Chapter 17: Working with Regions and Selections. Avid Technology Pro Tools HD 6.4, Pro Tools LE 6.4, PRO TOOLS MIX 51

Chapter 17: Working with Regions and

Selections

Because regions are the basic building block of audio and MIDI tracks, understanding how they are created, edited, and arranged is essential to taking full advantage of the editing capabilities of Pro Tools.

This chapter covers basic editing functions as they apply to regions and selections. The material, for the most part, applies to both MIDI and audio data.

For editing procedures more specific to MIDI,

see Chapter 23, “MIDI Editing.” For more ad-

vanced editing procedures, see Chapter 18, “Advanced Editing (TDM Systems Only).” You

should, however, become familiar with the information in this chapter before moving on to the others.

When creating a new region from an existing region, the original region remains in the Regions

List.

Capture Region Command

The Capture Region command defines a selection as a new region and adds it to the Regions

List. From there, the new region can be dragged to any existing tracks.

To capture a new region:

1 With the Selector, drag within an existing region to select the material for the new region.

Creating New Regions

Pro Tools provides you with several commands for creating regions, each of them having a slightly different effect on the selection. When you create a new region, it appears in the Regions List and in the track’s playlist. For details on how these new regions are automatically

named, see “Auto-Naming Options” on page 312.

Selecting a region portion

2 Choose Edit > Capture Region.

3 Enter a name for the new region and click OK.

The new region appears in the Regions List. The selected region portion remains intact and unchanged.

Chapter 17: Working with Regions and Selections 261

Separate Region Command

The Separate Region command defines a selection within an existing region, or a partially selected region, as a new region and separates it from adjacent material. If there is no selection and the Edit cursor is placed within the region, the region is split at the insertion point.

Auto-Name Separated Regions

With the Auto-Name Separated Regions option in the Editing Preferences selected, Pro Tools automatically names separated regions for you.

The name is a numbered variation of the original region’s name.

To separate one or more regions:

1 With the Selector, drag to select the material for the new region or regions. The selection can reside within a single region, across adjacent regions within the same track, or across multiple tracks.

– or –

Click with the Selector at the point within a region, where you want to split the region in two.

2 Choose Edit > Separate Region.

– or –

Press Command+E (Windows) or Control+E

(Macintosh).

3 If the Editing Preference for Auto-Name Separated Regions is disabled, enter a name for the new region when prompted, then click OK.

The new regions appear in the tracks in which they were created, separate from the data surrounding it. They also appear in the Regions

List. From there they can be dragged to other tracks.

By separating a region, additional regions are auto-created from data on either side of the separation, which have new numbers assigned to their names. The original region remains intact and unchanged on the Regions List.

If the Editing Preference for “Separate Region Operates On All Related Takes” is selected and you are editing a region that is one of a number of related takes with the same User Time Stamp (for example, as created with loop recording), the Separate Region command affects each take. For details

see, “Editing Preferences for Takes” on page 167.

Separating Multiple Tracks

Figure 14 illustrates a separation across three

mono audio tracks and one stereo track. For some tracks, the selection resides within a region, while others reside at the start or end of a region.

Figure 14. Separating across multiple tracks

Once separated, this material can be easily moved or copied to another location.

262 Pro Tools Reference Guide

Separation Grabber

You can use the Separation Grabber to automatically separate an edit selection and move it to another location or another track.

To separate a selection with the Separation

Grabber:


2 From the Grabber pop-up menu, choose the

Separation Grabber.

To separate a selection without affecting the original regions:


2 From the Grabber pop-up, choose the Separation Grabber.

3 While pressing Alt (Windows) or Option

(Macintosh), drag the selection to the new location, or to another track.

Separation Grabber

3 Drag the selection to the new location, or to another track.

Dragging to another track with Separation Grabber

New regions containing the previous selection are created and placed at the new location. The original selection and regions remain intact.

before after

Dragging later in track with Separation Grabber

A new region (or regions) containing the previous selection is created, separate from the original selection. New regions are also created from the material outside the original selection.

Trim To Selection Command

The Trim To Selection command removes data before and after a region or MIDI note selection, leaving only the selection. This command provides a handy means of quickly removing all data in a region (and in some instances the entire track) except for the current selection.

To trim unwanted data from a region or note:

1 With the Selector, select a portion of a region or note (or a range of notes).

2 Choose Edit > Trim > To Selection to remove material outside of the selection.


Healing a Separation

The Heal Separation command returns separated regions to their original state—provided the regions are still next to each other and their relative start/end points haven’t changed since the separation.

If you have trimmed or otherwise changed the start or end points of the two regions, or moved them further away from each other, you won’t be able to repair them with the Heal Separation command. It is not possible to heal two regions created from different audio files.

To heal a separation between two regions:

1 With the Selector, make a selection that includes part of the first region, the entire separation between the regions, and part of the second region.

2 Choose Edit > Heal Separation.

If the regions won’t heal, there are other ways to return the separated regions to a single region.

◆ Delete one of the two separated regions (make sure you’re in Slip mode so the gap doesn’t close) and use the Trimmer to expand the remaining region to its original length. For infor-

mation on using the Trimmer, see “The Trimmer

Tool” on page 267.

– or –

◆ Delete both of the separated regions and drag the original region from the Regions List to the original location. For information on placing re-

gions, see “Placing Regions in Tracks” on page 264.

Placing Regions in Tracks

Once you have created a region, it appears in the

Audio or MIDI Regions List. From there you can drag it to a track to add to an existing arrangement of regions, or you can create a new track and start adding regions from scratch. The exact placement of regions in a track depends on whether the Edit mode is set to Shuffle, Slip,

Spot, or Grid (see “Edit Modes” on page 224 for

details).

For information on locating regions in the Regions List by typing the first few letters of their

name, see “Keyboard Selection of Regions” on page 223.

To place a region in a track:

1 In the Audio or MIDI Regions List, select the region or regions you want to place.

2 Drag the selected regions from the Regions

List to a location in a track.

If dragging multiple regions, the regions are placed on adjacent tracks. If dragging a stereo region, it must be placed in a stereo track or in two mono tracks.

Regions are placed according to the current Edit mode:

• In Shuffle mode, existing track regions are slid as necessary to make room for the new region.

• In Spot mode, you are prompted by the Spot dialog to enter a location for the dragged re-

gion (see “Spotting Regions” on page 273).

• In Grid mode, the dragged region snaps to the nearest Grid boundary.

In Pro Tools 6.x, you can temporarily disable Grid mode while dragging a region by holding down the Control key (Windows) or

Command key (Macintosh).


