Tracking synthesizer audio then voice

If you read my post on Keytracking then maybe you saw that I implied that you can use the pitch of any audio signal.

So let me share how you can modulate the frequency value of a ReaEQ band by the incoming audio’s pitch!

Contents

Introduction

The idea here is fairly simple. We use ReaTune to send out midi, then we use a custom JSFX plug-in to create a slider that corresponds to the frequency of the midi note ReaTune is outputting. Now we can link anything to that slider, like a ReaEQ band.

The Script

The following code is the script. You can either create a new file and drop this in it, or download from here.

To find the location of where to put this:

  • Open Reaper
  • Options menu->Show RESOURCE path in explorer/finder
  • Open the “Effects” folder
  • Create a new folder (‘AdmiralBumbleBee’ if you wish)
  • Place this file in it

Now it will show in your JS effects list as “KeyTrack Generator ReaEQ edition”

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46

desc: Keytrack generator - ReaEQ edition
//tags: Key track follow generator link
//author: Robert Randolph

slider1:0<0,24000,1>Midi Note Frequency 
slider2:440<420,460,1>Base Frequency
slider3:0<-4,4,1>Octave Offset
slider4:0<0,4,1>Harmonic Offset
slider5:0<0,15,1{1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16}>Input Channel
slider6:0<0,1,1{Note On, Note Off}>Trigger

in_pin:none
out_pin:none

@init

noteOn = $x90;
noteOff = $x80;

@slider
baseFreq = slider2;
octOffset = slider3;
baseOffset = slider4;
inChannel = slider5;
noteTrig = slider6;

@block

while (midirecv(offset,msg1,msg2,msg3)) ( 
    channel = msg1 & $x0F;
    onOffStatus = msg1 & $xF0; // 144 == Note On, 128 == Note Off

    trigTest = noteTrig == 0 ? (noteOn):(noteOff); // comparison value based on our note on/off setting

    channel == inChannel ? (
        trigTest == onOffStatus ? (
            incNote = msg2;
            useNote = incNote + (octOffset * 12); // change octave of incoming note
            noteFreq = ((baseFreq / 32) * (2 ^ ((useNote - 9) / 12))); // Midi note to frequency
            noteFreqOff = noteFreq + (baseOffset * noteFreq); // Harmonic offset
            slider1 = noteFreqOff;
        )
    );
    
    midisend(offset,msg1,msg2,msg3); // pass through
);

Script extras

This script has some extra functions compared to the other one.

  • Base Frequency - This is your a=XXXhz tuning reference. Set this to the tuning reference of the instrument you’re using.
  • Octave Offset - This offsets the output value by N octaves. 2 Octaves up from 440hz is 1,760hz.
  • Harmonic Offset - This offsets the output by 1 harmonic value. 2 Harmonics up from 880hz is 2,640hz, where 2 octaves up would be 3,520hz.

Setup

Setting up the surfer

Setup is very simple, and you may already know what you need to do if you read the other post

  • Add “ReaTune” to our audio track.
    • Turn on “Send MIDI events when pitch changes”
  • Add “Keytrack generator - ReaEQ edition” to our audio track
  • Add ReaEQ to our audio track.
    • Turn OFF the to-be-modulated EQ band “Log-scale automated frequencies”
  • Parameter link the “Keytrack generator - ReaEQ edition” to the frequency of our ReaEQ band.
    • Wiggle the frequency of the band that you wish to have keytracked.
    • Click the “Param” menu in the upper right of the window.
    • Select “Parameter modulation/MIDI link”.
    • In the new window check “Link from MIDI or FX Parameter”.
    • In the first box select “Keytrack generator:” then “Midi Note Value”.

That’s it!

Keep in mind that the keytracking script doesn’t update parameters until a new note comes in.

Other plug-ins

If you want to use another plug-in then you may need to adjust for the logarithmic scale used by that plug-in. Here’s a script that works for something like Fabfilter Pro-Q 2

The ‘minVal’ and ‘maxVal’ variables need to be changed to the minimum and maximum frequency of your EQ.

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49

desc: Keytrack generator - Log scale Edition
//tags: Key track follow generator link
//author: Robert Randolph

slider1:0<0,100,1>Midi Note Frequency 
slider2:440<420,460,1>Base Frequency
slider3:0<-4,4,1>Octave Offset
slider4:0<0,4,1>Harmonic Offset
slider5:0<0,15,1{1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16}>Input Channel
slider6:0<0,1,1{Note On, Note Off}>Trigger

in_pin:none
out_pin:none

@init

noteOn = $x90;
noteOff = $x80;
minVal = 10;
maxVal = 30000;
logDelta = log(maxVal / minVal)

@slider
baseFreq = slider2;
octOffset = slider3;
baseOffset = slider4;
inChannel = slider5;
noteTrig = slider6;

@block

while (midirecv(offset,msg1,msg2,msg3)) ( 
    channel = msg1 & $x0F;
    onOffStatus = msg1 & $xF0; // 144 == Note On, 128 == Note Off

    trigTest = noteTrig == 0 ? (noteOn):(noteOff); // comparison value based on our note on/off setting

    channel == inChannel ? (
        trigTest == onOffStatus ? (
            incNote = msg2;
            useNote = incNote + (octOffset * 12); // change octave of incoming note
            noteFreq = ((baseFreq / 32) * (2 ^ ((useNote - 9) / 12))); // Midi note to frequency
            noteFreqOff = noteFreq + (baseOffset * noteFreq); // Harmonic offset
            slider1 = log(noteFreqOff / minVal) / logDelta * 100;
        )
    );
    
    midisend(offset,msg1,msg2,msg3); // pass through
);

Support Me!

This post took 7 total hours to research, screenshot, write and edit. If you appreciate the information presented then please consider joining patreon or donating!