Is there a way to set a standard vertical spacing from the top of one system to the top of the next, rather than from the bottom of one system to the top of the next?
Hi @kenbakerinc, (if with standard you mean fixed somehow…)
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to have fixed spacings you can first of all (in Layout Options>Vertical Spacing) deactivate the Collision Avoidance (to tell Dorico to not correct the spacings in case of collisions: sometimes useful for parts layout but I would not recommend it for full score layout) and set the two thresholds for the Vertical Justification to 100% (so the justification will not take place) [edit: doing so Dorico will use the exact values that you define in the Minimum Gaps and of course the Rastral size, to calculate the vertical spacing]…
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then consider that the distance between the top of one system and the top of the next system is the sum of the values of the Rastral size (staff size=space size x 4) for each staff, and the values set in the Minimum Gaps. Here a visual example (with a Space size of 1, to see clearly how the Minimal Gaps values are being reflected in the staff spacings mm, without needing calculations
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You see that the systems top to top distance is the result of:
4 staves (~4mm x 4) 16mm
1 staff to staff distance 6mm
1 staff to staff group distance 8mm
1 braced staff to braced staff distance 6mm
the inter-system gap 10mm
46mm:
- So if you want a specific distance from top to top, just set the desired values, so that their sum (in mm) is what you want.
But I cannot quite understand why you would need this. Can you show us an example of a case where this would be useful?
And if I misunderstood your request, please ignore all this 