• In Slip mode, the regions are placed freely anywhere in the destination track.

Use the Replace Region function to replace all occurrences of a region (in all tracks) with a different region from the Regions

List. See “Replacing Audio Regions” on page 291.

Defining Region Sync Points

The placement of regions in Grid and Spot mode can be based on the definition of a region sync point. Sync points are used when a point within a region must be aligned to the Grid or to a particular SMPTE or bar/beat location. This capability is important in placing music and sound effects for film and video work.

For example, suppose you had an audio region for a door slam that included the creak of the door closing, the actual slam, and the reverb of the slam. You may want to align the “slam” to other locations within the session.

To define a region sync point:

1 Set the Edit mode to Slip by clicking its button in the upper left of the Edit window.

2 Click with the Selector at the point in the region, usually the peak of the waveform, where you want to define the sync point.

3 Choose Edit > Identify Sync Point. A small down arrow appears at the bottom of the region, indicating the location of the sync point.

To remove a sync point:

■

Select the entire region and choose Edit > Remove Sync Point.

To change the location of a sync point:

■

Click with the Selector at a point in a region and choose Edit > Identify Sync Point. The new location is identified as the sync point for the region.

Placing Regions at the Edit

Insertion Point

You can place and align a region’s start, end, or sync point to the Edit insertion point. This technique is useful in post production applications since it allows you to set a reference point and quickly place sound effects while ensuring that their start point remains consistent.

You can drag a region from the same track, from another track, or from the Audio or MIDI Regions List.

For TDM systems, when Continuous Scroll with Playhead is selected, regions snap to the playhead, instead of the Edit insertion point.

To place the start of a region at the Edit insertion point:

1 Click with the Selector in the track at the time location where you want to place the start of the region.

Sync point defined


2 While pressing the Start key (Windows) or

Control (Macintosh), drag the region from the

Regions List, or from another track, to the destination track.

– or –

If the region is already in the track, Start-click

(Windows) or Control-click (Macintosh) the region with the Grabber.

To place the end of a region at the Edit inser tion point:

1 Click with the Selector in the track at the time location where you want to place the end of the region.

2 While pressing Control+Start (Windows) or

Command+Control (Macintosh), drag the region from the Regions List, or from another track, to the destination track.

– or –

If the region is already in the track, Control-

Start-click (Windows) or Command-Controlclick (Macintosh) the region with the Grabber.

To place the sync point of a region at the Edit insertion point:

1 Click with the Selector in the track at the time location where you want to place the sync point of the region.

2 While pressing Shift+Start (Windows) or

Shift+Control (Macintosh), drag the region from the Regions List, or from another track, to the destination track.

– or –

If the region is already in the track, Shift-Startclick (Windows) or Shift-Control-click (Macintosh) the region with the Grabber.

Aligning to Region Start Points

The start, end, and sync point of one region can be aligned to the start of a different region on another track.

For TDM systems, if Continuous Scroll with

Playhead is enabled, region start, end, and sync points align to the playhead.

To align the start points of regions on different tracks:

1 With the Grabber, select the region you want to align to by clicking it.

2 For TDM systems, if Continuous Scroll with

Playhead is enabled, move the playhead to the start of the selected region. For details, see

“Moving the Playhead” on page 259.

3 With the Grabber, Start-click (Windows) or

Control-click (Macintosh) the region you want to move.

– or –

Start-drag (Windows) or Control-drag (Macintosh) a region from the Regions List to another track.

The start point of the second region is aligned to the start of the first region.

To align the end point of a region to the start of another region (on a different track):






3 With the Grabber, Control-Start-click (Windows) or Command-Control-click (Macintosh) the region you want to move.

– or –

Control-Start-drag (Windows) or Command-

Control-drag (Macintosh) a region from the Regions List to another track.

The end point of the second region is aligned to the start of the first region.

To align the sync point of a region to the star t of another region (on a different track):





3 With the Grabber, Shift-Start-click (Windows) or Shift-Control-click (Macintosh) the region you want to move.

– or –

Shift-Start-drag (Windows) or Shift-Controldrag (Macintosh) a region from the Regions List to another track.

The sync point of the second region is aligned to the start of the first region.

The Trimmer Tool

The Trimmer tool provides region, note, and data trimming functions.

Pro Tools TDM systems provide three Trimmers, including the Standard, Time, and Scrub Trimmer. Pro Tools LE provides the Standard and

Time Trimmers.

The Trimmer is constrained by boundary regions, regardless of the current Edit mode, as follows:

• Trimming towards the left is constrained by the adjacent region's left-most boundary (region start).

• Trimming towards the right is constrained by the region's right-most boundary (region end).

Standard Trimmer

With the Trimmer tool, you can quickly shorten or expand a region (up to the entire length of the source audio file). The first time you trim a region, Pro Tools automatically adds it to the

Regions List as a new region (with a name derived from the original) in order to differentiate it from the original.

The Standard Trimmer is a nondestructive tool and doesn’t actually modify the original audio or MIDI data (when working on regions). To return to the length of the original region, drag it from the Regions List, or resize the edited region with the Trimmer to its original length.


Use of the Trimmer is affected by the current

Edit mode: Shuffle, Slip, Spot, or Grid. See “Edit

Modes” on page 224 for more information.

The Standard Trimmer can also be used to lengthen and shorten MIDI notes (see

“Trimming Note Start and End Times” on page 361), and also to scale automation

and controller data up or down “Drawing

Automation” on page 465.

For TDM systems, the Trimmer has three modes: Standard Trimmer (discussed in

this section), Scrub Trimmer (see “The

Scrub Trimmer” on page 270), and Time

Trimmer (see “The Time Trimmer” on page 268).

To trim a region with Standard Trimmer:

1 Select the Trimmer tool. For TDM systems, make sure the Standard Trimmer is selected in the Trimmer pop-up menu.

3 If trimming the end, drag left to shorten the region, right to lengthen.

– or –

If trimming the start, drag right to shorten the region, left to lengthen.

When working with audio, you cannot trim past adjacent regions.

When trimming regions in a stereo or multichannel track, all channels are trimmed.

When using Shuffle mode, adjacent regions are slid as necessary to make room for the edited region. If using Grid mode, the dragged start/end times snap to the nearest Grid boundary. If using Spot mode, the Spot dialog opens, where you can enter the new location for the region’s start or end point.

The Time Trimmer

The Time Trimmer is a convenient tool for matching an audio region to the length of another region, a tempo grid, a video scene, or to practically any other reference point you want.

