Loopling FAQ
For connection problems see Getting Started. If you
still can't find an answer to your question, try posting on the User Forums.
- Stopping. How do I stop the sequencer!?
You can't stop the sequencer cursor. This would put you out of
sync with other group members. Do one of the following:
- Click the red "x" icon to clear the sequencer
- Create a new empty sequencer and select its radio button
- Click the "speaker" icon to disable playback on your computer. Your
sequencer will continue to play for other group members however. If you
have multiple group members running in the same browser you should disable
audio on all but one of them.
Also see Stuck Notes below.
- Multiple Instruments. How do I play multiple instruments by myself?
Open multiple windows in your browser and connect as multiple members. You should disable
the "speaker" icon in all but one window. Another method is to use the recording controls to
overdub multiple instruments. Please refer to the User Guide.
- Sequencer Scheduling. Why do I have to wait to hear my changes to the active
sequencer?
The sequencer schedules the entire sequence cycle
in advance, so that it can be forwarded to other members of the group. This scheduling
occurs near the end of the previous cycle. This means that any changes you make
will not be heard until the next cycle. And if the cursor is very near the end of
a cycle, your changes may not be heard until the cycle after next.
- Delays. Why is there a delay between playing a note and
hearing it?
There are several types of delays to consider:
- Sequencer Cycle Length. Changes to sequenced notes are not heard until
the next cycle of the sequencer. This is discussed in Sequencer Scheduling above.
- Sync Millisec (SMS). The sequencer schedules the notes
SMS millisec before the end of the cycle. This can
be adjusted from about 10 millisec to 500 millisec. This enables
synchronizing sequencer playback on many computers. It also means that changes
to the sequence which are made when the cursor is less than SMS millisec before the end of the
sequence will not be scheduled until the following cycle.
- Network Delays. There is a delay when delivering a group member's
notes to members on other computers. On a LAN this delay may be very small,
but on the Internet delays of 100 millisec or more are common. The Sync Millisec
setting must be larger than the largest network delay
to guarantee synchronization of members' sequencers. Even so, notes played
directly (not in a sequencer pattern) and changes to the Pan, Vibrato, and
Sustain controls will be delayed slightly by the network.
- Audio Latency. The computer's sound card or
software-synthesizer requires time to generate audio waveforms. This is audible on notes played
directly (by clicking the note names on the left side of a sequencer or via
the computer keyboard or an external MIDI controller). This is also responsible
for the slight delay between the sequencer cursor display and the corresponding
sound. Audio latency varies between a nearly inaudible 5 millisec to 100 millisec
depending on your system. Professional sound cards and USB audio interfaces can
normally be configured to 5 mS or less latency.
- Changes in Volume and Echo. Why do changes in Volume and Echo
not occur immediately?
Volume (actually MIDI velocity) is recorded as part of the note information, and
is scheduled in advance by the sequencer. Likewise Echoes are scheduled as
duplicate notes in the sequencer to avoid timing inaccuracies. See Sequencer Scheduling above.
- Changes in Pan, Vibrato, Sustain. Then why do changes in Pan, Vibrato, and Sustain
occur (almost) immediately?
Unlike Volume, these effects control the
Synthesizer directly. They are not affected by sequencer scheduling delays.
However, other group members may hear the effects at slightly different
times due to network delays.
- Garbled Notes. One of the group members sounds garbled. What can I do?
Sometimes the beginning of the sequence sounds garbled. This occurs when the member is
synchronized more than Sync Millisec (see Delays above) behind the other members, due to a slow
network connection or a slow computer. The group leader may try the Sync Members button to
see if this clears up the problem. Otherwise he/she may have to increase the Sync Millisec
setting and then do Sync Members again.
Note that the garbled sound will not be heard on the slow member's computer, and
will not cause problems in the recorded MIDI data.
- Dropped Notes. Why does the active sequencer sometimes skip notes?
There are two possible reasons for this.
- You pencilled in the note when the cursor neared the end of the sequence.
In this case the sequencer has already scheduled the next measures, and the
new note will not play until the following cycle. (See Sequencer Scheduling above.)
- You have exhausted the synthesizer's polyphony. The synthesizer can only
play a limited number of simultaneous tones. If you have many notes playing
at once some notes may get skipped. Turn off Sustain and/or Echo, since these
increase the number of simultaneous tones required.
- Stuck Notes. A note won't stop playing!
On rare occasions the synthesizer
may miss a "note off" event. If this occurs,
click the note again, or click the "speaker" icon off and on to stop all notes.
If the note will not stop playing you may have to quit and restart your browser.
- Key Repeat. Why do I get many duplicate notes when playing the computer keyboard?
Adjust or disable the key repeat rate in your computer's keyboard control panel.
- Is this free?
Sure, Loopling is completely free. If you want to help support Loopling development efforts, check
out the Google Ads on the page or buy the Luminet album.