Home

Blue Cat`s PatchWork User Manual

1. Channel 2 02 Channel 2 02 Channel 1 03 Channel 3 03 Channel 8 04 Channel 4 04 Channel 7 05 Channel 5 06 Channel 6 07 Channel 13 08 Channel 14 09 Channel 9 10 Channel 10 11 Channel 11 12 Channel 12 13 None 14 None 15 None 16 None Ok Cancel selecting synth output channels Each aux output can also be processed by different plug ins so you can easily swap between sounds and effects aven after the effect chains have been setup Patchwork of Patchworks When using complex routings and many plug ins you may want to reuse parts of your effects configurations as modules In this case using several instances of the Patchwork plug in into another one and using presets for predefined configurations will do the trick Standalone Application Basics Main Features The standalone application will let you process audio data coming from the inputs of the audio interface and stream it to its output in real time without the need for a third party host application The application also receives MIDI events from all MIDI input interfaces available on the machine without any particular configuration required The core features of the application are the same as the plug ins versions except that the application can run on its own It is worth noting that user presets are shared between the standalone applic
2. e MIDI Program Change activate MIDI Program Change support see below e Load load preset from file e Save As save current preset to a file e Copy copy preset to the system clipboard e Paste paste preset from the system clipboard if available e Save As Default save the current state as the default preset This preset is used every time a new instance of the plug in is created e Reset Default reset the default preset to its factory state this makes the plug in forgets the custom settings you might have saved as a default preset More about Presets There are two types of presets factory presets read only that are provided with the plug in and user presets that can be created and stored by the user The user presets are stored in a subdirectory of the documents folders of your profile Documents on Mac and My Documents on Windows Blue Cat Audio Plug in Name Presets Each preset is stored as an individual file You can create folders and subfolders in the Presets directory to classify your presets as shown in the example below Folder A b User Presetl Folder B b User Preset User Preset X User Presets If you save a preset named Default in the root Presets directory it will override the factory default preset that s what Save As Default does To restore the factory default preset you can just remove this file or use the Reset Default command MIDI Program Change It is possible to load presets re
3. Param 12 2 eam Linear Param 14 1 linear generic screen shot does not correspond to the actual plug in parameters About Skins Blue Cat s PatchWork integrates Blue Cat s skinning engine that allows you to customize the user interface You can download alternate skins for your plug in at the following address http www bluecataudio com Skins Product PatchWork If you don t find a skin that fits your need or if you want a custom one you can choose to create your own skin Choosing the Skin There are two ways to select the skin of your plug in you can change the default or global skin or change the skin for the current preset only either in the preset settings page or from the main menu The global skin applies to all plug in instances choose this one if you want to use the skin used by default regardless of the session or preset whereas the current preset skin only applies to the current preset of the current plug in instance use this one if you want to change only the skin for the current session preset Note in some host applications the plug in window won t resize automatically when you choose a skin with a different size In this case just close the window and re open it it will be displayed with the right size The Skins Menu The skins menu can be opened from the main menu It displays the list of skins available for the plug in as well as commands to manage the skin used by de
4. System Library directory You can also choose to paste an existing VST or AU plug in if previously copied into the system clipboard from another slot When using the Paste with Map command if the plug in in the source slot had mapped parameters these parameters will be added to the map until no more assignable parameters are available Once a plug in has been loaded into a slot a mouse click will display the following plug in menu that offers various controls over the plug in Show Editor Bypass Presets d Cut Copy Center Editor Load VST Paste Paste with Map No Plug in Params Map b MIDI Input b MIDI Output b Audio VO Rename v Track Undo e Show Hide Editor display or hide the plug in s user interface e Bypass toggle bypass for the plug in e Presets access the plug in s factory presets if any e Cut copy the plug in and its settings into the system clipboard and remove it from the slot e Copy copy the plug in and its settings into the system clipboard Onced copied it can be pasted to any other slot in any instance of the PatchWork plug in even in a different application e Center Editor bring back the editor of the plug in to the center of the screen in case you cannot find it e Load VST load another VST plug in in the slot will replace the existing plug in if any e Load AU Mac only load another Audio Unit plug in in the slot will replace the existing plug i
5. in without the need for multiple busses These configurations can be saved as presets and recalled instantly or shared with multiple DAWs using any plug in format full list below Despite the name you can forget about wires or cables configuring plug ins routing is as simple as adding or removing a row or a column in the rack s matrix All plug ins can also communicate with each other or with the host application using the virtual MIDI ports offered by the plug in For each plug in slot latency compensation presets management undo redo integration audio i o selection and individual plug in bypass are included for optimal operation The plug in also stores the position of the window for each plug in so that the layout is restored with your session or saved with presets Also sub plug ins can be automated or controlled with external control surfaces using Blue Cat s PatchWork parameters mapping capabilities This product is available as an audio plug in effect or a virtual instrument and standalone application so that it can used alone or inserted on any type of track in your favorite DAW with up to 16 audio channels Input and output level meters are also available to monitor the signal that is dispatched to inserted plug ins including side chain and aux channels If you are looking for a multiband plug ins host for multiband processing check out the Blue Cat s MB 7 Mixer plug in Also any Blue Cat Audio plug in i
6. in is not available in the application please check that it has been installed in the appropriate directory with no host application running and that the host application has scanned it Using Blue Cat s PatchWork Introduction Blue Cat s PatchWork is a simple yet powerful plug ins rack the main purpose of the plug in is to host VST or Audio Unit AU plug ins with a fixed but flexible routing scheme Effect or Instrument Two versions of the plug in are included audio effect or virtual instrument They both offer similar capabilities you can host instruments in the effect version for example but they will be considered differently by your host application Also the effect version includes an external side chain input and the synth version offers multiple output busses up to 16 audio channels Simply use the synth version if your main purpose is to host virtual instruments or MIDI effects and the effect version if you want to process the signal as an effect Note the Audio Unit plug in also includes a MIDI Effect MFX version to be used for MIDI processing in Logic Pro X Signal Flow The signal flow is the following e At the input of the plug in the signal is split so that the original input signal can be mixed back with the processed signal using the mix control e It is then processed by the input gain stage and the active PRE plug ins in series e It is then dispatched to the active paralle
7. or Leopard 10 5 software 32 or 64 bit e For the plug in any VST Audio Unit 32 64 bit RTAS AAX e For the standalone application an ASIO MME or WASAPI compatible application compatible audio interface ASIO recommended e For the standalone application a Core Audio compatible audio interface For more information about supported platforms see our FAQ Installation The standalone version does not require any host application and can be run without requiring any third party application The plug ins versions cannot be run standalone they require a host application see the System Requirements chapter for more information Depending on which host application you use you might need to install the plug ins in different locations Before installing on of the plug in versions you will need to close all your host applications Windows Install All versions of the plug in provide an installation program Follow the steps of the wizard to install the software on your machine During the installation you will be asked where you want the software to be installed For the VST version you should install the plug in inside the VST plug ins folder used by your host application s The default path set in the installer should work for most applications but you should check your host software documentation to know where it looks for VST plug ins For other plug in types you should just use the standard path Some applicati
