After ACID is installed and you start it for the first time, the registration wizard will appear.

This wizard offers easy steps that enable you to register ACID online with Sonic Foundry.
Alternatively, you may register ACID online at www.sonicfoundry.com at any time.
Registering your product will provide 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. Please contact
our Customer Service Department.
Registration assistance is currently available during normal office hours by dialing the
following numbers:

Telephone/Fax Country
1-800-577-6642 (toll-free) US, Canada, and Virgin Islands
+800-000-76642 (toll-free) Australia, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, UK,
Netherlands, and Japan
+608-204-7703 for all other countries
1-608-250-1745 (Fax) All countries
Customer Service/Sales
For a detailed list of Customer Service options, we encourage you to visit
www.sonicfoundry.com. For support during normal office hours:

Telephone/Fax/E-mail Country
1-800-577-6642 (toll-free) US, Canada, and Virgin Islands
+800-000-76642 (toll-free) Australia, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, UK,
Netherlands, and Japan
+608-204-7703 for all other countries
1-608-250-1745 (Fax) All countries
customerservice@sonicfoundry.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 when the Pro product is registered.
(Registration is required to received this complimentary support.)
Please call (608) 204-7704 if you need assistance with your Pro version product.

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 is a registered trademark and ACID is a trademark of Sonic Foundry, Inc.
The brands and products named here are the trademarks or registered trademarks of Sonic
Foundry, its affiliates, or their respective holders.
Copyright © 2001 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 15 copies or electronic transmission requires the written
permission of Sonic Foundry.
 1

Table of Contents

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Welcome to Sonic Foundry ACID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Reading this manual. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
About the manual’s design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Manual overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
System requirements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Installing ACID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
About the serial number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Download . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
CD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Using the online Help. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Accessing Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Overview of ACID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Main interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Track List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Track View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Window Docking Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Keyboard command reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Signal flow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

TABLE OF CONTENTS
2

Basic Project Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29

Starting a project. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Project parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Opening an existing project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Previewing media from the Explorer window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Adding media to the project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Audio event basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Painting events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Changing the length of an event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Erasing sections of an event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Moving events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Changing event properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Using the cursor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Positioning the cursor with the keyboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Positioning the cursor with the Go To command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Making selections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Selecting an event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Selecting multiple events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Creating a time selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Creating event selections within a time selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Basic event editing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Copying events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Pasting events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Cutting events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Deleting events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Trimming events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Track basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Track types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Working with tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Using the Undo and Redo commands. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Using the Undo command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

TABLE OF CONTENTS
 3
Undoing all edits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Using the Redo command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Clearing the undo history . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Playing the project. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Using the Transport toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Playback within ACID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Using the Mixer window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Viewing the Mixer window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Using the Mixer toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Renaming a Mixer control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Using the Mixer’s faders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Saving and rendering a project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Saving a project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Rendering a project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Publishing to the Internet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Writing to CD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Tips and tricks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Detuning a paired track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Double time/Half time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
The Wall of Sound . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Intermediate Project Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67

Using project markers and regions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Working with standard markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Working with time markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Working with command markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Working with Regions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Snapping events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Enabling/disabling snapping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Splitting events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Splitting events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

TABLE OF CONTENTS
4

Joining events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
The Chopper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
The Chopper Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Creating a selection in the Chopper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Insert increments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Inserting a selection in the Track View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Using the Chopper with one-shots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Using Ripple Edits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Cutting events in ripple mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Deleting events in ripple mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Pasting events in ripple mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Changing tempo and key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Changing project tempo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Changing the project key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Working with tempo and key change markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Changing a track’s key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Changing an event’s key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Using event envelopes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Setting an event’s volume envelope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Setting an event’s fade-in and -out envelope curve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Create a crossfade between events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Track envelopes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Adding track envelopes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Adding envelope points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Adjusting the envelope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
The Envelope tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Hiding an envelope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Removing a track envelope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Using track effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Using ACID FX as track effects in ACID Music . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Using track effects in ACID Pro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Beatmapper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113

TABLE OF CONTENTS
 5

Adjusting time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Using Insert Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Using Fit to Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Mixing multiple tracks to a single track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
Tips and tricks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Adding through subtraction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Realistic dynamics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Overriding compress/expand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Duplicating with offset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Chopper tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119

Advanced Project Techniques. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

Stretch properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Configuring Track Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Adjusting general track properties (non-MIDI tracks) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Adjusting Stretch properties for a loop or Beatmapped track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Adjusting track properties for a MIDI track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Reloading a file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Replacing a file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Saving a file with properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Exporting loops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Using busses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Adding busses to the project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Working with bus controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Working with multiple controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Using bus effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Routing busses to system hardware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Deleting busses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Using assignable FX controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Assignable FX controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Adding an assignable FX control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

TABLE OF CONTENTS
6
Adding a plug-in to an existing chain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
Arranging assignable FX plug-ins on the chain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
Removing plug-ins from a chain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Routing a track to an assignable FX chain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Routing assignable FX to busses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Working with assignable FX controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Working with multiple controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Removing an assignable FX control from a project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Saving plug-in chains as FX packages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Organizing your plug-ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Tips and tricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Building instrument solos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Building scales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146

Working with Video. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .147

Working with video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Adding or replacing a video file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Removing the video track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Hiding and showing the video track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Synchronizing audio and video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Removing the video’s audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Changing frame numbering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Editing a video event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Moving the video event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Trimming the video event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Shifting the contents of the video event (slipping) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Slip-trimming a video event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Sliding a video event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
The Video window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Shortcut menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Status Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

TABLE OF CONTENTS
 7

External monitor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

Scoring video with ACID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

Recording in ACID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Recording quickstart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Setting ACID’s recording properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
Setting recording levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
Recording multiple takes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157

Working with MIDI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

Adding MIDI tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Recording MIDI tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
MIDI track properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Playback device . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Selecting a playback device . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Setting device preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Rendering projects with MIDI tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Timecode synchronization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
MIDI timecode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
Trigger from MIDI timecode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
MIDI clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
The Sonic Foundry Virtual MIDI Router . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
Installing the Sonic Foundry Virtual MIDI Router (VMR) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
Configuring the Virtual MIDI Router . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
Syncing ACID to other hardware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167

Customizing ACID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

Working with ACID windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
Docking/Floating ACID windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170

TABLE OF CONTENTS
8

Using the Explorer window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171

The Explorer window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
The Explorer toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
Managing media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
Using the Explorer Transport controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Using the Explorer view options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
Changing the Time ruler format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
Using the Ruler Offset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Using the project grid. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Setting the grid type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
Using the Toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
Hiding and displaying the Toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
Reordering the Toolbar Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
Adding buttons to the Toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
Removing buttons from the Toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Using the Time Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Changing cursor position . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Changing the Time Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Setting the Time display monitor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
Setting project properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
Using the Summary properties tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
Using the Audio properties tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
Setting ACID preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Using the General preferences tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Using the Audio preferences tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
Using the MIDI preferences tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Using the Video preferences tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Using the Editing preferences tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Using the CD preferences tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
Using the Sync preferences tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190

Glossary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .193
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . i

TABLE OF CONTENTS
 9
CHAPTER

Introduction
1
Welcome to Sonic Foundry ACID
Congratulations on purchasing a revolutionary software application for Windows. Using
™
Sonic Foundry ACID you can create great music by simply picking, painting, and playing.

Reading this manual

This manual contains information for the entire ACID family of products: ACID Pro,
ACID Music, ACID Style, and ACID XPress. Different versions of the ACID product
contain different levels of functionality. ACID Pro includes the highest level of
functionality, with ACID Music, Style and XPress being “lighter” versions of the Pro
product. If a function or operation mentioned in this manual applies only to a particular
version (for example, ACID Pro), it has been designated with that version’s icon as a visual
cue:

If you see one of the icons above in the manual, you’ll know that the information being
discussed pertains only to that ACID product.
You can upgrade your version of ACID at any time by choosing Instant Upgrade from the
Help menu.

Unless otherwise noted, the pictures you’ll see

of the ACID application throughout this
manual are taken from ACID Pro. If you
have a different version of ACID, the windows
in your version of ACID may appear slightly
different.

CHP. 1 INTRODUCTION
10

About the manual’s design

ACID was designed to make creating music easy and intuitive. By reading the manual, you
can become familiar with all that ACID has to offer. Experienced users can learn about our
great new features, while new ACID users can quickly learn to begin making music.
The ACID user manual is divided into several chapters and appendices. The chapters are
designed to explain project techniques at specific knowledge levels: Basic, Intermediate, and
Advanced.
The remaining chapters and appendices are designed to explain specific ACID features and
provide useful reference information.

Manual overview
The following table outlines the manual’s contents and what information is described in
each chapter and appendix.

Titles Descriptions
Chp. 1 Introduction This chapter covers general information about installing ACID, registering it,
an overview of the ACID interface, and shortcut keys.
Chp. 2 Basic Project Techniques This chapter provides information and procedures to create a simple project
quickly and easily.
Chp. 3 Intermediate Project Techniques This chapter provides information and procedures for adding more complexity
to a project.
Chp. 4 Advanced Project Techniques This chapter provides professional-level information and procedures for
creating complex projects.
Chp. 5 Working with Video This appendix explains how to use finished video material in your ACID project.
Chp. 6 Recording in ACID This chapter explains how to record material directly into ACID.
Chp. 7 Working with MIDI This chapter explains how to record and incorporate MIDI files into your
project.
App. A Customizing ACID This appendix provides information and procedures for tailoring ACID to suit
your preferences.
App. B Glossary This appendix provides music and ACID related terms and definitions for your
reference.

INTRODUCTION CHP. 1
 11

System requirements
In order to use ACID, your computer must satisfy the following minimum specifications:
• 300 MHz processor*
• Microsoft Windows 98, Me, or 2000*
• 64 MB RAM (128 MB recommended)
• 60 MB hard-disk space for program installation
• Windows-compatible sound card
• CD-ROM drive
• Supported CD recordable drive (required for creating CDs)
• DirectX Media 8.0 Run Time (included)
• Internet Explorer, version 5.0 or higher (included)

*400 MHz processor, Windows 98SE, Me, or 2000 required for video scoring.

Installing ACID
Prior to installing ACID, we recommend that you exit all open applications and temporarily
disable any virus protection.
1. Insert the ACID CD-ROM. The ACID Installation screen is displayed if CD-ROM
AutoPlay is enabled.
If CD-ROM AutoPlay is turned off, click and choose Run. The Run dialog displays.
2. In the Run dialog, enter the CD-ROM drive’s letter and add :\setup.exe.
3. Click OK to begin installation.
4. Click Install Software to begin the installation process.
5. Follow the on-screen prompts and enter the necessary information when required.
6. At the final screen prompt, click Finish.
If you’re installing ACID with Windows 2000, your user account needs to be a member of
the Administrators group to install ACID, and you need to be a member of the Power Users
group (or higher) to register ACID.

CHP. 1 INTRODUCTION
12

About the serial number

The first time you start ACID, the Please Enter Your Serial Number dialog displays. Select
one of the following options:
• I would like to choose a demo to run.
• I have a Serial Number.

Download
If you have purchased ACID 3.0 from the Sonic Foundry Web site, you will receive your
serial number via e-mail. The serial number allows you to run ACID for a limited time
without registering the product. If you do not register, ACID will time out.
However, if you have started a project and ACID times out, the project will not be lost. It
will be restored after you register ACID.

CD
If you have purchased the boxed version of ACID 3.0, you will find the serial number on the
first page of the Quick Start Guide.

Using the online Help

ACID includes HTML Help. To view the online Help, you must have Internet Explorer 4.0
or later installed on your system. For your convenience, Internet Explorer 5.0 is included on
the ACID CD-ROM.

Accessing Help
The online Help is available in two forms: an HTML Help window or What’s This? help
window. Both forms are available via the keyboard or the Help menu.

Main help window

The main Help window is accessed either by choosing Contents and Index from the Help
menu or pressing the F1 key. This window has three tabs that you can use to find the
information that you need.
• The Contents tab provides a categorized listing of available Help topics. Click on the
book ( ), then on the topic page ( ) you want information about.
• The Index tab provides a complete listing of the Help topics available. Use the scroll bar
to scroll through the list of available topics or type a word in the text field to quickly
locate topics related to the word. Select the topic and click the Display button.

INTRODUCTION CHP. 1
 13
• 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 text field and
click on the List Topics button. Select the topic from the list and click the Display
button.

What’s This? help

What’s This? 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 the Shift + F1 keys, or the
What’s This? help ( ) button on the toolbar and then click on any ACID item. To use
What’s This? help in a dialog box, click on the question mark( ) button in the upper-right
hand corner of the dialog box, then on an item.

PDF manual
A full version of the ACID User Manual can be found on the ACID CD-ROM in PDF
format. The PDF manual contains more detailed information on using the ACID product.
To view this manual, you will need Adobe® Acrobat® Reader™.

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. Please take a moment to
familiarize yourself with the interface, as the procedures and tutorials in this manual use the
terminology found in these sections.

Main interface
The work area is primarily three frames: the Track List, the Track View, and the Window
Docking Area. The other parts of the interface are tools and features used while creating and
working with your project. The Track List, Track View, and Window Docking Area
components can be resized by dragging the dividers between them.

CHP. 1 INTRODUCTION
14

Divider Track View

Track List

Window
Docking
Area

INTRODUCTION CHP. 1
 15

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 Locks envelope points and position so they
to save any changes to the current move with an event when it is moved along
project. the timeline.
Displays the Open File dialog. From this Activates the Draw tool to add and edit events.
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. Activates the Selection tool to select multiple
The first time you save a project, the Save events.
As dialog is displayed.
Opens the Publish wizard so you can share Activates the Paint tool to insert events across
your ACID creation on the Web. multiple tracks.
When used in conjunction with Ctrl key, it can
paint an entire one-shot event with one click.
Clears the selected items from the Track Activates the Erase tool to erase events or parts
View and places them on the ACID of events.
clipboard. You can then paste them to a When used in conjunction with the Ctrl key, it
new location. can erase an entire one-shot, MIDI track, or
Beatmapped track with one click.
Creates a copy of the selected items from Activates the Envelope tool to manipulate
the Track View on the ACID clipboard. You envelopes in events.
can then paste them to a new location.
Inserts the contents of the ACID clipboard Activates the Time Selection tool to quickly
at the current cursor position. The pasted select all events within range of time.
items will cover any existing events. To
make room for pasted events, choose
Paste Insert from the Edit menu.
Reverses the last action performed. ACID Opens a dialog that where you can locate
allows you to perform unlimited Undos, media on the Internet.
allowing you to restore the project to any
state since the last Save command.
Reverses an Undo command. Opens a frequently updated Web page containing
special offers, tips, tricks, and other good stuff.
Turns the snapping feature on or off. With Activates What’s This ? help to obtain
snapping enabled, you can decide whether information about a specific option, menu, or
to snap to the grid or to all elements part of the ACID window.
(markers, regions, etc.).

CHP. 1 INTRODUCTION
16

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 FX

Mute

Solo
Track name Multipurpose fader
Track number and type
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-shots, MIDI, Beatmapped) contained in the
track as well as the track’s number in the project. The track order is quickly changed by
dragging selected tracks within the Track List.

Track name
When a file is added to a project, the track name is initially the same name as the file’s
name. Right-click the track name and choose Rename from the shortcut menu (or double-
click) to provide the track with a more meaningful name.

Track FX button
This button ( ) accesses the Audio Plug-in dialog from which you can add, edit, and apply
effects to the track’s event. For more information, see Using track effects on page 109.

Bus assignment
Clicking this 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. Busses can be added to a project on the Audio tab of the
Project Properties dialog. For more information, see Using the Audio properties tab on page 184.

INTRODUCTION CHP. 1
 17
Mute button
Clicking this button ( ) temporarily disables 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 a track on page 50.

Solo button
Clicking this button ( ) isolates the track during playback by muting the project’s
remaining tracks. For more information, see Soloing a track on page 51.

Multipurpose fader
This multipurpose fader 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.
• The level of the track’s signal being routed to each of the project’s busses (ACID Pro
only).
• The level of the track’s signal being routed to an assignable FX chain (ACID Pro only).

This control 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 fader position is
independent from the others; however, you can move faders simultaneously by selecting
multiple tracks before making your adjustment. If you do not see this fader, expand the
track.
You may select what the fader controls by clicking the drop-down icon. Changing the fader
type for one track changes it for all tracks so you can compare levels of the same control
across the project.

Control Function
Panning ACID tracks are preset to center the signal. Use this slider to adjust the track’s output left or right.
As you move the fader, ACID displays the signal’s percentage going to either the left or right
channel. For example, moving the fader to 60%L means that 60 percent of the signal is mixed to
the left channel, while 40 percent is mixed to the right.
Because ACID uses true stereo panning, you can introduce clipping when panning a track to the
left or right. Unlike a left/right balance control—which simply decreases the volume of one
channel—panning actually adds the audio from one channel to the other. When panning a track,
adjust the track volume accordingly.
Auxiliary bus volume ACID projects can use multiple busses to enable you to send track signals to primary and secondary
(auxiliary) busses. The primary bus is set using the Bus button on a track. The auxiliary bus sends
signal to a separate bus independent of the primary bus without affecting the project’s overall
playback. For more information, see Beatmapped-track settings on page 128.
FX send volume If you add an assignable FX control to your project, you send the track’s signal directly to the FX
and control its volume. For more information, see Using assignable FX controls
on page 138.

CHP. 1 INTRODUCTION
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Track View
In the Track View, you can view and edit the waveforms for the events in a track. The area
in which events are displayed is the track space. The Track View contains other elements
which are described in the following sections.
Loop bar
Marker bar

Beat Ruler

Zoom controls

Time Ruler
Transport controls (if displayed)

Marker bar
The marker bar runs the length of your project and contains the informational tags
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 timeline is fixed and will not update when you change the tempo. This allows the
events in the tracks to maintain their size when the tempo is adjusted.

Time Ruler
The Time Ruler provides a timeline for your project. This timeline can show real time in
many different formats. For more information, see Changing the Time ruler format on page 176.
The timeline also changes with tempo, since the number of beats and beats per second of
real-time changes with tempo.

INTRODUCTION CHP. 1
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Transport controls
The Transport bar contains the playback and cursor positioning buttons frequently used
while working on your project.

