Beginner Question

x@stevexcraig.com's icon

ok, this may be a dumb question, but let's say I have two patches I like and I just want to combine them. Do I just send the ouput signals to a multiplier like *~.5 ? and then to the dac? Also, I don't get the difference between +~ and *~. I know one is add and the other is multiply, but do both combine signals?
sorry, but this max/msp is way over my head...
-steve

Jean-Francois Charles's icon

*~ is the fader on the mixer (* 1. is equivalent to "O dB".)
+~ is the connexion of 2 signals into one, really the addition of 2 signals.
If you want to play with the balance of 2 signals, you need 2 [*~] objects.
If you want to just combine them, [+~] will add them, [*~] will scale the sum. Or connecting 2 signals at the same input of [*~], that is equivalent.
But just go ahead, make a patch, try it by yourself. You won't break the computer nor Max like that!
J-F.

Luke Hall's icon

Have a look at the patch I've included below. It should illustrate how [+~] combines signals while [*~] scales them. When the combined signal is greater than 1 you will see blips on the [scope~] and as this increases you will begin to hear distortion, just select a few values from the drop down menu or change the value in the [flonum] box. As Jean-Francois mentioned you don't really need to use the [+~] object as MSP objects automatically sum signals if they are connected to the same inlet.

lh

Max Patch
Copy patch and select New From Clipboard in Max.

Roman Thilenius's icon

you mix audio dignals by multiplying them with each other.

no need to do * -0.5.

*~ ? yes, that would work, but it is not necessary.
most msp objects will allow more than one connection, and that multiplies the signals too.
if you for example connect 2 signals both to the first inlet
of a [+~ 0.] that also multiplies them.

if you would add 2 signals via +~ it might sound similar, but it
gives you wrong results. (example: 0.7 + 0.7 will give you over 1.)

-110
 

 p.s.:
i am not editing "dignal", because i think it
is a ralley beutufil rerreo.

enki's icon

I've elaborated on Luke Hall's handy patch to explicitly describe the importance of the values.

basic-signal-addition.maxpat
Max Patch