VocALign PRO AU Manual
Contents
1. Selected Audio Align Normal Flexibility H Edt elete Editing Time Domain H Align Mode Synch Points Figure 18 Energy display after Analyse Step 9 Align the Dub audio Clicking Align creates a processed version of the track on which the VocALign plug in is inser ted You will now see a yellow trace superimposed on the Guide audio track s waveform see next Figure which 1s VocALign s proposed mapping of the Dub track s energy pattern to match that of the Guide Initially this is done in a temporary fashion but soon you can also create a more permanent audio file of the processed version 20 00 00 00 00 20 40 6 0 80 10 0 Guide Synch Pointe Dub Protect Figure 19 Yellow trace over Guide showing proposed alignment Step 10 Create the time aligned version of the Dub audio Click EDIT to create a rendered version of the aligned audio that is written temporarily to disk The loudspeaker symbol next to the Delete button see 31 on the display guide in the next section changes to green to show that audio is ready to be auditioned Editi ng Time Domain Figure 20 The Green loudspeaker shows audio is ready to be played While the loudspeaker symbol next to the Delete button is red you won t be able to hear any audio from the track being processed When it s green you will be able to hear audio Step 11 Play the aligned audio Once the Edit is comp2. 2 8 EX Oe 6a it Track Region MIDI Audio View b Global Tracks 1 Guide Logic s locatio indicators Figure 14 Setting Logic s location indicators Step 6 Capture the audio In the VocALign window press Capture Audio as shown below The green light in that but ton will flash showing that it is waiting for audio Figure 15 Capture Audio button showing green light Press PLAY space bar 1n Logic The selected section of the Dub track will be loaded into Voc ALign and a pair of waveforms will be displayed 1n the VocALign window showing the selected Guide and Dub audio see next Figure Press STOP in Logic space bar e Ed View Show Channel Sarip Show Insert Side Chalm Aang 1 Bypass Compare 4 Untitled Paste Solected Fy aooo Mab Gn ee Normal Flexibility HH Edit ML a Basic Y Advanced Synch Points Editing See Time Domain is VocALign Pro AU Figure 16 VocALign window after capture showing selection of Advanced alignment mode Step 7 Prepare the settings for alignment Select the ADVANCED alignment mode as shown in Figure above along with Time Domain in the Editing menu to the right of it and Normal Flexibility above and between these two options This sets up the plug in with some typical settings for speech alignment In VocALign if required adjust the start or end of the GUIDE or DUB audio so that the sec tions to be align
3. 28 Edit button click to generate aligned audio 31 will indicate when done 29 Delete button click to remove all waveforms from VocALign 30 Overview waveform display scaling slide to zoom in and out 31 Editing complete indicator If green edited aligned audio 1s processed and ready for playback 32 Selected waveform display scaling slide to zoom in and out 33 Energy scale shows range of display 25 H Important tips for effective operation Assuming you have mastered either the Quick Start introduction or the Tutorial 1n the previ ous sections the following will help you to get the best results from VocALign Capture In Logic you will start with a session 1n which there 1s Guide original audio con tained on one track and Dub replacement or new audio on a second track In the Logic Arrange window select the desired portion of the Guide and Dub audio regions for processing by using the location indicators green bar at the top This can include any individual region or multiple regions Your selection can begin and end in the middle of a region If you start in a blank area between audio regions 1n Logic cap ture will not start until the beginning of the next audio region Try to capture up to around 0 25 to 0 5 seconds of background or leader audio at the beginning of your Guide audio selection This will assist VocALign to set the noise floor levels and allow better alignment at the s
4. VocALign AU Tutorial mod1 Bin m Name Bit Cha Size Location STEVEGULWAY 44100 16 514 1 KB Users francisrumsey Documents Logophon Const STEVEGUI TWITDUB WAV 44100 16 7892KB JUsers francisrumsey Documents Logophon Cons TWITDUB Y BG GUIDE WAV 44100 16 63 4KB J Users francisrumsey Documents Logophon Cons BG GUIDE Y BGVOICE2 WAV 44100 16 amp 70 6KB J Users francisrumsey Documents Logophon Consi BGVOICE2 Y BGVOICE3 WAV 44100 16 3862 3KB J Users francisrumsey Documents Logophon ConsL BGVOICE3 v TWITDUB aligned aif 44100 24 Z4MB JUsen frandsrumsey Documents Logophon Cons TWITDUB ali Figure 24 Logic bin after alignment showing new aligned region TIP DO NOT save the modified Logic Tutorial session over the original Tutorial session when exiting Logic so it can be used again Save the modified one with a dif ferent name 23 G VocALign PRO AU screen contents and controls 2 3 e o View Show Channel Strip Show Insert Side Chain Audio 1 1 Bypass i 5 0200 00 16 20 4 0 6 0 8 0 6 8 9 10 1 12 13 14 ETES 15 Selected Audio 16 Normal Flexibility Align Mode Synch Points Editing 17 Advanced ke EOE Time Domain 4 Ls 18 19 mm VocALign Pro AU 90 21 2223 24 95 26 27 28 p9 30 Figure 25 Key to VocALign screen contents and controls NB None of the cont
5. Specialized Utility Ww wy wow Fe See PUFF Apple b LEXICON Synchro Arts Ltd t VocALign Pro AU FR Mono Du esEnO nhELCLOLLLLILALLGoatud tizzz k amp t ee o cb 60 BLGGCBGBOUuG LSGiu SGOULLLG L G GEQIRSXSIGG C2ZZAZQUCGU OGOB CCEA D DD Audio Units y Figure 11 Selecting VocALign as an insert in Logic The VocALign PRO AU window should appear as shown in the next Figure 16 Selected Audio Align Mode Synch Points Editing d RR Fi T h Gas 3 Figure 12 VocALign window before audio capture Step 4 Select the GUIDE audio as the side chain input The SIDE CHAIN selection in VocALign decides what audio material will be used to guide the alignment process It is selected as shown below in the top right hand corner of the plug in window Select the Audio 1 Guide track containing the audio file STEVEGUI at the start for the tutorial Dub g View Show Channel Strip Show Insert v Side Chain Aur None Bypass on Ln Paste Audio 1 4 Guide Audio 2 Dub Audio 3 Audio 4 Input 1 Input 2 Guide 06 Select Guide audio track from Side Chain menu Figure 13 Selecting the Guide audio 17 Step 5 Set the location indicators in Logic In Logic select the part of the project you want to process using Logic s location indicators as shown 1n Figure 17 The Guide and Dub audio should be approximately 1n the same place