Standard Trimmer

2 Move the cursor near the start or end of the region, so the Trim cursor appears.

Trim cursor

To reverse the direction of the Trim cursor, press

Alt (Windows) or Option (Macintosh).

Time Trimmer over a region

The Time Trimmer works by using the Time

Compression/Expansion (TC/E) AudioSuite plug-in (or a third party plug-in) to create a new audio file. You use the Time Trimmer by dragging the region’s start or end point to expand or compress the region.


Time Compression/Expansion Plug-In

Preferences

You can select settings for the Time Compression/Expansion AudioSuite plug-in by choosing from the Default Settings pop-up list in the Processing Preferences, under “TC/E.” The settings available are presets included with Pro Tools; in addition, if you save your own presets for the

Time Compression/Expansion plug-in, they will also appear here.

Refer to the DigiRack Plug-Ins Guide for more information about AudioSuite plugins.

Using the Time Trimmer in Grid Mode

The Time Trimmer can be used in Grid mode to match a region to the tempo of a session or a section of a session. For example, you might import a one-bar drum loop with a tempo of 90

BPM into a session with a tempo of 120 BPM. In

Grid mode, you can use the Time Trimmer to simply and quickly “time compress” the drum loop to the length of one measure, with minimal loss of audio fidelity.

In Pro Tools 6.x, trimming regions while in

Relative Grid mode will trim the regions in grid increments while maintaining their relative offset (if any) from the grid.

To use the Time Trimmer in Grid mode:

1 Set the Edit mode to Grid.

2 Select “TCE Trimmer” from the Trimmer popup menu.

3 With the Time Trimmer, drag the region’s start or end point to compress or expand the region to the Grid (for example, by quarter notes). The region is automatically processed using the

Time Compression/Expansion AudioSuite plugin. The new region appears in the playlist and in the Regions List.

Using the Time Trimmer in Slip Mode

To use the Time Trimmer in Slip mode:

1 Set the Edit mode to Slip.


3 With the Time Trimmer, drag the region’s start or end point to compress or expand the region freely. A new region is automatically processed using the Time Compression/Expansion Audio-

Suite plug-in. The new region appears in the playlist and in the Regions List.

Using the Time Trimmer in Spot Mode

In Spot mode, clicking with the Time trimmer in a region opens the Spot Dialog. You can specify the location you want the region to start or end at, or the duration of the region, and the region is automatically compressed or expanded as specified.

To use the Time Trimmer in Spot mode:

1 Set the Edit mode to Spot.


Trimmer set to TCE


3 Click the region near its start or end point.

The Spot Dialog opens. Using any Time Scale, enter a new start or end time (or duration) for the region, then click OK. A new region is automatically processed using the Time Compression/Expansion AudioSuite plug-in. The new region appears in the playlist and in the Regions

List.

The Scrub Trimmer

(TDM Systems Only)

The Scrub Trimmer is a convenient tool for auditioning material (on up to two tracks) to find a trim point. You can drag in a track to hear the audio information, then trim at a specific location by releasing the mouse button.

This action creates a new region. Note that the cursor changes into a “right trim” or “left trim” shape as it is placed over the right or left side of a region. To reverse the direction of the Scrub

Trimmer, press Alt (Windows) or Option (Macintosh) before you click the region.

To scrub trim a track:

1 Click the Scrub Trimmer tool. The cursor changes to a speaker with a bracket.

2 Drag within a track to the left or right. Audio from a scrubbed track is routed through the track signal path, including any TDM effects.

When you locate the trim point, release the mouse button to trim the region.

To scrub trim two tracks, click with the Scrub

Trimmer between two adjacent tracks and drag.

To scrub with finer resolution (without having to zoom in), press Control (Windows) or Command (Macintosh) while scrubbing.

Trim To Insertion Command

You can trim a region or MIDI note by automatically removing the material between the Edit insertion point and the start or end point.

To trim from a start point to insertion:

1 With the Selector, click inside the region or note where you want the new start point to be.

2 Choose Edit > Trim > Start To Insertion. The region’s start point is automatically trimmed to the insertion point.

Scrub Trimmer over a region

Scrub playback speed and direction vary with controller movement. Scrubbed audio is routed through the track signal path, so you hear any effects in the signal path.


To trim from an end point to insertion:

1 With the Selector, click inside the region or note where you want the new end point to be.

2 Choose Edit > Trim > End To Insertion. The region’s end point is automatically trimmed to the insertion point.

Sliding Regions

A region or group of selected regions (on the same track or on multiple tracks) can be slid with the Grabber tool to new locations or to other tracks. This feature is useful in music and post production applications where the timing of audio events such as sound effects and dialog need to be spotted to music, film, or video.

Sliding regions is affected by whether the current Edit mode is set to Shuffle, Slip, Spot, or

Grid. See “Edit Modes” on page 224 for details.

You can slide a copy of a region to another location or track by pressing Alt (Windows) or Option (Macintosh) while dragging.

Region end trimmed to insertion

Trimming with Nudge

You can trim the start and end points of a region by nudging them.

To trim a region’s start or end point by the Nudge value:

1 Configure the Nudge value. For details, see

“Defining the Nudge Value” on page 276.

2 With the Grabber, select the region you want to trim.

3 While pressing Alt (Windows) or Option

(Macintosh), press Plus or Minus on the numeric keypad to trim the region’s start point by the Nudge value.

– or –

While pressing Control (Windows) or Command (Macintosh), press Plus or Minus on the numeric keypad to trim the region’s end point by the Nudge value.

To retain a region’s location when dragging to another track, press the Start key (Windows) or Control (Macintosh) while dragging.

Shuffling Regions

In Shuffle mode, you can move regions freely within a track or onto another track, but their movement is constrained by other regions. That is, if you place several regions in a track, their start and end points automatically snap to each other. You can then “shuffle” their order, but you cannot separate them from each other and you cannot make them overlap as in Slip mode.

In Shuffle mode, adding another region to the beginning of a track moves all subsequent regions to the right by the length of the region added.


To shuffle regions:

1 Set the Edit mode to Shuffle by clicking its button in the upper left of the Edit window.

2 Drag a mono region from the Regions List to an empty track. The region snaps to the beginning of the track.

3 Drag a second region from the Regions List to the same track, somewhere in the middle. The start point for the second region snaps to the end of the first region.

4 With the Grabber, drag the second region to the beginning of the track.

Pro Tools “shuffles” the position of the two regions. The second region now occurs first, yet the two still cling together.

