Pre-Scan during the FXBegProcessfunction call, this function will be called letting each module know that the next series of FXProcessBuffercalls will actually be a Data Pre-Scan pass so that each module that needs to gather data information in order to process can do so.

If your module does not need a Pre-Scan, it should perform its normal buffer processing during the scan pass so that its processing results can be included in the following buffers passed onto other modules.

6) FX End Pre-Scan

void __export FAR PASCAL	FXEndPreScan(ParamSet)

WORD    ParamSet:	Current Parameter Set

This function is called at the end of a Data Pre-Scan. The parameter passed is the current Parameter Set that should be worked with on this call.

This function should perform any calculations and variable setup needed from the data scan that has just been processed and reset itself to begin the actual processing cycle.

Even if your module did not need the Pre-Scan, it should now reset all variables needed to process the buffer data again, as the real process loop is about to begin.

7) FX Process Buffer

WORD __export FAR PASCAL	FXProcessBuffer(ParamSet, BuffPtr, BuffSize)

WORD    ParamSet:	Current Parameter Set

LPSTR   BuffPtr:	Pointer To Data Buffer

WORD    BuffSize:	Buffer Byte Size

This function is called with each buffer of data needing to be processed. This is the function that actually does the work of altering the audio data. Each Sequence Entry on each track of the MultiTrack will cause this function to be called for each successive buffer of data until the entire entry has been processed. Note that speed of execution in this function is extremely important, and the fastest code you can write (preferably assembly language) should be used here.

The parameters passed include the current Parameter Set to be worked with for this call, the Buffer Pointer where the module will find the audio data needing processing, and the Buffer Size in bytes. The data is always in 16 bit stereo format (Left Word, Right Word).

The module should process the audio data found in the buffer and return 0 if all processing involving that buffer is complete. Note that the buffer size must not be altered.

If, for some reason, left over data exists that needs to be processed in succeeding calls, this function should return 1. This is necessary for echo and delay type processing where left over data still needs to be mixed back into the MultiTrack. When a Sequence Entry ends, there will be no further calls to this function unless SAW Plus has been told that there is still more data to be mixed.

8) FX Open Setup

void __export FAR PASCAL	FXOpenSetup(ParamSet)

WORD    ParamSet:	Current Parameter Set

This function is called when the user requests the Module's Setup Screen to adjust parameters and controls within the module. The parameter passed is the current Parameter Set that should be worked with on this call.

This function should open up the module's setup window or dialog box and allow the user to have access to all control parameters that are required to operate the module.

If the module does not have adjustable parameters then the user should be told with a message that there is No Setup Required.

9) FX Close Setup

void __export FAR PASCAL	FXCloseSetup(void)

This function is called when the Module's Setup Screen should be closed. Each module's windows and dialog boxes should have a close button so the user can manually remove the display and it must also respond to this function call so that SAW Plus can remove the display.

10) FX Get Next Parameter Set

void __export FAR PASCAL	FXGetNextParams(void)

This function is called each time a module is added to the Current FX Patch Window.

If a module can operate with more than one Variable Parameter Set, then it should set the FXParamSetShared Memory Variable to the new set number. If there are no more available Parameter Sets then it should set the FXParamSetShared Memory Variable to the defined NONE_AVAILABLE constant (0xffff).

Modules that use more than one Parameter Set should keep track of the assigned sets in a ModuleParamSetTablearray. Each element in the array should be set to 1 or cleared to 0 as that set is assigned or reset. The assignment and clearing of module Parameter Sets can occur in a random order and must be kept track of by the module.

11) FX Reset Parameter Set

void __export FAR PASCAL	FXResetParams(ParamSet)

WORD    ParamSet:	Current Parameter Set

This function is called each time a module is removed from the Current FX Patch Window. The ParamSetvariable defines the current set to clear.

As Parameter Sets are cleared the ModuleParamSetTablearray should be adjusted so that this Parameter Set can now be made available to be assigned to other tracks.

12) FX Load Parameter Set

void __export FAR PASCAL	FXLoadParams(void)

This function is called whenever a new EDL is opened. This gives the FX Module a chance to determine if Parameter Set presets have been stored for this EDL and to load them if so. The szNameEditListFileShared Memory Variable will contain the EDL Filename. The FX Module should check for a duplicate filename with its extension type and load the complete set of parameters if found.

Individual preset files might also be saved within the module itself. Those presets should overwrite only the current active Parameter Set when activated from some control within the Module Setup Window.

13) FX Save Parameter Set

void __export FAR PASCAL	FXSaveParams(void)

This function is called whenever an EDL File is saved. This gives the FX Module a chance to save a complete set of Parameters so that the module may later be reset to the current condition.

When SAW Plus saves an EDL it calls this function and allows the module to save its parameters. The szNameEditListFileShared Memory Variable will contain the EDL Filename. The Module should change the extension to one of its own, leaving the path and filename portion intact. The module should then save all of its parameters.

14) FX Change Sample Rate

void    __export FAR PASCAL FXChangeRate(void)

This function is called whenever the MultiTrack SampleRate is changed. The MTSampleRateShared Memory Variable will contain the new SampleRate. The module should perform any necessary variable adjustments to the new SampleRate at this time.

FX Module Shared Memory Structure

HWND	hWndMain:

SAW Plus Main Window Handle. Used as a parent window for all module windows and dialog boxes.

HFONT	IQSSysFont:

SAW Plus System Font Handle. Used for text in all dialog boxes and buttons.

WORD	MTSampleRate:

Represents the current MultiTrack SampleRate.

char	FXTitle[24]:

FX Module Title String. Used in FX Patch Builder Window to list the different FX Modules present.

WORD	FXParamSet:

The next Parameter Set assignment passed back to SAW Plus when a new module is added to a current FX Patch.

WORD	FXCurTrack:

The current track number for an FX Module Patch (Not Implemented Yet).

DWORD	CurSamplePos:

The current sample position.

DWORD	CurSMPTEPos:

The current SMPTE position stored as follows: HHMMSSFF.

HWND	hWndSoundFile:

The SAW Plus SoundFile Window Handle.

HWND	hWndMultiTrk:

The SAW Plus MultiTrack Window Handle.

char	szNameEditListFile[128]:

The current EditList File Name.

int	HandleSoundFile:

The current Open SoundFile Handle.

WORD	SoundTop:

The current SoundFile Window Waveform display area top position. Used for drawing directly into the SoundFile Wave Display area.

WORD	SoundCenterLeft:

The current SoundFile Window Waveform display area left channel center line position. Used for drawing directly into the SoundFile Wave Display area.

WORD	SoundCenterRight:

The current SoundFile Window Waveform display area right channel center line position. Used for drawing directly into the SoundFile Wave Display area.

WORD	SoundBot:

The current SoundFile Window Waveform display area bottom position. Used for drawing directly into the SoundFile Wave Display area.

WORD	DBScaleSound:

The current SoundFile View db scaling factor. Used to adjust data value to scaling height in SoundFile View. Take the actual data value and divide by this value. Used for drawing directly into the SoundFile Wave Display area.

DWORD	CurSamplesPerPix:

The current number of samples per pixel in the SoundFile display.

DWORD	CurFileFactor:

The current File Factor for the SoundFile Display. If the waveform display is from the actual SoundFile, this vale is 1. If  the waveform display is from the Peak Data File, this value is 256. This value is used to convert sample positions to actual file positions.

DWORD	CurBytesPerSample:

The current number of bytes per sample for the SoundFile display.

DWORD	CurSFSampleRate:

The current SoundFile SampleRate, which can be different from the MultiTrack SampleRate.

DWORD	SoundStartSamplePos:

The current SoundFile display start sample position.

DWORD	SoundCursorSamplePosition:

The current actual SoundFile display sample position.

WORD	SoundCursor:

The actual SoundFile display cursor x position in the display window.

WORD	FXPreScanRequest:

Used by module to request a Data Pre-Scan loop before actual processing.

DWORD	CurSMPTEFrameCount:

The current SMPTE position stored as the total number of frames.

FX Module Communications Messages

There are currently two SAW Plus communications messages that can be registered to request action of SAW Plus.

1) char near       szSawGetDataMsg[] = 'SawGetData';

Used to request SAW Plus to update the Shared Memory Data Structure.

2) char near       szSawReCueMTMsg[] = 'SawReCueMT';

Used to request SAW Plus to re-cue the MultiTrack during playback after an FX Parameter change. This allows the user to interact live during playback on RealTime effects.

3) char near       szSawSetMTSamplePosMsg[] = 'SawSetMTSamplePos';

Used to request SAW Plus to set the MultiTrack Cursor Position to a specific sample. This message should not be sent during RealTime Playback. (It will be ignored).

4) char near       szSawSetMTFramePosMsg[] = 'SawSetMTFramePos';

Used to request SAW Plus to set the MultiTrack Cursor Position to a specific SMPTE Frame Count. This message should not be sent during RealTime Playback. (It will be ignored).

The messages can be registered by the module as follows:

SawGetDataMsg = (WORD)RegisterWindowMessage(szSawGetDataMsg);

SawReCueMTMsg = (WORD)RegisterWindowMessage(szSawReCueMTMsg);

SawSetMTSamplePosMsg  = (WORD)RegisterWindowMessage(szSawSetMTSamplePosMsg);

SawSetMTFramePosMsg  = (WORD)RegisterWindowMessage(szSawSetMTFramePosMsg);

The request can be made using the SendMessage Windows Function Call. For instance, if the SAW Plus Main Window Handle had been stored to a module variable called hWndSawMain, and the re-cue MultiTrack message had been registered to the SawReCueMTMsg module variable, the module could request SAW Plus to re-cue the MultiTrack after a parameter change by making the following function call:

SendMessage(hWndSawMain, WM_COMMAND, SawReCueMTMsg, 0L);

----


Common Questions and Answers

Q.	What computer is needed for SAW ?

A.	You must have an IBM compatible computer.  A pentium 90 Mhz is recommended to make use of all the features in SAW.  Slower machines will work but you may not be able to some of the live effects.  You will need to be running DOS and Windows or Windows 95 with at least 16 Megabytes of memory.

Q.	How many tracks can I use?

A.	Although SAW is capable of supporting up to 16 stereo tracks the actual number of tracks you can play live will depend largely on the computer system that you have.  Generally, the faster your hard drive and CPU speed the more tracks you will be able to use in real time.

Here's a general guideline:.

3000+  6 - 12 tracks

4000+  8 - 14 tracks

5000+  12 - 18 tracks

6000+  16 - ?? tracks

Better throughput is realized with stereo tracks and each stereo track counts as two tracks of audio for this comparision. These figures are for 16-bit, 44.1 KHz, continuous audio files on SAW running under Windows 3.x. Speed figures are based on results from the IQS utility HDSPEED. Please keep in mind that these figures are a guide. Having a hard drive with a read speed over 6000 does not guarantee 32 tracks of playback! By regioning your tracks to eliminate dead space, the number of tracks for any given machine can be increased substantially.

Q.        What DSP processes are offered now and what processes will be added?

A.        Currently SAW supports:

·	Vari-Pitch/Speed

·	Reverse Audio

·	Reverse Phase

·	Center Channel Eliminator

·	Graphic Equalizer

·	Echo/Delay

·	Gate/Compressor/Limiter

and has the ability to PlugIn other Effect Modules.

Q.	When creating an archive, can a computer tape backup system be used instead of an audio DAT?

A.	The SAW system creates an archive by 'playing' the audio with special timing spikes encoded at the front of each sound file to the audio DAT machine via the sound card and by saving the pointer information created in the edit list file to a small .ARK file that can be copied to a floppy disk.  This saves the data in the same amount of time as the original source audio files take to play.  Standard methods for computer backups can be utilized (tape, cartridge, computer DAT, etc.), however, due to the amount of data contained in audio files, the backup process could take much longer, depending on the system.

Q.	How well does SAW work with Windows For Workgroups 3.11?

A.	SAW works fine with Windows For Workgroups.  It is recommended that the Virtual Memory be set to NONE and the 32-bit file caching be disabled in the SYSTEM.INI file or set to the minimum size of 128K in the Windows Control Panel, Virtual Memory section.  The cache interferes with the necessary speeds and large amounts of data that is transferred when working in SAW.

Q.	How well does SAW work with Windows 95?

A.	SAW works fine with Windows 95 with a little tweaking.  The interrupts for the input and output must be set to NONE.   See information on setting up Win95 in this HelpFile..

Q.	Does SAW need a particular type of hard disk?  Will the drive still work with other applications?  Is a standard Western Digital Caviar IDE drive quick enough for SAW or are SCSI II drives better?

A.	The Caviar drives are Enhanced IDE drives and work great with SAW.  SCSI II drives can provide higher performance.  The enhanced mode-4  IDE drives with a VESA Local Bus controller can actually out-perform many SCSI systems. The choice is up to the user.  SAW does not need any special formatting so the drives remain completely standard.  In fact, files can be stored in any directory on any drive and you can even mix drive types if necessary, SAW doesn't mind.  You can use our utility HDSPEED (available with our demo on CompuServe, GO SAWSUPPORT or the Internet at 'http://www.iqsoft.com'.  HDSPEED will test the throughput of your hard disk system and let you know exactly what kind of performance you can expect.

Q.	What cards support simultaneous record/playback with SAW ?Can I do this with a Sound Blaster or compatible?

A.	Not all sound cards have this function.  SAW checks for this and will enable the function if the card supports it.  There are several manufacturers with cards that support this feature, including Digital Audio Labs and Turtle Beach.

Q.	What are the pros and cons of the various cards available for use with SAW ?

A.	There are several features to consider when making a sound card purchase decision including sample rate, frequency response, noise, distortion and whether you need analog or digital I/O.  These parameters will definitely affect the audio quality.  Innovative Quality Software leaves as much freedom as possible with the end user.

Our opinion, on the other hand, is that Digital Audio Labs CardD is an excellent sounding card which offers sample rates up to 48K, an option for digital I/O and professional quality.  Turtle Beach has several good products in a somewhat lower price category.

Q.	How can you edit small clicks or pops that may exist in a recording?  Can I just cut them out?

A.	Clicks and pops can be edited several ways.  One is to mark the offending section and quickly process a volume change to that area only.  This will change the sound file permanently.  Another technique is to use the SAW Mixer in conjunction with the MultiTrack and SoundFile Views.  You can actually set volume changes in a track as small as one sample in length that will occur in real time (during playback).  This does not affect the original file.  Actually cutting a click will shorten the sound file or leave a blank space.  The previous methods can be much more pleasing to the ear.

Q.        SAW complains that the computer is not fast enough during MultiTrack playback. Why?

A.        Increasing the number  'Preload Buffers' may overcome this in certain instances.

Q.       Recorded audio sounds garbled, or like it is playing under water.

A.       On the Card D system try using the alternate I/O address.  In some cases moving the card to another slot will help.  Echoing effects in the recorded audio may be caused by Smartdrive Write-Caching.  All write-caching should be defeated for audio drives.  Sometimes UMB Windows drivers conflicts, memory resident programs, virus checking programs, or DMA conflicts with other hardware using DMA channels can cause this.

Q.      SAW reports 'Low Memory Buffer allocation error' on startup.

A.      This will not prevent SAW from running but indicates that it was unable to allocate the faster low-buffer area for hard disk I/O.  Try startingSAW first, or freeing up more conventional memory between 640 and 1Meg.  Check the AUTOEXEC.BAT file for other programs that are being loaded into DOS memory.  Try to have 588K free if possible before starting Windows.  Use the DOS command CHKDSK to determine the amount of conventional memory available.  If running SAW and together, start SAW first, then CakeWalk.

Q.      When running SAW ,ERROR - FIFO memory allocation error!

A.       This is usually caused by having only 8 Megabytes or less of RAM and the SMARTDRV set to a number >512.  If you have 8 MB or less then make sure that SMARTDRV has the parameters as shown below.

AUTOEXEC.BAT items to look for:

SmarDrive Settings: No Write cache on any drive unless your system has a backup power supply that also guards against brownouts,  disable all cache on Audio drives.

Before:

c:\dos\smartdrv.exe 1024 512 a b c d

After

c:\dos\smartdrv.exe 1024 512 a b c d-

This assumes that drive D: is the drive where audio data will be recorded and played back.


Tips and Suggestions

Concentrate On What You Like

How To Navigate Quickly

Aligning Entries On Different Tracks

Standardizing Your Sample Rate

Building Sound Effects Libraries

Common Splices

Voice-Over and Sound-Effects Overlays

Gaining Maximum Speed In The MultiTrack Mode

Tempo Matching


How To Navigate Quickly

The waveform display in SAW is a great aid in editing your production. This takes a toll on performance though since the files must be re-read every time the screen is updated.

When moving around the MultiTrack View, try keeping the waveform display off until you've scrolled, zoomed and positioned your view to where you want to go. Then turn on the waveform display. This will make a big difference if you need to get around fast.

Another great feature of SAW is the programmable function key views. As you use the program, certain combinations of windows and their respective positions will become desirable to you. When you have set a workspace up that you like, press a function key while holding down the SHIFT key. This will assign the view to that Fkey.

This can be done for all twelve function keys and the settings will save with your preferences. Now, you can go instantly to a full  track view to see all your tracks. Then snap to a view of one track at maximum width for detailed editing in the MultiTrack View. Then recall a view of two tracks at medium width where you can use the waveform display to precisely align one beat to another.

Note that the current hot track will be the first track drawn when an Fkey view changes the MultiTrack View. This is very useful when you are working with several tracks on the screen and you need to explode a track to full screen quickly. Just select the track and press the Fkey you've programmed for the exploded track view. Voila!

The possibilities are almost endless. We suggest keeping a key or two (perhaps F-11 and 12) available for temporary work views that you may need for special circumstances.


Aligning Entries On Different Tracks

When you need to shift one track entry relative to another (or any number of tracks or region entries for that matter),  SAW gives you the tools to easily accomplish the task.

First, arrange the tracks that you will use so that they are adjacent to each other. For example, if you wish to align the hi hat on track six to that of the kick drum on track twelve, drag track twelve's number box up and drop it below track six.

Now select track six and press the Fkey you've programmed to give a view of two adjacent tracks made very wide. If you haven't programmed this view, you might want to store it when you set it up for this example.

With tracks six and twelve on the screen showing a nice wide track for each, click on the Select icon or press the S key. Click the right button once while holding down the CTRL key to clear any previous selections and then left click the region that you wish to move. If you have more than one region on the track and wish to move all of them, be sure they are all selected.

Now zoom in a bit in the MultiTrack View and turn on the waveform display. Find a section where the beats can be seen on both tracks. As you zoom in notice that the cursor will always center itself in the display.

Using the yellow Time Line at the bottom of the screen, position the MultiTrack View cursor so that it is directly on the beat of the non-selected track. Now, holding down the SHIFT key, place the Select cursor right on the beat of the track you wish to move and slide it over until the two beats are aligned. If this operation is done at maximum zoom, the alignment will be sample accurate.

Once you're happy with the adjustment, click the Select icon to return to regular mode. You can snap to another function key view if you like and drag track twelve back to it's original position. A shortcut for this is to use the CTRL key when you click on a track number box. The tracks will all rearrange themselves sequentially immediately.


Standardizing Your Sample Rate

Choosing a sample rate depends on your individual needs and the type of audio production work you do with SAW Consistently working with the same sample rate will help your sessions be as clean and fast as possible.

Although SAW performs incredibly clean sample rate conversion live, this extracts a toll on performance. It is suggested that conversions be kept to a minimum or used only when necessary to combine the occasional piece with a different sample rate into your existing session.

Naturally, the best audio quality is obtained with a higher sample rate. However, higher sample rates require more hard disk storage space and higher performance from your computer system. The current standard for audio CDs is 44.1 KHz. This is sufficient for most professional applications.

Whichever sample rate you decide to use, it is recommended that you stay with that rate for all your sound file recordings.


Building Sound Effects Libraries

The Regions View window of SAW lends itself nicely to creating permanent sound effects libraries due to the automatic sorting feature of the Regions View list.

If you have enough hard disk storage space, creating libraries of sound effects or percussion overlays to be used in your productions can be a very effective way to enhance your productivity using SAW

For instance, you might try recording variations of cymbal crashes or percussion effects or other types of sound effects, separated by short blank intervals, into a sound file. Then create regions out of each sound, giving them a label and storing them in an editlist file.

Later, during an editing session, you can easily use those regions to add accents, crashes or other effects into the current production you are working on.

You can actually incorporate the effects regions directly into your Regions View list or paste the effects data directly into your current production sound files.


Concentrate On What You Like

Many people are used to editing tape or using computer systems that emulate the same process. When a computer editing system allows you to cut areas from a sound file, it must usually process that change, taking valuable time.

SAW does not create temporary files in the background, thereby eliminating much of the disk fragmenting associated with creating small files. Although deleting a section of a file may be useful, we suggest that you consider the following suggestions.

Don't worry about what you must remove, just concentrate on what you like! With SAW you can reverse your thinking and concentrate only on the sections of audio you wish to keep, naming them as regions. Then you simply chain the regions together on a track and the sections that you didn't want are never played.

This eliminates the need for relying on slow processing operations every time you wish to modify an edit. Changing a region's boundaries is quick, simple and powerful. This translates into more versatility and much more efficiency so you can get the job done.


Common Splices

Here's how you perform a common splice:

Load or record a sound file.

•	Create separate regions by marking all individual areas of audio you wish to include in your production. Use the zoom capabilities of SAW to find low-energy (zero-crossing) begin/end points. The Z key can help with this. You may include other sound files in your production by loading or recording them at any time.

•	Add the regions to a track in the MultiTrack View in the order you wish them to play. Just click on the track, click on the region name in the Regions View and then click on the Add to MT button at the top of the Regions View window. You may repeat sections by adding the same region more than once.

•	Play the edited production by placing the MultiTrack View cursor where you want to start and clicking the right mouse button.

Remember to save your work as an editlist file by using the Save EditListFile As option in the File menu.


Voice-Over And Sound-Effects Overlays

•	Create a music bed by recording to the MultiTrack View or as described in Common Splices above. Place it on track one.

•	Select a blank track in the MultiTrack View.

•	Create a new voice-over entry on track two by recording direct to the MultiTrack View or by using the techniques described in Common Splices above. If you record direct to the MultiTrack View, you can use the Cut MT Entry Toolbar to edit the waveforms on the track if necessary.

•	Using the select tool, position the voice-over regions in the desired positions mouse relative to the music on track one.

•	Select track three and add sound effects in the same manner.

•	Play the production from the MultiTrack View by using the right mouse button in the MultiTrack View.

Remember to save your work as an editlist file by using the Save EditListFile As option in the File menu.


Gaining Maximum Speed In The MultiTrack Mode

•	Keep live processing to a minimum. This includes fades, pans, offset volumes, effects and sample rate conversions. When these features are used extensively it may not be possible to play as many tracks as you need. If this happens, you can mute some tracks while working on others. Once you have made the mix adjustments you need, use the Build Mix function to process the entire production to a single file.

•	Certain types of sound files will have significant areas of blank space between the sections containing the desired sound. Use the Cut MT Entry Toolbar or the Split Region Toolbar to remove these sections of blank space. Any blank time between regions gives SAW a chance to catch up on its processing load. This can make a major difference on the total number of tracks that will play simultaneously.

•	If you're experiencing difficulty getting through a particularly dense multitrack section, try increasing the number of MutliTrack Preload buffers (found in the Window menu) to give SAW more of a head-start.


Tempo Matching

This is a very powerfull feature of the Vari-Pitch/Speed Effect.  The effect is applied to the whole track so if you wish to match the tempo of two soundfiles/regions then they need to be on seperate tracks.  These are the steps to do tempo matching assuming that Track 1 has your source tempo regions and Track 2 has your destination tempo regions.  The first method uses the Regions View to bring up the regions in the SoundFile View.  The second method uses the MultiTrack View to bring up the regions in the SoundFile View.:

1.	Click on the FX button on Track 2 and patch in the Vari-Pitch/Speed and double click on it in the Current Patch Window.  Select the Tempo mode.

2.	Double click on the source region in the Regions View (this region is on Track 1 for this example).  Mark 8 beats in the SoundFile View and click on the SRC button to set the source tempo.

3.	Double click on the destination region in the Regions View (this region is on Track 2 for this example).  Mark 8 beats in the SoundFile View and click on the DST button to set the destination tempo.

4.	The regions on Track 2 will be vari-pitched to match the region selected as the source.

Another method is provided below:

1.	Double click on the source region on Track 1 to bring it up in the SoundFile View.  Mark 8 beats in the SoundFile View.

2.	Click on the FX button on Track 2 and patch in the Vari-Pitch/Speed and double click on it in the Current Patch Window.  Select the Tempo mode.

3.	Click on the SoundFile View Window to make sure it is the active Window.  Click the SRC button to set the source tempo in the SoundFile View.

4.	Double click on the destination region on Track 2 to bring it up in the SoundFile View.  Mark 8 beats in the SoundFile View.

5.	Click on the DST button to set the destination tempo in the SoundFile View.

6.	The regions on Track 2 will be vari-pitched to match the region on Track 1.


How Saw Plus Works

Overview

•	MultiTrack View Window

•	Full View Window

•	SoundFile View Window

•	Regions View Window

•	Sequence View Window

•	Markers View Window

•	Remote Transport Window

•	Recording Control Panel


Overview

The SAW interface is designed to be easy to use for the beginner as well as extremely powerful for the experienced user. The operational model is centered on the Multitrack View window. It is here that your production is built, fine-tuned and ultimately finished. A basic description of the work flow follows.

Sound is recorded to files on the hard drive using the Record Panel which is accessed by pressing one of the REC buttons. Either entire sound files or just portions of them can be defined as regions. The Full View and SoundFile View windows are used to audition sound files and to create precise region definitions. The Regions View window displays the regions you create in an alphabetized list. Regions are the building blocks that are placed in the MultiTrack View that define tracks of audio. As a track is built, the regions on it are displayed graphically in the MultiTrack View and listed sequentially in the Sequence View

Specific locations in a production can be defined by creating markers which are displayed in the Marker View window. Markers allow quick navigation to specific points in the production and are powerful tools for manipulating your sound.

Finally, the Remote Transport window controls playback of your sound and displays time or sample information about your production.

Function Key Assignments

Each of the twelve function keys on your keyboard can be assigned to recall a different view, each having different combinations of windows in various sizes and locations. To program a function key view, arrange the SAW display to your liking, creating combinations of windows that you wish to use in your editing sessions. This might include a generic display such as the default combination that comes with the program, as well as several views of the MultiTrack View with the maximum number of tracks, two tracks with a wider display and one single track at maximum width.

As you create each view, press the SHIFT key and the FUNCTION key that you wish to use to recall that view. That's it. SHIFT-Fkey stores the view and the Fkey by itself recalls it. When you've stored some views, use the Save Preferences option in the File menu to save your function key assignments. The view that is displayed when you save preferences will become the default view when you start SAW.


MultiTrack View Window

Overview

The MultiTrack View window is the center of the SAW universe. This workspace can be used as a simple tool for combining a music bed and voice-over track, or to create long, complex productions utilizing thousands of regions with full mix automation. Regions can be easily moved, copied or deleted while in  Select mode.

This window has several distinct areas. At the left are the track controls. Along the bottom, just above the scroll bar, is a light yellow Time Line which displays time information and is also used extensively for navigation, marking and other functions. The gray central area represents the actual tracks where regions are placed and displays a vertical cursor from top to bottom.

The MultiTrack View displays and provides real-time playback of all tracks of audio data. The data is represented as blocks called regions. The window has multiple zoom levels and can display region waveforms when desired. Recording directly to the multitrack is possible.

The MultiTrack View is also where your mixing is done. Virtual faders and pan controls, along with graphic level displays, make this a simple yet powerful process. Processing functions such as equalization or compression can be assigned to tracks in the MultiTrack View.

Use the Page Up/Down Keys to increase or decrease the width of the tracks.  As the tracks expand or contract, the window size is automatically adjusted.  Adding the CTRL key will expand or contract the width to its maximum limits.

Use the SHIFT-PageUp key and SHIFT-PageDown key to amplify and reduce the display.  Use the 0 (zero) key to return to Zero dB.  Press the CTRL-0 to return all tracks to Zero dB.

Press the Z key to perform the Zero Cross Detection in the MultiTrack View.

Regular Tracks vs Output Tracks

In addition to the regular tracks, there are Output tracks, one for each sound card. These special tracks are normally the last four tracks in the MultiTrack View and are distinguished by different colors for both the controls and tracks. They provide level adjustment controls for the output buffers as well as a location for regions representing mixed output files created using the Build Mix function.

Select Mode Button - S Key

This button has an icon showing a dotted rectangle surrounding an arrow that points up and to the left. When engaged, the mouse pointer will take on this icon shape whenever it is located over the MultiTrack View window.

Select Mode allows you to select or highlight regions on the tracks. Regions become a lighter color when selected. If Select Mode is disengaged by clicking on the button, any regions that are selected will return to their normal color. When Select Mode is next made active with the SHIFT key pressed then those previously selected regions will be re-selected automatically. Regions can be selected in several ways.

Clicking

Clicking a region will highlight just one region at a time. A right-click with the CTRL Key will de-select the region. If you need to de-select all regions at a time, just press the right mouse button.  The C (Clear) Key will also clear all entries.

