Tutorials and Topics - Peabody Computer Music

Tutorial 5Fundamentals:Turning signals on and offSelecting one of several signals: selector~In the previous chapter, we saw the gate~ object used to route a signal to one of severalpossible destinations. Another useful object for routing signals is selector~, which iscomparable to the Max object switch. Several different signals can be sent into selector~,but it will pass only one of them—or none at all—out its outlet. The left inlet of selector~receives an int specifying which of the other inlets should be opened. Only the signalcoming in the opened inlet gets passed on out the outlet.The number in the left inlet determines which other inlet is openAs with gate~, switching signals with selector~ can cause a very abrupt change in thesignal being sent out, resulting in unwanted clicks. So if you want to avoid such clicks it’sbest to change the open inlet of selector~ only when audio is off or when all of its inputsignal levels are 0.In the tutorial patch, selector~ is used to choose one of four different classic synthesizerwave types: sine, sawtooth, triangle, or square. The umenu contains the names of the wavetypes, and sends the correct number to the control inlet of selector~ to open the desiredinlet.• Choose a wave type from the pop-up menu, then click on the startwindow message. Usethe pop-up menu to listen to the four different waves. Click on the stop message to turnaudio off.85