Up close and personal with Auto-Tune 7's context-sensitive time tools

Welcome to the latest in our more in-depth looks at the key new capabilities in Auto-Tune 7. Last time, we provided an overview of the new Auto-Tune 7 time manipulation capabilities. This time we'll be taking a closer look at Auto-Tune 7's two context-sensitive time editing tools.

Tool Time

All Auto-Tune 7 time manipulation is accomplished by one of the two new tools, the Move Point tool and the Move Region tool. These tools will allow you to adjust the timing of your audio in specific ways. Both start by asking you to select a region of audio. This will define a range of audio that will be operated on. Inside that region, you will be able to adjust a single point or a sub-region depending on which of the two tools you selected.

The Move Point Tool

The Move Point tool allows you to select a range of audio and pick any point in the range and move it forward or back in time, compressing and expanding the audio around it. The Move Point Tool is typically used to edit a note, word, or phrase in which you want to correct the timing of one point while leaving other key points unchanged. Examples might include:

• A note, word, or phrase that begins at the correct time, but ends either early or late.
• Conversely, a note, word, or phrase that begins early or late, but ends at the correct time.
• A note, word, or phrase that both begins and ends at the correct times, but whose internal articulation you would like to edit.

In any of these cases, you are free to choose any range you want to work in, any point you want to move, and simply move it.

The Move Region Tool

The Move Region tool is designed for moving entire notes, words, or phrases while preserving the internal timing of the moved element. As with the Move Point tool, you first select a range of audio and then select the region within that selection that you want to move and move it forward or back in time, again compressing and expanding the audio around it.

In the example below, you can see a word that has been moved forward in time by the Move Region Tool. The light gray background is the range in which editing takes place, while the darker gray area is the region that has been moved. The envelope display at the bottom gives you immediate visual feedback on your editing relative to the original audio.

Context Sensitivity

Both tools are context sensitive. That is, they change function (from selection to moving, for example) depending on what lies beneath them on the screen. As a result, the time manipulation process becomes smooth and intuitive, never breaking your creative flow with the need to switch tools or remember some command key to temporarily change function.

No Constraints

Another key contributor to the ease and power of Auto-Tune 7's time manipulation is its freeform editing system. With Auto-Tune 7, there are no predefined edit points, note divisions, or other artificial constructs imposed on your editing process. Just select the range you want to edit, pick any point or region in the range that you want to move and move it. It's as simple as that.

Next time: the new Graphical Mode MIDI functions.

In the meantime, learn all about Auto-Tune 7, then download a fully functional time-limited trial version (iLok smart key and ilok.com account required) and try it out on your own projects. Then head on over to your local Antares dealer or our online store and get a copy of your own.

Thanks,

- The Whole Antares Crew

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