Dragging

Dragging the Select Mode pointer in a direction from top left to bottom right in an imaginary rectangle will cause all regions in that rectangle to be selected as you drag. As you drag to the right, the display will automatically scroll sideways if you need to continue selecting regions.

End Key

Using the END key after selecting a region will highlight all other regions to right and to the end of the current hot track .

Home Key

Using the HOME key after selecting a region will highlight all other regions to the left and to the beginning of the current hot track.

CTRL-End Key

Using CTRL-END after selecting a region will highlight all other regions on all tracks to the right and to the end of the production.

CTRL-Home Key

Using CTRL-HOME after selecting a region will highlight all other regions on all tracks to the left and to the beginning of the production.

Manipulating Regions Once They Are Selected

Once you have selected regions, you can move, copy, delete or process them.

To move them horizontally, hold down the SHIFT key, then drag any highlighted region to the left or right. A vertical cursor will appear at the beginning and end of the region you are dragging to show you how much you are moving and as an aid in aligning the regions in relation to stationary ones. Notice that the Current Time display in the Remote Transport window will show the time where the region starts and, as you move, the Marked time display will change to indicate Relative time and show exactly how far you have moved. Simply drop the region(s) where you would like them.

To move regions vertically, hold down the CTRL key, then drag any highlighted region up or down. This action keeps all regions locked in time.  Again, drop the region(s) on whatever track(s) you like.

To move regions in any direction at once, left or right, up or down, begin as above with either the SHIFT or CTRL keys. Once you've initiated the move, release the SHIFT or CTRL key as you drag. Now you are free to drop them anywhere they can fit on the tracks.

Normally when moving a selected MultiTrack entry, the time readout in the Remote Panel will normally indicate the entry begin position as you drag.  If you press the ALT key, the time indication will display the actual grab point of the Select Cursor.  This can be useful when using the AVI Viewer Effect, because the video frame that displays will be the exact video position of the grabbed point of the entry.

To copy regions, use any of the above techniques to begin moving them. During the process, simply click the right mouse button. Now, when you drop the region(s), you will drop a copy, leaving the original ones intact. The copies will retain the highlighting in case you need to repeat the action.

You have complete freedom when moving or copying regions except when there is a conflict of space. If the new position is near or overlapping an existing region or near the start of the production, the moved ones will be butted against it. If a conflict exists due to two regions trying to occupy the same space, a dialog box will inform you of the conflict and the move will be canceled.

To delete all selected regions, press the DELETE key. A dialog box will ask you to confirm the delete process. Any regions left in the production will retain their current position.

Resizing a Region

Use the SHIFT Key along with the Left Mouse Button to grab a splice point (or beginning or end of a region) and extend or shorten the Region size.  If the entry is butt-spliced to an adjacent entry then both entries will be adjusted simultaneously, effectively shifting the splice point but not altering the time or meter.  If there is a blank space between entries you may pull the point past the next or previous entry and the Region Size will be adjusted to fit exactly up to the adjacent entry.

Use the U Key in the MultiTrack View to resize a region to the cursor point.

Editing Regions Directly In The MultiTrack View

Since it is easy to see, as well as hear the audio in the MultiTrack View, editing regions is a simple matter as well. The Split Region Toolbar and the Cut MT Entry Toolbar, found in the Window menu, are the tools used to segment, remove or splice regions in the MultiTrack View. They allow unwanted sections of regions to be removed, leaving the remaining segments intact or spliced together, at your discretion.

Marking regions on a track can be done using the B and E keys to mark the Beginning and End points of the region or by SHIFT-dragging in the Time Line (see below).   Use the CTRL-B or CTRL-C keys to mark the entire region under the cursor on the Hot Track.  Refer to the chapter on SAW Menus for more details about these toolbars.

Time Line Display

This is displayed as a light yellow, horizontal bar directly below the bottom track of the MultiTrack View. In the Time Line display area you will see reference numbers indicating either standard time, SMPTE time or SAMPLES, depending on what mode is currently active. There is an indicator in the right corner of the Time Line that displays the current mode. It will read H:M:S.ms for Hours:Minutes:Seconds .milliseconds when in normal time mode.

Output Tracks

When you scroll down to the bottom of the MultiTrack View, below the last track, you will see additional tracks. These are Output Tracks. Each track represents the output stage of SAW, and relates to each sound card that you have installed.

Volume And Pans

The volume and pan controls on the Output Tracks will affect every track that is assigned to that track's sound card.

Build Mix

The Output Tracks are where new regions, created with the Build Mix function, are placed. A mix located here can be played using the solo button, muting all other regular tracks assigned to that mix output.


Full View Window

Overview

The Full View window always shows the entire sound file waveform, compressed to fit in the window, regardless of its size. On stereo files, both the left and right channels are summed together and displayed as  mono. Its main purpose is to provide instant, nonlinear access to any part of a sound file. Once a place of interest has been located, the position is then transferred to the SoundFile View for detailed work. This is done by clicking in the Time Line at the desired transfer point.

Transfer Function

Once you have found a spot in the sound file in the Full View window, you can automatically transfer that exact position to the SoundFile View window by clicking in the yellow Time Line zone at the bottom of the Full View window.


SoundFIle View Window

Overview

The SoundFile View is one of the most important windows in the SAW environment, second only to the MultiTrack View.  It is used to define regions, preview edit points, create loops, etc.

This view shows both the left (top) and right (bottom) channels of a stereo file in detail. Mono files show only one track of course. You may zoom in or out to display the audio waveform data in varying resolutions. You may also adjust the audio amplitude of the display to magnify low volume waveform data.

Starting and Stopping Playback

Several options are available to control playback of audio in the SoundFile View. The SPACEBAR and the right mouse button will both toggle between play and stop. All buttons on the Remote Transport function in the SoundFile View, including Play Mark and Play Loop which work with the currently defined region.

It's important to understand that the playback function in the SoundFile View is optimized for previewing edit points. At times two cursors will be displayed, the normal editing cursor and a separate tracking cursor.

Normal playback will begin at the editing cursor. As it proceeds, the tracking cursor will display the current position. Stopping and starting again will automatically place the tracking cursor back at the editing cursor position and begin playing again from the same original position. This can be very helpful when adjusting and fine tuning an edit point.

Pressing the T Key will transfer the actual Starting Cursor position to the Tracking Cursor position.

When using the Play Mark or Play Loop buttons on the Remote Transport, things are a bit different. If the cursor is outside the marked area, either of these controls will cause playback to begin from the beginning of the marked area. If the editing cursor is within the boundaries of the marked area however, either of these controls will cause playback to begin at the editing cursor position.

This can be helpful when you wish to hear the ending of a region, or the end/begin edit points if using Play Loop, without having to play the full region first. For example, if you place the editing cursor inside and near the end of the marked area and click on Play Loop on the Remote Transport, playback will begin at the cursor position, proceed to the end of the region and then immediately play the beginning of the region.

To enter Loop Scrub Mode simply press the CTRL Key and then the Left Mouse Button. You have now grabbed the SoundFile Cursor while playback of a tight loop is activated. You may release the Ctrl Key but keep pressing the Left Mouse Button. You may change the length of the scrub loop by using the Up and Down Arrow Keys. You may also go back to the default loop size by pressing the Left Arrow Key. Pressing the Right Arrow Key will change the loop size to your last adjusted size. Pressing the Left Arrow Key Twice in a row will reset the adjusted size to the default. Releasing the Left Mouse Button exits Loop Scrub Mode. Note that you may also use the keyboard keys to adjust zoom and magnification level while Loop Scrub is active.

Marking Regions

To define a region, place the cursor at the point where you want the region to start and press the B key (or click on MRK BEG). Then place the cursor at the point where you want the region to end and press the E key (or click on MRK END). Use the CTRL-B or CTRL-E  (CTRL-MrkBeg or CTRL-MrkEnd) keys to mark the entire file under the cursor in the SoundFile View.  The area between the two points will be inverse highlighted, showing the marked region.

Another quick way to define a region is to drag in the Time Line from left to right with the SHIFT key depressed. You can always zoom in later to update the begin and end points precisely if necessary.

Once a region is marked, press CTRL-N, or select Create New Region from the Regions menu, and type in a name. The name will be placed alphabetically into the Regions View list.

Another method of creating a region is to mark an area of audio and hold the SHIFT Key down and press and release the Left Mouse Button (exactly the same as doing Drag/Drop from the Regions View).  A new Region will automatically be created and selected and the Drag/Drop cursor will appear.  Drag the cursor to the MultiTrack and drop the new entry on the desired track.  Each time this is done a new Region is created.

Once a region has been defined, the Play Loop function on the Remote Transport can be used. While the loop is playing, the begin and end points can be redefined on-the-fly by clicking anywhere in the display area.

Double-clicking anywhere in the display area will cause that point of the waveform to be centered in the display.


Regions View Window

Overview

The Regions View window provides an alphabetized listing of every region name contained in the current edit list.  Regions are the basic building blocks of your production and can be created in several ways. No matter how they are created, they always appear in the Regions View window.  From there, regions can be placed on tracks in the MultiTrack View, creating your production.

Creating Regions

There are many ways to create regions in SAW. They are automatically created when recording directly to the MultiTrack View. They can be manually defined or updated in the SoundFile View. New regions can also be created from existing ones using the Split Region and Cut MT Entry toolbars found in the Window menu.

To create a Region from a file in the SoundFile View, you first mark an area of the waveform using the MRK BEG and MRK END buttons (or the other equivalent methods).  Use the CTRL-B or CTRL-E keys to mark the entire file.  Then click on the Regions Menu and select the Create New Region option (or press CTRL-N). Give your Region a unique name and press OK. The region will be listed alphabetically in the Regions View window.

Another method of creating a region is to mark an area of audio and hold the SHIFT Key down and press and release the Left Mouse Button (exactly the same as doing Drag/Drop from the Regions View).  A new Region will automatically be created and selected and the Drag/Drop cursor will appear.  Drag the cursor to the MultiTrack and drop the new entry on the desired track.  Each time this is done a new Region is created.

When you record in the MultiTrack View, the entire sound file will automatically become a region on the track(s) you recorded to. These regions can then be edited to remove unnecessary segments if necessary. This not only keeps background noise to a minimum, it also eases the demands on the CPU and hard drive, often increasing the number tracks that can be played simultaneously.

You may redisplay a region by simply double-clicking on the name in the Regions View list. This will cause it to be displayed in the SoundFile View window immediately.

You may freely open other sound files, without disturbing the current edit list, to create new regions from many different sound file sources. SAW will keep track of which sound file each region belongs to and will automatically open and display the proper file as you select and work with your regions.

Inserting Regions Into The MultiTrack View

ADD to MT Button

To place a copy of a region listed in the Regions View on to a track in the MultiTrack View, first select the track you wish to use by clicking on it in the MultiTrack View. Then place the cursor exactly where you want the region to begin. Then, in the Regions View window, first click on the region name and then on the ADD to MT button at the top of the window. The region will appear on the track and the MultiTrack View cursor will be repositioned to the end of the newly placed region. At this point you are ready to add another region immediately, building your track. If you wish to repeat a region several times, just continue to click on the ADD to MT button.

Pressing the A key has the same affect as this button.

Drag and Drop

Sometimes you may wish to visually place a region using the drag and drop approach. This is easy to do in SAW. Just hold down the SHIFT key and select a region from the Regions View list by clicking on it. A special cursor will appear symbolizing a region block with an arrow coming out of it. Now move the cursor up to the MultiTrack View. An outline of the region will appear over the tracks. Just place it where you want and click the mouse. The region will drop into place.


Markers View Window

Overview

The Markers View provides powerful navigational features for the SAW environment. Markers are points in either the MultiTrack View or the SoundFile View that can be named and recalled at will. Markers can be dropped while recording to the MultiTrack View. This makes it a snap to return to specific points of interest as soon as the recording is finished.  The M Key can be used in the SoundFile or MultiTrack View to add a new marker.  If playback is active the marker name will be automatically generated.  If playback is stopped then SAW will ask for a marker name.


Sequence View Window

Overview

The Sequence View window displays information on the hot track currently selected in the MultiTrack View. It shows a list of regions in the same order that they are positioned on the track. It also displays information about each region including the region name, In time, Out time and Length. The format of these last three changes according to the currently selected format: normal time, SMPTE time or samples.

Window Expand Button

Just below the title bar is a blue button with opposing arrows on it. This button toggles the Sequence View display between a narrow and wide view. The narrow view displays region entry names only, while the wide view displays all available information. This is especially convenient for those working on video displays with lower resolution, so you can keep the window small but expand it quickly when you need the additional information.

ADD CTRL

Pressing this button will bring up the following window:

This window allows you to add a special Sequence Entiry to help control the flow of the MultiTrack Playback.  Use the ADD TO SEQ button to add an entry to any track at any position.  These entries will be displayed in a different color and they can be moved and deleted as any other sequence entry.

Sequence Control Break - Causes the MultiTrack Playback to stop at the entry position.  This stops all tracks regardless of which track it is on.

Sequence Control Loop - This entry when encountered will set a flag that will reset the MultiTrack Playback to the beginning and restart playback after the entire MultiTrack has been played to the end.

In/Out/Length

This part of the display, on the right side of the Sequence View, shows where each region begins and ends on the track, as well as its total length.

In any SMPTE Mode, you may Double-Click on the In-Position and pop up the Enter SMPTE Window.  Entering a SMPTE time in the window and clicking OK will now snap that entry to the specified SMPTE Frame.


Remote Transport Window

Overview

The Remote Transport's main function is to provide a simple means to control playback in SAW. In addition, it provides information on cursor position and marked region length, controls for looping or playing marked regions, auto return functions and much more. It's called the Remote Transport because, like a few other windows in SAW, it can function outside the actual program, allowing you to control SAW from any other application.


Recording Control Panel

Overview

The Recording Control Panel is used to control the sound card(s) in your computer system in order to record the audio to your hard drive. It is divided into two parts. The top section is the Record Transport. The bottom section, called the Record Info Panel, has controls for input level, record mode parameters and various information displays, including the record meters.

If there is more than one sound card installed in your computer, additional Recording Control Panels can be opened at once by clicking the Rec button on other tracks that are assigned to different cards. Each Recording Control Panel can then be set to the desired parameters, assigning file names and setting levels. When recording is started, all tracks setup for recording will then do so simultaneously.

Punch-In/Punch Out

When using straight Record Mode, you can toggle between Record Ready and Record Mode directly.

When using SRP, press the SRP Play button first, the press the Record button to Punch In and start recording (or press the SRP button with the SHIFT key depressed).  Press the SRP Play button again to Punch Out and stop recording without stopping playback.  The new entry will be automatically inserted on the track, splitting and removing any underlying entry.  During the punch, playback of underlying entries will be automatically muted.  You may continue to Punch In and Out until Stop is pressed.

There are several keyboard shortcuts to make this easier:

•	Press the SPACEBAR to begin playback.

•	Press the ENTER key to Punch In / Out

•	Press the * key to toggle Record Ready

There is no automatic Undo during the record process, however you are free to use the power of the multiple levels of undo  to save instant spinoffs at any time prior or during the process.  You can always decide to recall any one of those saved options for an instant undo of many Punch-Ins.

After Punching In you can remove the punched in region and grab the original regions end point with the SHIFT key pressed to extend the region back in place.

An Auto Punch feature is also available.  By marking a section of the MultiTrack before pressing SRP, you can set the Punch-In and Out points.  Pressing SRP will begin playback and when the Marked Begin point is reached, record mode will begin automatically, and when the Marked End point is reached, record mode will stop automatically.  The new entry will be automatically placed on the track.


RCP1
Shows the remaining recording time left on the current drive. This is a function of the current file format and it will vary depending on the format being used.


RCP2
Shows the current drive letter.  The arrows on the left or right of the letter will let you cycle through your current drives.


RCP3
This is used to stop recording or to cancel RecRdy mode.


RCP4
Stands for Simultaneous-Record-Play. This causes the record function to activate along with playback of any non-muted tracks in the MultiTrack View. A filename must be assigned before this will function


RCP5
This causes the record function to begin. The SAW Title Bar indicator will turn red and the meter displays will track the audio signal. The incoming audio data will be digitized and sent to the hard drive. A filename must be assigned before this will function.


RCP6
Activates the VU Meters, turns the SAW Title Bar indicator green and begins processing audio data. A filename must be assigned before this will function.


RCP7
Displays the name of the window's currently active sound card driver. It can be used to drag the window just like any other Windows title bar.


RCP8
There are two boxes on either side of this label. They display the current track(s) being recorded to. If the display boxes read SF, the recording is going to the SoundFile View window


RCP9
This button closes the Recording Control Panel and instantly saves any sound file that has been recorded. If the recording was initiated from the MultiTrack View, the recording will be automatically regioned and placed at the original MultiTrack View cursor position on the appropriate track(s).


RCP10
This button opens the dialog box which allows you to set the current sound file drive, path and name when recording a mono file (Mono L/R) via the left input of the current sound card. Also points to the name of the file once it has been set.


RCP11
This opens the dialog box which allows you to set the current sound file drive, path and name when recording a stereo or mono file (Mono L+R) via the left and right inputs of the current sound card.


RCP12
This opens the dialog box which allows you to set the current sound file drive, path and name when recording a mono file (Mono L/R) via the right input of the current sound card. Also points to the name of the file once it has been set.


RCP13
These display the input signal levels for the selected sound card. The segments are colored green in the lower part, yellow in the middle and red near the top. The desired recording range for most applications is in the yellow range. The meters contain over 120 segments and feature a peak hold indicator. If overload occurs, the PEAK indicator(s) at the top of the meters will illuminate.


RCP14
This displays the input level settings (default is 0 dB) in the top section and provides input level adjustments using the red fader controls in the bottom section. The fader range is +30 to -70 dB. To adjust independently press the SHIFT key while adjusting the fader. To reset back to 0 dB, press the Right Mouse button while adjusting the fader.


RCP15
This displays the currently selected sample rate. Clicking the button cycles through the available settings.


RCP16
This displays the desired record mode type. Clicking the button cycles through the three types:

•	Stereo (default)

•	Mono L+R - to record the sum of left and right to a mono file

•	Mono L/R - to record a mono file from the left input and a mono file from the right input, separately and simultaneously.  This type allows you to select one track to record the Left channel and another track to record the Right Channel.


RCP17
This displays the recording resolution setting. Clicking the button cycles the display between 8-bit and 16-bit (default).


RCP18
This displays the current input mode. Clicking the button cycles the display between Analog or Digital input mode (depending on type of sound card and input modes supported).


RCP19
Pressing this button allows a retake of the last section recorded. Clicking the button with the SHIFT key depressed will cause a Retake of the entire sound file.


RCP20
This shows the elapsed time of the left input channel up to the current recording position. If this is a new sound file, this value will be zero. If this is an existing sound file, this value will reflect the length of the recording so far.


RCP21
This shows the elapsed time of the right input channel up to the current recording position. If this is a new sound file, this value will be zero. If this is an existing sound file, this value will reflect the length of the recording so far.


RCP22
This shows the elapsed time for the section currently being recorded.


RCP23
This shows the margin level from zero before clipping level is reached. This value counts upwards to 100% as the audio level nears maximum. If 100% is reached, the peak indicators will light red. The margin may be cleared by pressing the Reset button.


RCP24
This button refreshes the VU Meter display and clears the Margin and Peak indicators. It can be pressed at any time, even during recording


RCP25
Pressing this button allows a retake of the entire sound file.  This option will automatically remove all regions connected to the SoundFile that you are clearing to zero.


Track Number
At the far left of the MultiTrack View are square boxes with track numbers in them, starting with number one at the top and continuing down sequentially. You can drag any track to a new location in the MultiTrack View by dragging the track's number box to the new position.


Solo Button
Clicking on it will cause the button to appear depressed and a yellow 'LED' will appear as a further indication of the button's status. When a Solo button is depressed, all other tracks that are not in Solo mode will be muted.


Mute Button
Clicking on it will cause the button to appear depressed and a yellow 'LED' will appear as a further indication of the button's status.  When a Mute button is depressed, that particular track will be muted or turned off.


Fader Icon
Clicking on this icon will pop-up the fader and pan control window for that particular track. At the same time, the track's region color will be grayed out and two white horizontal lines will appear on the track.  This is the Mix Entries View.

The fader and pan controls can be grabbed and moved with the left mouse button. The mix at the current MultiTrack View cursor position will be changed to the new setting. Each of the tracks can be individually adjusted for the current cursor position or live during playback. Both controls can be reset to their default settings quickly by grabbing them with the left mouse button and then clicking the right mouse button.


Sound Card Select Buttons
This group of  blue buttons allows you to select which sound card you wish to use for input or output on the current track. When using multiple cards, select the appropriate sound card before you begin recording to, or playing back from, a track. The buttons are interlocked so only one can be selected at a time. The buttons will only work for the number of sound cards you have installed in the Audio Hardware Setup window of SAW.  Clicking on this button with the CTRL key will reset all tracks to that soundcard.


FX Button
The yellow FX button will open a dialog box that allows setting and inserting various processing functions into the track's processing loop.


Record Button
The red REC button will open the Recording Control Panel to initiate recording directly to the track starting at the current cursor position.


Regions
Regions are pointers to segments of a soundfile.  If a soundfile is cut or altered in size then all regions using that soundfile are invalid.


ZM IN
This yellow button expands the resolution of the MultiTrack View display allowing finer cursor position capability. Using the + key while in the MultiTrack View provides the same function.


ZM OUT
This yellow button reduces the resolution of the MultiTrack View display showing more of the production on the screen. Using the - key while in the MultiTrack View provides the same function.


Sample Rate Button
This button has an icon showing vertical lines of various heights (representing samples) with a very small word, RATE, below them. Selecting this button displays a window entitled Set MT Rate. Clicking the yellow Out Rate button will cycle through the available sample rates. Once you've decided on a setting, click on OK to set the multitrack session default sample rate.


Select Mode Button
This button has an icon showing a dotted rectangle surrounding an arrow that points up and to the left. When engaged, the mouse pointer will take on this icon shape whenever it is located over the MultiTrack View window.  The S key will also enter into Select Mode

Select Mode allows you to select or highlight regions on the tracks. Regions become a lighter color when selected. If Select Mode is disengaged by clicking on the button, any regions that are selected will return to their normal color. When Select Mode is next made active with the SHIFT key pressed then those previously selected regions will be re-selected automatically.


Waveform Display Button
This aqua-colored button with the waveform icon on it acts as a toggle to turn the region waveform display on or off.  The W key performs the same functiion.


Time Line
In the Time Line display area you will see reference numbers indicating either standard time, SMPTE time or SAMPLES, depending on what mode is currently active. There is an indicator in the right corner of the Time Line that displays the current mode. It will read H:M:S.ms for Hours:Minutes:Seconds .milliseconds when in normal time mode.


Hide/Show
This button can be used to hide or show SAW. When hidden, any application below is brought to the front. The current  window view  remains visible and active on top of the other application. This allows quick navigation and playback at specific points in your production while working in your favorite sequencer program for example.


Top Latch
This button stands for Top Latch and allows you to latch this window to any other window with a H/S button. Then, any H/S button that is depressed will cause all windows that are latched to stay on top when SAW is hidden


Expand Button
This button toggles the Markers View display between the narrow and wide view. The narrow view displays marker names only, while the wide view adds marker position information. This is convenient for those working on video displays with lower resolution, since you can keep the window small but expand it quickly when you need the additional information.


Marker 1
Clicking this button places the currently highlighted marker name in the Marker 1 window.


Marker 2
Clicking this button places the currently highlighted marker name in the Marker 2 window.


Relative 1-2
When a marker name of similar types (MT or SF) are displayed in their respective windows, this window displays the relative time between the two points.


Add SF Button
This button adds a marker at the current sound file cursor position. This can be done at any time including during playback from the SoundFile View


Add MT Button
This button adds a marker at the current multitrack cursor position. This can be done at any time, including during playback from the MultiTrack View.


Update Button
Clicking this button updates the currently highlighted marker to the new cursor position and allows you to change the name of the marker.


Stop
In the MultiTrack View, they work as you would expect, to stop or playback all unmuted tracks. When Stop is depressed, playback stops and the cursor remains at that point, ready to resume playback.

In the SoundFile View, they work much the same except that when Stop is depressed, the cursor automatically returns to the start point. This allows you to easily and quickly preview an edit point as many times as you like.


Current Time Display
This display shows either Current Time, SMPTE Time or Samples (depending on the active mode) for the selected item or cursor position in the currently active window. As you move from one window to another, the display immediately changes to show the time for the new window.


Play
If the Regions View is the active window, pressing Play will automatically load the sound file, display the region and initiate Play Mark, since you are playing a region only. Playback will automatically stop at the end of the region and the cursor will re-cue to the beginning.

From the Sequence View, the Play button will initiate playback of the multitrack from the start of the currently selected region in the Sequence View. From that point on, the controls function as they normally do in the MultiTrack View.


Play Mark
Pressing the Play Mark button immediately shifts the focus to the SoundFile View and initiates playback of the marked region. If there is no active sound file or region in the SoundFile View, a message will appear to inform you of such.

If the SoundFile View cursor is at the beginning or outside the marked region, Play Mark will play the entire marked area from beginning to end. If the cursor somewhere inside the region boundaries, Play Mark will play the marked area from the cursor position to the end. This is handy for checking the end of a long region when you don't want to play the entire piece to hear the ending edit point.


Play Loop
This control functions in much the same way as Play Mark except that it will continuously loop back to the beginning of the region until you stop playback.

During the Play Loop mode, you can redefine region boundaries in the SoundFile View by simply clicking near either edge of the region. The boundary that is closest to where you clicked will be changed to the new position. Playback will continue, allowing you to hear the change immediately.


Marked Display
This display indicates the currently Marked area of the active window, in Current Time, SMPTE Time or Samples (depending on the active mode), whether it is a region in the SoundFile View or a marked section of a track in the MultiTrack View.

Whenever you are dragging the cursor in either the MultiTrack View, Full View or SoundFile View and there is no currently marked area, the Marked display will change to indicate the Relative time of the cursor movement during the drag operation.


T/S
T/S stands for Time/Samples. This button toggles between these two modes and causes all position and time references in SAW to change accordingly.

SMPTE time is displayed whenever that mode is engaged via one of the options in the SMPTE/MIDI menu.


Z Button
This stands for Return to Zero. Clicking on this key returns the cursor to the beginning of the sound file or multitrack production, depending on the active window.


B & E BUTTONS
These buttons are included as a convenient way to navigate to the beginning or end of a marked region in the SoundFile View and MultiTrack View.  Use the CTRL-Left Arrow and CTRL-Right Arrow as shortcut keys.


Auto Button
This button toggles a mode that will cause the cursor to automatically return to the last starting point during playback from the MultiTrack View. It has no effect in the SoundFile View since that function is already enabled. To turn this mode off, just click the button again.


Jog Bar
This interesting little control beneath the Auto << button acts as a horizontal jog bar. Grabbing it and dragging to the left or right will rewind or fast forward your position in the MultiTrack View. It is'pressure sensitive' so a slight drag will move slower than if you push it way over. When you release the control, the MultiTrack View window will redraw the screen, centering the new cursor position.


SFB1
The IN FULL button displays the audio wave at a resolution of one sample per pixel, which is the closest zoom possible. SAW displays true, sample-accurate, vector graphic waveform displays for precise representation of the actual waveform.

Use this zoom level to precisely align an edit point directly to a transient or specific sample in the waveform.

SAW will remember your previous zoom level and you may return to it by simply pressing the ZM OUT button. If you press the IN FULL button twice in a row, you will clear the previous zoom level memories.


SFB2
The ZM IN button steps the display resolution in one level and expands the time reference of the waveform display. Use this button to help find a comfortable resolution for the particular waveform you are working with. The + key duplicates this function as well.


SFB3
The ZM OUT button steps the display resolution out one level and compresses the time reference of the waveform display. Use this button to help find a comfortable resolution for the particular waveform you are working with. The - key duplicates this function as well.


SFB4
The OUT FULL button displays the audio wave at a resolution that attempts to compress all the sound file data into the window at once. This view will be very similar to the FullView window display. SAW will remember your previous zoom level and you may return to it by simply pressing the ZM IN button. If you press the OUT FULL button twice in a row, you will clear the previous zoom level memories.


SFB5
The UP button increases the amplitude of the waveform display. By using this button, you can magnify low level sections of audio data to help locate and remove background noises. The PAGE UP key duplicates this function as well.


SFB6
The 0 dB button sets the amplitude of the waveform display so that full digital clipping level is reached at the top and bottom of the respective channel displays. The waveform display is shown at the exact recorded level. When toggling between this button and the UP button, the magnified level will be memorized, allowing you to easily switch between both levels. If you press this button twice in a row, the magnified level will be reset to zero. The 0 (zero) key duplicates this function as well.


SFB7
The DN button decreases the amplitude of the waveform display. By using this button you can reduce magnification of loud sections of audio data that might be extending beyond the visible limits of the respective channel displays. The PAGE DOWN key duplicates this function as well.


SFB8
The MRK BEG button marks the current SoundFile View cursor position as the beginning boundary of an area of marked data. If the end boundary is beyond this point, the marked area between boundaries will be highlighted in both the SoundFile View window and the FullView window. You may clear the marked area at any time by pressing the C key, or by setting the begin point beyond the end point. The marked area is used to create Regions and to define boundaries for many of the Workshop's processing functions. The B key will perform the same function as MRK BEG.


