Customization - Colors

Figure 315. The Colors section

The Colors section lets you customize colors of various screen elements.

The Colors section contains the following settings:

Presets

You can create lots of different color schemes and save each one as a preset. After you create a color scheme that you like, type a name for it in the Presets window, and then click the floppy disk icon to save the preset. When you want to load the preset, just select it in the Presets window. To delete a preset, select it and then click the Delete button .

The Colors section has the following fields:

Color Category

This list shows different areas where color can be adjusted. Choosing one of these categories helps filter out screen elements you may not want to deal with at the moment. The categories also provide a convenient way to adjust brightness, hue, and saturation of a related collection of screen elements without hunting through a long list.

Screen Element

This list shows all the items in Music Creator you can set the color of. Highlight the one you want to change. You can change multiple Elements simultaneously by CTRL-clicking or CTRL-dragging. Click Select All to select all screen elements in the current color category.

Follow System Color

This field lets you choose the same color for a highlighted item in the Screen Element list that Microsoft Windows uses for certain screen elements. For example, because Windows usually uses black for button text, if you highlight Window Background in the Screen Element list and then click Button Text in the Follow System Color field, all the window backgrounds in Music Creator turn black (or whatever color you have set up for button text in your Windows preferences).

Note: If you set any other screen element to the same color as Window background, you’ll make that screen element invisible!

Use Specific Color

Choosing this option instead of the Follow System Color option allows you to pick a specific color for the highlighted item in the Screen Element list. Click the Choose Color button to open the Color dialog box, click the color you want, and click OK. The highlighted item in the Screen Element list changes to the color you chose.

Brightness Slider

This control increases or decreases the luminance of the selected color, making it either more bright or more dull in appearance.

Hue Slider

This control determines the color type, such as red, green or blue.

Saturation Slider

This control increases or decreases the vibrancy of the selected color. A lower saturation value will input more “grayness” to the color, making it appear more faded.

Reset Button

Pressing the Reset button resets the Brightness, Hue, and Saturation sliders to default values.

Save Changes for Next Session

Select this check box if you want Music Creator to use any new color assignments the next time you open Music Creator.

Wallpaper

The options in this field allow you to set the color and design of Music Creator’s background area. The options are:

Default. Choosing this option causes Music Creator to use its original color and design for the background.

None. Choosing this option causes Music Creator to use a flat, gray color for the background.

Custom. Choosing this option opens the Wallpaper Bitmap dialog box, which allows you to choose a graphics file (bitmap) to use as the background.

Defaults button

Clicking this button restores all of Music Creator’s color settings to their original values.

Import Colors button

This button opens the Import Color Set dialog box, which allows you to import a color arrangement, or a group of presets.

Export Colors button

This button opens the Export Color Set dialog box, which allows you to export a color arrangement, or a group of presets.

The following table identifies each of the screen elements in Music Creator.

 