5 Experiment more with Shuffle mode by dragging additional regions to the track and rearranging them.

Locked regions (see “Locking Regions” on page 279), and all regions occurring after the

locked region, are not displaced when other neighboring regions are moved in Shuffle mode.

If there is not enough room to place or duplicate a region in front of a locked region, the insertion area is disabled.

If you place a region while in Slip mode and switch to Shuffle mode, Pro Tools preserves the relative timing and position of the slipped region, and any blank space between it and other regions.

Shuffling Multiple Tracks and

Multichannel Regions

Selections across multiple tracks or on multichannel tracks can be shuffled. Unlike shuffling regions on a single, mono track, any partially selected regions will be cut and moved along with the dragged region. This lets you retain only the material that corresponds to the dragged region, similar to a tape splice and multitrack.

Shuffling this region cuts this channel

Shuffling multichannel regions

Slipping Regions

In Slip mode, regions can be moved with the

Grabber freely within a track, or onto other tracks. In this mode, it is possible to place a region so that there is space between it and other regions in a track. When the track is played back, this space is silent. It is also possible to move a region so that it overlaps or completely covers another region.


To slip regions:

1 Set the Edit mode to Slip by clicking its button in the upper left of the Edit window.

2 Drag a region from the Regions List to an empty track.

3 Drag a second region from the Regions List to the same track, somewhere in the middle. The second region is placed wherever you release it.

It doesn’t snap to the first region as in Shuffle mode.

4 Drag the regions to different locations within the track to get a feel for moving them in Slip mode. Try placing the second region so that it slightly overlaps the first region. Play back the results.

To spot a region:

1 Set the Edit mode to Spot by clicking its button in the upper left of the Edit window.

2 Drag a region from the Regions List, or drag audio files or sessions from a DigiBase browser, to an existing track.

– or –

Click a region already in a track with the Grabber.

3 In the Spot dialog, select a time format from the Time Scale pop-up menu.

Each of the fields in the Spot dialog are displayed in the chosen Time Scale.

Spotting Regions

Spot mode is useful for sessions in which you want to spot regions to precise locations based on any of the Time Scales. This can be particularly useful when performing post production tasks. In Spot mode you can spot a region by specifying a SMPTE frame (all TDM systems and

LE systems with DV Toolkit only) or bar and beat location, by capturing an incoming time code address, or by using the region’s time stamps.

For even quicker spotting, if you are using

VITC, use the Auto-Spot Regions command to spot a region to the current SMPTE frame location with the Grabber. For more infor-

mation, see “Auto-Spotting Regions” on page 569.

Spot dialog

4 For TDM systems or LE systems with DV Toolkit, if the Time Scale is set to Time Code, select the Use Subframes option to display subframes in the fields for improved accuracy.


5 Click in the field for Start, Sync Point, or End and type in a new location. Changing one of these locate points automatically updates the other locate points.

– or –

Click one of the up arrows next to Original Time

Stamp or User Time Stamp to enter the associated values into the currently selected field.

– or –

If you are using an external SMPTE time code source, click the down arrow next to the Current

Time Code display—or press Equal (=) on the numeric keypad—to capture an incoming time code address.

6 Click OK. The region is moved to the new location specified for its start, end, or sync point.

If a region does not have a sync point defined, the Sync Point field in the Spot dialog functions the same as the Start field.

To learn more about using SMPTE with

Pro Tools, refer to Chapter 35, “Working with

Synchronization.”

Region Time Stamps

When a region is created, it is time stamped relative to the SMPTE start time specified for the session. This Original Time Stamp is permanently stored with the region and cannot be changed. If a region is ever moved, it can easily be placed at its original position from the Spot dialog.

When the Original Time Stamp for a region is initially set, this same location is also used to define the region’s User Time Stamp.

Unlike the Original Time Stamp, the User Time

Stamp can be redefined with the Time Stamp Selected command in the Regions List pop-up

menu. For more information, see “Time Stamping” on page 570.

Time Stamps in DigiBase

Columns are provided in DigiBase browsers for both the Original and User Time Stamps.

Time Stamps and the Takes List

Regions with identical User Time Stamps appear together in the Takes List pop-up menu when auditioning takes. For more information, see

“Auditioning from the Takes List Pop-up Menu” on page 166.

Sliding Regions in Grid Mode

Grid mode provides several useful capabilities for sliding and moving regions in track playlists.

This mode is especially useful for lining up regions at precise intervals, as when working with a session that is bar- and beat-based. Grid boundaries, depending on the Main Time Scale, can be based on frames, bar and beat values, minutes or seconds, or a number of samples.

Grid mode also provides two operational modes, Absolute and Relative. These modes con-

trol how the Grid is applied. (See “Absolute and

Relative Grid Mode” on page 276 for more in-

formation.)

To temporarily suspend Grid mode and switch to Slip mode while dragging a region, hold down the Control key (Windows) or



Setting Up the Grid

When the Display Preference for “Draw Grid in

Edit Window” is enabled, vertical Grid lines appear in the Edit window.

Grid lines in the Edit window can also be enabled and disabled by clicking the Timebase

Ruler name (Pro Tools 6.x) or its Indicator Dot

(Pro Tools 5.x) so it becomes highlighted.

Defining the Grid Value

In addition to affecting the placement of regions, the Grid value also constrains Edit and

Timeline selections, and determines how the

Quantize Regions command works.

To set the Grid value:

1 From the Display menu, select the Time Scale you will use for the Grid value.

– or –

To keep the Main Time Scale and use a different time format for the Grid, deselect Follow Main

Timebase in the Grid Value pop-up menu in the

Edit window.

2 From the Grid Value pop-up menu in the Edit window, select the time value that will define the Grid boundaries.

Grid Value pop-up menu showing Bars:Beats

– or –

To define a Grid based on the session’s Markers, selections, and region boundaries, select Regions/Markers from the Grid Value pop-up menu.


Absolute and Relative Grid Mode

Grid mode can be applied in Absolute or Relative mode.

◆ In Absolute Grid mode, moving any region snaps the region start to Grid boundaries. If a region’s start point falls between beats, and the

Grid is set to 1/4 notes, dragging the region will

snap its start time to the nearest 1/4 note (the current absolute Grid value).

◆ In Relative Grid mode, regions can be moved by Grid (or Nudge) units. If a region’s start point falls between beats and the Grid is set to 1/4 notes, dragging the region will be constrained to

1/4 notes, preserving the region’s relative position to the nearest beat.

To select Absolute or Relative Grid mode:

■

Click the Grid mode selector and choose Absolute or Relative.