6. changes to an energy plot of the two extracts and 1n the Guide win dow the yellow trace shows how the energy of the Dub 1s matched to that of the Guide Press PLAY in Logic and you will hear the effect of the alignment Audio 1 S View T Show Channel Strip Show Insert v Side Chain Bypass Compare Copy Paste 00 00 00 00 20 4 0 6 0 6 0 70 0 F 0 Figure 6 Yellow trace over Guide showing proposed alignment 12 7 In Logic right or control click on the Dub region waveform and select Bounce in Place Export to Audio File in Logic 8 This enables you to make a new aligned au dio file that can be played on a new track 1n Logic You can either select the track yourself before bouncing or let Logic create a new track If you have used the Export to File option you will find the processed file in the Logic Bin Bounce Regions In Place Name TWITDUB aligned Destination New Track Selected Track Source _ Leave C Delete _ include Instrument Multi Outputs Bounce In Place Mute on off Loop on off L Recent Item 4 Bypass Effect Plug ins V Add Effect Tail to File _ Add Effect Tail to Region Recent Item 5 V Include Volume Pan Automation Edit Normalize Overload Protection Only Select oe Playback Figure 7 Choosing Bounce in Place left and selecting options right 13 F Tutorial This tutorial guides you through the use of VocALign 1n easy
7. mode unless you specifically want the algorithm to behave like VocALign Project The ADVANCED mode adds two important controls one that enables you to determine synch points and the other to select protected regions in the audio to be aligned Synch points are pairs of pointers that relate specific locations 1n the Dub to specific target locations in the Guide VocALign will try to ensure that the points are put 1n synch In essence this en ables you to attempt to force VocALign to match the audio at these points Protected regions are user specified parts of the Dub audio that will not be affected by VocALign s time warping VocALign PRO also includes frequency domain editing in addition to the normal time do main editing available in the VocALign Project version This can be useful for getting good res ults on single line melodic material such as solo singers or 1nstrumentalists These features are covered 1n more detail later 1n this manual D Software Installation and Authorization 1 Installation If you have not already done so you can download VocALign from http www synchroarts com downloads Double click the disk image dmg file that you downloaded to mount the disk image on the desktop Next double click the VocALign pkg to install the VocALign software 2 Demonstration Trial and Full Licenses VocALign can run fully functional in one of 3 Licensed Modes a Trial Mode requires an iLok Trial Lic
8. stages so that you can learn about how 1t works and how best to use it It uses a prepared Logic project that can be down loaded from the Synchro Arts website You will learn how to e Select the Guide and Dub audio in Logic that will be processed in VocALign e Transfer the Guide and Dub audio into the VocALign plug in e Use VocALign to create an Aligned synchronized Dub and audition it e Return the Aligned Dub audio to Logic Step 1 Obtain the tutorial project and audio The Logic Project for the Tutorial session can be found by going to www synchroarts com and locating the Downloads page On the Downloads page locate and click on the link Logic Project for VocALign AU to download the tutorial project to your computer The copied folder should contain the file and folder shown below Logic Tutorial Project EDI ReadMe VocALign AU Tutorial Figure 8 Contents of the tutorial project download The folder VocALign AU Tutorial should contain the following audio files and Project 8 oo J VecALign AU Tutorial DEVICES Date Modified E iDisk J Audio Files 16 February 2009 09 48 3j Macintosh HD t3 untitled I A BG GUIDE WAV 28 February 1998 19 06 BGVOICE2 WAV 28 February 1998 19 06 BGVOICE3 WAV 28 February 1998 19 06 E 160G STEVEGUI WAV 18 April 2001 20 45 Logic Tutorial Project TWITDUB WAV 27 February 2002 10 59 F SHARED E vocALign AU Tutor
9. successfully in the following applications e Syncing replacement dialogue in post production for film and video e Double tracking vocal parts or instrumental parts e Tightening the ensemble of singers with one another or with the lead vocal e Tightening the ensemble of backing instrumental tracks e Syncing a drum machine audio output to a real drummer or vice versa e Giving a dubbed vocal the timing of a live vocal performance e Changing the voice or even apparent sex of a singer or actor s performance e Replacing the vocals from a music video shoot with a production track achieving perfect lip sync e Foreign language dubbing C Basic and advanced operation modes VocALign PRO 4 has two modes of operation BASIC and ADVANCED In both modes VocALign automatically aligns the selected Guide and Dub audio regions using either time or frequency domain processing In VocALign you can trim the starts and ends of regions to be processed and control the degree of flexibility 1n the time warping alignment process BASIC mode uses an alignment algorithm that has compatible behaviour to VocALign Project The ADVANCED mode uses a more sophisticated and robust alignment algorithm which generally results in more successful and accurate alignment It also provides more flexibility and control during the alignment process and may work better with audio signals that are difficult to align in BASIC mode In general you should use ADVANCED
10. 2 Guide E 96 Select Guide aua track from Side Chain menu Figure 3 Selecting the Guide audio 10 4 Use the Logic location 1ndicators by dragging the ends of the green bar at the top of the Logic arrange window shown in the image below to select the time region to be captured into VocALign b Global Tracks Guide Logic s locatio indicators Figure 4 Setting Logic s location indicators 5 In the VocALign window press Capture Audio The green light in that button will flash showing that 1t 1s waiting for audio Press PLAY space bar 1n Logic The selected section of the Dub track will be loaded into VocALign and a pair of waveforms will be displayed Press STOP 1n Logic space bar rm View C Show Channel Sirip Show intem Side Chale Adie 1 Bypass Compare a e OUUntitled Selected Audio sm E MELON Normal Flexibility WELL Dolcta P Basic Synch Points Editing GD Time Domain 78 VocALign Pro AU igure 5 VocALign window after capture showing selection of Advanced mode 11 6 Select ADVANCED align mode Time Domain editing and Normal Flexibility Provided the Guide audio content is sufficiently similar to the Dub starts in roughly the same place and has a small amount of lead in containing a bit of background noise press EDIT and the Dub audio will be aligned to the Guide audio as well as pos sible The display
