Sony Acid Pro Instruction Manual

After you install ACID and start it for the first time, the registration wizard appears. This wizard offers easy
steps that enable you to register ACID online with Sonic Foundry. Alternately, you may register ACID
online at www.sonicfoundry.com at any time.

Registering your product provides you with exclusive access to a variety of technical support options,
notification of product updates, and special promotions exclusive to ACID registered users.

Registration assistance

If you do not have access to the Internet, registration assistance is available during normal weekday business
hours. Please contact our Customer Service Department by dialing one of the following numbers:

Telephone/Fax Country

1-800-577-6642 (toll-free) US, Canada, and Virgin Islands

[phone] (toll-free) Australia, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, UK,

[phone] All other countries

1-608-250-1745 (fax) All countries

Netherlands, and Japan

Customer service/sales

For a detailed list of customer service options, we encourage you to visit www.sonicfoundry.com. Use the
following numbers for telephone support during normal office hours:

Telephone/Fax/E-mail Country

1-800-577-6642 (toll-free) US, Canada, and Virgin Islands

[phone] (toll-free) Australia, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, UK,

Netherlands, and Japan

[phone] All other countries

1-608-250-1745 (fax) All countries

customerservice@sonicfoundr y.com

Technical support

For a detailed list of technical support options, we encourage you to visit www.sonicfoundry.com/support.

• To listen to your support options, please call 608-256-5555.

• Customers who have purchased ACID Pro receive 60 days of complimentary phone support. The
complimentary support begins the date of your first call. (Registration is required to receive this
complimentary support.) Please call [phone] if you need assistance with your Pro version product.

User manual feedback

If you have comments or suggestions about this user manual, we would like to hear from you. Send us e-mail
at [e-mail].

Sonic Foundry, Inc.

1617 Sherman Avenue
Madison, WI 53704
USA

The information contained in this manual is subject to change without notice and does not represent a
commitment on the part of Sonic Foundry. The software described in this manual is provided under the
terms of a license agreement or nondisclosure agreement. The software license agreement specifies the terms
and conditions for its lawful use.

Sonic Foundry and ACID are registered trademarks of Sonic Foundry, Inc. ASIO is a trademark and VST is
a registered trademark of Steinberg Media Technologies AG. AC-3 is a trademark of Dolby Laboratories.
Other brands and products named here are the trademarks or registered trademarks of Sonic Foundry, its
affiliates, or their respective holders.

Copyright © 2002-2003 Sonic Foundry, Inc. This user guide can be reproduced for noncommercial reference
or personal/private use only and may not be resold. Any reproduction in excess of fifteen copies or electronic
transmission requires the written permission of Sonic Foundry.

A special note concerning the use of the Dolby Digital trademark:

Dolby Laboratories encourages use of the Dolby Digital trademark to identify soundtracks that are encoded
in Dolby Digital. This is an effective way to inform listeners of the soundtrack format, and the use of a
standard logo promotes easy recognition in the marketplace. However, like any trademark, the Dolby Digital
logo may not be used without permission. Dolby Laboratories therefore provides a standard trademark license
agreement for companies who wish to use Dolby trademarks. This agreement should be signed by the
company that owns the program material being produced. Recording studios or production facilities which
provide audio production or encoding services for outside clients generally do not require a trademark
license.

If you would like more information on obtaining a Dolby trademark license, please contact Dolby
Laboratories Licensing Corporation. Information on trademark licensing plus instructions for using the
Dolby Digital trademark and marking audio formats can also be found on-line at http://www.dolby.com.

Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation

100 Potrero Ave.

San Francisco, CA 94520 USA

Phone: [phone]

Fax: [phone]

E-mail: [e-mail]

http://www.dolby.com

Table of Contents

Introducing ACID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Welcome to Sonic Foundry ACID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

System requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

Installing ACID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Using online help. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Online help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

What’sThis? help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Help on the Web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Overview of ACID. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

1

Main interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Track list . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Track view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Window docking area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Keyboard command reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Audio signal flow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

MIDI signal flow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

What’s New?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Mixing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29

Plug-in effects automation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

5.1 surround mixing and surround pan automation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Alternate time signatures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

ASIO driver support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Loop Cloning in the Chopper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Bus tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Enhanced time stretching for Beatmapped tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

New audio panning types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

New envelope fade types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

ReWire support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

TABLE OF CONTENTS

2

MIDI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

MIDI piano roll editing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

MIDI step recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

MIDI event list editing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

VSTi support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Yamaha OPT support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Optimized DLS and VSTi soft synth controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Workspace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Multiple media file previewing and Explorer enhancements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Hotkey commands for track muting and soloing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Optimized ACID playback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Autosave crash recovery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Customizable default track properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Windows Media Audio and Video import . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32

Enhanced video handling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Starting projects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Setting project properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Opening existing projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Getting media files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Previewing media from the Explorer window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Adding media to the project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Understanding track types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Loops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

One-shots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Beatmapped . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

