SoundMan-Server in SCS 11

[Mike Daniell]

When SCS plays an audio file it plays that audio file via an audio library. The audio library does much more, however, than just play audio files. It provides functions to assist in handling syncing of audio files, handling different formats of audio file, monitoring progress through the audio file, adjusting level and pan, etc.

SCS 9 and SCS 10 used the BASS audio library, and this will continue to be made available in SCS 11.

In SCS 11 we are also introducing SoundMan-Server from Richmond Sound Design as an alternative audio option. This will probably be made available under two new SCS license levels, parallel to SCS Professional and SCS Professional Plus. We haven't sorted out the details yet. SoundMan-Server (SM-S) will enable some exciting new additions to SCS, as well as providing superior performance under existing functionality. Key points are:

• When you play a file to multiple outputs, or play multiple files simultaneously, then in SCS 10 these files or file-instances are 'linked' in the audio library providing tight syncing, provided you don't use the 'SCS Internal Mixer'. However, even that tight syncing can sometimes slip a bit. With SM-S the syncing will be 'sample accurate'! Also, the 'SCS Internal Mixer' will not need to be used for SM-S.
• Live Inputs will be available for SCS Professional Plus users with the SM-S option. There will be a new cue type which will enable selected Live Inputs to be turned on and off, and have their level and pan settings adjusted as required. Level Change cues and SFR cues will also be able to operate on Live Input cues.
• Full parametric EQ will be made available (later!)
• One of the problems with audio in a large auditorium is setting delay times for different speakers. SM-S has a delay facility and that will be added (also later) for SCS Professional Plus users.
• New options will be added for Test Tones, including white and pink noise, frequency (for sine wav etc) and sweep.
• Times can be entered as Time Codes as an alternative to Seconds.Milliseconds.
• The maximum number of outputs available will be significantly increased for SM-S users, both the maximum number overall and the maximum number per cue.

There is, however, a cost involved. Users wanting to use SM-S and take advantage of these features will need to purchase an SM-S license.

SM-S has a couple of limitations. Firstly, only ASIO outputs are supported, but this should not be an issue with quality sound devices. If you don't have ASIO support on your sound card then you can use ASIO4ALL.

Secondly, only WAV and AIFF files are supported by SM-S. There are good reasons for this, especially that (a) many other formats are 'lossy' - to achieve high compression the formats tend to throw away top end and possibly other parts of the spectrum, and (b) it is not always possible to accurately position a 'lossy' file at a required timecode. These issues may not be of consequence for music you play in pre-show playlists and the like, so in order to retain support for MP3 and other formats, in SCS 11 we are working on having an automated pre-process to convert such files to WAV format. This will be done (normally) when using the SCS Editor, and the resultant WAV file will be saved for playback on demand by SM-S. This whole process will be handled by SCS, so as far as the user is concerned they may have selected an MP3 file and that's what appears in the SCS cue list.

We see the introduction of SoundMan-Server as an exciting development in SCS, making SCS even more useful for major productions.

[charlier]

And we at Richmond Sound Design are extremely excited about this development too! We anticipate that SCS will provide SM-S with the best GUI ever for theatrical applications, potentially combining all the features that currently exist in ABEdit and ABShowMaker, both of which are essentially obsolete - as well as SoundMan-Designer, which will become so as soon as SCS 11 is released...

Thank you for going this direction, Mike!

[charlier]

Also, if there is interest in adding CMLabs MotorMix MM2 functionality or OSC implementation per Jazzmutant Lemur, we have both those units and they can be provided at any time.

[sharris]

Mike, This will be great. I have on numerous occasions tried to send the same cue to more than two loudspeakers. I have lived with the slight delay. I will be anxiously awaiting this upgrade and will probably put that feature to use immediately.

Thanks for all the work you are doing with this software.

[Mike Daniell]

Mike, This will be great. I have on numerous occasions tried to send the same cue to more than two loudspeakers. I have lived with the slight delay. I will be anxiously awaiting this upgrade and will probably put that feature to use immediately.

Thanks, sharris. Knowing what users want helps set priorities in the development plan.

[sound]

Thats GREAT news!
Especially the sample accurate syncing and the delay facility will become very useful.
Will it be possible to fade the delay between the cues? Will the delay/delay-fade also be available for the Live Inputs?

