PT 110: Lesson 3: Recording MIDI and Audio: Review and Discussion Questions

  1. What menu would you use to display Conductor rulers, such as Meter and Tempo? How can you display rulers without using a main menu? VIEW > RULERS. Clicking the Ruler View selector.
  2. What are the default tempo and meter for all Pro Tools sessions? 120 bpm. 4/4
  3. What modifier key would you hold while clicking on a ruler to add a meter or tempo change to your session? ctrl (The ctrl modifier provides an “Add” function in Pro Tools)
  4. What main menu provides access to the Tempo Operations window? What is the purpose of the linear page in the Tempo Operations window? EVENT >Tempo Operations. To create a linear change in tempo events over a range of time. (Other options are Parabolic, S-curve, Scale (%) and Stretch)
  5. How can you configure Pro Tools to use a virtual instrument as the sound source for the metronome click? How can you control what notes are played for the accented and unaccented beats? Turn on the metronome in the MIDI Controls on the Toolbar. To create a Click Track using Click II virtual instrument plug-in TRACK > Create Click Track. Alphanumeric [7] to toggle metronome on/off. SETUP> CLICK Click/Cutoff Options dialogue box (note, velocity and duration) (alphanumeric 7 to toggle metronome)
  6. Describe at least three ways to make a selection for recording. 1. Using clips to make timeline selections. Use the Grabber tool (F8) to select a clip (shift-click to extend selection to another clip) Start a record pass, the timeline selection will determine the record range. 2. Making a Selection During Playback DOWN arrow to start selection, UP arrow to end selection. 3. Using timeline selection in and out points to adjust selection. When tracks are record-enabled Timeline Selection In and Out points appear as red markers. 4. Creating a selection from Marker memory locationsclick previous marker then shift-click subsequent marker. You can also make a Selection-based Memory Location.
  7. Describe three ways to set the pre-and post-roll values. What modifier do you use to set pre-and post roll by clicking in a track playlist? 1. Entered in the Expanded Transport window (VIEW> TRANSPORT > EXPANDED) (/ to move through fields) 2. Set from a track’s playlist or Timebase ruler (opt-click to add pre/post-roll value, disable by opt-click in first (pre) or second (post) half of selection), 3 Recall with a memory location that includes pre-and post-roll values.
  8. What keyboard shortcut can you use to toggle pre-/post-roll on and off? cmd+K
  9. What are alternate playlists on Pro Tools? How can playlists be useful when recording multiple takes? They enable multiple versions of a track, each containing a different arrangement of clips. They allow you to retain each recorded take on a separate instance of the track, which can help with choosing the best take later on. They can also be used for comping.
  10. When might you use the Pro Tools Preferences setting called Send Fully Overlapped Clips to Available Playlist While Recording? How can you ensure that the original audio gets moved to a playlist when re-recording just a section of the original using this setting? PREFERENCES > Editing When recording multiple takes. By selecting just that section and separating the clip EDIT > SEPARATE CLIP > AT SELECTION (cmd+E)
  11. What are some differences in the way audio and MIDI clips are created when recording? How do you go about enabling loop recording for audio or MIDI? Audio: ProTools creates a single file that comprises all takes. Takes appear as individual subset clips in the Clip List and are numbered sequentially. If an audio record pass is interrupted before the midpoint of the loop the entire take is disregarded. MIDI: New clips are created each time a new record pass begins. However if no MIDI is received no clip is added. In contrast to audio, if a MIDI record pass is interrupted mid-take, the entire clip is retained regardless of where the pass stopped. 1.Make timeline selection 2. OPTIONS > LOOP RECORD, or right click RECORD button (Shortcut opt-L, or [5] on alphanumeric keypad) (Ensure LINK TIMELINE AND EDIT SELECTION is selected)
  12. What preferences setting do you need to use to enable automatic playlist creation when loop recording? SETUP > PREFERENCES > OPERATION > Operation section: Check Automatically Create New Playlists When Loop Recording
  13. How can you cycle through alternate takes from playlists? How can you audition takes from playlists while cycling through them? Select the current take on the track’s main playlist and use modifiers and arrow keys cmd+shift+UP (next) or cmd+shift+DOWN (previous)
  14. What is the purpose of MIDI merge mode? How can you perform a MDI merge recording while looping? It allows you to add MIDI data to an existing MIDI clip note that MIDI merge is not compatible with Loop Record mode; Instead record using MIDI Merge and Loop Playback. OPTIONS > deselect LOOP RECORD. Enable OPTIONS > Loop Playback (cmd-shift-L). Record-enable the target MIDI / Instrument track, click MIDI Merge in the MIDI Controls. Select the record range, begin recording and Pro Tools will loop across the selected range.