Old 11-05-2021, 10:36 AM   #1
mtk
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Default Linked plugins

Option to link multiple instances of the same plugin across the project.
Changing parameters in one of the instances automatically updates it in all linked instances.

Ex.
* LFO tool - adjusting sidechain depth
* EQ - adjusting low cut curve & frequency
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Old 11-06-2021, 02:18 AM   #2
TonE
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Just midi map those to same controller!
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Old 11-06-2021, 12:22 PM   #3
ihavelostmykeys
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that's a big +1 from me, I'd love to be able to link several plugins.

the problem with midi-linking plugins is that it takes a lot of time. while it's fairly straightforward for Rea-plugins, for many 3rd party ones it's impossible to link all the parameters. For example Amplitube has only 16 available parameters through MIDI and when I change an amp, I have to start again. Absolute pain. Also, having large arsenal of plugins it would take me a couple of days to set linking preset for all of them. Otherwise it just kills my vibe when I do it ad hoc.

I can imagine having something like plugin groups, there would be an indicator on insert slot for linked plugin - colour flag for example. Dragging linked plugin over next track would add an instance of already linked plugin in the same group. Plugins within one group could be in various places in signal chains.

Another great feature would be to add plugins to channel grouping parameters list and so changing plugin order or value would reflect on all the tracks within group.
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Old 11-07-2021, 06:46 AM   #4
mtk
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Midi map all the parameters for each plugin I would like to link?
this doesn't sound like 'just'

I was thinking about copy and paste all plugin settings rather than linking some single parameters.



Linked groups of plugins (including plugins reorder) - this could be another cool feature if we will have fx containers + macros one day
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Old 11-07-2021, 07:42 AM   #5
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Can you give 1 concrete example? No abstract theories.
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Old 11-07-2021, 07:50 AM   #6
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One excellent example is trying out different levels of "console saturation" across the different channels of a mix.

Another, even better, is if it would be possible to adjust for example eqs across selected tracks or groups of tracks, to make space in certain frequency regions, without having to put them all in one folder. I would love to have that...
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Old 11-08-2021, 12:01 AM   #7
imbalon
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+1
it could be very useful, especially if it will be fx container or something with reorder sync
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Old 11-20-2021, 10:22 AM   #8
ihavelostmykeys
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TonE View Post
Can you give 1 concrete example? No abstract theories.
Example from yesterday: I was working on guitar tone with an artist in studio. He wanted to hear how would all the guitars sound like on the same setting (there's like 14 guitar tracks in this session). I had to prepare the sound on one channel, then to copy it to remaining ones. Then he's like 'ok, how bout some more eq?'. Then: 'ok, let's change the amp', and then 'can you try the other one'. Then 'can you go back to the second one and add some mids?' - this goes on for like half an hour. I downloaded one of the amp sims the day before, no time for midi linking. Another one requires manual MIDI programming for selected parameters, and resets when browsing amps. I ended up copying and pasting stuff all the time.

Manual MIDI link can sometimes help if you put enough work in it but it's still a workaround, not a final solution.

What I'd really like to get is workflow like this: link selected tracks FX-wise, open FX window on one of them and just have all the rest mimicking whatever I do - changing parameters, adding plugins, reordering plugins.

What could be done quickly and easily is an option to midi-link all the parameters if selected tracks contain the same plugin in the same place in chain.

Another thing would be pop-up window asking 'Do you want to replace existing FX chains with selected?'

If not, that's it. If yes, then you can link adding and rearranging plugins. There are already actions for clearing, copying, pasting and rearranging FX chains as well as adding plugins to all selected tracks, and so this could be implemented easily too.

Then it's automation - do you want to have plugins mimic automation changes implemented on one of tracks?

Then the next step is to link plugins beyond MIDI capabilities. For example choosing impulse response from file explorer in one IR loader would automatically load it on others. There are some plugins that don't leave a trace in undo history when changing parameters (Amplitube for example). In this case some sort of active preset copying would have to be implemented. This is the only thing that Reaper can't do yet.

