Numerology

See the long Read me file included

Numerology 2.1's new ReWire driver now offers full support for running Audio Unit plugins, including their editor windows. This innovative feature allows the user to seamlessly integrate Numerology with ReWire host applications while maintaing nearly all features that are present when running standalone, the only missing item being audio input. Other improvements to the ReWire implementation include the addition of 30 audio output channels, bringing the total to 16 stereo pairs. This driver also includes fixes to some transport related problems, and much reduced CPU overhead.

The new Chord Sequencer module makes it easy to build chord progressions using a series of sequenced high-level parameters, including scale degree (I, IV, V, etc), chord family and type (including 10 types of 7th chords), inversion, spacing and octave offset. The Chord Sequencer also includes options to strum and arpeggiate the notes of a chord, or to play them as "broken" chords. Whether the user is complete newbie or a seasoned pro the Chord Sequencer makes building and experimenting with chord progressions a quick and enjoyable task.

Numerology's MonoNote, PolyNote and Drum Sequencer modules now offer both real-time and step-time sequence recording options. This feature allows you to program steps from a MIDI keyboard and, in conjunction with several other features of Numerology's sequencing modules, opens up several interesting compositional options including "sound on sound" looped composition, and generative auto-accompaniment.

All of Numerology's Note Sequencer modules now have per-step groove controls that allow the timing of each step to be individually pushed or pulled relative to the overall tempo. Combined with the groove timing options of Numerology's GrooveClock module, this offers the most flexible set of timing options of any sequencing application.

Other new features in Numerology 2.1 include:

A Transport Loop

A Keyboard module which emulates a MIDI keyboard. It can be use for triggering sounds, and for monitoring MIDI note streams.

A new set of I/O modules for additional flexibility in routing MIDI, Audio and CV signals.

A new 'step-trigger' option for all sequencers to make it easier to emulate the behavior of analog step sequencers.

And, of course, many general fixes and updates. The complete list of changes can be found in the readme file included with all Numerology installations.

This release includes many fixes and improvements, as well as couple of handy new features, including .mp3 and .m4a file support for the AudioSample and DrumKit modules, and "on the fly" audio recording support.

Numerology 2.0.0 Release Notes:

Added Examples folder to the download.

Cleaned up some debug messags.

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Numerology 2 RC2 Release Notes:

MIDI Sync Updates:

much reduced latency when slave sync'd to other programs.

much reduced latency when acting as sync master on 10.5.6.

On Macs with OS 10.5.6, thanks to an Apple bug fix, Numerology will properly follow locates and transport loops when sync'd via MIDI Clock. There is a bit of a stutter with Logic, but I will be working on ways to avoid that.

Other Fixes:

Fixed a crash related to the Commentary Module.

Fixed a crash that could happen on Mac's with no audio input.

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Numerology 2 RC1 Release Notes:

ReWire:

Improved timing for MIDI events over longer periods of time (> 10 minutes). There will still be some delay, and a very small amount of jitter, but those can easily be accomodated for in a host app by quantizing a bit.

Fixed a problem with the Comment module that could cause an error when saving a file.

Fixed a crash that could occur on startup on Mac's with no audio input.

Doc updated again -- and finally spell-checked! :)

Changed the name of the app from "Numerology2Beta" to "Numerology2"

Fixed a crash that could happen by attempting to assign a MIDI CC, or setup param mod on a waveform view.

Audio Sample / Drum Kit

Drag & Drop : you can now drag-n-drop audio files from the Finder (aiff, wav, sd2) directly into the 'waveform' views to load them. In the DrumKit, you can load multiple files at once, if you like.

Fixed a bug where samples would not be properly loaded if the Sample was loaded from the project's media folder, and the stack was duplicated.

Novation Automap:

Auto-mapped AU's now load properly.

Documentation:

Many Updates, almost done!

Misc Fixes / Updates

You can now quit while the transport is running.

Fixed a bug where Stacks that are turned off could continue to produce a buzzing sound through their aux sends.

Fixed a stuck-note bug w/ the NoteGen module.

