Download the completed project files for this tutorial. Download sample clips to use with these projects.
Example project using multiple triggers from a single media bin.
One of the common things you may want to set up using media bin plugins is the ability to trigger multiple clips to different layers at the same time. This allows a VJ to match specific clips for mixing in advance and bring them up with a single keypress or MIDI note. Within VDMX this can be configured in a few different ways depending on your use case or interface layout preferences.
Before starting this tutorial you may want to review some basic notes on using the media bin.
When finished with this tutorial you may want to check out how to work with multiple output screens or learn more about different types of video sources available in VDMX.
In the first example we'll use a single media bin that is configured to receive key presses that are used to trigger clips. From the media bin inspector in the triggers tab you can override the default bin layer for each receiver to target a specific layer for playback. For each layer needed an extra receiver / layer target pair is added. If needed repeat for additional key presses, or used along with the transpose up / down options in the control tab. Once your bin is set up you can move clips around (shift+click to select then drag) to change which layer they are played back on.
Tip #1: Instead of key presses you can use any data-source including MIDI, OSC and DMX messages.
Tip #2: In the Media Bin inspector under “options” you can find settings to hide trigger overlays and preload media files.
For the second example we'll be using multiple media bins that are each set to trigger to specific layers.
This technique can be especially useful if you are also using Two Channel Mixer plugins to auto-fade between clips. To begin we set up a single bin with the triggers that will be received. After the triggers are set we can use the menus tab to select which layers and pages are used by this particular bin. Next we can use the duplicate plugin option to create a copy of this media bin. We'll change its layer/page settings but keep the trigger receivers the same. This can be repeated if more layers are being used.
A third useful trick is similar to the previous, but instead of having each bin set up to receive the same note triggers we'll use one media bin as a master media bin whose triggers are passed on to activate clips in other bins.
Along with being able to receive from data-sources each media bin also publishes the index and normalized (0.0 to 1.0) value of each clip trigger. This value can then be be used by other bins via the “trigger by index” or “trigger by float” options in the control tab of the inspector. One advantage of using this technique is that you can use mouse clicks in the master bin to trigger multiple clips.
Notes:
Using the “triggers” section of the media bin inspector to set target layers for individual receivers.
The same triggers can be used for multiple media bins.
Use the “Triggered Index” data-source from your master media bin with the “Trigger by Index” control receiver.