Introduction to MIDI and Computer Music: Audio Voice Troubleshooting

Digital Performer Audio Voice Troubleshooting

Each audio track uses an audio voice, just as a synthesizer uses a voice for a note. There are some restrictions on the use of voices that you must be aware of to avoid problems.

There is no hard limit on the number of audio voices you can use. But at a certain point, the system may bog down. You decide how to distribute the voices among the two kinds of track: mono and stereo. For example, if you have 8 voices total, you can use 8 mono voices, or 4 stereo voices, or any combination of the two. Set this up by choosing Configure Audio System from the Setup menu, selecting Configure Studio Size from the submenu, and adjusting the values in the dialog. You can safely choose the "Caf-o-rama" setting from the pop-up menu; this gives you a lot of voices.
The easiest way to work is to leave the VOICE column in the Tracks window set to Auto for each audio track. This tells Digital Performer, "just figure out the voice assignment for me." That usually works fine.
If you ever notice that an audio track doesn't play back, check its VOICE column in the Tracks window. If the voice name appears in italics, it probably means that the current voice allocation setting — which is global, not part of your file — doesn't match the setting that was in effect when you last saved the file.
Only one soundbite can play at a time within an audio track. You can drag two soundbites so that they overlap within a track, but the first cuts off when the second begins playing. (Actually, it's more complicated, because this behavior can be controlled by the Layering commands in the Audio menu.)
Two tracks can use the same voice, but if they both try to play a soundbite at the same time, only one of the tracks will play. The track that plays is the one with higher priority — higher up in the list of tracks in the Tracks Window.
If your track's voice name is not in italics, but you still can't hear it, and you've verified that another higher-priority track is not playing a soundbite on the same voice, then make sure you check the usual culprits familiar from your MIDI work: the track must be play-enabled, and the volume automation must not be set to zero.