SFB9
The MRK END button marks the current SoundFile View cursor position as the end boundary of an area of marked data. If the beginning boundary is before this point, the marked area between boundaries will be highlighted in both the SoundFile View window and the FullView window. You may clear the marked area at any time by pressing the C key, or by setting the end point before the beginning point. The marked area is used to create Regions and to define boundaries for many of the Workshop's processing functions. The E key will perform the same function as MRK END.


SFB10
The Time Line in the SoundFile View works in a similar manner to the one in the MultiTrack View. Using the SHIFT key when dragging in the Time Line from left to right will highlight the waveform. This is the same as if you set a begin and end point manually using MRK BEG or MRK END.  Use the CTRL-B or CTRL-E  (CTRL-MrkBeg or CTRL-MrkEnd) keys to mark the entire file under the cursor in the SoundFile View.


Menu Items

Overview

•	File Menu

•	Edit Menu

•	Regions Menu

•	MultiTrack Menu

•	Mix Menu

•	Process/Mixdown Menu

•	Window Menu

•	SMPTE/MIDI Menu

•	Options Menu

•	Info Menu


Overview

The menu bar at the top of the SAW screen provides access to the various pull-down menus. These menus offer many powerful options and tools for manipulating audio data within the Workshop environment.

To select an option on any menu, simply click on the menu name. The menu will display a list of options. Point and click to select the option you desire.

Many menu items in SAW have keyboard equivalents for people who prefer to use them. Whenever this is the case, the equivalent keystroke combination will be displayed next to the menu item text. In the descriptions that follow, this same convention is followed in the paragraph title for each item that has keyboard shortcuts available.

In some cases, most notably with the toolbars, menu selections are duplicated on a toolbar or some other control. This provides alternate ways to execute a command in cases when one method may be more appropriate than another.


File Menu

The File Menu contains options which allow you to manipulate files on your disk drives. It also contains options for saving settings and for exiting the SAW program.

Many of the File Menu options will open a file dialog box. This dialog box provides a display of files and directories (folders) that are found on your disk drives.

The box on the right side of the file dialog box displays the current directory and a list of directories that reside under the current directory. You may think of the DOS/Windows directory structure as a staircase leading downward from one level to another level below. The top floor or root directory can contain sub-directories (which can be thought of as folders in a filing cabinet). These sub-directories can also contain other sub-directories and so on. The double-dot entry acts like a staircase that leads back upwards through the directory structure. By selecting the double-dot entry you will be taken up to the previous directory and so on until you are back at the top floor root directory.

The box on the left side of a file dialog box displays a list of files within the current directory that matches the qualifier specifications.

The qualifier option helps to narrow down the view of files displayed, so that only specific file types applicable to the current operation can be seen. For example a qualifier of *.WAV will only show files that end with the WAV extension. The qualifier option is used to select between various file formats when opening or recording sound files.

The drive option allows you to select a different disk drive.

You may select a file by clicking on the file or clicking in the file name box and typing a file name from the keyboard.

Press OK to continue with the file operation, or when selecting a file name with the mouse, double-click directly on the name.

Open SoundFile - CTRL-ALT-O

This option opens a sound file that has been previously recorded. Sound files contain the data that represents the recorded audio and they are typically quite large. SAW handles these huge files with ease and in most cases the process is practically instantaneous. Once a file is open it may be manipulated using the various tools the SAW system provides.

Use the file dialog box to select a file. You may use the qualifier option to select between different file formats. For example, to open a wave file, set the qualifier to Wave File  *.wav and then select a file. The file will then be opened and displayed and you may begin your work session.

The path set in this option is saved in the preferences file. When first using SAW you should point this path to the drive and directory you would like to use as a default and select the Save Preferences option.

Open SoundFile And Create Region

This option opens a sound file that has been previously recorded and automatically mark the entire SoundFile as a Region and place it in the Regions List ready for further manipulation.

Open And Refresh SoundFile

This option opens a sound file that has been previously recorded and refreshes the peak data file that is used to enhance screen display speed. This can be useful if you have modified the file in another utility program outside the SAW environment. When you bring the file back into SAW, you must build a new peak data file in order for the changes to be properly displayed.

Close SoundFile

This option closes the current sound file.

Open EditListFile - CTRL-ALT-E

This option opens an edit list file for editing and playback.

Use the file dialog box to select a file. The file will then be opened and displayed and you may begin your work session.

Edit list files are small files that contain only pointer information, not audio data. These files keep track of all sound files, regions, multitrack assignments, mix automation, and other information involved with an editing session.

Edit list files are stored with the .EDL extension.

You may keep many different versions of a particular production by saving different edit list files during the course of an editing session.

However, because these files are tied directly to sound files on the hard disk and refer to audio data contained within those files, deleting any sound files referenced in an .EDL list will affect the usage of the .EDL file in the future.

When opening an edit list file, you will be notified if any sound file referenced in the list cannot be found. You may choose to ignore the problem and continue working with the remaining information that is not affected.

Any region referencing a sound file that cannot be located during playback will be skipped.

The path set in this option is saved in the preferences file. When first using SAW you should point this path to the drive and directory you would like to use as a default and select the Save Preferences option.

Close EditListFile

This option closes the current edit list file.

Save EditListFile As - CTRL-ALT-S

This option saves edit list files. These files use the .EDL extension.

Use the file dialog box to select a file name and the edit list information will be saved. These files save only pointer information and therefore do not take up much hard disk storage space.

You can use edit list files to save different versions of a production during the course of an editing session.

The path set in this option is saved in the preferences file. When first using SAW you should point this path to the drive and directory you would like to use as a default and select the Save Preferences option.

Save EditListFile Copy As - CTRL-ALT-C

This option will save a copy of the current EditList to a new file and leave you working on the current EditList, not the new one.

Update EditListFile - CTRL-ALT-U

This option will update the current edit list file to the drive without any further prompts.

Create Session Archive

This option creates an archive of the current editing session. Archiving a session allows you to transfer the edit list file and associated sound files from your hard drive and later restore them intact to continue work on the same session.

Restore Session Archive

This option restores a previously archived session.

Session archiving is a method of saving the actual sound file audio data to DAT tape with special timing information that allows recovery of all editing information. A separate small .ARK file retains the necessary path and pointer information needed to rebuild the original .EDL file.  Archiving is restored using  the soundcard selected in the SoundFile View.

Change EditListFile Paths

This option allows you to change the paths of any or all of the sound files associated with an edit list file.

If you decide to move a file associated with an edit list, you must use this option to adjust its path so that when the edit list session is opened, SAW knows where to find the file.

Change ArchiveFile Paths

This option allows you to change the paths of any or all of the sound files associated with an archive file.

If you decide to move a file associated with an archive, you must use this option to adjust its path so that when the archive is restored, SAW knows where to find the file.

Change SoundFile Header SampleRate

This option will overwrite the file header SampleRate information with a new SampleRate. This does not do any conversion of the audio data, only the header itself. This can be useful to easily change a digitally recorded file whose sample rate was not correctly set in the Record Panel. Such a file will playback at the wrong speed, but this option can instantly correct the problem.

Save Preferences

This option saves certain settings as defaults which will take effect every time you start the SAW program. Your preferences are saved in a file called SAWPLUS.PRF. The settings currently saved in the preferences file are:

The audio card(s) settings.

The MIDI/SMPTE card settings.

The window size & placement settings.

The function key view settings.

The current open sound file path.

The current open sound file qualifier.

The current record sound file path.

The current record sound file qualifier.

The current open & save edit list file path.

The current input setting (selected in the Recording Control Panel).

The current default sample rate (selected in the MultiTrack View).

The current SMPTE calibrate value.

The current SMPTE chase value.

The current SMPTE Active Mode.

The SMPTE Calibrate Values

The current SoundFile View Playback Tracking option setting.

The current MultiTrack View Playback Mixer Tracking option setting.

The current MultiTrack PreLoad Buffer setting.

The current Auto SMPTE Stop option setting.

The current Auto Zero Cross option setting.

The current Auto EDL Undo option setting.

The current Display MT Entry Names At Top option setting.

Delete SoundFile

This option deletes a sound file and its associated peak data file. Use the file dialog box to select a file. You will then be prompted for verification before the file is actually deleted. Press OK to delete the file or Cancel to stop the operation.

It is always best to delete sound files using this command rather than from outside SAW. This ensures that both the sound file and the peak data file are deleted at once.

CAUTION: Try to avoid deleting sound files that are part of your current working session. Close your editlistfile first if you need to delete a file that is referenced in the editlist.

Delete EditListFile

This option deletes an editlistfile. Use the file dialog box to select a file. You will then be prompted for verification before the file is actually deleted. Press OK to delete the file or Cancel to cancel the operation.

Split Stero File

This option will split stereo files into two separate mono files.  You will be asked for the source filename and then the two destinations (left and right) filenames.  The source fill will not be destroyed.

Exit

This option exits the program. SAW will prompt you to save your edit list if you have made any changes since the last save or to confirm that you want to exit.

CAUTION:  It's a good idea to get in the habit of saving your edit list frequently and prior to exiting SAW. This minimizes the chance of accidentally exiting without having saved your current work session. All sound file data is securely saved on the hard disk as soon as it's recorded.


Edit Menu

The Edit Menu contains several options which allow you to directly manipulate the audio data within your sound files. Some of these options actually overwrite the original data in the sound file being manipulated and are therefore called destructive processes.

SAW will keep information in an Undo file that will allow you to Undo the last destructive operation performed. Writing the Undo information takes extra processing time and hard disk storage space and therefore you are given the choice of skipping this process if you feel that you do not need the Undo information for a particular operation.

When you select one of these options you will be presented with a warning dialog box giving you three choices.

If you select OK, the operation will proceed and the current audio data will be saved in an Undo file giving you the chance to Undo the process later.

If you select OK / No Undo, the operation will proceed without saving the Undo information. This will be a faster operation, but you will no longer have the option to Undo the process later.

If you select Cancel, the operation will be aborted.

Undo

This option gives you the opportunity to Undo the last destructive data manipulation that was saved in the Undo file.

When you select this option, the actual view of the last destructive operation that was saved in the Undo file will be displayed with the proper zoom level and marked area. You will also be notified of the type of operation that was performed.

Select OK to replace the original data back into the sound file or Cancel to leave things as they are.

If the Auto EDL Undo option is selected then most functions that affect the MultiTrack and Region area can be restored with the Undo.

SAW has the ability to save multiple versions of the current EDL File. This can replace the typical Undo List which can usually only step backward in a serial fashion. Multiple EDL Versions can be recalled completely independently in any sequence and up to 9 of them can be created. At any time (especially before attempting a major change in your session) simply press the CTRL-SHIFT Keys and a number key (1-9 on the main keyboard).  A version of the current EDL state will be saved to that number key. You may then restore that version by simply pressing the corresponding number key along with the CTRL key. You can update the original EDL File by simply recalling any version created and using the Update EditList Option. The versions will stay available with the original EDL even after exiting the program.

Store Current State

This option saves the current sound file name and all zoom levels, marked areas and editing cursor positions for instant recall using the Recall Stored State option.

When you select this option, you will hear two beeps signaling the completion of a successful store operation.

This option gives you the freedom to open other sound files or otherwise change views and easily return to the current view when desired by simply using the Recall Stored State option.

Recall Stored State

This option recalls the last editing environment saved using the Store Current State option.

Copy Marked

This option copies the currently marked area information to the SAW internal clipboard. It only copies pointer information, not audio data, and therefore does not require massive amounts of storage space.

To use this option, first mark the area of interest in the SoundFile View and then select the Copy Marked option. You will hear two beeps signaling the completion of a successful copy operation.

Paste Clipboard To Current SoundFile

This option pastes the audio data referenced in the SAW clipboard to the current SoundFile View cursor position. First, position the SoundFile View cursor at the location where you would like to paste the data and then select this option.

This function overwrites the existing data in the sound file at the cursor position. The current sound file does not have to be the same sound file from which the clipboard data was taken. This allows you to easily move audio data from one sound file to another.

Paste Clipboard To New SoundFile

This is much the same as Paste Clipboard To Current SoundFile except that it will perform the paste operation to a new sound file. You will be prompted to enter a name for the new file.

Cut (Delete) Marked from SoundFile

This option allows you to cut audio data from the SoundFile.  This permanently alters the size of the file and cannot be reversed.  All Regions past the cut point will become invalid.  The  Preview button  will playback the SoundFile in the SoundFile View and skip over the marked area allowing you to hear the effect of the cut before actually cutting the file. The Playback PreRoll will begin near the SoundFile Cursor Position and the PostRoll will continue for the same approximate distance after the cut.

Clear Marked Left

This option clears the left channel of the currently marked area to zero. This is a destructive operation and undoing it is subject to your choice of saving the Undo file information or not.

To do this, use any of the SoundFile View tools or techniques to highlight the area you wish to clear. Then select this option.

Clear Marked Right

This option clears the right channel of the currently marked area to zero. This is a destructive operation and undoing it is subject to your choice of saving the Undo file information or not.

To do this, use any of the SoundFile View tools or techniques to highlight the area you wish to clear. Then select this option.

Clear Marked

This option clears both channels of the currently marked area to zero. This is a destructive operation and undoing it is subject to your choice of saving the Undo file information or not.

To do this, use any of the SoundFile View tools or techniques to highlight the area you wish to clear. Then select this option.

Paste Marked Left To Right

This option pastes the left channel data to the right channel (in the same location) of the currently marked area. This is a destructive operation and undoing it is subject to your choice of saving the Undo file information or not.

To do this, use any of the SoundFile View tools or techniques to highlight the area you wish to clear. Then select this option.

Paste Marked Right To Left

This option pastes the right channel data to the left channel (in the same location) of the currently marked area. This is a destructive operation and undoing it is subject to your choice of saving the Undo file information or not.

To do this, use any of the SoundFile View tools or techniques to highlight the area you wish to clear. Then select this option.

Mix Marked Left To Right

This option mixes the left channel data to the right channel (in the same location) of the currently marked area. The end result is that the left channel is intact and the right channel has a mono mix of left and right. This is a destructive operation and undoing it is subject to your choice of saving the Undo file information or not.

To do this, use any of the SoundFile View tools or techniques to highlight the area you wish to clear. Then select this option.

Mix Marked Right To Left

This option mixes the right channel data to the left channel (in the same location) of the currently marked area. The end result is that the right channel is intact and the left channel has a mono mix of left and right. This is a destructive operation and undoing it is subject to your choice of saving the Undo file information or not.

To do this, use any of the SoundFile View tools or techniques to highlight the area you wish to clear. Then select this option.

Mix Marked

This option mixes the left and right data to the left and right channels (in the same location) of the currently marked area. The end result is that the both channels have a mono mix of left and right. This is a destructive operation and undoing it is subject to your choice of saving the Undo file information or not.

To do this, use any of the SoundFile View tools or techniques to highlight the area you wish to clear. Then select this option.

Calibrate DC Offset

Apply DC Offset

You can calibrate SAW to compensate for audio cards that contain some level of constant DC offset voltage, which can cause pops at the beginning and end of region playback. The pop is caused by the fact that the voltage never really rests at zero.

To use the DC Offset Calibrate function on already existing soundfiles that have a DC Offset problem, zoom full into a blank section of the soundfile and use the up button (or Page-Up key) to magnify the waveform.  You should see a flat line for both the left and right channel.  As you continue to increase the magnification, the flat lines will start to show noise waveforms, but should still be centered along each centerline.  If there is DC Offset present the lines will tend to drift above or below their respective centerlines.  Mark a small section with the begin and end buttons (or B and E Keys) and select the DC Offset Calibrate function.  SAW will calculate the average DC Offset in the section and save the settings. These settings can be saved with the Preferences.  Now zoom back out and place the magnification back to zero dB.  Mark the whole soundfile or region of interest, and use the Apply DC Offset function . SAW will apply the calibration values and center the waveform properly around the centerlines, thereby eliminating the pops that occur when beginning and ending playback across region boundaries.


Regions Menu

The Regions Menu contains options which allow you to create and manipulate regions. The concept of regions is one of the most powerful features of SAW. Regions are simply marked sections of audio data within your sound files which you can name and then use to build your production.

As you create regions, the Regions View window will automatically list them alphabetically. Regions can be manipulated in various ways and are the basis for performing non-destructive audio splices.

Create New Region

This option allows you to create and name a new region.

First, mark the area of interest in the SoundFile View window using the MRK BEG and MRK END buttons (or the B and E keys, respectively).

Then select this option and enter a unique name for the region. Select OK and the new region will be inserted alphabetically into the list in the Regions View window.

Update Region

This option allows you to adjust and update the parameters of an existing region.

Get EDL Region

This option allows you to easily get a region from another editlistfile and insert it into the current editing session. In this way, it is easy to retrieve catalogued regions from sound effects libraries or other editing sessions you have created.

When activating this option, you will see a second Regions List View open and you will be given a chance to select another EDL File from the disk. The second list of EDL Regions will be simultaneously displayed overtop the current session. You can select and preview regions from the second Regions View just as you can from the current session Regions List View (Double-Click or use the SpaceBar or Return Key). By pressing the Add To EDL button on the new Regions View, the newly selected Region will be duplicated into the current EDL Session. When you are done with the Get EDL Regions View, simply close the window.

Merge EDL Regions

This function will merge all regions from a selected editlistfile into the current edit list.

Split / Keep Region

This option will split an existing region into two parts. This function works in either the MultiTrack View or the SoundFile View. If working in the SoundFile View, you must display the region first by double-clicking on its name in the Regions View for example.

Place the cursor at the point where you want to divide the region and select the option. The region will be split at that point. The region to the left of the split will retain the original region name. The region to the right of the split will have a unique number appended to the original region name.  Use the CTRL key with this option  to split regions on all tracks.

Split / Mark Region

This option will split an existing region into two parts and automatically mark the region to the left of the split point. If select mode is active, the marked region will be highlighted. This function works in either the MultiTrack View or the SoundFile View. If working in the SoundFile View, you must display the region first by double-clicking on its name in the Regions View for example.

This allows several Split / Mark operations to be done in sequence and then, without having to reselect regions, the marked ones can be copied, moved or deleted all at once. This feature works best if you clear all selected regions (by right-clicking while in Select mode) prior to using the Split / Mark function.

To use this feature, place the cursor at the point where you want to divide the region and select the option. The region will be split at that point. The region to the left of the split will be marked and will retain the original region name. The region to the right of the split will have a unique number appended to the original region name.

Split / Remove Region

This option will split an existing region into two parts and automatically remove the region to the left of the split point. If in place on a track, the region entries to the right of the split will remain in place. This function works in either the MultiTrack View or the SoundFile View. If working in the SoundFile View, you must display the region first by double-clicking on its name in the Regions View for example.

Place the cursor at the point where you want to divide the region and select the option. The region will be split at that point. The region to the left of the split disappears. The region to the right of the split will have a unique number appended to the original region name.

Split / Delete Region

This option will split an existing region into two parts and automatically remove the region to the left of the split point. If in place on a track, the region entries to the right of the split will shift to the left, snapping to the same beginning point as the original region entry. This function works in either the MultiTrack View or the SoundFile View. If working in the SoundFile View, you must display the region first by double-clicking on its name in the Regions View for example.

Place the cursor at the point where you want to divide the region and select the option. The region will be split at that point. The region to the left of the split will disappear. The region to the right of the split will have a unique number appended to the original region name.

Remove Region (Don't Affect Others))

This function removes a highlighted region from the Regions View and anywhere it occurs in the MultiTrack View. Any following entries in the MultiTrack View are not affected and remain in their original position.

Delete Region (Move Rest Forward)

This function removes a highlighted region from the Regions View and anywhere it occurs in the MultiTrack View. Any following entries in the MultiTrack View are shifted to the left by an amount equal to the removed region(s) in the MultiTrack View.

Clear All Regions

This option clears the entire Regions View list and the entire MultiTrack View. This operation does not destroy any sound file data but it will clear your entire session. Use this option to begin the current edit list again.

Clear All Unused Regions

This option scans through all tracks of your production and removes all Regions from the EDL that are not being referenced

Paste Region To Current SoundFile

This option pastes the currently selected region into the current sound file at the SoundFile View cursor position.

This operation overwrites the existing data in the sound file at the cursor position or, if the paste is done at the end of the sound file, it will append the data to the file, increasing its length. The current sound file does not have to be the same sound file which contains the region but it does have to be the same format (i.e. sample rate, resolution, mono or stereo). This allows you to easily move regions from one sound file to another.

To use this option, select and highlight a region from the Regions View list by clicking once on the region name. Then position the SoundFile View cursor at the location where you would like to paste the region. Make sure not to select an area within the same region itself.

Then select this option from the menu and press either the OK button to save the Undo information file or the OK / No Undo button to skip the Undo save operation.

Paste Region To New SoundFile

This function will paste the selected region to a new file. You will be presented with a dialog box where you can set the drive, directory and file name. When the operation is done, the new file will be loaded into the SoundFile View.

Paste Region And Convert SampleRate To Current SoundFile

This option will open a dialog box allowing you to select a conversion to/from any sampling rate supported by your sound card. The process will paste the currently selected region into the currently loaded sound file at the SoundFile View cursor position and performs the sample rate conversion at the same time.

SAW performs the sample rate conversion without removing or duplicating any samples, thereby producing extremely clean, glitch-free results.

This operation will overwrite the existing data in the sound file at the cursor position or append the data at the end of the file if the cursor is at that point. The current sound file must have been recorded at the target sample rate.

To use this option, select and highlight a region from the Regions View list by clicking once on the region name. Then position the SoundFile View cursor at the location where you would like to paste the region. Then select this option and press either the OK button to save the Undo information file or the OK / No Undo button to skip the Undo save operation.

Paste Region And Convert SampleRate To New SoundFile

This option will open a dialog box allowing you to select a conversion to/from any sampling rate supported by your sound card. The process will paste the currently selected region into a new sound file and performs the sample rate conversion at the same time.

SAW performs the sample rate conversion without removing or duplicating any samples, thereby producing extremely clean, glitch-free results.

To use this option, select a region from the Regions View list. Select the Paste Region And Convert SampleRate To New SoundFile option from the Regions menu. Set the sample rate you wish to convert to. You will be presented with a dialog box where you can set the drive, directory and file name. When the operation is done, the new file will be loaded into the SoundFile View.


MultiTrack Menu

The MultiTrack Menu provides several options for manipulating region entries in the MultiTrack View. There are also options for implementing and clearing volume and pan automation functions.

Replace Entry

This option will replace a specific entry in the MultiTrack View with a different entry from the Regions View. This action will affect other entries differently, depending on the situation.

The replacement entry will shift all following region entries connected by a butt-splice, by an amount equal to any difference in size between the original and replacement region entries.

Any following entries that are not butt-spliced but separated by blank space will not be moved. If there is enough space to accommodate a larger entry, the blank space will be used up accordingly.

The bottom line is that butt-spliced entries adjust to size changes. Blank space will absorb changes leaving the separated entries in place. When there is a blank space but not enough to accommodate the increased region size, a conflict exists and the operation will be canceled.

To use this option, double-click on a region in the MultiTrack View and then click on another region in the Regions View. Select Replace Entry from the MultiTrack menu. Click on OK to confirm.

Update Entry

This option works the same as the grab and extend entry (SHIFT-Left Mouse Button). Pressing the U key when in the MultiTrack Window is a shortcut for this option.  Plce the MultiTrack Cursor at a specific point and use this option to update the current entry on the Hot Track to extend or shrink to the cursor postion.  If two entries are butt spliced together then both will be adjusted so that the splice point is at the cursor position.

Remove Entry (Don't Affect Others) - DEL

This function removes an individual entry or all selected entries from the MultiTrack View. Any remaining regions to the right are not affected and remain in their original positions. Select an entry by clicking and placing the MultiTrack View cursor on it or use the Select tool to select and highlight multiple entries prior to using this command.

This command deletes only the selected entries in the MultiTrack View. It does not delete entries elsewhere in the MultiTrack View or the original regions in the Regions View list.

Delete Entry (Move Rest Forward) - SHIFT-DEL

This function removes an individual entry or all selected entries from the MultiTrack View. Any remaining regions to the right are affected and will be shifted forward (to the left) by an amount equal to the removed region(s) on the respective track(s) in the MultiTrack View. Select an entry by clicking and placing the MultiTrack View cursor on it or use the Select tool to select and highlight multiple entries prior to using this command.

This command deletes only the selected entries in the MultiTrack View. It does not delete entries elsewhere in the MultiTrack View or the original regions in the Regions View list.

Clear Entries On Current Track

This option will clear the current hot track of all regions at once.

Clear Entries On All Tracks

This command clears the MultiTrack View of all region entries. The Regions View and Markers View lists are left intact.

Cut / Remove Entry

This option provides quick region editing directly in the MultiTrack View. It will split a region and remove the highlighted area from the MultiTrack View, leaving all other region entries intact and in place. This action affects all occurrences of the region in the MultiTrack View and creates a new entry in the Regions View that corresponds to the split region.

To use this command, highlight a region on the current hot track in the MultiTrack View by holding down the SHIFT key while dragging the mouse in the Time Line of the MultiTrack View from left to right. Once the region has been defined, either end can be fine tuned by SHIFT-dragging the mouse. The B and E keys can also be used to define the Begin and End points by placing the MultiTrack View cursor at each point and pressing the respective key.

Once the area is marked, select the Cut / Remove Entry command. The region will be split into two parts, that of the original section prior to the marked area, and the rest of the original section following the marked area. The first section will retain the original name of the region while the second section will have the same name with a unique number appended to it. The marked area will be removed and replaced with a blank space.

Cut / Splice Entry

This option provides a second way to perform quick region editing directly in the MultiTrack View. It will split a region, remove the highlighted area from the MultiTrack View and splice the remaining segments together. This action affects all occurrences of the region in the MultiTrack View and creates a new entry in the Regions View that corresponds to the split region. It will change the position of any regions that follow the spliced region by the length of the cut section.

To use this command, highlight a region on the current hot track in the MultiTrack View by holding down the SHIFT key while dragging the mouse in the Time Line of the MultiTrack View from left to right. Once the region has been defined, either end can be fine tuned by SHIFT-dragging the mouse. The B and E keys can also be used to define the Begin and End points by placing the MultiTrack View cursor at each point and pressing the respective key.

Once the area is marked, select the Cut / Splice Entry command. The region will be split into two parts, that of the original section prior to the marked area, and the rest of the original section following the marked area. The first section will retain the original name of the region while the second section will have the same name with a unique number appended to it. The marked area will be removed and the newly-created second section of the region will be moved forward (to the left), closing the gap of the cut section.

Snap Selected To Cursor

This function will snap the beginning of the last region selected to the current cursor position. All MultiTrack View volume and pan cues are included in the move.  Pressing the BACKSPACE key has the same affect in the MultiTrack View.

To use this command, highlight the regions you wish to move using the Select tool. Be sure to click last on the region you wish to use as the reference point, even if it has already been highlighted.

Place the MultiTrack View cursor at the position where you want the last reference region to begin. Select the Snap Selected To Cursor command. All selected regions will move the appropriate amount left or right.

Snap Selected To SMPTE

This function will snap the beginning of the last region selected to the selected SMPTE position. All MultiTrack View volume and pan cues are included in the move. SMPTE mode must be on for this function to work.

To use this command, highlight the regions you wish to move using the Select tool. Be sure to click last on the region you wish to use as the reference point, even if it has already been highlighted.

Select the Snap Selected To SMPTE command. This will pop up the SMPTE Position window. Set the desired SMPTE frame and click on OK. All selected regions will move the appropriate amount left or right. There is an individual reset for hours, minutes, seconds, frames, and subframes.  The reset is located in the center of the adjuster bars.

Set Offset

This command allows you to set any point within a region as an offset referenced to the beginning of the region. This offset can then be used as a snap-to point.

To set the offset, simply select the point in the region that you wish to use. This can be done in several ways, including using the waveform display in the MultiTrack View while zoomed in with the track width set wide, or by double-clicking the region in the MultiTrack View and then zooming in to the exact point in the SoundFile View. When you click back into the MultiTrack View, the cursor will snap to the exact position.

Once your cursor is where you want it, select the Set Offset option. The offset is now established.

Snap Selected Offset To Cursor

This function will snap the last region selected to the current cursor position with the current offset value factored in. All MultiTrack View volume and pan cues are included in the move.

To use this command, you must first set your offset (see previous section describing the Set Offset command). Then highlight the regions you wish to move using the Select tool. Be sure to click last on the region you wish to use as the reference point, even if it has already been highlighted.

Place the MultiTrack View cursor at the position where you want the last reference region to begin. Select the Snap Selected Offset To Cursor command. All selected regions will move the appropriate amount left or right.

Snap Selected Offset To SMPTE

This function will snap the last region selected to the selected SMPTE position with the current offset value factored in. All MultiTrack View volume and pan cues are included in the move. SMPTE mode must be on for this function to work.

To use this command, you must first set your offset (see previous section describing the Set Offset command). Then highlight the regions you wish to move using the Select tool. Be sure to click last on the region you wish to use as the reference point, even if it has already been highlighted.

Select the Snap Selected Offset To SMPTE command. This will pop up the SMPTE Position window. Set the desired SMPTE frame and click on OK. All selected regions will move the appropriate amount left or right.


