XO Wave: Transport Window

XO Wave's Transport window allows you to monitor the basic aspects of XO Wave, such as playback status, CPU usage, offline operations status, and main output levels. Since the functionality of the Transport window is reproduced in other places such as the Edit window and Mix window, you may not need to use this window directly, but the functionality is the same regardless of where the controls appear.

Playback Controls: The Transport window provides normal playback controls: Record, Play, Stop and Pause. There is also a button to the right of the standard buttons that allows you to control whether the Space bar stops playback (resetting the playback point to the beginning, shown by the red square being illuminated and the pause bars being dim) or pauses playback (leaving the play time alone so playback can later resume at the same point, indicated by the pause bars being yellow and the stop square being dim). Either way, you can temporarily toggle the function of the Space Bar with the Option key (Alt on Linux).

Time Display and Pop-ups: The large number below these buttons is the current time within the session; when playing, it changes continuously. The pop-up menu to the right allows you to select an appropriate time-base (such as samples, time-code, bars and beats, or wall-clock time). The pop-up below that allows you to select one of several playback modes. For more info on playback modes, see the Playback Settings window.

Memory and CPU Meters: The Transport window also provides a small memory usage meter and a larger CPU usage meter. The memory meter shows you how much memory is being used by the XO Wave GUI. Since this includes virtual memory, you might start to experience performance degradation before it is full, depending on your system configuration. Clicking on the memory usage meter may free up some unused memory.

The CPU meter measures how much CPU time is being spent processing audio. More filled-in "LEDs" in the CPU meter indicate more CPU time is being used by the Audio Engine, with an increased likelihood of audio drop-outs and other problems with system responsiveness. Note that this should be used only as a guide -- the exact point at which drop-outs happen will vary depending on your hardware, other software running, any active offline operations, etc.

Update Status: Between the CPU Meter and the Offline Operations Monitor is a small colored indicator which changes color and icon depending on whether or not you are running the latest version of XO Wave for your platform. When green, you are up to date; when yellow (pictured), the status could not be determined, perhaps due to a broken Internet connection; when red, you are not running the latest supported version of XO Wave and you'll probably want to update. Simply clicking on the indicator will launch a browser and download the latest version automatically.

Offline Operations Monitors: If you are running any offline operations, the Transport window may also show between one and three progress bars. These progress bars show the progress on the three most recent offline operations. If you'd like more detail or more control over these operations, click a progress bar, and the Offline Manager will open.

Audio Engine Status: The small status box near the bottom of the Transport window shows the state of the Audio Engine (normally Stopped, Playing, or Disconnected).

Master Output Meter: To the right of the audio engine status is a meter which shows the output level on the main outputs. The readout on the right shows the maximum level since playback has started, which can be useful for making sure the levels never go above zero.

Help: At the very bottom of the Transport window is a help area. When you point at something in the window, this line will provide information about the object under the mouse.