Linear Fade Volume Plugin?

[MogwaiBoy]

In FL Studio, why don't you add some 'Tension' (curved) between the points? Export different variations until you find the right tension point to approximate linearity of the fade.

Then you won't need a buggy 3rd party plugin and it'll cost $0 and 0% CPU.

Let me know what amount of Tension works best

Haha yes of course i've already tried that, 15% gives probably the closest to a linear fade but its definitely not a true equal gain crossfade then. A simple null test confirms that.

I don't want to question the obsession with perfect linearity, but I am curious as to why you would need to get it to null. 15% tension sounds great to me, I would use that - infact I'll keep that number in mind and do some of my own testing. I use a lot of fade automation in tracks so smooth fades are of interest to me.

I use iZotope RX for mastering fades though, which gives you total precision and has a linear fade too which looks true linear to me (I don't see any curve on the waveform as it fades).

[Unaspected]

We had a similar question on FLipside a few years back: http://www.theflipsideforum.com/index.p ... #msg212672

weird, when i want "equal gain" crossfade in logic i pick "Equal power" (EqP) option, not "linear" (X)...

Indeed. If you don't use a curve similar to a quarter sine then you will experience a dip in level as you crossfade.

[MogwaiBoy]

I've never known that but for years of using FL Studio I have always instinctively added slight curves to fade automation anyway. Just makes the onset of the fade more gradual. For master fades in RX I generally go for the "cosine" option which has smooth curves at both the start and end of the fade and is brilliant for long fade outs at the end of the song. I think linear fades (even true linear ones, as per RX) seem less natural and abrupt at the end of the fade out, probably partly due to how we hear things.

With automation you can do whatever you want, such as a linear line down to 2%, and then stretch out a curve from 2% down to 0% to get that last sense of the tail smooth. If you work with ambient layers it's worth the effort.

[Unaspected]

In all respects, we tend to respond favourably to curves.

[fifty1fifty]

Currently using bob perrys crossfader to change between multiple submix premasters with different levels of compression & a few other things
Bob Perry's Crossfader works well but it runs abit buggy so looking for a more stable plugin if available

This is why i want a true linear fade, so there is absolutely no chain in signal level

Offline audio editors can of course do linear fades but the whole point is to keep everything contained in the project file as much as possible with no offline bouncing to keep workflow running smooth

[fifty1fifty]

I found a solution that works perfectly

Linear Fade.rar

[MogwaiBoy]

Automate the Y parameter on the Love Philter? A guy on the Image-Line forums had a good trick with chaining several Love Philter's together inside Patcher and therefore getting even more resolution.

Who would have thought the Love Philter's volume parameter was better at fading than the DAW fader

Image-Line, if you're watching....

[MMaarrkk]

Sorry to ask, but wouldn't this be easily achievable with simple automation? Even just volume, or using Love Philter as mentioned above?

That's complete ignorance on my end when it comes to crossfade plugins, to be honest, but I see myself working faster with automation than getting an entire VST for it

[MogwaiBoy]

Ofcourse automation is the key - the question is what to automate if you want a linear fade effect in realtime.

Unaspected posted a link above to a similar query a few years ago on another forum, where they really explained what the deal is here.

However, gain measured by decibels is logarithmic

So pretty much every fader or gain control in every plugin has a curve. It certainly makes sense for DAW faders where you get the most "travel" around unity gain, and then at some point way down it will more rapidly drop to infinity (silent), because no one needs resolution around -100DB and lower. Or atleast that is the assumption. Lots of plugins won't give you much more than +/- 24dB.

So I guess that's why the original poster was looking at obscure solutions like a crossfader VST.

But it turns out the XY parameters in Fruity Love Filter are perfectly linear. So you set the X parameter to volume and automate that.

Whether this linear fade is "smooth" or "natural" is purely subjective. It's been an interesting topic anyway... kinda strange that it's so rare to find a fader that'll go from unity to silent in a straight line, when you automate a straight line. At least the OP didn't have to go outside of the DAW to find a solution

[MMaarrkk]

That's very informative, much appreciated.

When it comes to the topic of how natural linear fade sounds, I find the idea quite interesting to explore, as when it comes to fading something out, you would expect to see curves all over the place, at least artistically. And this is obviously just my opinion, but linearity can sometimes come off as unnatural and robotic because it almost feels too fast. If you prolong the linear fade, it sounds quite better - if it's meant to "end". When it comes to simulated natural instrumentation, I find I tend to adjust fade-outs with curves. Quickly dipping down and lingering for a moment, or slowly falling down and speeding up as it reaches the end.

But as we're talking about fading between two separate tracks, I would assume linear and controlled fade would be not only the safest choice, probably easiest, but one that brings good results. And if an exponential fade is required, I think with what you've already mentioned regarding Love Filter, there are easy and good solutions.

Hope you don't mind this little tangent, but the linearity definitely sparked some thoughts about how automation comes into play artistically.