Home

SpectraLayers 2.1 User Manual

1. If you d like to see an example of spectral casting and spectral molding in action please see our training videos at http www sonycreativesoftware com training spectralayerspro Casting a layer In spectral casting the frequency content of the global mix leaves an impression in the selected layer in the same way your foot leaves an impression in the sand when you walk on the beach 1 o P o w 8 J Load the layers you want to process For more information see Importing a layer on page 33 Casting operates on the global mix If your current project contains layers you want to exclude from the casting process deactivate those layers in the Layers panel For more information see The Layers panel on page 30 Adjust the spectrum display until the harmonics are clearly visible For more information see The Spectral Settings toolbar on page 21 and The Spectral Display toolbar on page 22 In the Layers panel select the layer to which you want to cast peaks Choose Process gt Mix gt Cast Peaks The Cast Peaks dialog is displayed Select the Cast selected layer radio button Type a value in the ratio box or use the spin control to set the gain that will be applied to the cast peaks Type a value in the time margin and freq margin boxes or use the spin controls to control the time and frequency range that is used when casting peaks Increasing the margin settings produces softer feathered peaks
2. Adjust the faders in the Mix Channels dialog to mix the layer s channels as desired The Mix Channels dialog displays a tab for each channel Select a tab and use the channel faders to adjust the mix for that channel Click the Preview button to preview your mix During preview the new mix is played and the spectral display is updated to reflect the new mix Click the Apply button to update the layer s channel mix Mixing gamma level offset 1 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 In the Layers Panel click the layer that you want to adjust The selected layer is displayed in red Choose Process gt Mix gt Level Gamma Offset The Level Gamma Offset dialog is displayed Adjust the faders in the Level Gamma Offset dialog adjust the layer s Drag the level dB fader to adjust the overall power of the audio in the spectral display Drag the gamma slider to adjust dark tones in the spectral display Adjusting gamma works on the spectral display in much the same way a compressor works on audio signals Drag the offset slider to adjust midtones in the spectral display Adjusting offset allows you to cut low power frequencies Click the Preview button to preview your mix During preview the new mix is played and the spectral display is updated to reflect the new mix Click the Apply button to up
3. Select the folder of your Samplitude Sequoia project and the folder where the project s audio files are located Leave SpectraLayers open In Samplitude Sequoia right click a sample and choose Edit copy of Wave Project and click Yes when asked to edit in SpectraLayers When edited and exported back from SpectraLayers to Samplitude Sequoia select View gt Rebuild Graphic Data Steinberg HALion 1 2 3 In HALion choose Options gt Edit gt External Wave Editor Enable SpectraLayers as a wave editor a On Windows browse to C Program Files x86 Sony SpectraLayers lt Version number gt Win32 SpectraLayers exe s On Mac OS browse to Applications SpectraLayers lt Version number gt app Right click the sample editor and choose Sample gt Load into External Editor CHAPTER 10 Tracktion 1 In Tracktion select a sample and choose Edit audio file gt Set the audio editor to use 2 Enable SpectraLayers as a sample editor a On Windows browse to C Program Files x86 Sony SpectraLayers lt version number gt Win32 SpectraLayers exe a On Mac OS browse to Applications SpectraLayers lt version number gt app 3 Select a sample and choose Edit audio file gt Edit using SpectralLayers Editing in a wave editor Combining SpectraLayers with a powerful wave editor such as Sound Forge allows you to seamlessly blend the best elements of spectral editing and waveform editing into your workflow 1 Select
4. Set selection area Clear selection Transport shortcuts Command Time Cursor CHAPTER 10 Shortcut Ctrl G M Alt Shift T Alt Shift F X Ctrl Alt T Ctrl Alt F S 7 F Double click the Snap to Grid button 4 Double click the Time Cursor button L b s Double click the Select button 4y Esc Shortcut C Command Stop Play Play All Play Repeat Play Clipboard Loop Playback Record Tools shortcuts Command Tool Layers shortcuts Command Select Layer Center Display on Layer Move Selected Layer Solo Selected Layer Duplicate Layer New Layer Deselect Layer Delete Layer Switch between selected layer and mix View shortcuts Command Fullscreen Shortcut Home Stop Esc Space Shift Space Ctrl Space Tab Ctrl L Ctrl R Shortcut 0 9 Alt 0 9 Shortcut Up Down Arrow Double click layer Ctrl Page Up Down Shift S Ctrl D Ctrl Shift N Esc Delete Shift Tab Shortcut F11 Esc Mac OS shortcuts Spectral display shortcuts Command Pan spectral display Zoom spectral display horizontally Zoom spectral display vertically 3D Displacement tool Adjust Level multiplier Adjust Gamma Window Size Fourier transform size Horizontal vertical channel orientation Show hide grid Show or hide markers and regions Toggle bilinear filtering Lock axes Draw line Lock bottom of spectrum display to 0 Hz CHAPTER 10 Shortcut Shift Arrow Keys Press P an
5. 5 Preview your extraction o hear only your extracted data select the target layer and click the Play button in the toolbar o hear the global mix click below the last layer in the Layers panel so no layer is selected and click the Play button in the toolbar CHAPTER 5 Extracting harmonics Extracting harmonics allows you to transfer a full set of frequencies with frequency tracking from the global mix to the selected layer 1 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 2 Inthe Layers Panel click the layer where you want to extract data or create a new layer and select it This is your target layer The selected layer is displayed in red 3 Click the Extract Harmonics button SS The cursor is displayed as a target 4 Click or drag in the spectral display to extract spectral data to from the global mix to the selected layer The selection is bound to the frequency you click in the spectral display You can use the tolerance dB time limit sec spread bin harmonic rank and harmonics controls above the spectral display to adjust the range of data that will be extracted tolerance dB sets the lowest power that will be extracted at the mouse position a time limit sec sets the time before and after the mouse position that will be extracted spread bin sets the
6. cece eee ec eee cece e cece eee cee eeceeeeceeeeeeeeeees 33 Creating a new project 33 Opening a project as ee ee ee ee eee eee Se ees 33 Importing a layer sooo csi vecwiasiccueewebudecbtausedideleawbsnwuisaeesddusnitediaeoveutdscewalobitedesas 33 Recording to a layer ic nkt a anoweedataseccneacatidsaceeeashuen uebestouedeseenbieuscssbeanceeseneeeesare 34 Adding a new layer cr ovecesebewdeeadscees sew hcwsd aeddecceensumashiladeedececusauaseoseies 34 Inserting UME a le ee ester cere ee ete ee eee ee tute eae aoe eee casa 34 Deleting time antics boaususneoneaese ouch aesankeecacetes ns semis sbaeuonusndnksbueseshoes 35 Viewing layer properties 2 lee eeeceeceecceee cece e cece eee cece ec ee ce ceeceeeeeeeeceeeeees 36 PSTN NOY NG ater oe go esnccece E E EEE nctaacerentdaeeeatseeceneece 36 TABLE OF CONTENTS Rendering a layer 22 2 2 ieee cece cece e cece cece cece cece cece eee cece eeeeeeeeceeeeeeceeeeees 36 Resampling a project 22 2 c ec cece cee cece eee ence cee ce cee eeceeceeeeeececeeees 37 Rendering your M X a4 son ccccdscusnddcconsaoeesdodcscewests deweeeubesesdecetenceddvensseasaodceewsaes ede 37 Editing with Sound Forge Hro e ee eae ote ees eee a onmecan eek 38 SE KENE E ae en et eg oe eee 39 Saving and renaming a project Save AS 39 Viewing and selecting spectral data eee e cee cece cece cece ec eececeecececeeceees 41 Displaying spectral information 0 22 22 c eee cece cee c
7. data on page 61 or Extracting spec tral data on page 49 14 Rewind Click to move the cursor to the time cursor and click again to move the cursor to the beginning of the spectral display THE SPECTRALAYERS INTERFACE Button Item A Play c Loop Playback WU Record Volume CHAPTER 2 Description Click to start playback from the time cursor Click the down arrow to choose additional playback modes including Play from Start and Play Clipboard e If you want to use the Play button to start and pause playback select Options gt Cursor gt Pause Playback When the command is not selected the Play button will start and stop playback If you want the spectral display to follow the cursor during playback select Options gt Cursor gt Scroll Playback When the command is not selected the cursor can move out of the spectrum display during playback Click to toggle looped playback When the button is selected the selection in the spectrum display plays in a continuous mode For more information see Selecting spectral data on page 47 Click to record to the selected layer For more information see Recording to a layer on page 34 Drag the fader or use the edit box to adjust the overall gain of your layer mix The Spectral Settings toolbar Choose View gt Toolbars gt Spectral Settings to show or hide the Spectral Settings toolbar Item Description Window Type Choose a setting from t
8. different from a piano because the harmonics are different If they all sing and play A4 they will all have the first 3 frequencies 440 Hz 880 Hz and 1320 Hz see above but with different amplitudes each This rule also applies to noise where the random dots are shaped by different amplitudes Finally the time envelope also act a signature across time Let s take a violin it will sound very different drawing a bow across a string or plucking it although the frequency envelope will be the same The way amplitudes change over time is fully part of the signature of a sound whether the sound is harmonic or noise If you scale a sound too much by a factor of 2 and above or 1 2 and below it will not sound exactly as played by the same source because the formant and time envelope were scaled too Displaying spectral information The Info tools on the left side of the SpectraLayers window allow you to analyze the content of the spectrum Choose View gt Fullscreen to maximize the spectral display Press F11 or Esc to exit fullscreen mode Using the graph 1 Use the Channels Panel and Layers Panel to select the portion of your project that you want to analyze For more information see The Channels panel on page 29 and The Layers panel on page 30 2 Click the Graph button Il The Graph window is displayed and the mouse pointer changes to a sampler P CHAPTER 4 3 As you move the sampler Vd over the spectrum the Graph w
9. format you want to use to save your project 3 Click the Save button VIEWING LAYER PROPERTIES CHAPTER 3 Chapter 4 Viewing and selecting spectral data Frequency harmonics and noise In a spectral view all sound is represented as a sum of frequencies with different amplitudes and phase So if you record a pure tone such as A4 440HZz you will see a straight horizontal line in the spectrum at frequency 440 Hz However pure tones are typically generated by electronic devices or very specific instruments 440 Hz sine wave Voice and musical instruments are mostly composed of harmonics several pure tones with different amplitudes and different frequencies These frequencies follow physical rules they are a multiple of the base frequency If a piano plays A4 you will have a tone at 440 Hz plus a tone at 440x2 880 Hz with a different amplitude plus a tone at 440x3 1320 Hz etc Finally noise is everything that cannot be described as pure tones In the spectrum noise appears as clouds of random dots across time and frequencies VIEWING AND SELECTING SPECTRAL DATA Voice data Voice is mostly harmonics because all vowels sounds use pure tones a e etc However most consonants T k etc are noise So when you extract a full word you have to deal both with harmonic and noise sounds A voiceover recording Instruments a Classic instruments such as the piano violin trumpet etc produce harmonic so
