ScopeNode
User's guide
Overview
ScopeNode provides a single, central visualization and processing hub. It captures and processes audio streams via multiple plugin instances (probes) placed at various points along any signal path in a digital audio project.
Setting up
A ScopeNode instance can be either a scope or a probe. Currently, only one scope is supported in a project, and an arbitrary number of probes.
Scopes also have a built-in probe, so in single-input cases, no separate probe instance is required.
Setting up a scope
By default, a newly placed scope has its built-in probe enabled. These can be disabled in the FUNCTION menu to create a pure scope instance.
Setting up probes
Once a newly placed instance is designated as a probe, it is ready to use. However, naming the probe (usually after the track) is recommended. Opening unnamed probes will always activate the on-screen keyboard.
Interface overview
The main interface can vary according to the active modes and selected functions (for example the inspection view, processors, and sum element in the probe list are all optional).
Scope controls
Acquisition
RUN: When highlighted, the scope is actively processing buffers and updating the screen. When deselected, a freeze is initiated, first allowing the current sweep to complete.
STEP: Perform a momentary RUN toggle, acquiring the next sweep.
Note: Since previous sweeps are not retained in memory, STEP instantly samples the live stream, potentially skipping sweeps that occurred during the freeze.
Mode
BEAT SYNC When enabled, each sweep will correspond to the duration of a single beat; otherwise the scope will be in free-running mode.
Scale / Vertical range
AUTO SCL Enables automatic scaling. A readout of the current range is provided on the right half of the button.
In manual scaling mode, the scale can be adjusted by tapping and dragging vertically on the scale readout (which features the ▲▼ symbols).
Channel selector & inspection control
L/R/M/S Selects the channel that will be acquired and shown on screen (applied universally for all probes).
INSP Enables the inspection view.
Probe list
The probe list offers the core functionalities for multi-iput workflows:
- Show / hide the waveform display for each audio stream (color-coded toggles on the left)
- Reorder layers (using the dragging handles)
- Rename probes or change graphics attributes (long press on probe names)
Priority ordering and Capacity Limitations
ScopeNode can visualize up to four audio streams, plus a sum stream.
While probe ordering serves an important visual purpose (such as preventing dense waveforms from obscuring sparse ones), it also governs how rendering capacity limits are applied.
If the number of enabled probes exceeds the rendering capacity, probes at the top of the list take priority over those lower in the order.
Live summing
In the FUNCTION menu, the sum tracking feature can be enabled, which will create a pseudo element in the Probe List.
Pressing the [Σ] button switches to fine-grained editing, separating visualization and sum inclusion controls.
Layer statuses
In non-summing mode, each probe features a simple on/off switch, subject to the rendering capacity limits. Enabling sum tracking introduces additional configuration options.
Note: the ARMED status indicates that some processing is already going on, meaning the waveform was already captured and prepared in the current sweep, and can be instantly toggled. However there are a couple of differing nuances between free-running and beat-synced modes, and between regular and live summing layers for example. Some consolidation and refinement is expected in this area with future additions and optimizations.
Processing
More than just data capture points, probes can actively process the signal streams flowing through them.
The editor for the processing parameters can be opened in the FUNCTION menu.
Note: These AU parameters reside within individual probe instances. Consequently, any automation must be configured directly on the originating tracks.
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
| Gain | Standard gain control from -inf to +6 dB |
| Delay | Sample grid delay, specified in milliseconds. Not to be used as a continous control parameter, except in periods of silence in the given stream. |
| Phase invert | Simple phase inversion switch. Because this is a raw toggle, please be mindful of potential transient pops or severe signal jumps when switching it on or off during low-frequency playback. |
| Phase shift | Switch for enabling the allpass-filter-based phase shifter. |
| P.shift frequency | Center frequency: location of the 180-degree phase shift (inversion) on the frequency axis. |
| P.shift Q factor | Resonance or quality factor, governing the slope and sharpness of the phase transition. |
| Allpass delay match | Warning: This is an advanced feature requiring manual bookkeeping of related tracks and their active processing parameters. Inserts a fixed delay to align high frequencies with other tracks that have phase shifting enabled. This prevents high-frequency comb filtering between highly correlated, overlapping signals near the Nyquist frequency. In other words, if the signals are distinct and not from the same source (such as in multi-mic setups or various forms of parallel processing), this feature can be safely left unused. |
Practical considerations for iOS DAW software
Phase alignment workflows; multiple, different uses within a single project
Compared to the desktop, UI layout restrictions can be a major hurdle in mobile audio software, paired with the strict Scope / Probe separation in ScopeNode's multi-instance paradigm.
The core problem is the inability of some host UI's to display plugin instances from a track different than the one being edited.
This rules out general, flexible workflows and requires a track-centric (or case-centric) setup approach that is antithetical to ScopeNode's core design. An additional problem lies in the difficulty of changing such setups mid-project (e.g. preserving automation data).
How this impacts the setup sequence
The key issue here is having instant visual feedback while allowing on-the fly editing, or subsequently, editing automation envelopes.
Suppose you have a clasic kick + bass alignment problem. The easiest way to get things going within the aforementioned limitations, is for your Scope instance to be on the bass track (or whichever track you're expected to do the most phase adjustment on).
External control surfaces: a good alternative
Setting up and mapping physical control surface knobs / sliders to phase shift freq / Q parameters can be a highly efficient approach that doesn't force a specific Scope + Probe scheme upon your project.
Switching between Scope and Probe roles
While this is being looked at, a workaround to some of these issues is the switching of roles - and that's possible via host presets. That allows automation data to be preserved, but depending on the execution you may need to re-enter track names, etc.
This is a stopgap solution, since the plugin doesn't support this in a frictionless way. But it can enable the occasional switch, even if it's a non-ideal process at the moment.