Very exciting future.

Greetings,
Walter

[charlier]

Thats GREAT news!
Especially the sample accurate syncing and the delay facility will become very useful.
Will it be possible to fade the delay between the cues? Will the delay/delay-fade also be available for the Live Inputs?

Very exciting future.

Greetings,
Walter

Is this the Walter I know from Vienna? If so, gruss gott! If not, gg anyway I can't speak for what Mike is planning to support but you are probably asking this because you know that it is possible to fade delay settings vectorially in SoundMan-Server and that this is also possible on all live inputs. Hopefully SCS will eventually support this.

Cheers,
Charlie

[Mike Daniell]

Will it be possible to fade the delay between the cues?

As Charlie points out, SM-S does have the facility to set a fadetime for implementing a delay so I will include this feature in SCS, but could you give me an example of how you might want to "fade the delay between the cues"? Are you wanting delay times to be cue-specific rather than output-specific (or both)?

Will the delay/delay-fade also be available for the Live Inputs?

Definitely! But as above, are you wanting the delay to be applied to the live input itself, or to specific output(s)?

[charlier]

Will it be possible to fade the delay between the cues?

As Charlie points out, SM-S does have the facility to set a fadetime for implementing a delay so I will include this feature in SCS, but could you give me an example of how you might want to "fade the delay between the cues"? Are you wanting delay times to be cue-specific rather than output-specific (or both)?

Will the delay/delay-fade also be available for the Live Inputs?

Definitely! But as above, are you wanting the delay to be applied to the live input itself, or to specific output(s)?

Since Walter has not replied yet, I will add that dynamic adjustment of delay times at the crosspoints is the most effective way to implement virtual tracking of sounds around a mapped space, as should be done in LCS. ABShowMaker was going to do this but the developer stopped work on it before he implemented it.

[Mike Daniell]

... dynamic adjustment of delay times at the crosspoints is the most effective way to implement virtual tracking of sounds around a mapped space, as should be done in LCS.

That's fine, Charlie. That brings delay control into line with how level and pan changes will be implemented, which in SCS is handled via Level Change cues, as level and pan settings will be applied to the crosspoints. However, is there also a need to be able to set delay times 'globally' for individual outputs?

Edited 28 June: I had previously said that level and pan changes will be implemented via SFR cues, which is obviously incorrect! They are implemented via Level Change cues.

[charlier]

However, is there also a need to be able to set delay times 'globally' for individual outputs?

Very good point, Mike! I'd say that's probably a very good idea since many systems will need a basic delay setup for each output to create the correct settings for each venue, totally independent of the dynamic delay changes.

[sound]

But as above, are you wanting the delay to be applied to the live input itself, or to specific output(s)?

I will use it mainly for the Cues/Live Inputs - the system processors take care of the output delays.

Thanks,
Walter

[runawaymartin]

For some reason or other I've only just come across this thread and I have to say that this is a very very exciting development for SCS . . especially the relationship with well respected Richmond Sound Design.

1) In the way that I use SCS (multi-track audio), the introduction of sample accurate syncing will be a very comforting aspect.

2) In the productions I'm involved in we use in-ear monitoring (IEM). . . for many reasons this is of great benefit, but one downside is that it is often hard for the performer to hear audience reaction and comments. I've been trying to work out how to automatically turn on a couple of audience mics between songs . . . although this was probably not the main reason for developing it, the introduction of 'Live Inputs' will very simply solve this problem for me as I can route those mics to the performers wearing IEMs only.

Once again Mike . . congratulations . . right on the nail!

[Boswell]

I'm most upset Mike, we have a 24 channel K2 desk and we are running out of room on it, I was trying to convince the bean counters that we need a bigger one.
Now you have shot me down in flames as I'll be able to use the 10 inputs on my Cakewalk UA101 instead.
You can't win them all !
Do you have a timescale for beta?
Keep up the good work.

[Mike Daniell]

I know the feeling, Boswell!

I can't give you an ETA on beta yet. I'm mainly working on the Device Manager at the moment, which is a significant new part of the program. Once I've finished that, the rest of the development should proceed quite rapidly.