Hi everyone! I have different blocks of code and I would like to hear one in particular: is there a kind of function in SPi which makes this, a sort of “solo” function? I can of course mute one by one the others blocks but it would be convenient to hear just one…
Thanks for your attention and help 
1 Like
Either comment out the parts you want muted or use booleans for each part
Ok! Thanks for the quick help! 
You don’t have to comment out entire blocks. Use the stop command at the top of the loop.
Building on Davids-Music-Lab suggestion, you could do something like this:
a_on = true
b_on = true
c_on = true
solo = "b"
if solo != "none" then
a_on = false
b_on = false
c_on = false
if solo == "a" then
a_on = true
elsif solo == "b" then
b_on = true
elsif solo == "c" then
c_on = true
end
end
live_loop :a do
if a_on == true then
use_synth :cnoise
play 60, sustain: 0.075, release: 0.0075, amp: 0.5
end
sleep 0.5
end
live_loop :b do
if b_on == true then
use_synth :chiplead
play 63, sustain: 0.2, release: 0.05, amp: 0.5
end
sleep 0.8
end
live_loop :c do
if c_on == true then
use_synth :chipbass
play 59, sustain: 0.2, release: 0.05, amp: 0.5
end
sleep 1.4
end
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Hello @cubicinfinity and thank you for this excellent bolean trick…I used to make a “solo” block with stop and commenting out but your solution for big patches is very interesting! So, thanks again! 
Here is an idea for track toggles without a solo function, but with optional control over different sections:
#Track Toggles
#At the top:
set :toggles, [1,0] #1 is on, 0 is off, one value per track
#Loop 1:
tick #should be outside the if block
if get(:toggles)[0] == 1
#Code for the part goes here
#This track is active
end
sleep 1
#Loop 1 end
#Loop 2:
tick #should be outside the if block
if get(:toggles)[1] == 1
#Code for the part goes here
#This track is inactive
end
sleep 1
#Loop 2 end
#Track Sections
#At the top:
set :toggles, [1,0] #0 is off, numbers are sections
#In a loop:
tick #should be outside the if block
if get(:toggles)[0] == 1
#Code for part 1 goes here
else if get(:toggles)[0] == 2
#Code for part 2 goes here
end
sleep 1
#Loop end
2 Likes
Hi
just as Davids Music Lab describes, I use a similar idea to mute running loops - but it doesn’t offer the solo functionality, which would require slightly more sophisticated conditional logic, and I’m lazy 
onoff = [0,0,0,0]
/ 1 = on, 0 = off /
live_loop :loop1 do
if onoff[0] == 1
then
play 60
sleep 1
else
stop
end
end
live_loop :loop2 do
if onoff[1] == 1
then
play 67
sleep 1
else
stop
end
end
Brendan
1 Like
Stopping the loops will lead to sync issues. In your example, the second loop can not start if the first loop is stopped. Also, longer patterns may not start at the right time.
Putting only the play/sample/midi commands in the if block means the loop stays in sync.
For live coding, I use a metronome loop like this to keep everything in sync:
live_loop :metronome do
tick
cue :m1 #Quarter Notes
cue :m2 if (bools 1,0).look #Half Notes
cue :m4 if (bools 1,0,0,0).look #Bar
cue :m8 if (bools 1,0,0,0,0,0,0,0).look #Two Bars
sleep 1
end
3 Likes
Yes indeed, apologies for that oversight in my hastily written example. I also use a master clock in my performance code
Brendan
2 Likes
Hi @Davids-Music-Lab @cubicinfinity @brendanmac and thanks a lot for your very creative ideas about that simple question of “solo”…I can now try them and choose one or the other depending on the context and length of the code! 
2 Likes
I’ve been using an array called “playThese”
e.g.
playThese = [:drms, :bass, :lead]
then, in a live_loop, check to see if something is in the “playThese”
live_loop :drums do
if playThese.include? :drms
sample :bd_boom
end
sleep 1
end
it’s quite easy to “control” a mix of live_loops I’ve found (ergo “solo-ing” loops ?
1 Like
Hello @philAwesomeTech
thanks for your suggestion but I don’t understand how it works exactly.
I wrote these lines of codes inspired by yours:
playThese = [:drms, :bass,:lead]
live_loop :drums do
if playThese.include? :drms
sample :bd_boom
if playThese.include? :bass
sample :bass_dnb_f
if playThese.include? :lead
sample :elec_blip
end
sleep 1
end
end
end
It works if in the first sentence, I take off :drums and : lead (for instance) then ok I hear only the bass…Is it the right way to do it?
Hello @brendanmac ! at the top of your patch why do we need an array with four "'0 " since we only use 0 and 1 to hear or not the sounds?:
onoff = [0,0,0,0]
/ 1 = on, 0 = off /
Thanks for your help…
Hi
sorry, that’s because I was using 4 different loops
Brendan
1 Like
You are nesting the if statements. It should look like this:
if eval1
sample
end
if eval2
sample
end
1 Like
Ok Brendan it was also what I supposed!
It’s clear for me now David, thank you!
1 Like
sorry I’m late replying… I think your problem was a nested if statement…
so if your 1st condition wasn’t met, nothing else “inside” would check its conditions…
if you are splitting your sounds into “tracks” - each “track” should be its own “live loop” too (just so it makes logical sense?)
playThese = [:t1,:t2]
live_loop :track1 do
if playThese.include? :t1
sample :bd_boom
end
sleep 1
end
live_loop :track2 do
if playThese.include? :t2
sleep 0.5
sample :sn_dolf
sleep 0.5
else
sync :track1
end
end
1 Like
@philAwesomeTech thanks a lot phil, i am going to try this too! 
1 Like
you could even make “sub” names - e.g.
intro = [:drms]
bridge = [:fill, :guitarB, :bassB]
chorus = [:drmsMain, :guitarA, :bassA, :voxC]
verse = [:drmsMain, :guitarB, :bassB, :voxV]
playThese = intro
1 Like