I'm aware this may have been discussed with quite a few times already, but I have not been able to find an exact answer yet, and I'm a total beginner, so please bear with me. Pro tips would be appreciated.

I've created some synths with lots of functions and tweakability, and been using them in poly~ as well. I've been wondering if there would be a more novel way to control the poly~ instances than the one I've been using.

Let's say I have a cutoff dial in the synth interface, and I wish to set the same cutoff for all of the poly~ instances at the same time, by just tweaking the instance I have open. I've been using send/receive pairs between the dial and the filter, which works fine. All instances receive the same message. But obviously this sometimes greatly increases the amount of objects in the patch, and I could do with less. This also forces me to keep poly~ in mind already while creating the patch, which I don't always do. Sometimes I just create a thing and think about using it in poly~ later on, at which point I start installing sends and receives to the patch. Sending messages from outside using "target 0" does not really work here, unless I completely re-think the way I structure my patches, which I realize is something I should possibly consider doing anyway.

Am I completely missing something obvious here, or how do you people usually go about this?

Thanks a lot and sorry again if I'm rehashing an old topic.

Hey everyone


I'm aware this may have been discussed with quite a few times already, but I have not been able to find an exact answer yet,...

poly-message-from-one-instance-to-all-instances

wait, before we go further: you have a GUI 

the poly so that each voice has its own GUI?

I do! Now that you asked, I sort of get the feeling that this may not be the most efficient way of doing things, haha..

I just usually create a synth and add user interface on the go. Then realize that this would be great in poly~ as well. And then turn the synth poly~ compatible adding sends and receives. Perhaps it'd make sense to create a separate "engine" inside the poly~ and create the interface outside? I'm still trying to fathom my ways around a sensible way of organizing my patching.

You answer your own questions reasonably,

having a GUI inside the poly is totally okay, i have more problems with the use of send/receive between voices, which seems to be caused by this design. 

there are quite some things which can go wrong with these: loosing control, order, threading, creating loops...

when i build #something i make a pile of gui objects here, a pile of IO and preset releated objects there - and everything DSP goes in a third place. 

it is still creative chaos in the details, but with some basic organisation. the trasition to poly or bpatcher, or it could be gen or rnbo, or exchanging default gui objects against custom gui objects, is now possible without too much boring work.

the more you do with poly the more you might begin directly with it or develop a way where you take it into account from the beginning on. if a patch is "prepared" for becoming a poly., it is really only exchanging the inlets and adding on/off and voicing logic.

when i read you i believe you´ll find your way.

Thank you for the replies. Reading these I already spotted some things I definitely could/should do otherwise in the future. Will re-consider the architecture. Back to the 'drawing board'…

Was my first post here, but been lurking for a while, and got to say this forum in general has been a treasure trove for a beginner like me. Cheers everyone. 

Hold on, before we proceed: do you have a GUI inside the poly so that each voice has its own GUI?

Poly~: Message from One Instance to all Instances