Mixer Uses Default Configuration For Each Session
At the beginning of every Musescore session, the Mixer content and size appear to be determined by mostly “built in parameters”. In my particular application I use both the slider and MIDI sections so the default configuration for Musescore versions prior to 3.6 served me fairly well.
With version 3.6 that is no longer the case. First the MIDI section was omitted #315408: Mixer panel not shown correct when opened. That was corrected in version 3.6.2 but, on my computer, at the expense of a Slider section so small that there are actually no individual sliders available.
After reviewing many of the reported Mixer “problems”, it appears that each person’s ideal mixer configuration is sufficiently unique that no “default” mixer configuration would ever be completely satisfactory. While the mixer size and content can be adjusted within a session, those adjustments do not carry over to succeeding sessions.
In the current Mixer, the content of the Slider section appears to be completely determined by the amount of space available to it; i.e. the dimensions of the Mixer window less the vertical space required for the MIDI section if it is present.
Given that, I propose saving the Mixer configuration (dimensions and MIDI section presence) as part of the score to serve as the starting Mixer configuration for the next session. While the “ideal” Mixer configuration would need to be established for each new score, that small, one time inconvenience would far outweigh the current constant annoyance of having to set the Mixer configuration for each session.
Comments
To be clear, though: the MIDI section was never omitted, it was just collapsed by default. The preference allowed you control that both before 3.6.2 and since. And currently you should be seeing the Mixer remember size settings. So I'm not sure what you mean about needing to reset anything each session?
I assume the mixer will be completely redesigned for MuseScore 4, so getting defaults as reasonable as possible will certainly make sense going forward.
In reply to To be clear, though: the… by Marc Sabatella
The Mixer, for me does not remember any adjustments made in the prior session. This is what I do:
1 Start Musescore (3.6.2) which brings up the previous session
2 Open the Mixer which appears with the MIDI section showing and only the mute and solo buttons along with most of the pan control showing in the slider section.
3 I then adjust the Mixer window size by extending the bottom to show the sliders and the bottom labels and extending the right side to expose the 8 tracks in my music.
4 I then close the Mixer
5 Reopening the Mixer displays it with the changes I made.
6. Close Mixer and Musescore
7 Starting Musescore again takes me back to Step 1 above and Step 2 operates exactly the same as it did before. It doesen't seem to be remembering anything to me.
To be more specific, attached please find the score I was using in my sessions.
Did you also change the preference to start with the MIDI section expanded? If you don't change that, then other size settings won't be so relevant. but for me, with the preference enabled and the MIDI section expanded, I can size the mixer however I want and it survives quit/restart just fine.
So try first setting the preference (Show MIDI Controls, in Edit / Preferences / Score) then quit and restart MuseScore, to be sure that much really works. Then try resizing it, then quit and restart again. For me everything comes back just as before.
if not, then maybe there is a permissions issue in your home folder preventing any setting from being remembered? Try changing some other preference and then quitting and restarting - are those remembered? Like, say, change icon size on the general tab.
After running countless experiments comparing the operation of installations of 3.5.2 and 3.6.2 even to the point of deleting the Musescore cross session data held in the Windows .../APPDATA/... subfolders to get the cleanest installs I could, what I found was:
If the mixer window was docked (at least on the right) when it was closed prior to closing and reopening Musescore to get a new session, both versions seemed to work the same restoring the docked mixer display to its previous configuration.
However, if the mixer window was not docked when it was closed prior to closing and reopening Musescore to get a new session, the following behaviors were noted upon opening the mixer in the new session for the specified version:
3.5.2 - the mixer window maintained its previous dimensions and contents but was centered in the display regardless of its position when it was previously closed
3.6.2 - the mixer window maintained its previous position in the display but regardless of the dimesions of the window at the time of its previous closure, upon opening in the new session the dimensions (and thus contents) were changed to some evidently built in fixed dimensions.
Since I almost never have the mixer docked, what I see in 3.6.2 is what I would characterize as a loss of dimensional information across sessions.
I've attached two small snapshots of the displayed mixer in 3.6.2 to illustrate what I am seeing. Their titles say it all.
FWIW, I never have the Mixer docked, and yet it works perfectly for me, exactly as I described. So it still seems there is something else going unique to your configuration here. I encourage you to keep experimenting to see if you can find what setting is causing it to fail for you. Could be maybe something about different workspaces? Mine is set to preserve GUI preferences and components.
Nope, not the workspace settings, works perfectly for me in the default workspaces as well.
In reply to Nope, not the workspace… by Marc Sabatella
I thought it might have something to do with something that I had done, too. That's why I renamed the Musescore 3 subfolder of Documents, uninstalled Musescore and deleted all the Musescore subfolders in the subfolders of my account's APPDATA folder. With no remnants of Musescore left on my machine that I am aware of, installing a version of Musescore under these conditions ought to create a pristine original installation.
I installed 3.5.2 after the above actions and appeared to get what I expected as it went through the initial setup questions about an anonymous telemetry, language, keyboard, and tours; opened the start center with "My first score" (or whatever its name is). I then created a new score named "Created with 3.5.2" consisting of 32 blank SATB measures. Except for the name and the choice of SATB for the "instruments" that is the default for the New Score dialog.