Mix Menu

The Mix Menu provides several options for implementing and clearing volume and pan automation functions.

Fade Linear To Next Volume Change - SHIFT-F

This option will create a linear fade from the current MultiTrack View cursor position to the next volume mix change position on the currently selected track. The fade will be positive or negative depending on whether the next mix change is higher or lower in level than the level at the current cursor position.

To create a fade out, place the cursor where you wish the fade to end. Open the fader control for that track and set the level to the final fade volume. Then move back to the left, earlier in the track, to the position where the fade should start. Select Fade Linear To Next Volume Change and the fade out will be created between the two points.

To create a fade in, simple reverse the levels so the beginning volume is lower than the next level change. When the option is selected, a fade up will be created.

Mix changes and fades can be moved and adjusted after they've been created. To do this, highlight the section that you wish to move using the SHIFT-drag in the Time Line technique. Then just drag the highlighted section to a new position. Mix changes will follow a region when the region is copied or moved in the MultiTrack View.

Fade Log To Next Volume Change - SHIFT-L

This option will create a logarithmic fade from the current MultiTrack View cursor position to the next volume mix change position on the currently selected track. This fade will gently slope at the higher levels with a sharper slope in the lower levels. The fade will be positive or negative depending on whether the next mix change is higher or lower in level than the level at the current cursor position.

To create a fade out, place the cursor where you wish the fade to end. Open the fader control for that track and set the level to the final fade volume. Then move back to the left, earlier in the track, to the position where the fade should start. Select Fade Log To Next Volume Change and the fade out will be created between the two points.

To create a fade in, simple reverse the levels so the beginning volume is lower than the next level change. When the option is selected, a fade up will be created.

Mix changes and fades can be moved and adjusted after they've been created. To do this, highlight the section that you wish to move using the SHIFT-drag in the Time Line technique. Then just drag the highlighted section to a new position. Mix changes will follow a region when the region is copied or moved in the MultiTrack View.

Fade AntiLog To Next Volume Change SHIFT A

This option will create an inverse logarithmic fade from the current MultiTrack View cursor position to the next volume mix change position on the currently selected track. This fade will gently slope at the lower levels with a sharper slope in the higher levels. The fade will be positive or negative depending on whether the next mix change is higher or lower in level than the level at the current cursor position.

To create a fade out, place the cursor where you wish the fade to end. Open the fader control for that track and set the level to the final fade volume. Then move back to the left, earlier in the track, to the position where the fade should start. Select Fade InverseLog To Next Volume Change and the fade out will be created between the two points.

To create a fade in, simple reverse the levels so the beginning volume is lower than the next mix change. When the option is selected, a fade up will be created.

Mix changes and fades can be moved and adjusted after they've been created. To do this, highlight the section that you wish to move using the SHIFT-drag in the Time Line technique. Then just drag the highlighted section to a new position. Mix changes will also follow a region when the region is copied or moved in the MultiTrack View.

Fade Out Marked

Mark an area of a MultiTrack Entry on the Hot Track (you must be in the Mix Entries View) and select this option. The FadeOut will fade from the current Volume setting to offset.  The fades will be Log type except for very short fades (approx. 1/2 sec or less), which will be linear.

Fade In Marked

Mark an area of a MultiTrack Entry on the Hot Track (you must be in the Mix Entries View) and select this option. The Fade In will fade from offset to the current Volume setting. The fades will be Log type except for very short fades (approx. 1/2 sec or less), which will be linear.

CrossFade Marked Or Overlapped To Next Track

Overlap two MultiTrack Entries on two adjacent tracks. Select the top track as the Hot Track and place the cursor where you would like the equal energy point of the crossfade. Select this option and the leading track will fade out while the trailing track fades in. The crossover point will be calculated as close as can be to create equal energy at the cursor. You may also mark an overlapping area if you do not want to use the entire overlap as the fade out length.

CrossFade (-6dB) Marked Or Overlapped To Next Track

This option attempts to calculate the Crossover energy point at the cursor to -6 db. This will give the illusion of equal energy volume between the two audio pieces being crossfaded. The transition should be seamless as far as volume level is concerned.

Sweep To Next Pan Change

This option will create a smooth sweep from the pan setting at the MultiTrack View cursor position to the next pan mix change on the currently selected track. This sweep will create a smooth transition from one pan position to the next. The left/right motion of the sweep depends on whether the next pan mix change is to the left or right of the pan setting at the current cursor position.

To create a pan sweep, place the cursor where you wish the sweep to end. Open the fader control for that track and set the pan to the final setting you desire. Then move back to the left, earlier in the track, to the position where the sweep should start. Select Sweep To Next Pan Change and the sweep will be created between the two points.

Mix changes and fades can be moved and adjusted after they've been created. To do this, highlight the section that you wish to move using the SHIFT-drag in the Time Line technique. Then just drag the highlighted section to a new position. Mix changes will also follow a region when the region is copied or moved in the MultiTrack View.

Clear Marked Vol Entries

This option will reset all volume changes to 0 dB that are within the marked area.

To use this command, highlight a region on the current hot track in the MultiTrack View by holding down the SHIFT key while dragging the mouse in the Time Line of the MultiTrack View from left to right. Once the region has been defined, either end can be fine tuned by SHIFT-dragging the mouse. The B and E keys can also be used to define the Begin and End points by placing the MultiTrack View cursor at each point and pressing the respective key.

Once the area is marked, select the Clear Marked Vol Entries command. Any volume changes within the marked area will be reset to 0 dB.

Clear Marked Pan Entries

This option will reset all pan changes to center that are within the marked area.

To use this command, highlight a region on the current hot track in the MultiTrack View by holding down the SHIFT key while dragging the mouse in the Time Line of the MultiTrack View from left to right. Once the region has been defined, either end can be fine tuned by SHIFT-dragging the mouse. The B and E keys can also be used to define the Begin and End points by placing the MultiTrack View cursor at each point and pressing the respective key.

Once the area is marked, select the Clear Marked Pan Entries command. Any pan changes within the marked area will be reset to center.

Clear Marked Vol And Pan Entries - SHIFT-C

This option will reset all volume changes to 0 dB and pan changes to center that are within the marked area.

To use this command, highlight a region on the current hot track in the MultiTrack View by holding down the SHIFT key while dragging the mouse in the Time Line of the MultiTrack View from left to right. Once the region has been defined, either end can be fine tuned by SHIFT-dragging the mouse. The B and E keys can also be used to define the Begin and End points by placing the MultiTrack View cursor at each point and pressing the respective key.

Once the area is marked, select the Clear Marked Vol And Pan Entries command. Any volume or pan changes within the marked area will be reset to their default settings.

Reverse Marked Volume And Pan Changes

Reverses a marked section of Mix Changes.


Process/Mixdown Menu

This menu contains selections that will either perform permanent changes to audio data by changing existing sound files on the drive, or create new output files containing all of the mix elements of the multitrack production.

Process Marked Area Back to Original File (Destructive)

This option allows FX and Mix Changes to be processed and written back to the original Soundfile. This eliminates the need for live processing during MultiTrack View playback. It is a destructive process meaning the changes are made directly to the sound file.

You must first place an entry on a Track. You can then use the FX Patch Builder to build a patch, and also set any Mix Changes you desire. Mark the whole Entry or a section of the Entry (you cannot mark across different entries). Make sure the track is selected as the Hot Track and then select this option. You may also elect to create an Undo File, since this is a destructive process. When the Process is finished, you may double-click the file from the Hot Track which will transfer it to the SoundFile View where you can play it back and hear the results of the processing. If you like it, you can clear the FX from the Hot Track and gain back all the CPU processing time that was required to do the FX live.

Note:  Vari-Pitch and Reverse Audio cannot be processed back to the original file this way. You must use the BuildMix option to process those FX to a new file.

Build Mix To Output File

This feature will build a new sound file for each active output card and place the mixdown of all active (unmuted) session tracks to each of the active Output Tracks. An active output card or track is one that has the sound card and drivers installed and that has tracks assigned to it in the MultiTrack View.

The mix will include any processing assigned to the regions on those tracks. When the mix is built, it is represented as a region that is placed on the respective output track. If you first mark a section of the multitrack, the mix will just include that area. If there is no active marked section, the mix will include the entire length of the active tracks from beginning to end.

To use the build mix option, be sure all tracks that you wish to mix are unmuted and assigned to the appropriate sound card output. Be sure that the volume controls on the Output Tracks are set properly as well, since these settings are included in the mix. Select the Build Mix To Output File option from the Process/Mixdown menu. A window, entitled Set Conversion Parameters, will appear.

The top line of this window displays the current rate, type and resolution of the MultiTrack View mode. The bottom line displays the same parameters for the output file that will contain your mix. These parameters can be changed using the yellow buttons below each display. Once you have set the sample rate, stereo/mono format and resolution, click on the OK button. To cancel the operation at this point, click the Cancel button.

You will then be prompted to enter a file name for each new mix file. Use the file dialog box to do this and click on OK. The mix(es) will now be built. A progress bar will appear and remind you that pressing any key will cancel the process. At the end of this process, region(s) will be placed on the respective Output Track(s) that contain the built mix(es).

You can re-position these tracks adjacent to other tracks by dragging the number box on the left side. The solo buttons on these tracks will play the mixed output files while still maintaining the entire separate multitrack session. These solos are independent from those on the regular tracks and you cannot solo both sections at the same time. Output track solos override regular track solos.

Note that output track volume changes will only track and process when playing the normal multitrack section. This keeps you from double processing an already mixed file. You may switch back and forth between the normal multitrack section and the output section by simply using the solo buttons.

If the mix is to your liking, this new region can be moved to a regular track and the original tracks can be muted or erased. This technique allows those users with slower machines to utilize the power of SAW on their hardware. It also allows you to 'bounce' tracks, creating productions that consist of as many layers as you care to use.

It's a good idea to save your edit list file prior to deleting the original regions used to build a mix. Then, using the Save EditList File As option in the File menu, create a new editlist (with a different name) to work with. This will allow you to go back to your original mix should you need to do so.

For example if you were using the editlist filename SESSION.EDL, you might create a new one called SESSION1.EDL, then SESSION2.EDL, etc. Editlist files don't take up much room on your hard drive so using several of them in the course of a project is not a problem. In fact, we consider it good practice.

Build Mix To New SoundFIle

This function is the same as the Build Mix To Output File with the following exceptions:

•	A region will not be created on the Output Track.

•	The MultiTrack View will not make the Output Track the current Hot Track.

•	The soundfile will not be overwritten if it already exists.  The mix will be appended to the existing file.

This option  is usefull when creating multiple soundfiles in multimedia productions.

This option allows overwrite or append operations when selecting an already existing SoundFile.  You will be prompted.


Window Menu

The Window Menu contains options which allow you to open any windows that have been closed or bring to the top any windows which have been hidden from view.

Any window which is already open will display a check mark next to its name. Selecting a check marked option will force the window to the top.

Unless otherwise noted, you may close any of these windows by double-clicking on the System Menu Bar in the upper left-hand corner of the title bar or resize them by dragging the borders. Windows may be moved anywhere on the screen by dragging the title bar.

MultiTrack - ALT-SHIFT-M

This option will open or bring the MultiTrack View window to the top. Refer to other sections of this manual for details on the MultiTrack View window.

Full - ALT-SHIFT-F

This option will open or bring the Full View window to the top. Refer to other sections of this manual for details on the Full View window.

SoundFile - ALT-SHIFT-S

This option will open or bring the SoundFile View window to the top. Refer to other sections of this manual for details on the SoundFile View window.

Regions -  ALT-SHIFT-R

This option will open or bring the Regions View window to the top. Refer to other sections of this manual for details on the Regions View window.

Sequence - ALT-SHIFT-Q

This option will open or bring the Sequence View window to the top. Refer to other sections of this manual for details on the Sequence View window.

Markers -  ALT-SHIFT-A

This option will open or bring the Markers View window to the top. Refer to other sections of this manual for details on the Markers View window.

Remote Transport - ALT-SHIFT-T

This option will open the Remote Transport window. If it is open, it is always on top. You may close this window with a single click on the special Close Box in the upper left-hand corner of the title bar. This window cannot be resized. Refer to other sections of this manual for details on the Remote Transport window.

Split Region Toolbar

This option will open the Split Region Toolbar window. If it is open, it is always on top. You may close this window with a single click on the special Close Box in the upper left-hand corner of the title bar. This window cannot be resized.

This toolbar duplicates the four corresponding functions found in the Regions menu. Please refer to that section of the manual for details on using these tools.

Cut MT Entry Toolbar

This option will open the Cut MT Entry Toolbar window. If it is open, it is always on top. You may close this window with a single click on the special Close Box in the upper left-hand corner of the title bar. This window cannot be resized.

This toolbar duplicates the two corresponding functions found in the MultiTrack menu. Please refer to that section of the manual for details on using these tools.

MultiTrack PreLoad - ALT-SHIFT-O

This option will open the MultiTrack PreLoad window. This window cannot be resized.

This window allows you to adjust the amount of PreLoad buffers that SAW uses for playback in the MultiTrack View. The actual relative time that this value represents depends on your sound card and you should experiment to find a setting you like.

A smaller setting results in a shorter delay between a play command and actually hearing the sound and this is usually best for fast machines. A larger number causes more buffers to be pre-loaded before playback begins. This increases the playback delay but can help slower computers process denser sessions in the MultiTrack View.


SMPTE/MIDI Menu

The SMPTE/MIDI menu contains options which allow you to control how SAW generates or responds to SMPTE and MIDI information.

In any SMPTE Mode, you may Double-Click on the In-Position of the Sequence List View and pop up the Enter SMPTE Window. Entering a SMPTE time in the window and clicking OK will now snap that entry to the specified SMPTE Frame.

Receive MIDI Trigger

This option allows SAW to trigger playback of regions and/or sequences from MIDI note information arriving at the MIDI/SMPTE input.

This option offers many possibilities for live cueing operations or for triggering from a MIDI sequencer.

Selecting this option will toggle MIDI Trigger on & off. When active, a check mark will be displayed beside the menu.

Only one region or sequence can be playing at one time.  If you trigger another region while one is still playing, the first will be cutoff to start playback of the second.

Assign Regions To MIDI Notes

This option allows you to assign regions to MIDI notes.  If the Receive MIDI Trigger option is activated, then these regions will be triggered to playback when the assigned MIDI notes are received at the MIDI/SMPTE card input.

Assigning a Region to a MIDI Note causes the region to play and stop.

Assigning an SF-Marker to a MIDI Note causes the SoundFile to load and begin playback.

Assigning an MT-Marker to a MIDI Note causes the MultiTrack to cue to the Marker Position and begin MultiTrack playback.

If you assign the Note-Off option to Start, then the playback will cue when the Note-On is received and wait for the Note-Off to begin playback instantly. If you assign the Note-Off option to Stop, playback will stop when the Note-Off is received.

Assigning the MT Play/Continue option to a MIDI Note causes the MultiTrack to begin playback at the current MT Position.

While the Assign Window is up, the MIDI IN Device is active and the note assignments will track any MIDI Notes arriving at the device.

Generate SMPTE As Master

This option allows SAW to generate SMPTE time code and act as the master timebase for the system. This is useful if you have other equipment that can chase and lock to time code and you need to synchronize events between SAW and that equipment.

SMPTE Format / Stripe

This option allows you to stripe SMPTE time code to tape for later use in synchronizing sequencers and other equipment with SAW Selecting this option opens a window containing several buttons.  This is enabled when a SMPTE/MIDI card has been installed or SMPTE Emulate Mode has been selected.

MultiTrack SMPTE Emulate

This mode can be used when working with the AVI Viewer Effect or any time that SMPTE references need to be visible.  This option remains active even without any SMPTE/MIDI card installed in the system

MultiTrack SMPTE Trigger

This option allows SAW to trigger to SMPTE time code, which arrives at the MIDI/SMPTE card input, and playback in the MultiTrack View.

MultiTrack SMPTE Chase Trigger

This option allows SAW to automatically chase and trigger to SMPTE time code, which arrives at the MIDI/SMPTE card input, and initiate playback in the MultiTrack View.  This option can also be used for recording.  With the Record Panel active, starting a SMPTE source will cause SAW to chase and trigger recording at the new cursor position.  When the SMPTE source is stopped then entry will be dropped onto the MultiTrack and the system will wait for SMPTE again.

Chase Trigger Record = SRP

When this option is checked, SRP recording will be triggered in the Chase Trigger Mode.

SMPTE Conform 30 to 29.97

This option will adjust all position calculations for 29.97 broadcast SMPTE modes.  Use this if you are working with video that will broadcast at 29.97 rates.

SMPTE Lock/Resolve Active

When this option is on (checked), SAW will actively LOCK to incoming SMPTE.  The lock is handled by adjusting the MultiTrack playback vari-pitch very slowly up or down to keep in sync with the incoming SMPTE code.

This option is very CPU intensive and will result in a loss in the number of tracks playable in realtime.  Use the SMPTE Lock/Resolve Observe to determine if you need this option.

Note: With some Sound card drivers the current locking method does not work.  If you get display reading that jump randomly, then Lock will not currently work with your Sound card.  The Card D+ has been tested and works fine.  The Turtle Beach cards seem to have trouble.  Others are being tested and IQS will report the results on our Compuserve Forum, BBS, and WEB site as the results are known.

SMPTE Lock/Resolve Observe

This option will activate the display mode without compensating for any drift so that you may determine if your equipment is accurate on its own.  If you play your production for five or ten minutes and the display is still showing plus/minus 00 for the lock, then you can turn the SMPTE Lock/Resolve Active  mode off and still maintain perfect acurracy without disturbing the audio.

Note: Within the first few seconds, SAW will pitch rapidly up or down to get closely in sync with an incoming signal if that signal is a few percent fast or slow.  After that, all changes will be done slowly and evenly over time.  The Remote Panel Current SMPTE Time will display the lock Plus/Minus Frames in the SubFrame display.

Set SMPTE Start Offset

This option allows you to set the SMPTE Start Offset time for the multitrack session. A window will open which contains several buttons and controls.

SMPTE Chase Advance

This option opens the SMPTE Chase-Advance window. The scroll bar allows you to adjust the number of seconds that the SMPTE Chase Trigger mode advances after first detecting a SMPTE signal. The multitrack will cue to the advanced SMPTE point, then preload its data and wait to retrigger.

Auto SMPTE Stop

This option allows SAW to automatically detect an End-Of-SMPTE message when triggering to SMPTE. If this mode is active, SAW will stop playback when the incoming SMPTE code stops.

Auto SMPTE Format Detection

When this option is on (checked), the SMPTE Format will be automatically detected and changed with the incoming SMPTE data. When this option is off, the incoming Format data will be ignored, allowing you to override any automatic Format changes.


Listbox
The Listbox displays a list of all MIDI notes. These notes cover the entire 10 octave musical range that MIDI can handle. The Note Values are listed in the first column of the Listbox area. The second column displays the setting of the Note Off parameter and the third column displays the name of the region assigned to that note.

You may use the scroll bar to move through the entire list and you may select any note by clicking once with the left mouse button or by actually pressing the MIDI note on any MIDI source connected to the MIDI/SMPTE card.


Region Name
Region Name or Marker Name to assign MIDI note to.


Assign Button
This button and the associated title box above it are used to assign the currently selected region to the currently selected MIDI Note.  You may select other regions or markers by clicking on the region name in the Regions View window or the Marker Name in the Markers View window with the left mouse button.

To assign a region to a MIDI note, first select the region then select the MIDI note. Select the desired Note Off option and then press this button.


NOTE OFF Button
This button offers three ways to utilize the MIDI Note Off signal that occurs when you release a MIDI keyboard note:

Ignore it. Playback trigger is applied when the Note On signal is received and continues after the note is released until the end of the region or until playback is stopped by some other means.

Stop playback. Playback trigger is applied when the Note On signal is received and stopped when the note is released.

Start playback. Playback is cued when the Note On signal is received and is triggered when the note is released. This is useful when accurate start timing is needed because normal triggering will actually have a variable length delay before playback is started due to the time it takes to cue the region data into the playback buffers.


Clear Button
This button will clear the currently selected MIDI note of all previously assigned region data.


Clear All Button
This button will clear all MIDI notes of previously assigned region data.


MIDI RCV Button
This button selects the MIDI Receive Channel that SAW will look at for MIDI Trigger. All other MIDI channel data will be ignored.


Play Continue Button
This button adds another special ability to MIDI Trigger playback. If you assign a MIDI note using this button, instead of the Assign button, playback trigger will cause sequence playback starting from the current MultiTrack View entry.


Options Menu

The Options menu contains items which allow you to set preferences for various adjustable settings within the SAW system.

You may save these preferences as defaults by using the Save Preferences option of the File menu.

Audio Hardware Setup

This option allows you to select the appropriate sound card drivers for up to four separate sound cards if installed in your computer.

Wave Device 1 (also 2, 3 and 4)

SAW supports up to four stereo sound cards. You must use these windows to tell the program what driver to use for each device. Wave devices must be assigned sequentially. You cannot assign a device driver to more than one place at a time.

To assign a wave device, click the down arrow at the right of this heading to open a list box of available wave device drivers. There should be one available for each sound card you have installed. If you do not see the appropriate driver on this list, refer to the sound card's manual for details on driver installation.

Device 1 Interrupt Hook (also 2, 3 and 4)

The performance of SAW can be greatly enhanced if the sound card uses interrupts and you tell SAW exactly which interrupt is being used. This provides a fast, reliable way to service your sound card during playback and recording operations.

If your card does not support interrupts, or if you suspect interrupt conflicts may be causing problems, set the interrupt hook to NONE.

NOTE: If you are using Windows 95 or Windows NT then you MAY have to set this to NONE.

Use the RESET button to reset all devices at one time.  If you have added or removed audio devices in your Windows setup then you should use this option and then re-choose the devices for SAW Plus.  Don't forget to Save Preferences.

MIDI/SMPTE Hardware Setup

This option allows you to set various hardware settings for your MIDI/SMPTE card including options for Midi In and Out Devices as well as a Smpte Generate Protocol selection.

SAW can read SMPTE or MTC with any Midi Device, but only certain devices have the capability to generate SMPTE.   SAW must be configured for the protocol to use. The current selections are the MQX-2Port/SE, MQX-8Port/SE, and the MidiMan Syncman Series of devices.  If  the MQX-32M Hardware option is selected then you must set the Hardware Interupt and Board Address also.  SAW handles all MTC messages in the background at interrupt time and also interpolates the missing frames (MTC updates normally every two frames).  The performance of MTC should closely match the hardware SMPTE.

Directory Path Setup

Set this path if you will be using soundfiles from a read only device such as a CDROM.  This will be the directory that SAW will use to create the peak data files.

Refresh All Windows

This option allows you to refresh the default window sizes and positions. You can use this to instantly reset your windows after you have changed video resolution for example.

Refresh All Function Keys

This option will reset all programmed function key views to the currently displayed view. You will be prompted to confirm this action. Your original function key settings are saved with your preferences. If you do not resave your preferences after refreshing the function keys, all settings will be restored when you next run the program.

SoundFile View Playback Tracking

Selecting this option will toggle SoundFile View Playback Tracking on or off. When active, a check mark will be displayed beside the menu option and the SoundFile View window will update as the tracking cursor reaches the end of the display. If disabled, the original SoundFile View cursor position or wave form display will not be disturbed when the cursor scrolls off the screen during playback.

This option will only track playback if the Zoom level is such that you are displaying data from the peak data file. If the display does not track when this option is active, try zooming out a level or two until the display refreshes at a faster rate.

MultiTrack View Playback Mixer Tracking

This option toggles mixer knob tracking on or off in the MultiTrack View. On slower machines, turning tracking off can help performance by reducing the overhead required to update the screen as mix changes occur. This setting is saved with your preferences.

Zoom In / Out Factor = 2

This option allows you to force the scaling factor to a value of  2 which allows for many more detailed levels of display than SAW normally will step through. Use this to provide the maximum number of zoom steps between full out and full in.

Zoom In / Out Factor = 3

This option allows you to force the scaling factor to a value of  3 which allows for more detailed levels of display than SAW normally will step through. Use this to increase the screen detail by a slight amount instead of a large amount.

Activate Gameport Switch Trigger

This option allows SAW to be remotely triggered through the game port by a mechanical switch or relay. The trigger will toggle play mode on and off or, if in the Record Panel, will toggle record mode on and off.

Gameport Switch Toggle Mode

This Mode will allow the switch to toggle on/off with each momentary press when checked. If this mode is unchecked, then the switch acts as a momentary switch and the play/rec function will continue only as long as the switch is depressed.

Gameport Switch Record = SRP

This option allows the switch to operate the SRP Record Function when checked and the normal Record Function when unchecked.

Auto Zero Cross Marking

If this option is active, SAW will exercise an automatic zero cross detection routine whenever you mark a new begin or end point in a sound file.

The routine can be exercised manually at any time by pressing the Z key while inside the SoundFile View or MultiTrack View window.

Auto EDL Undo

This option can be turned on in the Options Menu and saved with the preferences. It will automatically save the current state of the machine prior to most functions that affect the MultiTrack and Region area of the EDL. It will then activate the Undo option on the Edit Menu. This undo will be good until the next operation that overwrites the last undo. Selecting Undo will return the machine back to the previous EDL state.

An Auto SRP Mute

This option controls the auto muting function during SRP PunchIn. If you are recording over an existing MutlTrack Entry, this option mutes the underlying entry during SRP Record. This function requires a Re-Cue procedure each time you PunchOut. On slower machines playing a lot of tracks, this could cause the Machine Too Slow message to pop up when you PunchOut. If so, keep this option off. This option can be toggled while the Record Panel is active.

Auto SRP Mute

This option controls the auto muting function during SRP Punch-In.  If you are recording over an existing MultiTrack Entry then this option mutes the underlying entry during SRP Record.  This function requires a Re-Cue procedure each time you Punch-Out.  On slower machines playing alot of trakcs, this could cause the 'Machine Too Slow' message to appear when you Punch-Out.  If so then keep this option off.  This option can be toggled while the Record Panel is active.

Display MT EntryNames At Top

This changes the MultiTrack Entry Display and places the entry names at the top of the individual region entries. This can help keep the name from interfering with the mono waveform displays when the display is magnified and zoomed in. This option will be saved with the preferences.


Info Menu

About

This option presents an information screen containing details about SAW including  the specific version number and registration number of the product.

Help Contents

Presents this file

Help ShortCut Keys

Jumps directly to ShortCut keys in this file.


Effects

Overview

FX Button

Effects Patch Builder

Effect Types

•	Vari-Pitch/Speed

•	Reverse Audio

•	Reverse Phase

•	Center Channel Eliminator

•	Graphic Equalizer

•	Echo/Delay

•	Gate/Compressor/Limiter


Overview

SAW provides several effects processing options for use in your sessions. These effects can be patched or 'plugged-in' to a track in the MultiTrack View. The system has been designed with an open architecture that will allow easy integration of additional plug-in effects modules as they are made available.

The design philosophy around the effects processing in SAW is intended to make it as quick and easy as possible for you to patch and setup an effect, so you can keep working on your project. That's why most of the effects in SAW can be used in real time. For example, when you patch in the Vari-Pitch/Speed effect and change the setting, you hear the change, even during playback. This type of real-time processing can shave hours off your production time for a given project.

All this capability is great but it's up to you to use it wisely. While some of the functions require a fairly small amount of CPU time, others can place tremendous demands on the machine's processing power. If you attempt to combine playback of many tracks, along with lots of processing-intensive operations  like fades, pans, eq, etc., SAW will at some point (depending on your hardware), cease to play the entire piece live.

All is not lost though. At this point, select the Build Mix To Output File option from the Process/MixDown menu. Every unmuted track will be mixed to a single file that includes every effect that you had set up on each track in the mix.

We recommend using effects sparingly and, if you're attempting to do more than your machine can handle at once, mute a few tracks while you work with the others. Once it's all set up, build your mix to a file and continue on, moving the new mix to a regular track and deleting the original tracks from your session (having saved the editlist file and moving on with one using a different name).

This mode of work can be quick and efficient, eliminating the need for constant previews and long waits for processing that can keep you from moving ahead with your work.


FX Button

The yellow FX button on each track in the MultiTrack View will open the Effects Patch Builder window that allows inserting various effects functions into the track's processing loop. All effects are assigned to entire tracks in SAW.

Unless otherwise noted, each effect can be assigned more than once, to different tracks, each assigned version having it's own set of parameters. When an effect is patched to a track, that particular track's FX button will display a little 'patch' icon on the button to indicate that an effect is in place.

Effects settings are saved with your editlist file. Closing an editlist file causes all effects to be cleared. Another quick way to do this while still in your session is to click on an FX button with the CTRL key depressed. This will immediately clear all effects on all tracks.


Effects Patch Builder

At the top of the Effects Patch Builder dialog box is the title bar which can be used to drag the window to a new location.

The left side of the Effects Patch Builder window contains a list entitled Effects Choices. These are the available effects that can be patched to the track. The right side of the Effects Patch Builder shows a list entitled Current Patch. This lists the patched effects for the current hot track, in the order in which they are processed.

Between the two is the TRK indicator window that displays the current hot track. Once the Effects Patch Builder is open for any track, switching hot tracks will automatically display the effects patch for the new hot track.