8. MIDI control For each parameter you can define a default MIDI channel and CC number You can then control the plug in with an external MIDI controller or one of our plug ins that generate MIDI messages The settings below are available for each plug in parameter MIDI Settings e Enable MIDI enable disable the MIDI control of the parameter e Channel MIDI Channel for the parameter control If set to 0 the plug ins will accept Control Change Messages from all MIDI Channels MIDI Omni mode e CC Control Change Number e Learn click on this button to activate the MIDI learn functionality When it is activated you can move your MIDI controller and the plug in will automatically set the MIDI Channel and CC Number MIDI and automation settings e Response response curve of the MIDI or automation control from very fast to slow control e Min minimal value of the parameter when MIDI controlled or automated e Max Maximum value of the parameter when MIDI controlled or automated Control Input E Bypass Faram 1 1000 ms NU 500 ms Param 2 Param 3 3000 ms Param 4 2000 ms Param 5 3dB Param 6 S000 ms Param 7 60 dB 5 Param amp 100 Param 9 Reversed Param 10 ch EEA SKEE EEE 4 74 74 ay AA AV AA AY Param 11 Param 12 Param 13 ERE REGGE Bie I A aaua Ga Omm 14 ame limer generic screen shot does not correspond to the actual plug in parameters Note if the Min value
9. e Check for Updates opens up our website to let you check if any update for this software is available e Get More Skins get more skins for this software e Legal Information browse licensing and misc legal documents e About displays the about dialog box The Title Bar In most skins an icon bar is located below the main toolbar The first commands are the same for all plug ins From left to right e Smooth Bypass smoothly bypass the plug in just like a power button e Window Opacity reduce the opacity value by turning the knob and make the plug in window transparent the result may depend on the host application e Show Hide MIDI and Automation Control Settings show hide the buttons that give access to direct MIDI Automation setup for each parameter in the user interface This button will show or hide dropdown menu buttons that popup a MIDI Automation setup menu described here Controls Examples Here are a few examples of typical controls you will encounter in the user interface of our plug ins slider slider knob button Text control Interacting with Controls You can interact with the controls of the plug in interface either with the mouse or the keyboard Setting the keyboard focus on a control so that it responds to key strokes may be automatic when you pass the mouse over it it gets focus or manual you have to click on the control to set the focus on it Note that all host applicati
10. in you host list you might need to use our freeware DXi Manager Note that our plug ins are sometimes shown in the MIDI controllable audio effects or soft synths sections in some host applications Where can I find a host You use Blue Cat s PatchWork standalone application to host any VST or Audio Unit plug in for real time operation There are also many commercial or freeware hosts that will suit your needs You can find a long list of applications here You can also use demos of Cubase Wavelab Ableton Live Tracktion or Sonar software which are usually available on the companies websites On the Mac Garage Band is part of the system and can be also used to host our Audio Unit plug ins What are the main differences between DX VST RTAS AAX and Audio Units VST is a protocol that works on several platforms Mainly Windows MacOS BeOS and some Linux platforms use it as well whereas DirectX is Microsoft Windows only and Audio Units are available only on the Mac RTAS and AAX are available on Mac and PC but only for Pro Tools products AVID AAX plug ins are compatible with Pro Tools 10 and higher whereas RTAS versions are compatible for Pro Tools 10 and lower versions What is the difference between DXi and DX effects DXi effects are MIDI controllable DirectX plug ins It s the same as DX effects plus MIDI control Which version VST Audio Unit RTAS or DX should I use in my host application Here is a list of host
11. is higher than the Max value the response curve will be reversed increasing the control value will decrease the parameter value Note if you double click on the parameter text control boxes for the max and min values a fine tuning edit box will appear and let you change the min and max values with more precision The Current Preset Settings Window In this window you can change the settings for the current preset of the current instance of the plug in only Preset Skin You can choose to use the global skin setting or to change the skin for the current preset This way you can have different skins for different instances of the plug in in the same session in order to differentiate them Use global skin Skin file path C Frogam Files Blue Cat Audio Skins Defautt defautt xml Browse Preset Control Input Settings MIDI and Automation Use the global settings or override them for the current preset The parameters are the same as for the global input settings Blue Cat s Plug Use global setting Parameter Name Enable Channel CC Control MIDI 0 16 127 Response All Parameters D Linear Bypass eam Linear Param 1 L eam Linear Param 2 2 j Linear Param 3 0 f i eam Linear Param 4 l 4 ar Linear Param 5 iC E eam Linear Param 6 D i bo o sam Linear Param 7 TE Sar Linear Param 8 l E eam Linear Param 5 D Linear Param 10 lo i i i sam Linear Param 11 LE ar Linear
12. lets you view existing mapping for this plug in if any Hide Editor Bypass Presets Copy Center Editor Load VST Paste No Plug in Params Map Track Undo Map All Pararns Learn Mode Off Reset All Assignments Bypass Gain Control 01 Dry Feedfwd v Feedback Control 02 e Map All Params assign all parameters of this plug in to remaining controls in the same order as exposed by the plug in The maximum number of parameters that can be mapped is 40 e Learn Mode on off when learn mode is on touching a control in your plug in s user interface will automatically add it to the parameters map if the plug in supports it Once you are done with parameters assignment you may want to disable learn mode to avoid mapping unwanted parameters e Reset All Assignments removes all assigned parameters from the params map for this plug in This frees all controls used by previously assigned parameters for this plug in only e All parameters available for assignment are then displayed in the menu Clicking on a parameter toggles mapping on or off When a parameter is mapped the name of the external control as displayed in the host application appears next to it inside parentheses Parameters Mapping works the following way 40 parameters are available for mapping in Blue Cat s PatchWork They are named Control 01 to Control 40 When a sub plug in parameter is selected for mapping the fir
13. slots e Recall complex processing setups and plug ins layouts with one click and share them between your DAWs e Available as Mac AAX Mac AU Mac App Mac RTAS Mac VST Win AAX Win App Win DX Win RTAS Win VST Win x64 AAX Win x64 App Win x64 DX Win x64 VST e Native DSP code for optimal performance e Full MIDI control and automation support with silent zipper free parameters update advanced response control and MIDI Learn e No CPU load on idle when the plug in is fed with silence the processing smoothly shuts down to optimize the CPU usage of your Digital Audio Workstation e Skinnable and customizable user interface with transparency management e Smooth Bypass activate deactivate the plug in with absolutely no noise e Undo Redo e Full featured integrated presets manager e Copy paste the plug in s state between instances using the system clipboard e Any sample rate supported e Input and output levels monitoring e Plug ins Latency compensation e Supports VST Shell plug ins e Integrated undo redo e Fully customizable user interface with multiple sizes system Requirements Windows Mac OS X e An SSE2 enabled processor Pentium 4 or later e An Intel processor e Microsoft Windows XP Vista Windows 7 or 8 e Mac OS X Yosemite 10 10 Mavericks 10 9 Mountain Lion e For the plug in any DirectX VST RTAS AAX compatible host 10 8 Lion 10 7 Snow Leopard 10 6
14. that you can easily compute differences between signals or correct phase problems introduced by some plug ins e Link all pre and post gain knobs so that pre gain changes are automatically compensated by the post gain knobs This can be used to easily push dynamics or distortion plug ins without increasing the volume Fixes and compatibility inprovements e when no plug in is inserted level meters remained frozen when stopping transport e fixing crashes with GRM Tools plug ins that changed their audio I O count dynamically Reson for example e fixing sample rate initialization issue with Nebula when using copy paste e The plug in can now be used as a virtual instrument in Cubase and Studio One it used to be silent e Some plug ins that required the deprecated effldle VST message should now work properly Steinberg s Virtual Guitarist for example V1 01 2013 11 22 Fixes and compatibility improvements e Improved compatibility with plug ins that do not support sample rate changes Nebula e Improved compatibility with synths that internally use VST presets banks the entire state was not properly restored with the session Nexus or Korg Legacy series e Fixed output gain compensation issue when using parallel chains the global output gain stage was skipped V1 0 2013 11 12 First release Thanks again for choosing our solutions See you soon on www bluecataudio com BLUE CAT AUDIO
15. to any channel s e Latency is now compensated for individual channels when a plug in is processing only a subset of all available channels Fixes e Fixed side chain input always fed with silence for some Audio Unit plug ins e Fixed issue with standalone application displayed i o were not reset properly when changing i o configuration e Fixed a crash with some VST plug ins that use long preset names e Fixed demo version popup window freezing Pro Tools in some situations V1 63 2015 02 04 e GUI less plug ins support a generic user interface is now provided for VST or AU plug ins that do not include a graphical editor e Presets can now be selected using MIDI Program change and bank select messages can be activated with the presets menu MIDI Program Change item e Fixed issue with some Audio Unit instruments that did not produce any sound IK Multimedia Kontakt e Added log scale support for Audio Unit parameters V1 62 2015 01 08 e New alternative light theme skin light color scheme and lower contrast e Factory and user skins can now be selected directly from the plug in menu e Added 192 kHz samplerate support to the standalone application e Mac fixed MFX Audio Unit that was not processing MIDI events properly V1 61 2014 11 27 Bug Fixes Standalone application only plug ins unchanged e Mac fixed a crash when hitting the return key while changing the buffer tempo or time signature e Windo