11. MES QUOI TG coolest a a tonis ted R 20 Step 9 Alien the Dub daUudio asas tete tU AS ces EPI SOR DURAS dep etie ERI U Du tIMUS 20 Step 10 Create the time aligned version of the Dub audio 21 Step LT Play dh aliened Audios ab ener rats muU DER a FEE DUE 21 Step 12 C rearean audiosfile or the aligned Dub uicit te be p ed 22 G VOCALIGN PRO AU SCREEN CONTENTS AND CONTROLS 24 IV H IMPORTANT TIPS FOR EFFECTIVE OPERATION eese 26 d cri M T 26 Trimming thecdptuted Tate tial anacron etes h tnit aerae erunt aue aman 27 JATISHTUEN doses E ta ue pU UE 28 Alie mnene SC DIDOS sepes bone MS tM tu DVD M MER D LU au EHE 29 Edith DASISqueedddicis Deu aoa edd used ete usu t D OM IDs Ut spi UE 30 Ponbherd os anb t RS een UL Ooh Dad nr vere tr et etum eU rene re tis dest 30 I ADVANCED MODE OPERATION eene nennen nnn nnns 31 Dy ponte eum MEM CH MM CM MIR LIU NE 31 Protected SE CUIO NS era e a E Nu tU E a M EE MC e DUE LeUE 32 J BASIC TIROUBLESHOOTINQ laca eot nece ue is uero et rito in enano eese eue 33 A Introduction to VocALign What is VocALign VocALign is a process that automatically edits the timing of one audio signal to match anoth er In this version it is implemented as a real time plug in to Logic How does VocALign work VocALign works by applying varying amounts of time stretching or compression to one sig
12. VOCALIGN VocALign PRO 4 AU Audio Units Plug In for Logic 8 and higher User Manual Version 2 0 4 SYNCHRIO IA RTS Contact Information Synchro Arts Limited 13 Links Road Epsom Surrey KT17 3PP UK Tel 44 1372 811934 UK Tel 01372 811934 Fax 44 1372 817976 UK Fax 01372 817976 Email info synchroarts com Online Support at Web http www SynchroArts com Email support SynchroArts com Synchro Arts Limited 1995 2013 VocALign is a registered trademark of Synchro Arts Limited All other trademarks are the property of their respective holders End User License Agreement PLEASE READ THIS LEGAL AGREEMENT CAREFULLY PRIOR TO USING THE VOCALIGN SOFTWARE PROVIDED WITH THIS AGREEMENT THIS AGREEMENT IS BETWEEN SYNCHRO ARTS LIMITED AND YOU USE OF THE SOFTWARE CONSTITUTES YOUR ACCEPTANCE OF THE TERMS OF THIS LICENSE IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO THE TERMS OF THIS LICENSE YOU MAY NOT USE THIS SOFTWARE INSTEAD PROMPTLY CONTACT THE SOURCE FROM WHICH IT WAS OBTAINED FOR A REFUND AND REVOCATION OF ANY LICENSE 1 Hardware key license In fully authorized licensed mode in order to function this software requires an Authorization Code to be deposited on a hardware key PACE iLOK USB Smart key You may install this software on multiple hardware devices but you may only use the software on one hardware device at a time and only in connection with your properly Authorized hardware key 2 License The appli
13. VoeALisrm Nelp yannan eiae DN Le MI RE 2 Working without VOCALIC aesa tania eth Utenti tendo ende edu btens i amio 2 Norimb DOM TOTIS octets a a can eenyestpen eu tees tuo A potis a dut 2 B e polt 3 C BASIC AND ADVANCED OPERATION MODES eere 4 D SOFTWARE INSTALLATION AND AUTHORIZATION eeeees 5 EE EE Dodo E t T E A E A E Dt R T 5 2 Demonstration Trial and Full Licenses eren 5 2 Solare Athor ZATION OVET E Wane E tant ddett au vd n Quel erit aa 6 Ae More dntormatron n MOK OB o aceites teretes eu treno sita doloe E 6 5 How to install a VocALign License from iLok com to an iLok Key 7 6 How to authorize VocALign with your Licensed iLok Key 8 EEUU 8 E GETTING STARTED ciii ret t t m eco ote oue Evi essa dio ui ors eue 9 Quick ici dE 9 FP TUTORIAL ei 14 Step 1 Obtain the tutorial project and audio sient eec beet IR es eco dus 14 Step 2 Open the project in EOBIC o n tote Sc eer dp PRO EC RU Lapi i dp resect ERA 15 Stepo Add Vocale nasan IHSeEC os o uUi E 16 Step 4 Select the GUIDE audio as the side chain input sees 17 Step Ser thelocaton Indicators 10e DOS I6 sedem como priam eeae s 18 DIE O C AULT SN aUdi caecitas tuus raus esi ee eee ees 18 Step 7 Prepare the settings for alignment eese 19 Stepe a NTA SO
14. asked to confirm completion indicating that the transfer was successful 6 How to authorize VocALign with your Licensed iLok Key If you followed the above procedure correctly authorizing VocALign is simply a matter of inserting the iLok Smart Key that contains the correct license into the computer that you are using with your host audio editing software Once that iLok Smart key is inserted you will be able to use VocALign See the next chapter for details on how to do this Reauthorizing VocALign if the iLok Key is removed If you subsequently try to run VocALign without the 1Lok Key inserted into your computer you will receive a warning message Press Retry or 1f different version press Buy and reinsert the iLok Key containing the relevant license The software will be reauthorized WARNING Do not remove the iLok from your computer while you are using VocALign If the iLok is removed VocALign will stop working and you might lose your work 7 iLok Support For further information on 1Lok go to www iLok com CA E Getting started To learn to use the basic functions of VocALign PRO 4 only takes a few minutes but for quickly getting the best understanding we strongly recommend that you first follow the brief tutorial in Section F which uses prepared audio examples The following however 1s a Quick Start guide for those that want to jump straight in without following the tutorial Quick start 1 In Logic select Vo
15. at licenses are on your 1Lok Keys register your licenses and move your licenses between 1Lok Keys Using software available from 1Lok com you can transfer licenses from iLok com to your computer and also identify the 1Loks you currently have connected to the USB port on your computer Synchro Arts may also use your 1Lok com account to provide your license and give you technical support First time using iLok If this is the first time you have used iLok you may need to download and install the iLok extensions and drivers from http www ilok com Obtaining your Trial or Full License 1 If you haven t done so you need to inform Synchro Arts or your software dealer of your iLok com account User ID This is normally done at the same time you obtain a Trial license or purchase a Full License 2 Synchro Arts will deposit a license 1nto your 1Lok com account and notify you 3 Alternatively you might have originally received an 1Lok Trial or Full License Code which you must redeem on iLok com in order to obtain your iLok license in your account Failure to keep your 1Lok com account up to date may result in delays in providing you with services or other support Trial Mode Once you have obtained and installed a Trial license VocALign will run in a fully functional Trial mode for the number of days shown in any email you received with a Trial License Code At the end of the Trial 1f you wish to purchased a license either go t