Several types of effects are available in SAW.   Some of them, like Graphic Equalizer or Vari-Pitch/Speed, have an additional control window where you can set the parameters for that particular effect. These can be accessed by double-clicking on the effect name in the Current Patch window. If an effect has no additonal setup controls, a dialog box will let you know.


EPB1
This button will add an effect for use on the track. To use it, select an effect from the list on the left by clicking on it or scrolling with the arrow keys. Click the ADD button. The effect will be added to the Current Patch list on the right. Double-clicking on an effect in the Effects Choices list has the same result.


EPB2
This button will remove an effect from the Current Patch list. To use it, select the effect you wish to remove from the list by clicking on it or scrolling with the arrow keys. Click the REM button. The effect will be removed from the Current Patch list for that track.


EPB3
This button will remove all effects from the Current Patch list at once. To use it, just click the button. All effects will be removed from the Current Patch list for that track.


EPB4
This button closes the Effects Patch Builder window. If any effect control window is open, it will also be closed at the same time


EPB5
This button will bypass all processing of any effects that are assigned in the Current Patch. Use this to quickly compare the processed sound to the normal, unprocessed sound.


EPB6
This button will force the FX processing to take place after the Volume and Pan processing, allowing different combinations of FX results.


Vari-Pitch

This effect will instantly change the pitch and speed of every region entry on the track. There is a control window for this effect, accessed by double-clicking on the Vari-Pitch/Speed entry in the Current Patch window.

The Vari-Pitch/Speed control window has a title bar at the top that can be used to repostion the window when necessary. Below the title bar, to the left, is the Pitch/Speed change display. This shows the relative change (from normal) of the current setting.

Vari-pitching is similar to a speed control on a tape recorder. If you pitch the audio up, you will also increase the playback speed. If you pitch the audio down, you will slow down the playback speed.

There are three ways to set the amount of change. In Pitch mode, you may adjust the vari-pitch in tenth-of-a-semitone increments. In Time mode, you may adjust the vari-pitch in tenth-of-a-percent increments. Tempo matching is the third way to set the Vari-Pitch/Speed controls.

No matter what method you use, when adjusting the vari-pitch amount, you will also see the amount of change displayed in the window. If you can see the region entries on the track you're affecting, you will also see the region lengths and waveforms resize as you make changes. The adjustments can be made during playback.

SAW performs the vari-pitch operation without removing or duplicating any samples, thereby producing extremely clean, glitch-free results. It is a great tool for creating special effects or to fine tune the length of a radio spot that is not quite what it needs to be.

This effect is completely non-destructive and operates in real time.

Caution: Be sure to save your editlist prior to experimenting with the vari-pitch option. Certain circumstances can cause slippage in region positioning under extreme or repeated use of this function. This occurs when there is space between region entries on the track. Resetting the pitch shift to zero after performing repeated pitch changes back and forth may not leave the regions in exactly the same relative positions. If there is only one region entry on the track, or if all entries are butt-spliced, this problem does not occur.

It is recommended that, if you intend to perform pitch-shifting and programmed volume or pan automation on a track, you do the pitch shift first, then set your automation parameters.


VP1
These interlocked buttons provide a way to select which of the three modes will be used for adjusting the pitch. Only one can be selected at a time.


VP2
These controls are located just above the PITCH / TIME buttons and are used to adjust the amount of vari-pitch used. The - and + buttons will change the amount in single increments, respectively. The jog bar is between them and can be dragged left or right to change the amount. The farther the jog bar is dragged to either side, the faster the change in the display.


VP3
This button is part of the tempo match section of the Vari-Pitch/Speed control window. It is used to set the Source tempo (the tempo of the existing piece you wish to change). This is set by highlighting eight beats of the source tempo in either the MultiTrack View or the SoundFile View and then pressing the SRC button.


VP4
This button is part of the tempo match section of the Vari-Pitch/Speed control window. It is used to set the Destination tempo (the tempo that you wish to change the current track's tempo to).  This is set by highlighting eight beats of the destination tempo in either the MultiTrack View or the SoundFile View and then pressing the DST button.


VP5
This button clears the Source and Destination tempos if they have been set.


VP6
This button closes the Vari-Pitch/Speed window


VP7
This button will lock the start position of each Sequence entry on a track when Vari-Pitch is engaged. Each entry will be pitched separately. If extending the length of an entry causes it to run into the next entry, the first will be truncated and the next entry will still start on-time.


VP8
This resets all the vari pitch values.


Reverse Audio

This effect causes each region entry to be played in reverse. The region entries keep their positions on the track but the audio in each region is played backwards. Using the BYPASS button on the Effects Patch Builder window will toggle the mode on or off, even during playback. If the waveforms are displayed on the track, they will be reversed also.

This effect is completely non-destructive and operates in real time.


Reverse Phase

This effect reverses the polarity of the audio on the track. This effect is completely non-destructive and operates in real time.


Center Channel Eliminator

This effect will reverse the polarity of one track and combine the left and right audio into a mono signal. This has the effect of removing all mono, or center channel, information from a stereo file. This effect is completely non-destructive and operates in real time.


Graphic Equalizer

The Graphic Equalizer offers many different ways to alter the frequency content of your audio. The EQ is designed to look and feel like a real graphic equalizer, but also gives you the versatility of a parametric equalizer, since each of the seven bands has adjustments for  center-frequency and bandwidth. There are also adjustable Hi Cut and Lo Cut filters and a control to trim the output volume. This effect is completely non-destructive and operates in real time, but it requires extensive processing to do so. The number of bands that can process live depends on the speed of your machine.

Frequency and Bandwidth Controls

Below each boost and cut control is the Frequency display/control window. Press and hold the left mouse button in this window and move the mouse forward or backward to change the frequency setting. Clicking with the right mouse button will turn the individual band on or off.

Each frequency band is a bandpass filter that affects only the audio frequencies that are near the center frequency setting and lie within the bandwidth range.


GE1
This button closes the Equalizer window. Any settings that were made are still in effect.


GE2
This control can be used to manually trim the overall volume to eliminate clipping that may occur when boosting frequency bands in a loud section of audio.


GE3
This button loads a previously saved preset file containing all adjustable settings for a specific equalizer setup. Pressing this button opens a file dialog box. Select the directory and filename of the preset file you wish to load and all settings will be set accordingly. Equalizer preset files use the .EQ extension.


GE4
This will save a preset file containing all adjustable settings for the current equalizer setup. Pressing this button opens a file dialog box. Select the directory and filename for the preset file you wish to save and all settings will be saved to the preset file. Equalizer preset files use the .EQ extension.


GE5
This resets the equalizer frequency bands to the center, flat position. The hi and lo-cut filters are turned off. This does not change the frequency or bandwidth settings.


GE6
You may utilize the boost and cut controls to draw a graphic representation of the EQ curve being applied by dragging the controls up or down with the mouse. Clicking the right mouse button at the same time will reset any control back to zero dB.


GE7
The Hi-Cut filter is a shelving filter that will attenuate high frequencies above the cutoff frequency setting. The rate of attenuation is 18 dB per octave.


GE8
The Lo-Cut filter is a shelving filter that will attenuate low frequencies below the cutoff frequency setting. The rate of attenuation is 18 dB per octave.


GE9
This controls the center frequency of the bandpass filter for each of the seven frequency bands. The frequency range overlaps the adjacent bands to allow plenty of versatility in setting frequency combinations.

Press and hold the left mouse button in this window and move the mouse forward or backward to change the frequency setting. Clicking with the right mouse button will turn the individual band on or off.


GE10
This adjusts the width of the frequency range affected by the filter. A smaller bandwidth has a sharper sound and can be used to zero in tight on a specific frequency. A larger bandwidth has a smoother sound and can be used to affect a wider range of frequencies with one control.


Echo/Delay

The Echo Effects Generator creates a large assortment of digital delay and repeating echo effects. You are given individual left and right control of the Delay Time, Feedback and Strength of the delayed signals. There is absolutely no noise and no degradation of the audio signal on repeating echoes.


ED1
This button closes the Echo Effects Generator and returns you to the Effects Patch Builder.


ED2
This control can be used to manually trim the overall volume of the audio waveform to eliminate clipping with dense echo settings


ED3
Loads a preset file which contains all adjustable settings for a specific Echo Effects setup. Pressing this button opens a File Dialog box. Select the directory and filename of the preset file you wish to load and all settings will be set to the preset condition. Echo Effects preset files use the .eko extension.


ED4
Saves a preset file which contains all adjustable settings for the current Echo Effects setup. Pressing this button opens a File Dialog box. Select the directory and filename for the preset file you wish to save and all settings will be saved to the preset file. Echo Effects preset files use the .eko extension.


ED5
The Delay Time setting determines the amount of time between echo repeats. You may use the tracking marker that appears in the SoundFile View to help adjust delays to visual transients within the SoundFile.

Pressing and holding the Left Mouse button in the Delay Time black-readout and moving the mouse forward or backward will change the delay time by 2 ms increments. Holding the Shift-Key at the same time will change the delay time by 10 ms increments. Holding the Ctrl-Key at the same time will change the Delay Time by 100 ms increments.


ED6
The Feedback setting determines how much of the output signal is fed back to the input. This creates repeating delays spaced at the Delay Time interval. Using 0% feedback causes the generator to act as a single straight delay unit, creating only one echo of the original sound.

Pressing and holding the Left Mouse button in the Feedback black-readout and moving the mouse forward or backward will change the feedback amount by 5% increments.


ED7
The Strength setting controls the loudness of the main echo relative to the original audio volume. It will also affect how many repeats are heard at a particular feedback setting.


ED8
The Mode setting switches between Normal and Cross.

Normal Mode keeps the Left and Right tracks separate.

Cross Mode crosses the Left channel echo over to the Right channel and the Right channel echo over to the Left channel. With a high percentage of feedback, you can create a pingponging effect of echoes bouncing back and forth between channels. With 0% feedback and a delay time of 20 to 40 ms, you can create the effect known as Cross Delay Stereo, which can give the illusion of a wider overall stereo image.

Pressing and holding the Left Mouse button in the Mode black-readout and moving the mouse forward or backward will change the Mode setting.


Gate/Compressor/Limiter

The Gate/Compressor/Limiter performs four volume processing functions. These functions are performed with much finer precision than an external analog Compressor/Limiter can provide.

A unique visual approach to threshold adjustments allows you to reference the threshold setting directly against the SoundFile View waveform display, providing accuracy never before achievable with currently existing equipment.

The Peak Limiter

The Peak Limiter is used to limit large transient spikes to a specified volume. The attack and release of the volume changes are absolutely instantaneous and operate on each half (plus and minus) of the waveform independently thereby doing an effective job of limiting individual transients without audibly affecting the overall sound of the waveform.

Use this adjustment sparingly trying only to clip the peaks that stick out well above the bulk of the audio material. If you place the setting down into the bulk of the audio you will be severely altering the plus and minus audio waves at an ever changing and different rate, creating various amounts of audible distortion depending on the actual shape of the audio wave.


GCL1
This button closes the Audio Compressor/Limiter and returns you to the Effects Patch Builder.


GCL2
This control can be used to manually adjust the overall volume of the audio waveform louder or softer. You may use this to increase the overall average sound level of your waveform by compressing or limiting the peaks and at the same time raising the overall gain of the entire area. Grabbing the Out Volume control with the Left Mouse button and pressing the Right Mouse button at the same time will reset the control back to zero db.


GCL3
Loads a preset file which contains all adjustable settings for a specific Compressor/Limiter setup. Pressing this button opens a File Dialog box. Select the directory and filename of the preset file you wish to load and all settings will be set to the preset condition. Compressor/Limiter preset files use the .cl extension.


GCL4
Saves a preset file which contains all adjustable settings for the current Compressor/Limiter setup. Pressing this button opens a File Dialog box. Select the directory and filename for the preset file you wish to save and all settings will be saved to the preset file. Compressor/Limiter preset files use the .cl extension.


GCL5
This button turns the Gate Off and On. When the Gate is Off, it adds no processing time to the Compressor/Limiter functions.

The Noise Gate is used to help eliminate unwanted background noise during low volume areas of your SoundFile. The Gate starts with the volume off and opens the volume to full when the audio signal rises above the Threshold setting. When the signal level falls below the Threshold setting again, the Gate turns the volume back down.

By experimenting with different combinations of control settings, you can effectively clean up otherwise noisy SoundFiles.


GCL6
The Attack setting adjusts how quickly the volume is ramped up once the signal level rises above the Threshold setting. Speeds range from instantaneous to a very slow fade up


GCL7
The Release setting adjusts how quickly the volume is ramped down once the signal level falls below the Threshold setting again. Speeds range from instantaneous to a very slow fade down.

By using a slower release time, the Gate will operate smoother as the signal momentarily fluctuates above and below the Threshold.


GCL8
The Threshold setting determines the signal level which triggers the effect  into action. When grabbing the Threshold control with the Left Mouse button, a pair of horizontal lines for each channel will appear superimposed on the audio waveform in the SoundFile View Window. You may zoom the display any way you desire to be able to reference the Threshold setting directly against the waveform data.

How you set the Threshold, depends on whether you are attempting to create a noticeable change in the sound or keep the effect as transparent as possible. The deeper into the bulk of the audio that you set the Threshold, the more noticeable the compressing effect will be.


GCL9
This button turns the Compressor Off and On. When the Compressor is Off, it adds no processing time to the Compressor/Limiter functions.

The Compressor is used to help squeeze high volume areas of your wavefile to a lower volume. The Compressor starts with the volume at full and closes the volume down when the audio signal rises above the Threshold setting.

The interaction of the controls allow you to apply many different dynamic changes to your audio file. By adjusting the Threshold down into the bulk of the audio material and using a large Ratio setting you can effectively take the spiked transient edge off of drums and other sharp sounds effectively bringing more attention to the decay of  the sounds. Using less Ratio, you can squash the transients without audibly changing the quality of the waveform. By using a higher Threshold setting and a higher Ratio you will only affect the extreme transients. Adding Attack and Release settings allows you to drastically alter the dynamic quality of your audio waveform. Experiment!


GCL10
The Threshold setting determines the signal level which triggers the Compressor into action. When grabbing the Threshold control with the Left Mouse button, a pair of horizontal lines for each channel will appear superimposed on the audio waveform in the SoundFile View Window. You may zoom the display any way you desire to be able to reference the Threshold setting directly against the waveform data.

How you set the Threshold, depends on whether you are attempting to create a noticeable change in the sound or keep the effect as transparent as possible. The deeper into the bulk of the audio that you set the Threshold, the more noticeable the compressing effect will be.


GCL11
The Ratio setting determines how much of a squeeze is placed on the large volume areas. The higher the Ratio the farther the volume is dropped.


GCL12
The Peak Limiter is used to limit large transient spikes to a specified volume. The attack and release of the volume changes are absolutely instantaneous and operate on each half (plus and minus) of the waveform independently thereby doing an effective job of limiting individual transients without audibly affecting the overall sound of the waveform.

Use this adjustment sparingly trying only to clip the peaks that stick out well above the bulk of the audio material. If you place the setting down into the bulk of the audio you will be severely altering the plus and minus audio waves at an ever changing and different rate, creating various amounts of audible distortion depending on the actual shape of the audio wave.

Also, since Peak Limiter requires a complete scan of the data to be processed first and then a second processing pass, you cannot playback this effect in realtime with Normalize is On.

You must process Peak Limiter back to the soundfile or use Build Mix to process the effect to another soundfile.


GCL13
Turns the Normalize function On and Off.

The Normalizer allows automatic volume processing, raising or lowering the volume the necessary amount to reach a certain margin percentage. There are two modes of Normalizing, Average Mode and Peak Mode.  Pressing and holding the Left Mouse button in the Normalize black-readout and moving the mouse forward or backward will change the setting by 1%.  Holding down the SHIFT key at the same time will adjust in 5% increments. Clicking with the Right Mouse button will turn Normalize On or Off. The same method is used for selecting the A (Average) or P (Peak) Mode.

Note that the manual volume setting and the Normalize setting are connected together. Adjusting one will reset the other. Also, since Normalizing requires a complete scan of the data to be processed first and then a second processing pass, you cannot playback this effect in realtime with Normalize is On.

You must process Normalize back to the soundfile or use Build Mix to process the effect to another soundfile.


GCL14
Average Mode averages all the peaks on each channel, then combines the left and right results into another average, then applies the same scaling factor to both channels. If the scaling factor applied will cause clipping, the factor is adjusted so that the loudest peak is placed at 95%. This Mode tries to place the bulk of the audio material into an average relative margin position. Some peaks will still rise above this margin. Note that this mode preserves relative volume differences between the left and right channels.

Peak Mode applies a different scaling factor to each channel, placing the loudest peaks at the new margin setting. This mode will set both channels to approximately equal levels, thereby canceling large volume discrepancies between left and right.


SAW Plus Shortcut Keys
SAW Shortcut Keys

GLOBAL KEYS

MULTITRACK VIEW WINDOW

FULL VIEW WINDOW

SOUND FILE VIEW WINDOW

REGIONS VIEW WINDOW

SEQUENCE VIEW WINDOW

MARKERS VIEW WINDOW

RECORDING CONTROL PANEL


Global Keys

ALT U      : undo last edit change

CTRL N     : create a new regions

CTRL ALT O : open soundfile

CTRL ALT E : open editlist file

CTRL ALT S : save editlist file as..

CTRL ALT C : save editlist file Copy as..

CTRL ALT U : update current editlist file without any prompting

ALT SHIFT M  : open the MultiTrack View window

ALT SHIFT F  : open the Full View window

ALT SHIFT S  : open the SoundFile view window

ALT SHIFT R  : open the Regions view window

ALT SHIFT Q  : open the Sequence view window

ALT SHIFT A  : open the Markers view window

ALT SHIFT T  : open the Remote Transport window

ALT SHIFT O  : open MultiTrack PreLoad window

F1-F12       : recall windows settings

SHIFT F1-F12 : save current window settings to that function key

CTRL SHIFT 0-9    : save current EDL to numbered key

CTRL 0-9 Key      : restore saved EDL


Split Regions Tool

CTRL SPLIT/KEEP	: Split and keep all regions under cursor


MultiTrack View Window

CTRL - CLICK [TRACK NUMBER]: return all tracks to original position

CTRL - CLICK [SOLO] button : clears all SOLO buttons

CTRL - CLICK [MUTE] button : clears all MUTE buttons

CTRL - CLICK [FADER OPEN]  : open faders for all tracks

CTRL - CLICK [FADER CLOSE] : close faders for all tracks

CTRL - CLICK [FX] button   : clear all effects on all tracks

CTRL - CLICK [SOUNDCARD] button   : set soundcard for all tracks

LEFT ARROW KEY    : move cursor one pixel to the left

RIGHT ARROW KEY   : move cursor one pixel to the right

CTRL LEFT ARROW   : move cursor to beginning of marked area

CTRL RIGHT ARROW  : move cursor to ending of marked area

SPACEBAR     : preload all buffers and wait for a second press for playback.

HOME KEY     : snap to the beginning of a production

END KEY      : snap to the end of a production

PAGE UP      : increase the width of the tracks

PAGE DOWN    : decrease the width of the tracks

SHIFT PAGE UP: increase amplitude of waveforms

SHIFT PAGE DOWN: decrease amplitude of waveforms

+ KEY        : zoom in

- KEY        : zoom out

CTRL +       : max zoom in

CTRL -       : max zoom out

DELETE       : delete region under cursor (or any selected regions)

SHIFT DELETE : delete region under cursor and move all following regions forward

SHIFT R      : reversed

SHIFT F      : create a linear fade from the current MultiTrack View cursor postion to the next volume change

SHIFT L      : create a logarithmic fade from the current MultiTrack View cursor position to the next volume change

SHIFT A      : create a antilogrithmic fade from the current MultiTrack View cursor positoin to the next volume change

 	SHIFT I      : create a linear fade in within marked area of region

SHIFT O      : create a linear fade out within marked area of region

SHIFT S      : create a smooth sweep from the pan setting at the MultiTrack View cursor position to the next pan change

 	SHIFT C      : reset all volume changes to 0 db and pan changes to center within the marked area

SHIFT X      : CrossFade marked or Overlapped to next track below marked area

SHIFT LEFT MOUSE BUTTON [REGION - MULTITRACK] : grab slice point of region to size region

CTRL DOUBLE CLICK [REGION - MULTITRACK]  : position SoundFile view cursor at current zoom level

W KEY : toggle waveform display

M KEY : Place multitrack marker

S KEY : enter select mode

Z KEY : perform Zero Cross Detection

U KEY : Update Entry

C KEY : Clears a marked area

SELECTING REGIONS

MANIPULATING REGIONS

MIX ENTRY VIEW


Selecting Regions

LEFT CLICK        : select/highlight region

RIGHT CLICK       : deselect ALL selected regions

CTRL RIGHT CLICK  : deselect region

C KEY             : deselect ALL selected regions

END KEY     : select all regions to the RIGHT of a currently selected region of the CURRENT HOT TRACK

HOME KEY    : select all regions to the LEFT of a currently selected region of the CURRENT HOT TRACK

CTRL END    : select all regions on ALL TRACKS to the RIGHT and BELOW a currently selected region

CTRL HOME   : select all regions on ALL TRACKS to the LEFT of a currently selected region

B KEY       : mark beginning point of a region

E KEY       : mark ending point of a a region

SHIFT DRAG - [YELLOW TIME LINE]   : marks mix changes on track

DOUBLE CLICK - [YELLOW TIME LINE] : cause that point to be centered in the display

DOUBLE CLICK - [REGION] : loads region soundfile into soundfile view

BACKSPACE   : Snap Selected Entry to Cursor


Manipulating Regions

SHIFT DRAG      : moves selected regions horizontally

CTRL DRAG       : moves selected regions vertically

SHIFT CTRL DRAG : moves selected regions any direction

RIGHT CLICK     : while selecting will copy selected regions

DELETE          : deletes all selected regions


Mix Entry View

SHIFT DRAG      : moves marked mixed entries horizontally

CTRL DRAG       : moves marked mixed entries vertically

                  (above in combination with a RIGHT CLICK will copy mixed entries instead of moving)


Full View Window

SPACEBAR : start and stop playback

LEFT-CLICK-TIMELINE : Brings that position of waveform into the SoundFile View


Soundfile View Window

+ KEY             : zoom in

CTRL + KEY        : zoom in to maximum limits

- KEY             : zoom out

CTRL - KEY        : zoom out to maximum limits

PAGE UP           : increase amplitude of waveform display

CTRL PAGE UP      : increase amplitude to maximum limits

PAGE DOWN         : decrease amplitude of waveform display

CTRL PAGE DOWN    : decrease amplitude to maximum limits

0 KEY             : set the amplitude of the waveform display so that full digital cliping is reached at the top and bottom of display

B KEY             : marks the current SOUNDFILE VIEW cursor position as the beginning boundary of an area of marked data

CTRL B            : marks entire soundfile

CTRL E            : marks entire soundfile

E KEY             : marks the current SOUNDFILE VIEW cursor position as the ending boundary of an area of marked data

C KEY             : clear marked areas

T KEY             : transfer the actual SoundFile Start Cursor position to the Tracking Cursor position.

M KEY             : place soundfile marker

SPACEBAR          : start and stop playback

RIGHT CLICK       : start and stop playback

SHIFT RIGHT CLICK : play marked area

CTRL RIGHT CLICK  : play marked area and loop

LEFT ARROW KEY    : move cursor one pixel to the left

RIGHT ARROW KEY   : move cursor one pixel to the right

CTRL LEFT ARROW   : move cursor to beginning of marked area

CTRL RIGHT ARROW  : move cursor to ending of marked area

SHIFT LEFT ARROW  : move the marked region boundary that is CLOSEST to the cursor to the exact cursor position

SHIFT RIGHT ARROW : move the marked region boundary that is CLOSEST to the cursor to the exact cursor position

CTRL LEFT CLICK   : starts loop scrub mode.

UP/DOWN Arrow     : change length of scrub. LEFT Arrow twice resets to default length.


Regions View Window

SHIFT CLICK [REGION] : selects a region from the Regions View list and attaches it to the cursor

SPACEBAR             : load, select and play region

ARROW KEYS           : move within the regions list

PAGE UP/DOWN         : move up and down the list one screenful at a time

HOME                 : go to the top of list

END                  : go to the end of the list

DELETE               : delete the region and all associated regions in the production

 	CTRL U               : update a region

ENTER                : load and activate playback of the selected Region

A KEY	: add highlighed region to MultiTrack


Sequence View Window

SPACEBAR          : initiate a multitrack preload at the point where the selected region begins, press again to play

ENTER KEY         : initiate a multitrack preload at the point where the selected region begins and begin playback

ARROW KEYS        : move within the sequence list

PAGE UP/DOWN      : move up and down the sequence one screenful at a time

HOME              : goto the top of the sequence

END               : goto the end of the sequence

DELETE            : delete the region and all associated regions on the current hot track


Markers View Window

SPACEBAR          : initiate a multitrack preload, press again to play, press again to stop

 	ENTER KEY         : initiate a multitrack preload and begin playback

ARROW KEYS        : move within the regions list

PAGE UP/DOWN      : move up and down the list one screenful at a time

HOME              : go to the top of list

END               : go to the end of the list

DELETE            : delete the region and all associated regions in the production

SHIFT CLICK MARKER : mark area between markers


Recording Control Panel

SHIFT [RETAKE]    	: retake the ENTIRE soundfile

SHIFT [RECORD FADER]	: move fader independently

SHIFT [SRP]	: start SRP playback and record

SPACEBAR	: start/stop playback

ENTER	: Punch In/Out

*	: toggle Record Ready


Tutorial

Planning An Editing Session

SAW Basics

Setting Up Your Working Environment

Sample Rates

The Assignment

Recording

Recording Soundfiles

Lets Record

Recording Direct To The MultiTrack View

Recording the Pitch

Editing

Editing The Project

Editing Directly in the MultiTrack View

Editing the Music

Building A Track Sequence

Building the MultiTrack

Moving Region Entries

Adding Effects

Mix Automation

Finishing Up


SAW Plus Basics
SAW Basics

To effectively work with SAW it is important to organize your work environment.  There are numerous windows containing different information and they are all related to the one common denominator, your session.  Reading the following material will guide you through a planned, step by step approach into a simple but real SAW session.  The goal is that once you have completed this session you will have completed a production.

This project is a promotional spot consisting of a music bed and vocal dialog track.  Choose a workable piece of music.  Workable means a music selection with an easy drum beat and preferably no vocals so you can edit the intros, chorus and breaks.  Having a microphone available will allow you to be the vocal talent in this production.  If you don't have a mic use some other vocal audio source and try to use the vocal dialog script as an outline.


Setting Up Your Working Environment

When you first start SAW, you might be a bit worried about how complicated it looks, all those windows, all those buttons, how will you keep it all straight?  This is really one of the great things about SAW, you can tailor your working environment to make it easy to work with.

The tool we'll look at to do this is the Function Key ViewFunction Key View feature.  As you work in the tutorial, you will want to be sure that we are looking at the same thing when talking about a specific process, so it would be best if you started out by defining some views as described here, and assign them to the particular keys we describe.  Later, you can change everything around to suit your own style, and as we go, you might take some notes about how you would do it differently to make that process easier.

The default arrangement  includes the Full View at the top,  the Multitrack View, a band with the Regions View and Soundfile View, and the Sequence view and Remote Transport View.  It's a good idea to keep this as the F1 key view, so you can always return to an overview of most of the windows you use regularly.  If you have a large screen display with high resolution, this layout might be perfectly adequate for everyday work, but if you have a smaller screen you'll probably find it most convenient to define some working views for specific functions.

Just to be sure you have the 'default' view saved, hold down the SHIFT key, and press the F1 key.  You've just saved a view to the F1 key for recall.  Now let's define a special view just for extensive work in the Multitrack View.   Start off by closing all the other view windows.

Slide the mouse pointer down to the lower right corner of the Multitrack View Window, and when the cursor changes to a diagonal arrow, click and drag the lower right corner of the MultiTrack Window until it either fills the screen or stops growing.  Now, you will probably see all regular and output tracks.  As a practical matter,  you will find it easier to work through the tutorial if you now increase the size of the tracks size displayed by pressing the Page-Up key repeatedly until there are about 6 tracks showing on the screen.  Note that with each press of the Page-Up key the tracks expanded in vertical size.

While we're at it, this is a good point to observe another variable of the display setup, the horizontal scale of the display.  Once you have the track display set up and maximized on your screen, watch the yellow Timeline at the bottom of the MultiTrack View, and press the Plus (+) key on your number pad (or hold the SHIFT key down and press the +/- key.  Each time you press the + key, the display will 'ZoomZoom In' another step until eventually each division on the timeline represents about 0.002 seconds (also sometimes stated as 2 milliseconds, or 2ms).  If you do the same thing with the Minus (-) key, you will find that you can 'Zoom Out' until each division represents about 2 minutes.  What setting you arrive at as a standard depends on the sort of recordings you will mainly be doing.  At it's finest resolution, the display will show you only about 22ms and at it's widest display, about 22 minutes.  A good standard display width to start with is about 2 minutes.  Note that the '+' and '-' keys are actually shortcut keys for the gold 'ZM IN' and 'ZM OUT' buttons at the lower left of the MultiTrack View.  See the Help Shortcut Keys in the Info menu option for more shortcuts.