Record new track Stop playback

Loop playback Move cursor to start of project

Play back from beginning of project Move cursor to end of project

Play back project from cursor position Pause project playback

Zoom controls
To the right of the horizontal scroll bar are the Time Zoom controls. Clicking on the Zoom
In Time ( ) button increases the horizontal magnification of the project. To decrease the
level of magnification, click the Zoom Out Time ( ) button.
Directly below the vertical scroll bar are the dedicated Track Height Zoom controls.
Clicking on the Zoom In Track Height ( ) button increases the vertical magnification of
the project. To decrease the level of magnification, click the Zoom Out Track Height ( )
button.

Double-clicking the horizontal or vertical scroll

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

Click the Zoom ( ) button in the corner of the Track View to temporarily change the
cursor into the Zoom tool. Select an area of the Track View that you want to magnify, and
the cursor will revert to the previously active tool.

Double-clicking the Zoom tool adjusts both the

horizontal and vertical magnification so that as
much of the project is displayed as possible.

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Window Docking Area

This area allows you to keep frequently-used windows available, but hidden while working
on a project. Windows located in this area can be docked or arranged throughout the
workspace. For more information, see Docking/Floating ACID windows on page 170.
Two windows are displayed in the Window Docking Area when ACID is started for the first
time: the Explorer and the Mixer. The Chopper™, Video, Track Properties, and Audio
Plug-In windows can be docked or undocked after they are displayed by choosing the desired
window from the View menu.
When a window is docked in the Docking Area, it is placed in a stack with additional
windows. To display a specific window, simply click its tab.

Tabs

Explorer window
The Explorer window works similarly to the Windows Explorer. Use the ACID Explorer
window to locate, preview and select media files to be added to your project. For more
information, see Using the Explorer window on page 171.

Mixer
The Mixer window provides access to the current project’s properties, bus assignments
(ACID Pro only), output levels, and plug-in FX chains (ACID Pro only). For more
information, see Using the Mixer window on page 55.

Chopper
The Chopper allows you to isolate audio events so that they may be dissected and reinserted
into a project, producing elaborate “slice-n-dice” effects with minimal effort. For more
information, see The Chopper on page 83. Display the Chopper by choosing Chopper from the
View menu or pressing Alt + 2 .

INTRODUCTION CHP. 1
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Video
This window displays pre-rendered video files that can be imported and synchronized with
an ACID project. The video file will be displayed during project playback and can be
rendered with the project to an appropriate format. Display the Video window by choosing
Video from the View menu or pressing Alt + 4 . For more information, see The Video window on
page 149.

Audio Plug-In or ACID FX

If you’re using ACID Pro, this window displays FX chains and settings for assignable, bus,
and track FX. Display the Audio Plug-In window by clicking any FX ( ) button or by
pressing Alt + 5 .
If you're using ACID Music, use this window to view and edit the ACID FX settings for the
selected track. Use ACID FX to apply distortion, EQ, low-frequency oscillator (chorus,
flanger, phaser, or wah-wah), delay, and reverb to your tracks.

Track Properties
This window allows you to change track attributes. Display the Track Properties window by
double-clicking a track’s icon or by pressing Alt + 6 .

CHP. 1 INTRODUCTION
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Keyboard command reference

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

Project file
These commands refer to the overall project.

Description Keys
Create new project Ctrl+N
Create new project and bypass the Ctrl+Shift+N
Project Properties dialog
Open existing project or media file Ctrl+O
Save project Ctrl+S
Open project’s properties Alt+Enter
Close the current project Ctrl+F4

Window view commands

These commands display and hide the dockable windows and control other aspects of the
main ACID window.

Description Keys
Explorer Alt+1
Chopper (ACID Pro only) Alt+2
Mixer Alt+3
Video (ACID Pro and ACID Music only) Alt+4
Audio Plug-In (ACID Pro only) or Alt+5
ACID FX (ACID Music only)
Track Properties Alt+6
Shifts focus forward through open ACID F6
windows
Shifts focus backward through open ACID Shift+F6
windows
Minimizes/restores the Window Docking Area F11
Minimizes/restores the Track List Shift+F11
Minimizes/restores the Track List and the Ctrl+F11
Window Docking Area simultaneously

INTRODUCTION CHP. 1
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Cursor placement commands
These commands refer to cursor navigation within the Track View.

Description Keys Description Keys

Go to beginning of active loop Home Center in view \
region or view (if no selection)
Go to end of active loop region End Move cursor to opposite end Keypad 5
or view (if no selection) of time selection or loop bar
Go to beginning of project Ctrl+Home or W Move left to marker(s) Ctrl+Left Arrow
Go to end of project Ctrl+End or E Move right to marker(s) Ctrl+Right Arrow
Move left by grid marks Page Up Move left to event edit Ctrl+Alt+Left Arrow
points including fade edges
Move right by grid marks Page Down Move right to event edit Ctrl+Alt+Right Arrow
points including fade edges
Go to (using measures, beats, Ctrl+G Move by one pixel Left or Right Arrow
and ticks)
Go to (using absolute time) Shift+G Move through a video event Alt+ Left or Right Arrow
one frame at a time (ACID Pro
or ACID Music only)
Move cursor to corresponding Number keys (not on
marker keypad)

Loop region commands

A loop region is defined by the loop bar above the Track View. These commands refer to
creating and adjusting the loop region regardless of the current editing tool or whether the
loop region is active.
Description Keys
Make a loop region Shift+Left or Right Arrow
Extend loop region left by grid marks Shift+Page Up
Extend loop region right by grid marks Shift+Page Down
Expand loop region one pixel Shift+Left or Right Arrow
Make a loop region during playback I (in) and O (out)
Restore past loop regions (up to last five) Backspace
Double loop region length ‘ (apostrophe)
Halve loop region length ; (semi
colon)
Shift loop region left , (comma)
Shift loop region right . (period)
Snap loop region to event edges Ctrl+Shift+Alt+ Left or Right Arrow
Expand loop region by one video frame Shift+Alt+Left or Right Arrow

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Selection commands
These commands refer to creating selections.
Description Keys
Range selection (events) Shift+click range of objects
Multiple selection (events) Ctrl+click individual objects
Select all Ctrl+A
Unselect all Ctrl+Shift+A

Event commands
These commands refer to moving and editing events.

Description Keys Description Keys

Paint the entire media file Ctrl+click (on track Slip Trim: moves the media Alt+drag edge of
as an event for one-shots, with Paint tool with the edge as it is trimmed event
Beatmapped, and MIDI enabled)
tracks
Erase entire event for one- Ctrl+click (on event Slip: move media within event Alt+drag inside
shots, Beatmapped, and MIDI with Erase tool without moving the event the event
tracks. enabled)
Undo Ctrl+Z Slide: move the event while Ctrl+Alt+drag
leaving the relative position of event
the media in place
Redo Ctrl+Shift+Z Copy event Ctrl+drag event
Cut selection Ctrl+X Pitch down one semitone Keypad -
Copy selection Ctrl+C Pitch up one semitone Keypad +
Paste from clipboard Ctrl+V Pitch down one octave Ctrl+Keypad -
Paste repeat Ctrl+B Pitch up one octave Ctrl+Keypad +
Paste insert Ctrl+Shift+V Pitch down 4 semitones Shift+Keypad -
(Windows 2000 only)
Delete selection Delete Pitch up 4 semitones Shift+Keypad +
(Windows 2000 only)
Move selected event(s) right Keypad 6 Reset pitch Ctrl+Shift+Key
one pixel (Windows 2000 only) pad - or +
Move selected event(s) left Keypad 4 Change an event’s gain value Keypad / or *
one pixel
Split event(s) S Change an event’s gain by Shift+Keypad /
10% or *
Join events J Change an event’s gain by 25% Ctrl+Keypad / or
*
Create fades F Set an event’s gain to unity Shift+Ctrl+
Keypad *
Render to new track Ctrl+M Set an event’s gain to zero Shift+Ctrl+
(silence) Keypad /
Trim/Crop time-selected Ctrl+T
events only

INTRODUCTION CHP. 1
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Playback commands
These commands refer to the playback controls, which are also found on the Transport bar.

Description Keys Description Keys

Start/stop playback Spacebar Record Ctrl+R
Stop playback Esc Go to start Ctrl+Home
Looped playback L Go to end Ctrl+End
Play from start Shift+Space Skip backward Page Up
Play back from any Ctrl+Spacebar Skip forward Page Down
window or F12
Pause Enter

Track View commands

These commands refer to editing functions related to the tracks in your project.

Description Keys Description Keys

Record Ctrl+R Insert/Show/Hide track volume envelope V
Ripple edit mode Ctrl+L Remove track volume envelope Shift+V
Draw tool Ctrl+D Insert region R
Select next edit tool in list D Insert marker (standard) M
Select previous edit tool in Shift+D Insert time marker (ACID Pro only) H
list
Mark in point I or [ Insert command marker (ACID Pro and C
ACID Music only)
Mark out point O or ] Add tempo change marker T
Render to new track Ctrl+M Add key change marker K
Insert/Show/Hide track P Add tempo and key change marker Shift+T
panning envelope
Remove track panning Shift+P Change project tempo Alt+drag time
envelope marker

CHP. 1 INTRODUCTION
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Track List commands

These commands refer to navigating and editing in the Track List.

Description Keys Description Keys

Pitch down one semitone Keypad - Move track selection up one track Up Arrow
Pitch up one semitone Keypad + Move track selection down one Down Arrow
track
Pitch down four semitones Shift+Keypad - Multi-select tracks Shift+Up or
(Windows 2000 only) Down Arrow
Pitch up four semitones Shift+Keypad + Move track selection up one “page” Page Up
(Windows 2000 only) of tracks
Pitch down one octave Ctrl+Keypad - Move track selection down one Page Down
“page” of tracks
Pitch up one octave Ctrl+Keypad + Delete track Delete
Reset pitch Ctrl+Shift+Keypad Select all tracks Ctrl+A
(Windows 2000 only) +/-
Decrease fader value Left Arrow Unselect all tracks Ctrl+Shift+A
Increase fader value Right Arrow

View commands
These commands refer to magnification of tracks and the events contained on them.

Description Keys
Zoom time in/out small increments when Track View Up or Down Arrow
has focus. Zooms to the loop region first if one exists.
Zoom time in/out large increments when Track View has Ctrl+Up or Down Arrow
focus
Zoom track height in/out small increments when Track Shift+Up or Down Arrow
View has focus

INTRODUCTION CHP. 1
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Mixer commands
These commands control Mixer elements when the Mixer has focus.

Description Keys Description Keys

Change selection of a mixer Left/Right Moves the left channel of the fader Shift+Up/Down Arrow
control Arrow for the selected Mixer control
Selects multiple, adjacent Shift+Left/Right Moves the right channel of the Ctrl+Up/Down Arrow
mixer controls Arrow fader for the selected Mixer
control
Selects multiple nonadjacent Ctrl+Left/Right Deletes the selected Bus or Delete
mixer controls Arrow assignable FX control (ACID Pro
only)
Moves the fader of the Up/Down Arrow
selected mixer control. For
assignable FX, this only
moves the “out” fader

Miscellaneous commands

Description Keys Description Keys

Online Help F1 Shortcut menu Shift+F10
What’s This? Help Shift+F1 Refresh screen F5
Enable/disable F8 Generate MIDI F7
snapping Timecode (ACID Pro
only)
Toggles between snap Ctrl+F8 Trigger from MIDI Ctrl+F7
to grid and snap to all Timecode (ACID Pro
only)
Temporarily disable Shift+drag Generate MIDI Clock Shift+F7
Snap To (ACID Pro only)

Mouse scroll-wheel shortcuts

Description Keys
Zoom in on timeline Default mouse wheel behavior
Horizontal scroll Shift+wheel
Vertical scroll Ctrl+wheel
Moves by video frames Ctrl+Shift+Alt+wheel
Moves the cursor in grid increments Ctrl+Shift+wheel
Auto-scrolling Press mouse wheel and move the mouse in the desired
direction
Move fader Wheel with mouse pointer over a fader
Make fine fader adjustments Ctrl+wheel over a fader

Chopper commands
For more information, see Chopper toolbar and keyboard commands on page 85.

CHP. 1 INTRODUCTION
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Signal flow
Audio event Event ASR

Pre/Post vol.

Pre/Post vol. Track FX

Assignable FX send

Auxiliary send
Assignable FX
Track fader
Input Chain

Pan track

Output Mute

Mute track

Bus Assign.
Bus Assign.

Bus Control Mute Hardware

output
Master
Bus
Master
Fader
Hardware
This diagram is based on ACID Pro. Your version of ACID may not include all these features.

INTRODUCTION CHP. 1
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CHAPTER

Basic Project
2 Techniques

Now that you have an understanding of ACID’s interface and controls, you are ready to
begin learning the techniques needed to pick, paint, and play ACID projects. In this chapter
you will learn the skills that will allow you to create music in ACID, from locating media
files to writing the finished project to CD.

Starting a project
Double-clicking the ACID icon on the desktop will start ACID. You can immediately begin
building your ACID project using the application’s default project parameters. However, you
may prefer to customize the project parameters prior to beginning the project.

Project parameters
ACID allows you to configure project parameters and add summary information prior to
beginning a project. Choosing New from the File menu will display the New Project dialog.
This dialog contains two tabs: Summary and Audio. Selecting the Start all new projects with
these settings check box will configure ACID to use the parameters and information in both
tabs as defaults when starting all subsequent projects.

Project parameters and summary information

can be edited at any time. Choosing Properties
from the File menu will display the Project
Properties dialog, which contains the identical
tabs and parameters as the New Project dialog.

Summary tab
The Summary tab allows you add information to the project regarding its title, artist,
engineer, and copyright. In addition, a Comments field allows you to add additional, relevant
information to the project.

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30

Audio tab
The Audio tab allows you to specify the project’s audio attributes including sample rate and
bit-depth. In addition, if you’re using ACID Pro, the Audio tab is used to configure how
many stereo busses will be made available for the project (up to a maximum of 26).

To reconfigure the number of stereo busses in ACID Pro, enter a new value in the Number of
additional stereo busses edit box and click Apply. ACID will immediately add or remove an
appropriate number of busses in the Mixer window. For more information, see Using the Mixer
window on page 55.

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Opening an existing project

Use the Open command from the File menu to access existing ACID projects.
When you open an .acd-zip project, the project file and all media files are copied to a
temporary folder in the ACID program folder, typically C:\Program Files\Sonic
Foundry\ACID 3.0\Temp\ACID Pro Temp x\. Any changes you make to the project will
be saved to the files in this temporary folder until you save the .acd-zip file again.
1. From the File menu, choose Open. The Open dialog displays.
2. Choose a drive and folder from the Look in drop-down list.
3. Select a file in the browse window or type a name in the File name box. Detailed
information about the selected file appears at the bottom of the dialog box.
4. Choose a file type from the Files of type drop-down list to limit the files displayed in the
dialog box.
5. Click the Open button.

If ACID is unable to locate one of the media

files when you open an ACID project, you can
choose to leave the media offline and continue
to edit events on the track. The events will
point to the location of the source media file. If
you restore the source media file at a later
time, the project will open normally.

Previewing media from the Explorer window

Frequently when gathering media for ACID projects, you will encounter files with non-
descriptive or cryptic names. This is especially true of the ACID Loop Library CD-ROMs,
where you might find a multitude of .wav files in a folder simply named Beats or Basses.
Without preview capabilities, a situation like this would require you to add the file to the
project, paint it on the timeline, play the project, and then delete the file if it did not suit
your needs. To avoid this, the Explorer window provides three ways to preview files without
adding them to your project:
• The Start/Stop Preview ( / )buttons.
• The Play Media command.
• The Auto Preview ( ) button.

CHP. 2 BASIC PROJECT TECHNIQUES

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These methods will loop playback of the selected file at the current project tempo. In
addition, any of these methods can be used in conjunction with playback of your project,
thereby allowing you to preview how a file will sound in the project.

Start/Stop Preview
Clicking the Start Preview ( ) button located in the toolbar of the Explorer window will
play the selected file. Looped playback continues until the Stop Preview ( ) button is
clicked or a new file is selected.

Play Media
Right-clicking on a file and choosing Play Media from the shortcut menu will preview the
file. Looped playback continues until the Stop Preview ( ) button is clicked or a new file is
selected.

Auto Preview
Clicking the Auto Preview ( ) button in the toolbar of the Explorer window places ACID
in Auto Preview mode and allows you to automatically preview any file by selecting it.
Selecting a new file will interrupt the current preview and immediately preview the new file.
Looped playback continues until the Stop Preview ( ) button is clicked.

Placing the Explorer window in Auto Preview

mode and using the keyboard’s arrow keys to
scroll through a folder is an excellent way of
quickly previewing several files in a folder.

Adding media to the project

Media files must be added to a project before they can be painted, arranged, and processed.
When a file is added to a project, a new track is automatically created to accommodate it,
and its controls are displayed on the Track List. Be aware that a new track is added at the
current volume of the Preview fader in the Mixer Window. There are several methods of
adding media files to a project.

ACID may create proxy files for media whose

compression scheme may cause working with
them to be inefficient and slow. For more
information, see Proxy File on page 199.

BASIC PROJECT TECHNIQUES CHP. 2

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Before using long Beatmapped or long one-shot

files from CDs or shared network folders, copy
the media to your local drive for the best
possible performance.

A note about the ACID Temp directory

When a media file is added to a project from a removable device, ACID stores a copy of the
media file in a temporary subfolder within the ACID program folder. This keeps the media
file available for use even if the source of the media is no longer accessible.
Be aware that these subfolders are cleared when you close ACID. However, they are not
cleared if ACID closes inappropriately.

Adding media files from the Explorer window

The Explorer window will likely be your primary means of locating media files used in
projects. Display the Explorer, if needed, by choosing Explorer from the View menu, or by
pressing Alt + 1
There are three ways of adding media files from the Explorer window:
• Double-click the desired file.
• Drag the file from the Explorer to the Track View or Track List. Dragging a file from the
Explorer to the track name of an existing track allows you to replace the original file with
the new file, while all events remain in place.
• Right-click and drag a file to the Track View or Track List to specify the type of track that
will be created. When you drop the file, a shortcut menu is displayed that allows you to
choose whether the file will be treated as a loop, one-shot, Beatmapped track, or as an
autodetected type.