In the SignalProcessor module, the range of the "ClipLow" param has been fixed, and the range of both ClipLow and ClipHigh has been increased, they now range from -9000 to +9000

Fixed a stuck-note problem with the NoteQuantizer.

Fixed a bug where the "rec" light would blink in the transport after recording was disabled.

Fixed a problem with the pitch grid scroller -- it would get off-track when changing the height of the pitch grid.

Improved the timing accuracy of the CcGen and NrpnGen modules.

Fixed a nasty stack-overflow crash that could happen if you made a CV feedback loop within a stack.

DrumKit module : sample-based drum synth

AudioSample module: sample-based polyphonic synthesizer

Module import/export

Audio Recording

Many other fixes and updates.

Numerology 2 Beta 30A Release Notes:

Audio Sample

Now has a manual play/stop button.

Also now has an 'auto' button. When active, the loop will auto start and stop with the master transport.

Has a loop on/off button

Has a "constant loop pitch" option, the "CP" button next to the x-fade param. When this is on, pitch is kept constant as the x-fade changes. This is probably not all that useful when using loops

that are longer (more than about 1/30 of a second), but for short, 'oscillator'-type loops, it is quite amazing -- it gives you hard-sync types of timbral modulation while keeping the base pitch steady.

DrumKit

Each part now has a loop on/off button (labeled "Lp" -- didn't have time to do an icon...)

Documentation:

I've begun to review the doc and address ITS problems :), staring with the reference pages -- you'll be able to identify them as they have the "DRAFT"
tag removed from their titles. There are also new ref doc pages for the AudioSample and DrumKit modules.


Fixes and Updates:

The LFO & DualLFO are now more responsive to frequency/period related changes while running.

Fixed a logging issue that could cause problems when waking from sleep

Fixed a crash that could happen with loading AU presets

Fixed a bug where AUPreset data would not load from files properly

The DrumSeq prototype module now starts with 8 tracks, to match up with the DrumKit module.

The title of the DrumKit has been fixed (it was "Audio Sample")

The default velocity sensitivity of the AudioSample is now 0.5.

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Numerology 2 Beta 30 Release Notes:

New Module: Drum Kit

It's basically 8 "Audio Sample" players in one module, with definable note ranges, adjustable velocity sensitivity, a pair of choke options (parts 4-3 and 8-7), per-part panning, and individual outputs.

The default note range of each part corresponds to the following Standard MIDI drum kit sounds:
Bass Drum 1, Electric Snare, Low Tom, Hi-Mid Tom, Close HH, Open HH, Crash Cymbal, Cowbell
The default note ranges for the DrumSeq have been adjusted to match.

This is a deceptively simple module, so there are some important details I would like to point out:

Each module has a full AHDSR amplitude envelope, and a loop x-fade control, so you're not limited to just percussive sounds.

You can set the note range to be anything you like, so you can do tuned percusson FX sounds, or note-based multisamples quite easily. Tuning of samples is adjusted so that the low-note is always at the 'nominal' tuning for the sample.

The tuning range is wide: +/- 60 semitones. I'm even thinking of expanding that range...

Each part has a 'mute' button (adjacent to the volume control). It mutes the part from the Main Out, but not the individual outputs, making it easy to setup per-part processing easily. Remember that all you have to do to mix such parts back in, is to connect the audio output for it (or it's custom processing chain), into the audio output of the stack (or anywhere else).

And of course, it's a Numerology module so:

- you can tweak the kit settings for each stack preset if you like
(or use the module menu "Copy Params To All Presets" to do otherwise,
or put the DrumKit module in a stack separate from your DrumSeq's)

- You can modulate the crap out of any param easily.

- You can use as many DrumKit modules as you like.

Limitations:

Each part currently only has 2 voices.

Sample loading happens on the audio render thread -- this is a HUGE NO NO, but really not any worse than what other drum samplers do when they load samples. The workaround is easy: don't load samples while the transport is running if you don't want any undue glitching.

Audio Sample:
- tweaked the note-stealing process to be less 'clicky'
- now has an adjustable cross-fade parameter
- now has adjustable velocity sensitivity
- now has a pan control
- re-calibrated volume control
- tuning is now in +/- some number of semitones

Loop Settings : Drum Kit & Audio Sampler

Along with the cross fade, I've instituted some new constraints on the looping paramters:

The sample start point must always be less than or equal to the loop start point.