10. layer in your SpectraLayers project is updated to reflect any changes Sending a layer to Sound Forge Pro 1 Select a layer 2 From the Process menu choose Send to Sound Forge Pro Sound Forge Pro starts and the selected layer is loaded as a new data window 3 If you want to edit only a portion of the layer create a time or frequency selection Only the selected data will be opened in Sound Forge Pro For more information see Selecting spectral data on page 47 4 Edit your file as needed in Sound Forge Pro For information about using Sound Forge Pro please refer to the application help 5 When you re done editing you can save the Sound Forge Pro data window as a new file or Sound Forge Pro Project CHAPTER 3 Saving a project From the File menu choose Save to save changes to the current SpectraLayers project slp When a SpectraLayers project is saved all of the layers and adjustments are saved in this project file _ If you want to keep the previous version of your project before you made changes use the Save As command to save the new version of the project with a new name For more information see Saving and renaming a project Save As on page 39 Saving and renaming a project Save As From the File menu choose Save As to save the current project to a different location or with a new name 1 From the File menu choose Save As 2 Use the Save Project dialog to choose the folder file name and file
11. sample and choose Tools gt SpectraLayers E MU Emulator X3 1 In Emulator X3 choose Preferences gt Other Settings gt Paths gt External audio editor 2 Browse to C Program Files x86 Sony SpectraLayers lt version number gt Win32 SpectraLayers exe 3 Choose Sample Edit gt External Audio Editor Final Cut Pro 1 In Final Cut Pro choose System Settings gt External Editors gt Audio Files 2 Browse to Applications SpectraLayers lt version number gt app 3 Right click a sample and choose Open in Editor FL Studio 1 In FL Studio choose Tools gt External tools gt File location Browse to C Program Files x86 Sony SpectraLayers lt version number gt Win32 SpectraLayers exe Select Launch with sample D W N Right click a sample and choose Tools gt SpectralLayers s CHAPTER 10 KONTAKT 1 In Kontakt choose Options gt Handling gt External wave editor 2 Browse to C Program Files x86 Sony SpectraLayers lt version number gt Win32 SpectraLayers exe 3 Click Ext Editor in the Wave Editor toolbar Logic Pro 1 In Logic Pro choose Preferences gt Audio gt Sample Editor gt External Sample Editor 2 Browse to C Program Files x86 Sony SpectraLayers lt version number gt Win32 SpectraLayers exe 3 Select a sample and choose Options gt Audio gt Open in SpectraLayers or press Shift W shortcut Media Composer 1 Start SpectraLayers as admin and choose Link gt Pro Tools gt Medi
12. shown in the spectral display Pharker Lapel Region Label Choose Edit gt Markers to display the Metadata dialog where you can change marker and region positions edit labels delete markers and add new markers and regions Choose Options gt Spectrum gt Show Markers and Regions to show or hide markers and regions in the spectrum display Editing a marker or region If you want to adjust markers and regions individually you can drag the marker and region tags in the spectrum display For more detailed editing choose Edit gt Markers and Regions to display the Markers and Regions dialog 1 Choose Edit gt Markers and Regions The Markers and Regions dialog is displayed 2 Edit the Position value to change a marker or region s start time WORKING WITH METADATA 3 Edit the Length value to change a region s length 4 Edit the text in the Description column to edit a marker or region s label 2 To rename a marker or region quickly right click Windows or control click Mac the marker or region tag in the spectrum display and then choose Rename from the shortcut menu 5 Close the Markers and Regions dialog to update the spectral display with your changes Adding a marker or region If you want to add a marker quickly right click the top of the spectrum display and choose Add marker from the shortcut menu If you want to add a region quickly create a time selection right click Windows or control click Mac th
13. the layer you want to edit and create a selection if you want to open only a time or freqency limited portion of the layer in your editor For more information see Selecting spectral data on page 47 2 Choose Process gt IO gt External Wave Editor 3 The first time you use the External Wave Editor command you need to choose where your editor application is installed s On Windows browse to C Program Files x86 Sony Sound Forge Pro lt version number gt Forge lt version number gt exe s On Mac OS browse to Applications Sound Forge app 4 Click the Edit button 5 Edit as needed in your wave editor and then save the file and close the wave editor 6 After you close your wave editor the edited layer is updated in SpectraLayers CHAPTER 10 Sil files 32 slx files 33 3 3D Displace tool 22 A Ableton Live 80 ACID Pro 79 activating a layer 30 add layer 34 add marker 72 add region 72 additive layers 30 adjusting layer volume 30 Advanced Settings dialog 31 Amplify tool 25 Area Extracting 49 B Bark scaling 28 bilinear filtering 28 C Cakewalk SONAR 80 Calibrate Layer 28 31 Cast selected layer 66 casting 66 channel conversion 37 Channel Panel 29 channel remixer 37 Clean Sessions 31 Clear Logs 31 clearing a selection 48 Clipboard color 32 Clone 25 cloning spectral data 58 colors 32 Copy 19 Index creating a selection 47 customizing colors 32 Cut 18 D Delete 18 delete m
14. Click Preview to preview the current dialog settings and adjust the settings as needed Click Apply to cast peaks with the current dialog settings To demonstrate the effect of casting with our bass guitar kick drum example let s start with a simple two layer project The following image shows the spectrum of the bass guitar layer This layer is selected so its spectrum is displayed in red 66 CHAPTER 8 The following image shows the spectrum of the kick drum the kick drum is part of the global mix so it is displayed in green The following image shows the mix of the kick drum and bass guitar The bass guitar layer is selected and is displayed in red The kick drum appears in the global mix and is displayed in green You can see where the layers conflict PROCESSING SPECTRAL DATA After selecting the bass guitar layer and casting peaks you can see that the areas that conflicted with the kick drum have been removed Molding a layer In spectral molding the frequency content of the global mix serves as a mold that shapes the selected layer removing spectral data that exists outside the area of the mold in the same way a cookie cutter allows you to cut shapes from dough 1 Load the layers you want to process For more information see Importing a layer on page 33 Casting operates on the global mix If your current project contains layers you want to exclude from the casting process deactivate those layers in the La
15. E a E BI SONY Pe le 7 HZ 4 s T T el el el e Ee sist make believe User Manual R kad L o L L e L w 6 lt U U U U U lt U U 6 lt Pad ha 9 9 Pe L lt lt Ei a gt lt U lt lt gt U L lt L 7 E 2 F lt lt L U lt 7 U w w ka o lt lt oe lt lt lt U lt lt lt o o o P ad w w w a ka 5 a a Ea E E P PP Pd ef he La eh La PPPS he lt lt lt lt P o o Pe e 76 lt lt lt o o eo lpi lt lt o o oe p a ea a lt lt lt o P o P Pa J as lt o oe oe a os 5 lt lt lt o a Pa lt lt lt m lt eo eo ploa P lt o eo P E Revised December 6 2013 ACID ACIDized ACIDplanet com ACIDplanet the ACIDplanet logo ACID XMC Artist Integrated the Artist Integrated logo Beatmapper Cinescore CD Architect DoStudio DVD Architect Jam Trax Perfect Clarity Audio Photo Go Sound Forge Super Duper Music Looper Transparent Technology Vegas Vision Series and Visual Creation Studio are the trademarks or registered trademarks of Sony Creative Software Inc in the United States and other countries All other trademarks or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners in the United States and other countries For more information see http www sonycreativesoftware com licensenoti
16. a Composer 2 Click Apply and close SpectraLayers 3 In Media Composer select a sample and choose Tools gt Audiosuite gt SpectraLayers gt Render Media Composer will freeze during editing Pro Tools 1 Start SpectraLayers as admin and choose Link gt Pro Tools gt Media Composer 2 Click Apply and close SpectraLayers 3 In Pro Tools select a sample and choose Audiosuite gt Other gt SpectraLayers gt Process _ Pro Tools will freeze during editing REAKTOR 1 In REAKTOR choose Preferences gt Directories gt External Sample Editor 2 Browse to C Program Files x86 Sony SpectraLayers lt version number gt Win32 Spec traLayers exe 3 Inthe Sample Map Editor click Edit Sample List Edit REAPER 1 2 3 In REAPER choose Options gt Preferences gt External Editors gt Add Enable SpectraLayers as a wave editor m On Windows browse to C Program Files x86 Sony SpectraLayers lt version number gt Win32 SpectraLayers exe a On Mac OS browse to Applications SpectraLayers lt Version number gt app Right click a sample and choose Open Items in editor or press Ctrl Alt E Samplitude Sequoia 1 2 In Samplitude Sequoia choose Options gt Program Preferences gt Destructive effect calculation Select Generate a new FX file for each effect and Save Effect File in highest resolution 32 Bit Float Start SpectraLayers and choose Options gt Link gt Samplitude Sequoia
17. a layer s name Double click the layer name in the Layers panel and type a new name a Right click Windows or Control click Mac a layer and choose Properties from the shortcut menu The Properties dialog displays information about the layer and allows you to specify a new name Adjusting layer volume Drag a fader in the Layers panel to adjust a layer s volume in the global mix CHAPTER 2 Duplicating a layer Right click Windows or Control click Mac a layer and choose Duplicate from the shortcut menu The new layer is added to the top of the list in the Layers panel Deleting a layer Right click Windows or Control click Mac a layer and choose Delete from the shortcut menu Calibrating a layer Right click Windows or Control click Mac a layer and choose Calibrate from the shortcut menu to display the Calibrate dialog You can use the Calibrate dialog to calibrate the power of the selected layer Moving a layer Right click Windows or Control click Mac a layer and choose Move Up or Move Down from the shortcut menu Merging layers Right click Windows or Control click Mac a layer and choose Merge Down from the shortcut menu to merge the layer with the next layer in the list For more information see Merging layers on page 36 Advanced Settings Choose View gt Advanced Settings to open the Advanced Settings dialog Item Description Session Path Displays the path to the folder where Spectr
18. aLayers will save temporary data Click the path to browse to a new folder The max days control indicates the number of days that temporary data will be maintained in the temporary folder Click the Clean Sessions button to clear all temporary data Logs Path Displays the path to the folder where SpectraLayers will save log files Click the path to browse to a new folder The max logs control indicates the number of logs that will be maintained in the folder Click the Clear Logs button to clear all log files Max Recent Use the spinner control to indicate the number of projects that Projects should be available in the File menu THE SPECTRALAYERS INTERFACE Item Description Max History Use the spinner control to indicate the number of actions that will Actions be displayed in the History panel For more information see The History panel on page 28 Colors Allows you to change the color that will be used to display the mix selected layer and clipboard in the spectrum display Click a button to display a color picker that you can use to select a new color for Selected each element Grid E Click Reset Colors to restore the default SpectraLayers color Markers scheme Regions Mix Selected Layer Clipboard Saving and recalling window layouts A window layout stores the positions of all toolbars and panels in the SpectraLayers workspace You can store any number of window layouts on your computer You can transf
