Steinberg Halion Sonic 2 Manual

181
Global Functions and SettingsThe Plug-in Functions Section
Polyphony (Mono Voices)
This display indicates the number of samples currently played back to help you trace 
performance problems. For example, if you have to reduce the Max Voices setting on 
the Options page, you can verify your settings by monitoring the number of voices 
currently playing.
MEM (Memory)
This display indicates the overall amount of RAM currently used by the plug-in and the 
loaded programs. The number displayed refers to...

182
Global Functions and SettingsThe Options Page
Undo/Redo
HALion Sonic features an undo/redo command stack that allows you to undo or redo 
the last 10 operations. With the aid of this function you can test new settings without 
having to worry about losing any of your previous settings.
You can either click the Undo/Redo buttons to undo or redo a single step, or you can:
1.Click the small triangles to see the Undo/Redo history.
2.Click on an entry in the history list to go back (or forward) to that...

183
Global Functions and SettingsThe Options Page
Balancing Disk vs. RAM
With this slider, you can balance the hard disk versus the RAM usage.
•If you need more RAM for other applications, drag the slider to the left towards the 
Disk setting.
•If your hard disk is not supplying data fast enough, drag the slider to the right 
towards the RAM setting.
The memory displays will be updated accordingly.
ÖIf you experience no problems with the system performance, leave this setting as it is.
ÖThe Disk vs. RAM...

184
Global Functions and SettingsThe Options Page
Multi-Core
On the Multi-Core pop-up menu, you can specify how many of the available CPU 
cores of your system can be used by HALion Sonic. This allows HALion Sonic to 
compute each program on a different core, for example. The best setting here 
depends on multiple factors, and varies from system to system, and project to project. 
A good starting point is to set this value to one core less than the available number of 
cores.
If problems occur, reduce...

185
Global Functions and SettingsThe Options Page
To assign programs to a General MIDI program change number:
1.Go to the Load page.
2.In the title bar of the lower section, click the “Set up Result Columns” button on 
the right.
3.From the menu, select “Musical” and “GM Sound”.
The “GM Sound” column is added to the search result list.
4.In the “GM Sound” column of the search result list, set the sound to the General 
MIDI program number that you want to use.
Note that you can assign the same “GM Sound”...

186
Global Functions and SettingsThe Options Page
•Use the scrollbar to the right or resize the dialog to see all available commands and 
keys.
•Click the minus sign to collapse the list.
To set up a key command, proceed as follows:
1.In the Commands list to the left, select a category.
2.Click the plus sign to open the Category folder and display the items it contains.
Note that you can also click the “global” plus and minus signs in the top left corner 
to open and close all Category folders at once....

187
Global Functions and SettingsThe Controls in the Standalone Functions Section
MIDI Controller Smoothing
MIDI controllers have a maximum resolution of 128 steps. This is rather low. Therefore, 
if you use a MIDI controller as a modulation source in the modulation matrix or to 
remote-control a quick control, the parameter change may occur in audible steps, 
causing an effect often referred to as “zipper noise”. To avoid this, HALion Sonic 
provides MIDI controller smoothing, so that parameter changes...

188
Global Functions and SettingsThe Controls in the Standalone Functions Section
•On the Audio Routing page, use the Audio Output Ports pop-up menus to assign 
different audio outputs.
HALion Sonic supports 32 channels: two Main channels (left and right) and 15 
additional stereo channels (left and right). You can assign different audio outputs 
for each channel. Selecting an audio output on the pop-up menu maps the output 
to the corresponding channel.
If you press [Shift] and select an audio output,...

189
Global Functions and SettingsThe Controls in the Standalone Functions Section
The Key Commands Dialog for the Functions of the Standalone Application
You can assign key commands to most operations that can be performed via the 
standalone panel of HALion Sonic. The Key Commands dialog lists all available 
commands and any key commands assigned to them.
To access the Key Commands dialog:
•In the top left corner of the standalone panel, click the button to the right of the 
MIDI input pop-up menu.
The...

190
Global Functions and SettingsThe Controls in the Standalone Functions Section
The scratch pad allows you to record and play back MIDI files in standard MIDI file 
format (file name extension .mid). You can load existing MIDI files and you can record 
your own files and save them. The transport section provides buttons for play, stop, 
record and loop. The display shows the song position, the tempo and the time 
signature of the MIDI file. In addition, there is a metronome which you can use for...