Reaktor/Hosts/Sonar

In Sonar 4, one way to open a softsynth is to click the "Synth Rack" button on the VIEWS toolbar, and then use the Insert button on the synth rack's toolbar (a big + sign). Alternatively (or if the Synth Rack isn't already open), it's slightly quicker to just click INSERT on the main menu and select from the dropdown entries under "DXi Synth".

Note -- Reaktor shows up under "NI" as if it were a type of plugin (alongside the VST plugins).

With Reaktor showing up as an instrument in the Synth Rack, click the Properties button in the Synth Rack's toolbar to display the Reaktor plugin window.

Once open, Reaktor's plugin view will ask for an initial Ensemble. The default view of the Reaktor Browser doesn't initially show Ensembles, so you can't immediately drag and drop into the blank part of the window as it suggests. First, you must navigate to an ensemble to load (which you can drag/drop), or you can right-click in the blank area and choose New Ensemble.

If you're using Reaktor as a softsynth, you'll probably want to add a MIDI track. To do this, right-click in Sonar's track pane and choose "Insert MIDI Track". Then click on the Output selector in the MIDI track and select Reaktor1 from the list.

The output of the synth has to go somewhere, so you'll probably want to create an audio track also (Right-click; choose "Insert Audio Track"). Then click on the Input selector in the audio track and select Reaktor 1 Main from the list.

Note -- Reaktor plugins can be synths or FX processors, so they also show up (as expected) in the track or Console views when you want to add an FX module in any track's FX bin.

--Allen 22:53, 27 Nov 2004 (UTC)

Due to the combination of Sonar's excellent DXi automation handling, and Reaktor's incredibly flexible DXi / MIDI dual automation features, there are a number of different ways of recording and manipulating Reaktor ensemble control information.


 * 1) To be able to record direct movement of Reaktor ensemble UI controls into Sonar as automation data, you must insert a Reaktor instance (either DXi or wrapped VSTi version) directly into the FX Bin of a Sonar Audio track. It does not work if you insert it into the Synth Rack first.  Load up the Reaktor ensemble you want to use and ensure the automation controls are sorted and organised as desired.  Then right-click on the Reaktor label in the Sonar track's FX Bin and click "Arm Parameter" from the context menu.  This now lists all the automation parameters exposed by the loaded Reaktor ensemble.  Either select a subset, or (easier) just click Arm All.  You should now see the Record Automation icon button in Sonar Transport toolbar become clickable (changes from greyed out appearance).  Set the Now Time marker where you want to start the automation recording from.  Click the Record Automation icon button and start wiggling those Ensemble knobs and faders!  Press spacebar or click the Transport Stop button to stop recording when you are done. Sonar will display any movements as new track envelopes, handily labelled with the appropriate Ensemble parameter.
 * 2) Having inserted a Reaktor instance in a Sonar track's FX bin, right click somewhere in the clips pane and select Envelopes -> Create Track Envelope -> Reaktor 1 ... A dialog window is displayed listing all automatable parameters .. but in my version of Sonar (v4.01), this list is just a bunch of numbers from P0001 to P1000 (a bug?).  All is not lost .. click on the Reaktor ensemble panel control you want to create an envelope for, and look at the UI control's Properties pages.   Find the "Global ID" field listed at the bottom of the Connection properties page (say "117" for a Filter cutoff knob).  Go back to the envelope popup window and select the P0117 checkbox. Click OK, and a new track envelope appears labelled with the panel control name.  Adjust enevelope to taste.
 * 3) If you have a midi control box, you can use its physical knobs and faders instead of directly controlling Reaktor ensemble UI controls with a mouse.  For each ensemble UI control you want to remote control, display the UI control's own Connections property page. Ensure "Remote to MIDI" is turned on.  Map the control to the physical knob or slider you want to use (e.g. use MIDI learn).  Repeat for all the ensemble controls you want to hook up to your midi controller box. Now proceed as described in #1 above, but instead of using your mouse to move the UI controls, use your MIDI controller box.  Any movements get converted into track envelopes, labelled with the UI control's name.
 * 4) This is probably the least preferred option of recording automation data from a Reaktor ensemble, as it requires a separate MIDI track to be used and treats all the automation data as pure MIDI CC data. However,  this is the only way to send automation data to a Reaktor ensemble if the Reaktor instance was inserted into the Synth Rack, and not into a specific track's FX Bin.  Why would you want to do that? Inserting a Reaktor instance into the Sonar SynthRack allows you to send outputs of multi-timbral Reaktor ensembles to multiple audio tracks for further, separate processing, for example.  OK, so insert a new Reaktor plugin instance using the Sonar SynthRack, and create (at least) one audio track and one associated MIDI track.   Load up the ensemble you want to use into the Reaktor plugin.  Open the Ensemble properties page and ensure the "Activate MIDI in" and "Activate MIDI out" boxes are switched on in the Connections property page.  Then do the same for all the ensemble Instruments you want to record panel automation from.  Now, for each UI control you want to record movements for, ensure the "Activate MIDI In" and "Panel to MIDI" switches are on, and a MIDI cc number is defined.  Set the Now Time marker where you want to start recording.  Select the MIDI track, and arm it for recording (the "R" button turns red).  Press the main Transport Record button (not the Record Automation button this time).  Now perform the UI control movements you want to record.  When you are done, click Stop.  Sonar has recorded your UI panel movements as a series of MIDI CC events.  Rewind, and press Play.  Sonar sends the recorded MIDI cc data back to Reaktor, and you should see the panel controls repeat the movements you just recorded.  If you want, you can then convert the MIDI cc data into a MIDI track envelope using Sonar's Edit -> Convert MIDI to Shape .. command.
 * 5) Of course, you can use a physical midi controller in #4 above instead of using a mouse to manipulate the ensemble's controls.  Set up the mapping between the physical controller and the UI ensemble controls as described in #3 above.  Arm the MIDI track for recording, hit the Record button in the Transport bar, and move the physical MIDI controllers knobs and sliders to generate CC data which will get recorded into the MIDI track, and passed through to the Reaktor plugin receiving MIDI data from that MIDI track.

--Aguycalledrichard 22:20, 8 Dec 2004 (UTC)