*Draft Documentation*
The Custom Panel module is at the heart of Adroit Custom.
A small custom interface might consists of a handful of these modules positioned in a row to form a composite panel, but you can use as many Custom Panels as you like and use multiple cabinets if you require more vertical space.
Right-clicking on an empty part of a Custom Panel module launches the following menu…
This menu is used to attach knobs, sliders, push buttons, toggle buttons, radio buttons, virtual joysticks, custom graphics, LEDs and versatile visual elements called scopes to your panels. Some special purpose push buttons are also provided.
As you add elements to the panel some of the options become disabled as the menu only allows you to select options that are possible given the space remaining.
The same basic principles apply to all interface elements but let’s look at using knobs as an example.
The knobs you add to your interface behave exactly like any regular knobs in Voltage Modular and can be controlled by MIDI or DAW automation via the usual right-click menu mechanism.
Beneath each knob there’s a text label. You can double click on this to enter any text you like. If you are sharing your work internationally then another user could use this facility to change your labels into a different language.
There’s also a handy auto-labelling option that generates a label for you when you map a control if the AUTO LABEL button in Custom Look is engaged.
Right-clicking in the area surrounding a knob pops up a menu with a range of options…
Perhaps the most important option is Map to a control. This highlights all of the things in your patch that the knob can control. Simply click on the target of your choice and the Custom Panel knob will then remotely control whatever you selected.
You can also make a Custom Panel knob output MIDI CC messages by selecting Map to MIDI CC from the menu. The MIDI messages are output from a socket on a Custom IO module.
A third mapping option is Map to CV output. This makes the knob control the voltage available from a CV output socket on a Custom IO module. Up to 32 of these outputs are available for controlling things inside Voltage Modular. If you have a suitable DC coupled audio interface then you could send up to six of these CV signals out to Eurorack via Voltage Modular’s AUX Outputs.
Usually you’ll want a knob in your custom interface to control just one thing in your patch but you can set up to four different mappings at once and each of these can have customized ranges. So turning a single knob on your interface can adjust several other knobs or sliders at different speeds and in different directions. You can use a mixture of mappings too – so a single knob could control two other knobs, output MIDI CC messages and a CV voltage all at the same time.
The Set default option lets you specify a default value for a knob.
The Set number of stops option allows a knob to have a set number of stops rather than being contnously variable.
The Set skin option defaults to Theme default but you can override this to give a knob a specific theme-independent skin.
The Set group option allows you to assign a knob to any of eight groups. The group is used by three of the special buttons mentioned earlier. These buttons are Random, Nudge and Reset and they have an Affect group setting. So you could for instance add a Random button to your interface that randomizes just the settings of those knobs, sliders or buttons that are in group 2.
Knobs, sliders and buttons also have a Scene mode setting. The default setting is Motorized, but other options are Shared or being speciic to one of the 16 scenes. These scene mode settings will be explained later.
Often you’ll want to add multiple instances of the same type of element to a Custom Panel to create a column of knobs or buttons for instance. A CTRL-R (or ⌘-R on a Mac) keyboard shortcut helps speed things up as it repeats the previous add operation. So to create a bank of 4 radio buttons you could add one using the menu then hold down CTRL (or ⌘) and press the R key three times.