MIDI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Adding and editing events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Painting events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Changing the length of events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Erasing sections of events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Moving events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Using the cursor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Positioning the cursor with the mouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Positioning the cursor with the keyboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Positioning the cursor with the Go To command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Making selections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42

Selecting an event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Selecting multiple events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Creating time selections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Creating event selections within time selections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44

Working with tracks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44

Reordering tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Resizing tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Changing track colors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Renaming tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Duplicating tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Deleting tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

Copying, cutting, and pasting tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

Adjusting the mix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

Muting tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Soloing tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Working with groups of tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Using undo and redo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

3

Using undo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Undoing all edits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Using redo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Clearing the undo history . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Playing the project. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49

Using the transport bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Using playback options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Using the Mixer window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Viewing the Mixer window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Using the mixer toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Renaming mixer controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Using the mixer’s faders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Saving, rendering, and delivering projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Saving projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Rendering projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Publishing to the Internet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Writing to CD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Editing Events. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Copying events. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .59

TABLE OF CONTENTS

4

Pasting events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Using the Paste command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Using Paste Repeat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Using Paste Insert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Cutting events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Deleting events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Trimming events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Splitting events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Splitting at the cursor position . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Splitting an event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Splitting multiple events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Splitting a time selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Splitting events within a time selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Joining events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Ripple editing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Cutting events in ripple editing mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Deleting events in ripple editing mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Pasting events in ripple editing mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Slipping and sliding events. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Shifting the contents of (slipping) events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

Slip-trimming events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

Sliding events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

Changing event properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

Using event envelopes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Setting an event’s volume envelope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Setting an event’s fade-in and -out envelope curve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

Creating crossfades between events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

Working in the Track View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Using project markers and regions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Working with standard markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Working with time markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Working with command markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Working with regions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

Using snapping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

Choosing snapping options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

Changing tempo, time signature, and key. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

Changing project tempo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

Changing project time signature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

Changing project key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Working with tempo/key/time signature change markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Changing a track’s key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Changing an event’s key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Adjusting time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Inserting time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Fitting to time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

Using the Chopper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Working in the Chopper window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Viewing the Chopper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Changing the Chopper grid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Changing Chopper snapping options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Magnifying the Chopper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

Previewing in the Chopper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

Using Chopper toolbar and keyboard commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

Inserting markers and regions in the Chopper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .87

Creating selections in the Chopper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

5

Placing files in the Chopper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

Creating selections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

Creating selections of a specific musical length . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

Inserting increments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .88

Creating increments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Creating increments of a specific musical length . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .89

Creating increments of a custom musical length . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Inserting selections in the track view. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .90

Using the Insert Selection button . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Using copy and paste . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Dragging selections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Moving the insert position in the track view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Saving Chopper selections as new files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Using the Chopper with one-shots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

Working with Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Using track effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .93

Creating or adding to track plug-in chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Arranging plug-in chain order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Bypassing plug-ins in a chain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Removing plug-ins from chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Saving plug-in chains as packages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

Removing or bypassing all effects on tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

TABLE OF CONTENTS

6

Using track envelopes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

Adding track envelopes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

Adjusting envelopes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

Using the Envelope tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

Hiding track envelopes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

Removing track envelopes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

Choosing stereo pan types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

Using the Beatmapper. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

Understanding stretching properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

Configuring track properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

Adjusting general track properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

Adjusting stretching properties for loop or Beatmapped tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

Adjusting track properties for MIDI tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

Reloading files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

Replacing files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

Saving file properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

Mixing multiple tracks to a single track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

Exporting loops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

Using the Mixer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

Using busses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

Adding busses to the project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

Routing tracks to busses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

Routing busses to system hardware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

Deleting busses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

Using assignable effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113

Adding assignable effect controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113

Working with assignable effects chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

Routing tracks to assignable effect controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

Routing assignable effect controls to busses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .114

Deleting assignable effect controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Using soft synth controls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Adding soft synth controls to projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116

Modifying soft synth control properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116

Using ACID with ReWire panel applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .119

Deleting soft synth controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120

Routing MIDI tracks to soft synth controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Using mixer controls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .120

Working with mixer controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .120

Adding effects to mixer controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121

Working with multiple mixer controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .125

Automating mixer controls in track view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .125

Recording in ACID. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

Recording audio. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .127

Setting ACID’s recording properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .128

Setting recording levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

Recording multiple takes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .130

Reviewing and saving takes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

Working with MIDI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

Adding MIDI tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .131

Adding MIDI files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .131

Creating new MIDI files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

Recording MIDI tracks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .131

7

Changing MIDI track properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .132

Pitch shifting MIDI tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

Setting root notes for MIDI tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

Working with tracks in a MIDI file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Previewing MIDI files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134

Using the piano roll editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .134

Viewing the piano roll editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .135