Adding media files from the Open dialog

There are three ways of adding media files from the Open dialog:
• Select the desired file and click Open.
• Right-click the selected file and choose Select from the shortcut menu.
• Double-click the selected file.

Adding media files from outside the application

A media file can also be added to a project by dragging it from Windows Explorer and
dropping it in the Track View.

CHP. 2 BASIC PROJECT TECHNIQUES

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Adding multiple media files simultaneously

To add multiple media files to the project, Ctrl +click (or Shift +click) to select the files and
drag them to the Track View or the Track List.

Extracting media files from CD

ACID allows you to extract 44,100Hz, 16-bit, stereo data from CD. Data extracted from CD
can be opened as a track in ACID.
1. Insert a CD in the CD-ROM drive.
2. From the Tools menu, choose Extract Audio from CD. The Extract Audio from CD dialog
displays and all audio files are listed.
3. From the Drive drop-down list, choose the CD drive that contains the audio you want to
extract.
4. Select the audio you want to extract and click OK. ACID begins extracting data from the
CD and displays a progress meter. If the file is longer than 30 seconds, the Beatmapper™
Wizard displays.
5. Use the Beatmapper Wizard or choose to open the file as a one-shot. The file is then
inserted in a track. For more information, see Beatmapper on page 113.
6. Use the Draw ( ) tool to draw the waveform on the track.
You can also double-click a .cda in the Explorer window (or drag it to the Track View) to
extract a CD track without opening the Extract Audio from CD dialog.

When adding media from multiple CDs, you

may need to press F5 to refresh the Explorer
window to view the new CD’s contents.

Downloading media from the Web

The Get Media from the Web command allows you to view and download various audio and
video files available on the Internet.
1. From the File menu, choose Get Media from the Web.
2. Choose an icon from the left frame to specify the media provider from which you want to
download files.
3. Preview the file, select the file you want to open and click Download. The Browse for
Folder dialog displays.

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4. Select a folder for the download. The selected file is downloaded to the folder specified in
the Destination box.
5. When you are done downloading, close the Get Media from the Web dialog. The file(s) is
added to your project.
Click the Show Details button to display additional information about your download. In
this mode, you can add files to a download queue, specify where the downloaded files should
be stored, and monitor the progress of your downloads. Click Start to begin downloading
queued files, or click Hide Details to return to simple mode.

Audio event basics

The following sections describe three basic techniques used when working with audio
events: painting, deleting, and moving.

Painting events
When a media file is added to a project and displayed in the Track List, it is not immediately
audible, and initiating playback using any of the available methods will result in silence.
The media file must first be painted on the timeline, at which point it is displayed as a
waveform and becomes an event. Events can be painted on the timeline using either the
Draw tool or the Paint tool.

Media files must be added to the project before

either of these tools can be used to paint events.

Placing an event with the Draw tool

The Draw tool is the most common method of placing events on the timeline. This tool
allows you to add track-specific events, one at a time. In addition, the Draw tool can be used
to select, edit, and move events. For more information, see Basic event editing on page 43.
1. Click the Draw ( ) tool or choose Editing Tool from the Edit menu and Draw from the
submenu. The pointer is displayed as a pencil icon.
2. Place the Draw tool at the left-hand edge of any track containing a media file.
3. Click and hold the mouse button while dragging the Draw tool to the right. A waveform
representing the event displays on the timeline as you drag the mouse.
Notice that if you are placing a looped .wav file on the timeline, small indentations are
created along the top and bottom edges of the event indicating the start and end points of
each individual loop.

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Events can be also be drawn from right (end)

to left (beginning).

4. Release the mouse button to end the event.

5. Click the Play from Start ( ) button in the Transport toolbar. The event is played back.

Painting an event with the Paint tool

Unlike the Draw tool, the Paint tool allows you to quickly paint multiple events across
several tracks. This can be useful when you need to quickly add several, seemingly random
events to a project. The Paint tool is also best used for painting multiple, one-shot events
that will be evenly spaced on the grid lines.
1. Click the Paint (
) tool or choose Editing Tool from the Edit menu and Paint from the
submenu. The mouse pointer displays as a brush icon.
2. Click and hold the mouse button while dragging the Paint tool randomly across the
several tracks. Notice that events are painted in every grid space the Paint tool contacts.
3. Release the mouse button to stop adding events.
4. Click the Play from Start ( ) button in the Transport toolbar. All new events are played
back.

With the Paint tool enabled, you can use Ctrl +

left click to paint an entire event for one-shots,
Beatmapped, and MIDI tracks.

Changing the length of an event

After an event is painted on the Track View, you may discover that it is too long or not long
enough; however, ACID makes it easy to change the length of an event. You may find it
helpful to turn snapping options on by choosing Snapping from the Options menu and
choosing Enable from the shortcut menu.
To alter an event’s length, select the Draw ( ) tool and drag either end of the event.
When you drag the event past the end of the file, looped files will repeat, but one-shots and
Beatmapped tracks will draw silence.

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Erasing sections of an event

Occasionally you may need to delete only specific sections of an event and leave the rest of
it intact. The easiest method of deleting a section of an event is to use the Erase tool.
1. Select the Erase ( ) tool or choose Editing Tool from the Edit menu and Erase from the
submenu. The pointer is displayed as an eraser icon.
2. Click and drag the Eraser in the Track View to delete all event data it contacts.

With the Erase tool, you can delete an entire

one-shot, Beatmapped, or MIDI event. Just
hold the Ctrl key while you left-click the
event.

Moving events
The position of the left edge of an event indicates when the event will become audible
during playback. Events may be moved along the timeline either individually or as a group.
In addition, events can be stacked on top of one another. A longer event placed over a
smaller event will conceal it and the smaller event will become inaudible. A smaller event
placed over a larger event will be audible and render the section of the longer event it covers
inaudible.
To move an event, do the following:
1. Select the Draw ( ) tool.
2. Click the event to be moved. The event is highlighted to indicate that it is selected.
You can hold the Ctrl or Shift key to select multiple events.
3. Drag the mouse left/right.
4. Release the mouse button. The event is dropped in its new location.

Multiple selected events move in relation to the

event being dragged.

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Changing event properties

To access event properties, right-click the event and choose Properties from the shortcut
menu, or simply double-click the event. These properties are saved only with a project and
are not saved into the file when a track is saved from Track Properties.

The following table describes each of the settings in the Properties dialog.

Item Description
Start offset The Start offset for an event specifies a playback starting position that is
different than the beginning of the file. This is especially useful for loops;
you can change the feel by simply starting a loop at beat 2 rather than
beat 1.
Pitch shift The Pitch shift value specifies a pitch shift for the selected event. Event-
based pitch shift is calculated after the project key and any pitch shift
assigned to a track.
Speed The Speed setting allows you to change the playback speed of an event on
a one-shot track. Changing the speed will also change the pitch.
Quick fade edges to When you add an offset to an event so that it does not end on a loop
prevent clicks point, you can introduce an audible click at the edges of the event. Select
the Quick fade edges to prevent clicks check box, and ACID will perform a
quick fade-in or fade-out on the event edges.
To adjust a quick fade, zoom into the event and hover over the upper-left
or upper-right corner of an event until the cursor is displayed as . Drag
the edge of the fade to adjust its duration.

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Using the cursor

ACID’s cursor is a flashing vertical line that spans the Track View of the entire project,
regardless of the number of tracks. Cursor position can be used to determine where events
are split, where playback/recording is started, and where clipboard contents are pasted. In
addition, the positioning of the cursor is essential to the creation of time selections.
To place the cursor using the mouse, do the following:
1. Select the Draw ( ) tool.
2. Click in the Track View. The cursor is placed in the Track View.

Positioning the cursor with the keyboard

While using the mouse to position the cursor in the timeline is quick and intuitive, it is not
always precise. For example, you may want the beginning of a guitar solo to coincide with a
snare drum hit or background vocals to enter exactly 3 minutes and 24 seconds into a song.
For these reasons, ACID also allows you to position the cursor using your keyboard. For more
information, see Cursor placement commands on page 23.

Positioning the cursor with the Go To command

The Go To command is used to place the cursor at a specific location in the ACID project.
• Press Ctrl + G to position the cursor based on the time displayed on the Beat ruler. Specify
a time in the edit box that appears in the Time Display and press Enter .

• Press Shift + G to position the cursor based on the time displayed on the Time ruler.
Specify a time in the edit box that appears in the Time Display and press Enter .

You can also open the edit boxes in the Time

Display by double-clicking the desired time
value.

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Making selections
Events must be selected before they can be moved or edited.

Selecting an event
1. Select the Draw ( ) tool.
2. Click an event. The event is highlighted.

Selected event

Selecting multiple events

ACID provides you with several methods of selecting multiple events:
• Using the Ctrl or Shift keys while clicking events.
• Using the Select All on Track command.
• Using the Select All command.
• Using the Selection tool.

Unless stated otherwise, selections can only be

made using the Draw tool.

Selecting multiple events using the keyboard and mouse

Holding the Ctrl key while clicking events allows you to select multiple, nonadjacent events
that reside on any track. This method is useful when you need to move several scattered
events by an equal amount within the project.
Holding the Shift key allows you to select multiple, adjacent events. Selecting any two
events while holding Shift automatically selects all events located between the selected
events. Events may be selected from the same track or across tracks. This method is useful
when you want to move several adjacent events by and equal amount within the project.

Selecting events using the Select All on Track command

Right-clicking on any track in the Track View and choosing Select All on Track from the
shortcut menu will select every event on the track.

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Selecting events using the Select All command
Choosing Select All from the Edit menu will select all events in a project.

Selecting multiple events using the Selection tool

When selecting several events across multiple tracks, it is frequently advantageous to use the
Selection tool. This tool allows you to quickly select events using three methods: Vertical,
Horizontal, and Free Selection. The following table briefly describes each of these selection
methods:

Method Description Displayed as...

Vertical Allows you to select all events on all Parallel dashed line spanning the vertical
tracks within an interval of time. length of the project.
Horizontal Allows you to select all events on a track Parallel dashed line spanning the
or several adjacent tracks. horizontal length of the project.
Free Selection Allows you to select a group of adjacent Dashed line box.
events on adjacent tracks. This is ACID’s
default selection method.

The following steps demonstrate using the Selection tool:

1. Click the Selection ( ) tool or choose Editing Tool from the Edit menu, followed by
Selection from the submenu.
2. Place the pointer on the Track View. The pointer is displayed as an arrow with an
adjacent dotted box.
3. Click and drag the mouse on the Track View. A dashed rectangular box is created on the
Track View and all events within and adjacent to it are selected.
4. While holding the left mouse button, click and release the right mouse button (referred
to as toggle-clicking). The selection method is changed to vertical and again, all events
within and adjacent the selection area are selected.
5. Toggle-click the mouse once more. The selection method is changed to horizontal and all
events within and adjacent to the selection area are selected.

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Creating a time selection

ACID does not limit you to selecting events. Frequently, you may want to select only audio
events occurring within a time selection. This is accomplished using the Time Selection tool.
1. Click the Time Selection ( ) tool or choose Editing Tool from the Edit menu and Time
Select from the submenu. The pointer displays with an adjacent bi-directional arrow.
2. Click in the Track View and drag the mouse to the left/right. The selection area is
highlighted on the Track View.
3. Release the mouse button. A time selection is created and all events within it are
selected.

If the selection area is automatically snapping

the Track View’s grid lines, ACID’s
Snapping feature is turned on. This feature
can be turned off by pressing F8 .

Creating event selections within a time selection

ACID also allows you to select specific events within a general time selection. This
technique is useful for selecting individual instruments from a particular section of a song.
For example, you may want to copy all percussion events from a song’s bridge and re-use
them in the coda.
1. Click the Time Selection ( ) tool or choose Editing Tool from the Edit menu and Time
Select from the submenu. The pointer displays with an adjacent bi-directional arrow.
2. Click in the Track View and drag the mouse to the left/right. The selection area is
highlighted on the Track View.
3. Release the mouse button. A selection is created and all events within it are selected.
4. Hold the Ctrl key and select any event that expands beyond the time selection. The entire
event appears highlighted; however, only the section of the event contained within the
time selection is actually selected.

You can select additional events within the time

selection by continuing to hold the Ctrl key
while clicking events. In addition, holding the
Shift key allows you to select the events of
multiple adjacent tracks within a selection.

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Basic event editing

Like many applications you are already familiar with, ACID derives a great deal its editing
power from a few basic functions: Copy, Paste, Cut, Trim, and Delete. The following sections
briefly describe using these commands in the process of building an ACID project.
Prior to performing the procedures in these sections, verify that ACID’s Ripple Edits function
is turned off. Ripple Edits are an extremely powerful editing option and their scope is beyond
that of this chapter. Ripple Edits are turned on by default when ACID is started, but can be
turned off by choosing Ripple Edits from the Options menu or by pressing Ctrl + L . For more
information, see Using Ripple Edits on page 92.

Copying events
Copying an event, a time selection, or event within a time selection will place an exact copy
of the selected event(s) on the clipboard, but leave the Track View unchanged. Events
copied to the clipboard can be pasted in the project an unlimited number of times. In
addition, clipboard content remains on the clipboard until replaced by new content.
1. Select the event data you want to copy or make a time selection. For more information, see
Making selections on page 40.
2. Copy the event data using any of the following methods:
• Click the Copy ( ) button in the toolbar.
• Choose Copy from the Edit menu.
• Right-click the selection and choose Copy from the shortcut menu.
• Press Ctrl + C on the keyboard.

Pasting events
The clipboard’s contents can be pasted in a project an unlimited number of times, but it will
always be pasted in the track it was copied/cut from. In addition, pasting the contents of the
clipboard over an existing event will result in the pasted event overlapping the existing
event. To avoid pasting over existing events, you have two options:
• Use the Paste Insert command. For more information, see Using Paste Insert on page 45.
• Enable the Ripple Edits option. For more information, see Using Ripple Edits on page 92.

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When events are cut/copied to the clipboard and subsequently pasted into a project, ACID
will maintain and paste the time data inherent in the cut/copied events. For example, if you
select two events on the same track that are separated by five seconds of silence, copying and
pasting these events will result in the five seconds of silence also being pasted into the
project.

Original events Pasted events

Taking this concept a step further, if you select discontinuous events from several tracks,
copying and pasting these events will result in any selected time data being pasted into the
project as well. This maintains the relative position of events in the project.

Original events Pasted events

Using the Paste command

1. Place the cursor at the desired position on the timeline.
2. Paste the clipboard contents using any of the following methods:
• Click the Paste ( ) button in the toolbar.
• Choose Paste from the Edit menu.
• Right-click the Track View and choose Paste from the shortcut menu.
• Press Ctrl + V on the keyboard.

Using Paste Repeat

When building projects, you will often need to paste the contents of the clipboard several
times. Rather than repeatedly pasting and moving the content, the Paste Repeat command
allows you to specify the number of times and at what interval the clipboard’s contents will
be pasted on the Track View. This is a useful way of quickly building a project that uses a
repetitive riff or structure. For example, you can build the backing tracks for a 12-bar blues,
copy them, and use Paste Repeat to paste several copies of it in the project.
1. Click the Time Selection ( ) tool.
2. Drag the mouse in the Track View to create a time selection spanning several events and
copy it to the clipboard.
3. Click the Go To End ( ) button in the Transport toolbar or press Ctrl + End to send the
cursor to the end of the project.

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4. Choose Paste Repeat from the Edit menu or press Ctrl + B on the keyboard. The Paste
Repeat dialog displays.
5. Enter a number in the Number of times to paste box.
6. Select the End to end radio button and click OK. The events are pasted end to end the
number of times specified in Step 5, starting at the cursor position.

Using Paste Insert

To insert the contents of the ACID clipboard at the current cursor position and force
existing events to move in time to accommodate the pasted events, choose Paste Insert from
the Edit menu.
If the cursor is in the middle of an event, the event will be split at the cursor position when
the new events are pasted.
This feature is useful when rearranging a project by moving verses and choruses.

Cutting events
Cutting an event, a time selection, or an event within a time selection removes the audio
data from the Track View and places it on the clipboard. Once data is placed on the
clipboard, it can be pasted back into the project an unlimited number of times. Clipboard
content remains on the clipboard until it is replaced by new data.
1. Select the event data you want to cut or make a time selection. For more information, see
Making selections on page 40.
2. Cut the event data using any of the following methods:
• Click the Cut ( ) button in the toolbar.
• Choose Cut from the Edit menu.
• Right-click the selection and choose Cut from the shortcut menu.
• Press Ctrl + X on the keyboard.
All selected events are removed from the Track View and placed on the clipboard.

Deleting events
Deleting an event, a time selection, or an event within a time selection will remove the data
from the Track View and discard it. Deleted events are not placed on the clipboard and will
not replace or interfere with current clipboard content. In addition, deleted events cannot
be pasted back into a project.

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Deleted data can only be replaced in a project

using the Redo command. For more
information, see Using the Redo command on
page 52.

1. Select the event data you want to delete or make a time selection. For more information,
see Making selections on page 40.
2. Delete the event data using any of the following methods:
• Click the Delete ( ) button in the toolbar.
• Choose Delete from the Edit menu.
• Right-click the selected event and choose Delete from the shortcut menu.
• Press Delete on the keyboard.
All selected events are removed from the Track View and discarded.

Trimming events
Whereas the Delete command allows you to select event data to be removed from the
project, the Trim command allows you to select the data that will remain. Trimming is
performed by creating a time selection or selecting an event within a time selection and
subsequently deleting all unselected data.
1. Create a time selection or select specific events within a time selection. For more
information, see Creating a time selection on page 42.
2. PressCtrl + T to trim the data within the selection. All unselected event data is removed
from the Track View and discarded.

Track basics
ACID automatically creates a track for each media file added to the project and events
derived from that file can only be placed on that track. However, tracks can be rearranged,
duplicated, resized, and deleted.

Track types

Loops
Loops are small chunks of audio that are designed to create a continuous beat or pattern
when played repeatedly. They are usually one to four measures long. Loops are the type of
file that you will use most frequently.

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One-shots
One-shots are chunks of audio that are not designed to loop, and they are streamed from the
hard disk rather than stored in RAM if they are longer than three seconds. Things such as
cymbal crashes and sound bites could be considered one-shots.
Unlike loops, one-shots will not change pitch or tempo with the rest of a project.