I closed "My First Score" and changed the General preference to "Continue last session". Opened the Mixer and noticed that it came up docked on the right. Closed the Mixed and closed Musescore.
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I then upgraded to 3.6.2 having to restart after installation because it couldn't get rid of that process that was holding some files. I then opened Musescore, it brought up the dialog about whether I wanted to upgrade to the new engraving but I chose to keep what I had. I opened the Mixer and noted that it came up docked as it was when the score was closed in 3.5.2. After some experimentation I found that undocking the Mixer then closing it and then closing and restarting Musescore would get the behavior I was noticing.
I did notice that if Musescore was closed with the Mixer open, that configuration was restored upon restarting Musescore. It is easy to see that it is going through things differently because the first thing that shows up is a blank window of the right size and location that will eventually be filled with the Mixer information.
I am basically using the system the way it comes "out of the box". I haven't really changed anything so I have no idea what to look at. Besides that I am a really unsophisticated user. Until this started happening I wasn't even aware that the Mixer sizing carried across sessions because I never had a reason to change it from the default before. My suggestion must have had you scratching your heads thinking "What is he talking about?".
The only thing I can think of trying is going back and again deleting all remnants of Musescore on my system and instead of starting with 3.5.2, I'll just do a pristine install of 3.6.2 bypassing the upgrade.
I am not running the latest 64-bit version of Windows 10 Home but version 2004 (the previous version) which I keep up to date with the latest updates. Like with Musescore I am a basic user and have a standard system.
If there are any special versions of Windows software required to run 3.6.2 please let me know and I can check and see that I have what is required and if they are available on line I can download new versions incase they have somehow gotten corrupted.
I'll take a closer look at your example and see what I can learn.
Thanks for your efforts.
There shouldn't be anything special required. I can't really think of any reason why it would be working differently for you than for others. Worth posting in the Support forum, maybe someone there knows about some particular Windows setting that changed since 2004 so everyone else has it set differently than you.
Does it work for you if you don't use the continue last session option? That is meant only for making sure the same scores are open and should have nothing to do with windows sizes, but you never know. I never use that option, that could also be a relevant difference.
In reply to There shouldn't be anything… by Marc Sabatella
I tried starting with a pristine install of 3.6.2 and also tried the 'Start empty' option with and without displaying the Start Center. None of it changed anything from the previously noted behavior.
I did run a longer experiment where I started in 3.6.2 and closed the mixer showing a slightly resized (so I could distinguish it from an ordinary undocked mixer) newly undocked Mixer and closed Musescore.
I then reinstalled and started 3.5.2 and opened the score from the previous (3.6.2) session. After taking the ignore option to the warning about the score being created with a newer version, I opened the mixer and, displayed centered on the screen (because that is what 3.5.2 does), was the slightly resized Mixer from the previous session. Obviously the mixer window dimensions were being saved. I then closed the mixer and Musescore.
I then reinstalled 3.6.2, opened the score from the previous (3.5.2) session and opening the mixer, I saw the, as expected, reduced size mixer window but located centered on the display at the location it was in when closed in the previous session.
This tells me that the information about the size and position of the mixer window when closed is being carried across sessions with any changes to that information that affects the mixer display being done by the program that is opening the score. I don't know why 3.6.2 is doing what it is doing but it is definitely doing it.
It makes no sense to me that that 3.5.2 works and 3.6.2 works differently using the same data files but somehow only for me. I am going to take your advice and compose and post in the Forum a concise explanation of what I am experiencing and soliciting responses from any others that may have had similar experiences.
3.5.2 works fine for my current needs so I will stick with using that but try newer releases to see if my current somehow disappears.
Thanks
I would strongly urge you to ask for help on the forum. Probably someone else can assist in figuring out what is going on with your system. It would be a shame to add back the hundreds upon hundreds of bugs fixed since 3.5.2, putting you at risk of crashes and corruptions, not to mention not being able to display scores created by others the way they were intended since you won't have those fonts, etc. There almost certainly is a simple solution here, but the Supprot forum is where you'll find people with the kind of sysadmin experience necessary to help you solve it.
And also, if there is some sort of issue with MuseScore itself that is causing you to see this issue, it isn't going to fix itself unless someone learns how to reproduce the problem. That is another important reason to continue this discussion where others will see it, on the Support forum.
In reply to I would strongly urge you to… by Marc Sabatella
I reread your post about what you tried and how it worked every time. It works every time because that is not the situation that causes the failure. From what you said the Mixer window in your experiments is always OPEN when you quit/restart. That does work correctly.
Then problem only occurs when the Mixer window is CLOSED before doing the quit/restart. After the restart and again opening the mixer is when the changes in the dimensions of the mixer window become apparent. Try it that way.
I tested it that way too originally, it doesn't matter. What I said is that I never dock the mixer. but for me it works perfectly every time whether the mixer is open or closed. So again, if you'd like to see progress made on this - including the possibility of a solution that could be working for you today, as well as the possibility of an improvement that could be made to a future version of MsueScvore, please post to the Support forum.