I know this is a long way but I'd happily pay for an upgrade right away if this would be implemented even without the last point.

Last edited by ihavelostmykeys; 11-20-2021 at 11:32 AM.
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Old 11-20-2021, 11:16 AM   #9
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Try "Link Selected Track FX Parameter" script from Zaibuyidao. Available in ReaPack.
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Old 11-20-2021, 11:22 AM   #10
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Default Kenny explained this :

https://youtu.be/rHplRq7jJCg
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Old 11-20-2021, 11:26 AM   #11
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Can you put an example .RPP with minimal configuration, for example instead of 14 guitar tracks you could add only 2 guitar tracks into the .RPP, or at maximum 3, but not 14. Also replacing all wave data, just some unimportant short 1 bar tone.

Then anyone on this forum, including me, try to find a technique, which might work in some cases, who knows? Just an idea of how collaborative solution finding could happen here.

First finding a working technique.
Second, finding best working technique among several possible alternatives.
Third, finding ways, of making this best working technique one button press solution.

I would suggest using two guitar tracks, both using ReaEQ, then adjusting same parameter of both (assuming their frequency values were set equally before, thus frequency would not be checked in this example.) Is this a realistic example or not? Or just put an .RPP, using only Cockos fx and any jsfx available for Reaper. It is about the idea, not any specific vst.
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Old 11-20-2021, 11:37 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Wallaby View Post
Try that with plugin with 50 or 100 parameters when client's watching ;-)
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Old 11-20-2021, 11:38 AM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Daodan View Post
Try "Link Selected Track FX Parameter" script from Zaibuyidao. Available in ReaPack.
Shie Shie.
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Old 11-20-2021, 11:39 AM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ihavelostmykeys View Post
Try that with plugin with 50 or 100 parameters when client's watching ;-)
Yes, not a solution for this scenario. Better ones need to be found.
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Old 11-20-2021, 11:56 AM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TonE View Post
Shie Shie.
Thanks! I'd love to see it implemented into Reaper's track linking menu.
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Old 11-20-2021, 11:56 AM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Daodan View Post
Try "Link Selected Track FX Parameter" script from Zaibuyidao. Available in ReaPack.
Somehow this is not in my list, not sure why. Maybe some new address?

Luckily, there is also this:
Script: spk77_Link selected tracks FX parameters.lua

Last edited by TonE; 11-20-2021 at 12:03 PM.
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Old 11-20-2021, 12:06 PM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ihavelostmykeys View Post
Thanks! I'd love to see it implemented into Reaper's track linking menu.
Forget any menus, just solve or try to solve the concrete problem at hand. We have Reaper here, anything is possible. Even using multiple solutions, tricks and techniques.
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Old 11-20-2021, 12:44 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TonE View Post
Forget any menus, just solve or try to solve the concrete problem at hand. We have Reaper here, anything is possible. Even using multiple solutions, tricks and techniques.
Ok then. The only linking script available is by spk77 and it's dangerous stuff. It's affecting every instance of given plugin everywhere in chain. This means I can't have multiple instances of the same plugin in fx chain because the second I click on a track, all the settings are getting copied from one fx to the other. Therefore things like eq before and after compression are impossible to handle with this script.
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Old 11-20-2021, 12:46 PM   #19
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Let us wait where the Zaibuyidao variants are, there were a few more variants. Daodan could tell more about it. In my reapack it did not appear.
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Old 11-20-2021, 01:11 PM   #20
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Quote:
Example from yesterday: I was working on guitar tone with an artist in studio. He wanted to hear how would all the guitars sound like on the same setting (there's like 14 guitar tracks in this session).
I am using spk77 version but not very often.

In the meantime in a situation like this you can try to stuff all 14 tracks into a folder track and put an eq or other fx on that. And then unmute those guitars one by one.