Beatmapped
When a file that is longer than thirty seconds is added to a project, the Beatmapper Wizard
starts to allow you to add tempo information to the file. As a result, these tracks will respond
to tempo and key changes, just like loops. For more information, see Beatmapper on page 113.

The length of the file that will start the

Beatmapper can be changed in the Audio
Preferences tab. For more information, see
Using the Audio preferences tab on page 187.

MIDI
A MIDI track is created when you open a .mid, .smf, or .rmi file. You can use MIDI tracks to
record data from and play back through synthesizers and other MIDI-compliant equipment.
MIDI files must be edited through an external MIDI editor. For more information, see
Working with MIDI on page 159.

Working with tracks

ACID will automatically create a new track for each media file added to a project and events
placed on the track must be derived from that file. Because of this, track-level functions can
be used to affect every event on the track. The following sections explain several basic track
functions and features.

Reordering tracks
When building an ACID project, you may want to reorder the tracks to place similar
instruments in proximity to one another. For example, placing all drum loops together in
the Track View will make it easier for you to fine-tune the mix of the song’s overall drum
sound.
1. Drag the track header to a new location in the Track List. A heavy black horizontal line
is displayed on the Track List to indicate where the track will be placed.
2. Release the mouse button. The track is dropped in the new location and the entire Track
List/ Track View is adjusted accordingly.

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You can reorder multiple tracks by holding the

Ctrl or Shift key while selecting tracks. For
more information, see Selecting multiple events
on page 40.

Resizing a track
ACID allows you to change the height of a track, thereby affecting how many tracks can be
displayed in the Track View. This is especially useful when building a project with a large
number of tracks. In addition, the track’s height can be decreased until only the Volume
fader, Track FX button, Mute button, and Solo button are visible.
1. Drag the bottom edge of a track up or down in the Track List. The pointer is displayed as
a vertical stretch icon.
2. Release the mouse button to establish the track’s new height.

Right-click the newly resized track in the Track

List and choose Set as Default Track Height
from to shortcut menu to resize all tracks in the
project.

Changing the track color

As mentioned previously, ACID automatically creates tracks to accommodate new media
files. ACID also supplies these tracks with a default color. However, the track color can
easily be changed to help you identify specific tracks in a project. To change the color, right-
click the track in the Track List, choose Track Display Color from the shortcut menu, and
choose the desired color from the submenu.

Renaming a track
To rename a track, right-click the track label and choose Rename from the shortcut menu,
or double-click the track name. Renaming a track applies to the project only and does not
change the file associated with the track.

Duplicating a track
To duplicate a track, right click it and choose Duplicate Track from the shortcut menu. An
exact copy of the track and its events is created and displayed below the original track in the
project. The words “Copy of” are placed before the name of the duplicate track to identify it
in the Track List.

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Deleting tracks
Unnecessary tracks should be deleted from a project by selecting the track and using any of
the following methods:
• Choosing Delete from the Edit menu.
• Right-clicking and choosing Delete Track from the shortcut menu.
• Pressing Delete .

Copying, cutting, and pasting tracks

Copying a track will place an exact copy of the selected track on the clipboard, but leave the
Track View unchanged. To copy a track, select the track and do one of the following:
• Click the Copy ( ) button in the toolbar.
• Choose Copy from the Edit menu.
• Right-click the selection and choose Copy from the shortcut menu.
• Press Ctrl + C on the keyboard.
Cutting a track removes it from the Track View and places it on the clipboard. To cut a
track, select it and do one of the following:
• Click the Cut ( ) button in the toolbar.
• Choose Cut from the Edit menu.
• Right-click the selection and choose Cut from the shortcut menu.
• Press Ctrl + X on the keyboard.
Tracks that are copied or cut to the clipboard can be pasted back into the current project or
into a different project an unlimited number of times. This is a useful way to share tracks
between different compositions. You can paste a track in one of the following ways:
• Click the Paste ( ) button in the toolbar.
• Choose Paste from the Edit menu.
• Right-click the Track View and choose Paste from the shortcut menu.
• Press Ctrl + V on the keyboard.

Adjusting the mix

Use the multipurpose fader to adjust the mix of a specific track.

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The following table describes the functions available in the drop-down list.

Function Description
Volume Controls how loud a track is in the mix. A value of 0 dB means that the
track is played with no boost or cut from ACID. Dragging the fader to the
left decreases the volume; dragging to the right increases the volume.
Pan Controls the position of a track in the stereo field. Dragging the fader to
the left will place the track in the left speaker more than the right, while
moving the fader to the right will place the track in the right speaker.
Because ACID uses true stereo panning, you can introduce clipping when
panning a track to the left or right. Unlike a left/right balance control—which
simply decreases the volume of one channel—panning actually adds the audio
from one channel to the other. When panning a track, adjust the track volume
accordingly.
FX The FX fader controls the level of the track sent to each of the assignable
FX chains that you have created. Dragging the fader to the left decreases
the volume; dragging to the right increases the volume.
Bus The Bus fader controls the level of the track sent to each of the additional
busses that you have created for your project. Dragging the fader to the
left cuts the volume; dragging the fader to the right boosts the volume.

Once you have selected a function, drag the fader handle to adjust the level. If multiple
tracks are selected, the faders will all move together as a group.

When adjusting the mix of your tracks,

remember to look at the meters on the Mixer.
Because you are adding the volumes of all the
track together, it is easy to clip the audio
output. Make sure that the meters never
display the red clip indication during playback.

Muting a track
Each track has a dedicated Mute ( ) button. Clicking this button will shade the
corresponding track (to indicate that it is muted) and render it inaudible during playback.
Clicking a second time will disable the mute and return the track to its original level in
the mix. Toggle-muting a track is an effective way of determining whether a track
contributes to the overall sound of a project.

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Soloing a track
Located adjacent to the Mute button, the Solo ( ) button allows you isolate tracks in a
project during playback. When this button is clicked during playback, the corresponding
track remains audible and all other tracks are muted. Clicking a second time will return
all tracks to their original levels in the mix. Toggle-soloing a track is an effective method of
configuring and previewing isolated Track FX against how they will sound in the project.

Working with a group of tracks

Select a group of tracks by holding the Ctrl key while you click the track header of the
desired tracks. Now you can adjust the volume, pan, mute, solo, and change track color on
all the tracks simultaneously.

To change from soloing a group of tracks to

just one track, hold the Ctrl key while clicking
the Solo button on the new track.

Using the Undo and Redo commands

ACID provides unlimited undo and redo capabilities. An undo history is created for each
edit performed on the project, and this allows you to quickly restore the project to any of its
previous states. In addition, undoing an edit automatically places it in the project’s redo
history where it can be quickly re-performed. However, any new edit performed on the
project will overwrite the redo history.

The undo and redo histories are cleared when

the project is closed or ACID is exited.

Using the Undo command

To undo an edit, click the Undo ( ) button on the toolbar or press Ctrl + Z . Edits are
undone in the reverse order they were performed. Each time the Undo command is executed,
another edit will be undone.

You can also undo the most recent edit by

choosing Undo from the Edit menu.

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Undoing a series of edits

Clicking the down arrow located adjacent to the Undo ( ) button will display the project’s
undo history. The history is displayed as a drop-down list with the most recent edit located
at the top. Undoing an edit in the list requires all subsequent edits to be undone as well.
1. Click the arrow to the right of the Undo ( ) button. The undo history is displayed.
2. Locate the edit to be undone. Notice that all subsequent edits are automatically selected
and the total number of edits to be undone is indicated at the bottom of the drop-down
list.
3. Click the edit to be undone. The project is restored to the state it was in prior to the
selected edit.

Clicking on the desktop outside the drop-down

list will cancel the Undo operation.

Undoing all edits

Choosing Undo All from the Edit menu will undo all project edits and automatically add
them to the redo history.

Using the Redo command

To redo an edit, click the Redo ( ) button on the toolbar or press Ctrl + Shift + Z . Edits are re-
performed in the reverse order they were undone and each time the Redo command is
executed, another edit will be re-performed.

You can also redo the most recent undone edit

by choosing Redo from the Edit menu.

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Redoing a series of edits
Clicking the down arrow located adjacent to the Redo ( ) button will display the project’s
redo history. The history is displayed as a drop-down list with the most recently undone edit
located at the top. Redoing an edit in the list requires all subsequently undone edits to be re-
performed as well.
1. Click the arrow to the right of the Redo ( ) button. The redo history displays.
2. Locate the edit to be redone. Notice that all subsequently undone edits are automatically
selected and the total number of edits to be redone is indicated at the bottom of the drop-
down list.
3. Click the edit to be redone. The project is restored to the state it was in prior to the
selected undone edit.

Clicking on the desktop outside the drop-down

list will cancel the Redo operation.

Clearing the undo history

ACID allows you to clear the undo and redo histories without closing the project or exiting
the application. After the histories are cleared, ACID will create new ones as you continue
building the project.
1. From the Edit menu, choose Clear Undo History. A confirmation dialog displays, alerting
you that this action will permanently delete the current edit histories.
2. Click Yes to clear the edit histories or No to cancel the operation retain the current edit
histories.

Playing the project

Sooner or later you will want to play your project. ACID provides several methods of playing
projects within the application as well as methods of previewing playback within several
media player applications.

Using the Transport toolbar

All buttons required to play your project are located on ACID’s Transport toolbar. This
toolbar should look somewhat familiar to you, as it contains buttons found on most home
CD and cassette players. For more information, see Transport controls on page 19.

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Playback within ACID

As you build a project, you will likely have different playback needs. For example, you may
want to hear the project in its entirety when checking the final mix, but not when you are
working on the ending. Because of this, ACID offers three playback options:
• Playing the entire project.
• Playing from the cursor position.
• Looped playback.

Playing the entire project

To begin playback from the beginning of the project, click the Transport toolbar’s Play From
Start ( ) button or press Shift + Space on the keyboard. To stop playback, click the Transport
toolbar’s Stop ( ) button or press Space .

Playing from the cursor position

To begin playback from the current cursor position, click the Transport toolbar’s Play ( )
button or press Space . To stop playback, click the Transport toolbar’s Stop ( ) button or
press Space .

Looped playback
You are also able to limit playback to a specific loop region on the Track View. This
playback method is frequently used in conjunction with the Transport toolbar’s Loop Playback
( ) button and allows you to fine-tune mixes and effects while continually listening to the
selected area. For more information, see Transport controls on page 19.
1. Drag the handles of the loop bar to create the desired loop region.

Handle Loop bar

2. Click the Loop Playback ( ) button to enable it.

3. Click the Transport toolbar’s Play ( ) button or press Space . ACID begins playback of the
selected area. To stop playback, click the Transport toolbar’s Stop ( ) button or press
Space .

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Using the Mixer window

The Mixer window is a dockable window with a default location in the lower right-hand
corner of the ACID workspace. The Mixer window contains the following controls:
• A Preview fader, which allows you to adjust the loudness of media files previewed from the
Explorer window, Track Properties dialog, Beatmapper, or the Chopper. Also, the
Preview fader’s volume determines the volume of new tracks added to the project. This
allows you to set up a quick mix while you are adding media to your project.
• A Master fader, which controls the overall volume.
• Faders for up to 26 project busses when added to the project (ACID Pro only).
• Faders for up to 32 assignable FX when added to the project (ACID Pro only).

The function of the bus and FX controls are beyond the scope of this chapter. For more
information, see Advanced Project Techniques on page 123.

Viewing the Mixer window

The Mixer window is displayed by default when ACID is started, but it can be hidden (to
provide more area for the Explorer window) by choosing Mixer from the View menu or
pressing Alt + 3 . To display the Mixer window, choose Mixer from the View menu again (a
check mark displayed adjacent to the command indicates that it is active) or press Alt + 3 .

Using the Mixer toolbar

The Mixer window toolbar contains three buttons: Project Audio Properties, Insert FX and
Insert Bus.

Button Description
Displays the Project Properties dialog.

Adds an Assignable FX send to your

project. The Plug-In Chooser dialog
displays so you can create a plug-in
chain for a new FX send.
Adds another bus to your project. The
Audio tab in the Project Properties
dialog is updated to reflect the new
number of busses.

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Renaming a Mixer control

Double-clicking a Mixer control name allows you to rename the control. Press Enter to save
the change.

Edit name here

Using the Mixer’s faders

Adjusting the Preview fader

To adjust the Preview fader, drag the thumb up or down.
• Dragging the thumb up will increase the preview volume.
• Dragging the thumb down will decrease the preview volume.

Hiding the Preview fader

Once you have added all desired media files to a project, you may want to hide the Preview
fader to make room for additional busses and assignable FX. To hide the Preview fader,
right-click within the Mixer window and choose Show Preview Fader from the shortcut
menu. The fader remains hidden until Show Preview Fader is again chosen from the shortcut
menu.

Adjusting a split fader in the Mixer

Unlike the Preview fader, the thumbs of the Master, bus, and assignable FX faders are split.
This allows you to adjust the levels of the left and right channels independently.
To move the faders individually, drag the thumb for the desired channel and release the
mouse when it is in the correct position.
However, you can adjust both channels simultaneously by doing either of the following:
• Click and hold the mouse button in the middle of the fader’s thumb while making your
adjustment.
• Click the Lock Fader Channels ( ) button before adjusting the fader.

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You can affect the fader’s thumb by double-clicking:
• Double-clicking the thumb will reset the fader to 0.0 dB.
• If you have set each channel differently, double-clicking either channel of the fader’s
thumb will match the remaining channel to it.

Changing meter resolution

ACID allows you select the meter resolution. This is useful when building a project from
several media source pools that have varying volume levels. To change the resolution, right-
click a meter and choose the desired resolution from the shortcut menu.

Changing the meter resolution of one fader

automatically reconfigures all other meters in
the Mixer to match the selected resolution.

Adjusting for clipping

The volume of certain media files may cause a meter to clip. This will result in the clipping
value being displayed in a red indicator at the top of the meter as well as a distorted audio
signal. If the meter clips, lower the volume and click the red clip indicator to reset the
meter. Continue adjusting the fader and resetting the meter until clipping is eliminated.

A meter can also be reset by right-clicking on it

and choosing Reset Clip from the shortcut
menu.

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Saving and rendering a project

Though ACID provides you with the tools to quickly build impressive musical projects, you
may find yourself building elaborate projects over a period of weeks or even months. While
they are being built, ACID projects should be saved in the application’s native format, the
ACID Project File (.acd).

If you save an ACID 1.0 or 2.0 project in

ACID 3.0, it will be unusable in earlier
versions of ACID. Use the Save As dialog to
save the project with a new name after editing
it in ACID 3.0.

When you are finished building a project, ACID allows you to render projects in a variety
formats. The project’s final format (or formats) should be determined by how the media will
be delivered. For example, you would not want to render your project to the RealMedia
format if you plan to write it to CD.

Be aware that projects containing MIDI files

that are routed to external MIDI ports must be
rerouted to the internal DirectX 8 SoftSynth to
be rendered.

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Saving a project
ACID Project File (.acd) is the default format for saving a new project and should be used
for saving unfinished projects. There are two ACID project file types.

Format Extension Description

ACID Project File .acd Contains all information regarding the project
including track layout, envelope settings, and effects
parameters. However, this type of file does not
contain actual audio, only references to the audio files.
ACID Project with .acd-zip Contains all information regarding the project
Embedded Media including track layout, envelope settings, and effects
parameters. In addition, all audio files used in the
project are embedded into the project file.
If you save a project in .acd-zip format, the project file
and all media files are copied to a temporary folder in
the ACID program folder, typically C:\Program
Files\Sonic Foundry\ACID 3.0\Temp\ACID Pro Temp x\.
If you continue to work on your project after saving
the .acd-zip file, your changes will be saved to the files
in this temporary folder.

Use the procedure below to save a project for the first time:
1. Display the Save As dialog using any of the following options:
• Click the Save ( ) button in the toolbar.
• From the Edit menu, choose Save.
• Press Ctrl + S on the keyboard.
2. Select the drive and directory where the file will be saved using the Save in drop-down list.
3. Enter a name for the project in the File name field.
4. Specify the desired ACID project file in the Save as type drop-down list.
5. If you want ACID to save a copy of each of the project’s media files to the same location
as your project file, select the Copy all media with project check box. This is available when
saving as an ACID project file.
6. Click Save. The project is saved.
After the project is saved for the first time, subsequent saves will bypass the Save As
dialog and automatically save changes to the project using the existing file name.

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Once the project is saved, you can use the

Save As command from the File menu to
create a copy of the project with a new name or
to a different ACID project file format.

Rendering a project
Rendering refers to the process of converting the ACID project into a file that is formatted
for a specific playback method. Possible playback methods include media player
applications, Internet streaming media, and CD-ROM. When an ACID project is rendered,
it is not overwritten, deleted, or altered and you are able to return to the original project to
make changes and re-render.
1. From the File menu, choose Render As. The Render As dialog displays.
2. Select the drive and folder where the file will be saved, using the Save in drop-down list.
3. Enter a new name for the project in the File name field.
4. Specify the desired file format in the Save as type drop-down list.
5. If the selected file type supports it, you can choose an encoding template from the
Template drop-down list, or click the Custom button to create a new template. For more
information, see Creating an encoding template on page 62.

When you render to Sonic Foundry Audio

(.sfa), Perfect Clarity Audio (.pca), Wave64
(.w64), or Wave (.wav) formats, you can
save each bus to a separate file. Choose one of
the Multiple Stereo or Multiple Mono settings
from the Template drop-down list. For
example, if you'd entered My Remix.wav in
the File name box, ACID will create My
Remix Master.wav, My Remix Bus A.wav,
and so on for each bus in your project.

6. Select the Render loop region only check box if you want to save only the portion of the
project that is contained within the loop region. The loop region does not need to be
active for this option to work.
7. If the selected file type supports it, you can select the Save project markers in media file
check box to include markers and regions in the rendered media file.

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8. Select Save each Track as a separate file check box if you want to render each track in the
project to its own file. File name is changed to Folder, which displays name of the folder in
the Save in box.
9. Click Save. A progress dialog displays.
When rendering is complete, you can choose one of the following options:
• The Open button starts the associated media player and plays the newly rendered file.
• The Open Folder button opens Windows Explorer to display the location of the newly
rendered file.
• The Close button closes the progress dialog and returns you to the ACID window.

