104 lines
4.0 KiB
HTML
104 lines
4.0 KiB
HTML
<p>
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I/O plugins are a way to process audio outside the normal Ardour session or
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connect to sources typically unavailable in a DAW, such as outputs of NDI
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devices. Pre-plugins run before Ardour does any processing, post-plugins run
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after Ardour has done all processing.
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</p>
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<p>
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A common use case is wet recording where a number of plugins are applied
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directly to the physical input. The processed signal then can be routed to any
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number of tracks or busses in Ardour. This is a lot like doing some of the
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processing with a chain of guitar pedals, then feeding the signal to an Aux In
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port on a mixing console or an input port on a multi-effects digital
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pedalboard.
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</p>
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<p>
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The rationale for pre-processing with I/O plugins is that it's a more
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lightweight way to do it as compared to busses. Much of that is because busses
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have automatable parameters such as fader and panner positions, as well as
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plugins' parameters. Evaluating parameter automation (even when there's none)
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adds additional load to the CPU. However I/O plugins are not automatable, so
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there's no evaluation happening. As far as Ardour is concerned, they are
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almost like JACK audio server clients running alongside Ardour.
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</p>
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<p>
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Another use case would be loading an instance of the NDI Input plugin as a
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pre-processing plugin to be able to capture and mix sources from NDI devices,
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or loading an instance of the NDI Output plugin to send audio from Ardour over
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IP to a receiver for broadcasting.
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</p>
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<figure>
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<img style="width:50%;" width="50%" src="/images/io-plugins-ndi-input.png" alt="NDI Input plugin loaded as a pre-processing I/O plugin">
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<figcaption>NDI Input plugin loaded as a pre-processing I/O plugin</figcaption>
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</figure>
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<p>
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It's also possible to use the post-processing section to load plugins for room
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correction or signal analysis (VU meters, spectrum analyzers etc.).
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</p>
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<h2>Adding I/O plugins</h2>
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<p>
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New I/O plugins can be added in the <kbd class="title">I/O Plugins</kbd>
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dialog (<kbd class="menu">Window > I/O Plugins</kbd>).
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</p>
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<figure>
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<img style="width:50%;" width="50%" src="/images/io-plugins-empty-slots.png" alt="Empty slots in the I/O Plugins dialog">
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<figcaption>Empty slots in the I/O Plugins dialog</figcaption>
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</figure>
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<p>
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Right-clicking opens the same menu for plugin selection available for mixer
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channel strips:
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</p>
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<figure>
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<img style="width:50%;" width="50%" src="/images/io-plugins-right-click-menu.png" alt="Right-click menu in the I/O Plugins dialog">
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<figcaption>Right-click menu in the I/O Plugins dialog</figcaption>
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</figure>
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<p>
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Double-clicking opens the <kbd class="title">Plugin Selector</kbd> dialog.
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</p>
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<p>
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Once a plugin has been selected and added, it shows in either Pre- or
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Post-process section depending on your choice.
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</p>
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<figure>
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<img style="width:50%;" width="50%" src="/images/io-plugins-one-plugin-added.png" alt="ACE Compressor added to the pre- section">
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<figcaption>ACE Compressor added to the Pre-process section</figcaption>
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</figure>
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<h2>Routing I/O plugins</h2>
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<p>
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I/O plugins have the same user interface for setting input and outputs that is
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also available in mixer channel strips. The button above the plugin name opens
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a drop-down menu for quickly choosing an input port. The button below opens
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the drop-down menu for choosing the output port.
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</p>
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<figure>
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<img style="width:50%;" width="50%" src="/images/io-plugins-choose-output.png" alt="Choosing output for an I/O plugin">
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<figcaption>Choosing output for an I/O plugin</figcaption>
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</figure>
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<p>
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Additionally, new tracks automatically connected to an I/O plugin can be
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easily created in the <kbd class="title">Recorder</kbd> window by clicking the
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<kbd class="key">+</kbd> button and then setting a new for that track.
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</p>
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<figure>
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<img style="width:50%;" width="50%" src="/images/io-plugins-new-track-from-io-plugin.png" alt="New track connected to an I/O plugin">
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<figcaption>New track connected to an I/O plugin</figcaption>
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</figure>
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