16. to select banks If both are used simultaneously they are combined together so that you can use more banks in this case CCO is LSB and CC32 is MSB and actual bank number is 128 CC0 CC32 MIDI and Automation Control Blue Cat s PatchWork can also be remotely controlled via MIDI using MIDI CC Control Change messages or automation curves if your host application supports it It is possible to customize the channel control numbers range and response curve used for each parameter in the settings panel available from the main menu see the Plug in Settings chapter for more details MIDI and Automation Settings Menu Most skins also provide the ability to change MIDI and automation settings for each parameter directly in the main user interface When this feature is activated using the corresponding title bar button dropdown menu buttons appears next to main controls Clicking on this button shows the MIDI Automation settings menu MIDI Learn MIDI Unlearn v Enable Automation Settings e MIDI Learn launches MIDI learn mode for the control touch your MIDI controller and the control will learn from it the MIDI channel and CC number To end the learn mode reopen this menu and deselect the option e MIDI Unlearn deactivates MIDI control for this parameter e Settings launches the advanced settings panel described below This controls the settings for the current preset Advanced MIDI and Automation Settings You can complete
17. BC Dynamics No Plug in G T 12 6 Triple EG Show hide the level meters Show hide the assignable controls for sub plug ins automation Select the appropriate size for the plug ins slots small medium large RON Link pre and post gains global and for each chain so that pre gain changes are compensated by the post gain to drive level dependent plug ins without increasing the volume 5 Display the preferences pane 6 Select the number of rows and columns for the plug ins matrix With 2 columns or less parallel processing slots are disabled With one row no parallel processing is available either 7 Parameter display shows the name and value of the parameter that is currently being modified 8 Mix knob select the amount of wet vs dry signal mix the original input signal with the processed signal 9 Input peak level meter 10 Input gain knob pre meter 11 PRE plug ins slots processed in series 12 PARALLEL plug ins slots parallel processing chains e 12 1 activate the effects chain e 12 2 pre gain for the effects chain e 12 3 plug ins slots for the chain processed in series e 12 4 post gain for the effects chain e 12 5 phase flip for the chain reverse the phase of the signal 90 degrees phase shift e 12 6 solo the chain deactivates all other non soloed parallel chains e 12 7 summing mode for parallel chains chain average splits the signal and compensa
18. Blue Cat s PatchWork User Manual Undo gt Redo Blue Cat s PatchWork amp columns Mix 100 4rows 2 PARALLEL CHAINS Average T kh pa Jo Plug in No Plug in No Plug in waw bluecataudio com The virtual patchbay for audio plug ins bk I BY y64 3 as gg o G BLUE LAT AUDIO Table Of Content e Introduction e Description e Features e System Requirements e Installation e First Launch e Using Blue Cat s PatchWork e Introduction e The User Interface e Operation e Standalone Application Basics e Blue Cat Audio Plug ins Basics e User Interface Basics e Controls e Keyboard e Mouse e Presets Management e MIDI amp Automation Control e More e Blue Cat s PatchWork Parameters e Plug in Settings e The Global Settings Window e The Preset Settings Window e About Skins e Changing the Skin e Create a Custom Skin e Frequently Asked Questions e More e Extra Skins e Tutorials e Updates e Versions History Note An online version of this user manual is available here Introduction Description Blue Cat s PatchWork is a universal plug ins patchbay that can host up to 64 VST or Audio Unit plug ins into any Digital Audio Workstation DAW in one instance It is possible to chain effects in series or create up to 8 parallel chains that can be activated independently This lets you create your favorite effects or instruments configurations within the plug
19. an do the following e Choose the appropriate O configuration if available e On Windows choose the type of audio driver ASIO is recommended If you do not have an ASIO driver we recommend using the ASIO4AIl driver e Choose the driver to use for audio input and audio output if available with ASIO you can only choose a single driver for both e Select the sample rate and buffer size Increasing the size of the buffer uses less CPU but adds latency e Select the audio inputs and outputs to use with the software e You can also set the tempo and time signature if relevant Changes are applied to the application in real time and saved when closing the preferences window You can see the status of the audio engine at the bottom of the window as well as the estimated i o latency it depends on the sample rate buffer settings and selected audio interface s If the status of the engine is NOT Running you may need to change the settings try to increase the buffer size change the sample rate it might not be supported by the interface or select another audio interface Once the this has been setup you can close the window and start using the application Audio Plug Ins Blue Cat Audio plug ins cannot be run standalone they require a host application see the System Requirements chapter for more information Some host applications will require you to scan the plug ins before they are available in the application If the plug
20. ary Preferences Blue Cat Audio Plug in name and TYPE where TYPE is VST AU RTAS or AAX global preferences e Library Preferences Blue Cat Audio Plug in name license information e Documents Blue Cat Audio Plug in name user data such as presets additional skins and user created plug in data Just beware that these directories may contain user data that you have created Remove these directories only if you do not want to reuse this data later First Launch Standalone Application Once the application has been installed simply double click on its icon to launch it On Mac the application will be located in the Applications folder if using the default install location On Windows you will find it in the start menu The first time you launch the application it will ask you if you want to configure the audio interface The audio interface has not been configured yet Do you want to open the audio preferences to set it up now It is recommended to configure the audio interface before using the application but you can still do it later by clicking on the Edit Audio Setup menu This opens the Audio MIDI Preferences window reproduced below Driver Type ASIO Audio Device ASIO4ALL v2 Sample Rate 44100 Hz Buffer Size 256 samples Time Signature Audio Engine is Running Estimated 10 Latency 21 7 ms If the default setup displayed in the panel does not correpond to your needs you c
21. ation and the plug ins versions so that presets can be reused between standlone and plug in sessions Application Preferences The audio MIDI setup for the application is decribed in details in the first launch chapter ASIO ASIO4ALL we 44100 Hz Estimated 10 Latency 21 7 ms The configuration window above can be displayed using the Edit Audio Setup menu item More information about the various fields can be found in the first launch chapter Application Menu The application menu gives you access to the following commands e Edit Undo undo last change e Edit Redo redo last undone change e Edit Audio Setup open the preferences window Keyboard Shortcuts To speed up operation several keyboard shortcuts are available in the standalone application On Windows e CTRL Z undo e Shift CTRL Z redo e CTRL P open the preferences window e ALT F4 quit the application On Mac e CMD Z undo e Shift CMD Z redo e CMD or CMD P open the preferences window e CMD Q quit the application Troubleshooting No Sound if you cannot hear anything coming out of the software you need to check the audio configuration open the preferences window Edit Menu Audio Setup command and check that the audio engine is running If it is not running you may need to select another audio interface or change the buffer and sample rate settings If it is running you may want to select another audio inter
22. cases for the plug in A complete list of the parameters exposed by the plug in is available in the next section Custom Channel Strip When configured with a single column the plug in can be used as a simple custom channel strip chaining plug ins together F pur riya Tal LAL LL 0 1 columns x rok 4 T Oi 3 That s the preferred configuration to use the plug in as a simple chainer Mixing Multiple Synths If you want to mix the sounds of multiple synths and control them as if it were a single synthesizer you can use several parallel chains and insert a synth on the first slot of each chain No need for multiple tracks all synths can be stacked together on a single track and controlled with a single keyboard with no additional MIDI routing required For this scenario you probably want to use the sum parallel chain mode so that the volume of each synth is not altered when soloing or muting one of the chains Menu p Red Multi Synth b ae Blue Cat s PatchWork amp a columns Ry sofa s Mix 100 row5 You can also improve your multi synth presets using MIDI effects arpeggiator MIDI delay and connecting the MIDI input of some of the synths to the MIDI output of these MIDI effects This lets you create a single preset with multiple synths playing different arpeggios all triggered by a single keyboard See MIDI Routing below Comparing Effects Chains It is often useful to try several
