Does anyone think the interface of Waveform14 kinda messy?
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- KVRer
- 7 posts since 28 Jan, 2026
For example，the feature for selecting which UI elements to display appears in three places: the 'View' menu at the top, the 'eye' icon in the upper right corner, and the 'Action Panel' on the left. It looks a bit messy and redundant...I mean, why does the same feature need to be everywhere? They clutters up the screen.Especially that dual menu bar — sometimes the same feature is literally duplicated between the two layers.Isn't there a better way to organize all these elements?
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- KVRer
- 12 posts since 6 Jan, 2019
Hi,
I don't agree. To have different entry points to a function has been well established ui-design for decades. Look at Excel, for example. Icons, menus, and context-menus offer the same action in different ways, and I am fine with it.
Menus give you a structured path to a function, icons a quick one. It supports various types of interaction from the perspective of software ergonomics, which I consider a definite positive.
The Action Panel, in turn, offers interactions relevant to the context of the currently selected object(s). This makes perfect sense to me and is precisely one of the things I appreciate about Waveform's accessibility.
Top menus and icons are found in pretty much every piece of software as parallel ways to access functions, and neither really takes up much space. The Action Panel is a bit more specific, but - for one thing, it can be hidden, and for another, I can hide individual actions within it if they get in the way or aren't relevant to me. In short, I perceive the control layout completely differently: not cluttered, but rather logically structured and largely intuitive to use. In this respect, I actually find it superior to many other DAWs I’ve worked with.
And by the way, the concept really shines when combined with controller scripts and the Macro API. I’ve never used a DAW that made it so easy to achieve a nearly 100% tactile workflow using my controller setup, consisting of four Stream Decks (two with dials and two without). This gives me controller functionality that is even more flexible than that of many dedicated DAW control surfaces.
I don't agree. To have different entry points to a function has been well established ui-design for decades. Look at Excel, for example. Icons, menus, and context-menus offer the same action in different ways, and I am fine with it.
Menus give you a structured path to a function, icons a quick one. It supports various types of interaction from the perspective of software ergonomics, which I consider a definite positive.
The Action Panel, in turn, offers interactions relevant to the context of the currently selected object(s). This makes perfect sense to me and is precisely one of the things I appreciate about Waveform's accessibility.
Top menus and icons are found in pretty much every piece of software as parallel ways to access functions, and neither really takes up much space. The Action Panel is a bit more specific, but - for one thing, it can be hidden, and for another, I can hide individual actions within it if they get in the way or aren't relevant to me. In short, I perceive the control layout completely differently: not cluttered, but rather logically structured and largely intuitive to use. In this respect, I actually find it superior to many other DAWs I’ve worked with.
And by the way, the concept really shines when combined with controller scripts and the Macro API. I’ve never used a DAW that made it so easy to achieve a nearly 100% tactile workflow using my controller setup, consisting of four Stream Decks (two with dials and two without). This gives me controller functionality that is even more flexible than that of many dedicated DAW control surfaces.