19. arker 72 delete time 35 deleting alayer 31 display units 28 draw 61 frequency 26 noise 26 Draw Tools 61 Duplicating a Layer 31 2 E MU Emulator X3 80 Edit in Sound Forge Pro 38 editing markers or regions 71 Editing Tools 23 editing with Sound Forge Pro 38 Eraser 26 erasing spectral data 58 ERB scaling 28 Expand Peaks 54 external wave editor 83 Extract Area 23 Frequency 23 Harmonics 24 Noise 24 Shape 25 Extract Noise 52 Extract Signal 52 Extract Tools 49 extracting noise 52 53 extracting shapes 54 Extracting Spectral Data 23 F Final Cut Pro 80 FL Studio 80 flattening layers 36 INDEX frequency 26 draw 61 extracting 50 Frequency 23 frequency units 28 fullscreen 44 G Gamma 22 Generate Frequency 63 Generate White Noise 63 graph 23 grid 28 Grid color 32 H harmonics 24 Harmonics Extracting 51 hiding markers and regions 28 71 History panel 28 I importing alayer 18 33 Info tools 44 insert time 34 Integration Ableton Live 80 ACID Pro 79 Cakewalk SONAR 80 E MU Emulator X3 80 Final Cut Pro 80 FL Studio 80 KONTAKT 81 Logic Pro 81 Media Composer 81 Pro Tools 81 REAKTOR 81 REAPER 82 Samplitude Sequoia 82 Steinberg HALion 82 Tracktion 83 Vegas Pro 79 K KONTAKT 81 ss INDEX L layer calibration 28 layer properties 36 layers importing 18 33 phase 30 volume 30 Layers panel 30 Layers Rendering 36 layouts 32 Level Multiplier 22 linear scaling 28 link to DAWs and Sam
20. ayer in a new project New Layer Creates a new blank project a Open Project Allows you to select an existing SpectraLayers project file Opening a project From the File menu choose Open Project to open a SpectraLayers project 1 From the File menu choose Open Project The Open dialog box is displayed 2 Select a file in the browse window or type a name in the File name box 3 Click Open If you have not saved the current project you will be prompted to save your changes Importing a layer From the File menu choose Import Layer to add an audio file as a new layer in your SpectraLayers project 1 From the File menu choose Import Layer The Import File dialog box is displayed 2 Select a file in the browse window or type a name in the File name box 3 Click Open The new file is added to your project and is selected in the Layers panel WORKING WITH PROJECTS Recording to a layer You can use the Record button on the toolbar to record audio to a selected layer 1 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 In the Layers Panel click the layer where you want to record data or create a new layer and select it This is your target layer The selected layer is displayed in red Choose Options gt Devices gt Record and then choose the input you want to record Position the cursor in the sp
21. ayer where you want to draw noise The selected layer is displayed in red 3 Click the Noise button si The cursor is displayed as a target DRAWING SPECTRAL DATA 4 Click or drag in the spectral display to draw noise in the spectral display You can use the controls above the spectral display to adjust the erased area freq range Hz sets the range of the noise time range sec sets the time range of the noise hardness sets the shape of the noise 100 paints a raw block of data 0 paints a block with feathered edges power sets the level of the noise use tablet pressure select the button A to use pen pressure to multiply the power value when painting CHAPTER 7 Chapter 8 Processing spectral data You can use the commands on the Process menu to manipulate spectral data Generating a frequency 1 a SS St fe Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 In the Layers Panel click the layer where you want generate data The selected layer is displayed in red Choose Edit gt Set Selection to create a time frequency selection in the spectral display Choose Process gt Generate gt Frequency The Generate Frequency dialog is displayed Use the power dB control to set the level of the generated signal Use the freq Hz control to set the frequency of the generated si
22. ces Sony Creative Software Inc may have patents patent applications trademarks copyrights or other intellectual property rights covering subject matter in this document Except as expressly provided in any written license agreement from Sony Creative Software Inc the furnishing of this document does not give you any license to these patents trademarks copyrights or other intellectual property Sony Creative Software Inc 8215 Greenway Blvd Suite 400 Middleton WI 53562 USA The information contained in this manual is subject to change without notice and does not represent a guarantee or commitment on behalf of Sony Creative Software Inc in any way All updates or additional information relating to the contents of this manual will be posted on the Sony Creative Software Inc Web site located at http www sonycreativesoftware com The software is provided to you under the terms of the End User License Agreement and Software Privacy Policy and must be used and or copied in accordance therewith Copying or distributing the software except as expressly described in the End User License Agreement is strictly prohibited No part of this manual may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or for any purpose without the express written consent of Sony Creative Software Inc Copyright 2013 Sony Creative Software Inc Program Copyright 2013 DIVIDE FRAME All rights reserved Table of Contents TO Gi COMECME Sood cn aiieetotacoos
23. content of the music bed In the following image you can see that mold of the voiceover layer has cut away portions of the music bed layer that do not intersect with the voiceover PROCESSING SPECTRAL DATA 69 Selected Layer Unselected Layer Result After Molding Applying VST effects 1 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 2 Select the layer where you want to apply an effect 3 Choose Process gt VST Effects 64 bit or VST Effects 32 bit compatibility The VST Effects dialog is displayed 4 Use the VST Effects dialog to choose a plug in and preset 5 Adjust the effect parameters as desired Click the Preview button to preview the selected layer with the current effect settings 6 Click the Apply button to apply the effect CHAPTER 8 Chapter 9 Working with metadata SpectraLayers Pro can read and edit metadata markers and regions Editing metadata Choose Edit gt Metadata to display the Metadata dialog where you can view and edit metadata saved in the current sound file 1 Choose Edit gt Metadata The Metadata dialog is displayed 2 Double click a metadata value and type a new value in the box 3 Press Tab to commit your change and select the next metadata value Editing markers and regions If you re editing a sound file that contains markers and regions they will be
24. d Beneath its streamlined interface SpectraLayers provides you with powerful tools for spectral editing This topic will help you find your way around SpectraLayers so you can unlock its full potential 1 First we ll create a project When you first start SpectraLayers most tools are unavailable until you open or start a project CHAPTER 1 2 Well need to import a layer to create a project Click the Import Layer button p or choose File gt Import Layer to add a layer After you click Import Layer you ll browse to the file that you want to add to your SpectraLayers project P B Untitled sip After you import a layer you ll see it displayed in the Layers panel in the bottom right corner of the SpectraLayers workspace The new layer is highlighted in green in the Layers panel The green highlight indicates that the layer is not selected so you can t modify it For more information see The Layers pane on page 30 The tools in the Info section of the Tools toolbar are now available on the left side of the SpectraLayers workspace For more information see Editing tools on page 23 In the center of the screen is the spectral display In the spectral display the horizontal axis represents time and the vertical axis represents frequency The spots you can see correspond to a mix of the various frequencies and noise that compose your audio file The higher the spots the higher the pitch of sounds in your a
25. d drag the spectral display Press Shjft T and drag to pan horizontally Press Shift F and drag to pan vertically Middle click and drag Scroll up down to zoom horizontally Cmd scroll up down to zoom horizontally and vertically Press Shift T and drag to zoom horizontally Shift scroll up down Cmd scroll up down to zoom horizontally and vertically Cmd Arrow Up Down Press Shift F and drag to zoom vertically Middle click Mouse Wheel to zoom vertically D Option middle click drag Option scroll up down Option Shift scroll up down Option middle click Mouse Wheel Page Up Page Down O Cmd Shift G Cmd Shift Kk Cmd Shift B Shift Click Shift Click Cmd Shift L Edit shortcuts Command Snap to Grid Move Scale Select Select Time Select Frequency Set Mouse cursor Set time cursor Set selection area Clear selection Transport shortcuts Command Time Cursor Stop Play Play All Play Repeat Play Clipboard Loop Playback Record Shortcut Cmd G M Option Shift T Option Shift F X Cmd Option T Cmd Option F S 7 F Double click the Snap to Grid button 4 Double click the Time Cursor button Double click the Select button Kee Esc Shortcut C Home Stop Esc Space Shift Space Cmd Space Tab Cmd L Cmd R Tools shortcuts Command Shortcut Tool 0 9 Option 0 9 Layers shortcuts Command Shortcut Select Layer Up Down Arrow Center Display on Layer Doub
26. date the layer CHAPTER 8 Removing reverb 1 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 2 IntheLayers Panel click the layer that contains the reverb you want to remove The selected layer is displayed in red 3 Choose Process gt Remove Reverb The Remove Reverb dialog is displayed 4 Use the reverb threshold dB control to set the level of the reverb signal Samples below this level will be removed 5 Use the reverb length s control to set the length of the reverb you want to remove The length represents the time you can hear the reverb signal after an audio sample 6 Use the remove ratio control to set the amount of the reverb signal you want to remove A setting of 100 removes all reverb settings below 100 allow you to make the reverb less prominent 7 Click the Preview button to preview your settings and adjust as needed 8 Click the Apply button when you re satisfied with your settings PROCESSING SPECTRAL DATA Spectral casting and spectral molding Spectral casting and spectral molding allow you to apply the frequency content across layers Imagine youre working on a mix in which the bass guitar is causing the kick drum to become lost in the mix You could use spectral molding to remove the shared frequencies from the bass guitar creating space for the kick drum to stand out e
27. e top of the spectrum display and choose Add region from the shortcut menu If you want to add multiple markers and regions with precise control over their position choose Edit gt Markers and Regions to display the Markers and Regions dialog 1 Choose Edit gt Markers and Regions The Markers and Regions dialog is displayed Click the Add Marker button A row is added to the marker list in the Markers and Regions dialog Type a value in the Position value to set a marker or region s start time Type a value in the Length value to set a region s length Type a value in the Description column to set a marker or region s label a MS W YS Close the Markers and Regions dialog to update the spectral display with your changes Deleting a marker or region If you want to delete a marker or region quickly right click Windows or control click Mac the marker tag at the top of the spectrum display and choose Delete marker from the shortcut menu If you want to delete multiple markers and regions choose Edit gt Markers and Regions to display the Markers and Regions dialog 1 Choose Edit gt Markers and Regions The Markers and Regions dialog is displayed Select a marker or region in the Markers and Regions dialog Click the Delete Marker button e V N Close the Markers and Regions dialog to update the spectral display with your changes CHAPTER 9 Tips Chapter 10 This section contains tips and shortcuts to help you wo
28. e the History Panel When you select a channel only the selected channel will be displayed in the spectrum display If you want to exclude channels from playback click in the left column to hide the speaker icon To unmute a channel click in the left column again to show the speaker icon THE SPECTRALAYERS INTERFACE The Layers panel The Layers panel allows you to manage the layers in your project You can activate deactivate layers change phase adjust volume duplicate delete move and merge layers Choose View gt Panels gt Layers to show or hide the Layers panel Selecting a layer Click a layer to select it The selected layer is displayed in red in the Layers panel and in the spectrum display To clear a layer selection click an empty portion of the Layers panel or press Shift Tab Activating a layer Only active layers are displayed in the spectrum display and included in the global mix when you play your project If you want to deactivate a layer click in the left column to hide the speaker icon 91 To activate a layer click in the left column again to show the speaker icon Changing a layer s phase When you add a new layer it s mixed with the other layers in your project Click the icon in the Phase column to invert the phase and switch between additive and subtractive mode Renaming a layer The file name is used for the layer name by default Perform either of the following actions to edit