Previewing MIDI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .135

Selecting MIDI tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .136

Adding note events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136

Editing note events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .137

Quantizing note events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

Deleting note events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

Undoing and redoing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

Saving MIDI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

Using the list editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .140

Viewing the list editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

Previewing MIDI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .140

Filtering the list . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141

Editing events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .141

Creating events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

Step recording events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

TABLE OF CONTENTS

8

Quantizing events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146

Deleting events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

Undoing and redoing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

Saving MIDI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

Loading third-party OPT plug-ins. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

Saving, reloading, or replacing MIDI files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148

Routing MIDI tracks to MIDI devices or soft synth controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149

Resetting MIDI ports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149

Rendering projects with MIDI tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

Playing MIDI from external devices. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

Adding external devices as MIDI inputs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .150

Assigning MIDI inputs to soft synth controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

Synchronizing using MIDI timecode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

Generating MIDI timecode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

Triggering from MIDI timecode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

Generating MIDI clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

Working with Video. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Managing video. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Adding or replacing video files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Removing the video track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Hiding and showing the video track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Synchronizing audio and video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Removing the video’s audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

Changing frame numbering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

Editing video events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

Moving video events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

Trimming video events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

Slipping and sliding video events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

Using the Video window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155

Using toolbar buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155

Using the shortcut menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155

Viewing the status bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155

Previewing on external monitors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156

Scoring video with ACID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156

Working with 5.1 Surround . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157

What is 5.1 surround?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157

Setting up surround hardware. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Setting up surround projects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .158

Routing to hardware in the mixer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

Assigning audio to the LFE channel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .160

Panning audio. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .160

Panning tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .161

Panning mixer controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .162

Using the Surround Panner window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .163

Automating panning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .165

Turning on panning keyframes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

Adding panning keyframes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

Working with keyframes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166

Rendering surround projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .168

Burning AC-3 files to DVD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

Customizing ACID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171

Working with ACID windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .171

9

Docking and floating ACID windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .172

Changing the time ruler format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .173

Using the ruler offset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173

Using the project grid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .174

Setting the grid type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174

Using the toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .175

Hiding and displaying the toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .175

Reordering toolbar buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .175

Adding buttons to the toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .176

Removing buttons from the toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176

Using the time display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .177

Changing cursor position . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177

Changing the time display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177

Monitoring MIDI timecode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178

Setting default track properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .178

Setting ACID preferences. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .179

Using the General tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .179

Using the Audio tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181

Using the MIDI tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .182

Using the VST Instruments tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182

Using the ReWire Devices tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .183

Using the Video tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .183

Using the Editing tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .183

Using the Sync tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184

TABLE OF CONTENTS

10

Using the Other tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185

ACID Tips and Tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187

Adding long media files quickly. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187

Playing with duplicate tracks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187

Detuning paired tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187

Duplicating with offset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188

Creating ping-pong pan effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188

Adding depth with assignable effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189

Playing double time/half time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189

Constructing the wall of sound. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190

Adding through subtraction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190

Tweaking the dynamics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190

Fading in and out of mixes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190

Adding build ups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191

Creating wah-wah effects with automated Track EQ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191

Making automated changes more stark. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191

Abruptly changing volume or pan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191

Turning automated effects on and off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192

Making automated frequency changes more natural. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192

Overriding compress/expand. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193

Slicing and dicing in the Chopper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193

Chopping new loops for alternate time signatures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193

Chopping multiple files into a new loop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193

Creating drum-roll build ups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194

Creating drum fills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194

Creating one-track remixes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194

Creating DJ-style crossfades . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194

Creating pseudo-granular synthesis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195

Building instrument solos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195

Building scales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195

Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .i

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER

Introducing ACID

1

1

Welcome to Sonic Foundry ACID

Congratulations on purchasing a revolutionary software application for Windows. Using Sonic Foundry

®

ACID

System requirements

In order to use ACID, your computer must satisfy the following minimum specifications:

• 300 MHz processor (400 MHz processor required for video scoring)

• Microsoft Windows 98SE, Me, 2000, or XP

• 64 MB RAM (128 MB recommended)

• 60 MB hard-disk space for program installation

• Windows-compatible sound card

• CD-ROM drive (required for installation from CD-ROM)

• Supported CD-recordable drive (required for CD burning)

• DirectX 8.0 (included on CD-ROM)

• Internet Explorer, version 4.0 or higher (version 5.0 included on CD-ROM)

you can create great music by simply picking, painting, and playing.

11

Installing ACID

Prior to installing ACID, we recommend that you exit all open applications and temporarily turn off any
virus protection.

Note:

If you’re installing ACID on a system running
Windows 2000, your user account must be a member of the
Administrators group to install ACID and a member of the
Power Users group (or higher) to register ACID.

1.

Insert the ACID CD-ROM. The ACID Installation screen appears if CD-ROM AutoPlay is enabled.

Note:

If CD-ROM AutoPlay is turned off, click and
choose

Run. In the Run dialog, enter the CD-ROM drive’s

letter and add :\setup.exe. Click OK to begin installation.

2.

