Cubase Hitpoints for tempo mapping?

[GreyLion]

Hello, my Colleagues,

I've whined a couple of times here, looking for a graceful function in a sequencer that would let me create tempo maps by tracking the tempo changes in an audio file. Maybe by tapping in beats with a MIDI controller, then having the sequencer write the map. This will let me synchronize my sequencer with my guitar playing, rather than vice-versa. Will let the track feel more 'natural'. I know that most sequencers will let you manually create a tempo map, but that's really a PITA.

It looks like Cubase has this function with Hitpoints. I can get the SE3 version for $90, but there's no demo, so -- does anybody have any experience with this that they'd care to pass along? I don't mind doing some manual tweaking, of course, I don't expect anything to be perfect. Just near-perfect.

Take care,

GreyLion

[GreyLion]

Rats. Looks like Sound on Sound had an article in the October issue on exactly this thing. And I didn't buy that issue, 'cause I'm a moron and I missed it....

[princeofroles]

GreyLion, I am interested in that feature as well, since Sonar (my current host) SAYS that it does it, but nobody seems to get it to work. I do subscribe to SOS, and read that article, and while it looks good, it specifically says it's for SX and SL.... so make sure that it will work with SE (which is missing many of the advanced features). Good luck... please post if you find a good solution, since like you, I'm a guitarist who'd like to fit rhythm to my playing, rather than the other way around! John

[GreyLion]

Hey, princeofroles -- They may have done the article before SE rolled out, as it's only recently been broken out from the Studio Case bundle, and might have been updated in the process. But you might be right, also... More research to be done.

Good to hear from you about the Sonar problem, since I'm obsessing about this issue, and will be happy to cross a sequencer off the list if it doesn't work well. It was gonna be too expensive for me to buy just to try it out, anyhow. I wish that Sonar and Cubase had demos. They'd be more likely to get my money, eventually. Not that they worry about me too much, I suspect...

Sooo... The SoS article said the Cubase Hitpoint detector worked well, yes? There were supposedly a bunch of improvements to its function in the 3.1 update. If SOS liked it, I can get it for $90 for the academic version, and that would pop it to the top of my purchase list (assuming Hitpoint detection is indeed in this version, of course).

I'll definitely be posting -- heck, shouting from the rooftops -- if I can find a sequencer that does this well, as it's driving me a bit crazy.

Take care,

GreyLion