KVR Audio

THE INTRANCER · Post by **THE INTRANCER** » Sat Dec 07, 2019 1:07 am

Since purchasing Rapid in the past week, I've been busy doing a reskin mod of it, a modification of the new skin it comes with, it's still a work in progress although I'm comfortable with it as it is. It's more of a hybrid where not everything has been changed but quite a lot has. The graphic design part has been a much more numbingly tedious process than any other GUI modification project I've done previously. This is because you are having to, open folders resize, copy, and save images 3 times for everything you create. With U-HE's Hive for example, you only have one image or graphic element, not one for multiple resolutions... Not sure what the advantage is in having multiple resolutions of Rapid, to prevent image tearing...maybe... Fortunately the script is far less complex to understand and smaller than what your typical UHE script is, but it is limited to just colours. Having to continually zip up files, close and reopen your DAW to see the results rather than just edit one image and drag another instance to the track from the browser in a DAW like Studio One as per U-HE's plugins... adds to the tedium.. but as you build up your PSD files the curve levels off a bit as you go back to re-edit them with your saved settings. Just a basic colour changing script is provided so one can't mod beyond that and GUI images, which is fine. The self containment and zip packing process is practical in saving your progress and recalling it and dropping it in the style folder so complexity is removed and makes things easy... Not as complex as other GUI projects I've done, but similarly tedious... In other news I'll be posting new Zebralette skin set in the next week I think.

So with all that said, here's the progress I've made in the reskinning of Rapid to something that fit's more to my style. Already started the process on new knobs... but they can wait a while as I've really not got deep into using it yet...

Click for large image

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Rapid Skin (Modern Compared

Click here for large image

Rapid Skin Browser page.

Click here for large image

pekbro · Post by **pekbro** » Sat Dec 07, 2019 1:20 am

Seems like you find skinning a bit of a hassle. Why do it then?

THE INTRANCER · Post by **THE INTRANCER** » Sat Dec 07, 2019 1:30 am

pekbro wrote: ↑Sat Dec 07, 2019 1:20 am Seems like you find skinning a bit of a hassle. Why do it then?

Just because, one loves what he does, doesen't mean that there's not some element of pain in doing it. No pain, no gain as they say...

MirkoVanHauten · Post by **MirkoVanHauten** » Sat Dec 07, 2019 1:36 am

MAybe put an A/B image online too, because besides a background pattern I don't see a difference to the factory skin.

pekbro · Post by **pekbro** » Sat Dec 07, 2019 1:48 am

@Intrancer
Ahh, I can understand that. I think about doing it myself on occasion, but then I quickly talk myself out of it.

Have fun...

experimental.crow · Post by **experimental.crow** » Sat Dec 07, 2019 1:48 am

this whole thing seems to be dragging out ...

Spencer Maddox · Post by **Spencer Maddox** » Sat Dec 07, 2019 3:54 am

I actually like it.
It’s subtle but it works.

Stefken · Post by **Stefken** » Sat Dec 07, 2019 3:09 pm

I prefer your dark top banner/section to the original. The UI feels more like a whole this way.

IMO the contrast in your skin is a bit too high.
I like in the original that there is a difference in tonality between the dark backdrop of the modulation section, and the osc/filter/fx section. In your skin, that difference is lost and with it, the separation between the sections.

So, personally, I would use a different dark backdrop for these 3 sections.

1 Top section with main controls
2 Section with osc/filter/fx
3 Modulation section

(You could use the same backdrop color for the top section and the modulation section if you wish to do so. That will still create the necessary separation. So you could go like
1 Top section: dark grey1
2 Main section: lighter grey
3 Mod section: dark grey1 (same as top section) )

Maybe Photoshop actions can help you reduce some tedious work, like saving to different resolutions by programming it in an action?

Teksonik · Post by **Teksonik** » Sat Dec 07, 2019 3:35 pm

Not to hijack but I tried doing a simple color edit of the Modern skin but keep getting this:

Rapid 120519-4.png

Just copying the Modern theme, opening the zip file, renaming it from within the .xml file and then re-zipping it yields the same results.

Anyone know what I'm doing wrong ? I like the Modern skin but would like to change some of the colors around.

THE INTRANCER · Post by **THE INTRANCER** » Sat Dec 07, 2019 5:12 pm

Teksonik wrote: ↑Sat Dec 07, 2019 3:35 pm Not to hijack but I tried doing a simple color edit of the Modern skin but keep getting this:

Rapid 120519-4.png

Just copying the Modern theme, opening the zip file, renaming it from within the .xml file and then re-zipping it yields the same results.

Anyone know what I'm doing wrong ? I like the Modern skin but would like to change some of the colors around.

@Spencer Maddox

@ Stefken

Yeah... the changes are slight, the brightness between the original Modern one is very significant though I'm noticing and that's with a light on illuminating my room, so kinder on tired eyes, particularly in the dark. There's a few minor tweaks to raise the brightness a few % I think in a few areas though to ease off the sharp contrast difference and to make a few lines more visible in the displays.. so I read your post briefly, Stefken..I'll use it a reference when I re-vist the GUI, and see if I see what you do..

@Teksonik

I think the problem, your encountering is that the folder that you are not including the style file in your zip folder.

The general process for creating a theme.

1. Edit the name of the meta.xml file

And either:
A. Edit the image files and save them as .png as they currently are.
B. Edit the hex codes that lay within the style.txt file.

2. If you have created a folder in which you have put all the files in, do not zip this folder. You want to select all the folders individually that contain the GUI elements, including the meta.xml and style.txt file, then with all these selected right click and select 'Add to zip' which is available should you have the Pea Zip utility installed. (Don't save to a RAR file).

This will start the zipping process and when that's done, copy it and navigate to the location in which the folder that Rapid uses for the style. Click the logo and select where it says open folder and copy the zip file there, and restart your DAW if it's already open with scanning enable if your DAW provides an on off switch for it.

Teksonik · Post by **Teksonik** » Sat Dec 07, 2019 10:36 pm

THE INTRANCER wrote: ↑Sat Dec 07, 2019 5:12 pm @Teksonik
I think the problem, your encountering is that the folder that you are not including the style file in your zip folder.

Thanks but the style .ini file is included:

Rapid 120719-1.png

I'll keep trying. It's got to be something simple......

THE INTRANCER · Post by **THE INTRANCER** » Sun Dec 08, 2019 1:16 am

Teksonik wrote: ↑Sat Dec 07, 2019 10:36 pm
THE INTRANCER wrote: ↑Sat Dec 07, 2019 5:12 pm @Teksonik
I think the problem, your encountering is that the folder that you are not including the style file in your zip folder.
Thanks but the style .ini file is included:

Rapid 120719-1.png

I'll keep trying. It's got to be something simple......

I've just uploaded a video...on how to do it, it's at 1440p so may take a little while for youtube to process to that res scale, as of me posting this minute.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=049cKJhGkxI

Teksonik · Post by **Teksonik** » Sun Dec 08, 2019 4:06 am

That exactly the way I did it but I don't have Pea Zip. I'm using Windows 10 built in Zip utility. I also tried 7 Zip.

The Theme shows up in the list but you can see from my screenshot above it's corrupted somehow. It should look like the modern theme.

Rapid Reskin Project