One last thing before you define this as a saved view.  If you closed the Remote Transport view as part of the exercise above, it may be a good idea to open it back up before saving the view, as you will probably find it more convenient to have the transport always present.  You can either do this by going to the 'Windows' menu and selecting the 'Remote Transport' option, or for a shortcut, just hold down the SHIFT and ALT keys and press T.  The Remote Transport will pop back up, and will stay on top of the view, covering up any window that is underneath it.

Now, hold down the SHIFT key, and press F11 to save this view.   To see how this works, press F1, and you are instantly back at the general view we saved earlier, now press F11, and the view we just created springs back.


Sample Rates

One last thing that needs to be set before you start is the Master Sample Rate for the project.  Sample Rate is one of those terms that sound complicated, but turn out to be pretty easy.  A short review of the way a digital system actually works as opposed to an analog system may help here.

The word  'Analog' actually comes from the term  'Analogous to', which of course, just means something that is 'just like' something else.  When you think of a conventional analog audio system, you could measure the signal at any point in the system, and find that it is moving in a way that is 'analogous to' the original source of the sound, for instance, if a drum skin moves forward when struck and creates a positive wave of pressure radiating away from the drum, when that wave hits a microphone diaphragm, the pressure causes the diaphragm to move in a way analogous to the moving drum skin, and that creates an electrical signal that swings toward the positive side in a way analogous to the moving diaphragm, and the moving drum skin.  Later, when you have mixed this signal and passed it on to an amplifier and a speaker, our speaker cone will move in a way analogous to the original drum skin, and create another wave of positive pressure, eventually hitting our eardrum, moving it in an analogous way, and causing us to hear the beat of the drum.  If you were to insert a tape recorder into this system, and make an analog recording of the drum, you would find that the magnetic energy present on the tape actually changed in a way analogous to the original drum beat too.

A digital system works a little differently.  In order to convert the signal into something the computer understands, which you will recall at it's basic level only knows the difference between an on or an off, a '1' or a '0', you will need to find a way to translate the changing signal levels into a string of  ones and zeros.

You do this by a method we call 'Sampling', whereby we take a 'snapshot' of the level of the audio signal periodically, and then translate that level into a binary number that the computer can deal with.  We take a LOT of samples, anywhere from 11,000 per second up to 48,000 per second.  If we are taking 11,000 samples every second, we say the sample rate is 11K Hz, or 11,000 samples per second.  Likewise, 48,000 samples per second would give us a sample rate of 48K Hz.

Why would we care what the rate is?  Well mathematicians postulated that the maximum frequency one could represent in a digital signal would be 1/2 the Sample Rate in use.  They were, it turns out, exactly right, and so if we chose an 11K Hz sample rate, the theoretical maximum frequency we could accurately record would be 5.5K Hz.  So, the choice for a 11K Hz sample rate puts a mandatory limit to the high frequency response of our signal.  A 48K Hz sample rate would theoretically allow a frequency response of 24K Hz.  Of course, sampling at 48,000 times a second means we have to retain a LOT more data in our 2 minute recording than we do at 11K Hz.  Sample rates available to you for use in SAW depends on your sound card hardware.  SAW will allow you to mix soundfiles of different sample rates, but you will want to settle on a standard master sample rate for your projects.  We suggest that you use 44.1K Hz as a standard sample rate.

Setting the Master Sample Rate

If you set up the views as described above, press F5 now to get a large version of the MultiTrack View on screen, look near the bottom-left corner, and click on the aqua-colored button just to the right of the ZM OUT button.

This opens the Set MT Rate selection window.  Choose the master sample rate for this production by clicking on the button labeled Out Rate.  We suggest for most applications that you use the CD-quality sample rate of 44100.  Click on OK when done.

Setting a master sample rate does NOT limit you from using soundfiles recorded at different sample rates in your mix, it only determines the sample rate that will be used in playing the mix, or in doing a mixdown to a new soundfile.


The Assignment

There are all sorts of projects you could do with SAW to 'learn the ropes', but one of the most frequent uses of a Digital Audio Workstation is the preparation of promotional spots for radio and television.  These have been done for years in small studios using analog gear, but the folks doing them have long suffered from the need to redo large portions of a project when a small detail goes awry.  SAW, will change all that for you, now you just go in and edit a single word, or a breath out of a single track from among a dense mix of 4  tracks, and do it without disturbing any of the rest of the project.  Decide you really wish the drums started a beat earlier or later, no problem, just move them around.

Since we're so unbiased here at IQS, we spent a lot of time thinking about just the right spot to use for the tutorial, and then it hit us, 'What about a promotional spot for SAW?'.  Well, once the applause died down we knew this was just the thing.  Now, since you are the producer and the engineer, and also the talent on this gig, you select the music to use for the spot, we'll provide the vocal script a little later in the tutorial.  See if you can come up with a workable piece of music, you'll want to have a catchy intro, then a span of steady music with an easy beat to use for chorus under the voice, and then a nice strong finish to bring up the end of the spot.  Ideally there'd be no vocals in the parts of the music you use for the spot, otherwise you'll have competition for your vocal contribution to the effort.

Hopefully, you have a microphone to use so that you can supply the rich exciting DJ voice.   Even a simple SoundBlaster type mic will work fine for the purposes of this exercise.


Recording Soundfiles

There are really two ways to record new material into SAW, one is to do so directly in the MultiTrack View, and the other is to record into the SoundFile View first, then place regions in the MultiTrack View manually.  You will try both, but let's begin with the music recording using the SoundFile View method.  As a preliminary to any recording work, we suggest you define a directory on your audio hard disk for the audio related to each project you are working with.  For this project, call the directory SAWTUTOR so that when you're all done, it will be easy to find all the files associated with the tutorial and remove them from your disk to regain the space.  Use your Windows operating systems commands to set up your new directory.

Press F2 to bring up your medium detail view, as defined above.   Right about in the middle of the screen you'll see the SoundFile View.  Notice the range of buttons just below the title bar of the SoundFile View beginning on the left with IN FULL, and ending with a square red button with the letters REC beside it.  Just to the left of the REC button are two small blue buttons labeled 1,2.  These buttons determine which sound card you are using at a given time, if you have only one sound card, only button 1 will work, with two sound cards buttons 1 & 2 can be selected and so on.  Press the button corresponding to the sound card connected to your music source outputs.  If you loose track of which card is which, just go up to the main SAW menu, select 'Options', and 'Audio Hardware Setup' to see (or change) the assignments.

Press the red REC button next, and you are rewarded by the sight of the Recording Control Panel, which will have the name and driver revision of your selected sound card in it's title field.  Immediately to the right of that field you will see the track identification field, which in this case has SF showing in both the left and right spaces, indicating that you will be recording to the SoundFile View.

If the music source you are using is stereo, you can accept the default setup, which assumes a stereo recording.  You need to enter a filename for the new file you will be recording, click on the FileName button on the Recording Control Panel below the sound card identification field, and  a familiar windows dialog, the Record SoundFile dialog box appears.  You can define the directory and file type of the soundfile you are about to record, so select the SAWTUTOR directory you just created, and accept the default of .WAV as the file type.  Type in the name MUSIC1 as the filename, and either click on OK or press Enter on your keyboard.   Now you will see the name and path information just entered showing in the field directly above the FileName button.  Later you will see what happens when you record a mono soundfile, but for now, lets move on to setting recording level.

First, press the RecReady button on the small transport control panel that accompanies the Recording Control Panel, (notice that the blue SAW  title bar changes to green) then start your source playing the music, and use the mixer applet that came with your sound card to adjust the level of the signal so that you can see the meters at the right of the Recording Control Panel begin to respond.  (Some cards, such as the Digital Audio Labs CardD+CardD+ do not require or provide a mixer applet.).

By now you should be seeing some movement in the meters, if not, check your inputs and output connections to your sound card, it is easy to get them reversed, and check that all other connections are correctly patched.

Once you do have level in SAW , do as much level setting in your mixer applet and on your original source as you can, as opposed to using the level faders on the Recording Control Panel, because this will most likely result in the best signal to noise performance from your sound card and source.

You should adjust levels until you see the average signal in the yellow range of the meters, with a few short bits going into the red being fine.  If the Peak indicators at the top of either channel light, your level is too high, and you will experience distortion if you record it that way.  Note that the meters are'tell-tale' meters, the highest level reached during a session will be indicated by a single segment lit in each channel.  There is also a 'Margin' indicator which shows you the percentage of full digital scale reached on the highest peak on either channel.  Leaving a bit of headroom is a good idea, this will allow for future adjustments to the level during editing, but recording at very low levels is not recommended, as you will be restricting the dynamic range of the signal unnecessarily.  Keeping the signal within about 60% to 70% on the margin indicator is a good practice for sounds to be mixed and edited later, going a bit higher to about 80% for sounds that will not need much more than cutting and splicing is acceptable.


Lets Record

Cue your music selection back up to the start, or get ready to take it from the top if you're playing the music yourself.  When ready, press the Rec button and let a second or two go by so that you're sure SAW is up and running in record, then begin playback of the music.  You will see the green title bar (remember, it turned green when you hit Rec Ready) change colors again to red, and the numbers in the Elapsed Lft Time  and Current Rec Time panels will begin to increment with the time as recording proceeds.  Also notice that the Time Remaining - Drive display also decrements to reflect the amount of recording time remaining on the selected drive.

You can continue to record all the music elements you have chosen to use, pressing Stop at the end of each piece, and then Rec when you are ready with the next piece.  Be sure to allow each piece that has an ending you plan to use to come to a complete end, it is very easy to accidentally chop off the fade-out on a selection before it is complete.

When you are done recording music selections, click on Close/Save, and the Recording Control Panel will disappear, while our newly recorded soundfile will instantly appear in the SoundFile View and in the Full View if it happens to be open at the time.  The newly recorded soundfile is ready for editing immediately.

At this point, you can take one short additional step that will simplify finding this music again later in the project, and eliminate the immediate need for you to remember the filename you used for it.  What you're going to do is turn the entire file into a 'Region', and after that it will appear in our regions list and be instantly available to us.  It's not hard at all, you'll use the shortcut way to do it this time, and then look at other ways a little later.

A Region is just a pointer to a soundfile or a portion of a soundfile.

Click once somewhere in the SoundFile View to be sure it is the active window, and then hold down the CTRL key, and press either the 'B' or the 'E' key.  Hey, the soundfile view changed color!  What you've done is to use the keyboard shortcut for selecting the entire file in the SoundFile View .  The'B' key stands for 'Beginning' and the 'E' key stands for 'End', adding the CTRL key to the action tells SAW to start at either the beginning or end of the file and select all the audio between that point and it's opposite.  The color change is the indication to you that the differently colored area has been made a part of a selection.

Now, having selected the entire file, you will define it as a region, again using a shortcut key for now.  Hold down the CTRL key, and press the 'N' key, (for 'regioN') and a dialog opens urging you to give the region a title.  The default title in the box is 'Region 001' if this is the first region you have defined, the number increments with every region defined.  Note that the text 'Region 001' is highlighted, indicating that anything you type will replace the highlighted text.  Type in 'Full Music Bed File' and press Enter.  You should see the newly defined region name appear in the Regions View to the left of the SoundFile View .

Why did you go through this exercise?  Let's see.  First, go up to the 'File' menu, and select 'Close SoundFile'.  The soundfile goes away, but notice that the region name remains in the Regions View .  Double click on the name 'Full Music Bed File' in the Regions View, and our just recorded soundfile will pop back into the SoundFile View instantly.  Note that it comes back with the region selected in the SoundFile View .  If you want to clear the selection simply press the 'C' key on your keyboard.

One final step to be sure you have our project under way and can get back to it at any time is to save it as an 'Edit Decision List' or EDL.  An EDL is a file that contains information about our entire session.  Go to the File menu again, and select 'Save EditListFile As', or use the shortcut key sequence of  CTRL-ALT-S (hold down the CTRL and ALT keys and press S).  If the directory listed in the Save EditListFile dialog box seems acceptable to you, type in a name for the edit list, for now let's use TUTORIAL.  SAW will automatically add the extension of '.EDL'.

Now, having saved this EditList, you will be able to return to this point in your work even after shutting down SAW and re-starting it.  You should also select Auto EDL Undo in the Options Menu.  When this is selected most functions that affect the MultiTrack and RegionRegion area can be restored with the Undo.   SAW  has the ability to save multiple versions of the current EDL File.  Multiple EDL Versions can be recalled independently in any sequence and up to 9 of them can be created.  At any time (especially before attempting a major change in your session) simply press the CTRL-SHIFT Keys and a number key (1-9 on the main keyboard).  A version of the current EDL state will be saved to that number key.  You may then restore that version by simply pressing the corresponding number key along with the CTRL key.  You can update the original EDL File by simply recalling any version created and using the Update EditList Option.

Periodically, it is a good idea as you work to save the EditList, doing so does not cost you significant disk space, it does not copy the soundfiles over, but rather simply the 'instructions' that SAW uses to place regions and do it's work on the soundfiles.  You can also use this feature to save different versions of a project.  Sometimes you may find it a good idea to save an early version under a different name so that you know you will be able to get back to that version if you decide that you liked it better than later versions of a project.  It may be a good idea to save an EDL each day under a unique title so that you will be able to reconstruct your early work at a later date if you wish.


Recording Direct To The MultiTrack View

Now you are ready to record the vocal portion of the project, and it would be a good idea to explore another way to get sound into the session.  Previously, you recorded into the SoundFile View and then converted the soundfile into a region.  You can skip a step by doing our recording right onto a track of the MultiTrack View.

If you have changed views since the last operation, go ahead and press F2 again to get back to our detail view.  Now select track 1 to record on and choose which card you will use for your input as before, clicking on the appropriate small blue button in the track control area.

Press the REC button for the track, and, as before, the Recording Control Panel will pop up.  This time, you'll record a MONO track rather than a stereo pair.  Look down at the middle of the panel, and click on the Type button.  Notice that each time you click, the label above the button changes, from 'Stereo' to 'Mono L+R', to 'Mono L/R'.  These are the three modes of recording available, Stereo mode records the inputs of the selected sound card as a stereo pair which will remain linked together and take up a single stereo track in the MultiTrack View  from that point on.  Mono L+R sums(mixes) the left and right inputs of the selected sound card, and puts the combined audio on the selected track, as a mono file.  You will note that the two panel fields on either side of the TRK label, just above the meters both show the number of the track selected (these fields are a quick way to see what track will receive the signal on each input).  Mono L/R splits the two inputs from the sound card into individual mono channels.  You will use this mode to record the vocal.

First, let's see the power of the Mono L/R option.  Press Type until the field above it reads Mono L/R.  Now you will designate the left input as the feed to a soundfile being recorded onto track 1.  Just above and to the left of the field that now reads Mono L/R, is a button that reads Left with an arrow pointing up.  Click this button, and a Record SoundFile dialog pops up, if the directory showing is not your SAWTUTOR directory, navigate to that directory, and type the name Left1 in the filename box, then click on 'OK'.  Now the box above the Left button reads [path]\SAWTUTOR\LEFT1.WAV, and the two fields on either side of the TRK label read '1' on the left and '---' on the right.  This indicates that our signal attached to the left input of the sound card will be applied to track 1 as a mono file.  This is all you need right now, but let's take a look at why the Mono L/R choice is particularly useful.

You will note that if you try to click on the button labeled Right with a down arrow, nothing happens.  This is because you must determine which track the right input will record to, and enable that channel for recording.

Most often you will choose the adjacent track, but just to show how flexible this system is, let's do it differently.

Press the F12 key to get our full view of all the tracks, and go down to track 4, press the same number sound card as track 1 (e.g., if track 1 is on card 1 press card 1 button on track 4), then press the REC button on track 4.  Now you see the difference right away in the Recording Control Panel, the panel to the right of the TRK label, above the right input meter, now reads '4'.  Now if you click the Right button, you again get a Record SoundFile dialog box, and can enter the file name Right1, then click OK.  At this point, your Recording Control Panel should show you both the left and right sound file names, and indicate that recording will commence on tracks 1 and 4.

Now, since you only need a single mono track for the vocal, let's just click on the Close/Save button to clear out of this set-up, and start over with a set-up to record a single mono channel.

Press F2 again to return to the detail view, and now step back through the above routine to prepare to record the input from the left (or right) sound card channel to track 1, using a soundfile name of  Dialog1.  Now set up your microphone and mixer for recording, and press the Rec Ready button so you can set the level just as you did with the music.  This is a place to watch out for a sneaky 'GOTCHA'.  Assuming you are set up for recording on the left channel, make sure your signal isn't coming in on the right channel instead!  The meter that is responding to the incoming signal should be the one directly under the track 1 label on the Recording Control Panel.


Recording the Pitch

OK, now you're ready to go again, but what are you to record?  Well, of course you can make up your own script and use that if you like, but if you just want to follow this tutorial through and have the words line up with the instructions, why not read the script printed below?

When you read it for the microphone, don't forget to use your best 'DJ' voice, and give it a lot of 'punch'.  Also, so that you'll have something to do in the editing phase, make some mistakes, cough, say 'uh' and try some different versions of the phrases.  No need to back up the 'tape', just keep going until you have recorded everything to your satisfaction, and you'll cut it up and stitch it together later.

When you're ready to go, just as before with the music, press the Rec button, and give SAW a second or so to 'get up to speed' before beginning your performance.

Here's the suggested script:

NEW FROM INNOVATIVE QUALITY SOFTWARE

SOFTWARE AUDIO WORKSHOP ,  SAW

A POWERFUL MULTITRACK DIGITAL AUDIO EDITOR

UNMATCHED FOR SPEED AND EFFICIENCY

SAW IS FAST BECOMING THE HARD DISK CHOICE OF PROFESSIONALS WORLDWIDE.

If you decide you want to start over during the recording, you can do so by clicking on the Stop button, then hold down the Shift key and click on the Retake button or click on the Retake All button..  This will clear the entire recording and you'll start from the beginning with a 'clean slate'.

When you're satisfied with your performance, click on Stop, and then on Close/Save.  You will see a blue block appear on track 1 with the title [DIALOG1.WAV] #001  (the number at the end may vary).  Also you will see the same title appear in the Regions View beneath our previously entered region.  That blue block tells you there is something there, but you probably would feel better if it showed you what the sound wave looked like!  No Problem, look at the lower left corner of the MultiTrack View and press the small blue button right next to the beginning of the yellow timeline or press the W shortcut key.  Now you should see the waveform in the track display, inside the blue box (region) earlier displayed.  While you may find you almost always work with the waveform displayed, turning it off can increase the speed of screen draws for slower systems, and sometimes is useful in reducing the clutter on a very complex mix, and for making it easier to see the names of the various regions.

Now, you will notice that this time there is no file displayed in the SoundFile View, or else the music file you recorded earlier is still visible there.  Even though you just recorded this new DIALOG1 file directly into the MultiTrack View, you can still call it up into the SoundFile View the same way as before, just double-click on either the displayed waveform (or block) in the MultiTrack View, or on the listing in the Regions View.  Go ahead and double-click on the waveform, and watch how quickly the SoundFile View comes up with the new file.  Note that this time, the SoundFile View shows only a single waveform filling the entire window.  Double-click on the Full Music Bed File listing in the Regions View again, and you are nearly instantly back in that file in the SoundFile View .  This speed of moving from soundfile to soundfile is one of the major advantages of  SAW.  You will spend very little time waiting for things to happen with this editor!

Notice that there is a difference in the display of the two region titles in the Regions View, the one that was defined from within the SoundFile View shows just the name as assigned, but the one that was recorded directly into the MultiTrack View has it's soundfile name displayed enclosed in brackets, and a number.  The number defines the order of recording to the MultiTrack View, the first file recorded directly into the MultiTrack View in a given project will be #001, the second #002, and so on.  when you get into cutting and splicing of multitrack elements, you will see that this same scheme is continued in those operations.

Next, you'll get down to the 'nitty-gritty' of editing and stitching our promo spot together, but first, lets take this opportunity to update (or save) the EditList file by using the keyboard short-cut combination of  Ctrl-Alt-U, or by going to the File menu, and selecting Update EditListFile from the menu selections.

Reviewing your progress, you've set up the views you need to make our editing and recording sessions easier to work with, and you've gone through two different methods of recording.  You now have the music bed for our spot recorded, and the voice recorded, and you have established and named an EditListFile.


Editing The Project

You have all the elements on the disk now, it's time to dig into the real power of the digital medium, and this digital editor, the ability to perform what are called non-linear edits.  The term non-linear just means that you don't have to keep all elements of the production lined up one after the other as you do on recording tape, you can quickly move sounds in time and position.

Dialog

First, open the DIALOG1.WAV in the SoundFile View.  If you still have it visible in the MultiTrack View , simply double-click on the region and it will immediately pop up in the SoundFile View.   If you don't have the dialog up in the MultiTrack View, then you can open it in the SoundFile View by either going to the File menu and selecting Open Soundfile, or by using the shortcut key sequence Ctrl-Alt-O (that's the letter 'O' not a zero), then in either case select the file and click OK.

Listen to the complete file so that you have a good idea where the various mistakes are, and where the best takes are on each phrase.  Before you start listening, press F4 so that you will be able to work in the large SoundFile View so as to see the connection between the sounds and the visual waveform.  You will discover that you begin to see patterns in the waveform that correspond to words in the soundfile, in fact with time and experience, you will most likely learn to identify specific words just from the waveform.

Now, to listen to the file, left-click the mouse at the left side of the Full View window, and then click the right mouse button.  The soundfile should begin to play back.  While it's playing, you can move from place to place in the file by just pointing and left-clicking at the point in the Full View you want to audition.  This way, you can listen to a particular phrase several times, then listen to the next take of that phrase a couple of times and so on.  When you are ready to stop play, either do a right-click of the mouse, or just hit the Space bar on your computer keyboard.

Editing Using the SoundFile ViewSoundFile View

Let's begin by creating some regions containing the component phrases of our spot, and then you can arrange them however you like to complete the project.  Start by finding the phrase 'New from Innovative Quality Software'.  When you've chosen the version of this phrase that you find the best, stop play by right-clicking the mouse or hitting the Space bar on your computer keyboard.  Now there are several ways to define a region within SAW, you will try to go through most of them as you do different edits.  Probably the easiest is the Drag-Mark method.  If you opened the file in the SoundFile View by double clicking on the region in the MultiTrack View, then you will notice that the entire file is currently selected.  This is evident by the fact that the field behind the waveform is white rather than black.  If this is the case, before you start marking smaller regions you need to clear the current selection, which is done simply by pressing the C key on your computer keyboard.  This method of clearing a selection will carry through to all our work with SAW.

You will start by making a rough selection, now that you have listened to the phrase a few times, and recognize on the waveform where it starts and ends (if you haven't done this yet, take a few seconds to do so now, and watch the waveform on the SoundFile View while it's playing), just take your mouse cursor and place it in the yellow timeline just below the beginning point of the phrase, press and hold the Shift key, and then click (and hold) with the left mouse button.  Now drag the mouse along the timeline, and you will see the white selection area expand to keep up, when you have the entire phrase selected, let go of the mouse button.  That's all there is to it, don't worry about accuracy here, you will trim it up in a second.

To audition the selection you just made, place the cursor either before or after the selection (but outside the selected area)  and hold down the Shift key while right-clicking the mouse.  Your selected area will play once from start to finish.  Let's look at some display features of the SoundFile View while you zero in on trimming up this first vocal edit.  First, press F2 to bring a view that includes the Regions View and the Transport Controls up.  now be sure that the SoundFile View has focus on the screen by clicking once in it's title bar.  On the Transport Controls, press the small button with the 'B' on it, and the cursor will jump to the beginning of the selection area.  Press the small button with the 'E' on it, and the cursor jumps to the end of the selection area, also the screen shifts to put this point at mid screen.  Now press the 'Z' button next to the E button, and note that the cursor jumps to the beginning of the sound file.

You've probably already noticed that the size of the waveform when the whole sound file is displayed in the SoundFile View is a bit small to do detailed edits.  Let's fix that, press the 'ZM IN' button near the middle top of the view, and see that the wave is expanded to fill more of the screen.  Note that when you click the 'ZM OUT' button, you are immediately returned to the larger view.  Now try the 'IN FULL' button, and you get a whole lot deeper into the details!  In fact, you are at the point where a single pixel on your screen is equivalent to a single sample in the sound file.  This level of detail is good for finding the exact starting point of a sound, and for ensuring that the 'tail' of the piece has completely ended before trimming the end of a region.  Note that the buttons on the Transport Control still work while you're zoomed way in like this, so you can quickly trim the start and then the end of a selection prior to creating a region.  Note also that when you want to go back out to the level of zoom you were at before the IN FULL was invoked, simply click ZM OUT, and you will be back where you were.  Each of these controls has keyboard shortcuts that can speed up your work to a tremendous degree.  Holding down Ctrl and hitting the right arrow key is the same as hitting the E button on the Transport Controls, likewise Ctrl-Left arrow is the same as the B button on the transport.  Pressing the + (plus) key on the keyboard works the same as the ZM IN button, and the -(minus) key acts like the ZM OUT button.  Holding down Ctrl and hitting either key is the shortcut to the IN FULL and OUT FULL buttons.  Play with these options for a minute or so to get the hang of it, and you'll find your editing sessions going much faster than if you were bound to a single way of doing each function.

One easy way to precisely trim a selection is to set it into loop play mode and adjust the beginning and end points 'on the fly'.  To do this, either press the Play Loop button on the Transport Controls, or hold down the Ctrl key while right-clicking the mouse.  Note that for the latter method, you will want the cursor to be outside the marked region when you start play.  Now, while the selection plays continuously, you can left click at the beginning or end of the selection area to move the start or end points, and hear the change in real time.  You also can zoom in while doing this, and you can use the shortcut keys to take the display to the beginning or end of the selection while the looping is under way.  To end the loop mode, either click on Stop on the Transport Controls or right click on the mouse.

Use this method to make your edits to the start and end points of this first phrase of the promo.  When you are satisfied with the start and end points, you will want to check one more thing, that is, you want the selection to start and stop on 'minimum energy' points in the signal, if they do, then there is no chance for a pop or click when the file starts playing.  Zoom in to the full in position and find a point in the selection that has some wave present.  Position the cursor on a 'crest' or 'dip' in the waveform, and then press the Z key on your computer keyboard.  If you were watching the cursor, you would  have noticed it jumped to the nearest zero level point on the soundfile.  This method allows you to define an edit point, and have SAW automatically shift the start and end of the selection to 'zero energy' points.  In fact, it gets even better, because if you go up to the Options menu at the top of the SAW screen, and put a check on the selection 'Auto Zero Cross Marking', from that point on, every time you make a selection, SAW will do the shift to zero energy cross points for you.  As the difference between the point you set and the nearest zero energy point is likely to be only a few samples apart, there is no audible effect to using Auto Zero Cross other than the absence of pops when playing back a region defined in this way.  We strongly suggest you leave the Auto Zero Cross Marking option engaged all the time.

Well, after all that, you now have a selection you are happy with, the next step is to make it a region that can be placed and manipulated in the MultiTrack View.  This is about as simple as it can be, you can use the menu by clicking on the 'Regions' menu, and selecting 'Create New Region', or by simply using the shortcut you learned earlier, hold down the Ctrl key, and press the 'N' key on your keyboard, then in either case, assign a name to the region in the dialog box which appears.  For the tutorial, type in'Vocal 1' and hit enter, or click OK.  Notice that the new region immediately appears in the Regions View ready for use.  There should now be three regions in the view .

Now you'll use another method to define the next region.  Find the best take for the second phrase,'Software Audio Workshop ', and position the cursor in the SoundFile View so that it is right before the start of the phrase.  Now press the B key on your computer keyboard, then position the cursor at the end of the phrase and press the E key on your keyboard.  Presto!  You have defined a selection again.  These short-cut keys are a very cool way to make your act look really tight, you'll be surprised at how much they increase your speed.

Once again, use the loop play method to find the perfect begin and end points of your phrase.  Once you are satisfied, you could just repeat our method above of pressing Ctrl-N or using the menu to define the new region, but lets try something new.

If you have not done so yet, press F4 to get back to our detail view.  Click the mouse once in the title bar of the SoundFile View  to shift focus to that view, and position the cursor somewhere within your white selection area, then hold down the Shift key and click (and release) the left mouse key once.  Three things happen when you do this, first, the cursor changes from a pointer to a small rectangular box with an arrow attached, second a new entry appears in the Regions View titled something like'[DIALOG1.WAV] #002' (the number at the end may vary), and the focus shifts to the MultiTrack View, as evidenced by the change in colors of the title bars.  Slide the cursor up into the MultiTrack View, and notice that when it moves over a track, a dotted line 'ghost outline' of the region you have defined appears.  Pick a track and a position, and with the 'ghost' region in place click once more on the left mouse key.  Now you will have the new region in place in the MultiTrack View on the track and at the time point you have selected.  The only problem is that that name is a bit awkward.  Click the mouse on the region name in the Regions View, or double click the new region in the MultiTrack View, and then go up to the Regions menu, and select the second  option, Update Region. (Or, press Ctrl U for the keyboard shortcut)  Now in the dialog box that comes up, type 'Vocal 2' for the new title, and press Enter or click on OK.  That's all there is to it, and the region is re-named.

