Outputs

Use of Output Groups is optional. By default, Sound Mill will play a Sound Item on the Default Sound Playback device specified in the Windows Control Panel. However, if you want to pipe sound to different zones, for example music to the lobby PA during intermission and production sounds to the stage speakers, read on.

The following are required to use Output Groups:

•  The Sound Item audio file MUST be a Wav format file to use Outputs.
•  The Sound Item must have the Play Modifier Use DirectX checkbox checked, in order to use Output Groups. If NOT checked, the sound will play using the WMP audio driver and will play on the Windows Default Sound Playback device.
•  Each speaker device(s) should be connected to a separate soundcard or separate output jack on a multi-output soundcard.

Terminology

• Device  - A device is a physical speaker or set of speakers usually located in a separate zone of a building or large room. Examples: "Lobby PA" or "Stage Towers Speakers". (see Figure 4.)
• Output Group  - An Output Group specifies one or multiple device(s) that a given Sound Item should be piped to when played. You assign an Output Group index to each sound item in the Play Modifier attributes. When you click Play, the Sound Item is played on all the devices specified in its Output Group.

View Outputs and Devices

You can view the full configuration of Outputs and Devices by clicking Tools -- Outputs/Devices -- View Outputs and Devices (see Listing 1.) . You can then save it to file or print it. You can also see a very detailed list of the capabilities of each hardware device with Tools -- Outputs/Devices -- View Device Capabilities -- Useful to DirectX experts only.

Editing Output Groups

ATTENTION! Editing Output Groups or Devices requires you to exit and restart the program to make changes take effect.

You configure Output Groups that can contain one or multiple devices. Each Output Group has a sequential index (0 ,1, 2, etc). The Play Modifiers panel lets you assign an Output Group for each Sound Item. Then when the Sound Item is played, it will be played on every device listed for its Output Group. The groups may be reindexed after closing the editor. For example, so if you reorder the list or remove any groups, some group indexes will be reassigned.

Edit Output Groups by clicking Tools -- Outputs / Devices -- Output Groups -- Edit (see Figure 2.).

• Select Devices  - Select an Output Group in the list, then click the Devices button. The resulting dialog allows you to select one or more Devices to be contained in an Output Group. This replaces any devices currently in the group.
• Add  - Select an Output Group in the list, then click the Add button to add a new Output Group to the bottom of the list. It is named with a random 4 letter id.
• Remove  - Select an Output Group in the list, then click the Remove button to remove the selected Output Group. Click the Remove All button to clear the list.
• Move (change index)  - You can change the index number of the Output Group by moving the group up or down in the list. In the list editor, select a group in the list, then click the Move Up or Move Down button (green arrows). The top Group is always Group #0. So for example if you move Group #1 down one postion, it becomes Group #2.
  
  Remeber, the Output Group index is specified in each Sound Item. So if you change the index position of a group in this list, you will have do a mass update on the Sound Items to change to the new index. Group indexes are renumbered when you close the list editor by clicking OK.
• Rename  - Allows you to Rename the group to identify its contents. In the list editor, select a device in the list. Change the group Name text at the bottom of the editor then click the Rename button.
• Export  - Export saves the current Output Groups to a file. Import and Export are useful if you frequently swap the audio interface device connected to the computer and you don't want to go through the setup everytime -- such as USB soundcards.
• Import  - Import replaces the current Output Groups from a configuration saved file in an exported file.
• Reset  - Reset will delete all current Output Groups and create one new Output Group for each detected device. It will also create one group which contains All Devices. If you plan to use the All Devices group, remember to remove the Primary Sound Driver from this group (see section below regarding Primary Sound Driver). There is no UnDo for a Reset for use this operation carefully.

Editing Devices

Every detected audio device has a System Name as assigned by Windows and a Logical Name. The System Name is usually the name of the sound card or an output port name on multi-output soundcards (ex. "Sound Blaster X-Fi 24", or "Output port 2"). You can assign a Logical Name to each device to more easily identify which speakers are hooked to the device (ex. "Lobby PA"). There is also a GUID (driver global unique id) associated to each device. The GUID is generally only useful for debugging purposes. In general, you should Reset if you have added or removed soundcards from the computer. Also, moving a USB soundcard from one USB port to another may affect the order in which Windows lists devices. It is recommended that you keep the USB connection ports of all devices as consistent as possible.

Some multi-output devices need a special DirectX driver installed so that the Windows OS will recognize all the output ports. This is usually installed by Windows Plug and Play the first time the hardware is detected. If not, see the device manufacturer Website for instructions regarding special drivers. Drivers are usually provided as a free download from the device manufacturer.

Edit Devices by clicking Tools -- Outputs / Devices -- Devices (see Figure 3.).

