[ardour-dev] issues with plugin in/out counts

[Mark Knecht]

On Tue, 23 Nov 2004 14:38:17 -0500, Paul Davis
<paul at linuxaudiosystems.com> wrote:
> 
> 
> >I think all of this can be extended into Ardour's N-width track
> >structure. A J-in/N-out plugin creates a N-out track. From there on I
> >can only use plugins that are:
> >
> >1) N-in/M-output plugins. The track is now M-output. (where M is any
> >number - greater, smaller or equal.)
> >
> >or
> >
> >2) 1-in/1-out plugins. The track remains N-out. Ardour does multi-mono.
> >
> >This does restrict what a user can place on a track. There's no simple
> >answer to having a 5-out plugin drive a 3-in plugin. Don;t try placing
> >two 3-in plugins into the system and only using 5 of the 6 inputs.
> >Just don't go there. Support equal widths and multi-mono and it's
> >pretty clean.
> 
> the implementation nightmare in that rule arises from another common
> user desire: plugin reordering.
> 
> if plugins could never be reordered, applying those rules is fairly
> easy. as soon as we allow (and i think we should), applying them gets
> really hairy really fast.
> 

But if you can catch what breaks the rules with the new plugin order,
then couldn't you just disable the plugins at the end of the chain
that break the rules and let me deal with that by hand? The only thing
I'd hope for is that if I put them back in order that they work again
and that Idon't have to pull plugins out and reinstantiate. We don't
talk about it much here yet, but in Waves I use plugin setting files.
I have to call these up by hand when I first put a plug in the chain.
I would hope not to lose that info when I make a mistake dragging a
plugin around in this chain.

I personally don;t think you should worry about making it so
automatic. I do reorder plugins within Pro Tools occasionally. When I
run into a problem I learn, then fix it, then hopefully don't make
that mistake again. That works for me.

Just my 2 cents.

Thanks,
Mark