Table 208. Screen elements 

Screen element	Explanation
Window text	Text color
Rules in the Tempo view	Vertical lines in the Tempo view used to mark time intervals
Major Rules	Major lines used to mark larger intervals of time
Beat Rules	Color of the Beat rule lines
Grid Rules	Color of the Grid rule lines
Rules in the Track View	Vertical lines in the Track view used to mark measure intervals
Values	Color of selected events and tempo changes in the Tempo view
Drawing	Colors used to show your drawing in the Piano Roll and Tempo views
Erasing	Color used to show your erasing in the Tempo views
Lasso select	Color of lasso select highlight
Markers	Color of markers in time rulers
Pitch Markers	Color of pitch markers in the Time Ruler
Loop Markers	Color of loop point markers
Punch Record Markers	Color of punch recording markers
Now Time Marker	Color of the Now Time Marker in the Track view
Track View Time Ruler Digits	Color of the Time Ruler markings
Time Ruler Tick Marks	Color of the Time Ruler beat and measure lines
Clip Fades	Color for the fade line and fade shading
Clip Zero Amplitude Lines	Color for the line that marks a silent volume level for a clip
Snap Offset Markers	Color of the Snap offset markers
Clip Gain Envelope	Color of the Gain envelopes in clips
Clip Pan Envelope	Color of the Pan envelopes in clips
Clip Velocity Envelope	Color of velocity envelopes in clips
Selected Clip	Color of clips that are currently selected
Muted MIDI Clip Data	Color of the MIDI data in a muted area of a clip. Also used for the outline of event muted notes in the Piano Roll.
Folder Clip Background	Color of an area of a folder clip where there is no data
Folder Clip Text	Color of text label on a folder clip
Folder Line	Color of the line on the left side of the Track pane connecting a track folder to the tracks that are contained in the folder
Record Preview Clip Background	The background color in the Clips pane of an armed track
Recording Waveform Previews	Color of the waveform in a clip during preview while recording
Waveform Preview (>= 0dB)	Color of the waveform in a clip during preview while recording if the amplitude is greater than or equal to 0dB
Input Quantize Record Preview Background	The background color in the Clips pane of an armed MIDI track when Input Quantize is enabled
Frozen Track Background	The background color of a frozen track in the Clips pane
V‑Vocal Clip Background	The color of a V‑Vocal clip.
Header	The color of clip headers.
Header (selected)	The color of selected clip headers.
Clip Background	The background color of clips.
Clip Background (selected)	The background color of selected clips.
Default Waveform	Waveform color of audio clips.
Default Notes	Note color of MIDI clips.
Audio Tracks 1, 11, 21...Foreground	Foreground color of all audio tracks that end in the number “1” (1, 11, 21, etc.)
Audio Tracks 1, 11, 21...Background	Background color of all audio tracks that end in the number “1” (1, 11, 21, etc.)
Audio Tracks 2, 12, 22...Foreground	Foreground color of all audio tracks that end in the number “2” (2, 12, 22, etc.)
Audio Tracks 2, 12, 22...Background	Background color of all audio tracks that end in the number “2” (2, 12, 22, etc.)
Audio Tracks 3, 13, 23...Foreground	Foreground color of all audio tracks that end in the number “3” (3, 13, 23, etc.)
Audio Tracks 3, 13, 23...Background	Background color of all audio tracks that end in the number “3” (3, 13, 23, etc.)
Audio Tracks 4, 14, 24...Foreground	Foreground color of all audio tracks that end in the number “4” (4, 14, 24, etc.)
Audio Tracks 4, 14, 24...Background	Background color of all audio tracks that end in the number “4” (4, 14, 24, etc.)
Audio Tracks 5, 15, 25...Foreground	Foreground color of all audio tracks that end in the number “5” (5, 15, 25, etc.)
Audio Tracks 5, 15, 25...Background	Background color of all audio tracks that end in the number “5” (5, 15, 25, etc.)
Audio Tracks 6, 16, 26...Foreground	Foreground color of all audio tracks that end in the number “6” (6, 16, 26, etc.)
Audio Tracks 6, 16, 26...Background	Background color of all audio tracks that end in the number “6” (6, 16, 26, etc.)
Audio Tracks 7, 17, 27...Foreground	Foreground color of all audio tracks that end in the number “7” (7, 17, 27, etc.)
Audio Tracks 7, 17, 27...Background	Background color of all audio tracks that end in the number “7” (7, 17, 27, etc.)
Audio Tracks 8, 18, 28...Foreground	Foreground color of all audio tracks that end in the number “8” (8, 18, 28, etc.)
Audio Tracks 8, 18, 28...Background	Background color of all audio tracks that end in the number “8” (8, 18, 28, etc.)
Audio Tracks 9, 19, 29...Foreground	Foreground color of all audio tracks that end in the number “9” (9, 19, 29, etc.)
Audio Tracks 9, 19, 29...Background	Background color of all audio tracks that end in the number “9” (9, 19, 29, etc.)
Audio Tracks 10, 20, 30...Foreground	Foreground color of all audio tracks that end in the number “0” (10, 20, 30, etc.)
Audio Tracks 10, 20, 30...Background	Background color of all audio tracks that end in the number “0” (10, 20, 30, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 1, 11, 21...Foreground	Foreground color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “1” (1, 11, 21, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 1, 11, 21...Background	Background color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “1” (1, 11, 21, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 2, 12, 22...Foreground	Foreground color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “2” (2, 12, 22, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 2, 12, 22...Background	Background color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “2” (2, 12, 22, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 3, 13, 23...Foreground	Foreground color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “3” (3, 13, 23, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 3, 13, 23...Background	Background color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “3” (3, 13, 23, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 4, 14, 24...Foreground	Foreground color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “4” (4, 14, 24, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 4, 14, 24...Background	Background color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “4” (4, 14, 24, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 5, 15, 25...Foreground	Foreground color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “5” (5, 15, 25, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 5, 15, 25...Background	Background color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “5” (5, 15, 25, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 6, 16, 26...Foreground.	