16. cALign Pro AU Mono as an insert on the track to be aligned the Dub track It is found in the list of Audio Units in the plug in menu as shown Em E ies SetLocators Repeat Section Crop Split by Playhead it Track Region MIDI Audio View v UM 2 p 4 JE 5 gt Global Tracks T 1 Guide o Duh No Plug in Amps and Pedals Chick on one of Delay Distortion the sbare inserts in Logic to select EQ Filter VocALign from Bari the Audio Umts Metering Modulation plug ins Pitch Reverb Specialized Utility Audio 4 T Vor Vivor FTV VV rw Audio Units v Apple LEXICON x Synchro Arts Ltd E VocALign Pro AU LS Mono a LLL LLLIQLLODNILLRnzL I Figure I Selecting VocALign as an insert in Logic 2 The VocALign plug in window will open as shown below 00 00 00 00 20 6 0 70 0 Guide Pointe Dub Protect selected Audio Align Mode Synch Points a i AT T digo nre Figure 2 VocALign window before audio capture 3 In VocALign s Side Chain menu select the audio track that you want to use as Guide audio the original sound to which the Dub audio will be matched Dx Dub Side Chain Aur ga View T Show Channel Strip Show Insert Mone Bypass Compare i ae T Copy Paste Help Audio 14 Guide Audio 2 Dub Audio 3 Audio 4 Input 1 Input
17. cation demonstration and other software and audio accompanying this License whether on disc in memory or on any other media the Software and the related documentation are licensed to you by Synchro Arts Limited You may transfer all your license rights in the Software the related documentation and a your Authorization and License to another party provided the other party reads and agrees to accept the terms and conditions of this License 3 Copy and use restrictions This Software is protected by the copyright laws that pertain to computer software The Software contains trade secrets and in order to protect them you may not decompile reverse engineer disassemble or otherwise reduce the software to human perceivable form You may not modify adapt translate rent lease or create derivative works based upon the Software or any part thereof You may not provide use of the Software in a network time sharing or multiple user arrangement You acknowledge that no title to the intellectual property in the Software is transferred to you and that title and full ownership rights to the Software a will remain the exclusive property of Synchro Arts Limited or its suppliers and licensors You may copy the software only to the extent necessary for backup or archival purposes in support of your use of the software You must include all copyright and other legal notices appearing on the software in any copies that you make 4 Circumvention of copy prot
18. ce in Place the processed audio will be bounced onto a new track in sync with the start of the original one You can either let Logic choose a new track or you can select the track onto which it will be bounced before you select Bounce in Place see right diagram above For now the new extract can be renamed shown below as TWITDUB aligned and bounced onto track 3 Notice that VocALign has only processed that part of the Dub audio that matches the Guide The source original Dub audio region can either be left as 1t 15 muted or deleted during this process right diagram above In the example shown in next Figure it was muted during the bounce indicated by a blue dot before the region name on the Logic display This means you will only hear the newly aligned file when you play You can unmute a muted region by con trol right clicking on the region concerned and selecting Mute on off Alternatively you can mute the entire source track using the track mute control to the left of the display 22 Figure 23 Aligned audio on track 3 in the Logic display showing blue dot on track 2 s audio region to indicate muting If you have used Export as Audio File the new region will be available in the Logic Bin and can be dragged onto the new track If the Snap function 1s active in Logic the aligned audio can be dragged accurately to match the start of the original version WOOP an 4 Audio File Edit Options
19. ch point selection was chosen The display shows one synch point detected where a particularly high energy peak is present in both versions The plug in attempts to match alignment at this point adjusting the sections before or after 1t separately A shading change 1s shown at the synch point boundary Figure 30 Automatically selected sync points shown in green You can add sync points manually by clicking 1n the sync points area between the start and end selection pointers then dragging the green blobs to the appropriate locations In the ex ample shown below two sync points have been manually inserted Guide Synch E QU Points Dub Figure 31 Manually inserted sync points 31 Sync points can be deleted by control clicking on them They can all be deleted at once using the CLEAR button Protected sections Sections of the Dub track can be protected so that they are not edited by VocALign Click and drag the red pointer 1n the Protect bar below the Dub waveform to highlight in red the relevant area see below Drag the second pointer to alter the start of the protected section d View Show Channel Strip Show Insert Side Chain Audio 1 Bypass Compare amp Test preset 2 d Copy Paste 00 00 00 16 20 40 6 0 80 10 0 3 Figure 32 Selected a protected area using the red sliders Q da 32 J Basic Troubleshooting Some commonly occurring problems ar
20. e listed below Problem VocALign PRO 4 does not appear 1n the Audio Units menu Solution Check that the file VocALign PRO 4 has been copied to the correct Plug Ins folder Problem In Logic when selecting the following menu Logic Pro gt Preferences gt Audio Units Manager VocALign is not displayed in the list Solution Try selecting Reset and Rescan Selection Further help and advice can be found in the Support pages on the Synchro Arts website at http www SynchroArts com 33