Click Install Software to begin the installation process.

3.

Follow the on-screen prompts and enter the necessary information when required. At the final screen
prompt, click

Finish.

CHP. 1 INTRODUCING ACID

12

Using online help

You can access two varieties of help within ACID:

• Online help

• What’sThis? help (also referred to as context-sensitive help)

Online help

To access online help, choose Contents and Index from the Help menu or press .

Note:

To view online help, Internet Explorer 4.0 or later

F1

must be installed on your system. Internet Explorer 5.0 is
included on the ACID CD-ROM for your convenience.

Tabs

The

Contents tab provides a list of available help topics. Double-click a closed book ( ) to open the pages

and then click a topic page ( ).

The

Index tab provides a complete listing of the help topics available. Scroll through the list of available

topics or type a word in the

Type in the keyword to find box to quickly locate topics related to that word. Select

the topic and click .

The

Search tab allows you to enter a keyword and display all of the topics in the online help that contain the

keyword you have entered. Type a keyword in the

Type in the word(s) to search for box and click .

Select the topic from the list and click .

The

Favorites tab allows you to keep topics that you revisit often in a separate folder. To add a topic to your

favorites, click on the

INTRODUCING ACID CHP. 1

Favorites tab.

What’sThis? help

What’sThis? help allows you to view pop-up window descriptions for ACID menus, buttons, and dialog
boxes. Choose

What's This? from the Help menu, press , or click the What’sThis? help button ( ) on

Shift +F1

the toolbar and then click any ACID item. To use What’sThis? help in a dialog box, click the question mark
button ( ) in the upper-right corner of the dialog box and then click an item in the dialog box.

Help on the Web

Additional ACID help and information is available on the Sonic Foundry Web site. Choose Sonic Foundry

on the Web

from the Help menu to view a listing of Web pages pertaining to ACID and Sonic Foundry. If

your browser is not already open, ACID will automatically start it for you.

Overview of ACID

ACID is designed to be a powerful and flexible, but easy-to-use music creation application. Many of the
ACID operations, menu items, and shortcut keys are common to other Sonic Foundry applications.

The following sections provide a tour of the ACID work area.

Main interface

The work area includes three main areas: the track list, the track view (or timeline), and the window
docking area. The other parts of the interface are tools and features used while creating and working with
your project. You can resize the track list, track view, and window docking area by dragging the dividers
between them.

13

Track list

Window
docking
area

Divider

Track view

Divider

CHP. 1 INTRODUCING ACID

14

Toolbar

The toolbar allows you to quickly access the most commonly used functions and features in ACID.

Opens a new project. You will be prompted to
save any changes to the current project.

Displays the Open File dialog. From this
window, you can browse all of the available
drives to select an ACID project or audio file
to open.

Saves any changes to the current project.

The first time you save a project, the Save As
dialog appears.

Opens the Publish wizard so you can share
your ACID creation on the Web.

Clears the selected items from the track view
and places them on the ACID clipboard. You
can then paste them to a new location.

Creates a copy of the selected items from the
track view on the ACID clipboard. You can
then paste them to a new location.

Inserts the contents of the ACID clipboard at
the current cursor position. The pasted items
cover any existing events. To make room for
pasted events, choose Paste Insert from the

Edit menu.

Reverses the last action performed. ACID
supports unlimited undos, allowing you to
restore the project to any state since the last
save.

Reverses an undo. Opens a frequently updated Web page containing

Turns the snapping feature on or off. With
snapping enabled, you can decide whether to
snap to the grid or to all elements (markers,
regions, etc.).

Locks envelope points so they move with an
event when it is moved along the timeline.

Activates the Draw tool to add and edit events.

Activates the Selection tool to select multiple
events.

Activates the Paint tool to insert events across
multiple tracks.

When used in conjunction with the Ctrl key, the
Paint tool can paint an entire one-shot, MIDI, or
Beatmapped media file to an event with one
click.

Activates the Erase tool to erase events or parts
of events.

When used in conjunction with the Ctrl key, the
Erase tool can erase an entire one-shot, MIDI
track, or Beatmapped track event with one click.

Activates the Envelope tool to select and modify
envelope points.

Activates the Time Selection tool to quickly select
all events within range of time.

Opens a dialog where you can download media
from the Internet.

special offers, tips, tricks, and other good stuff.

Activates What’sThis? help to obtain information
about a specific option, menu, or part of the
ACID window.

INTRODUCING ACID CHP. 1

Track list

This list identifies the track order in your project and contains the track’s controls. The following sections
identify and briefly explain the controls located in the track list.

Bus assignment

Track number/type

Track name

View buttons

View buttons

These buttons control the track’s appearance (size) on the track list and the track view.

Track number and type

This area identifies the type of file (loop, one-shot, MIDI, Beatmapped) contained in the track as well as the
track’s number in the project. You can quickly change the track order by dragging selected tracks within the
track list.