23. dds to the original sound and you can easily switch to the full processed signal by disabling chain B Note you may have to adjust the gain of the B chain if the A chain does not preserve the average volume Creating a Virtual Send to Aux Channels With a simple plug in such as Blue Cat s Gain Suite and changing its outputs to another set of audio channels you can create a send to aux outputs and control its volume BC Gain 3 Stereo Audio O Audio Inputs 2 Inputs Audio Outputs 2 Outputs Input Channels Output Channels 01 Channel 1 01 Channel 3 02 Channel 2 02 Channel 4 k Cancel With the above setup channel 1 and 2 will remain unaffected after the plug in whereas channels 3 4 will contain the original 1 2 channels modified by the gain plug in This can be useful if you want to route audio channels to the auxiliary outputs of the PatchWork plug in for additional processing in your host application or send particular channels to the side chain input of a plug in down in the processing chain Auxiliary Outputs Routing for Instruments Some virtual instrument plug ins offer many auxiliary outputs but there is sometimes no way to select a specific output for each sound This can be solved easily by using Blue Cat s PatchWork and selecting your own routing Mix 100 8Oo0 VST Synth Audio 1 0 Audio Inputs Inputs Audio Outputs 16 Outputs Inputs Channels Output Channels 01 Channel 1 01
24. ding so that it s replayed when playing back again It s a way of sequencing parameters changes the same way you do with Audio or MIDI data What is Smooth Update When changing parameter values in real time or replaying a song where parameters have been automated our plug ins compute intermediate values between parameter changes in order to avoid clicks and pops that may occur otherwise It results in a non audible smooth parameters update and lets you freely use automation or MIDI control to change the effects in a song Do your plug ins support MIDI Control Yes they do They offer precise control over the mapping of MIDI Control Change CC messages to parameter values you can adjust both the channel and CC number as well as the response curve of the control Since some of our plug ins are also capable of creating MIDI CC from the audio signal they can all be connected for real time signal dependent audio effects See our MIDI Control in Sonar tutorial for an example More This manual only covers the basics of Blue Cat s PatchWork Our website offers many additional resources for your Blue Cat s PatchWork plug in and is constantly updated so keep an eye on it You will find below a few examples of available resources Extra Skins We encourage our customers to propose their own skins for our products and we often propose alternative skins to let you choose the one that best suits your needs You can check Blue Cat s Pa
25. e for some Audio Units u he AAS e Mac Fixed parameter changes sent from host not visible in the user interface for some Audio Units u he V1 4 2014 07 24 New Features e Selectable parallel processing chains summing mode sum or average e Solo button for parallel chains e MIDI Channel filtering for each plug in input Fixes and compatibility improvements e Fixed undo redo incompatibilities with some plug ins e Mac Fixed crash introduced in 1 3 when trying to load missing VST plug ins e Mac Fixed wrong plug in instantiated in some cases when selected from a VST shell package e Mac Fixed crash after closing the editor of an Audio Unit plug in loaded with SoundRadix s 32Lives V1 3 2014 06 17 New Features e Audio Unit hosting support Audio Units can now be loaded into the plug in on Mac e Plug ins can now be cut from a slot for cut paste operations e Plug ins can now be pasted into a slot with their params map Improvements e User interface loading or resizing is now up to 50 faster e Reduced the size of windows installers e Minor layout changes Fixes and compatibility improvements e Fixed undo redo incompatibilities with some plug ins e Mac Fixed random crashes when unloading some plug ins on Mac Waves plug ins for example e Win AAX Fixed shortcut to user manual in start menu e AAX Fixed inaccurate transport information reported to sub plug ins when stopping playback in Pro Too
26. e in the presets section Phase Flip The plug in includes a phase flip also called phase reversal button for each parallel processing chain This lets you change the polarity of the signal if some plug ins are causing phase reversal problems or to simply compute the difference with other parallel signals Audio I O Routing For Plug Ins For each audio plug in it is possible to choose the audio channels to use for both inputs and outputs It is thus possible to apply effects to only a subset of audio channels for multi mono processing for example or to apply effect to only an auxiliary channel It is also possible to achieve complex routing within the effect chain such as sending specific channels to the side chain input of a plug in and yet keep it simple Note when using audio I O routing intensively it is recommended to change the names of the plug ins according to the channels being processed Note The main toolbar menus and basic features available with all our plug ins are detailed in the Blue Cat Audio Plug ins Overview The generic controls that can be found in all our plug ins are not described in this chapter More details for these are available in the next section 1 2 a a BLI Blue Cat s PatchWork amp 4 columns i 6 7 8 A Mix 100 4rows 10 z 12 7 14 PRE PARALLEL CHAINS Average Y POST i 11 12 1 12 2 12 12 4 12 5 13 BC Liny EQ
27. effects chains before choosing the one that fits best on a track Blue Cat s PatchWork makes it very easy to do A B comparisons it is possible to use two or more parallel chains and activate one after another to compare them They can include different plug ins or the same plug ins with different settings Instant Configuration Recall You can save your favorite effect chains and settings as presets including full windows layouts They can be recalled later with a single click in the presets menu This is of course applicable to audio effects but it can also be useful to store complete synthesizer plus additional effects configurations as presets so that the complete chain can be restored easily instead of having separate presets for synths and post effects Custom Parameters Mapping It can be interesting to combine Blue Cat s PatchWork s parameters mapping feature with its advanced automation and MIDI control capabilities in order to wrap an existing plug in that does not provide the same flexibility For example if you have a plug in that does not support MIDI control you can just map its parameters within the PatchWork plug in and then use the mapped parameters for MIDI control All mapped parameters have the same control options as all Blue Cat Audio plug ins parameters you can choose the response curve modify the range or choose MIDI control messages MIDI learn is also available And it is now possible to apply these capabilit
28. face or differnt audio inputs and outputs Cracks and Pops If you can hear unwanted cracks and pops during the performance you may be experiencing audio dropouts because the application is using too much CPU You can try to increase the buffer size in the preferences window to reduce CPU usage and close other applications that are currently running Blue Cat Audio Plug Ins Basics This chapter describes the basic features that are common to all our plug ins If you are already familiar with our products you can skip this part User Interface Basics About Skins Like all Blue Cat Audio plug ins Blue Cat s PatchWork uses a skinnable user interface It means that the appearance and behavior of the user interface can be entirely customized Especially with third party skins the experience may be quite different from the one offered by the default skins that we provide However our plug ins and our skinning engine have several standard features that will be available whatever your favorite skin More information about custom skins can be found in the skins section The Main Toolbar In most skins an optional toolbar at the top of the user interface gives you access to the main options and settings of the plug in Presets Area At the center of the toolbar you can see the current preset area the Default Settings box It displays the name of the current Wa preset with a at the end if it has been modified si
29. fault when no preset skin has been selected Default Light Custom Skins b Other v Use Global Skin Load Save As Global Skin e First Section Factory Skins shows the list of factory skins delivered with the plug in Default and Light in this example e Second Section User Skins shows the list of user skins that have been installed in the Documents Skins folder for the plug in see below e Use Global Skin use the global skin for the current preset session unloads any custom skin previously selected for the current preset e Load opens a file browser dialog to manually select the skin from the file system e Save As Global Skin use the current preset skin as the global skin loaded by default if no preset skin has been defined Installing User Skins If you want to be able to select user skins directly from the skins menu you simply need to install them in the Skins directory available in the plug in s documents folder Your Documents Folder Blue Cat Audio Plugin Name Skins The skin engine will scan this folder for new skins xml files and display them in the menu The skin files should be in the root skins folder or in a subdirectory inside this folder subdirectories are not scanned recursively Other Methods to Select Skins You can also select the skins in the settings panels available from the main menu The global skin used by default if no preset skin has been selec
30. ge Up Large increment of the position up or right Page Down Large decrement of the position down or left Small increment of the value of the control Small decrement of the value of the control d Set to default value Same as mouse right click Opens the fine tuning window to precisely set the parameter F When the key is down the fine tuning mode is on and you can modify the value with SHIFT better precision when moving the mouse the mouse wheel or using the keyboard Just release the key to get back to the normal mode Keys Specific to Buttons Key Action Enter Pushes the button Presets To get started with the plug in and discover its capabilities a couple of factory presets are provided You can also save your own presets and recall them later for other projects Our plug ins propose a full featured preset manager to let you save browse organize and recall its presets The Presets Menu The presets menu can be opened from the main menu or the main toolbar It displays the list of presets available for the plug in as well as commands to load save or organize presets Factory Presets Folder Folder B User Preset X User Preset Y User Preset Z MIDI Program Change Load Save As Copy Paste Save As User Default Clear User Default e Factory Presets shows the list of factory presets delivered with the plug in e Folder A to User Preset Z user presets and categories