21. ecommended to try this first as it works Normal Flexibility Del wane cases High Flexibility Alignment is the most flexible of the Basic settings Tries to match the Guide by time compressing the aligned audio as much as possible Tries to match the Guide by time expanding the aligned Maximum Expansion audio as much as possible Maximum Compression Table I Alignment settings 29 Editing Basis VocALign PRO offers two methods of editing the Dub audio The differences are highlighted in Table 2 2 Speed of editing Audio contains only a Good for reducing editing Slower Frequency single pitch e g one artefacts in transients and voice or one single rapid pitch changes when pitched instrument expanding Audio can be single Good for compression Fastest Time voiced or contain complex and maintaining musical signals beat Table 2 Editing basis Further tips and tricks Latching To align just the start of the Dub with the Guide and leave the rest of the Dub unprocessed use the Guide End Point Selector to use only select 0 25 to 1 0 second of the Guide audio for processing and keep the Dub signal full length Reverb tails To stop the end of a Dub from being stretched to wrongly match a noisy or reverberant Guide stop the end of the Guide for processing to be 0 25 to 1 0 second before the Guide sig nal of interest ends and use the entire Dub Controlling the plug in status After having firs
22. ection This software includes technology designed to prevent or detect unlicensed use of the software and circumvention of this technology is prohibited Attempts to circumvent this copy protection technology may make the software or certain features unusable or unstable and may prevent you from updating or upgrading the software 5 Termination This License is effective until terminated You may terminate this License at any time by destroying all copies and recordings of the licensed software and documentation and giving a legally binding written assurance to Synchro Arts that you have done so This License will terminate immediately without notice from Synchro Arts Limited if you fail to comply with any provision of this License Upon termination you must contact Synchro Arts to allow them to revoke your Software Authorization on your iLok Smart Key 6 Educational Use If the software is designated as specially priced Educational version it is licensed only for non commercial use by students faculty and staff of an educational institution 7 Evaluation software If the software is designated or licensed as a Not for Resale NFR or Trial version you may use the software only for demonstration testing or evaluation purposes If the software authorization is time limited any rights granted to you by Synchro Arts terminate at the end of the stated time limitation 8 Limited Warranty Synchro Arts Limited warrants that the software if
23. ed are roughly similar in terms of content This 1s done by clicking and drag ging the waveform from its ends when first captured or where 1t changes colour to grey after adjustment The cursor changes to a pair of arrows pointing inwards when hovering 6 0 ae z Lu Figure 17 Adjusting the end of the Guide left or Dub right audio using the pointers 19 over the adjustment point The selection can also be made by sliding the blue or orange point ers above or below the waveform as shown 1n preceding Figures There 1s a pointer at the be ginning and at the end of each waveform to begin with You may have to scroll to the right in the VocALign window 1n order to see the pointers at the end of the waveforms Logic s trans port commands are used to play the audio Try to ensure the start of the audio selection is in silence or low level noise for about 0 25 seconds before the waveform energy appears and try to ensure the end of the selected audio 1s at the desired stopping point Step 8 Analyse the audio In VocALign click Analyse The display changes to show an energy plot of the Guide and Dub tracks see Figure below which 1s what VocALign uses to create a time warp path to match the two extracts It isn t strictly necessary to do this as a separate step because Align or Edit will automatically do it anyway but it helps to see what 1s happening 00 00 00 00 20 4 0 6 0 6 0 10 0
24. eed to be trimmed before alignment 1n order to ensure that the extracts are optimised for processing VocALign will work best 1f Guide and Dub material start at a similar point 1n their energy profiles and both have a small period of background noise before they begin It is preferable to trim starts and ends of extracts using the energy display You can help VocALign do a good job by trimming the audio so as to match initial energy pro files and ensure that there 1s a good chance of starting the alignment accurately To convert a captured audio waveform into the energy display press Analyse IMPORTANT There is currently no way to return to the waveform display once an energy analysis has been done The current contents must be deleted and recaptured 1f you need to start again You can optionally perform several operations on the energy display waveform itself before Alignment a The start and end boundaries of the selected regions can be modified by dragging the blue or orange pointers at either end of the audio selections as shown in left Figure below The waveform turns grey to indicate unselected audio energy Alternatively you can position your cursor at the boundary of the coloured audio material the cursor changes into a pair of horizontal arrows and drag the boundary left or right RIA cC P Delete q Figure 27 left Pointers to adjust start of Guide and Dub energy right scale controls b The display can be
25. egions that will remain unaffected by processing see Section I 14 Scroll bar use slider to move waveform position 1n window 15 Align button click this to generate and display the aligned Dub audio energy trace in Guide window does not create aligned audio 16 Analyse button click to analyse and display the energy plot of the Guide and Dub VocALign displays the energy in only one band 500Hz 1kHz but actually splits it into four bands 17 Overview window shows multiple captured regions and clicking waveform selects the Dub and Guide waveforms to be processed 18 Selected Guide waveform Guide audio that will be processed 19 Selected Dub waveform Dub audio that will be processed 20 Advanced Basic mode selector menu Use Advanced mode unless you specifically want compatible behaviour with the Project version of VocALign 21 Unselected Guide waveform Guide audio that will not be processed shown as darker waveform 22 Unselected Dub waveform Dub audio that will not be processed shown as darker waveform 23 Overview waveform display scrolling slide to move display 24 Automatic synch point setting press to let VocALign pick possible synch points 25 Clear synch points press to delete all synch points 26 VocALign settings controls the characteristics of the alignment processing 27 Editing basis click to choose between time and frequency basis for non linear time compression and expansion