This last operation will come in handy many times when you want to change a region slightly.  Simply double-click on the region (in the Regions View or the MultiTrack View ) use the SoundFile View to adjust the region, and then do a Ctrl-U to bring up the Update Region dialog box.

For now, you should clear the region you added to the MultiTrack View but not delete it from the Regions View.  You can do this by simply clicking on the region block in the MultiTrack View, after being sure that the MultiTrack View  has current focus (click once in it's title bar), then hit the Delete key on your computer keyboard.  You should get a warning dialog that asks 'Remove Current Seq Entry Without Disturbing Following Entries!  Are You Sure ?'.  Click OK and the region disappears from the MultiTrack View, but remains in the Regions View list.


Editing Directly in the MultiTrack View

So far, you've worked with the SoundFile View as the major place to do edits involved in creating regions.  There is good reason to use and be familiar with the SoundFile View, as it allows a great degree of detail and control.   Let's do the next region using the MultiTrack View entirely.

You should still have the full length [DIALOG1] #001 region on track 1 of the MultiTrack View.   At this point let's give ourselves a layer of safety by updating this region's name to 'Full Vocal File',  and then creating a new working region to use for the following edits.  After using Update Region to change the name, remove the region from the MultiTrack View using the Delete key, then double click on 'Full Vocal File' in the Regions View to open it in the SoundFile View,  and use the Shift-click method to duplicate the region with a new name onto another track of the MultiTrack View.  Alternatively, double click on the Full Vocal File  listing in the Regions View , then press Ctrl-N  to create a new identical region.  Name the new region something easy to work with but also easy to identify, for now let's call it V1. This may seem round-about, but by doing it this way, you will get a new region that can be cut up into components without affecting the full view region.

Now as before, audition the recording to find the phrase 'A powerful multitrack digital audio editor'.  Once you have the best take of this gem, you want to separate it out of the full track, and you will use the Multitrack Split Region Tools to do this.  Go to the Windows menu at the top of the SAW screen, and select Split Region Tool Bar.  A small button bar appears which is floating, you can move it anywhere on the screen and it will stay 'on top' so as to be ready for use.  You can even position it right on top of the track you are editing so you have very little distance to go from the edit point to the appropriate button.

Find the beginning point of the phrase (don't forget that you can use the different views to make this easier, for instance, click on F5 to get a detailed view of the current track), place the cursor carefully, and click on the Split Keep button.  Instantly you will see a line dividing the region, and the section following the dividing line is renamed  to be V1|#10 (the number will vary but be consecutive with each edit).

Now go to the end of the phrase, again carefully choose your point, and click on the Split Keep button again.  The same thing happens, this time the new region (following our phrase) is renamed to V1|#11. (Again, the number at the end will depend on the total number of edits you have made)

You can see now why you made the extra file to work with.  Double click on the region V1, and notice that it has changed to contain only the part of the original V1 to the left of the first Split Keep operation.  But, since you kept the Full Vocal File region as well, you will still be able to get back to the entire recording with a quick double-click.

Double click on our newly split region containing the phrase you wanted, and use Ctrl-U to update it with a new name, Vocal 3.  You can delete the other V1 regions.

You may find it easier to use the SoundFile View for basic building of regions, and use the MultiTrack View split and cut tools when you only need to quickly remove coughs, 'uhh's and so on from a vocal region already in place on a track.

Whichever method you prefer, continue chopping up our vocal file creating separate regions for each of the following phrases:

(Vocal 4)  'With unmatched speed and efficiency, SAW is fast

becoming the hard disk editing choice of professionals worldwide'

(Vocal 5)  'The hard disk editing choice'

(Vocal 6)  'Is'

(Vocal 7)  'SAW'

Remember that none of these edits are actually making any changes to our original recordings, the sound files are not changed in any way.

Remember that EDLs are instructions for the computer to use in finding the right piece of sound to play at the right time.  Because of this, if you get to a point where you can't seem to find a piece of sound that you know is on the file, you can always simply use the 'Open Soundfile' selection on the Files menu to get the complete recording into the SoundFile View for more editing.

This is a good point to update the Edit List, using either the menu choice in the File menu, or simply doing a Ctrl-Alt-U.  Note also, you can begin a habit here that will serve you well on future projects.  Instead of simply updating the edit list, periodically also use Save EditList As to save a copy of the EditList.  You will want to develop a naming convention, for example, you might start with Tutor.edl as your basic EditList, then periodically save a Tutor1.edl, Tutor2.edl, Tutor3.edl and so on.  Note that when you do a Save EditList As you are left in the new edit list.  This means that you would either want to close the edit list and reopen the original one, or use the convention of the highest number list being the current one.  Edit list files do not take up much space on the disk, you only are saving the information to build the edit list in the computer, not the actual soundfiles, so there is no reason not to keep several versions of a project.  This has the added advantage that if you reach the point where you say something like; 'This last two days has been a total waste, I wish I had the project back the way it was on Wednesday!', all you have to really do is open the edit list from Wednesday to be able to start over, or compare it with today's list.


Editing the Music

What is left to do in our preliminary work is the preparation of the music bed for the promo.  Assuming you recorded the music back at the beginning of this tutorial, now you will need to split up the recorded music into components you can use in the spot.

Since you created the Full Music Bed File way back when, all you need to do to get the music into the SoundFile View ready for editing is to double click on the region name in the Regions View.  Again, notice the speed with which this can be done, pop back and forth between the music file, and some of the vocal selections, you need have no fear of being delayed in your work waiting for a file to open with SAW.

Apply the same methods you used to build the vocal dialog regions to create the following music selections.  For this music bed, you need an Intro region, a Chorus region, and an Ending region.  Find a section of your music that has a nice beginning feel to it.  The goal here is to try and build clean region definitions  within the rhythm of the music.  Begin with a downbeat and mark a beginning point.  Find a rhythmic value, 8 beats away, usually just before another upcoming downbeat and mark the end point, then do a Ctrl-N to create the region.  If you begin the region on a downbeat and end it just before another upcoming downbeat you should theoretically be able to loop this region endlessly.  This may take some practice, but when you get it right, it's worth it. Name this first region Intro.  Use the same method to create a Chorus region.  Then create an Ending region.  Remember to zoom in and get the cursor right on the beat of the music.

Once again, update that edit list file!


Building a Track Sequence

Click on the first track in the MultiTrack View and position the cursor at the beginning of the track. Highlight the INTRO region from the Regions View window by clicking the left mouse button once.  Press the Add to MT button near the top of the Regions View window.  Notice that INTRO has become an entry on track one in the MultiTrack View.  Put three INTRO regions on the track by pressing the Add to MT button two more times.

Place your MultiTrack View cursor at the beginning of the session and press the right mouse button.  The session will play, splicing the three INTROs together.

HOW DOES IT SOUND

 If the INTRO entry needs some adjustment, just double click on the INTRO region in the MultiTrack View.  The SoundFile View window will be selected and the highlighted area will display the INTRO region.

Note the difference between region and entry.  A region is a reference to a marked area in a sound file.  A region becomes an entry when it is placed in position in the MultiTrack View.

To fine tune your begin or end points, use the CTRL key with the left and right ARROW keys on the computer keyboard to jump to the MRK BEG or MRK END points in the sound file.  Reposition the cursor with the mouse or by using the ARROW keys only.  Adjust the begin or end points and use the MRK BEG or MRK END buttons (or the B and E keys) to redefine the new positions.  Open the Regions menu and select Update Region.  The INTRO region is updated with the new marks.

Now try playing the track again. Once it meets with your approval, select the first track and press the END key.  Now highlight CHORUS in the Regions View window and press the Add to MT button once. Your MultiTrack View should now show three INTROs and a CHORUS.  Notice that the Sequence View will also list these entries as long as track one is selected. the Sequence View window should now read:

If necessary, adjust the CHORUS entry using the same method as before with the INTRO region.  Update the region if you make any changes to it.  Add the ENDING region the same way by using the END key to move the end of track one, highlighting the ENDING region in the Regions View and pressing the Add to MT button.  Your Sequence View should now have a list with:


Building the MultiTrack

Next, you will begin to see how SAW brings all the elements together. Select track two by clicking on it. That trackTrack:Hot will become the hot track as indicated by the white lines at the top and bottom of the track. Position your cursor near the start of the track.

Highlight the VOCAL 1 region in the Regions View and this time, instead of using the Add to MT button, click and release the left mouse button on the region name while holding down the SHIFT key.  The mouse pointer will change shape.  Move the pointer to a spot near the start of track two and click the mouse.  The VOCAL 1 region will be dropped on to track two and will now appear in the Sequence View as well.  Note that this is exactly the same sequence of keystrokes and actions you used earlier when you brought a region into the MultiTrack View from the SoundFile View.

Now, using the same technique, continue adding the remaining vocal regions in the order of VOCAL 6, VOCAL 9, VOCAL 8, VOCAL 2, VOCAL 7, and VOCAL 6, VOCAL 3, VOCAL 4, VOCAL 7, and VOCAL 2.  Remember, you can audition each entry by left-clicking on its name in the Regions View and right-clicking to play it.

The multitrack capability of SAW performs live combining of all the  tracks of digital audio, all on one stereo sound card. This powerful and unique design allows you to break away from the time-consuming cut and paste routines that force you to mix all your sound files into one.

Try playing the two tracks together to see if you like the timing of the vocal entries in relation to the music bed.  Place the cursor at the start of the production by clicking in the gray area to the left of the entries on the MultiTrack View.  Now right click to begin playback.

Notice, SAW is mixing tracks one and two together in real-time.  This simple example begins to show the incredible versatility of SAW to build productions in this way.

The performance should flow like this:

Music......

New from Innovative Quality Software is the choice of professionals, Software Audio Workshop .  SAW is a powerful multitrack digital audio editor.  With unmatched speed and efficiency, SAW is fast becoming the hard disk choice of professionals world wide.

SAW (pause) Software Audio Workshop .

Music ends.

SAVE YOUR EditList FILE AGAIN!

If your music bed runs short, you can easily insert a music region on track one.  Click on track one at the point where you wish to add a new region entry.  Highlight the entry in the Regions View.   Press the Add to MT button.  Unless there is plenty of room, you will get a message warning you that the region is too large and that other region entries will be moved.  Click on OK.  The new region will be inserted immediately after the currently selected region.

To delete a music entry from a track sequence, just click on it and press the SHIFT-DELETE key.  All following entries will move forward.  If you want to delete an entry without disturbing the following entries use the DELETE key by itself.

WARNING: IF YOU DELETE A REGION FROM THE REGIONS VIEW WINDOW,   ALL TRACKS CONTAINING THAT REGION ENTRY WILL ALSO BE ALTERED.

Deleting a region entry from the MultiTrack View affects that entry only.


Moving Region Entries

Use the S key (or click on the Select icon near the lower left corner of the MultiTrack View) to enter Select mode.  The mouse cursor will now look like a square with a diagonal arrow in it.  When in Select mode, the left button will select region entries and the right button will deselect a region.   Hold the CTRL key down and click the right mouse button to clear all selections (there may not be any at this time but it's a good practice to get into).

Zoom out enough so you can see the entire session on the screen.  Click on the last the vocal entry on track two.  It will be selected and turn a lighter color.  Hold down the SHIFT key and drag the entry to the right a bit.  When you let go of the mouse button, the entry will be dropped at the new position.  Click the right mouse button to deselect the region.

To listen to your session while in Select mode, use the Play and Stop buttons on the Remote Transport, or, use the right mouse button while the mouse pointer is in the Time Line of the MultiTrack View.

Experiment with these techniques a bit, repositioning your vocal region entries, playing them back, and moving them again until the flow of the vocal is smooth and natural.

You can see that using Select mode is a powerful way to work in a non-linear editing environment.  There are several other ways to use this feature so be sure to read that section of the manual if you haven't already.

When you are done moving entries, turn off Select mode by clicking the icon or pressing the S key.


Adding Effects

In the MultiTrack View click on the yellow FX button on your Vocal Track.  This will bring up the Effects Patch Builder.   The patch builder allows you to patch in multiple effects to a track.  Double click on Echo/Delay in the Effects Choices box.  This places the effect into the Current Patch box.  Double click on the Echo/Delay name in the Current Patch box to bring up the parameters for the Echo/Delay.  See the Effects section of the Reference manual for additional information.

For the tutorial just use the default settings and click on the Close button.

When you playback in the MultiTrack the effect is applied to the whole track.  Go ahead and give it a try.  For this promotional spot you will only want the effect applied to the Vocal 7 Region.  There are a couple of ways to do this.

One method is to move the region to its own track (while in select mode, press the CTRL key on the region and drag it down to another track) and apply the effect on that track.  This allows for nondestructive effects processing.

Another method is to destructively process the effect back to the soundfile.  To do this you need to mark the region.  Click on the Vocal 7 region with the echo effect patched in on the track and then press CTRL-B.  This marks the entire region (you can also use the TAB key to move to the beginning and ending of a region to use the B and E keys as before).  Move up to the Process/MixDown Menu and select 'Process Marked AreaProcess Marked Area Back to Original File (Destructive)' option.  A warning dialog will appear giving you the option to process the soundfile.

All mix changes that are applied to the region in addition to the Echo effect will be processed back to the soundfile.

If you choose the OK button then you will have one last chance to UndoUndo the processing.  With the 'OK/No Undo' you will not be able to Undo the processing.  Since this is a small section of the soundfile, choose the OK button.   A dialog box will be displayed briefly showing the status of the processing.

Click on the FX button on the Vocal track and remove the Echo effect from the Current Patch Box by clicking on the Echo/Delay and pressing the REM button.

Play the MultiTrack and notice that only Vocal 7 has the Echo effect.  This destructive method of adding effects comes in handy when your machine is not fast enough to process the effects in realtime.


Mix Automation

In the MultiTrack View, click on the blue fader icon (just to the right of the green mute button) for track one.  This will pop-up the fader and pan control window for that particular track.  At the same time, the track's region color will be grayed out and two horizontal lines will appear on the track.  The top line indicates pan information (red if in default center position) and the lower line near the middle of the track indicates volume information (yellow if in default 0 dB position). Fader windows have special 'on top' status that prevents them from being covered as you work with other windows.

In order to better see the effects of the fader and pan controls, zoom the track width to a very wide display by pressing the PAGE UP key several times.  You can shrink the track width using the PAGE DOWN key or return to your normal view by pressing F1.

The fader and pan controls can be used at any time, even during playback.   SAW does not process these mix changes to the sound file although you have the option to do so in the Process/MixDown Menu option.  Instead, the volume changes remain non-destructive since SAW performs the volume scaling calculations in real time.  This gives you the freedom to audition and change a mix without affecting the original sound file.

When a pan or volume change occurs it is referred to as a mix change.  Any change in either the pan or volume setting will result in a shift in the vertical position of the respective indicator line and  the color will change to dark gray.

Experiment with the volume and pan controls for track one.  Place the cursor where you want to make a volume change.  Drag the fader down five dB.  Move the cursor to the right a bit.  Drag the fader up to the +3 position. Now place the cursor to the left of your first mix change and play the track.  If you use the solo button, you will hear only the music track.  Now click on the CLR ALL button in the fader and pan control window.  This will clear all the mix changes on the track.

Try some mix changes while the track is playing.  Click on the beginning of the track and initiate playback with a right click.  As the music plays, grab the fader and slowly reduce the level and then raise it back to zero dB.  Now, as the music continues to play, grab the pan control and move it slowly back and forth.  As soon as you release the control, the track's indicator line will be updated and your new mix information is now recorded.

You will notice a slight delay since SAW must perform the scaling calculations live as each incremental change is made.  If you have a fast machine and you've set the PreLoad Buffer Queue to a small value, this delay will be minimal.

Now stop playback and start it again from the beginning of the track.  Every move you made will be precisely duplicated during playback.  After you've gotten a feel for how this works, clear the mix changes again.

If you need to make a change to a portion of your mix, you must clear the mix changes in that section first since you cannot directly overwrite existing mix changes with new ones.   Refer to the MultiTrack section of the SAW Menus chapter in the Reference manual for more information on clearing marked mix sections.

With all mix settings cleared, listen to the playback of both tracks.  Be sure the solo and mute buttons are all off by clicking on one of each with the CTRL key depressed.

If you want to change the mix, use the techniques we just reviewed.  You may wish to lower the music when the vocals come in, or make adjustments to each vocal section if the levels are uneven.  Be sure to save your edit list as you work.

Now, lets put an ending fade to the Promo Spot.  Place the cursor at the end of the music in the MultiTrack View, open the fader window and lower the level all the way to -70 dB.  Locate the Marked display window in the Remote Transport.  From the current position at the end of the track, drag the cursor to the left.  As you do this, the Marked label will change to Relative as long as the mouse button is depressed.  Drag to the left until the Relative display indicates about ten seconds.  Leave the cursor at the new position.

Open the MultiTrack menu and select Fade Log To Next Volume Change.   Click OK and SAW will draw a ten second, logarithmic fade out of the music.  You can also do linear and inverse log fades as well and there are options in the Mix Menu to automatically do fades to Marked areas of a region.

To put a rising fade in the beginning of the music place the cursor at the beginning of the first INTRO entry.  Pull the fader down to -70 dB. Now place the cursor at the point where you want the fade in to be complete and before any other mix change.   Point to the fader and hold down the left mouse button while clicking the right mouse button.  This will automatically reset the fader to zero.  Now put the cursor back at the beginning of the music bed making sure that -70 dB is registered in the fader window.  Open the MultiTrack menu and select Fade Log To Next Volume Change.  Click OK and SAW will draw a logarithmic fade in of the music track.


Finishing Up

Try  playing the Promo spot from the beginning by clicking in the gray area to the left of the entries in the MultiTrack View.  Click the right mouse button to start/stop playback.  You can continue to make any changes to your production that you like, all without altering any of your original sound files.

You can now play your production directly to DAT or cassette, or you can do an internal mixdown to an new sound file using the process called Build Mix.

Build Mix will mix all tracks, including the mix entries and effects, down to one sound file.

SAW opens the door to powerful audio production with innovative design concepts uniquely packaged in one program.  We hope that this tutorial has helped you to become more comfortable with the operation of SAW.  By far the best way to learn to use such a flexible and powerful tool is to jump in and work with it, so please feel free to just try things.

While this brief tutorial may have helped you understand some of the basic techniques in SAW  there is no substitute for reading the entire manual.  By experimenting with everything you encounter as you read about it, your knowledge and ability to use this powerful tool will grow rapidly.  There is every likelihood that you will discover methods and uses that we never even thought of, and that is part of the excitement of this business.  Even experienced users of  SAW are often surprised to find that there are shortcuts and methods that they have never used.  Take advantage of the manual, and of the help files which can guide you through many operations with this powerful editor.

Enjoy the power of  SAW , and thanks for taking the time to work through this tutorial!


Innovative Quality Software

Innovative Quality Software

4680 S. Eastern Avenue, Suite D

Las Vegas, NV 89119

Other Products from Innovative Quality Software

SAW 6.0 - Professional Hard Disk Editing And MultiTrack Mixing For Windows with 4 Simultaneous Stereo (8) Playback Tracks, Realtime preview of all DSP functions, Live Automated Non-destructive Mixing.

SAMM -  Provides an audio console interface that is graphically represented on a computer screen for the Yamaha ProMix 01 and Microsoft Windows.

AVI Viewer Effect Plug-In - This module allows SAW Plus and SAW 6.0 to edit audio tracks for Microsoft Windows AVI files.

Reverb - A reverberation Plug-In is currently in development and should be availble soon.   Contact IQS for availability.

Demonstration versions of these programs are available on our WEB site and on our BBS.

Contacting Innovative Quality Software

702-435-9077	 (voice)

702-435-7186	 (bbs)

702-435-9106 	(fax)

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SAW 6.0

Professional Hard Disk Editing And MultiTrack Mixing For Windows

•	Simultaneous playback of up to 4  mono OR stereo tracks

•	Complete Drag and Drop, nondestructive editing

•	Get the same high performance with any size project - from seconds to hours in length

•	Nine levels of Undo recalled completely independently in any sequence

•	MultiTrack display includes waveforms and adjustable width

•	MultiTrack select mode marking allows fast grouping of multiple regions for simultaneous editing operations

•	Virtual scrolling of sound file and MultiTrack displays

•	MultiTrack Edit Tools provide quick segment splicing or removal functions

•	Supports up to two (four in Plus) stereo sound cards, up to 4 inputs and outputs

•	Record direct to MultiTrack or to sound file only

•	Record, edit and play stereo or mono sound files in the same session at the same time

•	Fast, accurate segmented bar graph meters in record panel with peak hold

•	Live, automatic splitting of L/R audio to two mono sound files while recording

•	Live, automatic mixing of L&R audio to single mono sound file while recording

•	Remote panel allows control of SAW from any other application

•	Software-emulated DSP functions provide parametric EQ, noise gate, limiter, compressor, echo effects and vari-pitch

•	Emulated DSP functions patchable to each track or sound card output for real-time processing during playback

•	Separate master volume controls for each sound card output

•	Live format conversion during playback (mix any combination of regions that are 8-bit or 16-bit, mono or stereo, and any sample rate)

•	Adjust volume, pans, mutes, solos and effects during playback (without additional expensive hardware)

•	Mix changes automatically recorded for exact duplication during playback

•	Programmable Function Key Views provide fast access to multiple workspaces

•	Simultaneous Sync Record/Play

•	Supports industry standard WAV file format

•	Backup & restore entire editing sessions with any standard audio DAT

•	Incredibly fast assembly language waveform displays & screen redraws

•	Νondestructive Region & Play Sequence list editing

•	SMPTE sync & generate capability with sub-frame accuracy

•	MIDI Region & Play Sequence trigger capability

•	Reversing & Looping

•	Loop Scrubbing

•	Supports DSP Plug-Ins (programming API available for free)

•	And much, much more..........


SAMM

SAMM Features

•	All MIDI-controllable mixer functions controlled on screen.

•	Switchable zoom levels provide views of the entire console or control details.

•	Fast, smooth scrolling of graphic image.

•	Control up to 16 ProMix 01 consoles at once.

•	Group channels to control all functions simultaneously.

•	Cue sequences allow complex mix changes.

•	Generate SMPTE or chase-lock to SMPTE for complete mix automation.

•	Manually step or cross-fade through Cue sequences

•	Complete, powerful automation capability.

•	256 color, 3-D graphics interface.

•	Runs in Microsoft Windows.


AVI Viewer Effect

AVI Viewer FX Plugin

Innovative Quality Software is pleased to announce the release of its first FX Plugin module for the SAW 6x and SAW Plus environment. The AVI Viewer is an exciting new tool which makes sound editing to video a simple and affordable process. The AVI Viewer is assigned to a track of the MultiTrack View through the FX Patch Builder Window. The viewer will display an AVI Video File to the computer screen without the need for any additional hardware, or to an external full screen video monitor with the use of specialized video capture boards. This video display is dynamically linked to the SAW 6x or SAW Plus MultiTrack environment and will track precisely with all MultiTrack cursor movements in any SMPTE Mode, with sub-frame accuracy. As you move the MultiTrack cursor the video display will chase accurately frame by frame or you may position the video with the viewer’s scroll bars and the MultiTrack cursor will chase frame by frame. The link works both ways. Placing audio regions in exact sync with video is a snap.

The exciting news about this technology is that synchronization is exact and perfect because SAW is in charge of each video frame, unlike most software players on the PC that use MCI commands to try to play and sync video and audio.

The combination of SAW 6x or SAW Plus and the AVI Viewer can substitute for audio/video editing equipment costing tens of thousands of dollars. Display and scrub video directly on the computer monitor within the MultiTrack environment. Display and scrub full screen video to external monitor with selected video capture boards. Automatic switching options for scrub and playback between computer and external monitor. Can take advantage of hardware video decompression boards resulting in minimal CPU overhead. Automatic saving of viewer file, screen position and size with each EDL. Direct Lock accurate sync between video and the entire MultiTrack audio environment. Onscreen display of SMPTE Frame Count and Position without the need for SMPTE Window Burn. Can be used with no extra SMPTE hardware whatsoever. SMPTE Start Offset adjustment allows skipping of unwanted starting video frames. SAW Start Offset adjustment allows position of short clips anywhere within a larger project. Zoom functions allow easy display size expansion and contraction. Scrub Bars for coarse and fine video frame positioning. Play and Stop buttons allow video playback independent of the MultiTrack. Built-In Extract Audio function allows easy placement of the AVI audio into the MultiTrack. Built-In Conversion functions allow conversions between different AVI compression formats.

Capturing Video

Video files can be captured with the help of a video capture board that plugs into the computer motherboard. Just as the audio card used by SAW captures and digitizes audio signals, a video capture board captures and digitizes video signals. These boards can range in price from $300 to $3000. The video quality and other range of features will vary greatly with the different priced boards. There are currently a few excellent choices in the $500 range that can capture full screen video at 30 frames per second using M-JPEG hardware compression and can output this video live directly to an external video monitor. The AVI Viewer can take full advantage of the hardware compression and decompression on these boards so that playback will hardly affect SAW’s MultiTrack performance at all. With one of these boards, the captured files can simply be loaded into the AVI Viewer and you can begin building your sound production.

With boards that do not support the hardware compression and decompression methods and which do not output video to external monitors, you must do some adjusting to the captured video in order to begin work in the SAW environment. Many of these boards can capture video using different compression schemes. Some of these schemes compress faster than they decompress. The important factor for use with SAW is that we try to achieve the fastest method of decompression during video playback that we can. This will allow more processing time for the MultiTrack environment, thereby giving you the maximum track playback. The best solution is to use one of the capture boards with the M-JPEG hardware compression/decompression and external monitor playback capability.


Release Notes

SAW Plus Enhancements

Version 3.0

Enhancements

*	The Automatic Cross Fade function has been enhanced to trap out elongated fades that could extend past range boundaries and also will now reset the Hot Track back to the original so that repeat attempts can be done without having to reset and clear the range manually.

*	Enhancements to the low level driver section for MWave and Fast Electronics AV Master compatiblity.

*	Deleting a MultiTrack Entry by selecting and using the DEL Key in the MultiTrack View will now leave the cursor position intact. Deleting an entry from the Sequence View will advance the cursor to the next entry allowing rapid repeated deletes.

*	Adding an Entry to the MultiTrack will no longer advance the cursor to the end of the entry position. This keeps the visual focus onscreen intact. Repeated use of the Add function will still place entries at the end of the current entry. To insert an entry before another, you must be in front of the start point of  that entry, not on it or beyond it.

*	A new option, Clear All Unused Regions has been added to the Regions Menu. This option scans through all tracks of your production and removes all Regions from the EDL that are not being referenced.

*	The Build Mix To New SoundFile option now allows overwrite or append operations when selecting an already existing SoundFile. You will be prompted.

Version 2.9

Enhancements

Version 2.8

Enhancements

Version 2.7

Enhancements

*	EDL Undo will now function even without naming the current session. A file called SAWPLUS.ED0 will be created and maintained in the orginal SAW Plus directory.

*	SMPTE Lock Buffers (for use with the Chase Lock/Resolve option) are now only allocated when the SMPTE Lock Resolve Active or Observe Mode is engaged. These buffers can require substantial amounts of extra memory when needed and prior to this version were allocated upon program startup. On machines with marginal amounts of memory, this could have stressed the system. Note that to use the Chase Lock Resolve or Observe options, the program needs to allocate memory buffers that depend on the number of active soundcards and the number of Preload Queue Buffers setup in the Audio Hardware Setup. If you receive an allocation error, try using a smaller number of Preload Queue Buffers.

Version 2.6

Enhancements

*	A new Build Mix option has been added to the Process/Mixdown Menu. Build Mix To New SoundFile now allows you to simply create a new file as a mix output, or append a new mix to an already existing file. These files are not sent to the Output Track. At the end of the build, the file is opened in the SoundFile View.

*	Build Mix Conversion Box parameters (SampleRate, Type and Resolution) are now retained between uses.

*	An Auto SRP Mute option has been added to the Options Menu. This option now controls the auto muting function during SRP PunchIn. If you are recording over an existing MutlTrack Entry, this option mutes the underlying entry during SRP Record. This function requires a Re-Cue procedure each time you PunchOut. On slower machines playing a lot of tracks, this could cause the Machine Too Slow message to pop up when you PunchOut. If so, keep this option off. This option can be toggled while the Record Panel is active.

*	The SMPTE Format/Stripe option is now active even without a SMPTE card in the system. This can be used in conjunction with the SMPTE Emulate Mode.

*	A Reset Button has been added to the Audio Hardware Setup Window which allows you to simply reset all devices at one time. If you have added or removed audio devices in your Windows setup, you should use this option and then re-pick the devices for SAW Plus. Don't forget to Save the Preferences.

*	The MultiTrack WaveForm Display may now be scaled vertically within each track. Use the Shift-PgUp key to amplify the display and the Shift-PgDn key to reduce the display. Use the Zero Number key to return to Zero Db. Pressing Ctrl with the Zero key will return all tracks to Zero Db.

*	A new option has been added to the MultiTrack Menu called Update Entry. This option works the same as the grab and extend entry (Shift-Left Mouse Button). Pressing the 'U' key when in the MultiTrack Window will also exercise this option. Place the MultiTrack Cursor at a specific point and use this option to update the current entry (on the Hot Track) to extend or shrink to the cursor position. If two entries are butt spliced together, both will be adjusted so that the splice point is at the cursor position.