Track FX

Mute

Solo

Surround panner (surround projects only)

Multipurpose slider

Multipurpose slider label

15

Track type icons

Loop

One-shot

Beatmapped

MIDI

Track n ame

When you add a file to a project, the track name is initially the same name as the file’s name. Right-click the
track name and choose

Bus assignment

Rename from the shortcut menu (or double-click) to change the track name.

Clicking the Bus Assignment button ( ) and selecting a letter from the menu allows you to assign the
corresponding track to the specified output bus. However, the button is only available in projects containing
multiple busses. For more information, see Adding busses to the project on page 111.

On a MIDI track, the

Device Selection button ( ) appears instead of the Bus Assignment button. This button

allows you to route a MIDI track to a soft synth or MIDI device. For more information, see Routing MIDI tracks

to MIDI devices or soft synth controls on page 149.

Track FX button

The Track FX button ( ) accesses the Audio Plug-In window from which you can add, edit, and apply effects
to the track. The button image changes ( ) to indicate when an automatable effect is present. For more

information, see Using track effects on page 93.

CHP. 1 INTRODUCING ACID

16

Mute button

Clicking the Mute button ( ) temporarily suspends playback of the corresponding track, allowing you to
focus on the project’s remaining tracks. A muted track appears grayed out in the track view. For more

information, see Muting tracks on page 47.

Solo button

Clicking the Solo button ( ) isolates the track during playback by muting the project’s remaining tracks. For
more information, see Soloing tracks on page 48.

Surround panner

In 5.1 surround projects, the surround panner allows you to view and edit surround panning settings for a
track. Double-click a surround panner to view the Surround Panner window and make fine panning
adjustments. For more information, see Working with 5.1 Surround on page 157.

Multipurpose slider

This multipurpose slider allows you to control the following:

• A track’s volume relative to the project’s other tracks.

• A track’s placement in the stereo spectrum (panning).

• The level of the track’s signal being routed to each of the project’s busses.

• The level of the track’s signal being routed to an assignable effect control.

The multipurpose slider defaults to displaying a track’s volume control. ACID tracks are preset to -6.0
decibels (dB), but the volume range is -inf. to 12 dB. Each track’s slider position is independent from the
others; however, you can move sliders simultaneously by selecting multiple tracks before making your
adjustment. If you do not see this slider, expand the track.

You may choose what the slider controls by clicking the slider label. Changing the slider type for one track
changes it for all tracks so you can compare levels of the same control across the project. For more

information, see Adjusting the mix on page 46.

Track view

In the track view, you can view and edit the events in a track. The area in which events display is the
timeline. The track view contains other elements which are described in the following sections.

Loop bar

Marker bar

Beat ruler

Zoom controls

Transport Time ruler

INTRODUCING ACID CHP. 1

(if displayed)

17

Marker bar

The marker bar runs the length of your project and contains the tags for markers and regions positioned
along the project’s timeline.

Beat ruler

The beat ruler allows you to place events in reference to the musical time of bars and beats. This ruler is
fixed and does not update when you change the tempo. This allows the events in the tracks to maintain
their size when you adjust the tempo.

Time ruler

The time ruler provides a timeline for your project. This ruler can show real time in many different formats.

For more information, see Changing the time ruler format on page 173. The ruler changes with tempo, since the

number of beats and beats per second of real time changes with tempo.

Tran sport bar

The transport bar contains the playback and cursor positioning buttons frequently used while working on
your project.

Record new track Pause/resume project playback

Loop playback Stop playback

Play from beginning of project Move cursor to start of project

Play project from cursor position Move cursor to end of project

ACID also includes keyboard shortcuts for these playback commands. For more information, see Playback

commands on page 19.

Zoom controls

To the right of the horizontal scroll bar are the time zoom controls. Clicking the Zoom In Time button ( )
increases the horizontal magnification of the project. To decrease the level of magnification, click the

Out Time button ( ).

Directly below the vertical scroll bar are the dedicated track height zoom controls. Clicking the

button ( ) increases the vertical magnification of the project. To decrease the level of magnification,

Height

click the

Zoom Out Track Height button ( ).

Note:

Double-clicking the horizontal or vertical scroll bars

Zoom In Track

Zoom

adjusts the magnification so that as much of the project (either
horizontally or vertically) is displayed as possible.

Click the

Zoom Tool button ( ) in the corner of the track view to temporarily change the cursor into the

Zoom tool. After you select an area of the track view to magnify, the cursor reverts to the previously active
tool.

Note:

Double-clicking the Zoom tool adjusts both the
horizontal and vertical magnification so that as much of the
project is displayed as possible.

CHP. 1 INTRODUCING ACID

18

Window docking area

This area allows you to keep frequently-used windows available
while working on a project. Windows can be docked side by side
or in stacks in the windows docking area. For more information,

see Docking and floating ACID windows on page 172.

Two windows display in the window docking area when you
start ACID for the first time: the Explorer and the Mixer. The
Chopper™, Video, Audio Plug-In, Track Properties, Surround
Panner, and Soft Synth Properties windows can be docked or
undocked after they are displayed by choosing the desired
window from the

Tip:

You can quickly hide or show the window docking area

by pressing .