• Rename Logical Name  - Allows you to change the Logical Name of the device. In the list editor, select a device in the list. Change the name in the textbox at the bottom of the editor then click the Rename button.
• Set Volume  - The Volume button allows you to change the master volume of each device. This volume is relative to the master Windows volume setting. At playback time, you can override the Sound Item Volume attribute with this device volume. The Device Volume Override mode is set in the Behavior menu .
• Move (change index)  - You can change the index number of a device by moving the device up or down in the list. In the list editor, select a device in the list, then click the Move Up or Move Down button (green arrows). The top Device is always Device #0. So for example if you move Device #1 down one postion, it becomes Device #2.
  
  The Output Groups use the Device indexes to determine Devices. So if you change the index position of a Device in this list, you may have do a update one or more Output Groups to reflect the changed device index. Device indexes are renumbered (from top to bottom of the list) when you close the list editor by clicking OK.
• Reset Devices  - Reset menu item re-acquires the list of available audio devices from Windows. Logical Names are set to the System Name. And device index numbers may change if you have changed hardware since the last reset. It may be necessary to edit the Output Groups if your device indexes have changed.
• Set Default Device  - If a device specified in an Output Group cannot be found at play time, the Default Device will be substituted. Device #0 is the initial value unless changed by the user.

Why Are My Devices Not Showing Up?

Device visibility to Windows often depends on a hardware device driver. If your device is not showing in the list , check the manufacturers Website for updated drivers that support DirectX. Only DirectX capable devices can be initialized for use with Sound Mill. For example, a telephone modem with a speaker may appear in the device list but is not likely DirectX capable and will not be successfully initialized.

What is the Primary Sound Driver Device?

When you Reset Devices, Windows performs a device discovery and returns a list of all connected audio devices with the System Name of the hardware device soundcard. A device called the Primary Sound Driver (or similar name depending on your Windows OS version) is usually the first in the list. This is the Windows Default Sound Playback device specified in the Windows Control Panel. It is usually a duplicate to one of the other physical hardware devices in the list. If you do, the Sound Item may be played to the same device twice because Sound Mill treats it like any other device.

Tip - Primary Sound Driver - As a best practice, you should not include Primary Sound Driver device in any Output Group. Use the device with System Name equal to the physical hardware name instead.

So in the example below, if the Sound Blaster X-Fi 24 soundcard is the Windows Default Sound Playback device, do not create an Output Group that includes both the Sound Blaster X-Fi 24 device and the Primary Sound Driver device.

Creating a Multiple Output System on a Budget

Not everyone has the deep pocket budget of a Disney production. The approach you take will depend on affordability, number of outputs needed, types of cable connectors and sound quality desired. See our website for a summary of cost/quality trade-offs for high-end, mid range and low cost solutions for building Multi-Zone Output Systems.

Maximum Output Groups

There is a default maximum of 16 Output Groups for all editions of Sound Mill. If you need more outputs, contact Support for pricing.

Example Output Groups

For the example in Listing 1, assume the venue has 3 logical speaker systems: Stage Towers, a Lobby PA, and Courtyard PA. The example below shows four output groups defined. Output groups 0 and 1 contains one device (dev) each. Output group 2 (Output - Lobby and Courtyard) contains 2 devices to be used for music and announcements directed to 2 zones.

======================================================================
OUTPUT GROUPS
======================================================================
Maximum outputs = 16

0 Output Group - Stage Only
Contains 1 device(s).
Device 0, Logical name: Stage Towers
___________________________________
1 Output Group - Lobby Only
Contains 1 device(s).
Device 1, Logical name: Lobby PA
___________________________________
2 Output Group - Lobby and Courtyard
Contains 2 device(s).
Device 1, Logical name: Lobby PA
Device 2, Logical name: Courtyard PA

__________________________________
3 Output Group - All Devices
Contains 3 device(s).
Device 0, Logical name: Stage Towers
Device 1, Logical name: Lobby PA
Device 2, Logical name: Courtyard PA


======================================================================  
DEVICES
======================================================================
Default Device = 0, Stage Towers
___________________________________
Device 0
Logical Name: Stage Towers
System Name: Sound Blaster X-Fi 24
Guid: bd6ce43a-4ef5-13e4-bed5-00e245fd0004
Volume: 100%
Initialized: True
___________________________________
Device 1
Logical Name: Lobby PA
System Name: USB Sound Blaster Audigy 2 NX
Guid: bd6ce43a-4ef5-13e4-bed5-00e245fd0002
Volume: 100%
Initialized: True
___________________________________
Device 2
Logical Name: Courtyard PA
System Name: SoundMAX Digital Audio
Guid: bd6ce43a-4ef5-13e4-bed5-00e245fd0000
Volume: 100%
Initialized: True
___________________________________
Device 3
Logical Name: Primary Sound Driver
System Name: Primary Sound Driver
Guid: 00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000
Volume: 100%
Initialized: True

Note: Primary Sound Driver device was moved to the end of the device list for clarity of this example.

Listing 1. View Outputs and Devices