The loop start point must always be less than or equal to the loop end point.

These rules are there so that cross-fade algorithm has a known set of conditions to deal with. As I get more time to work on the sample-playback algorithm, I may relex them.

Sample Management:

Now, when you save a project that includes an AudioSample or DrumKit module, you will be asked if you would like to copy the samples into the media folder for that project. If you chose to do so, they will be copied into a folder called "AudioSamples" within the media folder.

Module Export

In the module menu for each module (on the left-side of the module header), there is now an option to export the module. This will create a file with the extension ".nmod", and an accompanying media folder (if appropriate). If the module is an AudioSample or DrumKit, all samples will be copied in automatically. You will also have the option of making a .zip archive of the result. That .zip file is what you should use to share modules.

Exported modules include only the settings for the preset that is current when they are exported -- this is to avoid odd behavior when importing a module into a stack that already has several presets. If you want to share a module that has multiple presets, see the instructions in the "File Exchange : Stacks" forum at five12.net.

Module Import

This item is in the Stack menu, and allows you to import .nmod files into the current stack.

Audio Units

Once again, the spectre of VST-originated behavior within some AudioUnits has made its unwelcome appearance. In this case it means that Numerology can only safely load AU Presets for an AudioUnit on the main UI thread. I have implemented this behavior with the new build, which should improve AU reliability significantly, but it has two important ramifications: Numerology can no longer change AU presets when Numerology Stack presets change (as there are unresolvable timing issues), and Numerology can no longer load AU presets when in ReWire mode.

Here is the example that forces me into this decision:

Numerology loads a project with an AU that plays back samples.

While opening the project (which happens on a background thread), Numerology loads the preset data for that AU and sets it.

The AU reads the preset data, and tries loading sample files referenced by it, but can't find them. So it decides to open a dialog to warn the user. This may seem like a reasonable thing to do, except that when you try to pop up a dialog from a non-UI thread, you invariably lock up the app altogether. This is why the dudes on the CoreAudio team say not to run UI code on certain AU api calls, but many AU developers do it anyway.

What should probably happen is that the AU should return an error code when the host tries to set the AU preset data, then also report the error to the user, when the user opens the UI for that AudioUnit.

In addition to setting the AU preset when a session loads, Numerology (before now) could also change the AU preset when changing stack presets, and did so in a sample-accurate manner. For some 'large' AudioUnits, this was of limited usefulness (as it could cause glitches), but for the 'smaller' ones (i.e. anything from Apple, and many others), it allowed us the luxury of being able to tweak AU parameters for each of the presets in a stack (just like you can for Numerology's 'native' modules). I may restore this behavior later on, for AU's that can handle it, but it is off for now.

The new behavior is as follows:

When you load a preset for an AU module, that preset stays constant (static) for all your stack presets.

When you save a project, Numerology will save the current stat of all AUs as AU Presets with the project. (as before)

When you load a project, Numerology will restore the state of all AUs from AU Preset data stored with the project. (also as before).

If you need to simulate the prior behavior, there are a couple of options:

If the AU is small, or the number of params you need to tweak are manageable, then you can use the FaderBox and ParamMod modules to build a custom control surface. I've done this with GuitarRig and AugustusLoop and it works very well.

With some AU's, you may be able to use MIDI program change messages.

As the on/off switch for each module is always 'stack preset aware', you can actually add multiple copies of an AU and switch them on and off with stack presets. Modules that are 'off' are not rendered, so there is no CPU load issue.

ReWire

AU hosting has been disabled in ReWire mode for now -- due to reasons discussed above, Numerology can only reliably change presets for AU's in the UI, which is not possible in ReWire mode. Well, without preset support, the only way to control AU's in ReWire mode is to use ParamMod, which is only practical for a very few AU's. Of course, you should just host them in the ReWire host app.

Recording now works in ReWire mode -- not that there's any real reason to use it, but it does work.