Supported formats for rendering

The following table briefly describes the file formats available for rendering a project (ACID
XPress can render only to Windows Media and RealMedia up to 56 Kbps):

Format Extension Description

AIFF File .aif The standard audio file format for audio used on
Macintosh computers.
Wave File .wav The standard audio file format used on Windows-based
computers.
RealMedia .rm The RealNetworks standard for streaming media via the
Web. This option renders both audio and video into one
file.
MPEG Layer 3 .mp3 A highly compressed format used for portable digital
players and Internet sharing of media.
Video for Windows .avi The standard video file format used on Windows-based
computers.
OGG Vorbis .ogg A patent-free audio encoding and streaming technology.
Quicktime .mov QuickTime for Microsoft Windows.
Windows Media 7 .wma, .wmv The Microsoft audio and video format used to create files
for streaming or downloading via the Web.
Sonic Foundry Perfect .pca A Sonic Foundry proprietary lossless audio compression
Clarity Audio format.
Sonic Foundry Audio .sfa A Sonic Foundry proprietary, uncompressed format
that should only be used for compatibility with other
Sonic Foundry applications. It is not recommended for
use as a rendering format as it is not universally
supported.
Wave64 .w64 A Sonic Foundry proprietary wave format that does not
have a restricted file size (Unlike Windows standard .wav
format which is limited to ~2GB).

Some plug-ins, such as MP3, may require registration.

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Creating an encoding template

The Custom Settings dialog displays when you click the Custom button on the Save As
dialog. You can use the Custom Settings dialog to create custom encoding templates for
many of the file formats available in ACID.
1. From the File menu, choose Render As. The Render As dialog displays.
2. Choose your preferred file format from the Save as type drop-down list. If the format
allows you to create custom settings, the Custom button will become active.
3. Click the Custom button. The Custom Settings dialog displays.
4. Make the appropriate setting changes for the chosen file format.
5. Enter a name for the template in the Template box and click the Save ( ) button.
6. Click OK. The Custom Settings dialog closes. The new template name is displayed in the
Template drop-down box on the Render As dialog.

Publishing to the Internet

When your project is finished, you have the option of publishing it to the Internet. The
most common place to publish your project is ACIDplanet.com, a virtual community of
ACID users. ACIDplanet.com allows you to do the following:
• share your music.
• listen to projects built by other ACID enthusiasts.
• download free loops.
• enter remix contests co-sponsored by Sonic Foundry and major record labels.

Publishing your project to the Internet involves two distinct procedures: creating a personal
account and uploading the project.

Creating a personal account

Publish setup allows you to create accounts at Web sites where you can publish your song
files. Each Web site that offers publishing directly through ACID will guide you through its
own account creation process. If you haven’t created an account and you attempt to publish
a song, you will be directed to Publish Setup.
1. From the File menu, choose Publish Setup.
2. Follow the on-screen instructions to set up your account.
At any time, you can go back to Publish Setup and create another account at a different Web
site. The Web site you are currently logged into in Publish Setup is where ACID will publish
your song when you choose Publish.

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Uploading a project
Publishing a project file copies your media to the Web so you can share it with other Web
users. The following procedure assumes you already have an account set up with a publish
provider. If not, you will first be redirected to Publish Setup. After successfully creating an
account, you will be directed back to the Publish feature.
1. From the File menu, choose Publish. The Publish dialog displays.
2. Select the appropriate radio button to specify whether the song to be published is the
current ACID song or a different song.
• To publish your current ACID song, choose a streaming format and bitrate.
• To publish a different song, enter the path to the song or click the Browse button to
locate the file. This song must already be in a streaming format.
3. Click Next. If you are publishing the current ACID song, it will be rendered in the format
and bitrate you specified. A window displays from the publish provider with directions for
completing the publishing process.
4. Follow the instructions provided by the publish provider. ACID begins uploading the file
to the provider. A progress dialog will inform you when the upload is finished.
5. Click OK. The publish provider will provide a link to the song on their Web site;
however, this may vary depending on provider.

Writing to CD
Finally, ACID allows you to write your projects to CD using supported CD-R/CD-RW
drives. The application will automatically reformat your project so it can be played on
consumer CD players; however, the disc must be closed before it can be played in a CD
player.

CD sample rate
Prior to writing a track to CD, you should verify that the project’s sample rate is configured
to 44,100Hz. Sample rates other than 44,100Hz will result it the CD’s track lengths being
miscalculated by CD players.
To change the project’s sample rate:
1. Display the Project Properties dialog using one of the following methods:
• Choose Properties from the File menu.
• Press Alt + Enter on the keyboard.
2. Click the Audio tab.
3. Specify 44,100 in the Sample rate (Hz) drop-down list and click OK.

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Writing a track to CD
1. Insert a blank CD in a supported CD-R/CD-RW drive.
2. From the Tools menu choose Create CD.
Notice that the Create CD dialog indicates the amount of time that the current project
will fill on the CD as well as the total amount of time remaining on the CD. If the Time
needed for audio value exceeds the Time available on disc value, ACID will not allow the
track to be written to the CD.

If there is not a CD in the CD-R/CD-RW

drive, only the Cancel button will be available
in this dialog.

3. Click the Add Audio button. ACID begins writing your project to the CD and displays a
progress meter. Once ACID begins writing to the CD, cancelling the write operation will
render the CD unusable.
When ACID finishes writing the track to the disc, a dialog will display a message
indicating whether the track was written successfully.
4. Click OK.

Closing a CD
Once all desired tracks are written to the CD, it must be closed to allow it to be played on
consumer CD players. Be aware that no additional tracks may be written to a CD after it is
closed.
1. Verify that the CD to be closed is in the your CD-R/CD-RW drive.
2. From the Tools menu, choose Create CD. The Create CD dialog displays.
Notice that the Create CD dialog indicates the total amount of time remaining on the
CD. Once the CD is closed, additional tracks cannot be written to it.
3. Click the Close Disc button. ACID begins closing the CD and displays a progress meter.
Once ACID begins closing the CD, cancelling the operation will render the CD
unusable.
When ACID finishes closing the disc, a dialog displays a message indicating whether the
CD was closed successfully.
4. Click OK.

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Tips and tricks

The following sections contain some creative suggestions for building projects in ACID as
well as some little-known features.

Detuning a paired track

Detuning a paired track is a quick and easy way to thicken an audio track without adding the
additional processing of effects. This trick works extremely well with synths, pads, strings
and ambient sounds. However, that does not mean that you shouldn’t use it to add body to
drums, basses, and horns.
1. Right-click the project track to be detuned and choose Duplicate Track from the shortcut
menu. The track is duplicated and the copy is added to the Track List.
2. Click the waveform of the duplicated track to highlight it.
3. Use the + and - keys on your numeric keypad to change the pitch of the duplicated
track.
Octave intervals (+12, -12, -24) typically sound best when working with pitched audio;
however, experimenting with other, less ordinary intervals may produce surprising results.
When working with non-pitched audio, intervals do not matter, thereby allowing you to
freely experiment with radical pitch shifting.
This technique typically works best when tuning the duplicate track to a lower octave
than the original track, but that does not mean you cannot try raising the pitch of the
duplicate track.

Panning in conjunction with detuning

Few things are as uninteresting as a series of tracks panned down the middle of a stereo
image. Particularly after detuning a paired track, you should experiment with spatially
positioning the tracks using the Pan control or the Pan envelope. Panning each track to a
specific channel will produce a nice wide aural effect. If you are looking for something a
little more dynamic, position the original track anywhere in the stereo image and use a Pan
envelope to sweep the duplicate track from the left channel to the right channel of the mix.
For more information, see Track envelopes on page 103.

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Double time/Half time

You can also produce interesting effects by misinforming ACID regarding the number of
beats in an audio file. Configuring a file with half its actual number of beats will result in it
being played at double time in the project. This is an easy way to add speed metal drum
tracks to your project. This technique is also useful for adding a kick drum on every beat to
producing a heavy dance foundation. Conversely, configuring a file with twice its actual
number of beats will result in it being played at half time in a project.
1. Right-click the desired track in the Track List and choose Properties from the shortcut
menu. The Properties dialog displays.
2. Click the Stretch tab.
3. Change the value in the Number of beats edit box.
• Halving the current value will double the loop’s playback speed.
• Doubling the current value will halve the loop’s playback speed.

The Wall of Sound

As mentioned previously, it is sometimes preferable to color and thicken mixes without
resorting to effects and other digital processing. This trick has its roots in the musical
producer who first utilized the studio as an instrument in music making. Working without
the benefit of multitrack recording, Phil Spector colored his songs by having several
instruments play slightly different parts. For example, he might use an acoustic bass, and
electric bass, and the bass notes of a piano to all play slight variations on the same basic riffs.
These variations, along with the differing timbre of the actual instruments, produced a dense
sonic mass that became known as The Wall of Sound.
• To add this aural density to your projects, experiment with using two, three, or even
four tracks of similar instrumentation.
• Altering the pitch of specific tracks will help them cut through the mix. For more
information, see Changing a track’s key on page 100.
• Further differentiate specific tracks using pan and volume envelopes to color the project
and simulate actual human performance. For more information, see Track envelopes on
page 103.
• This effect can be made even more pronounced by setting a start offset within specific
individual events. For more information, see Changing event properties on page 38.

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CHAPTER

Intermediate
3 Project
Techniques
Using project markers and regions
ACID markers and regions identify areas of your project and provide navigational cues for
quickly finding those areas. After markers and regions are placed, you may adjust their
position along the project’s timeline and label them with meaningful names for your
reference.

Marker type Description

Marker (standard) Markers are used to identify specific reference points in your project. Points
that you may want to identify are introductions, bridges, refrains, choruses, or
whatever you choose.
Time Marker Time markers are fixed to the Time Ruler and mark absolute time in your
project. They are very useful when scoring video (available in ACID Pro and
ACID Music).
Command Marker Command markers are used to indicate when an instruction or function will
occur in a streaming media file (available in ACID Pro and ACID Music).

Regions Regions are used to subdivide your project into time segments. Regions have in
and out points, which allow them to function as “permanent” time selections.

Working with standard markers

Markers are tools that can make creating music easier by identifying specific points along
the project’s timeline. They can be named, moved, and serve as snap and navigational
points for the cursor and events. When you place markers, ACID automatically numbers
them in the order that they were placed.

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Placing and moving standard markers

Markers are placed at the cursor position. You may place a marker in one of the following
ways:
• From the Insert menu, choose Marker.
• Right-click the Marker bar and choose Markers/Regions and from the submenu choose
Insert Marker.
• Press the M key. You may use this method to place a marker while the project is playing.
Marker Marker bar

After a marker has been placed, you may move it at any time by doing the following:
1. Place the mouse pointer on the marker to be moved; the hand cursor ( ) appears.
2. Drag the marker to the desired position.

Naming a standard marker

ACID allows you to name markers in your project. You may want to name markers based on
parts of the project. For example, you may want to identify choruses, refrains, bridges, or
instrument solos as reference points along the timeline.
1. Place the mouse pointer on the marker to be named; the hand cursor ( ) appears.
2. Right-click the marker and choose Rename from the shortcut menu. A text box will
appear next to the marker.

3. Type a marker name and press the Enter key to save the name.
4. Repeat steps 1-3 to rename the marker. To rename the marker you can double-click it
and enter a new name.

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Navigating to a standard marker
While you are working on your project, you may have scrolled to a portion of the project
where the cursor is not visible. There are two ways to move the cursor directly to the
selected marker:
• Right-click the marker and choose Go To from the shortcut menu.

• Click the marker once.

• Use the corresponding number keys, not on the numeric keypad.

You may also navigate between markers in

your project by pressing forward ( Ctrl + ) or
backward ( Ctrl + ) shortcut keys.

Adjust tempo to match cursor to marker

Position the cursor, right-click the marker tab, and choose Adjust tempo to match cursor to
marker from the shortcut menu. The project tempo will change so the cursor position
matches the selected marker.

Deleting standard markers

You may remove markers from the project at any time. Because markers are automatically
numbered when they are placed, ACID will not renumber the remaining markers when one
is deleted. The remaining markers will retain their numbers. However, if you add markers
later, ACID will begin numbering to fill the sequence gap.
For example, if you have five markers in your project and delete markers 3 and 4, the
remaining markers will be listed as 1, 2 and 5. When you add markers again, ACID will
begin numbering the markers at 3 then 4.
1. Place the mouse pointer on the marker to be deleted; the hand cursor ( ) appears.

2. Right-click the marker and choose Delete from the shortcut menu. The marker will be
removed from the project.

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Working with time markers

Unlike standard markers, time markers are tied to absolute time within your project. They
are added differently than standard markers and appear on the Time Ruler at the bottom of
the Track View. Otherwise, time markers can be manipulated just like other markers.

Placing time markers

Time markers are placed at the cursor position. You may place a time marker in one of the
following ways:
• From the Insert menu, choose Time Marker.
• Press the H key. You may use this method to place a time marker while the project is
playing back.

Marker

ACID does not number time markers.

Adjust tempo to match marker to cursor

Using this function with time markers is particularly useful when scoring video. For more
information, see Scoring video with ACID on page 151.
Position the cursor, right-click the marker tab, and choose Adjust tempo to match marker to
cursor from the shortcut menu. The project tempo will change so the Time marker matches
the cursor position.
You can also align the marker and cursor by holding the Alt key while dragging the marker.
For example, hold Alt while dragging a time marker to a location on the Beat Ruler. The
project tempo is adjusted so the time at the marker occurs on a specific beat. For example, if
you place a time marker at 10 seconds on the Time Ruler and hold Alt while dragging the
marker to 5.1 on the Beat Ruler, ACID will adjust the project's tempo so the first beat of
measure five occurs at ten seconds.

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Working with command markers

Command markers add interactivity to a multimedia presentation streamed over the
Internet. As your video plays, any number of other actions can be programmed to execute.
These commands are a part of the Windows Media and RealMedia streaming formats. Most
frequently, these actions add text or open a related Web site where the viewer can find more
information about the topic at hand. The specific commands available vary depending on
the final format of your project.

Streaming media files can be played back from

any hard drive or CD-ROM, but in order to
stream properly across the Internet, the file
must be placed on a special streaming media
server. Please check with your Internet Service
Provider for details and availability of this
special service.

Defining streaming media commands

In a streaming media file, command markers can be used to display headlines, show captions,
link to Web sites, or any other function you define.

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ACID includes several command types that you may add to a streaming media file. Some
command types are exclusive to either the Windows Media (.wma or .wmv) or the
RealMedia (.rm) player.

Command Player Type Description

URL Windows Media Indicates when an instruction is sent to the user’s Internet browser to change
and RealMedia the content being displayed. With this command, you enter the URL that will
display at a specific time during the rendered project’s playback.
Text Windows Media Displays text in the captioning area of the Windows Media Player located
below the video display area. You enter the text that will display during
playback.
WMClosedCaption Windows Media Displays the entered text in the captioning window that is defined by an
HTML layout file.
WMTextBodyText Windows Media Displays the entered text in the text window that is defined by an HTML
layout page.
WMTextHeadline Windows Media Displays the entered text in the headline window that is defined by an HTML
layout file.
Title Windows Media Displays the entered text on the player’s title bar.
and RealMedia
Author Windows Media Displays the entered text (Author’s name) when a users selects About this
and RealMedia Presentation from the RealPlayer’s shortcut menu or Properties from the
Windows Media shortcut menu.
Copyright Windows Media Displays the entered copyright information when a user selects About this
and RealMedia Presentation from the RealPlayer’s shortcut menu or Properties from the
Windows Media shortcut menu.
HotSpotPlay* RealMedia Allows you to define an area in the RealPlayer video display that users can
click to jump to another RealMedia file.
HotSpotBrowse* RealMedia Allows you to define an area in the RealPlayer video display that users can
click to jump to a Web page that you specify.
HotSpotSeek* RealMedia Allows you to define an area in the RealPlayer video display that users can
click to jump to a point in the current RealMedia file.

* A hotspot is defined by the bottom-left (x,y) and top-right (x,y) corners of a rectangle.

Placing a command marker

Command markers are placed at the cursor’s position by choosing Command from the Insert
menu. They can also be placed during playback by pressing the C key. Command markers
appear on the Command ruler, which is above the Marker bar.
URL command marker

Command ruler
Marker bar

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When you place command markers, the Command Properties dialog appears. The
Command Properties dialog can be accessed at any time by double-clicking any command
marker.

Use this dialog to define your own command from the drop-down list. This dialog is also
where you edit the behavior of the selected command markers.
• The Command drop-down list allows you to select or enter the type of command to place.
• The Parameter box defines the behavior of the command.
• The Comments box is used to remind you of the command’s purpose while you work on
the project. Its function is similar to naming markers and regions.
• The Position box allows you to specify the timing of the command. Otherwise, command
markers are automatically set to the current cursor position.

Once the command properties are set, click OK to place the command marker on the
Command ruler. Command markers can be moved by dragging them to a new location.

Editing command marker properties

1. Double-click the command marker. The Command Properties dialog displays.
2. Change the command type, parameters, comments, or enter a new position along the
timeline.
3. Click OK to assign the new properties or click Cancel to keep the command marker’s
original properties.

Adjust tempo to match cursor to marker

Position the cursor, right-click the marker tab, and choose Adjust tempo to match cursor to
marker from the shortcut menu. The project tempo will change so the cursor position
matches the selected command marker.

Deleting a command marker

To delete a command marker, right-click the marker and choose Delete from the shortcut
menu.

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Working with Regions

Regions are useful tools that allow you to subdivide your project into time sections by
designating in and out points along the timeline. Regions can function as “permanent” time
selections for playback and editing purposes. Like markers, regions can serve as reference
points and may be moved, named, and provide snap points for the cursor and events.
When you place regions, ACID automatically numbers them in the order that they were
placed.

Placing and moving regions

Regions are placed at the start and end points of a loop region or time selection. You may
place a region in one of the following ways:
• From the Insert menu, choose Region.
• On the Marker bar, right-click and choose Markers/Regions and choose Insert Region from
the submenu.
• Press the R key.

Region start Region end

Loop region

After a region has been placed, you may change its position by dragging the region tag to the
desired position.

You can move a region without changing its

size by holding the Alt key while dragging either
region tag.

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Naming regions
ACID allows you to name the placed regions in your project. You may want to name regions
based on parts of the project or to define the amount of time that the regions encompass. For
example, you may want to identify introductions, solos, or special time-related features in
your project as reference points.
1. Right-click the region’s start tag and choose Rename from the shortcut menu. A text box
will appear next to the region’s in tag.