31. he plug in s editor Missing Plug Ins In some cases it may happen that you are working on a workstation that does not have all plug ins that were previously loaded into your PatchWork session In this case the PatchWork plug in will display a Missing Plug in message on corresponding slots You can still continue working on your session the PatchWork plug in will retain the state of the missing plug ins as if they were here The session can be saved later the data for missing plug ins will be saved as well and the session can be restored later without losing data For VST plug ins if the plug in is missing because of a path issue the plug in is located in another directory or the 64 bit version has a different name from the 32 bit version you can choose to relocate the plug in More Info Relocate Bypass Load VST Paste Paste with Map No Plug in v Track Undo This lets you find the plug in on your workstation and re link to it The state of the plug in that was previously saved in the preset or the session will be restored making sure all data is kept Note the plug in chosen with the relocate function has to be compatible with the plug in that was originally loaded in this slot Relocation will fail otherwise Mapping Parameters The Params Map item in the plug in menu lets you map sub plug in parameters so that they can be automated or controlled with an external control surface It also
32. ies to all other existing plug ins MIDI Learn MIDI Unlearn Enable Automation Settings MIDI Routing You can easily create your own synth using multiple plug ins connected via internal MIDI ports for example why wouldn t you trigger several MIDI arpegiators with a single keyboard each one controlling different synths And all within a single plug in Blue Cat s PatchWork It is also possible to use these MIDI routing capabilities together with our plug ins that can generate MIDI CC in order to create side chain effects quickly all within Blue Cat s Patchwork for example detect the envelope of the incoming sound in a parallel chain and control the cutoff of a filter on a synth from another chain What may be tricky in your DAW and require multiple MIDI tracks to create MIDI connections is much simpler using Blue Cat s PatchWork instead Computing Differences Using Phase Flip Flipping phase on a parallel chain is the same as multiplying the sound by 1 So it is possible to compute the difference between two effect chains easily A typical application is to use an empty effect chain with flipped phase in parallel with an effect chain you are tweaking PARALLEL CHAINS The above setup performs A B And since the B chain carries the dry signal as a result you can hear what the A chain actually adds to the original signal This is particularly useful for dynamics processing or distortion you can hear what the effect a
33. in the Windows Add Remove Programs Window Why do newer versions of a plug in override older ones they have exact same name and IDs Because newer versions improve previous ones When a new version is released older versions are not supported anymore In some cases the new versions may be installed as new products compatibility reasons major changes but it is explicitly documented on the product page A new minor version of a product purchased some time ago is available Where can download the update The new version can be downloaded from the same place where you downloaded the original version All information is contained in the email you received when you purchased the product Your registration number has not changed either Upgrade A new minor version of my plug in has been released Where can download it When you purchased the plug in an email containing the information to download and register your software has been sent to you You can download the new version from the exact same location as the first time I have downloaded a new version do I need to uninstall the previous version No you don t except if it s specified on the product page in the history section Just run the installer and it will upgrade your software Automation What is Parameters Automation The parameters of an effect can be automated in most host software It means that you can record the changes you do during playback or recor
34. ins called xxxx Mono and xxxx Stereo installed Mono effects which are effects that do not make any difference between left and right channels are bundled this way for performance reasons Some developers just deliver a stereo Version which also processes twice mono streams The Mono plug in is to be used with mono streams and the Stereo one with stereo streams The effect itself is the same in both cases but the number of processed channels is different this may drastically improve performance for CPU intensive plug ins How do I uninstall my plug ins Open the Windows configuration panel Add Remove Programs and choose Remove on the corresponding plug in If you have installed the VST plug in zip file version just delete the corresponding dlls Why do your plug ins need an installer on Windows Do they modify the registry or system settings Why not providing just a dill Our plug ins require several additional files for default settings skins and miscellaneous data We provide an installer for our customers convenience Our installers do not modify the system settings or the Windows registry except for the DirectX versions registration Our installers won t harm your system Software Version How do I know the version of the plug in I am using You can see the version information in the about box right click on the background of the plug in user interface and select About The product version is also available
35. irectX Audio Unit or VST plug ins If you are using the DirectX version check that your host application supports DXi plug ins MIDI enabled DirectX plug ins If it does not it may remove it from the DirectX plug ins list some applications such as Sony Vegas 5 and Cool Edit Pro are known to do this In this case use our DXi Manager free utility and disable the MIDI capabilities of the plug in You may need to reinstall the software again before it shows up into your host application For more information about this topic please read our DXi in Sony Vegas tutorial it is applicable to other applications than Sony Vegas If you are using the Direct X version and your host application supports DXi check that the plug in does not appear in the virtual synth or synthesizers category If you wish not to use the MIDI capabilities of the plug in and use it as a regular Direct X plug in you can download the freeware DXi Manager and disable the MIDI capabilities of the plug in I have installed my plug in on windows 64 bit checked the items above and it still does not show up in my host application What can I do You are probably running a 32 bit application If that s the case you need to install the 32 bit version of the plug in the choice for 32 or 64 bit is not determined by the operating system 64 bit windows can run both 32 and 64 bit applications but by the host application that you are using Why are there two plug
36. l chains each chain offers its own pre and post gain knobs e After the parallel chains the signals are summed and compensated if average summing mode is selected before going into the POST chain that processes the plug ins in series e The output gain is then applied before going into the mix stage that mixes the original input with the processed signal Note about the included level meters the input levels are measured right after the PRE gain control and the output levels right after the mix control Summing Mode Starting with version 1 4 you can select the summing mode for parallel chains With average the parallel chains are averaged which compensates for potential gain increases This is particluaraly useful when using the plug in as an audio effect to avoid gain increases when adding new parallel chains However when using the plug in to mix multiple synths you may want to choose sum instead so that muting one of the chains does not impact the volume of other chains Multiple Channels Support The plug in supports audio streams in mono stereo or multichannel Surround formats up to 8 channels If you insert a plug in that can process less channels only the first channels will be processed and others will be forwarded to the next plug in until it reaches the output of the PatchWork plug in Exception for mono plug ins by default mono plug ins will process only the first audio channel and the wet mo
37. ls V1 2 2014 04 23 New Features e MIDI Routing custom MIDI routes can be created to connect plug ins together and with the host application to send and receive MIDI e Plug in instance Renaming it is now possible to give a name to each instance of a plug in e Mono to stereo processing the plug in can now be used as a mono to stereo plug in and process mono tracks with stereo effects in hosts that support it Improvements e Improved performance of undo tracking when loading presets for plug ins with many parameters e The Parameters Map menu item is now checked when a parameter is mapped e Improved performance when changing the size of the plug in user interface Fixes and compatibility improvements e Fixed keyboard stealing issue in many host applications when sub plug ins editors are opened except 32 bit applications on Mac e Fixed compatibility issue with Pro Tools 9 on Mac random crashes e Fixing crashes with some plug ins requesting information while being opened V1 1 2013 12 18 New Features e New parameters mapping feature for sub plug ins automation includes a learn mode for easy mapping Up to 40 parameters can be mapped to external controls Our plug in s advanced automation and MIDI control features can also be used to map controllers to sub plug ins parameters e New layout to display mapped automation controls in the main user interface e Added phase flip buttons for each parallel chain so
