Hi, Just wondering why it is not possible to use the Time Range Selection tool on the waveform view of the application? This is really one of the only tools that would apply to that view, but honestly is annoying to have to keep scaling back and forth between the views to make a time based selection.
Example is using something like the Phase Rotation tool where that really gives better visual feedback on the waveform section, and not so much spectral.
That could indeed be considered, I’ll see what I can do.
I never use the waveform, but if I did I would consider this an essential functionality. =)
I often use the wave form view for levelling and especially for manual phase alignment
I haven’t done any phase rotation yet
Amazing!
I have been pretty open about my usage of RX in contrast with SL, and greatly appreciate them being a similar tool with different strengths. The Waveform view in SL has always puzzled me because it is great to have the visual waveform feedback, but the amount of screen real-estate that it takes up, and no functions/tools (aside from scrolling) can be carried out within that window, make it pretty useless…
One more suggestion while I am here to speak to that: in RX they place the waveform overtop of the spectrum, and have a slider to modulate the opacity between the layers, so you can have a blend, or a hard on/off of each view. It would be cool if something like this was in SL, but slightly different and unique: I am picturing being able to lock the spectrogram height, and then the window resize for the waveform view actually ‘bleeds’ it over top of the spectrogram (dragging it overtop of the spectrogram essentially).
There would be certain selection tools (time) that would obviously work across the two, but being able to see how the spectral content interacts with the cycles/amplitude of a waveform is just a very useful feature set I think. Open to discussing more or hearing others opinions, but as @ctreitzell pointed out, gain/leveling changes, phase alignments (of layered content) phase rotation, and even the transform tool, would all have their workflows improve very nicely to what I hope is a simple(ish) interface update. Thanks
when I started I was processing one mic at a time in SL; that turned out to be highly inefficient for me
Now I typically have LAV and BOOM (or whatever mics capturing a real time source) in the same slp job in separate groups
waveform display or spectral display can be hidden completely in SLP
again, for me, I’d much rather be able to user color certain grid values and their corresponding horizontal grid line in the waveform display overlay (-9dB for example) than have selection tools or a re-tooling of the SLP display. I’ve never used RX; SLP is my daily driver.
I also use RX, and yes, this is a great visual feature, however with SL, because the entire focus is on the spectrum, I don’t really need to see the waveform in detail, therefore my suggestion would be to use SL’s waveform display for navigation, in order to speedily get around a zoomed section, at the same zoom setting, without having to zoom out and back in. WaveLab’s implementation of this is superb, but a simpler “select-and-zoom” feature would be great in SL.
depends upon use case
All for the waveform display to be used for navigation. If there are opportunities to use it for selection (time selection at the least) then that is a huge win. As mentioned, right now it functionally does nothing, so anything additional to help various workflows is a big win IMO. Thanks
I do use the waveform display very often for scroll of audio left and right, doesn’t everyone?
If the waveform display became tied to a selection tool, navigation would be lost, no? Then we’d only be able to use the units ribbon of the timeline, which is fine. I’m forever soaking time into getting mouse pointer to the ticks ribbon to set play head start point; even so, playhead start also essentially chases selection.
See, I bet there are no SawStudio users on this forum. One of the awesome features of SawStudio is “select” mode where user can create a selection of regions and then move the playhead to anywhere on the timeline. (not to mention the genius automation handling of native controls, which is another thing entirely)
no, it does plenty:
-it has an automatic hand tool which allows scrolling audio left or right;
-waveform height zoom;
-per layer color coding with waveforms stacked;
-has a grid overlay;
-envelope editing;
I use all of those things
and thus begs the question:
“How do you use SpectraLayers Pro?”
I have not used RX, so I cannot compare to that. I’ve watched a few Boykin videos and he tends to run his NR in an old school fashion, just processed to more tightly selected areas of audio within frequency ranges. The only overall filtering I might do to audio is a very light DeClick with Acon.
Since getting used to SLP starting 2 years ago for me, I do all NR by editing specific unwanteds using manual selection after running Unmix Noisy Speech if human voice interview or on ambiences of location or field recordings. I hardly work on music at all, yet would use the same techniques that I use in audio post for film audio.
I’m never going to use Sonnox DeBuzzer again, because now I can surgically edit electrical interference in SLP, no need for a VST.
I don’t mean to be confrontational, I’m just curious how editors approach their projects.
-it has an automatic hand tool which allows scrolling audio left or right;
Ah, here lies my bias I believe: I have a side scroll on my mouse, or would just use a key modifier with the scroll wheel, as I absolutely will not waste a mouse click on hand tool to scroll a window set unless absolutely needed 
. SL and my mouse allow options to do this operation, so it is not top of mind.
waveform height zoom;
-per layer color coding with waveforms stacked;
-has a grid overlay;
-envelope editing;
Yes, I use all of these as well. When I use hyperbole to say “useless” I am mainly referring to the interactions within the wave form view. Your list here does call out that the envelope and hand scroll are the two interactions that can change or alter the audio, yet everything else I would categorize as something that lends to assistive diagnostic, or visual feedback of the material. Not complaining about that functionality, but for instance, having per layer color coding is great, until you are trying to time align layer waveform sources and cannot use the transform on the waveform view, but have to have have the actions done on the spectrogram.
“How do you use SpectraLayers Pro?”
Amazing, and loaded question! I will stay high level to be brief, but I use spectral editing in general on everything from repairing/correcting/prepping audio, functional diagnostic/insights, straight up sound design, ‘mastering’ audio sources, and batch processing.