2. Type a region name and press the Enter key to save the name.
3. Repeat steps 1-3 to rename other regions.

Navigating to regions
While you are working on your project, you may have scrolled to a portion of the project
where the cursor is not visible. You may click in the Track View to move and view the
cursor or you may use region tags to bring the cursor into view.
To move the cursor to the selected region tag, right-click the region tag and choose Go To
from the shortcut menu.

You may also navigate between regions in your

project by pressing forward ( Ctrl + ) or
backward ( Ctrl + ) shortcut keys.

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Selecting a region
You may use the region’s start and end tags to make a time selection across all tracks in your
project. The information within the time selection can then be used for playback or editing.
1. Choose a time selection-type tool: Selection, Edit Envelope, or the Time Selection.
1. Place the mouse pointer on either the region’s start or end tag; the hand cursor ( )
appears.
2. Right-click the region tag and choose Select Region from the shortcut menu. The
selection bar will appear between the region tags and the tracks will be highlighted.
Selection bar

Deleting regions
You may remove regions from the project at any time. Because regions are automatically
numbered when they are placed, ACID will not renumber the existing regions when one is
removed. The existing regions will retain their numbers. However, if you add regions later,
ACID will begin numbering to fill the sequence gap that exists.
For example, if you have six regions in your project and delete regions 4 and 5, the
remaining regions will be listed as 1, 2, 3 and 6. When you add markers again, ACID will
begin numbering the markers at 4 then 5.
To remove a region from a project, right-click the region tag marker and choose Delete from
the shortcut menu.

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Snapping events
Snapping helps you to align events in your project with other items. ACID is preset to snap
event edges to the project’s grid lines as you drag an event along the track. If snapping is
enabled, and the Grid Only option is turned off, the event’s edges will automatically align to
these designated snap points:
• Cursor position
• Grid lines
• Markers
• Regions start and end points
• Time selections in and out points

You may enable snapping to these elements in the project or limit snapping to grid lines.

Snap point examples

Enabling/disabling snapping
If the snap function is preventing you from placing an event precisely where you want it, you
may disable snapping. Disabling all snapping will prevent events from automatically aligning
to the cursor, grid lines, markers, regions, and time selections.
The Options menu allows you to toggle snap functions. A check mark next to the Enable
command indicates that snapping is enabled. The presence or absence of a check mark next
to the Grid Only command indicates the type of snapping that is enabled.
Select to disable/enable all snapping
Select to toggle between snapping
to grid lines only and snapping to all
elements.

You can temporarily disable snapping by

holding down the Shift key.

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Enabling/disabling snapping
You may enable/disable snapping in one of the following ways:
• Click the Snap ( ) button on the Toolbar.
• From the Options menu, choose Snapping then choose Enable from the submenu.
• Press the F8 shortcut key.

Enabling snapping to grid lines

With snapping enabled, you may choose to snap only to grid lines. From the Options menu,
choose Snapping then choose Grid Only from the submenu. If grid only is enabled, a check
mark displays next to the command.

Enabling snapping to all elements

With snapping enabled, you may choose to snap to all elements. From the Options menu,
choose Snapping then choose Grid Only from the submenu. The check mark does not display
next to the Grid Only command when snapping to all elements.

Use the Ctrl + F8 shortcut key to toggle between

grid only and all elements.

Splitting events
ACID allows you to split events in a number of ways. Splitting is a quick way to create
independently functioning events from a single one. You might consider splitting an event if
you want to adjust a small part of the track. For example, you may want to apply pitch shift
to a guitar track for a few measures and then return the track to its original setting.
Splitting occurs at the cursor position or at the in and out points of a time selection. When
you split an event, ACID creates a new ending point for the original event and creates a
starting point for the newly created event.
When you split an event, the newly created events abut each other. If Quick fade edges to
prevent clicks is selected in the Event Properties dialog, fades will be inserted at the split
point.

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Split position Two events

However, you may move either of the events, which will create a gap.

Split position Two events

Splitting events
Splitting at the cursor position will split all selected events that the cursor crosses, on all
tracks.
1. Select the event(s) that you want to split.
2. Place the cursor where you want the split to occur or make a time selection.
3. From the Edit menu, choose Split or press the S shortcut key. The result of the split
depends on how events were selected:
• Splitting at the cursor position will split all events, which the cursor crosses, on all
tracks.

Splitting at the Cursor Position

Events before splitting Events after splitting

Cursor position After the split, the three events

and split point become six events

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• Selecting a single event prior to splitting will prevent other events from being split at
the cursor’s position.

Splitting a single selected event

Events before splitting Events after splitting

Event to Only the selected

be split event was split
at the cursor
position

Cursor position
and split point

• Selecting multiple events causes only the selected events to be split at the cursor’s
position. Be sure to set your cursor position before selecting events. Attempting to set
your cursor after selecting events will cause you to lose your event selection.

Splitting multiple selected events

Events before splitting Events after splitting

Only the selected

Events to events were split
be split at the cursor
position

Cursor position
and split point

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• Making a time selection will allow you to split events at the time selection’s in and out
points across all tracks.

Splitting a time only selection

Events before splitting Events after splitting
Selection bar Selection bar

In point Out point Split point Split point

I i

• When selecting events within a time selection, only the selected events in the time
range will be split at the in and out points.

Splitting selected events within a time selection

Events before splitting Events after splitting
Selection bar Selection bar

Event to be Only the selected

split at the time event was split at
selection’s in and the in and out
out points points

In point Out point Split point Split point

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Joining events
On ACID tracks, you may join events that have been segmented along the timeline. Joining
events is an efficient way to redraw an event and remove any splitting or silent regions
between events.
You would want to join events if you decided that the event should playback uninterrupted
over the specified time range.
1. Select the events or range of events that you want to join. For more information, see
Selecting multiple events on page 40.
2. From the Edit menu, choose Join or press the J shortcut key. The selected events are
joined.

Select all the events that you want to join.

You can also select the first and last events

you want to join: creating an event selection range.

After you join the events, a single event will appear.

Joining events is similar to dragging the

edge of an existing event

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The Chopper
The Chopper allows you to quickly create “slice-and-dice” effects that were possible, but
somewhat time consuming in previous versions of ACID. Selecting a track automatically
places a copy of the track’s file in the Chopper where it can be immediately manipulated and
inserted into the Track View.

Toolbar

Beat ruler

Time ruler

Transport bar

The Chopper Window

Viewing the Chopper

To display the Chopper, choose Chopper from the View menu or press Alt + 2 .

Chopper grid
The Chopper’s grid display uses the same increments available on the Track View. To
change the grid display, right-click the waveform area of the Chopper, choose Grid Spacing
from the shortcut menu, and choose the desired display from the submenu. This option
defaults to Ruler Marks.

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Chopper snapping
The snapping behavior of the Track View and Chopper are linked. To enable snapping in
both components, choose Snapping from the Options menu and choose Enable from the
submenu, or press F8 . A check mark is displayed adjacent to the command to indicate that
snapping is active. To turn snapping off, choose Snapping from the Options menu and
choose Enable again from the submenu.

When snapping is enabled, you can choose

between snapping the grid only or snapping to
all elements. For more information, see
Snapping events on page 77.

Magnifying the Chopper

There are three ways of adjusting the magnification of the Chopper.
• Click the and buttons located in the lower right-hand corner of the window.
• Click within the Chopper and use the mousewheel.
• Quickly magnify a selection by right-clicking and choosing Zoom Selection from the
shortcut menu. Right-click and choose Zoom Selection a second time to restore the
selection to its original magnification.

Chopper transport bar

The Chopper contains a dedicated transport bar that can be used to preview selections prior
to inserting them in the project.

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Chopper toolbar and keyboard commands
In addition to the dedicated transport bar, the Chopper contains a dedicated toolbar,
designed to make creating selections quick and easy. The following table briefly describes
the toolbar buttons and the associated keyboard commands.

Button Keyboard Function

/ or A Inserts the Chopper selection in the Track View at the current cursor
position.
Ctrl + , Shifts the Track View’s cursor position to the left by the length of the
increment arrow.
Ctrl + . Shifts the Track View’s cursor position to the right by the length of the
increment arrow.
N Links the length of the increment arrow with the length of the selection.
When toggled on, the length of the increment remains equal to the length
of the selection. When toggled off, you can configure the increment
independently of the Chopper selection.
; (semicolon) Halves the length of the Chopper selection.

Doubles the length of the Chopper selection.

’ (apostrophe)

< or , (comma) Shifts the Chopper selection to the left by the length of the selection.

> or . (period) Shifts the Chopper selection to the right by the length of the selection.

Ctrl + Shift + , Shifts the selection left by the increment length.

Ctrl + Shift + . Shifts the selection right by the increment length.

Ctrl + ; Doubles the length of the increment arrow.

Ctrl + Halves the length of the increment arrow.

’
R Inserts a region.

M Inserts a marker.

I Marks the start point of a loop region.

O Marks the end point of a loop region. Once the endpoint is established,
the loop region will highlight.

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Chopper markers and regions

When working with events on the Chopper, you are able to drop markers and create regions
just like in the Track View. For more information, see Using project markers and regions on page
67.
These markers and regions will be saved with the project when it is saved. They can also be
saved back to the original media file by using the Save ( ) button in the Track
Properties dialog.

Creating a selection in the Chopper

After an event is placed in the Chopper, you can use the toolbar, transport bar, and mouse
(or their keyboard equivalents) to create and preview selections within the event. When the
desired selection is achieved, it can be inserted in the Track View.

Placing a file on the Chopper

To place a file in the Chopper, do any of the following:
• Select a track in the Track List.
• Select an event.
• Right-click an event and choose Select in Chopper from the shortcut menu.

If you use Select in Chopper on an event that

contains only a portion of a file, ACID will
place the entire contents of the file in the
Chopper. The part of the waveform selected,
however, will match the contents of the
selected event. This allows you to see the event
in the context of the media file.

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Creating a selection
To create a selection, drag the mouse, or hold Shift while pressing the arrow keys. A shaded
region displays on the Chopper to indicate the current selection, and its start point, end
point, and length are displayed at the bottom right-hand corner of the window in M:B:T
(measures:beats:ticks) format. You can preview the selection at any time by clicking the Play
( ) button on the Chopper’s transport bar or pressing Space .
Increment

Start End Length

In addition, an increment arrow displays on

the Track View above the selected block. For
more information, see Insert increments on
page 88.

As the selection is created on the Chopper, a colored block displays in the Track View. This
block indicates where the selection will be placed on the Track View when it is inserted
from the Chopper.

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Creating a selection of a specific musical length

Frequently it is advantageous to create a selection with a length corresponding to a musical
value. This is easily accomplished in ACID using the Chopper’s selection shortcut menu.
1. Create a selection or place the cursor in the Chopper. For more information, see Creating a
selection on page 87.
2. Right-click and choose the desired musical length from the shortcut menu. ACID creates
a selection equal to the specified musical length.

Insert increments
In addition to creating selections, the Chopper allows you to configure the sections of
silence (or increments) between selections painted on a track. When the Link ( ) button is
selected, ACID links the increment arrow length with the selection length. This forces the
increment and selection lengths to remain equal, thereby allowing you to insert selections
seamlessly, end-to-end, in the project.

Selection and increment length Chopper selection inserted end-to-end three times

When the Link button is toggled off, the increment arrow is displayed in black and you are
able to establish a increment length that is independent of the selection length. The
increment arrow can be set by dragging either end of the arrow or by using the increment
shortcut menu.

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When the increment length is greater than the length of the selection, ACID will insert an
appropriate amount of silence following the selection when it is inserted in the Track View.
This affects the track’s insert position and allows you to paint selections separated by the
specified increment.

Increment greater than selection Selection inserted with specified increment three times

When the increment length is less than the length of the selection, ACID will overlap the
selections as they are painted in the Track View.

Increment less than selection Selection overlapped when inserted three time

Creating an increment
1. Verify that the Link ( ) button is toggled off and the increment arrow is displayed in
black.
2. Drag the point of the arrow to configure an increment of the desired length.

While dragging the increment arrow, the

Chopper’s middle status field temporarily
displays the length of the increment.

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Creating an increment of a specific musical length

The increment shortcut menu, like the selection shortcut menu, allows you to create
increments that correspond to the specified musical length.
1. Verify that the Link ( ) button is toggled off and the increment arrow is displayed in
black.
2. Right-click the increment arrow and choose the desired musical value from the shortcut
menu. The increment length is automatically configured to the selected value in both the
Chopper and the Track View.

Creating an increment of a custom musical length

1. Verify that the Link ( ) button is toggled off and the increment arrow is displayed in
black.
2. Right-click the increment arrow and choose Custom Insert Increment Length from the
shortcut menu. The Custom Length dialog displays.
3. Choose the desired increment format from the drop-down menu.
4. Enter an appropriate value in the adjacent edit box and click OK. The increment length
is automatically configured to the selected value in both the Chopper and the Track
View.

It is possible to set an increment value that will

result in the increment arrow extending beyond
the scope of the Chopper. If this occurs, an
accurate depiction of the increment will still be
displayed in the Track View.

Inserting a selection in the Track View

Using the Insert Selection button

After the desired selection and increment are created, they can be inserted in the project at
the Track View’s cursor position by clicking the Insert Selection ( )button. The cursor
then moves to the end of the increment.
• If the increment length is equal to the selection length, selections will be painted end-to-
end.
• If the increment length is greater than the selection length, an appropriate amount of
silence will be painted prior to the next insert position.
• If the increment length is less than the selection length, selections will overlap.

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Using Copy and Paste
You can right-click the selection in the Chopper and choose Copy from the shortcut menu
to copy the current selection to the clipboard. You can then use the Paste command to
insert the selection in the Track View. The cursor advances to the end of the pasted event.

When a selection is pasted from the Chopper to

the Track View, the increment setting is
ignored.

Dragging a selection
A Chopper selection can be dragged from the Chopper up to the Track View. The mouse is
used to determine the insert position. The Track View cursor will not advance after
inserting the selection.

Moving the insert position in the Track View

Clicking the Move Track View Cursor ( ) and ( ) buttons moves the current insert
position in the Track View left/right by the increment length.

Using the Chopper with one-shots

Selections of loops and Beatmapped files transfer flawlessly between the Chopper and the
Track View because the beats are clearly identified. However, one-shot files present more of
a problem. The following method can be used to create accurate single-hit selections in one-
shot files.
1. Verify that ACID’s snapping options are active. If snapping is not active, choose
Snapping from the Options menu and choose Enable from the submenu, or press F8 .

2. Verify that the Link ( ) button is clicked.

3. Create a selection of the desired musical length on the Chopper. For more information, see
Creating a selection of a specific musical length on page 88.
4. Choose Snapping from the Options menu and Enable from the submenu, or press F8 to
toggle all snapping options off.

Using the Shift key in conjunction with the

mouse will temporarily toggle ACID’s
snapping options off.

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5. Click the Link ( ) button to toggle the linking option off. The selection can now be
adjusted without changing the increment.
6. Drag the middle of the increment arrow to reposition selection length on the Chopper.
7. Use the mouse and/or keyboard to fine-tune the selection. The increment arrow does not
change.
8. Insert the desired selection data in the Track View. For more information, see Inserting a
selection in the Track View on page 90.
9. Repeat steps 6 through 8 to insert all desired selections in the Track View.

Using Ripple Edits

ACID includes a Ripple edit feature. This feature is a timeline-based procedure that allows
you to cut, delete, and paste events or portions of events within a time selection and
simultaneously adjust existing events’ timeline position on a selected track. The existing
events’ timeline position is adjusted by the total amount of the time selection that is being
cut, deleted or pasted from the clipboard.
You may turn on Ripple Edit mode by clicking its Toolbar button ( ) or pressing the
Ctrl + L shortcut keys.

Ripple edits are only available when there is a

time selection present.

Cutting events in ripple mode

Cutting events or portions of events removes them and their time information from their
respective tracks. This information is placed on the clipboard from which you may paste the
information back into your project.
1. Click the Ripple Edits ( ) button on the toolbar.
2. Click the event to be cut or make a time selection.

To cut multiple events, use the Ctrl key, the Shift key, or the Selection ( ) tool to select
the events. For more information, see Selecting multiple events on page 40.

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3. Cut the event(s) to the clipboard by doing one of the following:
• Press the Ctrl + X keys.
• Click the Cut ( ) button on the toolbar.
• From the Edit menu, choose Cut.
The cut events and their time information are removed from the selected track(s) and
placed on the clipboard. Existing events in the selected track(s) are adjusted to occupy
the space created by the cut.

Cutting time selection with ripple mode

Events within the time selection are reproduced and placed on the clipboard. Also, the time
information is placed on the clipboard. Existing events occurring after the time selection are
moved forward in the project by the length of the time selection.

Events before cut Clipboard contents Events after cut

Existing events
are adjusted to
occur sooner in
the project

Cutting time and event selection with ripple mode

Events and portions of events within the time selection are reproduced and placed on the
clipboard. Also, the time information is placed on the clipboard. Existing events occurring
later than the time selection are moved forward by the length of the time selection. Only
tracks containing selected events are affected by the ripple edit.

Events before cut Clipboard contents Events after cut

Existing events on
the top track are
adjusted to occur
sooner in the project

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Deleting events in ripple mode

Deleting events or portions of events removes them and their time information from their
respective tracks. However, this information is not placed on the clipboard. Existing events
are adjusted forward when information is deleted from a selected track.
1. Click the Ripple Edits ( ) button on the toolbar.
2. Click the event to be deleted or make a time selection.

To cut multiple events, use the Ctrl key, the Shift key, or the Selection ( ) tool to select
the events. For more information, see Selecting multiple events on page 40.
3. Delete the event(s) by doing one of the following:
• Press the Delete key.
• From the Edit menu, choose Delete.

Deleting time selection with ripple mode

Events within the time selection and their time information are removed from the project.
Existing events occurring after the time selection are moved forward in the project by the
length of the time selection. When information is deleted, it is not placed on the clipboard.

Events before delete Clipboard contents Events after delete

Deleted information is not
Existing events
placed on the clipboard.
are adjusted to
occur sooner in
the project

Deleting a time and event selection with ripple mode

Events within the time selection and their time information are removed from the project.
Existing events occurring after the time selection are moved forward in the project by the
length of the time selection. When information is deleted, it is not placed on the clipboard.