To temporarily suspend Grid mode and switch to Slip mode while dragging a region, hold down the Control key (Windows) or


To place or move a region while in Grid mode:

1

Configure the Grid value. For details, see “Defining the Grid Value” on page 275.

2 Drag a region from the Regions List to an existing track.

– or –

With the Grabber, drag a region already in a track to a new location.

The region’s start point snaps to the closest Grid boundary. If the region has a sync point defined, the sync point snaps to the Grid boundary.

Nudging

Pro Tools can nudge regions (or MIDI notes) by precise increments with the Plus (–) and Minus

(+) keys on the numeric keypad. The amount of the nudge is determined by the value specified in the Nudge pop-up menu. The Nudge function can be used in any of the Edit modes.

Nudging can be invaluable for adjusting the

“groove” of a musical phrase or a sound effect relative to other elements in the session. Since

Pro Tools can nudge material during playback, you can nudge continuously in real time to adjust the timing relationship between tracks.

Nudge can also be used to adjust the placement of automation breakpoints. For more informa-

tion, see “Editing Automation” on page 467.

Defining the Nudge Value

The Nudge value determines how far regions and selections are moved when nudging.

Start and end points for selections can also be

moved by the Nudge value (see “Nudging Selection Start/End Points” on page 250). In addi-

tion, regions can be trimmed by the Nudge

value (see “Trimming with Nudge” on page 271).

To set the Nudge value:

1 From the Display menu, select the Time Scale you will use for the Nudge value.

– or –

To keep the Main Time Scale and use a different time format for the Nudge value, deselect Follow Main Timebase in the Nudge pop-up menu in the Edit window.


2 From the Nudge pop-up menu in the Edit window, select the Nudge value.

Nudge pop-up menu showing Time Code

To specify a Nudge value not listed in the Nudge pop-up, click in the Nudge field and type in the value.

Nudging Regions

To nudge one or more region:



2 With the Grabber or Selector, select the region or regions you want to nudge. The regions can reside on multiple tracks. Only regions that are entirely selected will be nudged.

3 On the numeric keypad, press Plus (+) to move the selection forward by the Nudge value.

– or –

Press Minus (–) to move the selection back by the Nudge value.

The Nudge command works the same regardless of the Edit mode. Adjacent regions are overlapped in Shuffle mode, the Spot dialog does not appear when in Spot mode, and shifted material does not snap to the Grid when in Grid mode.

Nudging Regions on Multiple Tracks and in Multichannel Tracks

When nudging a selection of multiple regions, within a single track or across multiple tracks, that also contains silence, any automation data residing within the silence is also nudged.

Nudging by Next Nudge Value

In addition to nudging by the current Nudge value, you can also nudge by the next, larger value in the Nudge pop-up menu.

For example, if the Nudge value is set to 1 frame and you want to nudge by a larger valuer, you can nudge by the next, larger Nudge value of 10 frames.

To nudge forward or back by the next, larger Nudge value:

1 Enable the Key Commands Focus by clicking the a-z button in the upper left of the Edit window.

2 With the Selector or Grabber, select the regions or notes you want to nudge.

3 Press slash (/) to nudge the selected material forward by the next Nudge value. Press M to nudge the selection back.

You can also nudge by the next Nudge value without enabling the Commands Focus.

While pressing the Start key (Windows) or

Control (Macintosh), press slash (/) or M.


Nudging a Region’s Contents

Often a region’s start point will reside at the correct location, perhaps at a SMPTE frame or bar, but the material within the region starts too late or early. You can, in effect, nudge a region’s audio waveform or MIDI notes without displacing the region’s start and end points.

before region contents are slid, moving waveform material into and out of the current region boundaries

Shift Command

Use the Shift command to move track material forward or back in time by a specified amount.

The Shift command can operate on selections, regions, MIDI notes, MIDI controller data, and automation breakpoints.

To shift a selection or region:

1 Using either the Selector or Grabber, select the track material you want to shift. The selected material can reside on multiple tracks.

2 Choose Edit > Shift. In the Shift dialog, select whether the data will be moved Earlier or Later.

3 Click in one of the Timebase fields to specify the amount the material will be shifted. Entering a value in one Timebase field automatically updates the others.

after

Nudging region content

This “sliding” of region contents is only possible if there is material residing outside the region’s start and end points—from the region having been trimmed, or perhaps captured from a larger region.

To nudge the contents of a region without changing the region start and end points:



2 With the Grabber, select the region whose contents you want to nudge.

3 While pressing the Start key (Windows) or

Control (Macintosh), press Plus (+) or Minus (–) on the numeric keypad to move the material by the Nudge value.

Shift dialog

4 If you want to shift material with greater precision, select the Use Subframes option.

5 Click OK. The material is shifted back or forward by the specified amount.

If a portion of a region was selected, new regions are created from the selection and from any material outside of the selection.


The Shift command works the same regardless of the Edit mode. Adjacent regions are overlapped in Shuffle mode, the Spot dialog does not appear when in Spot mode, and shifted material does not snap to the Grid when in Grid mode.

Quantizing Regions

The Quantize Regions command adjusts the placement of selected audio and MIDI regions so that their start points (or sync points, if they contain one) precisely align to the nearest Grid boundary, which can be based on frames, bar and beat values, minutes or seconds, or a number of samples.

To quantize one or more regions:

1

Configure the Grid value. For details, see “Defining the Grid Value” on page 275.

2 With the Grabber or Selector, select the region or regions you want to quantize. The regions can be on multiple tracks. Only regions that are entirely selected will be quantized.

3 Choose Edit > Quantize Regions. Region start times (or sync points) are aligned to the boundaries for the defined Grid.

For MIDI regions, all data contained within the regions (such as notes) are moved equally, thereby retaining their rhythmic relationships.

To quantize individual MIDI notes, use the

Quantize command in the MIDI menu (see

“Quantize” on page 380).

Locking Regions

If you have a region or group of regions that you want to permanently associate with a particular location in a track (a beat, SMPTE frame, or sample location), you can lock it in place so it will not be accidentally moved.

To lock a region:

1 With the Grabber, select the region or regions to lock. The regions can even reside on multiple tracks.

2 Choose Edit > Lock/Unlock Region.

Locked audio region

A small lock appears in the region, indicating it has been locked and cannot be moved. If you attempt to perform edits that would move a locked region, Pro Tools alerts you.

In Shuffle mode, locked regions, and all regions occurring after the locked region, are not displaced when other neighboring regions are moved. If there is not enough room to place or duplicate a region in front of a locked region, the insertion area is disabled.