Explorer window

View menu.

F11

The Explorer window works similarly to the Windows Explorer. You can use the Explorer window to locate,
preview and select media files to be added to your project. You can also use the Explorer window to perform
common file management tasks, such as renaming files or creating folders.

Click a tab to

view a window

Mixer

The Mixer window provides access to output levels, as well as advanced features such as busses, assignable
effect chains, and soft synth controls. For more information, see Using the Mixer window on page 50.

Chopper

The Chopper isolates audio events so that you can dissect them and reinsert them into a project to produce
elaborate slice-n-dice effects with minimal effort. Display the Chopper by choosing
menu or pressing . For more information, see Using the Chopper on page 85.

Video

Alt +2

Chopper from the View

This window displays prerendered video files that can be imported and synchronized with an ACID project.
The video file displays during project playback and can be rendered with the project to an appropriate

Alt

format. Display the Video window by choosing

Video from the View menu or pressing . For more

+4

information, see Using the Video window on page 155.

Audio Plug-In

This window displays plug-ins and settings for track, assignable, bus, and soft synth effects chains. Display
the Audio Plug-In window by clicking any

FX button ( ) or by pressing . For more information, see

Alt +5

Using track effects on page 93 and Adding effects to mixer controls on page 121.

Track Properties

This window allows you to change track attributes and edit MIDI tracks using OPT plug-ins. Display the

Alt

Track Properties window by double-clicking a track’s icon or by pressing . For more information, see

+6

Configuring track properties on page 105 and Working with MIDI on page 131.

Surround Panner

This window allows you to control panning in a 5.1 surround project. Display the Surround Panner window

+7

by double-clicking the surround panner on a track or mixer control or by pressing . For more

Alt

information, see Working with 5.1 Surround on page 157.

INTRODUCING ACID CHP. 1

Soft Synth Properties

This window allows you to change the attributes of soft synth controls in the Mixer window. Display the
Soft Synth Properties window by double-clicking a soft synth control’s icon or by pressing . For more

Alt +8

information, see Using soft synth controls on page 115.

Keyboard command reference

The ACID keyboard commands are shortcuts that you can use while working on your project.

Project file commands

Description Keys Description Keys

Create new project Ctrl+N Save project Ctrl+S
Create new project and bypass the

Project Properties dialog
Open existing project or media file Ctrl+O Close current project Ctrl+F4

Window view commands

Description Keys Description Keys

Set focus to track view Alt+0 Shift focus forward through open

View the Explorer window Alt+1 Shift focus backward through open

View the Chopper window Alt+2 Shift focus forward (clockwise)

View the Mixer window Alt+3 Shift focus backward

View the Video window Alt+4 Show/hide bus tracks U
View the Audio Plug-In window Alt+5 Show/hide window docking area F11
View the Track Properties window Alt+6 Show/hide track list Shift+F11
View the Surround Panner window Alt+7 Show/hide track list and window

View the Soft Synth Properties
window

Ctrl+Shift+N Open project’s properties Alt+Enter

F6

ACID windows

Shift+F6

ACID windows

Tab
through track list, track view, bus
track view, and bus track list

Shift+Tab
(counterclockwise) through track
list, bus track list, bus track view,
and track view

Ctrl+F11
docking area

Alt+8

19

Playback commands

Description Keys Description Keys

Start/stop playback Spacebar Record Ctrl+R
Stop playback Esc Go to start Ctrl+Home or W
Toggle looped playback on/off Q Go to end Ctrl+End
Play from start Shift+Spacebar (when working

in the track view)

Shift+F12 (from any window)

Play from cursor Ctrl+Spacebar (when working in

the track view)

F12 (from any window)

Pause/resume playback Enter (when working in the

track view)

Ctrl+F12 (from any window)

CHP. 1 INTRODUCING ACID

Skip backward Page Up

Skip forward Page Down

Reset all MIDI ports (panic button) Ctrl+Alt+F7

20

Cursor placement commands

Description Keys Description Keys

Go to beginning of active loop
region or view (if no selection)

Go to end of active loop region or
view (if no selection)

Go to beginning of project Ctrl+Home or W Move left to marker(s) Ctrl+Left Arrow
Go to end of project Ctrl+End Move right to marker(s) Ctrl+Right Arrow
Move left by grid marks Page Up Move left to event edit points

Move right by grid marks Page Down Move right to event edit points

Go to
(using measures, beats, and ticks)

Go to
(using absolute time)

Move cursor to corresponding
marker or region

Home Center in view \

End Move cursor to opposite end of time

selection or loop bar

including fade edges

including fade edges

Ctrl+G Move by one pixel Left or Right Arrow

Shift+G Move through a video event one

frame at a time

Number keys (not on numeric
keypad)