Foreground color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “6” (6, 16, 26, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 6, 16, 26...Background	Background color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “6” (6, 16, 26, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 7, 17, 27...Foreground	Foreground color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “7” (7, 17, 27, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 7, 17, 27...Background	Background color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “7” (7, 17, 27, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 8, 18, 28...Foreground	Foreground color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “8” (8, 18, 28, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 8, 18, 28...Background	Background color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “8” (8, 18, 28, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 9, 19, 29...Foreground	Foreground color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “9” (9, 19, 29, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 9, 19, 29...Background	Background color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “9” (9, 19, 29, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 10, 20, 30...Foreground	Foreground color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “0” (10, 20, 30, etc.)
MIDI Tracks 10, 20, 30...Background	Background color of all MIDI tracks that end in the number “0” (10, 20, 30, etc.)
Track View Active Outline	Color of the border around the active pane in the Track view: if the Bus pane is active, it displays this color; if the Track pane is active, it displays this color.
Clips Pane Ellipse	Color of dots which appear where there are no clips in the Clips pane
Active Track	Sets the color of the track that has the focus
Selected Track	Sets the color of any selected tracks
Strip Selection	Sets the color of any selected strip selector
Track View Control Icon	Sets the color of the icons that label the various controls in a track
Partially selected Track Folder	Color just to the left of the folder icon that indicates whether all the tracks in the folder are selected, or just some of them
Partially selected strips in Track Folder	Color on the upper left corner of the folder icon that indicates whether all the strips in the folder are selected, or just some of them
Track View Track Header Peak Text	Color of the text on the right end of a track’s title bar that displays the peak level that the track’s audio meter measures
Track View Header Warning Text	Color of the text described above when the track’s level is in danger of clipping
Peak Marker (< 0 dB)	The color of the Peak Marker when amplitude peaks are less than 0dB
Peak Marker (>= 0 dB)	The color of the Peak Marker when amplitude peaks are greater than or equal to 0dB
Peak Marker Text	The color of the text on the Peak Marker
Vertical Measure Lines	The color of vertical measure lines in the Clips pane
Vertical Beat Lines	The color of vertical beat lines in the Clips pane
View Background (odd)	The Clips pane background color for odd-numbered tracks/buses
View Background (even)	The Clips pane background color for even-numbered tracks/buses
AudioSnap Marker	Color of active AudioSnap transient markers
Disabled AudioSnap Marker	Color of disabled AudioSnap transient markers
Selected AudioSnap Marker	Color of selected AudioSnap transient markers
Maximum stretched AudioSnap Marker	Color of maximum stretched AudioSnap transient markers
AudioSnap Pool Member Marker	Color of AudioSnap transient markers that belong to the Pool
Aim Assist line	Color of vertical line that follows the mouse pointer position when Aim Assist is enabled in the Track view
Track View Header Track Number	Color of the track number in the track header
Track View Audio Track Name Background	Color of background of audio track names in Track view
Track View Audio Track Name Text	Color of text of audio track names in Track view
Track View MIDI Track Name Background	Color of background of MIDI track names in Track view
Track View MIDI Track Name Text	Color of text of MIDI track names in Track view
Track View Synth Track Name Background	Color of background of Synth track names in Track view
Track View Synth Track Name Text	Color of text of Synth track names in Track view
Track View Instrument Track Name Background	Color of background of Instrument track names in Track view
Track View Instrument Track Name Text	Color of text of Instrument track names in Track view
Track View Bus Name Background	Color of background of Bus names in Track view
Track View Bus Name Text	Color of text of Bus names in Track view
Track View Track Folder Name Background	Color of the background for track folders in the folder name field
Track View Track Folder Name Text	Color of the text for track folders in the folder name field
Track View Strip Background	Background color outside the control fields in a track
Track View Control Background	Background color inside the control fields in a track
Track View Control Text and Values	Color of the text in Track view controls
Track View Disabled Control Text	Color of disabled controls in a track
Track View Control Outline	Color of the control outlines
Track View Control Borders	Color of Track view control’s borders
Track View Current Control Outline	Color of current Track view control outlines
Track View Strip Under	Color of empty space in the Track pane
First controller/surface color choice	Highlight color of any Music Creator controls being controlled by the first control surface listed in Edit >Preferences > MIDI - Control Surfaces.
Second controller/surface color choice	Highlight color of any Music Creator controls being controlled by the second control surface listed in Edit >Preferences > MIDI - Control Surfaces.
Third controller/surface color choice	Highlight color of any Music Creator controls being controlled by the third control surface listed in Edit >Preferences > MIDI - Control Surfaces.
Fourth controller/surface color choice	Highlight color of any Music Creator controls being controlled by the fourth control surface listed in Edit >Preferences > MIDI - Control Surfaces.
Font for controller/surface channel number display	Color of text in control surface channel display
Track View Trim Control	Sets the color of the background in the trim control field
Track View Bus Input Pan Control	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Quick Group	Sets the color that appears on controls that are part of a Quick Group