Locking a region prevents it from being moved or deleted only—operations such as recording and automation editing still affect it.


Muting/Unmuting Regions

Choosing the Mute/Unmute Region command mutes playback of a selected region. Choosing the command a second time unmutes the region. Regions that are muted become dimmed to indicate their status.

Track View and Edit Content

When cutting or copying track material, the

Track View determines the type of data placed on the Clipboard. When displaying waveforms for audio tracks, or notes or regions for MIDI tracks, selections include all underlying automation and controller data. Thus, cutting an audio region also cuts any volume, pan, mute, send, or plug-in automation that is also on the track.

This saves you from having to individually cut from each automation playlist on the track.

Muted audio region (middle)

To mute a region or regions:

1 With the Grabber, select the region or regions you want to mute. The regions can even reside on multiple tracks.

2 Choose Edit > Mute/Unmute Region. The selected regions become dimmed, indicating they are muted.

To unmute a region, select it and choose Edit >

Mute/Unmute Region.

Audio waveform data

Edit Commands

Cut, Copy, Clear, and Paste

Use the Cut, Copy, Clear, and Paste commands to rearrange and edit track material. Edits can operate on entire regions selected with the

Grabber, or on track ranges selected with the Selector. Edits can also work across multiple tracks

(see “Editing Across Multiple Tracks” on page 283).

For TDM systems, you can cut, copy, and paste discontiguous regions selected with the Object Grabber.

Automation data (breakpoint-type data)

However, when selecting groups of MIDI notes with the Grabber (by drawing a rectangle around them), only the note data is placed on the Clipboard. When selecting a time range of

MIDI notes with the Selector, all controller data in the track is selected (similar to selecting with the Selector for audio tracks in Waveform view).

When a track is displaying automation data or controller data, only that data is placed on the

Clipboard. Also, whenever you cut or copy automation data, bounding breakpoints are created at each end of the selected area, in order to preserve the slope of the automation both inside and outside the selection.


If tracks are grouped, copying and pasting on any of the tracks affects each of the other tracks in the group. Tracks that are hidden—even if they are part of a group being edited—are not affected by edits.

The current Edit mode affects how material is selected, copied, and pasted:

• In Slip mode, the Cut command leaves an empty space corresponding to the data removed from the track.

• In Shuffle mode, the Cut command leaves no empty space, since the regions to the right of the cut slide over, closing the gap.

• In Slip mode, pasted data can overlap an adjacent region.

• In Shuffle mode, pasted data causes all regions to slide over to make room for the pasted material.

New regions are often auto-created when performing edits. For instance, when clearing a selection from a region, new regions are auto-created from the material residing outside of the selection.

Copying and Pasting Automation

The following are two special functions for copying and pasting automation data.

◆ To copy all automation playlists for a track, press the Start key (Windows) or Control (Macintosh) when copying from any of the track’s automation playlists. This special function also works across multiple tracks.

◆ To paste from one type of automation playlist to another similar playlist (for instance, from a volume playlist to a send level playlist), press the Start key (Windows) or Control (Macintosh) when pasting.

For more information on working with automa-

tion data, see Chapter 28, “Automation.”

Clear Command

Use the Clear command to remove a selection from a track without placing it on the Clipboard.

To clear a selection or region:

1 If you want to constrain the selection to the current grid value, set the Edit mode to Grid.

2 Set the Display Format for the tracks you want to edit.

When displaying waveforms for audio tracks, or notes or regions for MIDI tracks, selections include underlying automation and controller data. If the track is displaying automation data, only the automation data is affected by the edits.

3 Drag with the Selector in the track to select the material you want to clear.

– or –

Use the Grabber to select one or more regions

(or a group of MIDI notes).

4 Choose Edit > Clear to remove the selection.

If a portion of a region was cleared, new regions are auto-created from the material residing outside of the selection. If working in Shuffle mode, adjacent regions are slid over, as necessary, to fill the blank space.

Cut and Copy Commands

Use the Cut command to place the selection on the Clipboard while also removing it from the track.

Use the Copy command to place a selection on the Clipboard so it can be pasted to another track, or to the same track at a different location.


To cut or copy a selection or region:


2 Set the Display Format for the tracks you want to edit.

When displaying waveforms for audio tracks, or notes or regions for MIDI tracks, selections include underlying automation and controller data. If the track is displaying automation data, only the automation data is affected by the edits.

3 Drag with the Selector in the track to select the material you want to cut or copy.

– or –

Use the Grabber to select one or more regions

(or a group of MIDI notes).

4 Choose Edit > Cut to remove the selection and place it on the Clipboard.

– or –

Choose Edit > Copy to place the selection on the

Clipboard, without removing it.

If a portion of a region was cut or copied, the material on the Clipboard appears as a new region in the Regions List. If a portion of a region was cut, new regions are auto-created from the material residing outside of the selection.

When working in Shuffle mode, adjacent regions are slid over, as necessary, to fill blank spaces.

Deleting Underlying Region Data

When removing a region or selection, you can choose to remove or keep the underlying region data.

To delete a region or selection along with the underlying region data:

■

Choose Edit > Cut.

To delete a region or selection without removing the underlying region data:

■

Choose Edit > Clear.

Paste Command

Use the Paste command to place the Clipboard’s contents at the Edit insertion point, overwriting existing material already there.

To paste a selection or region:

1 If you want to constrain the insertion point or the selection to the current grid value, set the

Edit mode to Grid.

2 With the Selector, click in a track at the point where you want to paste the material. Press Tab to move the insertion point forward to region start and end times; to move back, press Control+Tab (Windows) or Option+Tab (Macintosh).

– or –

Use the Selector or Grabber to make a selection where the material will be placed.

3 Choose Copy > Paste.

If pasting at an insertion point in Shuffle mode, material to the right of the paste point is shifted to the right. In Slip mode, the material is overwritten with the paste.


If pasting into a selection in Shuffle mode, the selection is replaced by the Clipboard’s contents with the adjacent material slid left or right as necessary. In Slip mode, the selection is also replaced but with the surrounding material remaining unchanged.

When working with MIDI, you can merge the contents of the Clipboard with material in the destination track. For details, see

“Merge Paste Command” on page 285.

For TDM systems, the Fill Paste command can be used to fill a selection with the con-

tents of the Clipboard. For details, see “Repeat Paste To Fill Selection” on page 293.

Editing Across Multiple Tracks

When working with data from multiple tracks, there are some important points to remember.