29. ea from the mix to the selected layer Frequency Range area range in hertz Time Range time range in seconds Hardness 0 transfers with soft borders 100 transfers a raw block S Extract Allows you to transfer a tone with frequency tracking Frequency from the mix to the selected layer Tolerance tracking will stop when the power is lower than this value from the mouse position Time limit maximum time tracked before and after mouse position Spread how many samples around the peak frequency are also transferred THE SPECTRALAYERS INTERFACE Button Item wi Extract Nat Harmonics Extract Noise CHAPTER 2 Description Allows you to transfer harmonics full set of frequencies with frequency tracking from the mix to the selected layer Tolerance tracking will stop when the power is lower than this value from the mouse position Time limit maximum time tracked before and after mouse position Spread how many samples around the peak frequency are also transferred Rank specifies which frequency of the harmonic is hovered you can change this by pressing Harmonic Range number of frequencies you want to transfer Allows you to transfer noise from mix to selected layer using a noise gate manually registered In order to use this tool you must paint a few noisy areas while in Register mode Register noise when activated paint a few areas with noise and noise only so that the
30. eaatonsoe pends caulececbesebssenab oases AREEN 3 About SpectraLayers 0 22 eee eee ee ee ee eee eee ee eee eee eee 7 System requirements ce eee c cece e eee cece e cece eee e cece eee ec ee eee cee ee cee seeeeeceseeserseees 9 Getting started ae ee ee Eve een 10 The SpectraLayers interface 22 0 2 cece cece cece cee cece ec ccc eecceceececcecceceececceeeeces 17 TO I ease cies se ge eee eon ese ese nyse oee 18 WSUS OOOO agate eee eee ene ee ee re seeeeensbera poeta setae tee ee ects eee ee 18 TAE sae 0 gana erat an nee a eee ne ee 18 Transport CORES 35 oie encnasee scone anedeens cade a a 19 The Spectral Settings toolbar decncsaeeeescat Sahu cceeacaeeens done2 eededddeauaetescacecosses 21 The Spectral Display toolbar 22 Editing tools oot cou wesiryetatuncnutonaseneceieuecuee ete sauce seueeceuneu uses neetwuent uussaenossectees 23 The Tool Settings toolbar ene sbcd acane ae cedisecdacwataabeusueeepatcenaent Loseueceeeeadeenes 26 Spectral display acta etc eee See sre acs tee pane Sasennceeueceesedeend latices csunescutaaenhasessendet 27 The History panel 2 26 ato saccscpararess doenctd acetate atceuralab tae deter ueetatoatan Moe aeete Ru snineuseucobeeveciesnesdeaule 28 The Channels panel 29 TheLayers panel ooh Seca deren enre e ae n E a e E 30 Avance o n Te CTT 31 Saving and recalling window layouts 2 c eee cece cece eee eee c cece cece eee cececeeeeeeeees 32 Working with projects 22 2 2 ieee cece
31. ectral display at the position where you want recording to begin If you create a selection audio will only be recorded to the selected time frequency range For more information see Selecting spectral data on page 47 Click the Record button During recording the button is displayed as a Pause button so you can pause and resume recording Adding a new layer From the Layer menu choose New to add a new blank layer to your SpectraLayers project If no layers have been created in the current project you ll be prompted to set the sample rate channels and length in the Create New Layer dialog Inserting time Choose Edit gt Insert Time to insert a specified amount of blank space into your project 1 Du D W Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 In the Layers Panel click the layer where you want to add time The selected layer is displayed in red If no layer is selected time is added to all layers Choose Edit gt Insert Time The Insert Time dialog is displayed In the Start box type the cursor position from which you want to insert time In the Length box specify the amount of time you want to insert Click OK CHAPTER 3 Deleting time Choose Edit gt Delete Time to insert a specified amount of blank space into your project 1 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existi
32. edsmcseeeseace 63 NAG COI aes tee eee eee esos ele ease ser ee reek r E 64 Mixing gammiaflevel offset cece cee cee cence cece cence ccncceccecccecenccenes 64 REMOVING reverb dune edcicevedeesedcedverceceigess aeugddcevvewevecradesbacueauebrasecese 65 Spectral casting and spectral molding oeaseusecs 66 Applying VST f ee ene ee a A a oer EEA EEEE 70 TABLE OF CONTENTS Working with metadata 2 2 22 eee eee cece cece cece cece cece eee ceceeeeceeeeeeees 71 Editing metadata 71 Editing markers and regions 2 eee ce cece cece cee ence cence cence cer cnceccccecercrcence 71 WS te E E 73 VOU US aceite lee a cee eee cee see Geter a te ee en eee 73 Window ITE er EE A EE EEE Sar 73 Mac O ie 76 Integration with DAWs and samplers 2 0 00 2222 ee eee eee eee ee eee ee ee eee eee eee eee eee 79 Editing ina wave editor cece cece ce ccc cece cence cece cece nce ceccececcececcccecccceceee 83 Ie a es eee 85 TABLE OF CONTENTS s TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1 About SpectraLayers Spectral In most audio applications audio is displayed as a waveform that represents audio in the time domain amplitude vs time B X mss wara ge S Amplitude inf 4 0 Time This representation shows the global power of sound however it doesn t show what s inside the sound Spectral data represents sound in the frequency domain You can think of it like a musical score the higher
33. ee ce eee eee cee ee eee eee eee ee eens 44 Positioning the CUISOD o occcvtccndenchceeincogtedodianensecebuakeiseetiideneetacereduieiieciedemeeesecs 46 GITE 4 Extracting spectral data 0 2 cece cece ccc cece ee cee cece eee ceeeececcececeececeeeececees 49 Extracting AN areg oe ete cesaerustoeedserdeuadesnceoseeonedadecvecsustedeabelsesedeuagcnesvenncsse seed 49 Extracting a frequency _ 22 2 e ee eee eee cee cece eee e cee cee eee cence eee e cee eeceeeeeeeeeeseesenees 50 EPRI VM OTN ae So ape erent nc tote E epee ceanl cUseuew sees E ee 51 ECC isle 52 FE Narco het hee es se ee eno eee eee ee oes a 54 Riera E eT 54 Modifying spectral dot 57 Amplifying spectral data dbacieadtasouceedeadceceewecuvedssadsdedveadecesesdadageens 37 Cloning spectral data teens edt tects catesnneaneenecsaeeecedescaesaaenueieeegneteases 58 Erasing spectral dO 58 Drawing spectral data _ 22 2 cece cece cece eee cece cece eee eee e cee ceeeeeeeeeeceseeeeeees 61 Drawing a frequency 2 eee eee cece cece cee cece ec cece cee ceccecceceececceccececceccecceces 61 Drawing noise sacs ete gues Joanne deiet cdoee ce deee sano saten aston delat aeee aaao 61 Processing spectral data diver sivesutensbyoeedudsuveuwlecoeeced bocce dlecuteeceecdiuescdes 63 Generating a frequency 2 22 2 le eee cece cece cece ee cee cece cece ce cenceccecceccrcerceseeeees 63 Generating white noise cncsactinee cus wcene nanediewsnbedssecbuet Sasenboeeuseaeuwec
34. elow the last layer in the Layers panel so no layer is selected and click the Play button in the toolbar EXTRACTING SPECTRAL DATA Extracting a frequency Extracting frequencies allows you to transfer a tone with frequency tracking from the global mix to the selected layer 1 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 2 In the Layers Panel click the layer where you want to extract data or create a new layer and select it This is your target layer The selected layer is displayed in red 3 Click the Extract Frequency button KS The cursor is displayed as a target 4 Click or drag in the spectral display to extract spectral data to from the global mix to the selected layer The selection is bound to the frequency you click in the spectral display You can use the tolerance dB time limit sec and spread bin controls above the spectral display to adjust the range of data that will be extracted tolerance dB sets the lowest power that will be extracted at the mouse position a time limit sec sets the time before and after the mouse position that will be extracted spread bin sets the number of bins spectrum samples around the peak frequency that will be extracted The selection is drawn in red in the spectral display and is drawn in yellow when drawn over the global mix
35. en you invert the phase of the new layer the frequencies you extracted in the previous step are removed from the spectral display i Extracted frequencies before inverting phase B Extracted frequencies are removed after inverting phase This method of working allows you to experiment with extracting data from your source audio without affecting the source file Play your project again If you extract enough data you can completely remove voices instruments or any sound from your audio Don t be afraid to create several layers and experiment with the different tools You can even adjust the window size setting in the middle of an extraction if needed CHAPTER 1 Chapter 2 The SpectraLayers interface The SpectraLayers interface is divided into five primary areas an0 SpectraLayers sip Toolbar History Panel Editing Tools Channels Panel Layers Panel Spectral Display a Themenu bar not pictured provides access to frequently used commands and options a The toolbar provides access to commonly used functions For more information see The toolbars on page 18 a The editing tools to the left of the spectral display provide access to spectral information extraction and editing For more information see Editing tools on page 23 a The spectral display displays the spectrum of the layers in your project For more information see Spectral display on page 27 a The panels on the ri
36. er layouts between computers by copying the sll files Saving a window layout 1 Use the Views gt Toolbars and View gt Panels submenus to configure the SpectraLayers workspace as needed Choose View gt Save Layout Use the Save Layout dialog to browse to the folder where you want to save your layout sll file Click Save Recalling a window layout 1 2 ET Choose View gt Load Layout Use the Load Layout dialog to browse to the layout sll file you want to load Click Open CHAPTER 2 Chapter 3 Working with projects A SpectraLayersproject file slp or slx saves the relevant information about your source media file locations layers filters and edit A project file is not a multimedia file It contains pointers to the original source files so you can edit your project nondestructively you can be creative without worrying about corrupting your source files If SpectraLayers terminates unexpectedly you can recover your editing session by opening the autosave sIx file You can change the folder where SpectraLayerssaves these files using the Session Path box on the Advanced Settings dialog Creating a new project The first step in creating your masterpiece is to create a SpectraLayers project file 1 From the File menu choose New Project The New Project dialog is displayed 2 Use the New Project dialog to set your project properties Import Layer Allows you to import an audio file to a l
37. ertical bins you want to expand the selection Click the Preview button to preview your expanded selection Click the Apply button to update the extraction layer Extracting shapes Extracting shapes allows you to transfer a shape with power tracking from the mix to the selected layer 1 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 In the Layers Panel click the layer where you want to extract data or create a new layer and select it This is your target layer The selected layer is displayed in red Click the Extract Shape button d The cursor is displayed as a target CHAPTER 5 4 Click or drag in the spectral display to extract spectral data to from the global mix to the selected layer The selection is bound to the frequency you click in the spectral display You can use the minimum dB tolerance dB freq limit Hz time limit sec and spread bin controls above the spectral display to adjust the range of data that will be extracted minimum dB sets the minimum power to start shape tracking from the mouse position tolerance dB tracking will stop when the power is lower than this value from the mouse position a freq limit Hz sets the maximum frequency range tracked relative to mouse position a time limit sec sets the maximum time range tracked relative to mouse p
