Topic: feature request for Sonar plugin

Not really sure how to make feature requests w/ Frontier? I just sent an email to their support address, and I'll try posting the text here as well:

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This is not a support request (everything works great w/ the new Alphatrack), but instead a feature request for the Alphatrack Sonar plugin.

1) Alphatrack does not seem to be able to handle Sonar 8's new Instrument Tracks very well. Basic pan/volume/MSR functionality is there, but when I try to enter Send, EQ, or Plugin, Alphatrack responds by telling me that I am on a MIDI track, and such things are not permitted.

2) Sonar 8 also has a new function with the MCU protocol that allows it to respect show/hide track states. In other words, if I have Tracks 1,2, and 3, and hide track #2 in Sonar, it will also be hidden from the Alphatrack (much as I believe it currently disregards Archived tracks). I was using this with great success with my old Mackie Control, and would love to see this with Alphatrack.

Thanks for the great product, really enjoying it...not really missing my Mackie Control much at all, and have so much free desk space now!

Re: feature request for Sonar plugin

Follow-up to my own post:

It looks like Alphatrack does already take care of #2, I just had to configure it in Sonar correctly.

I am seeing another issue: is anyone else having issues with the ACT Learning functionality of the Alphatrack? When I switch to ACT mode, it looks like it already has the rotary controllers assigned to various functions in the plugins, but I can't get it to "learn" manually, as described in the manual? Is there a special trick to this?

Re: feature request for Sonar plugin

*sigh*....well, figured that ACT thing out too.

Looks like certain plugins (Waves SSL EQ, Waves RComp, etc...) just didn't like to learn ACT functions, but it worked fine on others (Sonar's Tube Leveler).

The workaround I figured out: set up your console view to show assignable FX controls, then do the ACT learning from there, not from the Plugin's GUI. Works like a charm.

Only problem I see now: as I understand it, the Alphatrack will only control 6 total parameters via ACT on any given plugin. That's enough to handle a stripped-down compressor, but doesn't really do much good with something like an EQ, even a pretty basic one like the SSL EQ....just not enough controllers to go around, and you'd need to re-assign as you go. It'd sure be nice if there were access to more than the 2 pages provided.

Last edited by psi777 (2009-02-27 19:46:22)

Re: feature request for Sonar plugin

Hello psi777 (that's a lot of psi!)

Thanks for the input. And we will enter your feature requests into our system. Sounds like we will need to review how many of the new SONAR 8 features have made it into their external control code yet. It doesn't usually happen all at once.


Best,

CS