26. ense installed in a 1Lok Smart Key to run for a Limited Period after launch b Demonstration Mode runs immediately on a builtin Demonstration License for a limited time after launch This mode does not need an iLok Smart key c Full License Mode requires an 1Lok Full license installed in an 1Lok Smart Key to run without time limits NOTES e Different versions of the VocALign plug in will run either in the Demonstration or Trial Modes without having to purchase a license e The user will be informed before downloading the software if the Trial Modes 1s built into the software being downloaded e Software that runs a Demonstration mode does not need an 1Lok account or Smart key while the demonstration mode is active but will need both to run a purchased license in Full mode e If the software is using a Trial or has purchased a license to run in Full Mode the user will require both an iLok Smart Key described below and an account on 1Lok com The rest of this Chapter provides more details on each of these authorization Modes and on the iLok authorization system 3 Software authorization overview VocALign uses the iLok system for authorization For Trial and Full Licenses the VocALign licenses are downloaded from an iLok com Account and installed on one of the USB smart Keys pictured below Before you can download a license one must be deposited into your iLok com Account There are two main m
27. ethods for getting VocALign licenses from Synchro Arts 1nto your iLok com Account e Synchro Arts can deposit a VocALign iLok license directly into your iLok com account if we are told your account USER ID This can occur if you purchase from Synchro Arts store or dealers Or e You can obtain a Trial or Full License Code from the Synchro Arts website or from an authorized Synchro Arts Software Dealer The License Code must be redeemed i e traded 1n on 1Lok com for a VocALign License that is deposited into your 1Lok com account e Once your iLok com account contains a VocALign license you can log in and download the license to your 1Lok Key When your iLok Key contains a VocALign license plug the Key into a USB port on the computer that will be running your copy of VocALign software and any host application You will then be able to launch and run the VocALign software in an authorized mode iLok Keys can hold licenses for a large number of protected software products You can also have licenses from Synchro Arts and other software vendors on the same iLok 4 More information on iLok com The www iLok com website provided by PACE lets you create a personal account which 1s used to manage your software licenses If you don t have a user account you will need to create one before you can authorise your VocALign Trial or Full software On www iLok com you can receive new licenses from software publishers such as Synchro Arts see wh
28. ial 11 March 2009 10 58 E Backupserwerl syOl administration EH fire octopus Y PLACES Desktop f john oie Applications ES Mowies 7 items 11 8 GB available L we Figure 9 Files involved in the tutorial project 14 Step 2 Open the project in Logic 600 fy VocALign AU Tutorial Arrange w m 62 B 8 aft EE x EX B e amp O D M Inspector Preferences Settings Auto Zoom Automation Set Locators Repeat Section Cut Section Insert Section Split by Locators Split by Playhead Merge Bounce Colors m Sista Saa ystevecuu OO vo d fe fw Edit v Track v Region v MIDI v Audio v View v Snap Smart gt Drag Overlap Sheol Re ee pa Sample Editor Piano Roll Figure 10 This is how the Logic project window will look after opening the tutorial project 15 Step 3 Add VocALign as an insert In Logic add VocALign PRO AU as an Insert on the DUB track by selecting the folders Au dio Units and then Synchro Arts Ltd VocALign PRO AU gt Mono as shown below 2 zm 2 E Set Locators Repeat Section Crop Split by Playhead 3 gt Global Tracks e 1 Guide Fi 1 b Duh No Plug in Amps and Pedals Click on one of Delay Distortion the spare inserts nal a in Logic to select ter VocA Lign from Miei the Audio Units Metering plug Modulation Audio 4 Pitch Reverb
29. leted and the speaker symbol is green 1f you press PLAY space bar 1n Logic you will hear both the Guide and aligned Dub audio together in sync The BYPASS but ton in the top left hand corner of VocALign s display see following Figure allows you to tem porarily turn of the processing of this plug in so that you can hear the original unprocessed audio The button is orange when bypassed Be sure to turn Bypass Off 1 e NOT Bypassed if you want to use the Aligned audio 21 View t Sho Figure 21 Bypass button is orange when VocALign is bypassed You will hear unaligned audio Step 12 Create an audio file of the aligned Dub In order to create an audio file of the processed version of the Aligned Dub control click or right click on the Dub region in the Logic window and select Bounce in Place Logic 9 or Export gt Export as Audio File Logic 8 as shown below Bounce Regions In Place Name TWITDUB aligned Destination G New Track Selected Track Source O Leave Mute Delete Bounce In Place Mute on off Loop on off L Recent tem 4 Include Instrument Multi Outputs Bypass Effect Plug ins V Add Effect Tail to File Recent Item 5 Add Effect Tail to Region Edit Select Playback P v Include Volume Pan Automation Normale Restore Defaults Figure 22 Choosing Bounce in Place left and selecting options right If using Boun
30. lign or Edit will need to be pressed again to perform a new alignment If the alignment does not look or sound satisfactory there are a few options Select another setting or alignment mode which will clear the aligned trace click Align again and examine the results Adjust the leader audio before the start of the Guide and Dub to be roughly equival ent with the Dub leader being slightly longer Adjust the end of the Guide or Dub see previous section Reselect and recapture the Guide or Dub audio in Logic 1f the original selection 1s thought to be causing the problem 28 Alignment settings You can control the alignment settings which greatly affect how the alignment performs Use the alignment settings menu to select which preset 1s active as shown 1n the Figure below selected Audio Maximum Compression Analyze Align Mode Advanced H Normal Flexibility CUNG High Flexibility E iung Time Domain 2 Maximum Expansion E mem 2 7 ANNN SE Figure 29 Selecting alignment setting In general you will achieve better results by selecting the ADVANCED alignment mode BA SIC mode is provided to offer compatible behaviour with the Project version of VocALign The main setting characteristics are described in Table 1 min Main Main characteristis Low Flexibility mA c X is not very flexible sound quality may be Default it is r
