Sound
Tools to create, record, and perform sound and music.
# Start Performing
Use this context menu button to enter Perform mode.
# Record
Use this context menu button when in performance mode to use the Perform tool and record a performed notes into the sound gadget being performed into.
Or use L3 + R3 (click the sticks down) (Mm).
While recording, time will play and any notes performed in the performance window of a sound gadget in instrument mode will be recorded. (Tg)
You can record more notes into the same clip. (Mm)
# Search
Lets you search the Dreamiverse for related creations of various kinds:
- # Search Instruments: Opens a search filtering for instruments, with nothing recorded in them. (Mm)
- # Search Sound Effects: Opens a search filtering for sound effect creations.
- # Search Effect Fields: Opens a search filtering for effect field objects. (Mm) Note, this is the only way to create an effect field.
- # Search Music Clips: Opens a search filtering for entire phrases, loops, or tracks of music. This includes instruments with patterns already set within them. (Mm)
# Music Timeline
Creates a Timeline gadget, defaulting to music measures, with Timeline Snap on. (Mm)
# Tools
Tools for creating and manipulating sound.
While a tool is active, the Use Tool controls will apply the effect to an object.
# Draw Notes
Adds notes to a piano roll of an Instrument mode sound gadget.
Add note: Start drawing on a row (a specific note) in the piano tool, and drag to set the length of the note. As the note is draw it is locked to that row. (Mm)
Hold shift to free drawing over higher and lower notes. Playback will shift-bend the note over what was drawn, smoothed out depending on the gadget’s Glide setting.
Pull L2 or Move Secondary Trigger to perform the spiciness of the note while drawing. (Bg)
# Perform
Allows drawing notes in a performance window wherever the primary imp is hovering.
Use the scope-in shortcut while hovering over the performance window to start using this tool. (Tg)
While hovering over a performance window and using a gamepad, two sets of 4 buttons are shown on either side of the imp. These represent the face buttons in the corresponding positions on the gamepad. Pushing a face button will perform the note or sample indicated on those prompts.
While using the Move controllers and hovering with the primary imp, a similar display is shown next to each imp for the four face buttons of each controller.
When Row Mapping is on, the buttons correspond to rows of slices that can be played. The prompts display those face buttons.
Or, for the Moves, the face buttons for the primary and secondary controllers. The secondary controller’s face buttons correspond to the d-pad buttons rows.
When Row Mapping is off, the buttons correspond to notes in the current scale. There are always 8 notes in the scale, starting from the root. The order the buttons match up starts with Cross, clockwise around to Circle, then over to Down d-pad, and clockwise around to Right d-pad.
For the moves, the secondary controller starts at Cross, and goes clockwise around to Circle again.
Like so:
| Scale | Root 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gamepad / Row-Mapping |
Cross | Square | Triangle | Circle | Down d-pad | Left d-pad | Up d-pad | Right d-pad | |
| Moves | Move Primary Cross | Move Primary Square | Move Primary Triangle | Move Primary Circle | Move Secondary Cross | Move Secondary Square | Move Secondary Triangle | Move Secondary Circle | |
| Notes | Do | Re | Mi | Fa | So | La | Ti | Do | (one octave higher) |
While a USB typing keyboard is connected, keys can be pressed to perform (and record) notes within the currently hovered-over performance window.
Dreams listens for OSC signals on the same network. This can be used to play a keyboard etc. thorugh a PC and have those notes be sent for Dreams to perform/record. For example, by using midi2osc.
# Stop Performing: Stop using the perform tool. Or use the scope-out shortcut to cancel the tool.
Octave: Change the performed octave relative to the home octave by tilting the gamepad or secondary move controller. Or do not tilt to perform at the home octave.
Tilt to the right side to perform 1 or 2 octaves higher than the home octave, or to the left to perform 1 or 2 octaves lower than the home octave. (Tg)
Playing a second note while already holding a different note will perform only the higher note, dependingon the Legato setting.
Lower the volume: Use R2 to lower volume as the note is performed.
Increase the spiciness: Use L2 or Move Secondary Trigger to increase spiciness as the note is performed.
# Choose scale: Hold R1 while using a gamepad and hovering over a performance window to bring up scale selection.
Two circles are displayed to the left and right of the primary imp, the left for the root note, and the right for the scale. The current setting is shown above each circle. (Tg)
Push the Left stick in different directions to select a different root note. Let Left stick come back to the centre and the last selected root note will remain locked in.
The root notes are, starting at the top and going clockwise around the circle:
| Notes | C | G | D | A | E | B | F# | C# | G# | D# | A# | F |
|---|
Push the Right stick to select a scale group and reveal scales within that group. Keep the Right stick pushed and move it around to select one of those scales. Let the Right stick come back to the centre and the last selected scale will reremain locked in.
The scales and groups are as follows, starting from the top and going clockwise around the circle:
| Basic | Major, Minor, Harmonic Minor. |
|---|---|
| Additional | Major Pentatonic, Minor Pentatonic, Wholetone, Augmented, Diminished. |
| Modal | Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aeolian, Locrian. |
| Other | Blues Major, Blues Minor, Fifths, Octaves, Egyptian, Romanian. |
# Sound Recorder
Stamp a new Sound gadget into the scene and recording will begin, using the currently selected microphone attached to the console. (Mm) Time will not run and no other audio will play while recording.