38. et Selection The Set Selection dialog is displayed Use the Start and End controls to specify the time range you want to select Use the Bottom and Top controls to specify the frequency range you want to select D Ww N Click OK VIEWING AND SELECTING SPECTRAL DATA Clearing a selection Choose Edit gt Unselect All to clear the current selection Moving a selection After creating a selection you can use the Move tool f to move your selection e Tips a Press Alt Shift T to move a selection along the timeline without changing the frequency selection a Press Alt Shift F to move a selection along the frequency axis without changing the time selection Scaling a selection After creating a selection you can use the Scale tool bt to scale your selection e Tips a Press Ctrl Alt T to scale a time selection without changing the frequency selection a Press Ctrl Alt F to scale a frequency selection without changing the time selection a Press Ctrl Alt P to scale the selection proportionally Clearing a selection Choose Edit gt Unselect All or press Esc to clear the current selection CHAPTER 4 Chapter 5 Extracting spectral data You can use the extract tools to copy spectral data from the global mix to the selected layer Extracting spectral data allows you to isolate and manipulate sound For example if you created a field recording that was interrupted by an unwanted sound in the background you could extract
39. frequencies from your original layer to your new layer Verify your new layer is still selected it should be displayed in red and your original layer is unselected it should be displayed in green Click the Extract Frequency tool SP in the Tools toolbar Move your mouse around the spectral display and see how the tool snaps to the different frequencies in the spectral display the frequency under the tool is displayed in blue You can preview anything in blue as you move the mouse in the spectral display by pressing the Tab key on your keyboard Click a few frequencies on top of each others and see how they turn yellow It means they have been extracted from the source layer to the layer we selected red layer on top of green layer shows as yellow the new layer is no longer empty Press the space bar to play the selected layer If you selected enough frequencies you ll start recognizing a particular instrument or voice from the source audio file isolated from its original context You can use these fundamentals in combination with all the other tools available For more information see Extracting spectral data on page 49 GETTING STARTED 8 Finally let s invert the phase of a layer Deselect all layers by clicking an empty area in the Layers pane or by pressing the Esc key several times In the Layers pane click the positive phase button on the New Layer The button will change to a negative phase button S Wh
40. ght side of the spectral display show editing history audio channels and your project s layers For more information see The History panel on page 28 The Channels panel on page 29 and The Layers panel on page 30 THE SPECTRALAYERS INTERFACE The toolbars SpectraLayers includes several toolbars you can use Choose View gt Toolbars and then choose a toolbar to show or hide it The File toolbar Choose View gt Toolbars gt File to show or hide the File toolbar Button Item Description Import Layer Click to add an audio file as a new layer in your SpectraLayers project For more information see Importing a layer on page 33 Save Project Click to save your project For more information see Saving a project on page 39 The Edit toolbar Choose View gt Toolbars gt Edit to show or hide the Edit toolbar Button Item Click to restore the last Undo action Undo Redo Select Description Click to reverse your last edit Click to create a selection in the spectral display You can click the down arrow to Move choose whether you want to create a rectangular selection or limit your selection to a time or frequency When editing tools and filters will be limited to the selected area For more information see Selecting spectral data on page 47 Click to move the selection in the spectral display by dragging it You can click the Scale down arrow to choose w
41. gnal Click the Preview button to preview your generated signal During preview only the generated signal is played and the generated signal is drawn over the spectral display Click the Apply button to mix the generated frequency with the selected layer Generating white noise 1 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 In the Layers Panel click the layer where you want generate noise The selected layer is displayed in red Choose Edit gt Set Selection to create a time frequency selection in the spectral display Choose Process gt Generate gt White Noise The Generate White Noise dialog is displayed Use the power dB control to set the level of the generated noise Click the Preview button to preview your generated noise During preview only the noise is played and the noise is drawn over the spectral display Click the Apply button to mix the generated noise with the selected layer PROCESSING SPECTRAL DATA Mixing channels 1 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 In the Layers Panel click the layer that contains the channels you want to mix The selected layer is displayed in red Choose Process gt Mix gt Channels The Mix Channels dialog is displayed
42. h 2 which means you will have sound again with opposite phase but it sounds exactly the same So it is important you know what quantity you add or remove from the mix Processes and Tools Processes work the same way they do in usual audio applications you select an area and the process is applied to the whole area For more information see Processing spectral data on page 63 The difference with SpectraLayers is that you can select not only time but also frequency areas so the process is only applied to a certain range of frequencies The processes are also different by nature because they are designed to use spectral data instead of raw audio data so the purpose and range is not the same as usual audio processes Tools work the same way they do in paint applications they are local to the mouse position and allow you to work on specific frequencies For more information see Editing tools on page 23 Info tools give the user specific information about spectral data For more information see Displaying spectral information on page 44 Extract tools are designed to make the frequency transfer easy from the mix to a specific layer by semiautomatically helping the user For more information see Extracting spectral data on page 49 Modify tools allow the user to retouch spectral data For more information see Modifying spectral data on page 5 Draw tools generate spectral data from scratch For more informat
43. he drop down list to set the window type used for analysis We recommend using Blackman Harris for most applications Window Size Choose a setting from the drop down list to set the size in samples of the analysis window Higher numbers produce increased frequency resolution at the expense of lower time resolution and longer computational time Window Select the subwin check box if you want to subdivide the analysis Subdivision window for extra time precision Window Overlap Choose a setting from the drop down list if you want to overlap the analysis windows for extra time precision THE SPECTRALAYERS INTERFACE The Spectral Display toolbar Choose View gt Toolbars gt Spectral Display to show or hide the Spectral Display toolbar Button Item Zebra Pattern Threshold Level Multiplier Gamma Pan ns S Zoom 3D Displace A CHAPTER 2 Description Drag the fader to set the threshold above which cross hatching will be displayed in the spectral display Drag the fader to multiply the spectral display dynamic range Adjust according to your project Drag the slider to adjust the gamma in the spectral display Adjusting gamma can help you find details in the display Select to pan within the spectral display by dragging Click the down arrow to choose Pan Time or Pan Frequency to constrain panning to the horizontal or vertical axis Select to magnify the spectral display by dragging Click the down arrow t
44. he time range of the selection m hardness sets the shape of the selection area 100 selects a raw block of data 0 selects a block with feathered edges use tablet pressure select the button A to use pen pressure to multiply the power value when creating a selection transpose select this check box to transpose frequencies You can clear this check box when working with harmonic data to keep the structure of sound source choose the source layer that you want to clone 5 Click or drag in the spectral display to draw the cloned data Erasing spectral data Erasing an area allows you to simply remove data from a layer 1 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 2 Inthe Layers Panel click the layer that contains the data you want to erase The selected layer is displayed in red 3 Click the Eraser button P The cursor is displayed as a target CHAPTER 6 4 Click or drag in the spectral display to erase data You can use the controls above the spectral display to adjust the erased area a freq range Hz sets the range of the area a time range sec sets the time range of the erased area a hardness sets the shape of the selection area 100 erases a raw block of data 0 erases a block with feathered edges power sets the amount of attenuation that will be a
45. hether you want to constrain movement to the time or frequency Click to scale the selection in the spectral display by dragging it You can click the E Snap down arrow to choose whether you want to scale by time frequency or pro portionally Click to enable snapping the cursor to the grid in the spectral display to Grid Delete Click to delete the selected layer or to delete the selected area from the selected layer IR J Cut CHAPTER 2 Click to cut the selected area from the selected layer and place it on the clipboard Button Item Description Fs Copy Click to copy the selected layer or the selected area in the selected layer and place it on the clipboard LR Paste Click to insert the clipboard contents to the selected layer Transport Controls Choose View gt Toolbars gt Transport Controls to show or hide the Transport Controls toolbar Button Item Description Time Cursor When this button is selected you can click in the spectral display to position the time cursor If you want the cursor to adjust its position when editing select Options gt Cursor gt Smart Cursor Location a When you select a layer the cursor will move to the start of that layer so you can start playback where the audio content begins a When you select a blank layer the cursor when snap to the beginning of new audio content that you draw or extract from other layers For more information see Drawing spectral
46. indow displays information about the cursor position You can use the drop down lists below the graph to choose the information you want to display in the graph You can display Power dB Power Value Phase Radian Phase Degree or Relative Phase Velocity on the Y axis You can choose to display Frequency or Time on the X axis You can use the time range and freq range controls to limit the range displayed in the graph Choose Horizontal Layout or Vertical Layout to display channels horizontally or vertically Select the Markers check box if you want to display markers in the graph For more information see Editing markers and regions on page 71 Press or to change the vertical scale of the graph VIEWING AND SELECTING SPECTRAL DATA Using the sampler 1 Use the Channels Panel and Layers Panel to select the portion of your project that you want to analyze For more information see The Channels panel on page 29 and The Layers panel on page 30 2 Click the Sampler button Va The Sampler toolbar is displayed above the spectral display and the mouse pointer changes to a sampler P As you move the sampler Va over the spectrum the Sampler toolbar displays information about the cursor position You can use the drop down list in the Sampler toolbar to choose the information you want to display in the graph Power dB Power Value Power Percent Phase Radian Phase Degree Phase Velocity Radian Windo