31. nal called the Dub to make its energy peaks and troughs align in time with a Guide signal It does this in 3 main steps Guide audio Time warping path Time aligned 1 Dub audio Audio E E editing alignment algorithm Dub audio Figure I VocALign block diagram VocALign analyses the Guide and Dub audio signals using 1dentical spectrum analysers to pro duce time varying energy patterns Then 1t uses advanced pattern recognition techniques to ex amine the energy patterns and determine the best way to warp the time structure of the Dub signal so that 1ts energy pattern 1s matched to that of the Guide The time warping path de scribes the best time distortion of the Dub for matching to the Guide The time warping path is fed to an audio editing processor that time compresses and expands the Dub audio to create the aligned version based on the path It 1s this edited version of the Dub that 1s returned to the audio editing software for the desired use Note In the above diagram the spectrum analyser colours match those used 1n the VocALign PRO 4 screen for Guide and Dub audio signals and controls How can VocALign help If you are a dialogue editor needing to lip synch vocals or a music editor needing to tighten up lead or backing vocals instrumental tracks or perform a number of other alignment tasks then VocALign will help you Working without VocALign A dubbing session for film post prod
32. o the Synchro Arts on line store by clicking here or contact a Pro Audio Dealer selling Synchro Arts products 5 How to install a VocALign License from iLok com to an iLok Key 1 Insert the 1Lok Key into an available USB port on your computer and ensure its indicator light 1s lit 2 Log in to your account at www iLok com 3 On iLok com if you have received notification from Synchro Arts or iLok com that your electronic license has been deposited then your authorization is available for transfer Your iLok com account will display a notice saying You have licenses Select that link to start the transfer 4 The next page on iLok com will display the pending licenses available for download along with the name of the application to which it relates the manufacturer the type of authorization Trial NFR Not For Resale or License the date the authorization was deposited and any date when the authorization will no longer be available for download from the server 5 Before an authorization transfer can take place synchronize your iLok Key with iLok com 6 Once you have synchronized your iLok select the authorization s you wish to transfer to your iLok If you have multiple iLoks connected to your computer it is important to select the correct 1Lok as the destination to which you want an authorization to be transferred 7 On 1Lok com click Download Licenses to begin the process When the transfer finishes you will be
33. properly authorized and used as described in the documentation which accompanies it will perform as described in the relevant documentation This limited warranty covers the software and updates for 90 days following the date of purchase and can only be extended if required by law This limited warranty is void if failure of the Software has resulted from accident abuse or misapplication Any replacement Software will be warranted for the remainder of the original warranty period This warranty gives you specific legal rights and you may also have other rights which vary by jurisdiction 9 No Other Warranties Except for the express warranty set forth above Synchro Arts Limited grants no other warranties express or implied by statute or otherwise regarding the software and related materials their fitness for any purpose their quality their merchantability or otherwise The liability of Synchro Arts Limited under the warranty set forth above shall be limited to the amount paid by the customer for the product In no event shall Synchro Arts Limited or its authorized distributors be liable for any special consequential or other damages or breach of warranty 10 Severability In the event any provision of this Agreement is determined to be invalid or unenforceable it shall be adjusted so as to best reflect the intent of the parties to the maximum extent possible and the remainder of this agreement shall be valid and enforceable to the maximum e
34. rols or menus in the black area at the top of the window are relevant to the user 1n the current version except for Side Chain and Bypass Most of these do not fulfil an active function at present and are generic Logic plug in controls or menus 1 Bypass button 1f OFF VocALign plays and transfers aligned Dub audio If ON or ange VocALign plays and transfers original unprocessed Dub audio 2 Capture Audio button arms VocALign to receive Guide and Dub audio from Logic during a Logic play pass 3 Side Chain selector selects the Logic track containing the Dub audio 4 Help button click to access help tips 5 Display start time and time offsets shows position of captured audio referenced to the Logic time line 6 Aligned audio trace representation of the energy of the new aligned signal 24 7 Guide energy a profile of the energy of the Guide signal 1n time 8 Guide start point selector adjusts processing start The corresponding end point se lector 1s shown further to the right 9 Synch point pair click in this region and drag the green blobs to create and adjust pairs of synch points see Section I 10 Dub start point selector adjusts processing start The corresponding end point select or 1s shown further to the right 11 Dub energy A profile of the energy of the Dub signal in time 12 Protected region see Section I 13 Protected region start and end markers drag the red sliders to mark r