*	The 'Z' key will now perform Zero Cross Detection in the MultiTrack View.

*	SMPTE Chase Trigger Mode may now be used for recording. With the Record Panel active, starting a SMPTE source will cause SAW Plus to chase and trigger recording at the new cursor position. When the SMPTE source is stopped the entry will be dropped onto the MultiTrack and the system will wait for SMPTE again. A new menu item has been added to the SMPTE/MIDI menu called Chase Trigger Record = SRP. When this option is checked, SRP recording will be triggered in the Chase Trigger Mode.

*	An Auto Punch feature has been added to the MultiTrack Simultaneous Record- Playback mode. By marking a section of the MultiTrack before pressing SRP, you can set the Punch In and Out points. Pressing SRP will begin playback and when the Mark Beg point is reached, Record mode will begin automatically, and when the Mark End point is reached, Record mode will stop automatically. The new entry will be automatically placed on the track.

*	SMPTE Conform Mode will now be saved with each EDL File.

*	Peak Limiter and Normalizer functions will now allow playback in the MultiTrack without interference. A simple notice will pop up on the screen that informs you that these functions are currently inactive while you play back, but the notice will not require any interaction from you. Also, you will receive only one notice even if multiple tracks are using these functions.

Version 2.5

Enhancements

*	The Retake-All button has been added to the Record Panel replacing the need to use the Shift Key. This option now automatically removes all Regions connected to the SoundFile you are clearing to zero.

*	The MultiTrack Split Region option now automatically makes a new entry for Regions that are used more than once in the MultiTrack. This eliminates the duplicated splits that would occur in earlier releases. Only the Region under the Cursor will be affected by the split. If you would like all entries to be affected, double-click the entry into the SoundFile View and do the split there.

*	The Record Panel operation has been enhanced to include Punch In/Punch Out on the fly. When using straight Record Mode, you can now toggle between Record Ready and Record Mode directly. When using SRP, press the SRP Play button first, then press the Record button to Punch In and start recording. Press the SRP Play button again to Punch Out and stop recording without stopping playback. The new entry will be automatically inserted on the track, splitting and removing any underlying entry. You may also use the Shift-Key while pressing the SRP button to start the recording process immediately. During the punch, playback of underlying entries will be automatically muted. You may continue to Punch In and Out until Stop is pressed. The keyboard is now active also. Press the Spacebar to begin playback. Press the Enter key to Punch In, and press the Enter key again to Punch Out. Press the Spacebar to stop. Press the Star Key to toggle Record Ready Mode. There is no automatic Undo during the record process, but you are free to use the power of the Ctrl-Shift 1 thru 9 to save instant spinoffs at any time prior or during the process. Then you can always decide to recall any one of those saved options for an instant undo of many punch-ins.

*	A True SMPTE Lock/Resolve Mode has been added to the program. Selecting the Smpte Lock/Resolve Active option on the Smpte/Midi Menu will now cause SAW Plus to actively LOCK to incoming Smpte. The lock is handled by adjusting the MultiTrack playback vari-pitch very slowly up or down to keep in sync with the incoming Smpte Code. This method is exactly the same method that most high-end systems use by utilizing special and usually expensive hardware on their sound cards, that can slightly alter the playback clock speed. SAW Plus can now do this on MANY WINDOWS SOUNDCARDS without the need for special hardware modifications. The vari-pitch algorithym is the same high quality algorithym that SAW Plus uses for its live SampleRate conversion and will not chunk out or duplicate sample chunks in order to speed up or slow down. As a result, this LOCK is virtually indetectable and represents a major breakthru to be accomplished without the use of special hardware. Note that within the first few seconds, SAW Plus will pitch rapidly up or down to get closely in sunc with an incoming signal if that signal is quite a few percent fast or slow. After that, all changes will be done slowly and evenly over time. The Remote Panel Current Smpte Time will display the lock by Plus/Minus Frames in the SubFrame display. Selecting the Smpte Lock/Resolve Observe option will activate the display mode without compensating for any drift so that you may determine if your equipment is acurrate on its own. If you play your production for five or ten minutes and the display is still showing plus/minus 00 for the lock, then you can turn the lock mode off and still maintain perfect acurracy without disturbing the audio at all. Note that with some Sound Card Drivers the current locking method does not work. If you get display readings that jump randomly, then Lock will not currently work with your Sound Card. The CardD+ works fine. The Antex Cards work fine. The Turtle Beach and SoundBlaster cards seem to have trouble. Others are being tested and we will report the results on our Compuserve Forum and BBS as the results come in.

*	Two New SMPTE Options have been added to the SMPTE/MIDI Menu. The Conform 30 To 29.97 option will adjust all position calculations for 29.97 broadcast Smpte modes. Use this if you are working with video that will broadcast at 29.97 rates. The MultiTrack SMPTE Emulate mode can be used when working with the AVI Viewer or any time that SMPTE references need to be visible. Both of these options will remain active even without any SMPTE/MIDI card in the system.

*	The Snap To SMPTE Position Window has been enhanced to now accept SubFrames. An individual Reset center button has also been added to each of the Hours, Mins, Secs, Frames, and SubFrames adjuster bars.

*	New API Version 1.1 supported. This adds the MultiTrack Cursor tracking capability. Both Cursor Sample Position and SMPTE Position are tracked to the FX Modules. Also, the modules may now request SAW Plus to alter its Multitrack Cursor position according to their command.

*	Ctrl-Left and Ctrl-Right keys now move to the Mark Beg and Mark End in the MultiTrack View, the same way they function in the SoundFile View.

*	The Remote Panel B and E buttons will now move to the Beg and End Marks even if there is no completed marked area in either the MultiTrack or SoundFile View. This allows you to begin fresh and mark a Beg point and even if you have not completed marking and End point, still use the B button to return you back to the Beg point.

*	The Compressor Normalize Function can now be adjusted in 1% increments and will now allow adjustment to 100%. Pressing the Shift-Key while adjusting the value will adjust it in 5% increments.

*	A new Select Mode feature has been added. When using the Shift Key to drag a selected MultiTrack entry, the time readout in the Remote Panel will normally indicate the entry begin position as you drag. If you also press the Alt Key, the time indication will display the actual grab point of the Select Cursor. This can be very useful when using the AVI Viewer, because the video frame that displays will be the exact video position of the grabbed point of the entry.

*	The SMPTE Calibrate Mode has been removed since the addition of the new SMPTE Lock and 29.97 options.

*	The Record Panel Lockout of the Menu items has now been changed to allow the SMPTE Modes to be toggled even while the Record Panel is active.

*	The Ctrl-Key may now be used when selecting a MultiTrack Output Card assignment to extend the selection to all tracks (like the Mutes and Solos).

*	The Open SoundFile option will now warn if the header is unrecognizable. You will be given the option to load the file anyway defaulted as a 16 bit stereo file.

*	The Directory Path Setup Option has been added to the Options Menu. The Auxillary Peak Data File Directory Path will allow WAV Files to be read directly from CD-ROM Drives. SAW Plus will create the needed Peak Data Files (which it cannot create on the CD-ROM) in this directory. They will remain there until the Delete SoundFile option is used or until you remove them manually with the File Manager. This option saves with the Preferences.

*	Clearing Selected Entries in the MultiTrack Select Mode has been changed. Pressing the Right Mouse Button now clears all entries. Pressing Ctrl-Right Mouse Button clears an individual entry.

*	The Backspace key has been added as a shortcut to the Snap Selected Entry To Cursor menu option.

Version 2.4

Enhancements

*	The Receive Midi Trigger and Assign Regions / Markers To Midi Notes Options have been activated on the Smpte/Midi Menu. When the Receive Midi Trigger Mode is activated any Midi Note received at the Midi In Device will trigger audio playback. Assigning a Region to a Midi Note causes the Region to play and stop. Assigning an SF-Marker to a Midi Note causes the SoundFile to load and begin playback. Assigning an MT-Marker to a Midi Note causes the MultiTrack to cue to the Marker Position and begin MultiTrack playback. If you assign the Note-Off option to Start, then the playback will cue when the Note-On is received and wait for the Note-Off to begin playback instantly. If you assign the Note-Off option to Stop, playback will stop when the Note-Off is received. Assigning the MT Play/Continue option to a Midi Note causes the MultiTrack to begin playback at the current MT Position. While the Assign Window is up, the Midi In Device is active and the note assignments will track any Midi Notes arriving at the device.

*	Sequence Control Entries are now active. These special Sequence Entries allow you to control the flow of MultiTrack Playback. You may add these entries to any track at any position by pressing the Add Ctrl Button in the Sequence View Window. These entries will display in a slightly different color and they can be moved and deleted as any other sequence entry.

*	Sequence Control Break Entry has been added. This will cause MultiTrack Playback to stop at the entry position. This stops all tracks regardless which track it is on.

*	Sequence Loop To Beginning Entry has been added. This entry can be placed anywhere on any track, and when encountered it will set a MultiTrack Loop Flag that will reset the MultiTrack Playback to the beginning and restart playback after the entire MultiTrack has been played to the end.

*	A Split Stereo File option has been added to the File Menu. Use this option to split stereo files into two separate mono files. You will be asked for the source filename and the two destination (left and right) filenames. The source file will not be destroyed.

*	Calibrate and Apply DC Offset options have been added to the Edit Menu. These options allow you to correct DC Offset problems within a SoundFile. The correction is applied to a marked area of the SoundFile in the SoundFile View Window. First, mark a small area of blank audio somewhere in the SoundFile, then select the Calibrate DC Offset option. This will calculate the DC Offset values for each channel. Then mark the entire SoundFile, or a specific area of the SoundFile, and select the Apply DC Offset option. This will shift the samples up or down, correcting the original offset that occurred during recording.

*	Keyboard Shortcuts have been added for Split Region Tool Options on the Regions Menu.

Version 2.3

Enhancements

*	The Return Key can now be used in the Regions List View to load and activate playback of the selected Region. If playback is already active, it will be stopped and the current Region will be loaded and played.

*	Midi/Smpte can now use any Windows Midi Card. The Midi/Smpte Setup Window now includes options for Midi In and Out Devices as well as a Smpte Generate Protocol selection. When first installing this version you must go into the Midi/Smpte Setup and select the Midi In and Out Devices, even if you have been using the MQX-32M already. You can select the MQX-32M Hardware option or any other Midi device on your system. You may now read SMPTE or MTC with any Midi Device, but only certain devices have the capability to generate SMPTE. There is no Windows MultiMedia Standard for generating SMPTE so each device will have its own protocol. You must tell SAW Plus which protocol to use. The current selections are the MQX-2Port/SE, MQX-8Port/SE, and the MidiMan Syncman Series of devices. If you select the MQX-32M Hardware option you must set the Hardware Interupt and Board Address also. SAW Plus handles all MTC messages in the background at interrupt time and also interpolates the missing frames (MTC updates normally every two frames). The performance of MTC should now closely match the hardware SMPTE of the previous versions. In fact, one 2Port/SE can generate and allow multiple programs to read and chase MTC with no external cable connections.

*	The Get EDL Region option has been activated in the Regions Menu. This is a powerful new way to bring an already existing  region from another EDL File into the current EDL Session. When activating this option, you will see a second Regions List View open and you will be given a chance to select another EDL File from the disk. The second list of EDL Regions will be simultaneously displayed overtop the current session. You can select and preview regions from the second Regions View just as you can from the current session Regions List View (Double-Click or use the SpaceBar or Return Key). By pressing the Add To EDL button on the new Regions View, the newly selected Region will be duplicated into the current EDL Session. When you are thru with the Get EDL Regions View, simply close the window.

*	A new option has been added to the Midi/Smpte Menu called Auto Smpte Format Detection. When this option is on (checked), the SMPTE Format will be automatically detected and changed with the incoming SMPTE data. When this option is off, the incoming Format data will be ignored, allowing you to overide any automatic Format changes.

*	The Auto Smpte Stop option has been moved from the Options Menu to the Midi/Smpte Menu.

*	In any SMPTE Mode, you may now Double-Click on the In-Position of the Sequence List View and pop up the Enter SMPTE Window. Entering a SMPTE time in the window and clicking OK will now snap that entry to the specified SMPTE Frame.

*	SAW Plus now contains an online HelpFile selectable from the Info Menu. This is the first HelpFile version and it will continue to grow along with the updates.


More Release Notes

SAW Plus Enhancements

Version 2.2

Enhancements

Version 2.1

Enhancements

*	The Gate/Compressor/Limiter FX Module now has the Normalize function activated. This function requires a PreScan and therefore can not be used during RealTime Playback. During a Build Mix or Process Back To SoundFile, the function will initiate a data PreScan and then perform the Normalize.

*	The Gate/Compressor/Limiter FX Module now tracks multiple Parameter Sets which allows you to activate up to 16 different Compressors (one on each track), each with different settings at the same time.

*	The Echo FX Module now tracks multiple Parameter Sets which allows you to activate up to 16 different Echos (one on each track), each with different settings at the same time.

*	The Equalizer FX Module now tracks multiple Parameter Sets which allows you to activate up to 16 different Eqs (one on each track), each with different settings at the same time.

Version 2.0

Enhancements

*	A new option called Save EditListFile Copy As... has been added to the File Menu. This option will save a copy of the current EditList to a new file and leave you working on the current EditList, not the new one. This is a nice way to create project spin-off files without upsetting the current working file environment.

*	Create And Restore Archives is finally activated. It will take into account all file formats and samplerates. The samplerates are handled as follows. You will pick an archive base samplerate (usually 44.1K or 48K) at the start of the archive process and files contained in the EDL that are recorded at different samplerates will be played at the base rate (either fast or slow). The files will not be samplerate converted (which would require them to be reconverted on the restore). When the archive is restored the original file rate will be restored in the file header so that all files will again playback at the proper speed. This concept has proven to be the best way to handle the multiple file rates. After the restore archive process, the restored EDL will automatically be loaded, ready for you to begin work. The Recording Parameters are picked up from the SoundFile View Record Panel. You must first select the card and proper input and levels from the SoundFile View Record Panel. Then close the panel down and begin the Restore Archive.

*	A new command line option has been added to help in debugging. Running the program with a /D (for debug mode) will cause the program to load without the preference file. Preferences cannot be saved in this mode either.

*	Recalling Number-Key EDL Versions now requires the use of the Ctrl-Key with the Number Key. This was done to eliminate filename entry problems using numbers. So... after saving an EDL Version into a Number Key, use the Ctrl-Number to recall that EDL Version.

Version 1.9

Enhancements

*	In the Full View or SoundFile View you may now use the T Key to transfer the actual SoundFile Start Cursor position to the Tracking Cursor position. This can also be done while playback is active.

*	A new and powerful feature added is the ability to save multiple versions of the current EDL File. This can replace the typical Undo List which can usually only step backward in a serial fashion. Multiple EDL Versions can be recalled completely independently in any sequence and up to 9 of them can be created. At any time (especially before attempting a major change in your session) simply press the Shift-Key and a number key (1-9 on the main keyboard). A version of the current EDL state will be saved to that number key. You may then restore that version by simply pressing the corresponding number key. You can update the original EDL File by simply recalling any version created and using the Update EditList Option. The versions will stay available with the original EDL even after exiting the program.

*	Also added is an automatic EDL Undo feature. This can be turned on in the Options Menu and saved with the preferences. It will automatically save the current state of the machine prior to most functions that affect the MultiTrack and Region area of the EDL. It will then activate the Undo option on the Edit Menu. This undo will be good until the next operation that overwrites the last undo. Selecting Undo will return the machine back to the previous EDL state.

*	The Edit Cut SoundFile Option now has the Preview Option activated. This will playback the SoundFile in the SoundFile View and skip over the marked area allowing you to hear the effect of the cut before actually cutting the file. The Playback PreRoll will begin near the SoundFile Cursor Position and the PostRoll will continue for the same approximate distance after the cut.

*	A powerful new feature has been added to the MultiTrack View. You may now use the SHIFT Key along with the Left Mouse Button to grab a splice point (or the beg or end of an entry) and extend or shorten the Region size. If the entry is butt-spliced to an adjacent entry both entries will be adjusted simultaneously, effectively shifting the splice point but not altering the time or meter. If there is blank space between entries you may pull the point past the next or previous entry and the Region Size will be adjusted to fit exactly up to the adjacent entry.

*	The M Key can now be used in the SoundFile or MultiTrack View to add a new marker. If playback is stopped, you will be asked for a marker name. If playback is active the marker name will be automatically generated and you can update it later. The Marker Window does not have to be visible for this feature to work.

*	The BuildMix operation will now adjust the MultiTrack View, at the end of the process, to display the highest output track involved in the mix. This brings the output track into focus so that you may easily solo and playback if you care to.

*	Output Track Solos must now be engaged before playback begins. They will not function while playback is active.

*	Processing Effects to SoundFile is not allowed directly on an Output Track. You must move the data to another track and process from there.

*	The SHIFT Double-Click from the MultiTrack View to the SoundFile View which used to hold the Zoom Level of the SoundFile View, has now been changed to a CTRL Double-Click. The SHIFT key is now used up by the Extend Sequence Entry Feature.

*	The GamePort Switch has been properly re-activated. There are also two new options on the Options Menu concerning the GamePort Switch. The Switch Toggle Mode will allow the switch to toggle on/off with each momentary press when checked. If this mode is unchecked, then the switch acts as a momentary switch and the play/rec function will continue only as long as the switch is depressed. The Record = SRP option allows the switch to operate the SRP Record Function when checked and the normal Record Function when unchecked.

*	A new feature has been added to aid in the problems that can arise with file association in File Manager and SAW Plus. SAW Plus normally needs to boot from its working directory (the directory where all of the program files are). It normally looks in the startup directory for its preference files and other DLL files. If you associate a WAV, SND or EDL file with SAW Plus in the File Manager, you will find that the program will fail to run when it can't find its necessary startup files. You may now create a SAWPLUS.INI file from any ASCII text editor (like notepad) and place this file in the Windows directory. The file needs to consist of just one line containing the SAW Plus working directory path ending with a backslash and a return/linefeed. Example:

C:\SAWPLUS	With this file in place you should be able to start the program from anywhere.

*	A new feature has been added to the Options Menu called Display MT Entry Names At Top. This will change the MultiTrack Entry Display and place the entry names at the top of the individual region entries. This can help keep the name from interfering with the mono waveform displays when the display is magnified and zoomed in. This option will save with the preferences.

Version 1.8

Enhancements

*	You may now move and copy Marked Mix Entries in a similar manner as moving and copying selected Sequence Entries. In the MultiTrack View open a fader to display the Mix Entries. Mark a section of Mix Entries. You can now use the Shift Key and grab the Marked Area with the Left Mouse Button and slide the area horizontally on the same track. The Mix Entries will be moved when you release the Left Mouse Button. You may also use the Ctrl Key to move the entries vertically to another track. If you click and release the Right Mouse Button during the move, you will copy the original Mix Entries to the new location. Note that earlier versions allowed you to move the marked mix entries just by grabbing the marked area. You must now use the Shift or Ctrl Key.

*	Loop Scrubbing has been added to the SoundFile View. To enter Loop Scrub Mode simply press the CTRL Key and then the Left Mouse Button. You have now grabbed the SoundFile Cursor while playback of a tight loop is activated. You may release the Ctrl Key but keep pressing the Left Mouse Button. You may change the length of the scrub loop by using the Up and Dwn Arrow Keys. You may also go back to the default loop size by pressing the Left Arrow Key. Pressing the Right Arrow Key will change the loop size to your last adjusted size. Pressing the Left Arrow Key Twice in a row will reset the adjusted size to the default. Releasing the Left Mouse Button exits Loop Scrub Mode. Note that you may also use the keyboard keys to adjust zoom and magnification level while Loop Scrub is active.

*	The Select Mode Cursor has been redesigned so that precise positioning of the cursor can be easily acheived. You will also notice that a cursor extension line has been added to the focus rectangle during drags so that you may easily align two points of a waveform.

*	De-selecting Entries in Select Mode has been modified. The Right Mouse Button will now de-select one entry. Pressing the Ctrl Key and Right Mouse Button will extend the de-selection to all entries. This has been done to maintain more consistency with the Ctrl Key usage in other parts of the program. The C (Clear) Key will also clear all entries.

*	The Right Mouse Button will no longer de-select a marked area on the MultiTrack. Use the C (Clear) Key or use B and E to mark the begin and end the same.

*	The Mix Volume And Pan Options have been moved from the MultiTrack Menu to a new menu called the Mix Menu.

*	A new Mix Menu item allows you to Reverse a marked section of Mix Changes.

*	Two new Mix Menu items allow you to create quick automatic FadeOuts and FadeIns. Simply mark an area of a MultiTrack Entry on the Hot Track and select one of these options. The FadeOut will fade from the current Volume setting to off. The FadeIn will fade from off to the current Volume setting. The fades will be Log type except for very short fades (approx. 1/2 sec or less), which will be linear.

*	Another New Mix Menu item allows you to create quick CrossFades between two adjacent tracks. Simply overlap two MultiTrack Entries on two adjacent tracks. Select the top track as the Hot Track and place the cursor where you would like the equal energy point of the crossfade. Select this option and the leading track will fade out while the trailing track fades in. The crossover point will be calculated as close as can be to create equal energy at the cursor. You may also mark an overlapping area if you do not want to use the entire overlap as the fade out length.

*	Also added to the Mix Menu is an additional CrossFade Option that will attempt to calculate the Crossover energy point at the cursor to -6 db. This will give the illusion of equal energy volume between the two audio pieces being crossfaded. The transition should be seamless as far as volume level is concerned.

*	The FX Patch Window now includes a Post Fader Button. This button forces the FX processing to take place after the Volume and Pan processing, allowing different combinations of FX results. For Example, you can use the Echo Cross Delay option in conjunction with the Post Fader Button to create a quick Cross Delay Stereo effect. Simply Offset Pan a track to the left, for instance, and use the Cross option on the Echo FX. The Post Fader Button must be activated or else the Cross effect will be absorbed by the left pan if the FX is processed first.

Version 1.7

Enhancements

*	Saw Plus will now accept a WAV,  SND, or EDL filename on the command line when starting up. WAV and SND files will automatically open into the SoundFile View. EDL files will automatically open into the MultiTrack View. With EDL filenames, you may also include a /P command option to immediately begin playback of the EDL. Make sure to include the entire path and filename and leave a space after an EDL name before adding the /P. Example... In the properties section of the Program Manager for the SawPlus Icon, on the Command Line type: C:\SAWPLUS\SAWPLUS.EXE C:\AUDIO\TEST.EDL /P.

*	You may now begin a Drag/Drop operation directly from the SoundFile View. Simply mark an area of audio in the SoundFile View and hold the Shift Key down and press and release the Left Mouse Button (exactly the same as doing Drag/Drop from the Regions View). A new Region will automatically be created and selected and the Drag/Drop cursor will appear. Simply drag the cursor to the MultiTrack and drop the new entry wherever you like. Note that each time you do this from the SoundFile View a new Region will be created.

*	Entering into Select Mode will now automatically clear all previously selected entries so that you will be starting fresh when marking and moving entries. If you would like to retain all previously selected entries from the last time Select Mode was active, press the Shift Key when turning Select Mode on.

*	EDL's will now save the current SMPTE Active Mode and restore that mode automatically when loaded. For example... if you save an EDL while SMPTE Trigger mode is active, SMPTE Trigger mode will be restored when you load the EDL.

*	SMPTE SubFrame resolution has now been increased for more accurate SubFrame tracking.

*	SMPTE Calibrate Values are now being saved with the EDL's. When an EDL is loaded that has been saved with SMPTE Trigger Mode active and a SMPTE Calibrate Value different from the current program Calibrate Value, you will be notified and given the opportunity to re-calibrate the EDL. If you say yes, all MultiTrack entries will be adjusted to the proper trigger points according to the new Calibrate Value. Be aware that this is not a complete cure for EDL's created on equipment that required speed adjustment. Any solid piece of audio or butt-spliced audio regions will not be extended or shortened in length and therefore may need varipitch adjustment to match the original video. You may want to keep the original and save the adjusted EDL as a different filename until you are sure that the adjustments are of benifit to you. If you choose not to re-calibrate, you will be notified again each time you toggle into SMPTE Trigger Mode until you update or save the EDL, at which time the current Calibrate Value will also become the EDL Calibrate Value. When performing the calibration adjustment according to the documentation, you no longer have to reposition the test region after each adjustment if you answer yes to the re-calibrate question.

*	ADB MultiWav Pro Digital Card Inputs are now fully recognized and switchable.

Version 1.6

Enhancements

*	The Return To Zero zone on the MultiTrack Tracks has now been reduced to include just the area to the right of the REC Buttons. This will help to eliminate accidental jumps to the beginning when missing a Mute Switch for example.

Version 1.5

Enhancements

*	Merge EDL Regions (in the Regions Menu) is now active. It will merge all the Regions from a selected EDL File into the current session.

*	The BuildMix option will now check for available disk space on all output file drives and warn and cancel the operation if there is not enough.

Version 1.4

Enhancements

*	The File Menu now contains a Change SoundFile Header SampleRate option. This option will overwrite the file header SampleRate information with a new SampleRate. This does not do any conversion of the audio data, only the header itself. This can be useful to easily change a digitally recorded file whose samplerate was not correctly set in the Record Panel. Such a file will playback at the wrong speed, but this option can instantly correct the problem.

*	Process Cuts are now available in the Edit Menu as Cut (Delete) Marked From SoundFile. This is a destructive process with no undo. It cuts the marked area from the SoundFile View out of the SoundFile. Note that this invalidates all Regions that have already been created past the cut point. Use this option with care and if you decide to trim files this way, do so before creating Regions and building MultiTrack entries.

Version 1.3

Enhancements

*	The Vari-Pitch Window now has a Lock Position Button. This feature will lock the start position of each Sequence entry on a track when Vari-Pitch is engaged. Each entry will be pitched separately. If extending the length of an entry causes it to run into the next entry, the first will be truncated and the next entry will still start on-time.

*	Now included are the Compressor / Gate / Limiter and the Echo Generator FX units. These are available in the FX Patch Builder Window. Currently they are only patchable to one track, but will soon be patchable to all tracks at once. Note that all functions are operational except the CompLimiter Normalize function. This will be implemented in the near future.

*	The Process/MixDown Menu now includes a Process Marked Area Back To SoundFile option. This allows FX and Mix Changes to be processed and written back to the original Soundfile. This replaces the original process to SoundFile SAW option, and adds much more power to that concept because you may process many FX at the same time. You must first place an entry on a MultiTrack Track. You can then use the FX Patch Builder to build a patch, and also set any Mix Changes you desire. Mark the whole Entry or a section of the Entry (you can not mark across different entries). Make sure the track is selected as the Hot Track and then selct this option. You may also elect to create an Undo File, since this is a destructive process. When the Process is finished, you may double-click the file from the Hot Track which will transfer it to the SoundFile View where you can play it back and hear the results of the processing. If you like it, you can clear the FX from the Hot Track and gain back all the CPU processing time that was required to do the FX live. Note that Vari-Pitch and Reverse Audio can not be processed back to the original file this way. You must use the BuildMix option to process those FX to a new file.

*	In the MultiTrack View, you may now mark the entire entry under the cursor on the Hot Track by using the Ctrl-Key with either the B key or E key. This can help you select an entire entry area for use with the Process Marked Area To SoundFile.

*	In the SoundFile View, you may now mark the entire file by using the Ctrl-Key with either the B key, E key, or MrkBeg or MrkEnd button.

*	The File Menu now includes an Open SoundFile And Create Region option which will automatically mark the entire SoundFile as a Region and place it in the Regions List ready for further manipulation.

*	Paste Region and Paste And Convert Sample Rate functions will now delete a newly created file if you cancel the operation.

*	In MultiTrack View you may now use the Right Mouse Button to play back even when an area is marked and highlited if you click down in the Ruler area. Otherwise, a Right Mouse Click will clear the marked area.

*	You may now use the Ctrl-Key along with the Split/Keep Region Tool to split every track including and below the Current Hot Track at the MultiTrack Cursor Position.

*	Adding an entry to the MultiTrack that is longer than the current zoom will allow, will center the end of the entry and the cursor instead of leaving the cursor at the left edge of the MultiTrack display.


Glossary

This glossary explains some of the terms that you may not understand.

Regions

Tracking Cursor

Start Cursor

Selecting Regions

Marking Regions

SMPTE Time Code


Tracking Cursor
The Tracking Cursor is the cursor that follows the samples that are playing.


Start Cursor
The Start Cursor is the cursor that shows where playback began.


Selecting Regions
Select Regions to move  or copy  them.  Use the Select button or press the S key to enter Select mode.


Marking Regions
Mark Regions to apply mix changes to the soundfile or build a new mix soundfile.  Use B and E Keys to set beggining and ending marks.


Regions
Regions are pointers to segments of a soundfile.  If a soundfile is cut or altered in size then all regions using that soundfile are invalid.


SMPTE Time Code
SMPTE Time Code breaks time down into hours, minutes, seconds, and frames; up to 24 hours worth of frames can be encoded.  A discrete Time Code address exists for every frame.  A typical address would be 05:20:31:18, or 5 hours, 20 minutes, 31 seconds, and 18 frames.


Zero Crossing
This is where the soundfile data crosses the 0dB point.  Press the Z key in the SoundFile View to move the cursor to this point.