38. lug In Audio 1 0 Audio Inputs Automatic 2 Audio Outputs Automatic 2 Cancel When selecting a specific number of inputs and or outputs instead of using automatic you can choose which channels are connected to each i o for this particular plug in My Plug In Audio 1 0 Audio Inputs 2 Inputs Audio Outputs 4 Outputs Input Channels Output Channels 01 Channel 1 r 01 Channel 1 02 Channel 2 02 Channel 2 03 Channel 3 04 Channel 4 k Cancel Notes e if the same channel is selected for multiple outputs only the last selected plug in output will be audible plug in outputs are not summed e All channels that are not used as outputs by the plug in remain unchanged copied from the same channels before the plug in For example on a stereo cofiguration is a mono plug in is set to process only channel 1 and use channel 1 as output channel 2 will remain unaffected Auto vs Manual In automatic mode Blue Cat s PatchWork will automatically choose the best configuration according to its own audio layout This is very useful if you are saving your plug in chains to reuse them with different audio i o configurations In manual mode the number of inputs and outputs of the selected plug in is selected and will not change It means that you may not be able to use this particular configuration later with another number of audio channels The Preferences Pane PREFERENCES VST plug ins directo
39. ly customize the way the plug in is controlled by automation and MIDI For a global view of all parameters at a time you can use the Plug in Settings window for the current preset which is available from the main menu Control Control Control Min Max MIDI 0 16 0127 Response E 0 5 Leam Linear v OdB 3dB MIDI Settings e Enable MIDI enable disable the MIDI control of the parameter e Channel MIDI Channel for the parameter control If set to 0 the plug ins will accept Control Change Messages from all MIDI Channels MIDI Omni mode e CC Control Change Number e Learn click on this button to activate the MIDI learn functionality When it is activated you can move your MIDI controller and the plug in will automatically set the MIDI Channel and CC Number MIDI and automation settings e Response response curve of the MIDI or automation control from very fast to slow control e Min minimal value of the parameter when MIDI controlled or automated e Max Maximum value of the parameter when MIDI controlled or automated Note if the Min value is higher than the Max value the response curve will be reversed increasing the control value will decrease the parameter value Note if you double click on the parameter text control boxes for the max and min values a fine tuning edit box will appear and let you change the min and max values with more precision More Check our online tutorial for more screen
40. motely using MIDI Bank Select and Program Change messages To enable this feature select a MIDI channel to receive the events from in the MIDI Program Change menu item from the presets menu MIDI Program Change r Disabled All Channels Channel 1 Channel 2 Copy Channel 3 Paste Channel 4 Save As User Default Channel 5 Clear User Default Channel 6 Channel 7 Channel amp Channel 9 Channel 10 Channel 11 Channel 12 Channel 13 Channel 14 Channel 15 Channel 16 Load Save S This setting is a global preference shared accross all instances of the plug in Once activated the plug in menu will display the bank number followed by the preset number for each preset 000 Factory Presets 001 Bank l 002 Bankd2 003 000 Presetl 003 001 Preset 003 002 Preset3 Every root folder is considered as a new bank starting with the factory presets bank 0 Program and bank numbers may change while you add folders and presets so you should be careful when naming them if bank and program numbers matter to you It is recommended to use folders to make this task simpler As a side note sub folders do not define additional banks all presets contained in sub folders are associated with the current bank As specified by MIDI bank select messages are not used until a program is actually selected MIDI Implementation note the software supports all types of Bank Select methods You can use either MIDI CC 0 or MIDI CC 32
41. n if any e Paste paste a plug in and its settings from the system clipboard into the slot e Paste with Map paste a plug in its settings and mapped parameters from the system clipboard into the slot Parameters are re mapped in order until no more assignable parameter is available e Params Map lists the plug in s parameters that can be mapped for automation and lets you assign them to external controls see the next paragraph e MIDI In select the MIDI port s this plug in is receiving data from see below e MIDI Out select the MIDI port s this plug in is sending MIDI data to see below e Audio O opens the audio i o routing window for this plug in see below e No Plug in remove the plug in e Rename rename the instance of the plug in Setting an empty name reverts back to the plug in s default name e Track Undo toggle undo tracking for the slot If enabled inserted plug ins changes will be inspected and added to the PatchWork plug in undo history when possible Please note that some plug ins may not work properly when this feature is enabled It is also recommended to disable this feature when controlling a plug in with MIDI events generators such as Blue Cat s DP Meter Pro or Remote Control When the mouse is over a plug in slot the following buttons appear Clicking on the power button on the left will bypass unbypass the plug in in the slot The button on the right can be used to show hide t
42. nce loaded The arrows on the left and right let you navigate thru the factory and user presets available for the plug in Clicking on the preset name opens the presets menu which lets you manage the presets of the plug in Commands The icons in the toolbar give you access the to the following commands that are detailed in the next paragraph Icon Name Function Menu Open the main menu Undo Undo Redo Redo Manual User Manual p About About The Main Menu The main menu is available from the main toolbar or if you right click anywhere on the background of the plug in Presets Preset Skin Undo Redo Preset Settings Global Settings User Manual Check for Updates Get More Skins Legal Information About e Presets opens the presets menu to manage presets e Preset Skin opens the skins menu to choose the skin for the current preset and manage alternative skins for the software e Undo Redo undo or redo the latest modifications This includes all changes made to the current preset settings such as MIDI or automation preferences e Presets Settings open the presets settings window It lets you change the skin MIDI and automation settings for the current preset e Global Settings open the global settings window It lets you change the skin MIDI and automation settings that are used by default in all instances of the plug in if not overridden by the current preset e User Manual open this user manual
43. nd receive MIDI In events By default all slots have their MIDI input connected to the Host e Port A to Port P these are virtual ports that can be used to connect sub plug ins together For the MIDI input of a plug in you can additionnaly choose to filter events by channel so that it receives all events for one or several selected channels only If you just want the plug in to receive all events without any filter choose All Channels for the selected port Using virtual internal ports is simple connect the output of a plug in to a port and the input of another plug in to the same port The two plug ins will then be able to exchange MIDI data from sender to receiver Multiple plug ins can be connected to the same port as input or output MIDI events will be gathered from MIDI Outs and redistributed to to all connected MIDI Ins However there is a limitation in which plug ins can be connected together e it is not possible to create feedback loops e only a plug in that processes audio data before another can send MIDI data to this plug in It means that a plug in can receive MIDI data from plug ins that are located earlier in the audio processing chain only see the signal flow above If the plug in is located in a parallel chain it can also receive MIDI data from plug ins that are located in parallel chains above it These limitations ensure causality and perfect synchronization of MIDI data exchanged between plug ins
44. no output will be copied to all other channels of the main bus aux and side chain unaffected If you want to only apply the plug in to one of the incoming audio channels without modifying others instead you can use manual audio I O configuration as explained later in this manual External Side Chain and Aux Outputs With the effect version the plug in also has additional side chain audio channels and the synth version uses multiple aux audio outputs for additional external routing in the host application The meters for these extra channels are separated from main bus channels by a small dark area to make it easier to visualize the main and aux levels BC Protector 2 All these extra channels follow the same signal flow as main audio channels but are by default unaffected by both the plug ins and level or phase reversal controls As a result by default e External side chain input is distributed dry to all plug ins with a side chain input e Aux outputs from virtual instruments are routed the the PatchWork plug in s aux outputs without being modified It is however possible to process or re route the side chain or aux channels using custom audio I O routing for individual plug ins as explained later in the manual Latency Compensation If a plug in inserted in a parallel chain reports latency signal delay the PatchWork plug in will compensate the delay so that other parallel chains are in sync Latency is also repor