Numeric keypad 5

Ctrl+Alt+Left Arrow

Ctrl+Alt+Right Arrow

Alt+Left or Right Arrow

Loop region commands

Description Keys Description Keys

Make a loop region Shift+Left or Right Arrow Double loop region length ‘ (apostrophe)
Extend loop region left by grid
marks
Extend loop region right by grid
marks
Expand loop region one pixel Shift+Left or Right Arrow Shift loop region right . (period)
Make a loop region during playback I (in) and O (out) Snap loop region to event edges Ctrl+Shift+Alt+Left or Right

Restore past loop regions
(up to last five)

Select loop region Shift+Q (when Time Selection

Shift+Page Up Halve loop region length ; (semicolon)

Shift+Page Down Shift loop region left , (comma)

Arrow

Backspace Expand loop region by one video

frame

tool is selected)

Shift+Alt+Left or Right Arrow

Selection commands

Description Keys Description Keys

Range selection (events) Shift+click range of events Select all Ctrl+A
Multiple selection (events) Ctrl+click individual events Unselect all Ctrl+Shift+A
Select loop region Shift+Q (when Time Selection

tool is selected)

Event commands

Description Keys Description Keys

Paint the entire media file as an
event for one-shot, Beatmapped,
and MIDI tracks

Erase entire event for one-shot,
Beatmapped, and MIDI tracks

Undo Ctrl+Z Slide: move the event while leaving

Redo Ctrl+Shift+Z Temporarily disable snapping while

Cut selection Ctrl+X Copy event Ctrl+drag event
Copy selection Ctrl+C Pitch down one semitone Numeric keypad ­Paste from clipboard Ctrl+V Pitch up one semitone Numeric keypad +
Paste repeat Ctrl+B Pitch down one octave Ctrl+Numeric keypad ­Paste insert Ctrl+Shift+V Pitch up one octave Ctrl+Numeric keypad +

Ctrl+click (on track with Paint
tool enabled)

Ctrl+click (on event with Erase
tool enabled)

Slip Trim: moves the media with the
edge as it is trimmed

Slip: move media within event
without moving the event

the relative position of the media in
place

moving event

Alt+drag edge of event

Alt+drag inside event

Ctrl+Alt+drag event

Shift+drag

INTRODUCING ACID CHP. 1

Description Keys Description Keys

Delete selection Delete Pitch down 4 semitones

(Windows 2000 and XP only)

Move selected event(s) right one
pixel
Move selected event(s) left one pixel Numeric keypad 4 Reset pitch

Split event(s) S Change an event’s gain value Numeric keypad / or *
Join events J Change an event’s gain by 10% Shift+Numeric keypad / or *
Create fades F Change an event’s gain by 25% Ctrl+Numeric keypad / or *
Render to new track Ctrl+M Set an event’s gain to 0.0 dB Ctrl+Shift+Numeric keypad *
Trim/crop time-selected events only Ctrl+T Set an event’s gain to -inf (silence) Ctrl+Shift+Numeric keypad /

Numeric keypad 6 Pitch up 4 semitones

(Windows 2000 and XP only)

(Windows 2000 and XP only)

Shift+Numeric keypad -

Shift+Numeric keypad +

Ctrl+Shift+Numeric keypad - or

+

Track view commands

Description Keys Description Keys

Record Ctrl+R Show/hide bus tracks U
Turn on/off ripple edit mode Ctrl+L Turn on/off snapping F8
Select Draw tool Ctrl+D Toggle between snap to grid and

snap to all

Select next edit tool in list D Insert region R
Select previous edit tool in list Shift+D Insert marker M
Mark in point for selection I or [ Insert time marker H
Mark out point for selection O or ] Insert command marker C
Show/hide track panning envelope P Insert tempo change marker T
Insert/remove track panning

envelope
Show/hide track volume envelope V Insert tempo and key change

Insert/remove track volume
envelope

Toggle through display of track
effect automation envelopes

Adjust envelope point value in fine
increments without changing the
envelope point’s timeline position

Adjust envelope point value in
normal increments without changing
the envelope point’s timeline
position

Move envelope point’s timeline
position without changing its value

Shift+P Insert key change marker K

marker

Shift+V Insert time signature change marker Shift+K

E Change project tempo Alt+drag time marker

Ctrl+drag envelope point or
segment

Ctrl+Alt+drag envelope point
or segment

Alt+drag envelope point

Insert MIDI track Ctrl+Alt+Q

Render to new track Ctrl+M

Ctrl+F8

Shift+T

21

Track list commands

Description Keys Description Keys

Solo track X Decrease fader value Left Arrow
Mute track Z Increase fader value Right Arrow
Delete track Delete Move track selection up one track Up Arrow
Pitch down one semitone Numeric keypad - Move track selection down one track Down Arrow
Pitch up one semitone Numeric keypad + Multi-select tracks Shift+Up or Down Arrow
Pitch down four semitones

(Windows 2000 and XP only)
Pitch up four semitones

(Windows 2000 and XP only)
Pitch down one octave Ctrl+Numeric keypad - Select all tracks Ctrl+A
Pitch up one octave Ctrl+Numeric keypad + Unselect all tracks Ctrl+Shift+A
Reset pitch

