Tutorial 3 : Basic multichannel configuration and usage in ENERGYXT

Since EnergyXT is a modular software, some aspects of its functioning are simpler than in multitrack ones, notably there is no bus problem or of position of the plugins : simply connect what you want where you want ! Its worflow is one of the most intuitive and fast, and its price... On the other hand, there is actually some lack of function in the Sequencer object, and the recording of the multichannel outputs which is not obvious. Since it can run as a VST plugin itself, you can also integrate it into Podium or Nuendo...

needs : EnergyXT (demo version / 39 €), SpatSurround 12, MultiJoy 16

A. 1st Method : The modular way Part 1 : Configuring and inserting the modules When you first run EnergyXT, you will find two objects : an Audio/MIDI input and an Audio/MIDI Output

(appearance may differ) We must, as usual, configure the audio interface for working in multichannel with the Setup button.

You must, at least, select the output that you need ; for this example, 8 (the inputs are not needed) :

A right click on the Master Out object allows to open the Output configuration :

Simply click on the Add button to have four Stereo channels (or click on Unlink if you prefer to have eight Mono, but for this tutorial, conserve the stereo setting)

The Master Out object now has four (stereo) connectors :

We will now insert a SpatSurround 12 plugin and a Sequencer object. For inserting there is two methods : - drag the .dll file from any Windows folder

and drop it in the EnergyXT space - a connection is automaticaly made for the first Output :

You can also just right click inside EnergyXT space and select the folder and the file that you want :

Do this for inserting the Sequencer object, which is also automaticaly connected :

... but not like we want. So, if we want to have the audio output of the sequencer that goes inside the SpatSurround, we must disconnect the wire from its output to the Master Out object, reconnect it to the input of the SpatSurround (there are also some other ways to obtain the same result, but that is for another tutorial...). Right click on the output of the Sequencer (the wire disappears) and drag a new wire from its output to the SpatSurround's input, which gives :

You have nothing more to do than connect the three remaining stereo outs of the SpatSurround,

and double click on the plugin and the Sequencer objects - you are ready to start :

It can't be any simpler !

B. 1st Method : The modular way Part 2 : Audio processing and automation recording

Since the Sequencer object already contains two MIDI tracks but no Audio track, we must create one :

For importing a wave file, there are two simple ways : right click / Insert Sample or direct drag and drop from a Windows folder

Select the third Preset of the SpatSurround at the top of its window in order to have a ready made eight channels config

... and play ! (for the typical usage of the Energy's Sequencer, you must first read the helps and tutorials that are provided in the site)

Automation of the plugin's parameters. There are none. That is to say that it is not possible in the current version of EnergyXT to record the movements which are made inside the plugin interface. BUT, it can record MIDI from an extrernal device or from an other plugin...

This is what we will do. For this, we will need for this a MultiJoj :

Its main purpose is to control, simultaneously, several SpatSurrounds, so it can be use for only one... First, hide the objects "3" to "8" (click on the blue buttons) in order to have only the two objects "1" and "2" (ignore the blue cross in the middle). At the right edge, you can see some values under two columns X and Y : these are the MIDI control change numbers that are sends for the X and Y axis of each object. Connect the MIDI out of the MultiJoy to the MIDI input of the Sequencer (since we need to record the values) :

Perhaps have you seen that the Sequencer doesn't have any MIDI out port ?

Don't worry : in the Sequencer you will find an option "Add MIDI Port" in the File menu :

and now it has one that you can connect to the MIDI input of the SpatSurround :

Go to the Sequencer, select a MIDI track and assign it to the MIDI port :

All that remains is to tell the SpatSurround what MIDI control change it must respond to. This can be done in several ways - the faster is to use the MIDI Learn function :

- click on Learn - move the blue ring horizontally - go to the MultiJoy and move the "1" object HORIZONTALY too - you can see that the blue ring follows the movements that you make inside the MultiJoy - repeat the same steps for the vertical range and, if you want, for the red ring associated with the "2" object - if you move the wrong way and don't obtain the assignments that you wish or simply want to initialize the plug, you can click on the Reset button. Now you can record and replay the movements that you make inside the MultiJoy as "automation" of the SpatSurround parameters. (please learn how to use EnergyXT first) But there is an other way to obtain the same result...

C. 2nd Method : The bus way

Like in any multitrack software, all the routings can also be done INSIDE the Sequencer object. For this, add, in the main window, a new Sequencer (yes, you can have several of them !), add to it three, new, additional stereo outputs in the same way as we've added other entries to the Master Output object (see Part A-1) connect these outputs on the Master Out's and the MultiJoy to its MIDI input :

As for the previous part, we will add an Audio Track in this new Sequencer (Part B-1) Now, since we want to record the MIDI control changes coming from the MultiJoy and send to the SpatSurround, we can directly select a VST from a MIDI track (right click) :

In this way, the plugin remains inside the Sequencer and does't appear in the main window, but you can show it with the "E" button beneath its name, since a new object has appeared in the mixer side of the Sequencer :

and allows us to choose it as an output of the audio track :

All that remain is to connect each output of the SpatSurround to the Master Outs in the same manner (right click on the SpatSurround's name) :

and finally choose the MIDI CC number that you want for the blue and red rings, that is to say : Left X, Left Y, Right X and Right Y (always with a right click on the SpatSurround's name) :

which gives four new objects in the mixer :

Let us choose the MIDI CC by a mouse click on the little buttons at the left side of these objects :

and RUN ! (see Part B-4)

(Thanks a lot to Franck Newmann for its comments and corrections)