Pro Tools & EuCon requests for Dock & S1 users

[Robert B Sound]

Hey folks,

I’ve been a user of the Dock and S1 for a while now (high-turnaround short-form corporate/NGO post work). With low budgets and tight timescales, and only 9 faders, I feel like I have squeezed out every drop of flexible PT/S1/Dock customisation I can, but I'm sure there's more to learn and tweak - there must be.

Here are some feature requests I would love to see implemented to be able to take my sound editing and mixing to the next level, with the tools that I already have. I use Pro Tools Ultimate with a single S1, Dock and Avid Control.

• Eucon command softkey to scroll PT & bank S1 to current selected track - (scroll to view) in Pro Tools and justification on the S1.
  
• Add an option in channel mode for the Dock to follow the S1 process function - e.g. selecting inserts and opening a plugin is mirrored on the dock so that custom knob maps are displayed across both dock and S1 at once.
  
• Eucontrol preference - opening insert in channel mode on S1 also opens it on dock, so all knobs available as mapped, with one click. - this could then be changed manually on the dock to switch to panning or another insert, but the initial selection from the S1 would bring the plugin up. I currently access SSL EQ on S1 knobs and the Dyn section on dock knobs. But I have to open it sepearetly on both controllers before I can start working.
  
• In flip mode, add an option not just to swap knobs and faders, but to spill plugin controls to all faders and knobs (SSL channel strip plugins typically have 20 controls). Thus turning the surface into one big plugin controller.
  
• Flip S1 selected track Aux to Dock fader for reverb/delay throws whilst staying keeping the current track selection on the S1.
  
• In Insert mode - channel control knobs default to show current values (without needing to touch them - to avoid looking up at the computer screen or touching the knobs just to see the values).
  
• Toggle VCA/folder spill from S1 with a single press on surface select.
  
• Folder toggle open/close should work on any parent folder of a selected track - having to select the folder track with the mouse wastes time and interrupts the surface workflow. The workflow would be: Select folder track - Toggle folder open.. select track to eq/edit/mix - then, when ready, toggle folder closed.
  
• Can a selected track be highlighted / indicated on the OLED screen for more obvious identification when moving between computer screen and surface - in addition to the yellow sel. switch illumination. Perhaps the OLED track name yellow on black could be inverted so that selected track has black name on yellow strip.
  
• Eucon preference option: Solo (in x-or mode) also selects the channel - for post work this would be amazing as the solo keys are nice and big but sel. is so small.
  
• Eucontrol preference option - When banking/nudging on S1, don’t show Folder tracks or only view certain tracks when banking on surface - like the Avid control app track type filter.
  
• Please add scrolling waveforms to the avid control app on meters - for ducking music under dialogue/narration - this would be amazing.

[tekis]

I have the same setup. All of your suggestions look good and well thought out. Thank-you.

[Robert B Sound]

Some additions to the list:

• Instead of switching between plugins on the S1/Dock, enable 'custom knob layout' for a plugin chain - saved at track-preset level. Example. Assign the most used plugin controls for Noise reduction, de-reverb, saturation, EQ and compression from 5 different plugins, across 16 KNOBS (S1+Dock). The workflow would be lightning-fast, just change tracks and the knobs are all assigned and ready to go. PT could build a plugin wrapper/host like Bluecat patchwork or Waves Studio Rack, so that plugin controls could be mapped to knobs that way.
  
• Add pan and dynamics to the EQ view on the control app, so that you can pan from the touch screen without having to change the tablet view.
  
• combine the previous two features and you've basically turned an S1 and Dock into a console!
  
• Enable user customisation of the footswitch port
  
• Enable Eucon softkey assignment to mute assigned tracks. Example. I don't need to use the faders on my sub-masters but I do need to mute Dx, Fx or Mx at different mixing stages. Would love softkeys to do this for me.

[EddieJones]

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