47. ion see Drawing spectral data on page 61 a CHAPTER 1 System requirements Windows Microsoft Vista SP2 Windows 7 SP1 Windows 8 or Windows 8 1 Dual core processor quad core processor recommended 2 GB RAM 2 GB of free hard disk space for temporary files Supported NVIDIA or AMD ATI GPU with 512 MB or more RAM NVIDIA GeForce GTX 2xx Series or higher with driver 285 62 or later Quadro 400 or higher or Quadro FX x700 or higher with driver 285 62 or later AMD ATI Radeon HD 47xx or higher GPU with Catalyst driver 11 7 or later If using a FirePro GPU FirePro unified driver 8 85 or later is required 1280x720 display resolution Windows compatible audio hardware Internet Explorer 8 or later Firefox 10 or later or Google Chrome 13 or later for viewing help Mac OS Mac OS X 10 7 Lion 10 8 Mountain Lion or 10 9 Mavericks Intel dual core processor quad core processor recommended 2 GB RAM 2 GB of free hard disk space for temporary files OpenGL 2 1 compatible graphics card with 256 MB RAM 1280x720 display resolution CoreAudio compatible audio hardware Ab Supported hardware check About This Mac More Info System Report Model Identifier iMac 7 1 mid 2007 and later Mac Pro 3 1 early 2008 and later MacBook 5 1 early 2009 and later MacBook Pro 3 1 mid 2007 and later MacBook Air 2 1 late 2008 and later Mac Mini 3 1 early 2009 and later ABOUT SPECTRALAYERS E Getting starte
48. is bound to the area you click in the spectral display You can use the freq range Hz time range sec hardness and use tablet pressure controls above the spectral display to adjust the selection area m freq range Hz sets the range of the selection area m time range sec sets the time range of the selection m hardness sets the shape of the selection area 100 selects a raw block of data 0 selects a block with feathered edges use tablet pressure select the button a to use pen pressure to multiply the power value when creating a selection MODIFYING SPECTRAL DATA Cloning spectral data Cloning an area allows you to duplicate data within a layer 1 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 2 Inthe Layers Panel click the layer that contains the data you want to clone The selected layer is displayed in red 3 Click the Clone button L The cursor is displayed as a target 4 Click the pick button above the spectral display or hold Alt Windows or Option Mac and click the spectral display to pick the source data that you want to clone The selection is bound to the area you click in the spectral display You can use the controls above the spectral display to adjust the selection area m freq range Hz sets the range of the selection area m time range sec sets t
49. k Yes and the edited file replaces the event s clip on the ACID timeline Sony Vegas Pro 1 2 3 In Vegas Pro choose Options gt Preferences In the Preferences dialog click the Audio tab Click the Browse button next to the Preferred audio editor box and browse to C Program Files x86 Sony SpectraLayers lt version number gt Win32 SpectraLayers exe Click OK to close the Preferences dialog Right click an event on the Vegas timeline and choose Open in Audio Editor or Open Copy in Audio Editor SpectraLayers will start Edit as needed in SpectraLayers When you re done editing close SpectraLayers Pro You ll be prompted to export your changes back to Vegas Pro Click Yes and the edited file is set as the active take on the Vegas timeline Ableton Live 1 In Ableton Live choose Options gt Preferences and then go to File Folder gt Sample Editor 2 Enable SpectraLayers as a sample editor s On Windows browse to C Program Files x86 Sony SpectraLayers lt version number gt Win32 SpectraLayers exe a On Mac OS browse to Applications SpectraLayers lt version number gt app 3 Enable View gt Detail gt Clip 4 Right click the sample and choose Manage Sample File gt Edit You may want to consolidate your sample before editing Cakewalk SONAR 1 Start SpectraLayers as admin and choose Options gt Link gt Cakewalk SONAR Click Apply Exit SpectraLayers D Ww N In Cakewalk SONAR click a
50. le click layer Move Selected Layer Cmd Page Up Down Solo Selected Layer Shift S Duplicate Layer Cmd D New Layer Cmd Shift N Deselect Layer Esc Delete Layer Delete Switch between selected layer and mix Shift Tab View shortcuts Command Shortcut Fullscreen Shift Cmd F Esc CHAPTER 10 Integration with DAWs and samplers This section contains information to help you use SpectraLayers with other DAW and sampler applications For more information about using these applications please refer to the manufacturer s documentation When you set up SpectraLayers as an editor you can work in another DAW or sampler move to SpectraLayers for fine edits and then send the edited file back to your DAW or sampler For information about using SpectraLayers Pro with Sound Forge Pro 11 please see Editing with Sound Forge Pro on page 38 Sony ACID Pro 1 In ACID Pro choose Options gt Preferences 2 Inthe Preferences dialog click the Editing tab 3 Click the Browse button next to an Editing application box and browse to C Program Files x86 Sony SpectraLayers lt version number gt Win32 SpectraLayers exe 4 Click OK to close the Preferences dialog 5 Right click an event on the ACID timeline and choose Event Clip gt Edit in SpectraLayers exe SpectraLayers will start 6 Edit as needed in SpectraLayers 7 When youre done editing close SpectraLayers Pro You ll be prompted to export your changes back to ACID Pro Clic
51. lection is drawn in red in the spectral display and is drawn in yellow when drawn over the global mix EXTRACTING SPECTRAL DATA 7 In the Layers panel click the phase button to invert the phase of your noise layer o hear only your extracted data select the target layer and click the Play button in the toolbar o hear the global mix click below the last layer in the Layers panel so no layer is selected and click the Play button in the toolbar Expanding peaks Expanding peaks is useful after extracting spectral data to a new layer If your extraction didn t capture all the data you needed expanding peaks will expand the extraction area around each peak frequency to include additional frequencies 1 6 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 Use the extract tools to extract spectral data to a new layer For more information see Extracting spectral data on page 49 Select the layer where you extracted data Choose Process gt Extract gt Expand Peaks The Expand Peaks dialog is displayed Adjust the controls in the Expand Peaks dialog to the layer a Use the tolerance control to set the minimum peak level that will be expanded a Use the hor exp control to set the number of horizontal bins you want to expand the selection a Use the ver exp control to set the number of v
52. m display choose Options gt Units and choose a category and unit measure from the submenus If you to display a grid in the spectrum graph select Options gt Spectrum gt Show Grid To show or hide markers and regions in the spectrum display choose Options gt Spectrum gt Show Markers and Regions If you to apply bilinear filtering to the spectrum graph to smooth the display select Options gt Spectrum gt Bilinear Filtering Deselect the command if you want to see the true spectral samples If you want to change the magnification level so the beginning and end of the selected layer are maximized in the spectral display choose Layer gt Zoom Extents If you want to calibrate a layer to correspond to known level measurements choose Layer gt Calibrate You can then use the Calibrate Layer dialog to calibrate a layer to a known average power or peak value adjust the zebra pattern threshold adjust the level multiplier and adjust the volume The History panel The History panel allows you to see a list of the actions you ve performed Choose View gt Panels gt History to show or hide the History panel The list contains a description of each action and the layer where the action was applied The latest action is always displayed at the bottom of the list CHAPTER 2 The Channels panel The Channels Panel allows you to enable channels in multichannel audio files Choose View gt Panels gt Channels to show or hid
53. m tolerance dB sets the threshold of the noise gate 6 Theselection is drawn in red in the spectral display and is drawn in yellow when drawn over the global mix 7 Inthe Layers panel click the phase button to invert the phase of your noise layer o hear only your extracted data select the target layer and click the Play button in the toolbar o hear the global mix click below the last layer in the Layers panel so no layer is selected and click the Play button in the toolbar Extract noise from a layer 1 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 2 Inthe Layers Panel click the layer where you want to extract data or create a new layer and select it This is your target layer The selected layer is displayed in red 3 Click the Extract Noise button a The cursor is displayed as a target 4 Register the noise in your audio to compute a noise gate a Click the Register Noise button above the spectral display b Click noisy areas in the spectral display to identify the noise you want to remove c Click the Register Noise button again to turn it off when you re done identifying noise 5 Extract the noise to your new layer a Verify the layer where you want to extract noise is selected b Choose Process gt Extract gt Noise to extract the noise to your new layer 6 These
54. ng project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 2 IntheLayers Panel click the layer from which you want to delete time The selected layer is displayed in red If no layer is selected time is deleted from all layers 3 Create a time selection containing the section of time you want to delete For more information see Selecting spectral data on page 47 Choose Edit gt Delete Time The Delete Time dialog is displayed In the Start box edit the cursor position from which you want to delete time if needed In the Length box edit the amount of time you want to delete if needed N DO n D Click OK WORKING WITH PROJECTS Viewing layer properties Select a layer in the Layers panel and choose Layer gt Properties to display information about the selected layer A layer s associated file name is used as the layer name by default but you can edit the layers name in the Layer Properties dialog For more information see The Layers panel on page 30 Merging layers Merging layers allows you to combine layers to simplify your project Merge down 1 Inthe Layers panel click a layer to select it The selected layer is displayed in red in the Layers panel and in the spectrum display 2 Choose Layer gt Merge Down The selected layer is merged with the next layer in the list Merge active 1 Inthe Layers panel click in the left column to display
55. number of bins spectrum samples around the peak frequency that will be extracted a harmonic rank sets the frequency of the harmonic you re hovering over you can change this by pressing harmonics sets the number of frequencies you want to transfer The selection is drawn in red in the spectral display and is drawn in yellow when drawn over the global mix 5 Preview your extraction To hear only your extracted data select the target layer and click the Play button in the toolbar o hear the global mix click below the last layer in the Layers panel so no layer is selected and click the Play button in the toolbar EXTRACTING SPECTRAL DATA Extracting noise Extracting noise allows you to transfer noise from the global mix to the selected layer SpectraLayers provides two methods of extracting noise you can use the Extract Noise tool to register noise and manually move it to a new layer or you can use the Extract Noise tool to register noise and then choose Process gt Extract gt Noise to move the noise to a new layer Extract noise from a range of data 1 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 In the Layers Panel click the layer where you want to extract data or create a new layer and select it This is your target layer The selected layer is displayed in