Patchbay Setup

You can now set custom names for each pair of audio inputs and outputs, as well as enable & disable I/O in stereo pairs. Settings are saved per-device, so you can have custom settings for each device. The deviced used is the currently active one, so if you go into Preferences and change the audio device, you'll have to restart Numerology before you can edit the PatchbaySetup for that device.

The default audio I/O setup (which what you'll all get when you startup), only the first pair of inputs and outpus are enabled, so if you use lots of I/O, you will need to manually enable them. The first pair of audio outputs are always enabled.


Memory Management
I've rewritten some of Numerology's internal memory management code, and fixed several crashes and other conditions that could cause crashes, including one that could happen when starting up, and another that tended to happen when opening files.

Volume:

I've re-calibrated all volume faders to more closely match the response of traditional mixer faders. If you have been using ParamMod on GroupOut volume, you will need to update the ParamId settings as follows:

set the target param to something other than AudioVolume

set the target param back to AudioVolume

Patchbay Setup:

The location for this file, which holds preferences for Numerologys internal busses, is now located in:


/Library/Application Support/Five12/Numerology

The new code will check for an existing old p-bay setup file in the old location (/Library/Application Support/Five12/Numerology) and copy it's settings to the new location.

Misc Fixes and Updates:

fixed a 'buzz' sound that could happen when deleting AU Synths.

fixed a stuck note problem that could happen with external sync.

The level knob in the LFO module works again.

Fixed a suble display bug affecting the Routing page for modules.

Stopped the "Rec" indicator in the transport from 'floating around' when resizing the project window.

Added "Run Mode", "Loop", and "Auto Reset" menus to the ModulationSeq module. (in the advanced settings panel)

DualLFO: randomness of S&H waveforms much improved

Fixed a display bug in ParamMod related to the display of some parameters, including "StartStep" and "EndStep"

Sequencers: Fixed several bugs that would occur when the start step is greater than the end step.

This beta introduces two major new features for Numerology: Audio Recording and a simple, but highly useful polyphonic Audio Sample player. Also included are various improvements to AU hosting and Parameter Modulation.

fixed an Audio prefs issue that caused a crash under Rosetta

fixed a preset save bug that would cause the preset save dialog to appear twice

fixed a bug in saving pan info

fixed a bug that kept Numerology from launching in Panther

Fixed a bug where pan was not saved/restored with a file.

ProgChange module changes:

- the "ProgramNum" parameter can now be automated
- each time the "ProgramNum" parameter is changed, it will send out a program change msg.

added a hidden pref to disable transmission of MIDI song pos ptr,

which should be needed only in rare circumstances. To activeate it,
run this command from any Terminal window:
defaults write com.five12.Numerology "ShutoffSongPosPtr" "YES

the MidiSwitch & SignalSwitch modules should now work correctly.

handling of CC control over the ctl seq module has been tweaked to

ensure that incoming values are quantized when appropriate, and so that
the UI does not display a value different from what the sequencer outputs.

fixed a bug that could cause a crash when deleting a group.

This build seems to work fine in both 10.3.9/Quicktime 7 and 10.4.1. I have

not tested on 10.3.8 or earlier versions of Quicktime. If you see any issues
with earlier versions, let me know, but the two versions listed above will be the only officially supported versions.

Most of the UI controls in this version have been revised to avoid variousn drawing errors that occurred with earlier versions. Please report any further drawing errors you may see.

When setting factory presets for AUs, Numerology now sends both preset number and name. Some recent AU's crash if you don't also send the name (which according to the AU spec, should be optional for factory presets).

"mouseMoved" events are now turned on for AU edit windows, this allows mouse-overs and menus to work more smoothly. In particular this was an issue w/ NI plugins.

Plugsound free now seems to work correctly. Hopefully this will translate to

other plugins based on the UVI engine. Please report any problems.

Minor fix for Tiger (Mac OS 10.4.0)

MIDI and Signal switcher modules,

new CC control over panning and aux sends,

nested menu support for AU Preset files and directories,

improved clock sync,

fixes and minor updates.

Control Sequencer : Interpolated step modes
Audio Input enhancements
New Clock Divisions
Updated Numerology 'Engine' Execution
Mixing Enhancements
Group Import
Other minor enhancements
Many bugs fixed