My 2018 Wishlist

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Musix
Posts: 12

Post by Musix »

Here are some things I'd like to see changed and added to Synthesia in 2018!

1. The ability to change the instruments and channel colors on the playback page (See image for a quick draft by me)

2. It would be great if we could have the option to turn on the metronome by simply clicking on the icon. Just like how enabling the Sheet Music feature works right now. The user would then be able to view the advanced settings by right clicking on the icon. (See 2nd image)

3. Any news on Sustain Pedal Visualisation? I've seen it requested before, but that was about 2 years ago. Also if you end up adding that, it would be required to also have the option to disable the feature.

4. Why does it always say "C Major" in the bottom left? Shouldn't we be able to edit that by maybe using the Metadata Editor?

5. When I have a MIDI file opened in Synthesia I'd love the program to be able to automatically switch to a file that I open from the OS File Explorer by right clicking and then choosing "Play/View in Synthesia". Currently, opening a different file like that while synthesia is opened will just make a blank window pop up.

Can't wait for Synthesia 11 btw, you're doing a great job!
Spoiler:
Channel_Settings_Draft.jpg
Channel_Settings_Draft.jpg (309.82 KiB) Viewed 3363 times
Metronome_Enabled_Draft.jpg
Metronome_Enabled_Draft.jpg (252.26 KiB) Viewed 3363 times
Nicholas
Posts: 13135

Post by Nicholas »

1. Would a simpler Left vs. Right vs. Both hand toggle work? (Say, two separate hand icons that can be enabled/disabled independently?) That is something already on the schedule for Synthesia 12. The implications of your mock-up would take quite a bit more work.

2. Hmm. How would it work for touch-screen users? A long-press on the icon to get the options? I worry that can be tricky to communicate. Otherwise, I do like the idea. Toggling the metronome right now takes quite a few more precision clicks than it ought to.

3. It's still on the schedule for Synthesia 12.

4. Try any of the built-in songs at the top level of the song library (the FNaF pieces or Megalovania). None of those show "C Major". :D (The current song key is obtained from the MIDI file. It's more coincidental that many of the built-in beginner repertoire happens to be arranged in C Major.)

5. This has been a long-time feature request of my own! :lol: (While testing and debugging Synthesia, being able to drag files in would be a huge time-saver.) You could be in all sorts of places inside the app when a file is dragged in, though. How should situations with unsaved changes be handled? Examples include: several minutes into practicing a song (your progress would be lost); in the middle of splitting a part into left/right hands; on the shortcut binding screen; etc.

Allowing an interruption from any point in the app can be tricky. (Although, this is already possible on iPad and Android when the app is running in the background and you open a song via the "Open with Synthesia" shortcut. Today it is handled in a rather brute-force way: the answer to all those questions before is "We don't care! Burn it all down!", followed by loading the new song.
Musix
Posts: 12

Post by Musix »

Thanks for the response!
1. It's not really what I'm looking for, but it's still an improvement!
2. Pressing and holding could work, or maybe using double tapping? You could also add a mute button to the options menu of the metronome, that way you could enable the metronome in two clicks. (clicking on the icon to open the menu, clicking on the [un]mute button)
4. You say the key signature is obtained from the MIDI file, but all of the MIDI files I import always say C Major no matter what key they're actually in. It would be great if we could manually set the key signature for each MIDI file. I don't know alot about MIDI files, do they contain information about the key signature? If they don't then you should consider adding a slot to the meta data editor.
5. I'm glad you want the same thing, which most likely mean it will be added at some point right? :P
Nicholas
Posts: 13135

Post by Nicholas »

4. Key signatures information can be stored in MIDI files. Most MIDI editors let you control the number of sharps/flats at least. And then the better editors also let you toggle the Major/minor flag as well.

Something like MuseScore should be able to do a nice job of loading the MIDI, updating the key, and saving it as MIDI again.
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