56. o choose Zoom Time or Zoom Frequency to constrain zooming to the horizontal or vertical axis If you want to lock the spectrum display so the bottom of the graph remains anchored at 0 Hz when you zoom choose Options gt Scales gt Lock to OHz If you want to change the magnification level so the beginning and end of the selected layer are maximized in the spectral display choose Layer gt Zoom Extents Select to displace the spectral display in 3D space You can drag in the spectral display with the tool or use the edit boxes to the right of the tool to adjust the amount of displacement Double click the spectral display or click the Reset View button to restore the 2D view Editing tools Choose View gt Toolbars gt Tools to show or hide the editing tools The editing tools on the side of the spectral display provide access to spectral information extraction and editing Button Item Description N Graph Click to display a spectrum graph in a new window Hover over the spectrum graph to display information about power phase and phase velocity in various units and along time or frequency axes Vd Sampler Click to display a sampler that allows you to view different information about the spectrum at the top of the spectrum display Hover over the spectrum graph to see information about power phase and phase velocity in various units and along time or frequency axes JP Extract Area Allows you to transfer an ar
57. og box is displayed 2 Use the Export File dialog to choose the folder file name and file format you want to use to save your rendered mix 3 Click Save VIEWING LAYER PROPERTIES Editing with Sound Forge Pro From the Process menu choose Edit in Sound Forge Pro to open the selected layer in Sound Forge Pro 11 Windows or Sound Forge Pro Mac 2 0 When youre finished editing your changes will be updated in SpectraLayers From the Process menu choose Send to Sound Forge Pro to open the selected layer in Sound Forge Pro When you re finished editing you can save the edited layer from Sound Forge Pro _ If Sound Forge Pro is not installed the command is not available For more information please see http www sonycreativesoftware com soundf orge Editing a layer in Sound Forge Pro 1 Select a layer 2 If you want to edit only a portion of the layer create a time or frequency selection Only the selected data will be opened in Sound Forge Pro For more information see Selecting spectral data on page 47 3 From the Process menu choose Edit in Sound Forge Pro Sound Forge Pro starts and the selected layer is loaded as a new data window 4 Edit your file as needed in Sound Forge Pro For information about using Sound Forge Pro please refer to the application help 5 When you re done editing close the data window in Sound Forge Pro You ll be prompted to import your changes back to SpectraLayers Click Yes and the
58. on 47 set time cursor position 47 shape 25 shapes extracting 54 Show Grid 28 Show Marker and Regions 28 71 Smart Cursor Location 19 snap to grid 18 Sound Forge Pro 38 spectral casting 66 spectral display 27 spectral molding 66 Steinberg HALion 82 subtractive layers 30 subwin 21 T time cursor 19 time cursor position 47 time units 28 time deleting 35 time inserting 34 Tools Draw 61 Extract 49 Info 44 Modify 57 Tracktion 83 U Undo 18 units 28 unmuting channels 29 unselect all 48 INDEX V Vegas Pro 79 view toolbars 18 volume 20 VST effects 70 W wave editor 83 white noise 63 window layout 32 Window Overlap 21 Window Size 21 Window Subdivision 21 Window Type 21 Z Zebra Pattern Threshold 22 Zoom 22 Zoom Extents 22 28 INDEX
59. osition spread bin sets the number of bins spectrum samples around the peak frequency that will be extracted The selection is drawn in red in the spectral display and is drawn in yellow when drawn over the global mix 5 Preview your extraction o hear only your extracted data select the target layer and click the Play button in the toolbar o hear the global mix click below the last layer in the Layers panel so no layer is selected and click the Play button in the toolbar EXTRACTING SPECTRAL DATA 56 CHAPTER 5 Chapter 6 Modifying spectral data You can use the modify tools to manipulate spectral data in a layer Amplifying spectral data Amplifying an area allows you to increase the volume of a portion of the selected layer 1 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 2 In the Layers Panel click the layer where you want to amplify data The selected layer is displayed in red 3 Click the Amplify button The cursor is displayed as a target 4 Use the power dB control above the spectral display to set the amount of gain that the Amplify tool will apply 5 Click or drag in the spectral display to amplify spectral data The selection is drawn in a brighter color and you can use 3D Displace mode mode to see the peaks increase in the 3D space The selection
60. plers 79 load layout 32 Lock to OHz 22 28 logarithmic scaling 28 Logic Pro 81 Logs Path 31 Loop Playback 20 M Marker color 32 Max History Actions 32 Max Recent Projects 31 Media Composer 81 Mel scaling 28 Merge Active 36 Merge All 36 Merge Down 31 36 Merge Layer 31 metadata 71 MIDI logarithmic scaling 28 Mix Channels 64 Mix color 32 Mix Level Gamma Offset 64 mixing layers 37 Modify 57 Amplify 25 Clone 25 Eraser 26 Mold selected layer 68 molding 66 mouse cursor position 47 Move Down 31 move layer 31 Move tool 18 Move Up 31 moving aselection 47 muting channels 29 N name layer 36 new layer 34 noise 24 26 draw 61 extracting 52 53 O opening a project 33 p pan 22 Paste 19 Paths 31 Pause Playback 20 phase velocity units 28 phase layers 30 Play 20 power units 28 Pro Tools 81 proportional scaling 48 R REAKTOR 81 REAPER 82 Record 20 recording 34 recovering edits 33 Redo 18 Region color 32 remix 37 removing reverb 65 rename layer 36 renaming a layer 30 Render Layer 36 Render Mix 37 resample 37 reverb removal 65 Rewind 19 S sampler 23 Samplitude Sequoia 82 Save As 39 save layout 32 Save Project 18 39 saving mixed layers 37 Scale tool 18 scaling a selection 47 scaling the spectum display 28 Scroll Playback 20 Select tool 18 Selected Layer color 32 selecting a channel 29 selecting a layer 30 selecting spectral data 47 set mouse cursor position 47 set selecti
61. pplied by the eraser use tablet pressure select the button A to use pen pressure to multiply the power value when erasing transpose select this check box to transpose frequencies You can clear this check box when working with harmonic data to keep the structure of sound source choose the source layer that you want to clone MODIFYING SPECTRAL DATA s CHAPTER 6 Chapter 7 Drawing spectral data You can use the draw tools to draw a frequency into the selected layer Drawing a frequency 1 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 2 Inthe Layers Panel click the layer where you want to draw data The selected layer is displayed in red L 3 Click the Frequency button w The cursor is displayed as a target 4 Click or drag in the spectral display to draw frequencies in the spectral display You can use the power dB and use tablet pressure controls above the spectral display to adjust the drawn frequency power sets the level of drawn frequencies use tablet pressure select the button ES to use pen pressure to multiply the power value when drawing frequencies Drawing noise 1 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 2 Inthe Layers Panel click the l
62. presents time and the vertical axis represents frequency The global mix is displayed in green The selected layer is displayed in red and appears in yellow when drawn over the global mix The clipboard is displayed in blue and appears in cyan when drawn over the global mix The clipboard is a virtual layer that holds temporary data It is used by tools filters and the copy paste buffer for small operations When you copy data to the clipboard you can preview it directly by pressing Tab or by clicking the Play button in the toolbar and choosing Play Clipboard For more information see The toolbars on page 18 THE SPECTRALAYERS INTERFACE If you want to change the scale of the spectrum display choose Options gt Scales and choose a scale from the submenu The logarithmic scales Mel Bark ERB or MIDI provide better visibility of the lower frequencies compressing higher less significant frequencies at the top of the display For more information see The Spectral Settings toolbar on page 21 If you want to lock the spectrum display so the bottom of the graph remains anchored at 0 Hz when you zoom choose Options gt Scales gt Lock to OHz If you want the spectrum display to show regularly spaced octaves choose Options gt Scales gt MIDI logarithmic and then choose Options gt Units gt Frequency gt Note If you want to change the time frequency power and phase velocity units used in the spectru
63. red Click the Extract Noise button E The cursor is displayed as a target Register the noise in your audio to compute a noise gate a Click the Register Noise button above the spectral display b Click noisy areas in the spectral display to identify the noise you want to remove c Click the Register Noise button again to turn it off when you re done identifying noise Extract the noise to your new layer a Verify the layer where you want to extract noise is selected b With the Extract Noise button B selected click the portions of the spectrum that you registered in step 4 to transfer them to your new layer c Click noisy areas in the spectral display to identify the noise you want to remove Depending on your source material it may be easier to extract the signal you want to keep rather than extracting noise If you want to extract the signal you want to keep choose Extract Signal from the drop down list above the spectral display If you want to extract noise ensure Extract Noise is selected CHAPTER 5 d You can use the freq range Hz time range sec hardness and tolerance dB controls above the spectral display to adjust the range of data that will be extracted freq range Hz sets the range of the extraction area a time range sec sets the time range of the extraction a hardness sets the shape of the extraction area 100 extracts a raw block of data 0 extracts a block with feathered edges
64. rk efficiently with SpectraLayers Shortcuts Shortcuts are provided to help you edit quickly and easily in SpectraLayers Windows Shortcuts Mac OS Shortcuts Windows shortcuts Spectral display shortcuts Command Pan spectral display Zoom spectral display horizontally Zoom spectral display vertically 3D Displacement tool Adjust Level multiplier Shortcut Shift Arrow Keys Press P and drag the spectral display Press Shjft T and drag to pan horizontally Press Shift F and drag to pan vertically Middle click and drag Mouse Wheel to zoom horizontally Ctrlt Mouse Wheel to zoom horizontally and vertically Press Ctrl T and drag to zoom horizontally Shift Mouse Wheel CtrltMouse Wheel to zoom horizontally and vertically Ctrlt Arrow Up Down Press Ctrl F and drag to zoom vertically Middle click Mouse Wheel to zoom vertically D Alt middle click drag Alt Mouse Wheel Command Adjust Gamma Shortcut Alt Shift Mouse Wheel Alt middle click Mouse Wheel Window Size Fourier transform size Page Up Page Down Horizontal vertical channel orientation O Show hide grid Ctrl Shift G Show or hide markers and regions Ctrl Shift Kk Toggle bilinear filtering Ctrl Shift B Lock axes Shift Click Draw line Shift Click Lock bottom of spectrum display to 0 Hz Ctrl Shift L Edit shortcuts Command Snap to Grid Move Scale Select Select Time Select Frequency Set Mouse cursor Set time cursor
65. spectral data on page 49 Let s take a closer look at some frequencies If your file contains vocals or musical instruments you ll see horizontal lines that represent syllables or musical notes Several of these lines on top of each other represent harmonics and they create the audio signature of each voice and instrument GETTING STARTED 6 Zoom the spectral display to find the parts of a spectrum that you want to edit Use the Zoom tool a in the top right corner of the SpectraLayers window to change the magnification of the spectral display You can navigate the spectral display using the Pan tool WW in the top right corner of the SpectraLayers window Drag with the Pan tool to move the spectrum within the spectral display You can also zoom using your mouse wheel and you can pan by dragging the scroll bars around the spectral display For more information see The Spectral Display toolbar on page 22 When you zoom in horizontally or vertically you may notice that the frequencies will appear blurry The Window Size control in the Spectral Settings toolbar allows you to refine the spectral display You can choose a different window size from the Window Size or by pressing Page Up Page Down After increasing the window size you can see that the frequency lines are thinner Experiment with different Window Size settings to find the setting that allows you to see each line clearly CHAPTER 1 7 Let s extract