45. ons behave differently regarding keyboard handling In some applications you may not be able to use all keys described later in this manual to interact with our plug ins It is usually made obvious to you to know the active surfaces of the skin the places where you can click with the mouse the mouse cursor usually changes when you can do something on a control In the default skins delivered with the plug in the cursor changes to a small hand or an arrow to tell you when your mouse is over an active control Mouse Various mouse movements will let you interact with the controls Mouse Interaction Action Left Click Acquire focus and start dragging or push button Left Click Alt Key Set the value to default Acquire focus and launch the fine tuning edit box except button Left Double Click Right Click Set the value to default Mouse Wheel Increment or decrement the position focus required Mouse Drag Change the control position depending on mouse movement except button Keyboard All control widgets support the following keys note that some of them are caught by the host and thus never forwarded to the control For example in Steinberg Cubase SX you cannot use the arrow keys to control the plug in Keys Common to All Controls Key Action Up Arrow Small increment of the position up or right Down Arrow Small increment of the position down or left Left Arrow Same as Down Arrow Right Arrow Same as Up Arrow Pa
46. ons will not automatically rescan the new plug ins so you might have to force a refresh of the plug ins list Upgrade When a new version of the software is released just launch the new installer it will update the current installation Uninstall To uninstall the software simply launch the Uninstall program that is available in the start menu or in the configuration panel It will take care of removing all files from your computer Mac Install On Mac the plug ins are available as drive images After download double click on the file to open it You can then drag and drop the file s to the shortcut that is provided within the image It will install the software for all users on the machine In case you do not have admin rights on your Mac or if you want to install the software to another directory just copy the files to the appropriate location If required more information is available in the README txt file that is included in the package Upgrade When a new version of the software is released open the new image and copy the files over the previous ones The new version will replace the older one Uninstall To uninstall the software simply remove the component s from the folder where you have copied them during install move them to the trash If you want to completely remove all settings and configuration files you can also remove these additional directories that may have been created on your computer e Libr
47. r all instances of the plug in The Global Settings Window The settings available in this window apply to all instances of the plug in for all presets if not overridden in the presets settings Consider these settings as default settings General You can change the default skin for all instances of the plug in write the skin file path in the text edit box or click on the button to open a file chooser dialog If you have several instances of the plug in opened in your session you will have to re open the user interfaces of these plug ins to see the skin change Skin file path CA Progam Files Blue Cat Audio Skins Default default xmi Output data refresh rate 50 Hz The output data refresh rate can also be customized for all instances of the plug in It controls the refresh rate of non audio data produced by the plug in parameters curves It also controls the refresh rate of output MIDI CC messages or output automation data The higher the refresh rate the better precision but also the higher cpu usage some host applications may also have trouble recording MIDI data at high refresh rates The default value is 50 Hz Global Control Input Settings MIDI and Automation The plug in offers a couple of settings that affect the way it is controlled by MIDI messages or automation While the first settings only apply to MIDI control the Control Response Min and Max settings apply to both automation and
48. ry C Program Files WSTPlugins EM Restore plugins editors on open In the preferences pane you can set the default VST plug ins path by clicking on it or on the button labelled This VST plug ins directory is used for several purposes e It is the default directory that is opened when you want to load a VST plug in e It is used as the root path when saving loading presets that include VST effects the path of VST plug ins is saved relatively to this root path so that you can reopen your sessions on different machines that may have different VST paths typically on a Mac and a PC If you happen to have your VST plug ins installed in several paths we advise you to choose the closest common directory path or the VST path that contains most of your plug ins If the Restore plug ins editors on open option is checked default when the PatchWork plug in is opened inserted plug ins user interfaces will be restored at the same position as when the PatchWork plug in was last closed If the option is unchecked all plug ins user interfaces will be kept closed when re opening the PatchWork plug in and their position on screen will not be saved The various elements of the user interface knobs sliders buttons are simple and intuitive to operate but more information about how to interact with them is available in the Plug ins Basics chapter of this manual Operation This section decribes several common use
49. s compatible and can be hosted by this software Copyright Note VST is a trademark of Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH Typical applications Plug ins host custom channel strip parallel processing effects chainer virtual bussing virtual instrument share bus and plug ins configurations between DAWs VST or Audio Unit to AAX Audio Unit RTAS or DirectX plug in adapter effect chains A B comparison standalone audio processing application Features Main Features Blue Cat Audio Standards e Configurable VST or Audio Unit plug ins rack host up to 64 third party plug ins or instruments in series or parallel e Available as an effect virtual instrument or standalone application e Build your own effects chains up to 8 pre and post plug ins slots to chain plug ins in series e Parallel processing made easy up to 8 parallel plug ins chains with phase flip solo and gain controls e Host up to 8 virtual instruments in parallel and mix them within the plug in e Global Dry Wet control Mix e Parameters Mapping map sub plug ins parameters to automate them or use a control surface e Flexible MIDI routing connect sub plug ins together or with the host application e Flexible Audio routing connect sub plug ins i o to any audio channel e External side chain and multiple outputs support e Link pre and post gains for automatic gain compensation e Cut Copy and paste plug ins with their settings between
50. shots and more examples of our plug ins user interfaces Blue Cat s PatchWork Parameters All parameters described below can be automated and controlled via MIDI if your host application supports it You can precisely define this behavior in the settings panels described later in this manual Level Meters Summing For each parallel effect chain index i Input The input parameters of this plug in are the following Name Unit Description Comment General Bypass Bypass the effect Columns Number of columns for the rack Rows Number of rows for the rack Mix Amount of wet signal compared to dry input signal 0 is fully dry or unprocessed 100 is processed signal only In Gain dB Input Gain Out Gain dB Output Gain Enable or disable level meters Summing mode for parallel chains Power Activate parallel chain number i Pre Gain dB Pre gain for parallel chain Post Gain dB Post gain for parallel chain i Phase Flip i dB Invert phase for parallel chain i Solo i Solo parallel chain number i Solo will deactivate all other Assignable Controls Control 01 to Control 40 dB non soloed parallel chains Assignable parameters for sub plug ins automation Plug in Settings In addition to the controls offered in the main user interface Blue Cat s PatchWork has various settings that let you fine tune the behavior of the plug in You can choose to change these settings either for the current preset or globally fo
51. software and the version we recommend you to use Many other applications are supported check your application user manual to choose the best version AU stands for Audio Unit and DX for DirectX Host Application Plug in Version Cakewalk Products Sonar Project5 VST for Sonar 8 and newer DX for older Sony Products Vegas ACID Soundforge VST Steinberg Products Cubase Nuendo Wavelab VST Mac or PC Ableton Live VST Mac or PC Adobe Audition any EnergyXT VST Magix Samplitude VST Avid Digidesign Pro Tools RTAS for PT 9 and earlier AAX for PT 10 and newer Apple applications Logic Pro Logic Express Garage Band AU Cockos Reaper VST Mac or PC In general we recommend using VST over Audio Unit on Mac when both are supported particularly for the plug ins that can output automation or MIDI CC messages Where can I find more information about this topic e www steinberg net e www microsoft com e www kvraudio com e www apple com e www digidesign com Installation I have installed my software and it is not listed as an application Why What can I do How can I launch it Most software you can purchase on this website is plug ins for host applications It means you need another application to use it See the Plug ins Formats section in this FAQ for more information I have installed my plug in and it does not show up in my host application What can I do First check that you application supports D
52. st control available within Blue Cat s PatchWork is used Once mapped the sub plug in parameter and this control are linked together so that any change to either of them is reported to the other This enables the sub plug in to expose its parameters to the outside of the PatchWork plug in You can for example use these external controls for automation MIDI control control surface assignment etc If assigned controls are shown in Blue Cat s PatchWork Show Assigned Controls button new knobs will appear when new parameters are mapped until the maximum number of 40 controls is reached You can use these knobs to control the parameters or check their names the name of the mapped parameter is displayed when the mouse is over the knob Internal MIDI Routing Blue Cat s PatchWork lets you build your own MIDI connections between inserted plug ins and the host application Each slot can be connected to multiple ports to receive and send MIDI events None All Inputs Host Mone y All Channels Channel 1 p Plug Channel 2 Show Editor Channel 3 Bypass Channel 4 Presets Channel 5 Cut Channel 6 Copy Channel 7 Center Editor Channel 8 Channel 9 Channel 10 Channel 11 Channel 12 Channel 13 5 6 Load VST Paste Paste with Map No Plug in Params Map MIDI Input MIDI Output Channel 14 Channel 1 Channel 1 Rename y Track Undo e Host this port connects to the host application to send MIDI Out a