A countdown is shown next to the imp showing how many seconds remain to record, according to the maximum recording length.
Stamping onto a Timeline will play that timeline from that point, while recording. This is useful for playing/singing/acting along with other music/animation that’s already in the timeline. (Ml) (See Microphone Lag Compensation.)
We can now use the Audio Importer to import .wav audio files into Dreams, or record directly from any device with a microphone and an internet browser. (See the Audio Importer Help for guides on how to use it.)
You can also record in mono using a headset-style “4 pole” cable plugged into the controller and a headset port in the device playing audio. For example, a mobile phone (cell phone).
These recordings can then be used as sound effects, instruments, etc.
Note, bringing copyrighted audio you do not own the rights to distribute is against the terms of service. See indreams for full rules and FAQ. These rules apply regardless of the method used to import
# Arpeggiator Settings
An arpeggio is a chord of notes, played one at a time. The arpeggiator mode allows us to set a chord, then hold a single button and have the chord’s notes play in a loop.
When Chord mode is on, each note performed by the arpeggiator will be the corresponding chord.
When a note is being held, notes will be performed in a pattern, the other notes selected relative to the held note.
# On/Off
Turns on the arpeggiator behaviour and settings. (Tg)
When on, reveals 2 buttons to control the speed of the arpeggiator.
- Slower: makes the duration of each note shorter.
- Faster: makes the duration of each note longer.
through the following speeds:
| Speed | 1/8 | 1/12 | 1/16 | 1/24 | 1/32 | 1/48 |
|---|
Touch the Touch pad to see the layout of arpeggiator speeds. Whichever is being touched is active. Let go to leave the last selected speed active. This can even be changed while performing or holding a note.
# Notes
A toggle for each note in the scale. Toggle a note to include or exclude it from the arpeggio. (Tg)
The notes toggled on by default are Do, Mi, and Fa.
# Patterns
Expands the pattern settings, revealing a series of options. Only one may be selected. (Tg)
- Up: Plays the highest note to lowest.
- Down: Plays the lowest note to highest.
- Up & Down: Plays the lowest note to highest, and back down to the lowest—without repeating the highest and lowest notes.
- Up & Down: Sticky: Plays the lowest note to highest, then plays the highest note to lowest. Repeating the highest note and lowest notes.
- Pause: Plays the first selected note for each position in the pattern.
# Loop
When off, only one iteration of the pattern (including octaves) will be played even if the root note is still being performed.
When on, will play the pattern (including octaves) over and over until the root note stops being held. (Tg)
# Octave Spread
How many octaves to continue through after each pattern. For the “Down” pattern, the octaves will go down. For the other patterns, the octaves will go up.
For example, with an arpeggio loop “Up” the notes C4, E4, G4 with a 2 octave spread, the notes played will be: C4, E4, G4, C5, E5, G5, C4, E4... etc.
# Chord Settings
Settings allowing for the performance of chords. The held note will be used as the root of the chord. Selected notes up from the root will be performed instead.
# On/Off
Turns on the chord behaviour and settings.
When on, reveals new switches corresponding the held note and notes from the scale relative to that root note. Each time a note is pressed, the toggled-on notes are performed instead.
By default the notes toggled on are Do, Mi, and Fa.
Note, if the Do note is turnedoff, the pressed root note will not be performed.
# Settings
Settings for performing notes, and manipulating notes as they are performed.
# Legato
Affects the behaviour when performing a new note while another is still held.
Regardless of this setting, when 2 notes are held, the higher will be performed.
When off, the current note will end and the new note will start.
When on, the performed note will instantly pitch bend to the new note. (Tg)
The Glide setting of the sound gadget will affect how long it takes to “glide” the audio output to the new note. But the note performed will instantly snap to the new note, and so will the recording of that note.
If Arppegiator is on, new notes will use the new root note.
# Music Snap
When off, no snapping is applied.
When on, notes will snap to the set timing both in the Piano Roll view and when recording notes in Perform mode.
The allowed timings are:
| Timings | 1/64 | 1/48 | 1/32 | 1/24 | 1/16 | 1/12 | 1/8 | 1/4 | 1/2 | 1 |
|---|
Adjust the timing with the 2 buttons from the menu:
- Finer: Makes the timing smaller.
- Coarser: Makes the timing larger.
Or use the Use Adjust controls to make the snap increments smaller or larger. While holding shift, the current setting is shown below the primary imp.
# Pitch Bend
Sets the touchpad’s effect on the notes played.
When Slice Keytracking is on, the touchpad can be used to pitch shift up to 1 semitone up or down.
There are two options:
Bends: Shifts the note up when stroking up on the touchpad, and down when stroking down.
Note that the touchpad has no touch sensitivity around the top of the curve and so this area will not affect the note.
Semitones: Shifts the note up by 1 semitone while pressing the touchpad on the top half, and down 1 semitone while pressing on the bottom half.