66. the peaks the higher the tones the stronger the peaks the stronger the tones Everything can be analyzed with this representation music voice even noise Frequency Time Spectral analysis has a resolution you have to choose between time and frequency accuracy That s called a window size and a size of 2048 4096 should be good for most situations with a file sampled at 44 100 Hz or 48 000 Hz Feel free to change the size on the fly as the accuracy of your work highly depends on it You should also play with the multiplier and gamma settings to see the small peak details in the spectral view Layers The layer system allows you to refine your work extensively in a nondestructive way Most audio applications use additive tracks only which is good for mixing various tracks together In SpectraLayers you also have subtractive layers which allow you to remove sound from your mix ABOUT SPECTRALAYERS This is possible thanks to the spectral approach of sound if you extract frequencies from the mix and transfer them into a new subtractive layer it will subtract these frequencies from the mix Subtractive layers work in the same way numbers are added and subtracted if you have 4 and remove 2 you will only have 2 left If you remove 2 again will end up with 0 which means no sound at all for the frequencies you have removed Take note that if you remove 2 again so if you remove more than you have at start you will end up wit
67. the speaker icon 91 for each layer you want to merge 2 Choose Layer gt Merge Active The active layers are merged with the selected layer Merge all Choose Layer gt Merge All All layers are merged Rendering a layer From the File menu choose Render Layer to render the selected layer as an audio file 1 Select a layer in the Layers panel 2 From the File menu choose Render Layer The Export File dialog box is displayed 3 Use the Export File dialog to choose the folder file name and file format you want to use to save your layer 4 Click Save CHAPTER 3 Resampling a project Choose Edit gt Resample Project to change the audio sample rate or number of channels in your project 1 Choose Edit gt Resample Project The Resample Project dialog is displayed 2 Use the Sample Rate control to choose the desired sample rate for your project The sample rate also referred to as the sampling rate or sampling frequency is the number of samples per second used to store a sound 3 Use the Channels control to choose the desired number of audio channels 4 Click OK 5 If you change the number of channels the Channel Remixer dialog is displayed Use the Channel Remixer to adjust the amount of the original channels that will be mixed to the new channels Rendering your mix From the File menu choose Render Mix to mix your project s layers to a new audio file 1 From the File menu choose Render Mix The Export File dial
68. the unwanted sound to a new layer to remove it from the global mix Extracting an area Extracting an area allows you to transfer portions of the global mix to the selected layer 1 Create a new SpectraLayers project or open an existing project file For more information see Creating a new project on page 33 or Opening a project on page 33 2 Inthe Layers Panel click the layer where you want to extract data or create a new layer and select it This is your target layer The selected layer is displayed in red F 3 Click the Extract Area button The cursor is displayed as a target 4 Click or drag in the spectral display to extract spectral data to from the global mix to the selected layer The selection is bound to the area you click in the spectral display You can use the freq range Hz time range sec and hardness controls above the spectral display to adjust the selection area m freq range Hz sets the range of the extraction area a time range sec sets the time range of the extraction a hardness sets the shape of the extraction area 100 extracts a raw block of data 0 extracts a block with feathered edges The selection is drawn in red in the spectral display and is drawn in yellow when drawn over the global mix 5 Preview your extraction To hear only your extracted data select the target layer and click the Play button in the toolbar o hear the global mix click b
69. tool can compute a noise gate Reset reset noise gate Frequency Range area range in hertz Time Range time range in seconds Hardness 0 transfers with soft borders 100 transfers a raw block Tolerance tolerance to the noise gate Button Item Description w Extract Shape Allows you to transfer a shape with power tracking from the mix to the selected layer Minimum minimum power to start shape tracking from the mouse position Tolerance tracking will stop when the power is lower than this value from the mouse position Freq limit maximum frequency range tracked relative to mouse position Time limit maximum time range tracked relative to mouse position Spread how many samples around the peaks are also transferred Modify Amplify Allows you to amplify an area in the selected layer Frequency Range area range in hertz Time Range time range in seconds Hardness 0 transfers with soft borders 100 transfers a raw block Strength multiplier for amplification Use tablet pressure when selected pen pressure will multiply the strength value T Modify Clone Allows you to clone an area from and to the current layer y You have to pick a source location first Pick choose a source location Frequency Range area range in hertz Time Range time range in seconds Hardness 0 transfers with soft borders 100 transfers a raw block Use tablet pressure when activated pen pressure
70. udio file For more information see Spectral display on page 27 You can play your audio file by clicking the Play button E or pressing the space bar GETTING STARTED 3 Before performing any edits you need to select a layer Click the layer in the Layers panel to select it Notice how it is highlighted red in the Layers panel and in the spectral display P B Untitled sip 4 Now let s modify the spectrum After you select a layer the tools in the Modify section of the Tools toolbar are available The Modify tools act directly on the layer you selected Select the Erase tool F ond click and drag in the bottom of the spectrum display to erase data in the lower frequencies of your audio file For more information see Erasing spectral data on page 58 Now play your audio file and notice how the sound is different you ve done your first spectral editing CHAPTER 1 5 SpectraLayers projects can contain many layers Let s create a layer Click the New R button at the bottom of the Layers pane or choose Layer gt New A new layer is added to the Layers pane and the new layer is automatically selected This new layer is empty and were going to fill it with spectral data from our source audio file the first layer you imported Notice that the source audio layer is displayed in green again the tools in the Extract section of the Tools toolbar are available For more information see Extracting
71. unds A recorded saxophone a Some synthetic instruments may produce unharmonic sounds harmonic like but with float frequency multiplier CHAPTER 4 s Percussive instruments such as drums produce noise A drum fill Sounds from nature and engine sounds a Thesea and the wind are noise a Something that breaks or crashes is noise Engine sounds can be noise or harmonics Moving and scaling harmonics vertically While moving or scaling noise or pure tones does not change their nature moving harmonics breaks the harmonic rules Moving harmonics adds a constant frequency if a piano plays A4 see above and we move this sound by 100 Hz the 3 first frequencies will be 440 100 540 Hz 880 100 980 Hz and 1320 100 1420 Hz 1420 Hz and 980 Hz are not multiples of 540 Hz which means the sound will be unharmonic it will not sound like a piano note anymore To preserve the harmonics we need to scale multiply the frequencies Scaling A4 by 1 2 produces 440 x 1 2 528 Hz 880 Hz x 1 2 1056 Hz 1320 x 1 2 1584 Hz 1584 Hz 528 Hz x 3 and 1056 Hz 528 Hz x 2 so we preserved harmonics and the recording will still sound like a piano VIEWING AND SELECTING SPECTRAL DATA Formant and time envelope The formant is the frequency signature of a sound and it applies both to harmonic and noise sounds It is the envelope of amplitudes across frequencies A person s voice sounds different from another person s voice and sounds
72. w Phase Velocity Degree Window Phase Velocity Hertz Peak Power dB Peak Power Value Peak Bin Peak Hertz Complex Value Positioning the cursor Delete this text and replace it with your own content CHAPTER 4 Positioning the mouse cursor 1 Choose Edit gt Set Mouse Cursor Position The Mouse Cursor Position dialog is displayed 2 Use the Time control to specify the timeline horizontal position where you d like to move the cursor 3 Use the Frequency control to specify the frequency vertical position where you d like to move the cursor 4 Use the Channel control to specify the audio channel where you d like to move the cursor 5 Click OK Positioning the time cursor 1 Choose Edit gt Set Time Cursor Position The Time Cursor Position dialog is displayed 2 Use the Time Cursor Position control to specify the timeline horizontal position where you d like to move the cursor 3 Click OK Selecting spectral data You can use the Select e e Move T and Scale bt tools in the toolbar to select data in the spectral display Creating a selection with the mouse With the Select tool 4e click and drag in the spectral display to create a rectangular selection e Tips a Press T to select a time range that includes the full frequency range a Press F to select a frequency range that spans the full time span of the spectral display Creating a selection with the Set Selection dialog 1 Choose Edit gt S
73. will multiply the strength value Transpose transpose frequencies When working with harmonic data clearing this check box will maintain the structure of sound Source source layer THE SPECTRALAYERS INTERFACE Button Item g Modify Eraser F pr Draw Frequency gN Draw Noise Description Allows you to erase an area in the selected layer Frequency Range area range in hertz Time Range time range in seconds Hardness 0 transfers with soft borders 100 transfers a raw block Strength eraser multiplier Use tablet pressure when selected pen pressure will multiply the strength value Allows you to draw a frequency in the selected layer Strength draw multiplier Use tablet pressure when selected pen pressure will multiply the strength value Allows you to draw an area of noise in selected layer Frequency Range area range in hertz Time Range time range in seconds Hardness 0 transfers with soft borders 100 transfers a raw block Strength eraser multiplier Use tablet pressure when selected pen pressure will multiply the strength value The Tool Settings toolbar Choose View gt Toolbars gt Tool Settings to show or hide the Tool Settings toolbar The Tool Settings toolbar displays controls for the active editing tool For more information see Editing tools on page 23 CHAPTER 2 Spectral display The spectral display represents the spectrum The horizontal axis re
74. yers panel For more information see The Layers panel on page 30 s CHAPTER 8 2 Adjust the spectrum display until the harmonics are clearly visible For more information see The Spectral Settings toolbar on page 21 and The Spectral Display toolbar on page 22 In the Layers panel select the layer you want to apply the mold to Choose Process gt Mix gt Cast Peaks The Cast Peaks dialog is displayed Select the Mold selected layer radio button Anu D W Type a value in the ratio box or use the spin control to set the gain that will be applied to your molded peaks 7 Type a value in the time margin and freq margin boxes or use the spin controls to control the time and frequency range that is used when molding peaks Increasing the margin settings produces softer feathered peaks 8 Click Preview to preview the current dialog settings and adjust the settings as needed 9 Click Apply to mold peaks with the current dialog settings To demonstrate the effect of molding let s start with a simple two layer project with a music bed and a voiceover The following image shows the global mix of the voiceover and a music bed The music bed layer is selected it is displayed in red The voiceover layer is part of the global mix it is displayed in green You can see where the layers intersect After selecting the music bed layer and molding peaks the voiceover layer from the global mix is used to mold the frequency

SpectraLayers 2.1 User Manual

Contents

Download Pdf Manuals

Related Search

Related Contents