For instance, if any of the selected tracks are set

to their master view (see “The Master View Format” on page 210), edits affect not only audio

and MIDI for the selected tracks, but all automation and controller data as well.

If all selected tracks are displayed as automation data, edits only affect the type of automation data displayed in each track. Furthermore, if track 1 displays Pan automation, track 2 displays

Volume automation, and track 3 displays Mute automation, the Cut command cuts only pan data from track 1, volume data from track 2, and mute data from track 3.

For details on selecting data on multiple

tracks, see “Selecting Across Multiple

Tracks” on page 252.

When copying only automation or controller data for selected tracks, press the Start key (Windows) or Control (Macintosh) to copy all types of automation on all selected tracks.

To paste to multiple tracks, place the insertion point in each of the destination tracks by Shiftclicking in them—or to select all tracks, Alt-

Shift-click (Windows) or Option-Shift-click

(Macintosh) in a track, or make a selection in one of the Timebase Rulers.

When you paste multiple types of data, whatever data has been copied is pasted into the correct type of playlist. Automation data is pasted into the corresponding automation playlist. Audio/MIDI data is pasted into the audio/MIDI playlist. You don’t need to set target tracks to the specific type of data being pasted for the paste to work correctly.

If all destination tracks in a multitrack paste are displayed as automation, the paste replaces any previous data on the target track without shuffling—regardless of whether you are in Slip or

Shuffle mode.

Duplicate Command

The Duplicate command copies a selection and places it immediately after the end of the selection. Though this is similar to using Copy and

Paste, Duplicate is more convenient and faster, particularly when working with data on multiple tracks.

To make more than one copy of a selection, use

the Repeat command (see “Repeat Command” on page 284).

As with the Copy and Paste commands, certain rules apply when duplicating material on multi-

ple tracks. For details, see “Editing Across Multiple Tracks” on page 283.

The Duplicate command does not operate on conductor events.


To duplicate a selection or region:

1 If working with material that is bar- and beatbased, such as loops, set the Main Time Scale to

Bars:Beats.


3 Drag with the Selector in the track to select the material you want to duplicate.

– or –

Click in the track and enter the start and end points for the selection in the Event Edit area.

4 Choose Edit > Duplicate. The material is placed immediately after the selection’s end point.

In Shuffle mode, the duplicated data is placed directly after the end of the selection. Regions occurring after it are slid to accommodate the duplicated material. In Slip mode, the duplicated material overlaps any adjacent data.

When using Duplicate or Repeat with MIDI notes that were selected with the Grabber, material is always duplicated one measure later, and is merged with existing track material (instead of replacing).

Duplicating Audio

When using Duplicate or Repeat for audio that must fall cleanly on the beat (for loops), it is important that you select the audio material with the Selector, or by typing in the start and end points in the Event Edit area. If you select an audio region with the Grabber (or by double-clicking it with the Selector), the material may drift by several ticks because of sample-rounding.

If, on the other hand, you want to Duplicate or

Repeat audio that is not bar- and beat-based, set the Time Scale to any format except Bars:Beats.

This ensures that the duplicated audio material will have the correct number of samples and will be placed accordingly.

Repeat Command

The Repeat command is similar to Duplicate, but allows you to specify the number of times the selected material is duplicated.

As with the Copy and Paste commands, certain rules apply when repeating material on multiple

tracks. For details, see “Editing Across Multiple

Tracks” on page 283.

To repeatedly paste copied data until it completely fills a selection (TDM systems only), see

“Repeat Paste To Fill Selection” on page 293.

The Repeat command does not operate on conductor events.

To repeat a selection or region:

1 If working with material that is bar- and beatbased, such as loops, set the Main Time Scale to

Bars:Beats.


3 Drag with the Selector in the track to select the material you want to repeat.

– or –

Click in the track and enter the start and end points for the selection in the Event Edit area.


4 Choose Edit > Repeat. In the Repeat dialog, enter the number of times you want the material to repeat, then click OK.

Repeat dialog

The material is placed immediately after the selection’s end point, and duplicated by the number of times specified.

In Shuffle mode, the repeated data is placed directly after the end of the selection. Regions occurring after it are slid to accommodate the repeated material. In Slip mode, the repeated material overlaps any adjacent data.

3 Choose Edit > Cut to remove the selection and place it on the Clipboard.

– or –

Choose Edit > Copy to place the selection on the

Clipboard without removing it.

4 With the Selector, click in a MIDI track at the point where you want to merge the material.

5 Choose Edit > Merge Paste. The Clipboard’s contents are pasted at the insertion point, without removing the existing material already residing there.

If any portion of the material is pasted outside of existing regions, a new region is created for the data.

Merge Paste Command

Use the Merge Paste command to merge MIDI notes from the Clipboard with material already residing in the paste destination. To replace track material, use the Paste command instead.

To merge MIDI data:


2 Drag with the Selector in the track to select the MIDI notes you want to merge.

– or –

Use the Grabber to select one or more MIDI regions (or a group of MIDI notes).

Editing Stereo and

Multichannel Tracks

Regions on individual channels within stereo and multichannel tracks cannot be independently selected. All selections for these tracks are time-based, which means that selections made with the Selector and Grabber extend to each channel in the track.

When regions in multichannel tracks are edited with the Trimmer or dragged with the Grabber, material on all channels is affected equally as a group.

Split Selected Tracks

To edit a specific channel within a stereo or multichannel track without affecting the other channels, you can split the track into separate mono tracks. Once the edits have been made to the separated material, you can then drag or copy it back to the original multichannel track.


To split a stereo or multichannel track:

1 Select the track you want to split by clicking its name in the Edit or Mix window. To split multiple tracks, Shift-click additional tracks.

2 Choose File > Split Selected Tracks Into Mono.

Regions from the channels on the selected tracks are placed on new, mono audio tracks.

Names for the new tracks are based on the source track name and channel suffix. For example, if a stereo track called “Funkit” is split, two new tracks called “Funkit.L” and “Funkit.R” are created.

Output and send assignments and volume and pan settings are retained in the new tracks.

Mono equivalents of stereo and multi-mono plug-in assignments are assigned in the new tracks; multichannel plug-in assignments are not assigned in the new tracks.

Dragging Regions to and from Stereo and Multichannel Tracks

◆ The source and destination for dragged regions can be mixed. For example, you can drag regions from a 5.0 track (containing five channels) to a stereo track and three mono audio tracks.

◆ When dragging multichannel regions to mono tracks, the destination tracks must be adjacent.

◆ When dragging regions from mono tracks to a multichannel track, the source tracks need not be adjacent.

