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The Datafile PD-CD 5
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DATAFILE_PDCD5.iso
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utilities
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effex
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!Effex
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UserGuide
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1993-04-08
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9[..................................................]001
Ŵ ⇨Documentation for !Effex
€ Effex written by and copyright Paul Mason
Like most computers nowadays (with the exception of the PC),
Acorn machines have the ability to play high quality sound. This
is achieved by literally controlling the speaker. A sample is
basically raw data describing the various positions of the
speaker. By such low-level control as this, it is possible to
create very nearly any sound. Such samples are obtainable from
several different sources. Many good sounds can be found on PD
discs, and Amiga/ST PD has a wealth of samples. Alternatively, if
you have access to a sampler, almost any sound can be captured
and saved onto disc. The other main option is to calculate your
sample, using mathematics or one of the good commercial programs.
Whichever way you obtain your sample, you will need to play it
back and if you are more adventurous, manipulate it.
Effex is a versatile sample editor. It allows fully controllable
editing of the sample - cutting and pasting, mixing, and a whole
host of other special effects that you can use to add a little
something to the sound.
ŴThe main window€
When you load a sample into Effex, by either double-clicking on
its icon, or dragging it to the Effex icon, the main window
will open, with a view of the sample at the bottom. On the far
right of the window, just above the sample viewer, you will find
a zoomer box. This operates in the standard way - like the one on
!Draw or !Paint. Note that it is not possible to have the zoom
set to less than 1 (ie. the right number larger than the left).
If you zoom in on the sample, you can move about inside it by
dragging the scroll bar at the bottom.
ŴSelections and the caret€
In order to edit the sample, you should first know how to select
an area, and move the caret. The selection defines what is going
to be acted on, and the caret specifies where any destination
data (eg. a move or copy) will go.
To select an area, click (select) where you want the start to be,
and drag the pointer to where you wish to end the selection. To
change a selection, click (select) on the end you wish to change
and drag. If you click (select) inside the sample view, the
nearest end of the selection will jump to where you clicked.
To clear the selection, click (menu) over the window, and choose
'Clear selection' off the selection submenu. Alternatively, press
CTRL Z.
To select the entire sample, choose 'Select all', or press
CTRL A.
When you make a selection, the icons either side of 'Sel' on the
main window will change to reflect the position within the sample
€of you selection. The left icon is the start, the right is the
end. You can enter values into these to change the selection.
To zoom the selection so as it fits the entire window (if
possible), press Z or choose Zoom from the Selection submenu.
To move the caret, simply click (adjust) in the view, and a red
line will appear, marking the caret position. Again, the icon by
the word 'caret' will change to reflect the caret position. You
can enter a value into here also. Alternatively, click on the up
or down arrows to move the caret (very slightly). Pressing shift
while clicking on these will step the caret by 16. (Note that
shift has that effect on any up/down arrows - the value in
question steps by 16).
Full details about the sample, selection and caret positions can
be obtained from the Sample window in the Misc submenu.
ŴOperating on a selection€
All menu selections described in this section are made from the
Selection submenu unless otherwise stated.
Once you have made a selection, you may wish to move, delete or
copy it.
Deleting a selection can be achieved by choosing Delete, or
pressing CTRL X.
Moving a selection to the caret position can be done by choosing
Move or pressing CTRL V.
Copying can be done with two effects. To copy the block,
inserting it at the caret position, choose copy, or CTRL C. To
copy it, overwriting data at the caret position, choose copy
over, or CTRL Y.
Mixing enables you to overlay parts of the sample. If, for
example, you have in your sample, a sound of a motorbike, and
later on, a sound of a scream, they can be mixed together, to
produce the sound of a motorbike while someone is screaming. To
mix the selection with data after the caret, choose Mix. To mix
data directly before the start of the selection, choose pre-mix.
To mix after the end of the selection, choose post-mix.
ŴPlaying the sample€
In order to play the sample, bring up the menu, and choose Play
from the Playing submenu. Alternatively, press CTRL P. If the
sample plays too fast or slow, change the sample rate. This can
be done by altering the value by the word KHz, or the value by
the word …µs€. If you increase the KHz value, the sample will speed
up (on replaying). The µs value is inversely proportional, ie.
increasing it will slow down the sample.
To alter the volume, click on the up/down arrows above and below
the value 127. Alternatively, enter a new value. If you cannot
hear any sound, the speaker is either off, or the master volume
€level is too low. Press F12 and type :
*Speaker On
*Volume 127
To stop playback of a sample, choose Stop from the Playing
submenu, or press CTRL S. During playback it is possible to alter
the volume (as normal), and also 'bend' the pitch. The latter is
achieved by clicking on the Pup and Pdown icons, or choosing
Pitch up or down from the playing submenu. Maximum volume can
instantly be set by choosing Max. volume or pressing CTRL L.
If you wish to see what part of the sample is being played,
choose Play tracking or press CTRL T. This will then move the
caret in sync with the sample. Clicking (adjust) anywhere in the
viewer while play tracking will play from that position. Once the
sample has stopped, you can move the caret anywhere and press
space or choose Continue, and playing will start from the caret.
Note that if you have finished playing a selection, the play
cannot be resumed with the caret after the end of the selection.
To playback the selection, choose Play from the selection
submenu, or press CTRL E.
ŴSample types€
At present, Effex supports logarithmic, signed linear and
unsigned linear samples, and can play all of these. The following
file formats are interpreted by Effex :
LogSampl (&631) : loading this forces the sample type to Log
SgnSampl (&632) : loading this forces the sample type to Signed
UnsSampl (&633) : loading this forces the sample type to Unsigned
Effex (&634) : the format when saved is restored, as is the
selection and caret details, and sample rate.
Armadeus (&D3C) : sample type is set to unsigned, and sample rate
is restored.
Any other file type defaults to unsigned.
The sample type can be changed by choosing the appropriate type
from the Misc submenu.
To convert from a Log sample to Signed linear, choose Log2Lin
To convert vice versa, choose Lin2Log
To change from Signed to Unsigned, choose (Un)Sign.
ŴEffects€
All menu selections described here are made from the Effects
submenu unless otherwise stated.
If you wish to add a special effect to your marked selection
only, ensure the 'Selection' option (at the top) is ticked.
Otherwise, the effect will be enforced on the whole sample.
€
Reverse : reverses (flips) the chosen area
Silence : amplifies the chosen area by 0
Fade in (CTRL I) : fades the area in from quiet to full volume
Fade out (CTRL O) : fades the area out from full to quiet
Amplify : amplifies the area by the given percentage
Quieten : amplifies the area by (10000/value) percentage
ie. Quietening by 200% will counteract an amplification of 200%
Eor : eors each byte of the area with the given value
Add : adds the given value to each byte of the area (moves the
sample up or down)
High-Amp filter : clips any values that exceed the given value
Low-Amp filter : clips any value that fall below the value
Core filter : See below
LowFreq boost : Boosts low frequencies and volumes