Events before delete Clipboard contents Events after delete

Deleted information is not
placed on the clipboard. Existing events on the
top track are adjusted
to occur sooner in the
project

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Pasting events in ripple mode

Once information is copied to the clipboard, you may choose a variety of ways to paste the
clipboard items into tracks. For more information, see Pasting events on page 43. The following
procedures explain pasting information when Ripple mode is enabled.

Events will always be pasted back into their

own tracks at the cursor position.

1. Click the Ripple Edits ( ) button on the toolbar.

2. Move the cursor to the desired timeline location.
3. Place the cursor within the track where you want to paste the event.
4. Paste the event into the track by doing one of the following:
• Press the Ctrl + V keys.
• Click the Paste ( ) button on the toolbar.
• From the Edit menu, choose Paste.
Clipboard information is pasted at the cursor’s position on the track. Existing track events or
portions of events after the cursor are adjusted to occur later in the project. The amount of
adjustment is based on the total length of the information being pasted.

Pasting single track information with ripple mode

The information on the clipboard determines how many tracks will be affected when you
paste. If you have copied or cut information from one track, only the selected track will be
affected by the pasted event and time information.

Clipboard contents Events before paste Events after paste

Existing event is
adjusted later in
the project.
Paste Newly pasted
position event

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Pasting multitrack information with ripple mode

ACID can paste multiple events as easily as single events.

Clipboard contents Events before paste Events after paste

Newly pasted events

Paste Existing events on the tracks are

position adjusted later in the project
These events will be
pasted

Pasting with ripple mode ripples only the events

on the tracks that will receive the clipboard
contents. If you want to ripple all tracks at the
paste position, use the Paste Insert command
from the Edit menu.

Changing tempo and key

A project can be played at any tempo or key, and you can make tempo and key adjustments
during playback.
ACID allows you to add specific tempo and key changes within a project using Tempo and
Key Change markers. These markers are added on the Marker bar above the Track View.
When the cursor passes over one of these markers, the master project tempo and/or key will
change in real time.

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Changing project tempo

With ACID, you can change the tempo of a project without affecting the project’s key.

Changing tempo using the Tempo slider

Place your cursor at the beginning of the project. Drag the Tempo slider in the Track List.
Dragging the slider to the left slows the tempo, while dragging it to the right speeds the
tempo.
When you click the Tempo slider, a colored bar displays under each track’s name to represent
the amount a track is being stretched to match the project tempo. The mark in the center of
the bar represents the original tempo of a file. When the bar is to the right of the mark, the
project tempo is faster than the original file; when the bar is to the left of the mark, the
project tempo is slower than the original file.

Project tempo is slower

than file tempo.

Project tempo is faster

than file tempo.

Double-click the Tempo text in the Track List

to enter an exact value. The text will turn into
an edit box where you can specify a tempo.
Press Enter when you are finished.

Changing project tempo to match file tempo

Each track’s shortcut menu contains the option Use Original Tempo. To the right of this
option is displayed the original tempo of the file used on the track. To change the project’s
tempo to match the original file tempo, simply choose Use Original Tempo from the shortcut
menu.

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Changing the project key

Click the Key control and select a key from the shortcut menu to adjust a project’s key.

Key control

This feature makes it possible to use media that are in different keys in the same project:
each loop that has a specified root note will be transposed to the key indicated by the Key
control.
For example, if three loops that have root notes of A, B, and C, and your Key control is set to
D, the loops will be pitched-shifted by 5, 3, and 2 semitones, respectively.

If the root note for a track is set to Don’t

Transpose in the Track Properties dialog, the
track will not pitch shift with the rest of the
project.

Working with tempo and key change markers

Tempo and key change markers allow you to make changes to the tempo and/or key at
specified points in your project.

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Adding a tempo or key change marker
1. From the Insert menu, choose Tempo/Key Change. The Tempo/Key Change dialog
displays.

2. Select the check box for the type of marker you want to place. To insert a tempo and key
change marker, make sure both boxes are selected.
• Tempo Change changes the tempo of all tracks until ACID encounters another tempo
change marker.
• Key Change changes the key of all tracks until ACID encounters another key change
marker.
• Tempo and Key Change changes the tempo and key of all tracks until ACID encounters
another tempo or key change marker.
3. Specify the desired tempo and/or key information and click OK to close the dialog. This
creates a marker in the Marker bar that displays the tempo and/or key change
information.

Editing a tempo or key change marker

There are two ways to edit the tempo and/or key of the marker:
• Place the cursor on or after the marker and adjust the Tempo slider or Key control. The
marker’s text reflects the change.
• Right-click the marker, choose Edit from the shortcut menu, and enter the appropriate
tempo and/or key change.

Adjust tempo to match cursor to marker

Position the cursor, right-click the marker tab, and choose Adjust tempo to match cursor to
marker from the shortcut menu. The project tempo will change so the cursor position
matches the selected time marker.

Deleting a tempo or key change marker

To delete a marker, right-click the marker and choose Delete from the shortcut menu.

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Changing a track’s key

You can change the key of an entire track without affecting the project’s key.
1. Right-click the track and choose Properties from the shortcut menu. The Track
Properties dialog displays.
2. On the General tab, enter the number of semitones by which to adjust the tempo in the
Pitch Shift box or use the spinner control. Use the minus (-) key for negative values.
3. Click ( ) to close the Track Properties dialog. The pitch shift displays in the track’s icon.

Another way to change the key of the track is

to select the track in the Track List and use the
+ and - key on the numeric keypad.

Changing an event’s key

You can change the key of an individual event without affecting the pitch of the track or
project.
Right-click the event in the Track View, choose Pitch Shift from the shortcut menu, and
choose Up Semitone or Down Semitone from the submenu. The pitch will shift one semitone
in the direction specified, and the amount of shift will display on the event itself.

An event’s key can also be changed using keyboard shortcut keys. For more information, see
Event commands on page 24.

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Using event envelopes

ACID enables you to use envelopes on individual events. Envelopes give you the ability to
control each event’s fade-in, fade-out, and overall volume. Envelopes are useful for
transitional effects between events by subtly fading out one event’s volume while another is
being faded in.
In ACID 3.0 envelope points are used with track envelopes, not event envelopes.
These envelopes are different than track envelopes because they affect only the event
whereas track envelopes can affect multiple events on the track.
The event’s volume level and fade curves are represented by a line that appears on the
event.

Setting an event’s volume envelope

You can control an event’s overall volume by setting an envelope at the desired decibel (dB)
level.
1. Place the mouse pointer at the top of the event; the envelope cursor ( ) appears.
2. Drag the volume line to the desired level. As you drag the volume line down ACID
displays the event’s decibel level.

3. Release the mouse to set the event’s dB level.

After the level is set, you may change it later by dragging the envelope line.

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

You can control an event’s envelope fade-in and -out characteristics by adjusting the event’s
envelope handles. These handles allow you to control the length and dB level of fade-ins
and fade-outs. Also, you can change the type of curve that the event uses to control the
volume’s fade characteristics.
1. Place the mouse pointer on the upper corner of the event; the envelope cursor ( )
appears.
2. Drag the envelope cursor and position the envelope curve. As you drag the cursor, ACID
displays the following information:
• The event decibel level.
• The time, in the event, when the fade-in is maximized or when fade-out begins.

3. Release the mouse to set the fade-in or -out characteristics.

Changing the event’s fade curve type

You can set the event’s fade curves (fast, linear, or slow) that are used to raise or lower the
volume over time.
You can change the event’s fade curve type from the fade types submenu. Right-click the
fade region, select Fade Types from the submenu. Click the desired fade type to set it.

Fast
Linear
Slow

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Create a crossfade between events

ACID allows you to quickly create perfect crossfades between overlapping events painted on
different tracks.
1. Select two events. The events must overlap, but do not need to be on adjacent tracks.
2. Press the F key. The end of the first event is faded out, and the second event is faded in.

Track envelopes
Track envelopes allow you to control volume, panning, FX send levels, and bus levels for a
specific track.
You can distinguish the various envelopes by their color.

Envelope type Envelope color

Volume Burgundy
Pan Purple
Bus Green
(ACID Pro only)
Assignable FX Blue
(ACID Pro only)

In previous ACID versions, envelopes were applied and used on individual events. This
version allows you to apply an envelope to the entire track and lock envelope points to a
specific event.

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Adding track envelopes

This section describes how to add each type of track envelope.

Adding a volume or pan envelope

1. Select the track to which you want to add the volume envelope. (You may select multiple
tracks.)
2. Add the envelope to the selected track(s) in one of following ways:
• From the Insert menu, choose Envelopes and then choose Volume or Pan to select the
type of envelope you want to insert.
• Right-click in the Track List and choose Add/Remove Envelope from the shortcut menu,
then select Volume or Pan.
• Press the Volume envelope V or Pan envelope P shortcut key.
A burgundy line appears across the track(s) for a volume envelope, and a purple line
appears across the track(s) for a pan envelope.

Envelope line

Because ACID uses true stereo panning, you

can introduce clipping when panning a track to
the left or right. Unlike a left/right balance
control—which simply decreases the volume of
one channel—panning actually adds the audio
from one channel to the other. When panning
a track, adjust the track volume accordingly.

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Adding a bus envelope
A bus envelope controls the level of a track sent to a particular bus. Before you can add a bus
envelope, you need to add busses to the project. For more information, see Adding busses to the
project on page 131.
1. Select the track to which you want to add the bus envelope. (You may select multiple
tracks.)
2. Add the envelope to the selected track(s) in one of the following ways:
• From the Insert menu, choose Envelopes and then choose the auxiliary bus for which
you want to add an envelope.
• Right-click in the Track List and choose Add/Remove Envelope from the shortcut menu,
then select the appropriate bus from the submenu.
A green line appears across the track(s).

Adding an assignable FX envelope

An assignable FX envelope controls the level of a track sent to a particular FX chain. Before
you can add an assignable FX envelope, you need to add an assignable FX to the project. For
more information, see Adding an assignable FX control on page 139.
1. Select the track to which you want to add the assignable FX envelope. (You may select
multiple tracks.)
2. Add the envelope to the selected track(s) in one of following ways:
• From the Insert menu, choose Envelopes and then choose the assignable FX for which
you want to add an envelope.
• Right-click in the Track List and choose Add/Remove Envelope from the shortcut menu,
then select the appropriate assignable FX from the submenu.
A blue line appears across the track(s).

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Adding envelope points

Envelope points can be added to control the level of signal or amount of panning at specific
points in time.
1. Place the mouse pointer on the envelope line; the envelope cursor ( ) appears.
2. Add an envelope point in one of the following ways:
• Double-click the envelope line.
• Right-click the envelope line and choose Add Point from the shortcut menu.

If you add too many points, you may delete a

point by right-clicking it and choosing Delete
from the shortcut menu. Or, you may clear all
envelope points by selecting Reset All from the
shortcut menu.

Adjusting the envelope

If you want to adjust the overall level of an envelope, simply drag the envelope line up or
down. An information box displays the amount of the adjustment. Envelopes can be
adjusted in real-time.
You can also impact the level of an envelope over time by adjusting individual envelope
points that you place along the envelope line.

Adjusting individual envelope points

You can set the level of each envelope point by dragging it up or down. As you move an
envelope point, an information box displays both the point’s occurrence on the timeline and
its level.

Other ways to set the level include the following:

• Right-click an envelope point and choose a setting from the shortcut menu.
• Choose Select All from the shortcut menu to raise or lower all points on the envelope.
• Right-click an event and choose Set To from the shortcut menu. This displays an edit box
in which you can specify a setting.

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Changing the fade curve
Between each envelope point, you may set the type of fade curve: fast, linear, or slow. From
the selected envelope point, fade curves are applied to the envelope line occurring later on
the timeline. To change the fade curve, right-click an envelope point and select Linear Fade,
Fast Fade, or Slow Fade from the shortcut menu.

Locking an envelope to an event

From the Options menu, choose Lock Envelopes to Events if you want envelope points and
position to move with an event when it is moved along the timeline. A check mark next to
the command indicates that the option is enabled.

The Envelope tool

The Envelope ( ) tool is designed to manipulate multiple envelope points in events. Use
the Envelope tool when you need to edit envelope points, but do not want to change events.
With the Envelope tool selected, events cannot be moved or edited.

Setting envelope points with the Envelope tool

To select multiple envelope points, click the track that contains the envelope and drag your
cursor in the Track View to select the points you want to move. Selected points are
displayed in an alternate color. Click any selected point and drag it to the new position; all
selected points will follow.
To deselect the points, click anywhere outside the selection.

Cutting, copying, and pasting envelope points

1. Enable the Envelope tool.
• From the Edit menu, choose Editing Tool, and choose Envelope from the submenu.
• Click the Envelope ( )tool in the toolbar.
2. Click within a track to select it.
3. Drag along the timeline to select envelope points.
4. From the Edit menu, choose Cut or Copy.
5. Click to position the cursor where you want to paste envelope points across a track.
6. From the Edit menu, choose Paste.

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Copying an envelope to another track

1. Enable the Envelope tool.
• From the Edit menu, choose Editing Tool, and choose Envelope from the submenu.
• Click the Envelope ( ) tool in the toolbar.
2. Click within a track to select it.
3. From the Edit menu, choose Select All.
4. From the Edit menu, choose Cut or Copy.
5. Click within a track to select it.
6. Click the Go to Start ( ) button if you want the envelope to appear exactly as it was in
the original track, or click to position the cursor where you want the envelope to start.
7. From the Edit menu, choose Paste.

Hiding an envelope
After you have created and set your envelope, you may hide it from the Track View. Hiding
envelopes will not affect playback or the envelope point settings.
1. Select the track(s) whose envelope(s) you want to hide.
2. From the View menu, choose Show Envelopes. A submenu appears. A check mark next
to an envelope type indicates that it will be visible in the Track View.
3. From the submenu, choose the type of envelope you want to hide. The specified envelope
type will no longer appear in the Track View for the selected track.
4. Repeat steps 1-2 to display the envelope again.

Removing a track envelope

1. Select the track(s) from which you want to remove the envelope(s).
2. From the Insert menu, choose Envelopes. A submenu appears showing a check mark next
to the envelopes that are currently being used.
3. From the submenu, choose the type of envelope you want to remove. The envelope type
is removed from the selected track(s).

When you remove an envelope from a track

and then add it again, you will need to reset the
points.

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Using track effects

ACID Pro allows to you use DirectX plug-ins at the track level, and ACID Music uses built-
in ACID FX on your tracks. Track-level plug-ins process everything on the selected track.
ACID enables you to create plug-in chains, adjust the order of plug-ins on a chain, bypass a
plug-in, remove plug-ins from the chain, and save frequently used chains as presets.
In ACID Pro, the EQ plug-in will be assigned to all tracks by default; however, it does not
use CPU power or affect the sound until you adjust its settings. It also can be removed. For
more information, see Removing plug-ins from a chain on page 111.

We recommend you do not use time-altering

effects (such as Time Stretch, Gapper/
Snipper, and Pitch-Shift without preserving
duration) with an ACID project. Time-
altering effects will cause a track to play out of
synchronization with the waveform display in
the Track View and with other tracks.

Using ACID FX as track effects in ACID Music

Use ACID FX to apply distortion, EQ, low-frequency oscillator (chorus, flanger, phaser, or
wah-wah), delay, and reverb to your tracks.
1. Select a track.
2. From the View menu, choose ACID FX, or click the Track FX ( ) button. The ACID FX
window is displayed for the selected track.
3. Use the ACID FX window to edit each effect’s settings. For more information about using
ACID FX, please refer to the ACID FX online Help.

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Using track effects in ACID Pro

Creating or adding to a track plug-in chain

A plug-in chain can contain one or more plug-ins. When you add multiple plug-ins, you
may set the processing order that the track’s events will go through when the project is
played back. Moreover, the plug-ins that you add to the chain may be added more than
once. For example, a plug-in chain can look something like the this: EQ, Compression, EQ,
and Noise Gate.
After the plug-in chain is created, the track’s events will be processed by each plug-in in its
respective order on the chain. The events’ effects processing is cumulative, so in some cases,
you may want to rearrange the order of plug-ins to achieve the desired sound. For more
information, see Arranging the plug-in’s chain order on page 111.
To create or add to a track plug-in chain, do the following:
1. Click the Track FX ( ) button. The Audio Plug-In dialog appears.
2. Click the Edit Chain ( ) button to display the Plug-In Chooser dialog.
Chain area

3. Select the plug-ins that you want to add. The selected plug-ins appear in the chain area.
There are three ways to add a plug-in to the chain:
• Double-clicking the plug-in.
• Dragging the plug-in to the chain area.
• Selecting the plug-in and clicking the Add button.
4. Click the OK button to save the track’s plug-in chain. The Plug-In Chooser dialog closes.
The Audio Plug-In dialog opens and displays the plug-in chain and the settings for the
plug-in last selected on the Plug-In Chooser dialog.
5. Click a specific plug-in button and use the bottom half of the dialog to adjust the effect’s
parameters. You can also reorder the plug-ins by dragging and dropping them within the
chain.

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You can save an effect’s parameters as a preset

to be used in other projects. To save a preset,
enter a name in the Preset box and click the
Save Preset ( ) button.

6. Click the Close ( ) button to close the Audio Plug-In dialog.

Arranging the plug-in’s chain order

The plug-ins are cumulative during playback. For example, when the track’s signal passes
through the EQ, it “carries” the EQ’s settings as it passes through the Compression plug-in,
then the signal “carries” both those plug-in settings to the next plug-in.
Because of this cumulative effect, you may need to arrange plug-ins in a certain order so that
one plug-in’s processing does not adversely affect the next plug-in on the chain. There is no
right or wrong way to order plug-ins, although some plug-ins work better when they follow
another. However, the plug-in’s order in the chain is strictly based on your preferences and
desired output.
1. Click the Track FX ( ) button. The Audio Plug-In dialog displays.
2. There are two ways to arrange plug-ins in your chain:
• Drag the plug-in to a new location in the chain.
• Right-click the plug-in button and select Move Left or Move Right from the shortcut
menu.
3. Click the Close ( ) button to save your changes and close the Audio Plug-In dialog.

