Drawing Automation

enable the envelope, create the nodes where you want them then drag the nodes to exactly where you want them. It will create the straight line that way.
 
If you want other options for the envelope line, right click on the line and you have the choice of jump, fast curve and slow curve.
 
Sometimes you want to use the jump before you create the line you want. create the jump between two nodes and adjust it. Move it again and it creates to more nodes at the same place as the ones you created. You can delete one and create a line that way. You just have to experiment with them. There are things about them I learn as I go as well.
 
Hopefully one day we will be able to drag the curve to create custom curves.

Just make a selection. Then position your mouse near the top of the clip so it looks like a horizontal capital I with up/down arrows. Then click/drag up/down to automatically create a line segment for the selection. See this video for a demo...
http://www.digifreq.com/digifreq/video.asp?ID=6
 
Scott

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Scott R. Garrigus - http://garrigus.com - SONAR X2 Power! - http://garrigus.com/?SonarX2Power
* Author of the Cakewalk Sonar and Sony Sound Forge Power book series: http://garrigus.com/?PowerBooks
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+1 for Scott's suggestion. Also, be aware if you have lots of nodes that you want to be the same height you can grab them and move them together...
 
Here's a random bizarre scenario: you want every other measure panned an equal 45% left and the other measures panned 45% right.
 
Steps:
1. Move the whole pan envelope to 45% left.
2. set the snap to grid to 1 measure and highlight the first measure you want panned right
3. hover near the top of the selected region until the mousepointer changes and click drag it down so the envelope adds 2 nodes at the start of the selection and 2 nodes at the end and moves the envelope for that one measure to pan right. Don't worry about how far right just yet... just pan it right.
4. Do this for every other measure in the tune.
5. lasso select all the nodes in the envelope that are panned right.
6. Drag all the selected nodes to the extreme right position (100%) and let go.
7. Now they are all at 100% right.
8. Click drag all the selected nodes to 45% right.
 
All done. :-)
 

gswitz, Pls don't shoot me, but what do you mean "create envelope?"  I feel I am missing a step.
 
Also, if anyone can explain why the line tool won't draw a line, that would be very helpful.

konradh
gswitz, Pls don't shoot me, but what do you mean "create envelope?"  I feel I am missing a step.
 
Also, if anyone can explain why the line tool won't draw a line, that would be very helpful.

i think you're just clicking on the pencil tool.  click and hold the pencil tool and a menu will come up - select line.

I think the line tool doesn't draw a straight line b/c that is actually the default behavior. You don't need a draw tool to get a straight line. You just add two nodes and move one of them and you get diagonal lines.

So, once you create the envelope, you don't need to use drawing tools to do what you want.
 
I almost NEVER need drawing tools for basic volume and pan automation.
 
To set focus on a given envelope...
If the envelope doesn't have the focus, hold down shift and click on it. This is the easy way to change the focus between clip, pan envelope and volume envelope.
 
Adding a node...
Once the envelope you want is highlighted, just click on it. This adds a node. You don't need the draw tool.
 
Next, move the node you added up or down.
 
It's as easy as that!
 
When do I use draw tools on an envelope?
If I have a vocal part and I want slight variation in pan to move in time I might use the sign draw and hold down ctrl+drag to create a sign wave variation that is subtle but gently draws the listeners ear to the vocal.
 
My AlphaTrack hardware controller definitely uses the line draw method as I move the fader on the AlphaTrack to draw in automation.
 
In this video...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRU3bU5C4mg
Around 5:35, I add a couple of nodes and add some volume automation while playing back the track. I'm clicking to add nodes and ctrl+clicking to select line segments in the automation and move them up and down.

One thing that is rather annoying about X3 and automation is that I have been relying on a CS for countless years but CW has made creating automation too darn easy with the mouse.
 
Often times now I find myself forgoing the CS in favor of simply drawing the automation.  If I have a full track to automate I do still use the CS but its almost getting redundant. I'm not sure I like this development. 

Control Surface. In my case an original Mackie Control. 

Konrad, don't use the draw tool.
 
Hit F5 to use the smart tool.
 

I used the track drop-downs and selected Automation | Pan.

 
Now, just click on the line. It will add a node where you click. click and drag and it will move the node on the line.
 
Ctrl+click the line between any two nodes and you can drag the line up and down.
 
ctrl+click a segment selects the nodes at either end of the segment. you can then hover over either of the two nodes and move them as a collection right or left or up or down.
 
Holding shift while you do it ensures they ONLY move right or left or ONLY up and down.
 http://www.cakewalk.com/Documentation/default.aspx?Doc=SONAR%20X3&Lang=EN&Req=Automation.01.html
 
 

Konrad,
 
I don't normally use the line tool. It's like free hand draw. It's mainly used by Control Surfaces for automation or when using touch screen to write track automation. It quantizes and uses curves between nodes etc to create really nice automation envelopes. I pretty much NEVER draw these in with the mouse. I use my AlphaTrack or my touch screen to create them when I want them.
 
I do the great majority of my automation with my mouse though. I just use it with the smart tool. I don't select the line tool. I click and drag nodes at will.
 
When you have a dotted line it is only because you do not have an automation node at the end of the project. Just add one at the end, right click the line and choose Linear to draw the line in.
 
When using a CS to add automation, you can often end up with the dotted lines. Dotted lines are ok as long as you play the project from the beginning, but if you stop the project with the volume set at 50% and then move the now time to a dotted line at 20%, it will NOT pick up this value. Only the solid lines are enforced automation. The dotted line shows where the value would be extended out from the last automation node.

hey konrad - 
just noticed you're still on x1d - the line tool doesn't work for automation or midi cc's in prv (does work for notes though)... it was fixed in x2.