Fixing Reaper's square automation workflow

[ferropop]

Maybe I'm alone, but I'm completely weirded out by how Reaper deals with square automation. Going on 14 years of daily Reaper and still it just feels...odd?

Situation : you have the thought "at this measure I'd like to create a square dip down to zero".

How it works : you'd think, "add a square point at mouse" right? No, you first have to set the point type to SQUARE of the previous point before the point you're about to add. This is insanely counterintuitive, no? Then the point type of your current point basically sets the behaviour of the NEXT point, and almost always incorrectly.

Like... i just want a single draw operation to Draw Square Automation Between Points.

I know you can use "create 4 points" actions to simulate a square point, but this is fundamentally different than square because when you want to shift the location of the square you now have to select 2 points, which need to be correctly set and can easily become detached in time, etc etc etc etc.


...is it feasible to script a more intuitive Add Square Point?

I'd imagine upon triggering it would :
-select closest point to the LEFT of the mouse cursor
-set that point to square
-get point type of closest point to RIGHT of mouse cursor
-create point at mouse, created as same point type of above step

Does this sound right?

[ferropop]

Closest I've come, assigned this to a key because you can't assign custom actions to Envelope Point/Segment modifiers.

[EpicSounds]

I add the point then press control+2

Envelope: Set shape of selected points to square

[ferropop]

Originally Posted by EpicSounds

I add the point then press control+2

Envelope: Set shape of selected points to square

This makes the point After the point you just created, act square.

Maybe I'm thick, but isn't the idea of a "square point" that it itself creates the step? Like, the square point you've just added functions as the step location? Because it doesn't work this way, it's based on the previous point being set to Square.

[EpicSounds]

maybe better to think of it as a 'flat' envelope until the next point.

[mpl]

you have to evaluate envelope at current value to break previous segment. For tech reasons that would work only for linear envelopes

[mpl]

like this (add zero envelope point):

envelope =  reaper.GetSelectedEnvelope( 0 )
if envelope then
  pos = reaper.GetCursorPosition()
  retval, value, dVdS, ddVdS, dddVdS = reaper.Envelope_Evaluate( envelope, pos, tonumber(reaper.format_timestr_pos( 1-reaper.GetProjectTimeOffset( 0,false ), '', 4 )), 1 )
  reaper.InsertEnvelopePoint( envelope, pos-10^-13, value, 1, 0, false, false )
  reaper.InsertEnvelopePoint( envelope, pos+10^-13, 0, 0, 0, false, false )
end

BUT
you cant just make zero segment value longer when draggin this point (dragging zero point results you a last value latched at last evaluated value in squared envelope segment), it a result of rounding when dragging closer points by mouse, you have to add another point, like 0.1 seconds far:

envelope =  reaper.GetSelectedEnvelope( 0 )
if envelope then
  pos = reaper.GetCursorPosition()
  retval, value, dVdS, ddVdS, dddVdS = reaper.Envelope_Evaluate( envelope, pos, tonumber(reaper.format_timestr_pos( 1-reaper.GetProjectTimeOffset( 0,false ), '', 4 )), 1 )
  reaper.InsertEnvelopePoint( envelope, pos-10^-13, value, 1, 0, false, false )
  reaper.InsertEnvelopePoint( envelope, pos+10^-13, 0, 0, 0, false, false )
  reaper.InsertEnvelopePoint( envelope, pos+0.1, 0, 0, 0, false, false )
end

[Judders]

I have mouse modifiers and envelopes set up so I can swipe a time selection with a modifier key and pulling the envelope creates square points at either end of the time selection.

Is that what you're looking for?

[ferropop]

Originally Posted by Judders

I have mouse modifiers and envelopes set up so I can swipe a time selection with a modifier key and pulling the envelope creates square points at either end of the time selection.

Is that what you're looking for?

Been doing this for years, and Razor Edits also allow this without having to create a time selection.

...it's not quite the same as what I'm trying to do.


I'll put it this way. What should be a pretty simple mapping of "I want to do this" to how to actually achieve it, is kinda weird. Maybe it's me.

You might think "I want the volume to SWELL UP" - so you draw in a "linear point". The point itself that you are adding, is what forms a line. Great.

You might think "I want the volume to suddenly SQUARELY DROP DOWN" - so you draw in a "square point" right? Nope - the point before the point you're creating needs to be set as square for it to behave as square, and keep consistent with the same mental flow as the previous example.

It's a two step process, when it feels like it should just be the point itself that you are creating, should behave as Square.