35. scrolled horizontally with the scroll bars to examine the captured waveforms You may need to scroll right to see the end point adjuster c The Scale controls shown 1n Figure above right can be used to expand or contract the horizontal time scale slider or alter the range of the vertical scale in dB 2 Alignment b c Choose an appropriate VocALign setting before pressing Align e g 1f the Dub is very long compared to the Guide try Maximum Compression Guidance is offered 1n the following section Alignment settings After clicking Align visually inspect the results in the Guide window The peaks and troughs of the yellow aligned Dub energy trace should line up generally with those of the Guide as in the Figure below B ay AA fe NOW Figure 26 Checking the aligned energy yellow trace If the alignment looks satisfactory generate the aligned audio by pressing Edit This creates the aligned audio A shortcut 1s to simply press Edit after capturing the audio as this will in effect run the Analyse Align steps first Preview the results by using the Logic play controls If the alignment is satisfactory transfer the edited audio to Logic as described in the tutorial If you make any changes to the selected waveform or energy profile region after initial alignment such as modifying the start or end points the yellow aligned energy profile display disappears and A
36. t added VocALign as an insert on a Logic track the name of the plug in will appear on the relevant insert button To change or remove the plug in click and hold on the insert button and select the appropriate plug in or no plug in To reopen the VocALign win dow once the plug in window has been closed double click on the insert button Previewing material Once the Dub track has been provisionally aligned before bouncing the aligned audio back to another Logic track you can listen to either the Guide track or the Dub track separately by us ing the track mute or solo controls in Logic Mute the Guide track to hear only the Dub track for example Use the Bypass control in VocALign to turn on or off the alignment effect 30 I Advanced mode operation Synch points Synch points are used to pick target points where VocALign will try to ensure that the two ex tracts remain in synch In essence this enables you to attempt to force VocALign to match the audio at these points Synch points are created as pairs displayed as linked green blobs one relating to the position in the Guide and one relating to the position 1n the Dub audio You can move each point in the pair independently of the other so that the synch point can be different in the Guide and Dub tracks Synch points can be set either automatically or manually In this example shown below from the speech material at the beginning of the tutorial audio automatic syn
37. tart of the signal In the current version of VocALign PRO 4 AU the selected audio can be up to 5 minutes long and must be longer than 0 25 seconds The Dub does not have to start at the same time as the Guide In other words the timecode position of the Dub is not used The Guide s timecode is important and so is the amount of background captured before the Guide and the Dub Try to leave as much or very slightly more background audio before the Dub signal starts than for the Guide If you capture an audio region that begins in digital silence VocALign may generate an error as it needs to be able to detect a signal to enable it to set its analysis parameters Try to start capturing where there is at least some low level background noise within the audio region If you capture more than one audio region in separate capture passes while the VocALign plug in 1s open these will show up as separate waveforms in the overview window at the bottom of the display You can click on the waveform section that you want to align and this will appear 1n the upper display ready for processing The unselected regions waveforms are dimmed as shown in the Figure below Editing GEL Time Domain i Align Mode Synch Points Advanced H oma j T Tonia LU i Figure 26 Overview display showing dimmed waveform for unselected audio right 26 Trimming the captured material Captured audio material may n
38. uction or music production begins with a guide track Then the voice over artist singer or musician will dub this as closely as possible Because humans are not machines they will not be able to get exactly in time with the Guide This is generally not acceptable for lip synching nor for double tracking of vocals or instru ments Often the next step 1s to loop record the more tricky sections individually but this can break up the natural flow of the line Lastly the editor will attempt manually to cut and nudge individual sections of the new recordings into time with the Guide The above process can take many hours for both the artist and the editor Working with VocALign The above process becomes a simple matter of getting the artist to concentrate on creating a great performance rather than worrying about the fact that 1t may drift 1n and out of exact synch with a previous performance VocALign can then be used to adjust the timing by auto matically time stretching and compressing the material to allow the Dub to take on the same timing pattern as the Guide This saves studio time saves artists time and improves the quality of results Most importantly artists are allowed to produce their best performances free from the rigidity normally associ ated with dubbing Q 3 o B Applications VocALign was originally designed for lip synching replacement dialogue for film and video post production but it has been adapted to work
39. xtent possible 11 Entire Agreement This Agreement is the entire understanding between the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof and replaces any previous discussion and or agreement regarding such subject matter No amendment to or modification of this License will be binding unless in writing and signed by Synchro Arts Limited 12 Governing Law This Agreement shall be interpreted and enforced in accordance with English law and the English courts shall have jurisdiction to determine any dispute Important Notes e In this manual VocALign PRO 4 AU Plug In for Logic will be referred to simply as VocALign PRO 4 Technical specifications e This program is compatible with Apple Logic 8 or higher software running on Mac OS 10 4 9 or later Logic 8 Mac OS 10 5 7 or later Logic 9 e VocALign PRO 4 processes audio with sample rates up to 192 kHz Acknowledgements e Special thanks goes to our beta testers and the Apple Logic team for their help and support e Thanks to Steve Cooke for providing the English voices in the demonstration audio e VocALign is developed and sold under license from Wordfit Limited Table of Contents End User License APIGCIIeHES emper ttes a pet qul ttes tmp Gti a ONE ii A INTRODUCTION TO VOCALIGN eeeeeeeeeeenenn nenne nnnnnnnnnn nennen nnn nnn nna 1 DE Rd e Dun e M 1 Howes V OGA eM ANOUK oaee de Eb genie e tecum ic t DL MN Hoy can
Download Pdf Manuals
Related Search