Best practices: Should I use a different Control Bus for each instance of a single MetaSound or a new MetaSound for every Control Bus?

[michaelgarydean]

Hi everyone,

Trying to wrap my head around best practices for MetaSound + the new Audio Modulation system.

Question: Is it possible to dynamically set Control Buses at runtime for individual MetaSound instances?

Step 1 - I can easily update a MetaSound’s wave asset from Blueprint with Set Wave Parameter and then Create 2D Sound will let me play two different instances of the MetaSound, each with a different wave asset.

Step 2 - If I try to assign a different Control Bus before playing a new instance, it changes the Control Bus for ALL MetaSound instances.

Should I be creating a different MetaSound for each piece of music and have a different Control Bus on each if I want to mix them between different areas in the map?

Many thanks!

[michaelgarydean]

Found a solution from Eran Barkani

"One way I believe you can go is - in editor time, assign Control Busses (or patches) to the Sound Waves. This way, when you Set & Play those Wave Assets in runtime, they bring their ready made modulation setup with them… and you can then dynamically modulate them with Bus Mixes, by updating bus values and toggling mix activation.

Another way may be to make Metasound Presets from “parent” Metasound Sources, and override each preset’s Wave and Modulator assets. Modulating it will only affect instances of this Preset, and you may have one bus controlling the whole MTS, and other busses control layers within that MTS via Graph Inputs."

Thanks Eran!