Hi!
Eagerly awaiting my ribbons from the latest batch. Stoked that we might get a resonance control for the filter as well!
I was just wondering about the stereo aspect of the pedal. I have a stereo rig and was simply wondering if it was or could be possible to adjust parameters separately for each channel? My two channels doesnt sound the same and so could most probably benefit from separate processing for saturation/filtering/bitcrush etc on each channel. I also think it could perhaps make the stereo spread livelier if you could for example have a slightly stronger flutter focus on one channel and wow focus on the other. Could it perhaps be done with some sort of balance control? Either way, I think I will be plenty happy with the pedal as it is, I was just wondering if it was already possible and if not, if you could consider the suggestion for a future update. Br Thomas
Possible but it would require a lot of support for me to move on it. There is no room in the current UI framework for a balance control or separate controls for the left and right channels. Maybe when I release all my files open source someone can poke around in there and add it via a MIDI CC.
I’d be thrilled if separate stereo controls got implemented, and it’d be something I’d be sure to use in recording sessions
I also think it’s interesting in theory but I can’t think of a thoughtful or intuitive way to add it to Ribbons user interface. There are already so many parameters available and providing separate controls for left and right would basically double the # of controls. I feel like this would be more cumbersome and confusing to most users than it would be helpful.
I think once you start playing with Ribbons you’ll find that there are several parameters that add unique nuances to the stereo field (dropouts, crinkle, noise, reverb, etc).
Let me say first that this pedal has turned into a multi-effect. Its fantastic what you have managed to add to it already. The way you listen to everyones opinions and suggestions is just great.
That I would want separate left/right controls didnt enter my mind before listening to the new tape saturation algo. It just sounded so good that I could see myself using it more extensively. It then occured to me that it might be useful adjusting it separately since I am using different amps that reacts differently.
While I agree it could perhaps be a parameter just adding clutter for some users, I also imagine quite a few like me will be using this thing in stereo and would appreciate everything that adds to that aspect.
Dont know much about midi, but I plan on starting using it now, and in my mind a single left/right balance parameter for the effects, available only via midi, would do the trick. As in 0-127 equals left to right. Just a suggestion, no idea if its even possible. I think I will be totally happy with the pedal either way:)
I also might have a use case for separate stereo controls. I got my ribbons last week and it’s easily my favorite pedal. I keep finding myself wishing I could put it at the beginning AND end of my chain. Recently I realized that if I ran the pedal back through itself, that would be possible. But that would really only be useful with the ability to change each channel’s parameters separately. I’m already looking for a device to automate Ribbons and the rest of my setup (taking suggestions), so it wouldn’t bother me at all if it were a MIDI-only feature.
That said, I absolutely can’t bring myself to ask for this with everything else Ribbons already does. Is the Ribbons firmware written in C++? I’d be interested in taking a crack at this feature, whenever you’re ready to open-source.
Thank you so much for all your hard work on Ribbons. It’s truly a joy to use. I’m really looking forward to seeing what you do next
Interesting idea. Here are some challenges one might encounter trying to do this:
- Some of the DSP blocks are currently “stereo linked”, for example, the peak detector on the compressor looks at both left and right input signals, takes the max value, and uses that to calculate how much attenuation to apply. This is fun because you can use one channel as a side-chain for the other to get a “ducking” effect. But to separate them you would want to split this into two detectors (easy, just some copy and pasting) to be able to process left and right separately.
- The reverb (like every reverb I’m aware of) sums left and right together before being input into the “chamber”. We then listen at different points in the output to create a stereo image that sounds “wide”. You would have to duplicate the reverb to have distinct left and right reverbs, which might overload the CPU to 120% when used in conjunction with the four track looper.
- Duplicate all the control parameters and come up with a way for the UI to have another “layer” that controls the right channel. I think one way this could be done is to add a third Push Button + Bypass button layer, so Layer 1 (Left channel params) = Green Bypass LED, Layer 2 (Right channel params) = Dark Blue LED, Layer 3 (Looper params) = Light Blue LED.
Yup! And it will be available open source within the next year here. I have one more firmware update planned for this year to tie up some loose ends and we’re contemplating another production run. I’m thinking sometime after that I’ll make my git repo public and write up a brief hacking guide.
I don’t have it in me to look into it but those are some ideas about how one might do it. All of that will probably make more sense once you have the firmware in front of you.
Thank you for your thoughtful reply here! I’ll to have to brush up on my C++ in the meantime. I have a little DSP experience in Rust, which probably wont translate but it’s a start. Even without the source code to look at, most of what you’re saying makes sense. Sounds like it’d be a mixed bag with some outright concessions that would have to be made, which is about what I’d expect. Could still be a cool option to have.
Your suggestions on how to make it work with the UI are helpful. That’s not something I expected to even be an option but I’ll keep it in mind. I imagined adding the ability to listen to different MIDI channels for each stereo channel. Then only for listening for parameters that are worth splitting on the secondary channel, if that makes sense.
I appreciate you pointing all this out to me. It’ll no doubt be helpful if myself or someone else attempts this