Data files in Soundshaper

[Robert Fraser]

This post is in response to a query about datafiles in Soundshaper (see "Missing Folder - InvertPch?" , Oct 1 2023).

Not being a realtime system, CDP works with (and is dominated by) files: source sound files (or other types), processed files to save, automation via breakpoint text files, and more specialised data files most of which are described in the documentation (see the link to File Formats from any reference Program Group, e.g. BLUR).

When a data file option is selected in Soundshaper's parameter page, a text box appears for the filename (instead of a control for a fixed value). This is filled in with a default value of the Process Name and a Filename; the Process Name is given as a subfolder of the user's Text Data folder. If an actual file exists, it is displayed as text in the Data Edit Panel (to the right of the page). Many parameters have such files - usually very basic templates - especially breakpoints, mainly so that these can be edited in the Graph Editor.

For more specialist data, a file might not always be supplied, so the Data Edit box is empty (for the user to fill in) and the Process Name subfolder may not exist either. This may seem like an anomaly, but it allows you to fill in suitable data and click SAVE to save this to the default location from where it will be recalled automatically next time. Having a standard folder for each process also allows you to save your own datafiles there for easy recall, although an alternative is to save these to a project folder of your choice.

When datafiles are amended, the SAVE CHANGES button is activated to save the data to a temporary file. These temp files are an important aspect of Sounshaper's process chains (shown on the patch grid); to re-edit or re-run the process it must have a specific datafile for that particular operation. (You might have used the same process with different values elsewhere in the patch.) So don't be surprised if your default file changes from e.g. \MagicProcess\scrunch.brk to something like ~A_1\scrunch.brk, or ~X_1\scrunch.brk for a preview.

When patches or presets are saved, the temp files actually used are saved with the patch or preset, for future recall.