Don't know if that would work for your particular case but I often use it like this.
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Old 11-20-2021, 02:33 PM   #21
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TonE View Post
Let us wait where the Zaibuyidao variants are, there were a few more variants. Daodan could tell more about it. In my reapack it did not appear.
Scripts was added to ReaPack this month. Maybe you just need to refresh repositories?

btw url for zaibuyidao's repo:
https://github.com/zaibuyidao/ReaScr...ster/index.xml
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Old 11-21-2021, 07:23 AM   #22
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with 4 tracks I can even duplicate plugin to each track ..but with a 100+ tracks project, how can I know which parameters were linked?

besides, there are some plugins that doesn't have all parameters mapped correctly, by ex. lfo tool by xfer - adjusting lfo curve doesn't work (I admit I tried only spk77 version some time ago)


I can imagine a simple dropdown menu next to the presets with a number to select ...then multiple plugin instances with the same numbers can be just linked + some button to get info about other instances if there are any.

Ofc, we can go much deeper with this function, ex to adjust only last touched parameters, or to link only selected parameters, but I think most of this 'advanced' stuff should be rather a part of fx container or with global macro controller working across all tracks.
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Old 11-21-2021, 11:19 PM   #23
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Maybe ReaLearn can be used for this ?

-Michael
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Old 11-23-2021, 12:34 AM   #24
JRTaylorMusic
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I wrote a script that might help: Get and propagate last touched FX parameter to all instances.lua (now available in ReaPack).


Last edited by JRTaylorMusic; 11-23-2021 at 12:48 AM.
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Old 11-23-2021, 10:12 AM   #25
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Originally Posted by JRTaylorMusic View Post
I wrote a script that might help: Get and propagate last touched FX parameter to all instances.lua (now available in ReaPack).
Good effort, this can speed up copying process indeed. However, you still have to make tweaks on one track before applying to the rest, and this is what I'd personally like to avoid. I don't really understand why there's so much resistance when it comes to making it right once for all. I get that Reaper is audio programmer's paradise but does it really have to be based on workarounds forever? Don't get me wrong - there are tons of custom actions and scripts that can be considered as ultimate solution and are great - we all know it. It's just in this case it seems like there's a lot of interest but no one has managed to provide a really good solution yet. I remember looking for it like 12 years ago for the first time...
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Old 11-23-2021, 11:14 AM   #26
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Thanks for the kind words (I’m feeling proud of my work as I’m new to scripting).

I’ve not seen any resistance, only solutions to help get work done in the meantime. Is there a DAW that already does what you want as an example? Sorry if you already said so and I overlooked.
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Old 11-27-2021, 03:15 PM   #27
ihavelostmykeys
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JRTaylorMusic View Post
I’ve not seen any resistance, only solutions to help get work done in the meantime.
This sounds a bit like resistance to me:

Quote:
Originally Posted by TonE View Post
Forget any menus, just solve or try to solve the concrete problem at hand.
Workarounds are ok for the time being but I believe it's good to have some sort of endgame in mind. Somewhere between words I received message "don't expect Cockos to solve it, just program it yourself or use someone else's workaround'. I don't know how I feel about this but it's not much uplifting.


Quote:
Originally Posted by JRTaylorMusic View Post
Thanks for the kind words (I’m feeling proud of my work as I’m new to scripting).
You're welcome, nice one.

Quote:
Originally Posted by JRTaylorMusic View Post
Is there a DAW that already does what you want as an example? Sorry if you already said so and I overlooked.
Pro Tools does it for example. In track grouping menu you can choose whatever you want to link - editing behaviour, volume, solo, mute, and plugins on particular inserts. You can for example link only inserts 1-3 while leaving all the rest independent. Very powerful.

I haven't worked on other DAWs but I'm sure Cubase can link plugins too, probably some others as well.

Last edited by ihavelostmykeys; 11-29-2021 at 02:54 PM.
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