(Windows 2000 and XP only)

CHP. 1 INTRODUCING ACID

Shift+Numeric keypad - Move track selection up one screen

of tracks

Shift+Numeric keypad + Move track selection down one

screen of tracks

Ctrl+Shift+Numeric keypad +/-

Page Up

Page Down

22

View commands

Description Keys Description Keys

Zoom time in/out small increments
when track view has focus or zoom
to loop region (if one exists)

Zoom time in/out large increments
when track view has focus

Up or Down Arrow Zoom track height in/out small

increments when track view has
focus

Ctrl+Up or Down Arrow

Shift+Up or Down Arrow

Mixer commands

Description Keys Description Keys

Change selection of a mixer control Left/Right Arrow Move the left channel of the fader

Select multiple, adjacent mixer
controls

Select multiple nonadjacent mixer
controls

Move the fader of the selected mixer
control (for assignable effect
controls, moves the Out fader)

Shift+Left/Right Arrow Move the right channel of the fader

Ctrl+Left/Right Arrow Delete the selected bus or control Delete

Up/Down Arrow

for the selected mixer control

for the selected mixer control

Shift+Up/Down Arrow

Ctrl+Up/Down Arrow

MIDI commands

Description Keys Description Keys

Generate MIDI Timecode F7 Enable real-time MIDI Alt+F7
Trigger from MIDI Timecode Ctrl+F7 Reset all MIDI ports (panic button) Ctrl+Alt+F7
Generate MIDI Clock Shift+F7

Chopper commands

For more information, see Using Chopper toolbar and keyboard commands on page 86.

Surround Panner commands

For more information, see Moving the pan point on page 164.

Miscellaneous commands

Description Keys

Online help F1
What’sThis? help Shift+F1
Shortcut menu Shift+F10
Refresh screen F5

INTRODUCING ACID CHP. 1

Mouse scroll-wheel shortcuts

Description Keys

Zoom in on timeline Default mouse wheel behavior
Horizontal scroll Shift+wheel
Vertical scroll Ctrl+wheel
Move by video frames Ctrl+Shift+Alt+wheel
Move the cursor in grid increments Ctrl+Shift+wheel
Auto-scrolling Press mouse wheel and move

Move fader Wheel over a fader
Make fine fader adjustments Ctrl+wheel over a fader
Move pan point front/back in

Surround Panner window
Move pan point left/right in

Surround Panner window

the mouse in the desired
direction

Default mouse wheel behavior
(when pan point is selected)

Shift+wheel
(when pan point is selected)

23

CHP. 1 INTRODUCING ACID

24

Audio signal flow

Audio event* Event envelope

Bus pre/post volume

Bus send

Post

Track FX

Pre

Track volume

Pan track

Mute track

Assignable FX
pre/post volume

Pre

Post

†

Assignable FX send

Assignable FX

Input Chain Output

‡

Mute

(Pan)

Bus Control

Bus assignment

Bus assignment

Master Bus Control

VolumeFX Mute

(Pan)

^

Hardware
output

VolumeFX Mute

Hardware
output

INTRODUCING ACID CHP. 1

25

Notes on audio signal flow

* This diagram describes non-MIDI audio events. For MIDI events, see MIDI signal flow on page 26.

† In 5.1 surround projects, tracks routed to the Surround Master bus send surround panning (six-channel)

information. Tracks routed to busses (e.g., Bus A) send stereo panning (two-channel) information.

‡ Assignable effect chain panning is available only in 5.1 surround projects. In 5.1 surround projects,

assignable effect chains routed to the Surround Master bus send surround panning (six-channel)
information. Assignable effect chains routed to busses (e.g., Bus A) send stereo panning (two-channel)
information.

^ Bus panning is available only in 5.1 surround projects. In 5.1 surround projects, busses routed to the

Surround Master bus send surround panning (six-channel) information. Busses routed to hardware send
stereo panning (two-channel) information.

CHP. 1 INTRODUCING ACID

26

MIDI signal flow

MIDI event Track volume

Mute track

Device or soft synth assignment

DLS or VSTi assignment

External

MIDI

device

Bus Control

Soft Synth Control

VolumeFX Mute

(Pan)

DLS

voice set

^

MIDI

Audio

VST

instrument

VolumeFX Mute

Master Bus Control

(Pan)*

VolumeFX Mute

Hardware
output

INTRODUCING ACID CHP. 1

Hardware
output

27

Notes on MIDI signal flow

* Soft synth panning is available only in 5.1 surround projects. In 5.1 surround projects, soft synth controls

routed to the Surround Master bus send surround panning (six-channel) information. Soft synth controls
routed to busses (e.g., Bus A) send stereo panning (two-channel) information.

^ Bus panning is available only in 5.1 surround projects. In 5.1 surround projects, busses routed to the

Surround Master bus send surround panning (six-channel) information. Busses routed to hardware send
stereo panning (two-channel) information.

CHP. 1 INTRODUCING ACID

28

INTRODUCING ACID CHP. 1