I work in game audio, so have everything from music, to dialogue, to sound effects run through SL and RX all for different end purposes. Prepping tracks and stems for mastering, fixing dialogue performances (post “final delivery”), rescuing location recordings, Rebalancing explosion sounds… The contexts always change as I am not really in one distinct workflow lane. But, to address the question in previous context: More and more while leaning into the layering capabilities, and what that (source retention) workflow lends to me, that is where I keep looking at the waveform view as what leverage it provides in within the application, and it is slim.
Comparatively in RX, it is more setup to leverage time selection (as it is more of an overlay), and time domain based functions within the waveform view (selecting on the waveform and using something like de-click for example). I find in SL like you listed, there is functionality, but the time domain tools access seems blocked by the inability to make selections within the waveform view (and as I type this am realizing this is mostly geared toward a want for a destructive editing type workflow, rather then source preservation through layering).
SO maybe that is what my whole point is: The waveform view does not facilitate time domain destructive operations as best as it could.
Could you elaborate on this a bit more please? What you are actually doing? I’m interested. Are you using SL in ARA mode or stand alone?
Thanks in advance
Always standalone;
I essentially create a premix and bounce out to .wav for each mic edit. I ensure I can re-import my SLP standalone edit to sub-frame accurate sync back into my audio job. (80 sub-frames per frame in SawStudio). I run Acon DeClicker on the premix, so declick is handled 80-95% via the premix/ bounce.
When I create an SLP project:
1- open soundfile with SLP>
2- Save As… SLP project>
3- Import other mics to newly created project>
4- Create safeties and mute them
start editing…
if user starts by running Unmix Noisy Speech, then unmixed groups will be created
I just rename layers to my workflow: each mic in a separate group
When I started, I was doing one mic per project, which is essentially flying blind. Get all mics layered into a single project and many possibilities open up for editing: phase alignment, and levelling via envelopes for example. As much as I would like phase alignment to be done before my premix, my DAW doesn’t allow for layered input tracks, yet in SLP, tracks are layered by design and thus are much easier to move/stretch/shrink into phase alignment. User has to be careful though doing this because artefacts are easily introduced…it is a time-consuming knack to develop.
OK, let me clarify further, cuz I am asking about low level interaction with SLP:
This above quote from you is an explanation of what you are doing with SLP. As I said “how” do you use it. By that I mean process: Are you making time and rectangular selections and applying a VST filter and/ or SLP module to said selections? I have stopped doing that; nowadays I do all editing in SLP for this level of NR. For manual phase align, a time selection is required.
Here we go, this is what I mean by “how”: process of workflow. There is no extra mouseclick when navigating the mouse pointer to the waveform display; the change to hand tool is automatic once pointer enters the waveform display Obviously changes to hand automatically as users can then expect a change in the mouse pointer function.
Possibly your particular interactive tools to the SLP UI are a bit different than straightforward mouse and keyboard.
All the time. But I am making all types of selections in general based on the tools needed to interact with the source sound (harmonics, brush, clone stamp, etc). Most often am splitting source using unmix components (key command preset) to then treat those layers with VSTs and other SL tools, either merging them back together, or keeping separate and mixing manually with gain or envelopes per layer. If I want to time/retime the layers, this would be the point where visually the waveform view is helpful, yet limiting in functionality, as I need to use the transform tool on the spectrogram and unable to in waveform view.
I think your comment trying to separate “what” I am doing in SL and “How” I am doing it is valid, but I approach them completely interchangeably, as the solutions to problems I would like to address or correct are not inherently accessed via the same workflows. e.g. Unmix noisy speech is sometimes effectively useless on finished studio recorded dialogue, but great on production source, thus my “How:process of workflow” for dialogue needs to remain fluid based on situational context, as is interchangeable.
There is no extra mouseclick when navigating the mouse pointer to the waveform display;
This is incorrect. I understand that there is an automatic switch to the hand tool, but that requires a click to anchor and mouse movement to drag. This is effectively done with less labor anywhere else in the visible space (spectrogram and waveform view) with shift+ scroll wheel.
users can then expect a change in the mouse pointer function.
I disagree that users expect a change, especially if there is not need for tool change assuming we can obtain more functionality within the waveform view. If I manually choose the selection tool to be active, I assume that tool to work within the contexts of both these editing views.
I would advocate that the current settings should be a user preference so that those comfortable can retain them, but all other tools that have potential functionality in the waveform view, should functionally work as expected.
Wow, ok.
um, the mouse pointer automatically changes to a hand tool and user shouldn’t expect a change in functionality?!? In my personal usage, that is exactly how I see it.
Have it your way, I’m just another user on a user forum, sorry to de-rail you.
I did originally intend “you” to mean any user:
the mouse pointer automatically changes to a hand tool and user shouldn’t expect a change in functionality?
Yes the mouse pointer changes automatically to the hand tool when changing to the waveform view. But to clarify my incorrect comment, you cannot use the hand tool unless you click on the waveform, and then direct the mouse to navigate. That is why I pointed out the scroll wheel modifier can already achieve this functionality, with less manual hand movement (but yes, this is all user preference).
If you like this behavior that is great. I don’t want to take functionality away from anyone, hence the suggestion that if there is the possibility to use more time domain based tools within the waveform view, then I would like the preference to maintain parity of using the tools across the spectrogram and waveform views, and other can have the preference of switching to the hand tool for navigation.
I apologize if any of my comments sounded dismissive. I am really just trying to suggest some potential improved/augmented functionality within the application 
OK, I understand, yes you are right: a mouseclick is required to anchor the hand tool in the waveform view to then nav. I had assumed you meant an extra mouseclick beyond that initial anchor. I mean, same thing goes for setting the playhead start point, whether in the spectral display or the units ribbon in the timeline: a mouseclick is required to “grab” the timeline afaiaa