Tempo changes in Tracktion 2
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- KVRist
- 101 posts since 21 Oct, 2004
I,ve been checking out the demo version for a while now. What got my attention was when I imported a Standard Midi File which was created in Cakewalk's HomeStudio 2004 sometime ago with lots of subtle tempo changes that occur on the beat and off beat, eg. 38:4:640. I then imported the audio data, rendered from the midi tracks, and lined up their start times to the exact positions as they are in HomeStudio into the Tracktion project. I then hit play in Tracktion, and as the song progressed in time, the audio tracks became progressively out of sync with each other, though the sample rate is set the same in both sequencers. When I looked at the tempo bar, Tracktion had a lot of missing tempo changes in the off beat positions. The only tempo changes that got imported were the ones ocurring on the first beat of a measure. I then attempted to insert the missing tempo changes by following the manual. Placed the cursor to the off beat position, clicked the button to insert the tempo change, but noticed Tracktion keeps placing the tempo change to the nearest beat to the right of the cursor. I then double checked the manual and this is what I saw - The tempo section in which the play-head cursor is currently positioned will be split in two, with the new section appearing at, and to the right of the beat nearest the play-head cursor position. It seems to me that Tracktion cannot place tempo changes on off beat positions like 38:4:640.
DB
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- KVRAF
- 2028 posts since 18 Mar, 2004 from New York, N.Y.
Try turning of the snap option (shortcut 'Q'). I just completed a project with some very bizzarre tempo changes and it seemed to work well...
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- KVRist
- Topic Starter
- 101 posts since 21 Oct, 2004
Turning off the snap option has no effect. Tempo changes are still placed on the beat. If the full version has this behaviour, it is definitely a limitation of Tracktion. One should be able to place a tempo change on any tick in a measure. Also, importing Standard Midi Files with tempo changes the way it was created.
DB
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- KVRist
- 63 posts since 1 Jan, 2005
I just tried this as well, and have exactly the same problem as DeBro. When you try to insert a tempo change, it always puts it on a beat, regardless of snap and/or quantising options. When I import a MIDI file with a lot of tempo changes falling between the beats, it totally messes with the tempo map, picking one of the tempo changes and rounding it to the nearest beat, and deleting the other tempo changes.
I probably would be able to work around this if I were constructing a MIDI file from scratch within Tracktion, using the "ramped tempo" option to create smooth transitions between the beats (although who is to say that I always want a linear ramp?). But the way it mangles the tempo maps of imported MIDI files is certainly frustrating.
I'm about a week into using Tracktion now, having come from using Cakewalk Sonar. I couldn't stand the User Interface of Sonar. IMO, Tracktion is definitely an improvement in workflow when it comes to audio recording and mixing. But the MIDI still needs some work to be able to compete head to head with the big boys. I keep finding little ways the MIDI implementation of Tracktion is still lacking, and this is yet another example.
I probably would be able to work around this if I were constructing a MIDI file from scratch within Tracktion, using the "ramped tempo" option to create smooth transitions between the beats (although who is to say that I always want a linear ramp?). But the way it mangles the tempo maps of imported MIDI files is certainly frustrating.
I'm about a week into using Tracktion now, having come from using Cakewalk Sonar. I couldn't stand the User Interface of Sonar. IMO, Tracktion is definitely an improvement in workflow when it comes to audio recording and mixing. But the MIDI still needs some work to be able to compete head to head with the big boys. I keep finding little ways the MIDI implementation of Tracktion is still lacking, and this is yet another example.