Track View Track Icons Background	Color of space surrounding Track Icons in Track view
Track View Volume Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View Pan Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View MIDI Chorus Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View MIDI Reverb Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View Mute Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View Bus Send Level 1, 9 Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View Bus Send Level 2, 10 Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View Bus Send Level 3, 11 Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View Bus Send 4, 12 Level Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View Bus Send Level 5, 13 Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View Bus Send Level 6, 14 Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View Bus Send Level 7, 15 Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View Bus Send Level 8, 16 Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View Bus Send Pan 1, 9 Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View Bus Send Pan 2, 10 Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View Bus Send Pan 3, 11 Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View Bus Send Pan 4, 12 Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View Bus Send Pan 5, 13 Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View Bus Send Pan 6, 14 Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View Bus Send Pan 7, 15 Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Track View Bus Send Pan 8, 16 Control / Envelope	Sets the color of this parameter’s automation envelope
Event List Note Events	Color of note events in the Event List view
Event List KeyAft Events	Color of key aftertouch events in the Event List view
Event List Control Events	Color of controller events in the Event List view
Event List Patch Events	Color of patch events in the Event List view
Event List ChanAft Events	Color of channel aftertouch events in the Event List view
Event List Wheel Events	Color of pitch wheel events in the Event List view
Event List Sysx Events	Color of System Exclusive events in the Event List view
Event List Special Events	Color of other, special events in the Event List view
Note that is on	Color of currently playing notes
Events	Color of selected events in the Piano Roll view
Navigator Background	Color of background in Navigator pane and view
Navigator Track Rectangle	Color of the Navigator pane triangle that shows what the part of the Clips pane is currently displayed
PRV Drag Contents	The color that a MIDI event becomes while you’re dragging the event
Snap to Scale Excluded Rows	Color of pitch rows in Piano Roll view (or Inline PRV) that become unavailable when Snap to Scale is enabled.
Continuous Event 1	The color of the first type of continuous event entered into the Piano Roll or Inline Piano Roll view
Continuous Event 2	The color of the second type of continuous event entered into the Piano Roll or Inline Piano Roll view
Continuous Event 3	The color of the third type of continuous event entered into the Piano Roll or Inline Piano Roll view
Continuous Event 4	The color of the fourth type of continuous event entered into the Piano Roll or Inline Piano Roll view
Continuous Event 5	The color of the fifth type of continuous event entered into the Piano Roll or Inline Piano Roll view
Continuous Event 6	The color of the sixth type of continuous event entered into the Piano Roll or Inline Piano Roll view
Continuous Event 7	The color of the seventh type of continuous event entered into the Piano Roll or Inline Piano Roll view
Continuous Event 8	The color of the eighth type of continuous event entered into the Piano Roll or Inline Piano Roll view
VU Lo level	Sets the color of the lower portion of a non-segmented meter.
VU Hi level	Sets the color of the higher portion of a non-segmented meter.
VU Tick Marks	Sets the color of the numbers and calibration lines of a non-segmented meter.
Console Segmented VU Tick Marks	Color of tick marks in segmented meters in the Console view
Enable/Disable Toggles	Sets the color of the enable/disable check box on effects and other objects that have an on/off switch
Track Inspector FX Bin	Color of background in Track Inspector’s FX bin
Console FX Bin Text	Color of text in Console View’s FX bin
Console View Control Text and Values	Color of text on Console View’s controls
Console View Slider	Color of Console view fields controlled by sliders
Console View Slider Background	Color of border area of Console view fields controlled by sliders
Console View Strip Background	Color of empty space in Console view
Console Audio Track Name Background	Color of background of audio track names in Console view
Console Audio Track Name Text	Color of text of audio track names in Console view
Console MIDI Track Name Background	Color of background of MIDI track names in Console view
Console MIDI Track Name Text	Color of text of MIDI track names in Console view
Console Synth Track Name Background	Color of background of Synth track names in Console view
Console Synth Track Name Text	Color of text of Synth track names in Console view
Console Instrument Track Name Background	Color of background of Instrument track names in Console view
Console Instrument Track Name Text	Color of text of Instrument track names in Console view
Console Bus Name Background	Color of background of Bus names in Console view
Console Bus Name Text	Color of text of Bus names in Console view
Console Main Name Background	Color of background of Main Output names in Console view
Console Main Output Name Text	Color of text of Main Output names in Console view
Console View Strip Label Text	Color of meter peak values in the Console view
Console EQ Plot Grid	Color of grid lines in per-channel EQ plot in Console view
Console EQ Plot Graph	Color of EQ curve in Console view’s per-channel EQ plot
Synth Rack Text	Color of text in the Synth Rack
Dialog Box Banner Text	Color of the headings that separate different parts of a dialog box page
Dialog Box Banner Background	Color of the background behind a dialog banner heading
Track Inspector Background	Color of background in the Track Inspector
Track View Header Time Display	Color of time display above track strips in the Track view
Ghosted clip background	Color of clips when editing automation envelopes.

 

For more information, see:

Screen colors and wallpaper

 

See also:

Preferences dialog

Customization - Display

Customization - Nudge

Customization - Snap to Grid

Customization - Editing (Advanced)

Customization - Keyboard Shortcuts (Advanced)

Customization - Audio Meter (Advanced)