Envelope mode and Offset mode

There are two modes which control how your volume faders, pan faders, bus send faders, and bus send pan faders behave during playback. The two modes are Envelope mode and Offset mode.

Envelope mode. In envelope mode, volume and pan faders follow the project’s automation and do not respond to changes you make in real-time.

Offset mode. In Offset mode, you “offset” the current automation in a track using a parameter’s controls. For example, if a pan envelope is set to hard left (100% left) and you adjust the pan in offset mode to 100% right, then the pan parameter is now set to hard right. Setting the pan in offset mode to 50% right would set the pan to the center.

Note: Any position that you set a fader to in Offset mode remains in effect when you switch back to Envelope mode. For example, if you set a volume fader to -INF while in Offset mode, switch to Envelope mode and drag the fader to its maximum level, you will not hear anything.

To enable/disable Offset mode

Click the Offset mode button in the Control Bar’s Mix module.

In Offset mode, all controls that can be offset appear with a plus sign. For example Vol+.

The following audio controls support both Envelope and Offset modes:

 

Control	Envelope Mode Range	Offset Mode Range
Volume	-Infinity to +6 dB, default is 0 dB	-Infinity to +6 dB, default is 0 dB
Pan	100% L to 100% R, default is C	100% L to 100% R, default is C
Bus Send Level	-Infinity to +6 dB, default is 0 dB	-Infinity to +6 dB, default is 0 dB
Bus Send Pan	100% L to 100% R, default is C	100% L to 100% R, default is C
Bus Return Level	-Infinity to +6 dB, default is 0 dB	-Infinity to +6 dB, default is 0 dB
Bus Return Balance	100% L to 100% R, default is C	100% L to 100% R, default is C
Main Out Volume	-Infinity to +6 dB, default is 0 dB	-Infinity to +6 dB, default is 0 dB
Main Out Balance	100% L to 100% R, default is C	100% L to 100% R, default is C

The following MIDI controls support both Envelope and Offset modes:

 

Control	Envelope Mode Range	Offset Mode Range
Volume	0 to 127, default is 101	0 to 127, default is 101
Pan	100% L to 100% R, default is C	100% L to 100% R, default is C
Chorus	0 to 127, default is 0	-127 to 127, default is 100
Reverb	0 to 127, default is 0	-127 to 127, default is 100

To make it easier to visualize if a track parameter has an offset applied, Sonar shows the parameter value in an amber color when Offset mode is not active . The parameter tooltip also shows the offset value.

A. Parameter offset value B. Parameter value is shown in amber color when Offset mode is disabled and the parameter has an offset applied 

To open non-Sonar envelope display on a percentage scale

You can globally configure the placement of 0 dB for your envelopes in the Clips pane. The default placement in the Clips pane of 0 dB is roughly 1/3 from the top of the clip. You can change the position of 0 dB in all envelopes to the middle of the clip.

There are several advantages when using the Envelope Display on a Percentage Scale option:

It makes it easier to tell if there have been any changes.

There is a finer resolution around 0 dB.

Note: In Envelope mode, newly created volume clips appear at the same dB value as the current Vol setting. For example, if the Vol setting is +3 dB, a newly created volume envelope appears above the middle of the clip.

To display envelopes on a percentage scale

Go to Edit > Preferences > Customization - Display and select the Display Envelopes on Percentage Scale check box.

 

See:

Automation

Quick automation guide

Automation methods

Automation write modes

Automation time base

Automation Read and Automation Write buttons

Recording individual fader or knob movements

Automation lanes

Creating and editing automation envelopes

Automating track mute

Converting MIDI controllers to envelopes

Snapshots

Automating effects

Recording automation data from an external controller