Topic: Feature Suggestion - Color Loopback Outputs and Inputs

Hi,
i feel like loopback is harder than it needs to be. One way of making it easier for people could be to Color the Output and the corresponding Input:

https://i.ibb.co/GF0cHyy/loopback.jpg

Re: Feature Suggestion - Color Loopback Outputs and Inputs

Of course it can be more subtile, but some kind of optic representation would be very helpfull. Maybe coloring the fadercap:
https://i.ibb.co/0c1SVm6/loopback2.jpg

3 (edited by ramses 2021-03-07 20:22:47)

Re: Feature Suggestion - Color Loopback Outputs and Inputs

Please allow me to make a comment, because everyone else would then have to live with such a change..

If someone does not understand loopback, then he will not understand better, why two channel strips are suddenly colored.

In my opinion, the coloring alone will not automatically increase understanding and overview. On the contrary, the many colors will reduce the overview. Especially if you work with several loopbacks. Then also other colors come into play for other things like mute-, solo- and fader-groups. You might get ugly color combinations then or simply too much colors in total.

For a small installation and a recording interface with only a few channels, this may still appear to be feasible for you.
But there are also much larger interfaces with significantly more channels and setups that use more loopbacks than you might expect.

It makes more sense to sit down, read the manual, watch training videos and try it out.
Knowledge and experience can't be brought by simply adding colors.

Rome was also not built in a day ..

BR Ramses - UFX III, 12Mic, XTC, ADI-2 Pro FS R BE, RayDAT, X10SRi-F, E5-1680v4, Win10Pro22H2, Cub14

4 (edited by formton 2021-03-07 20:37:51)

Re: Feature Suggestion - Color Loopback Outputs and Inputs

Ok, I dont want to mess up the workflow and overview of everyone else ;-). And I myself have no problem when i turn off channel names.

5 (edited by ramses 2021-03-07 20:39:43)

Re: Feature Suggestion - Color Loopback Outputs and Inputs

Further thinking about this and re-reading the manual section about loopback I think it could help more
to rephrase the section about loopback in the manual a little bit to make it easier to understand.

Loopback. Sends the output data to the driver as record data. The corresponding submix can be recorded then. This channel’s hardware input sends its data only to TotalMix, no longer to the recording software.

If you already know how it works and if you know the TM FX vocabulary (e.g. "submix"), then its clear.

If you do not know how it works, then its challenging to understand the two things that are mentioned herein:

1. if you enable Loopback on a HW output (e.g. AN1/2 Out), then the signal can be recorded on the corresponding HW Input (in this example AN 1/2 IN).

2. if you have another audio signal on that corresponding HW input AN 1/2, then you can route it to another free HW output of your choice, e.g. ADAT 1/2 Out, enable loopback there to be able to record the signal on its corresponding input ADAT 1/2 In.

BR Ramses - UFX III, 12Mic, XTC, ADI-2 Pro FS R BE, RayDAT, X10SRi-F, E5-1680v4, Win10Pro22H2, Cub14

Re: Feature Suggestion - Color Loopback Outputs and Inputs

But the little wrench tool icon glows in orange when loopback is enabled...

A general option to give channels a color would be very nice, it would cover your use case while being much more flexible and useful for many other things. Also non obtrusive if just an option, similar to the channel names.

7 (edited by ramses 2021-03-07 22:55:42)

Re: Feature Suggestion - Color Loopback Outputs and Inputs

Its not so easy to get the signal flow of loopback into one overview ... I tried

Normal flow, then
- 1st loopback.
- 2nd loopback to record the original signal (from external device) which is not lost.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/k96kk43ouxbev5s/Loopback.jpg?dl=1

BR Ramses - UFX III, 12Mic, XTC, ADI-2 Pro FS R BE, RayDAT, X10SRi-F, E5-1680v4, Win10Pro22H2, Cub14

8 (edited by formton 2021-03-08 00:21:34)

Re: Feature Suggestion - Color Loopback Outputs and Inputs

Your Diagram is overwhelming at first, but i get it. Very nice, but complex ;-) . My thought about colors was more from a noob perspective. First time users who want to record audio from pc. i still think colorcoding could be a good idea for it. Of course it shouldn´t be extreme. But like hselters said: the little wrench tool icon glows in orange when loopback is enabled...

But i only think from a homestudio standpoint. Totalmix can get so advanced, maybe there are good reasons against it. The option would be nice (but option is also one more layer of complexity).

9 (edited by ramses 2021-03-09 08:19:55)

Re: Feature Suggestion - Color Loopback Outputs and Inputs

EDIT: Loopback saves you the work having to plug a physicl cable from an output to an input.
And this would "steal" you even an input and an output port for only that purpose.
Here TM FX gives you two big advantages
- output still useable (in case you need to send this signal to somewhere ... monitors or what not)
- input still useable (whats plugged to the input can be routed to another output)
- you see still both signals:
  - HW output: here you see the signal of the signal of that output which is being looped back to corresponding input
  - HW input: here you see the signal of any HW that might be plugged (and which is not lost by enabling loopback)

Its better that something has capabilities, just in case you need it, than to have a software which isn't capable to deliver and not logic to work with ...

Nobody expects from you to understand everything in a couple of days wink
To compare this with a DAW, it took me months to find my way through Cubase and still only use a subset.

Do you get a drivcing license in a few days ? Did you learn to use the capabilities of your DAW in a few days ? Most unlikely.

You always have the alternative to use DAW operation mode without the nice routing capabilities of TM FX.

At the end of the day TM FX biggest advantages you see on the right side, the additional layer "Software Playback Channels". The routing painted in blue.

This is an additional "Layer in between" HW inputs and HW outputs which allows you to route
not only every input (as you like) but also audio from PC/Applications as you like to
any output individually to create the perfect submix for each of the outputs individually.

Once you understand that concept, there is nothing better available on the market.

BR Ramses - UFX III, 12Mic, XTC, ADI-2 Pro FS R BE, RayDAT, X10SRi-F, E5-1680v4, Win10Pro22H2, Cub14

Re: Feature Suggestion - Color Loopback Outputs and Inputs

Here's another vote for some sort of indication in the input channel that it's being loopbacked to.

Making the input channel's fadercap the same color as the output channel's little orange glowing wrench tool icon would be nice.

Re: Feature Suggestion - Color Loopback Outputs and Inputs

...Making the input channel's fadercap the same color...

What if your inputs fadercaps are red (due to assigned to the 1st fadergroup  f.ex.) and the corresponding output belongs to another (f. ex. the green) fadergroup?

But maybe, i did misunderstood sth?

the orange glowing wrench tool icon in the output channel is exactly the information i need: this output is loopbacked to its input...

“Do It For Her”
My Gear: Bontempi Magic light Keyboard

Re: Feature Suggestion - Color Loopback Outputs and Inputs

https://forum.rme-audio.de/viewtopic.php?id=37383

UCX - FF 400 - Babyface pro - Digiface USB - ADI-2 (original)
Mac mini M1 - Macbook pro - iPad Air2

Re: Feature Suggestion - Color Loopback Outputs and Inputs

https://forum.rme-audio.de/viewtopic.ph … 92#p210192

“Do It For Her”
My Gear: Bontempi Magic light Keyboard