Freeze Track

The Freeze Track tool adds 'track freezing' functionality to Renoise.
The tool will render down a single instrument track into audio files either on a pattern by pattern basis or as a single linear sample.

If rendering is based on individual patterns, the pattern sequence remains flexible and therefore reordering and rearrangement of patterns in the song sequence is still possible. However, due to long delays and reverb trails, sounds may abruptly cut off. Different tracks will require different approaches, thus use which ever mode is more suitable.

If linear freezing is selected, the tool will check to ensure the first pattern in the pattern sequencer is unique. This is to avoid restarting the frozen track part way through the song.

Freezing and unfreezing the selected track can be performed from the main 'Edit' menu or the 'Track menu' sub-section of the pattern editor menu.

This will prompt the user with a dialog box. In this dialog the user can specify the following rendering settings:

• Render mode - Pattern based or linear.
• Priority - Low / Realtime / High - Use realtime to 'freeze' external instruments and synths.
• Sample rate - 44100Hz / 48000Hz / 88200Hz / 96000Hz.
• Bitdepth - 16bit / 24bit / 32bit.
• Interpolation - Cubic / Arguru's sinc.
• Delete source track - Yes / No.
• Headroom compensation - 0 - 12dB.

The headroom compensation 'cancels out' the effect of the songs 'Track Headroom' parameter (located under 'Player Options' in 'Song Settings' lower frame). For example, if the Track Headroom is -6dB (the default), then specify 6dB of headroom compensation for the track freezing.

After rendering, the original source track is disabled and a new 'frozen track' and 'frozen track instrument' are created.

The instrument will either contain multiple samples, each of which is a rendered pattern, or a single sample of a linear frozen track. Autoseek is enabled by default on these samples so playback will start from any point in the song.

The new track will have notes automatically added to trigger the correct rendered pattern sample(s) at the correct time to give the same overall sound as the original source track.

Unfreezing a track performs the reverse process (deleting the frozen track and instrument, while re-enabling the original track).

This tool is useful for exchanging songs with other users who do not have the same VSTi's, easily rendering hardware instruments, and/or reducing overall CPU usage.

Points to note:

• Note that due to the way rendering occurs, any patterns that exist but are not in the sequence list cannot be rendered. These will be ignored.
• Due to the limitations of the number of notes in an instrument, the tool is limited to freezing songs with a maximum of 120 patterns.
• Automatic unfreezing can only occur when neither the frozen track and instrument have been renamed.

Thanks to taktik and dblue for contributions to the code of this tool.

Version 1.1 incorporates the ideas and feedback from the users on the forum.

Version 1.2 tidies up the rendering settings dialog box, sends a 'panic' notes off command before rendering and saves the last rendering preferences for reuse.

Version 1.21 fixes a small bug in recalling rendering settings.