Which host can set loop back points on each track?

[annode]

Can Reaper by chance allow me to set, for instance, a track marker as a loop back to start and do this with any midi or audio track?

Just a loop end point which sets the track back to start and begins playing again.

EDIT - here's another way to think of it;
- anything where you can can load a .wav file into a stereo channel with fx inserts. You are able to set a time delay before that .wav begins to play. At the end of the playback it resets to that set delay time and then clocks down again to zero and playback begins.

I want to simply create a 15min long piece, for example, and just drop in various audio, each with it's own start,delay-time,repeat and audio channel setting.
This will create ambient that changes and evolves on it's own seemingly at random, but not actually.

I don't want to be copy and pasting multiple events. I just want to keep it all simple.

Thanks.

[pdxindy]

That is the sort of stuff Live or Bitwig are good at (Session View in Live - Clip Launcher in Bitwig)

[annode]

That is the sort of stuff Live or Bitwig are good at (Session View in Live - Clip Launcher in Bitwig)

Easy enough to say Live or Bitwig, but specifically?
My request is very specific.

[Groundhog #31684]

You can use multiple project tabs in Reaper for that and run them all together (right click on a project tab to see the options).

[mcbpete]

Maybe a looper VST like Expert Sleepers's Crossfade Loop Synth could be a funky way of doing that ? http://www.expert-sleepers.co.uk/xfadelooper.html

[elxsound]

You want independent track lengths for each track?

This is not natively supported in Reaper, or in most hosts for that mater other than Live/Bitwig.

Now, there is this... Playtime for Reaper: http://www.helgoboss.org/projects/playtime/

I have not used this, but maybe this will get you what you need? It is payware (20 Euros) and I believe there should be more about it on the Reaper forum.

[pljones]

MuLab lets you set loop points for each sequence and start points for each part, even sharing the same sequence - so you can have a track that starts the same sequence from different points. Different copies of the sequence on the same track can have their own loop points. (Parts can be shared between tracks, too.)

[annode]

I'd like to thank everyone for all your suggestions.
This search is time consuming. I've been searching for & dloading trial/free plugins to test as well.
We here in Philadelphia Pa. are half frozen since this recent snowfall and frigid temps.
My home studio is in the coldest room in the house, so I won't be getting down to it for a few days.
There is not just a single way to accomplish this result. Which is the simplest, which is the most complex...which has what necessary features to do how many things will all take time to consolidate.
I think this is an interesting subject, so i'll share what I find out.

Thanks again.

[pdxindy]

That is the sort of stuff Live or Bitwig are good at (Session View in Live - Clip Launcher in Bitwig)

Easy enough to say Live or Bitwig, but specifically?
My request is very specific.

What you are describing is how the Clip Launcher in Bitwig works (same with Live's Session view).

What specifics do you want? I think easiest is to go watch some videos on youtube.

In Bitwig, when you launch a clip in the launcher, it loops according to its loop settings. By default it loops endlessly. However you can define the number of loops and/or have it launch another clip at a specified point.

The clip can be audio or midi driving an instrument. In audio clips, you can have multiple audio events... so you could have some silence, then some audio, more silence, different audio, etc. You could do that in one clip, or using multiple clips.

Each track can have looping clips of whatever length you want.

You can launch scenes which are groups of clips across multiple tracks.

Clips can be looping, but have independent automation. So you could have a 4 bar loop but have the volume slowly go up over 32 bars.

It is a great environment for doing exactly the sort of stuff you are talking about. It is easy to do live improvisation with something like a Launchpad.

[annode]

That is the sort of stuff Live or Bitwig are good at (Session View in Live - Clip Launcher in Bitwig)

Easy enough to say Live or Bitwig, but specifically?
My request is very specific.

What you are describing is how the Clip Launcher in Bitwig works (same with Live's Session view).

What specifics do you want? I think easiest is to go watch some videos on youtube.

In Bitwig, when you launch a clip in the launcher, it loops according to its loop settings. By default it loops endlessly. However you can define the number of loops and/or have it launch another clip at a specified point.

The clip can be audio or midi driving an instrument. In audio clips, you can have multiple audio events... so you could have some silence, then some audio, more silence, different audio, etc. You could do that in one clip, or using multiple clips.

Each track can have looping clips of whatever length you want.

You can launch scenes which are groups of clips across multiple tracks.

Clips can be looping, but have independent automation. So you could have a 4 bar loop but have the volume slowly go up over 32 bars.

It is a great environment for doing exactly the sort of stuff you are talking about. It is easy to do live improvisation with something like a Launchpad.

Thanks, that was quite a bit more helpful.
I did look at a few 'Live' demo vids concerning specifically 'Dummy Clips' and 'Follow Actions'. It can do the basics of what i'm looking for. But it takes a whole workstation to do it. I already own Reaper and Nuendo.
Bitwig sounds like the same kinda thing. Setting up a session will NOT be a fast 1,2,3 in Live and seemingly Bitwig.

I want what ever setup I end up with to be as conducive to the feeling of making art as possible. That basically means simple and fast to work in.
If I had a VST 'one shot sample player' with a 'countdown timer to start play' with a loop repeat button, that would be all i'd need. So thinking about buying a 3rd workstation to this is not going over well.

elxsound above suggested 'Playtime' for Reaper. It's 20P and is a similar system. I've looked at many today...hours of it! 99.9% will not do it within itself.

