hi. i was wondering if it’s possible to use another timeline (than the ‘main touchdesigner’ one) within a audio file in chop?
i’ve built a network wherein i’m manipulating the main timeline in order to get a certain animation effect, but this then ‘messes’ with how the audio is being played. i would like the ‘other’ timeline (that the audio file in chop references) to work/behave in the same way as the main timeline regularly does (like a stopwatch, going from 0 to x in a streamline way). i’ve attached my touchdesigner file for an easier understanding of what I am trying to accomplish. the ‘premise’ of my network is that I am trying to control an animation and a audio file, through fsr-sensors connected to an arduino. so if any pressure (resistance) is detected, the visualisation and sound start playing, and when there is not (no change) the visualisation and sound stop playing.
To control - as in pause - the animation, I would in your specific case recommend a Cache TOP placed after the Feedback TOP and control the Active parameter from your serial input. To speed up or slow down the animation, I would see which parameters in your TOP network have the best effect - for example the Composite TOP’s Scale parameter can be used.
Controlling the main timeline the way you are doing is only in some very specific circumstances recommended. If possible you leave the main timeline playing and you don’t have to interact with it ever.
For time based control otherwise often the Timer CHOP is used (Check out the OP Snippets for some applications of it). Otherwise there is also the Time COMP with which every Component can have it’s own time but again a very specific usage which I don’t think applies in your case.
Thank you for the reply! I understand. However, i am kind of running out of the time with this project and trying to implement the fastest possible solution. I know it’s not the best way to go about it, but i simply do not have many other options. I could unfortunately not get the Time COMP to work, seemed as if it still was influenced by the main timeline and i do not have any other components in my network.
did you try the Cache TOP and control it’s active parameter the same way you control the Audio File In CHOP’s Play parameter. That should do everything you want. No need to control the timeline.
hi. i did, but i had the problem of the animation not continuing from where it left off. when i played the animation (set the active parameter to 1/on), it had a completely different ‘structure’ in comparison to where i paused it. which does not align with what i am trying to accomplish. i think this is caused by the ‘noise’ TOP, since it always is in constant movement due to the absTime.seconds function used there. the only thing that pauses that movement is the general timeline.
instead of controlling the Noise TOPs with time, you can utilize the Speed CHOP and control it with a Button that turns on if the incoming values change or turns off if they are not changing.
The Button can then also be used to control the playback of the Cache and Audio.