Multichannel regions can also be dragged from the Audio Regions List, to multichannel tracks of the same format, groups of mono audio tracks, or a combination of both.

Conversely, a collection of single, mono regions can be dragged from the Audio Regions List to multichannel tracks—provided the dragged number of regions matches the number of channels in the destination track.

Dragging a stereo region to two mono audio tracks

When dragging regions to or from stereo or multichannel tracks, the following rules apply:

◆ Provided the number of tracks and channels are the same for the source and destination, you can drag regions between multichannel tracks and mono tracks.

Processing Audio with

AudioSuite Plug-Ins

The AudioSuite plug-ins included with your

Pro Tools system can be used to process and modify an audio region or entire audio file. You may do this in order to apply a specific Audio-

Suite process, such as Normalization or DC Offset Removal, that you know you will always want applied to the audio.

Refer to the DigiRack Plug-Ins Guide for more information about AudioSuite plugins.


Waveform Repair with the

Pencil Tool

The Pencil tool allows you to destructively “redraw” waveform data. This tool is most commonly used to repair a pop or click in an audio file. A pop or click appears as a sudden sharp spike in a waveform. This tool only becomes active when the Edit window is zoomed in to the sample level.

The Pencil tool is a destructive editing tool that permanently modifies the audio file on disk and should be used with caution.

Although you can Undo a Pencil tool edit, it is recommended that you create a backup copy of the target audio, before using the Pencil tool.

You can do this by using the AudioSuite Duplicate plug-in.

To make a copy of an audio region:

1 Select the source region in the track’s playlist.

2 Choose AudioSuite > Duplicate.

3 In the AudioSuite dialog, make sure that Playlist is enabled as the processing preference, and that Use In Playlist is enabled.

4 Click the Process button.

The AudioSuite Duplicate plug-in creates a new audio file that is a duplicate of the original. The duplicate replaces the original on the track, and it is automatically named with the region name and the suffix DUPL.

To destructively edit an audio waveform with the

Pencil tool:

1 Locate the area you want to edit.

2 Using the Zoomer tool or the Vertical Zoom buttons, zoom down to the sample level so the waveform appears as a continuous thin line. Adjust the Track Height, as necessary, to edit the waveform with greater precision

You can recall zoom levels with the Zoom

Preset buttons (see “Zooming” on page 226), or with Memory Locations (see

“Memory Locations and Markers” on page 324).

3 Select the Pencil tool.

Pencil tool

4 Carefully draw with the Pencil by dragging over the area of the waveform.

Don’t over-edit or the results may be undesirable. You can use the Undo command to undo your previous edit.

Repairing a “pop” with the Pencil tool

Try to limit editing to smoothing over a very small problem area, and keep the “fixes” in character with the shape of the surrounding waveform.

If you have trouble zooming in far enough to perform Pencil editing, check the Edit window (session) length. Shorten the overall

Edit window (session) length, if possible, until the Pencil tool becomes usable.


The Smart Tool

With the Smart Tool you can instantly access the Selector, Grabber, and Trimmer, and you can also perform fades and crossfades. The position of the cursor in relation to a region or note, or within an automation playlist, determines how the Smart Tool functions.

Smart Tool in Edit window

To select the Smart Tool, click its icon in the upper left of the Edit window, or press F6+F7 (or

F7+F8) simultaneously.

To temporarily switch the Smart Tool to the

Scrubber, place the cursor over the region so that the Selector is enabled, then press the

Start key (Windows) or Control (Macintosh), or right-click the mouse.

The Smart Tool in Waveform View (or

MIDI Track Regions View)

◆ For the Grabber, position the cursor over the middle of a region, in the lower half.

◆ For the Trimmer, position the cursor near the region’s start or end point.

◆ For a fade-in or fade-out, position the cursor near an audio region’s start or end point, near the top. Once the Fade cursor appears, drag into the region to set the fade length. The fade is created automatically with the Default Fade Settings (in the Editing Preferences).

◆ For a crossfade, position the cursor between two adjacent audio regions, near the bottom.

Once the Crossfade cursor appears drag left or right to set the crossfade length. The crossfade is created automatically with the Default Fade Settings (in the Editing Preferences).

The Smart Tool in Notes View

Selector

Trim

Start

Fade-In

Selector

Fade-Out

Trim

End

Grabber

Smart Tool in Waveform View

Crossfade

The following capabilities are available with the

Smart Tool when working with audio tracks in

Waveform or Blocks View, or MIDI tracks in Regions View:

◆ For the Selector, position the cursor over the middle of the region, in the upper half.

Trim

Start

Grabber

Smart Tool in Notes View

Trim End


Smart Tool when working with MIDI tracks in

Notes View:

◆ For the Selector, position the cursor so it doesn’t cover any notes.

To get the Selector while positioning the cursor over notes, press Control (Windows) or Command (Macintosh).

◆ For the Grabber, position the cursor over the note, near its middle.


To get the Marquee so you can select a group of notes, position the cursor so it doesn’t cover any notes and press Control (Windows) or Command (Macintosh).

◆ For the Trimmer, position the cursor near the note’s start or end point.

To temporarily switch the Smart Tool to the

Eraser, place the cursor over the region so that the Selector is enabled, then press

Start+Alt (Windows) or Control+Option

(Macintosh).

The Smart Tool in Automation and

Controller Views


Smart Tool when working in both automation and controller views:

Selector

Position the cursor anywhere in the bottom

75% of the playlist for the Selector. Drag with the Selector to select breakpoints.

Trimmer

Position the cursor in the top 25% of the playlist for the Trimmer. Drag with the Trimmer to trim breakpoints. Press Control (Windows) or Command (Macintosh) after you begin trimming for fine control.

Grabber

To create breakpoints with the Grabber, press

Control (Windows) or Command (Macintosh) and the Grabber will appear.

To edit existing breakpoints, move the cursor near a breakpoint and the Grabber will appear.

For fine control with the Grabber, Control

(Windows) or press Command (Macintosh)— or continue to hold the key if you are creating a new breakpoint.

To vertically constrain Grabber movement, press Shift.

To vertically constrain Grabber movement with fine control, press Control+Shift (Windows) or

Command+Shift (Macintosh).

The Smart Tool with Stereo and

Multichannel Tracks

When using the Smart Tool on stereo and multichannel tracks, individual channels cannot be independently edited. All edits affects all channels as a whole.

The tool switching for the Smart Tool in stereo and multichannel tracks is determined by the position within the entire track, and not within individual channels.



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