53. tchWork skins page to get the latest skins satYatunes Themes Pack Product PatchWork Description A pack of two wonderful skins dark and silver for Blue Cat s PatchWork Please follow install instructions contained in the zip file Author satYa Choudhury satyatunes com Download Skin SatYatunes zip Tutorials Many Tutorials are available on our website They cover a wide range of topics and host applications You will find below a list of tutorials that are related to the Blue Cat s PatchWork plug in An updated list is also available online Tutorial How to Use the Free Presets Available on this Website B La EO Je Load Cave This tutorial shows you how to get and load free presets for your favorite Blue Cat Audio plugin Teke ction This tutorial uses Blue Cat s Dynamics for the demonstration but is applicable to all our plugins Read More This tutorial will help you understand how to use parameters MIDI control in Cakewalk Sonar It is applicable to any DXi plug in MIDI enabled DirectX plug in Read More Tutorial Getting Started with Plug ins User Interface Set Preset Skin Preset settings Get used to the user interface features of Blue Cat Audio products They have been designed for an optimal workflow so here are the tips and tricks to save time All these features are explained in d Global Settings Uzer Marial Check For Updates Read More Tutorial E
54. ted can be changed in the global settings pane The current preset skin can be changed in the preset settings page Create a Custom Skin You can create custom skins for your plug in in order to adapt it to your exact needs You can change its look and feel and make it completely integrated in your virtual studio Just read the Blue Cat s Skinning Language manual and download the samples for the tutorial on http www bluecataudio com Skins You can get ready to create your own skins in a few minutes You can then share your skins on our website FAQ Plug ins Formats What are DirectX DX Audio Unit AU RTAS AAX and VST plug ins VST Audio Unit RTAS AAX and DirectX plug ins are software components than can be used in Host Software such as Blue Cat s PatchWork Pro Tools Cakewalk Sonar Steinberg Cubase or Wavelab Sony Vegas Logic Pro Garage Band Ableton Live in order to perform some MIDI and Or Audio real time Processing tasks To be more precise what we usually call directX plug ins is actually a DirectShow Filter VST is owned by Steinberg DirectX by Microsoft while Audio Units is the property of Apple Computers and RTAS and AAX are owned by AVID How can I use your plug ins Download and install a host software then download and install the plug ins from our page They will appear in the host effects menu If you are using a DirectX host with our MIDI controllable plug ins and they do not show up
55. ted to the host application so that it can be compensated However some hosts may require that the plug in is deactivated and re activated before the new latency is taken into account Cubase Sonar and Studio One for example Restarting transport may also be required Pro Tools 10 and earlier for example When using plug ins on a subset of available channels when using side chain aux outputs or individual plug in i 0 mapping the latency is also compensated on unprocessed channels This however happens only at the end of each processing chain pre parallel chains or post so be careful if using audio i 0 remapping intensively with plug ins introducing latency Parameters Mapping With Blue Cat s PatchWork it is possible to map sub plug ins parameters in order to control them with host automation an external control surface or simply within Blue Cat s PatchWork s user interface Thanks to the included learn mode simply touching the knobs of your favorite plug ins will let you assign parameters for external control up to 40 parameters can be mapped MIDI Preset Loading Starting with v1 63 it is possible to load effects chains as presets using MIDI with Bank Select and Program Change messages It is however necessary that the user interface of the PatchWork plug in remains open for the presets to be actually loaded because of limitations of many third party VST plug ins More details about MIDI and presets loading is availabl
56. tes the gain based on the number of active chains Sum simply sums all active parrallel chains like busses on a console with no gain compensation 13 POST plug ins slots processed in series 14 Output gain knob pre meter 15 Output peak level meter 16 Knobs for assigned parameters are displayed here when mapping sub plug ins parameters for automation Using VST or Audio Unit Plug Ins Note before inserting VST plug ins it is strongly recommended that you setup your main VST plug ins directory in the preferences pane as detailed later in this manual Warning in a 64 bit application you can only load 64 bit plug ins and in a 32 bit application you can only load 32 bit plug ins unless your are using a third party bridging application Each plug in slot lets you insert a plug in When clicking on an empty slot the following menu appears Load VST Paste Paste with Map v Track Undo Selecting Load VST will open a standard system window where you can select the VST plug in you want to load If the preferences have been properly set the window should open the appropriate location where you can find the VST plug ins On Mac an additional Load AU menu item is available to load Audio Units It opens a file open dialog in the standard location for Audio Units on your system Note if you want to load the system Audio Units provided by Apple you will need to open the CoreAudio component located in the
57. without latency Note when connecting a plug in to control its parameters via MIDI you may want to disable undo tracking on this plug in to avoid that to many undo steps are recorded by Blue Cat s PatchWork and reduce CPU usage Audio I O Routing Using the Audio O command in the plug in menu it is possible to manually change which audio channels are processed by each plug in Automatic Selection By default Blue Cat s Patchwork will automatically detect the number of channels to use for each plug in depending on its own configuration effect plug ins will process only the main audio channels and leave aux and side chain channels unaffected Plug ins which appear to have a side chain input will receive the side chain channels Plug ins with aux outputs will be connected to aux channels if Blue Cat s patchWork is configured with aux outputs too About mono plug ins in automatic mode mono plug ins will process only the first audio channel and the wet mono output will be copied to all channels of the main bus aux and side chain unaffected If you want to only apply the plug in to one of the incoming audio channels instead you can use the manual configuration Manual Selection Automatic detection may however not work properly for some plug ins and you may want to change which channels the effect applies to for multi mono effects or to process aux channels for example That s what the audio I O window is for My P
58. ws improved audio drivers compatibility e Windows fixed a crash with some audio drivers on Windows 8 for the 64 bit application V1 6 2014 11 25 New Features e Now available as a standalone application Fixes and compatibility improvements e Improved presets and session load save performance up to 4 times faster in some situations e Fixed issue with Izotope Audio Units that were configured as mono effects on stereo tracks e Fixed crashes during auto save with Kontakt 5 in Pro Tools 11 V1 5 2014 10 20 New Features e The Audio Unit can now be loaded as a MIDI FX in Logic Pro X e MIDI FX Audio Units can now be loaded into the plug in e Missing VST plug ins can now be relocated if not found e The plug in now saves missing plug ins state so that they can be restored later Fixes and compatibility improvements e Fixed issue on Mac when loading sessions created on Windows using VST plug ins in sub directories e Fixing compatibility issues with several plug ins that used to crash when unloaded Image Line MeldaProduction Catanya e VST Plug in name is now displayed when loaded from a missing VST shell bundle instead of just the name of the bundle e Mac Fixed randrom crashes when using keyboard shortcuts in the host application to switch between plug ins or tracks e Mac Fixed parameters not available for mapping when Audio Unit bridged with SoundRadix s 32Lives e Mac Fixed parameters mapped with wrong rang
59. xport Plugin Presets to Share them with the Community mypreset This tutorial shows you how to export your presets in order to share them with the community on the Blue Cat Audio website This tutorial uses Blue Cat s Stereo Triple EQ for the demonstration Presets Files preset bu Read More Tutorial Using DXi plug ins in Sony Vegas frock This tutorial will teach you how to use any DXi plug in in Sony Vegas Sony Vegas does not support MIDI automation so if your plug in supports the MIDI Dxi protocol it is removed from the plug ins I Read More bd bl ia u LT o E Updates As you can see in the history log below we care about constantly updating our products in order to give you the latest technology available Please visit our website often to check if Blue Cat s PatchWork has been updated or subscribe to our Newsletter to be informed of the latest news about our products You can also follow us on twitter and facebook for almost real time updates notification and subscribe to our YouTube channel to see the latest videos about our software Versions History V1 7 2015 03 26 New features e The effect version now supports external side chain input e The synth version now includes multiple output busses up to 16 output channels e The standalone application now offers up to 16 audio I O e Sub plug ins audio i o routing the inputs and outputs for each plug in can now be connected

Blue Cat`s PatchWork User Manual

Contents

Download Pdf Manuals

Related Search

Related Contents