The Telenator.
The TelenatorFrits, if I may, I’d like to single out one very small Feature Request that you ought to be able to add to the Metronome Prefs page without hassle — a line or two of code in your next update?
I’ve mentioned it before in our many lists: Please, please add a check box to select Pre-Count if desired when recording. It need not have many or any parameter choices. I like two solid measures, some others prefer four. I’d gladly settle for either!
It’s just that when self-recording without a helper, I need to grab that beat in my ear while grabbing my guitar and pick to head into recording a track. It’s such a minor feature but makes all the difference in the world. It is now an industry standard on any pro DAW.
Thanks and Cheers!
Tele
Levendis@The Telenator wrote:
…I need to grab that beat in my ear while grabbing my guitar and pick to head into recording a track.
Undoubtedly, a performer surely needs a beat or two to guide them into sync. Orchestra conductors, tapping drumsticks, and click-tracks provide such cues in concert halls, stage and recording studio.
Try the following. While it’s a little more effort to establish than a pre-count function, these tactics will give you those cues:
ZynewaveWhat is it the ‘roll back’ option is missing to be able to do what you want?
Granted, you need to start your song at bar 3, to be able to have a 2 bar count in from the beginning.
The TelenatorHi, Frits. For what I am requesting is exactly what can be found on Reaper, which is free to demo in full version unrestricted for 60 days. Any other DAW ought to be almost identical. Most have more parameter choices but it could be kept simple.
Before the cursor starts to move, you can check the box and you get the normal metronome sound for at least 2 full measures. Reaper also will let you run the the numbers backward from minus 2 or whatever chosen number of measures/seconds/samples to zero, then the cursor starts to move and actual recording begins.
One thing I really love in some DAWs is you can choose the metronome to Pre-Count ONLY, just like having a real drummer start you with his drumsticks, and then it goes silent when recording starts. That way the player gets synced to the tempo and beat, but doesn’t have to hear the metronome through the entire track. Personally, unless a tune is really tricky, I don’t like a click track running when I record. I find it annoying.
What I’m getting at is just like I believe Levendis was saying. You know the drummer who clacks his sticks for X measures to start the band up at the beginning, but that stops on beat before the very first one of the tune’s start. He has to start his part playing too right then. You could go as many options and as fancy as you care to, but a player needs that very minimum of two measures to start his part. This should be available at punch-ins as well.
Wherever you intend to start recording/playing, metronome begins at the top of measure -2 and beats until last beat before the top of the very first measure (assuming you choose a 2-measure pre-count). Works like a charm. I would so love a pre-count only metronome option.
I hope all that makes sense! Cheers!
(By the way, if you ever do take a good look at Reaper, please click on any track panel and examine its outrageous routing options. Podium doesn’t need all of that really. I think no DAW is as flexible — an often mentioned topic, but more choice, such as the ability to run any mic’d instrument into a real-time audio-to-MIDI converter plugin, THEN run the MIDI out of that to your favourite softsynth on that same or any track you can offer to record the results — all in realtime live. Realtime audio to MIDI is the hot topic everywhere it seems right now, and it is here to stay. The ability to run a top notch synth from ANY instrument is the ultimate ability. Think about it. Ableton just added it in 9, but some others haven’t yet but will before long. Can you get the jump on the rest of the DAWs?)