I've read this with FXpansion'Geist 2' "Create evolving polyrhythmic beats with individual track lengths, event probability..." I know what that means and it appears it's what i'm after...and I would buy Geist. You can drop individual track markers for loop points...that is exactly what I wanted!
I'll give it a go in a day or so.

BTW, i'm not dropping prefab samples or loops in projects, I first will have to conceive a musical idea then create the parts by recording what I play and process them. They will be the audio sample parts. It all needs to mesh together in a concise fashion. The parts can be polyphonic and polyrhythmic and re-arranging themselves over time. Because of this, time and harmony need to be followed. I don't want to be thinking long and hard about time and grids and Dummy Clips and so on. I'll most likely need to to some degree unfortunately.

[pdxindy]

Thanks, that was quite a bit more helpful.
I did look at a few 'Live' demo vids concerning specifically 'Dummy Clips' and 'Follow Actions'. It can do the basics of what i'm looking for. But it takes a whole workstation to do it. I already own Reaper and Nuendo.
Bitwig sounds like the same kinda thing. Setting up a session will NOT be a fast 1,2,3 in Live and seemingly Bitwig.

I want what ever setup I end up with to be as conducive to the feeling of making art as possible. That basically means simple and fast to work in.
If I had a VST 'one shot sample player' with a 'countdown timer to start play' with a loop repeat button, that would be all i'd need. So thinking about buying a 3rd workstation to this is not going over well.

elxsound above suggested 'Playtime' for Reaper. It's 20P and is a similar system. I've looked at many today...hours of it! 99.9% will not do it within itself.

I've read this with FXpansion'Geist 2' "Create evolving polyrhythmic beats with individual track lengths, event probability..." I know what that means and it appears it's what i'm after...and I would buy Geist. You can drop individual track markers for loop points...that is exactly what I wanted!
I'll give it a go in a day or so.

BTW, i'm not dropping prefab samples or loops in projects, I first will have to conceive a musical idea then create the parts by recording what I play and process them. They will be the audio sample parts. It all needs to mesh together in a concise fashion. The parts can be polyphonic and polyrhythmic and re-arranging themselves over time. Because of this, time and harmony need to be followed. I don't want to be thinking long and hard about time and grids and Dummy Clips and so on. I'll most likely need to to some degree unfortunately.

I own Geist2... I own the latest Bitwig and Live... I have a Push

From my understanding of what you are describing, I would use Bitwig (or Live basically the same in this regard) and not Geist. There is no faster, easier environment to do what you are describing. And if you are working specifically and only with audio, I'd choose Bitwig cause Bitwig clips can contain/edit multiple audio events.

The advantage of using a host like Bitwig or Live is how flexible and open ended it is. So it is easy to add variations, experiment, duplicate scenes, etc. It can be very fluid, creative and improvisational. You also do not dead-end yourself. By dead-end yourself I mean you do not put a lot of time into construction and then realize you have to do a lot of work to change something. This is especially important with something like what you are describing because it is evolving. So maybe you like the first 3/4's but then there is some discordant section... how do you edit that without affecting the whole thing.

Like you point out, it is another host to have to learn... and if this is a one time project idea you are trying is likely not worth the investment of time and/or money. However if it an ongoing creative path, then it would be worth it. If it is a one time thing, Geist can get you there, but it is not nearly as flexible an environment as Bitwig or Live.

How many tracks do you expect to have? There are also limited versions of both Bitwig and Live which could suffice and cost you very little.

[annode]

Ok... I discovered I have a 'Lite' version of Live that came with my Akai controller. (8 audio/midi tracks) If I like it, Live Intro will give me 16 tracks for $99.
Bitwig has no chopped down version so that's not an option.
I've been offered Geist 2 for $99 if I want it used. I have GURU but don't know if it has those features i'm after...i'll check that. Maybe I can still upgrade to Geist if I decide to do that.
So yes, I do want to refine this process and continue it as long as it works for me...not just a project or two.

[GaryG]

Bitwig has no chopped down version so that's not an option.

Just for the record, there is an 8-track version of Bitwig; comes bundled with certain controllers but also on certain issues of Beat magazine and in the Marketplace occasionally (~$20 is the norm). Limited to only two vsts though maybe not a problem if you're only using it to play back pre-processed clips.

I'd be interested to hear your results, I love a cool poly-rhythm

[whyterabbyt]

Custom performance/playback behaviour rather than linear/triggered composition? I'd probably use Bidule or MAX for something like that.

[annode]

Bitwig has no chopped down version so that's not an option.

Just for the record, there is an 8-track version of Bitwig; comes bundled with certain controllers but also on certain issues of Beat magazine and in the Marketplace occasionally (~$20 is the norm). Limited to only two vsts though maybe not a problem if you're only using it to play back pre-processed clips.

I'd be interested to hear your results, I love a cool poly-rhythm

Thanks Gary, i'll look into that. At this time,i'm still running Win Xp in my dedicated music PC. So i'd need an older ver. of Bitwig(Lite).
No matter.