Macros per pad
In a way I'm surprised this wasn't the way it was designed from the start as the ability to have an instrument (and fx) on one pad in a bank that contains other stuff on other pads too, it kind of begs for the ability to be able to save an instrument/pad + fx/macros for later use as a browsable instrument.
And also if I have like 32 drum/percussive samples on 32 pads in one bank...the 16 macros is quite limiting/confusing for performance as I often end up having to have one macro with a bunch of assigned params referring to different sounds/pads/values.
The bank macros as they are currently are definitly cool and useful, but per pad would be a killer addition/option.
Initially when thinking about feasibility I considered maybe it wasn't already a feature down to cpu etc... But currently with the max amount of Banks being 128, that's already potentially 2048 macro knobs (!?!), not counting audio tracks/aux/master macros (and the confirmed global macros to be added)... So a hard limit based on cpu doesn't seem too much of a concern
And also if I have like 32 drum/percussive samples on 32 pads in one bank...the 16 macros is quite limiting/confusing for performance as I often end up having to have one macro with a bunch of assigned params referring to different sounds/pads/values.
The bank macros as they are currently are definitly cool and useful, but per pad would be a killer addition/option.
Initially when thinking about feasibility I considered maybe it wasn't already a feature down to cpu etc... But currently with the max amount of Banks being 128, that's already potentially 2048 macro knobs (!?!), not counting audio tracks/aux/master macros (and the confirmed global macros to be added)... So a hard limit based on cpu doesn't seem too much of a concern
Comments
+2000 (and 3 smilies)
for GLOBAL MACROS
Boy am I looking forward to global
Macros though!!!!
One of the other reasons that 'macro per pad' option would be super useful would be for flexibility when making/sharing patches/instruments.
Seems like it should be possible for someone to make an instrument and set up some nice macros and then be able to share that (or just save/browse/load it themselves) and have it flexible enough for someone else to be able to load/use that anywhere within someone else's session/workflow.
But currently if someone sets up macros on an instrument and shares it, they have to use the bank macros so that limits/dictates how/where its used/loaded by everyone else. Like they can't load it in to a bank without it messing with that bank's current macros. Seems like a pretty big design issue to me but fixable
I think the 'one instrument per bank' thing (while it does offer a few advantages) is more of an instinct for people coming in from tradition DAW workflows rather than a 'logical workflow choice'. I know I had to adjust to working on pad level, but once I did then the possibilities in BM3 became more rewarding.
Only drawback I'd say is that the scenes mode seems a bit more handy when working with one instrument per bank, as working inside a single bank, you basically have one pattern on the scene mode which represents your entire scene already. Need to experiment more though, maybe I'll find other uses! It occurred to me to set up a 'MIDI bank' for automating external gear, and there are separate audio tracks there too .. we'll see! Even just as a pattern trigger, still quite useful.
I much prefer working with these more comprehensive patterns in the song mode too, which I get from working at pad level. Much cleaner workflow where rather than seeing blocks everywhere I basically have a song structure presented to me, the sections of which are then much more 'accessibly' edited by going down another level into Pattern View (which is basically an arranger in itself).
Exporting stems Is no problem as you can choose to export from pads or banks. It's like they intended it to be used this way!!
Global macros though - yeah!! That's going to be awesome!
Hoping at some point they add a 'break out' option for pad/s. Like if you decide you actually want something from your combined bank to be a separate bank/track. One click could = copy that pad and all its sequencer/patterns info to its own bank/track. Would be cool to have that option to hand for instant 'change of strategy' kind of stuff
I did try to explain to people that individual MIDI tracks was needed, not extra banks, but i got shot down in various places.
Im doubtful we will be getting a usable one bank work flow now that they added extra banks.
If you have a bank set up with just one instrument and you've spent half an hour making the Macros, but then you decide you want that instrument inside another bank, and that other bank has samples/instrument + macros already then the two can't co-exist inside the bank. Which kind of defeats the idea of banks as a combined workspace
I was replying to Oscar talking about using one bank, sorry i should have put his name in.
I am not replying to the macro thing because i think everybody is thinking way too small for macros and for me they should be unlimited and also lockable.
Examples
Savable encapsulated FX chains (reload an fx chain one fx slot with user defined macros, so it looks like a single effect, button to open entire chain)
Savable encapsulated instrument (reload an instrument made up of multiple layers with user defined macros, opens via AU/IAA loader, so it looks like a plugin, button to open it as sampler layers)
MIDI capsules (create an entire map of MIDI CC dials that could be reloaded per pad for IAA/external hardware control)
On and on, but most people will just want the simple macros per pad you all want, so i dont get involved.
Considering how crazy people got over the banks vs tracks thing (which just felt like a knee jerk against what people were unfamiliar with to me) I reckon they provided a pretty smart solution for the angry mob. The bank groups don't really change anything at all workflow wise, so we're pretty much still where we started, just without the angry mob!
If we got something along the line of blank pads and internal MIDI routing (two things that people have been asking for) then I can imagine the 'controller banks' that this'd make possible would be very functionally & creatively useful!
Ill do up a mock up at some point