The Dashboard

The Dashboard is a patch-specific control panel with all the switches and faders you created for your patch. (For info on how to create a patch, take a deeper look at the Patch Editor.)

Whenever you record arm a track, Patchboard checks if you have a patch in your catalog linked to it. If so, Patchboard will call up a dynamic instrument dashboard for that specific patch with controls for each of its switches and faders.

If no patch is record armed but you have a patch selected, the Dashboard will instead show that patch. This is useful in some DAWs which automatically “patch through” the selected track as if it were in record.

Like the Catalog and Project views, the Dashboard has a quick filter list for narrowing down the available switches. Pressing one of the items will show only the matching switches. The quick filters sidebar can be closed independently while those in the Catalog and Project remain open.

Note: When using multiple devices with Patchboard, you may want to use one device for browsing and the other only for the dashboard. In that case, make sure the Follow Record Track setting is disabled in Patchboard’s main menu.

1. The main view shows a grid with all your switches, faders and modes for the current patch. To trigger a specific switch, simply press its button. Each switch shows its name and a comma-separated list of all its tags. The background color is set based on the switch’s color in the patch definition.

   You can favorite or unfavorite a switch by right-clicking or pressing and holding on a switch.

   The last switch you pressed is indicated with a green outline and highlight.

   Note: This indicator is not guaranteed to be on the instrument’s active switch. It only shows the last switch you pressed, which may or may not be the same. Playing back a track can change the instrument’s articulation, for instance, and change articulations behind Patchboard’s back.

2. The header shows which specific patch is being recorded. The ☆ button can be used to favorite or unfavorite the patch while the record indicator ⬤ shows that the track is armed and ready.

   If Patchboard is having trouble finding or arming the track linked to this patch, it will show a progress spinner indicating it is still working.

3. The layout view menu can be used to configure the display of this device’s dashboard, hiding individual sections. This setting is saved on the device itself, so different devices can have different dashboard views, e.g. one tablet shows only faders while another shows articluations, modes and the keyboard.

4. The visual keyboard highlights any key ranges created for the active switch. It shows the full MIDI keyboard from C^-2 through C⁸ while highlighting a standard 88-key keyboard range (A^-1 through C⁷). Clicking on a key will send a corresponding MIDI note to Patchboard’s MIDI output. The keyboard will also show any pressed keys on MIDI inputs that Patchboard is monitoring.

5. The Dashboard’s toolbar includes additional controls for controlling your instrument. The Transmit button sends the current articulation, current modes and current fader values to the MIDI output. The Reset button sends resets all the controls to their default values and then transmits.

   When Auto-transmit is enabled, Patchboard will automatically transmit whenever your DAWs transport enters playback or record mode. This way, you will never again forget to store your current instrument’s settings into your track, ensuring consistent playback. If you want to punch in over an existing track, simply disable Auto-transmit.

   Note: Auto-transmit is currently only available for Cubase and Digital Performer. Additional DAW support coming soon.