Removing plug-ins from a chain

1. Click the Track FX ( ) button. The Audio Plug-In dialog displays.
2. Right-click the plug-in’s button and choose Remove from the shortcut menu, or click the
Remove Selected Plug-In ( ) button.
3. Repeat steps 2-3 to remove other plug-ins from the chain.
4. Click the Close ( ) button to save your changes and close the Audio Plug-In dialog.

You can bypass a plug-in without removing it

from the chain by clearing the check box in the
plug-in button.

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Saving plug-in chains as FX packages

ACID allows you to save plug-in chains as packages, so that you may use them again with
other projects. If you use a combination of plug-ins often, saving them as a package will save
you time. FX packages retain their chain order and individual plug-in settings.
You may save plug-in chains as packages from existing chains on tracks or when you are
creating a plug-in chain. The plug-in chains that you save as packages appear in the Plug-In
Chooser dialog in the FX Packages folder. FX packages are applied to a track the same way
you assign a plug-in to a track.
1. Click the Track FX ( ) button. The Audio Plug-In dialog displays.

If no plug-in chain exists on the track, clicking

the Track FX ( ) button causes the Plug-In
Chooser dialog to display.

2. Click the Edit Chain ( ) button to display the Plug-In Chooser dialog.
3. Create a new plug-in chain or simply use the previously created chain that displays in the
chain area.
4. Click the Save As button. The Save Plug-In Package dialog displays.

5. Enter a name that you want to use for the package.

6. Click the OK button to save the plug-in chain as an FX package.

Removing or bypassing track effects

A track can be cleared of all effects by right-clicking the Track FX ( ) button and choosing
Delete All from the shortcut menu.

A track’s effects can be bypassed without removing them by right-clicking the Track FX ( )
button and choosing Bypass All from the shortcut menu. To apply them again, right-click
the Track FX ( ) button and choose Enable All from the shortcut menu.

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Beatmapper
When a file that is longer than thirty seconds added to a project, ACID’s Beatmapper
Wizard is started. This allows you to decide whether or not to add tempo information to the
file.
• When a file goes through the Beatmapper, its downbeats and measures are identified,
allowing it to stretch/compress in conjunction with the project’s tempo.
• When adding a file without the Beatmapper, it behaves as a one-shot, maintaining its
original length regardless of the project tempo.

To use the Beatmapper, do the following:

1. Add the file to your project. The Beatmapper Wizard starts if the file is longer than thirty
seconds.

The length of the file that triggers the

Beatmapper can be changed in the Audio tab
of Preferences. For more information, see
Using the Audio preferences tab on page 187.

2. Specify whether you want to use the Beatmapper Wizard:

• Select the Yes radio button and click Next to detect measures and downbeats. The file
will be able to stretch/compress with the project’s tempo.
• Select the No radio button and click Finish if you want to close the Beatmapper and add
the file as a one-shot. The file will maintain its original length regardless of the project
tempo.
3. Click the Play ( ) button to verify the marker’s position. If the marker is positioned on
a downbeat, click Next. Otherwise, drag the marker to the appropriate location and click
Next. The Beatmapper draws the file’s waveform and places a region to indicate the
length of the first measure.

The Reset button sets the downbeat marker

back to its detected position.

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4. Click the Play ( ) button to verify the measure’s length.

• Select the Metronome check box to preview the measure with the assistance of a
metronome.
• Use the Halve Selection ( ) or Double Selection ( ) buttons to change the length of
the selection. If the Beatmapper misdetects the length of the measure, it will always be
by either half or double the actual amount.
• If the region is positioned correctly, click Next. Otherwise, drag the region markers to
the appropriate locations and click Next.
The waveform displays with measure lengths selected.
5. Drag the Measure slider to scroll through the song and click the Play ( ) button to verify
each measure’s length. If the song’s tempo is consistent, the measures will be placed
correctly. If the tempo fluctuates, you can drag the end of the measure selection to change
the measure’s position.
Changing the measure length will affect the entire song; if adjusting the last measure of
the song causes the first measure to be incorrect, the downbeat may not be positioned
correctly, or the song's tempo may not be consistent enough for the Beatmapper.
6. Click Next when the measure lengths are correct. Tempo information is added to your
file. The Beatmapper Wizard displays some additional options.
7. Specify your preferences for the following options:
• Select the Change project tempo to match Beatmapped track check box if you want ACID
to set your project tempo to match the tempo calculated by the Beatmapper Wizard.
Selecting the check box will ensure that your Beatmapped track plays at the original
tempo.
• Select the Preserve the pitch of the Beatmapped track when the tempo changes check box to
maintain the track’s original pitch regardless of the project’s tempo.
• Select the Save Beatmapper information with file check box if you want the file to open
with the Beatmapper settings each time you use the file.
8. Click Finish to close the Beatmapper Wizard. The file is added to the project as a
Beatmapped track.
9. Draw the event in the Track View.

You can place the entire event by using the

Paint ( ) tool. With the Paint tool enabled,
press the Ctrl key while you click once in the
track for the Beatmapped file.

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Adjusting time
ACID provides two commands for adjusting your project’s timeline: Insert Time and Fit to
Time.

Using Insert Time

Use the Insert Time command to insert a specified amount of blank space into the project at
the current cursor position. This feature can be used to create space in the project for new
events.
1. Position the cursor where you want to insert time.
2. From the Insert menu, choose Time. The Insert Time dialog displays.

3. Enter the amount of time you want to insert and click OK.

The Insert Time dialog uses the measures:beats:ticks

format used by the Beat ruler.

Using Fit to Time

The Fit to Time command allows you to adjust the project’s overall length to a specified
amount of time.

The maximum and minimum length is limited to

reduce the possibility of creating audible artifacts
through the compression/expansion process.

1. From the Edit menu, choose Fit to Time. The Fit to Time dialog displays with the current
project length displayed in the New length box.

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2. Enter the new project length in the New length box. The length is always entered in Time
format, regardless of the format used on the Time ruler.
3. Click OK. The dialog closes and ACID adjusts the tempo to alter the project’s length.

Mixing multiple tracks to a single track

ACID allows you to mix a selected group of tracks or an entire project to a single-track
stereo event. However, if your project includes any muted tracks, ACID will not mix those
events into the new track. The original tracks and their events are unaffected when you mix
to a single track.
Typically, you would use this feature when you are finished refining a few tracks and want to
combine them to conserve processing power. Also, when you mix multiple tracks to a single
stereo track, any envelope or track effects that you applied will be rendered into the newly
mixed-down track.
This option allows you to “destructively” process any plug-ins that you want to commit.
1. Solo the tracks you want to mix. To mix down the whole project, skip to step 2.
2. From the Tools menu, choose Render to New Track or press the Ctrl + M shortcut keys. The
Render to New Track dialog displays.
The Render to New Track dialog has settings that you can apply to the newly mixed
track.
• From the Save in drop-down list, select the drive or folder to save the new media file.
• Enter a name for the track in the File name box.
• From the Save as type drop-down list, choose the file format (.wav is the preset).
• From the Template drop-down list, choose an audio format from the template list.
• Clear the Render loop region only check box if you did not remove the time selection but
want to include all the events in your project, except muted tracks, in the new mixed
down track.
3. Click the Save button. The time selection or project are mixed down to a new track and a
copy of the file is saved in the folder specified.
As the tracks are being mixed down, you will see a status bar appear in the lower left
portion of ACID.

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You may cancel the rendering process by

clicking the Cancel ( ) button on the status
bar.
Cancel button

After ACID mixes down the new track, it will appear at the bottom of the Track View. If
you mixed down the entire project, you may delete or mute the other tracks from the
project, since they are all contained on the new track.
4. Use the Draw ( ) tool to paint the waveform on the new track.

Tips and tricks

The following sections contain some creative suggestions for building projects in ACID.

Adding through subtraction

In the Basic Tips and Tricks section, we described creating a thicker sound by adding
multiple tracks of similar instrumentation. Now let’s look at a way of creating project
dynamics by actually removing sections of events. You can erase sections of events from a
project by using the Erase ( ) tool.
To demonstrate using subtractive arranging, add three of four similar drum loops to a project
and place each on its respective track. Using either of the available erase methods, delete
specific sections of each event. For example, erase all snares from one track, all basses from
another, high hats from the third, and so on. This will result in a tighter, more realistic drum
sound for your project.
Experiment with taking this technique a step further and randomly remove sections from
each track. When doing this, remember to keep at least one of the drum tracks playing at all
times, unless you want the drums to completely drop out of the mix. Randomly removing
sections of events will add additional realism to your projects by approximating how a live
drummer plays with slight variations throughout a song.

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Realistic dynamics
If you are attempting to build projects that escape the perceived limitations of computer-
generated loop-based music, you should concentrate on reproducing the subtle (and not so
subtle) dynamics that are associated with live instrumentation.
One of the simplest, but most effective examples of this is the build up. When musicians
play live, there is a tendency to increase dynamics as a song enters a chorus or refrain. Think
of how a drummer uses accents, drum rolls, and fills that steadily increase in volume to enter
a song or indicate an approaching change from verse to chorus or chorus to bridge.
This effect is easily reproduced in ACID by adding a volume envelope to the track. Add
points at the various drum beats and adjust them so that the volume steadily increases. For
more information, see Adding a volume or pan envelope on page 104.

Overriding compress/expand
One of the most powerful features of ACID is its ability to compress/expand loops while
maintaining their original pitch. However, there is nothing wrong with overriding this
feature in order to produce specific effects in your projects.
1. View the desired track’s Properties window.
2. Click the Stretch tab.
3. From the Stretching method drop-down list, choose Pitch shift segments. The track’s pitch
will now change in relation with the tempo of the project.
While this may seem like just a way of producing old school effects, it actually has practical
applications as well. For example, specifying Pitch shift segments can actually improve the
fidelity of drum loops recorded at a tempo near the project tempo. In addition, overriding
the compress/expand feature allows you to create great bass grooves by slowing drum loops.

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Duplicating with offset

Another way to add interesting dynamics to a project is to duplicate specific tracks and add
an offset to one of the pair. This trick works well with most instrument loops and allows you
to create different levels of effect. For example:
• Configuring a slight offset between duplicate tracks will create a natural chorus effect.
• Configuring small offsets will create various reverb effects.
• Configuring larger offsets will creating interesting echoes.

To duplicate a track and create an offset, do the following:

1. Right-click the track to be duplicated and choose Duplicate track from the shortcut menu.
The track is duplicated and the copy is added to the Track List immediately following the
original.
2. Hold the Alt key while dragging the waveform of the duplicate track. Notice that the
waveform moves within the event, which itself retains its size and position on the
timeline.
3. Experiment with different offsets between the duplicate tracks.

As with most tricks, this method can be

combined with Pan and Volume envelopes to
produce an unlimited range of effects.

Chopper tricks
You can use the Chopper to create some interesting “slice-and-dice” effects.

Drum-roll buildups
1. Place an file/event in the Chopper.
2. Create a one-measure selection.
3. Click the Insert Selection ( ) button once. The selection is pasted to the Track
View.
4. Click the Halve Selection ( ) button. This decreases the selected portion of the
waveform by half.

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5. Click Insert Selection ( ) button twice.

6. Click Halve Selection ( ).
7. Continue to double the number of inserts after each time you halve the selection, until
you achieve the desired drum roll effect.

Creating drum fills

1. Place a file/event in the Chopper.
2. Create an eighth-note (or other length) selection of a drum track in the Chopper.
3. Click the Insert Selection ( ) button.
4. Use the Shift Selection Left () and Shift Selection Right ( ) buttons to move the
selection randomly through the drum track, clicking the Insert Selection ( ) button
to insert drum hits.

Creating a one-track remix

1. Open a Beatmapped track in the Chopper. For more information, see Beatmapper on page
113.
2. Create a selection in the Chopper.
3. Click Insert Selection ( ) button twice.
4. Use the Shift Selection Right ( ) button to move through the track, clicking the Insert
Selection ( ) button as desired to Insert events.

Creating DJ-style crossfades

You can use the Chopper and the Create Fades command to crossfade between two tracks
much like a DJ will crossfade between two records.
1. Insert two Beatmapped tracks into your project. For more information, see Beatmapper on
page 113.
2. Place the file from track one in the Chopper.
3. Turn off the Link Arrow to Selection ( ) button.
4. Create a three-beat selection in the Chopper and drag the increment arrow length to four
beats.
5. Click Insert Selection ( ) button.
6. Press Ctrl + . to shift the selection right by the length of the insert increment arrow and
repeat steps 5 and 6 as desired.
7. Place the file from track two in the Chopper.

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8. Repeat steps four through six to insert events from track two.
9. Select all events on the two beatmapped tracks in the Track View.
10.Press the F key. ACID creates crossfades between your events.

Creating pseudo-granular synthesis

1. Create a sixty-fourth note (or shorter) selection in the Chopper.
2. Click the Insert Selection ( ) button.
3. Use the Shift Selection Left ( ) and Shift Selection Right ( ) buttons to move the
selection randomly through the track, clicking the Insert Selection ( ) button to
insert events.

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CHAPTER

Advanced
4 Project
Techniques
By now you should be comfortable with planning, building, and rendering ACID projects.
This chapter describes advanced techniques that will allow you to create professional-quality
projects. Topics covered in this chapter include configuring Stretch properties, exporting
loops, and working with busses and assignable FX.

Stretch properties
All loops on the ACID 3.0 CD-ROM (as well as all loop library CD-ROMs) contain stretch
properties. This simply means that tempo and key information is stored in the loops, thereby
allowing the application to accurately perform its time stretching/compressing and pitch-
shifting functions on these loops when placed in a project.
Understand that you do not need to designate stretch properties for loops that you create for
ACID projects. The application will typically make an accurate estimate regarding the loop
file’s tempo. In addition, you can temporarily assign a root note to the file to allow it to be
transposed to the project’s key. However, when creating custom loops to be used in multiple
projects, stretch properties should be defined.
You can set the stretch properties for loops and Beatmapped tracks. For more information, see
Adjusting Stretch properties for a loop or Beatmapped track on page 125.

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Configuring Track Properties

Double-click a track icon to display the Track Properties window.

When you edit a track in an external editor,

changes to the sound file will be reflected
immediately after you save the file. Changes to
a media file's ACID properties will not be
updated in your ACID project until you click
the Reload button on the Track Properties
dialog.

Adjusting general track properties (non-MIDI tracks)

The General tab displays information about the file associated with a track and allows you to
change the track type, apply pitch shifting to all events on the track, and adjust time-
stretching for Beatmapped tracks.

Changing track type

Choose a setting from the Track type drop-down list to change how ACID handles the track.

Track Type Description

Loop When Loop is selected, the track will be transposed to the key of the project and
stretched to fit the project tempo. Loops can be drawn across the track and will
repeat end-to-end.
One-Shot When One-Shot is selected, the track is streamed from the hard disk rather than
being stored in RAM if it is longer than thirty seconds, it will not change tempo
with the rest of the loops, and will not be transposed to the project key.
The Stretch tab is not available when One-Shot is selected.
Beatmapped When a file that is longer than 30 seconds is added to a project, ACID’s Beatmapper
Wizard starts to allow you to add tempo information to the file.

Adjusting time-stretching (Beatmapped tracks only)

Select the Preserve pitch when stretching check box if you want ACID to preserve the track’s
pitch while you adjust the tempo. When the check box is cleared, you can still adjust the
tempo of the track, but the pitch will also be affected.

Both track and event pitch can only be changed

for Beatmapped tracks when the Preserve pitch
when stretching check box is selected.

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Adjusting pitch shift
Enter a value in the Pitch Shift box (or use the spinner control) to adjust the pitch of all
events on the track.

Adjusting Stretch properties for a loop or Beatmapped track

The Stretch tab allows you to specify how ACID will handle pitch shifting and time
stretching for loops or Beatmapped tracks. After you have edited a file's properties, click the
Save As ( ) button to embed ACID information with the file.
If you cannot or do not wish to save a new file, you can set the properties to suit your needs,
and they will be saved with the ACID project. However, this means that you will have to set
the properties for every project where you use the loop. Configuring the Stretch properties
allows you to “set and forget” the properties so that it will work in any project.
If you edit the file in another audio-editing program, it is possible that the ACID-specific
data will be removed. Simply perform the preceding procedure to set the Stretch properties
again.

The Stretch tab for Beatmapped tracks is

essentially the Beatmapper without the wizard.

Loop Settings

Item Description
Root note Choose a note from the drop-down list to set the base note for loops that you want to
conform to the project key.
If you do not want a track transposed to the project key (a track that contains a drum
sample, for example) choose Don’t transpose.
Number of beats Choose a setting from the drop-down list to specify the length of the original file.
Selecting a value that does not match the actual file will cause the loop to play at a
different speed than normal. For example, specifying a length of 8 beats for a 4-beat
loop will cause the loop to play at half speed at any given tempo.
Misinforming ACID regarding the beat length of a loop can be used creatively. For more
information, see Double time/Half time on page 66.

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Item Description
Stretching method Stretching properties determine how ACID performs time compression and expansion
on audio events. If you hear audio anomalies due to time compression, try editing the
stretching properties of the track.
Looping segments is the default stretching method, and it will work well with most
types of material.
Choose Non looping segments for sustaining material such as synthesizer pads and
held notes.
Choose Pitch shift segments to shift the pitch of the track to adjust for increases or
decreases in tempo. Using this option, you can eliminate some of the problems that
occur with extreme tempo changes. For example, if you have slowed the project tempo
down and hear echo artifacts, using the Pitch shift segments setting can eliminate
these artifacts.
Force divisions at Choose a setting from the drop-down list to adjust the resolution of beat detection.
Higher settings increase resolution and lower settings decrease resolution. Audio that
contains rapid notes—such as drum rolls—will benefit from setting the divisions at a
smaller fraction of a beat. Slower-paced material, however, may actually suffer from
high resolution.
Additional transient Enter a value in the box or use the spin control to adjust the amount of extra beat
detection detection that ACID will perform for the beat subdivision specified by the Force
divisions at setting.
A higher percentage will detect a greater number of transients. Increasing this number
can be advantageous when working with audio that has complex rhythms. Lower
numbers are more suitable for synthesizer pads and other basic material.

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Stretch markers for Loops
On the Stretch tab of the Track Properties dialog is a graphic of a track's waveform along
with the stretch markers that ACID has automatically placed in the file. These markers
correspond to detected subdivisions of beats in the audio file. Accurately detecting beats is
essential to making quality time compression/expansion.
The color of the markers on the Beat Ruler provide you with additional information. The
following table describes the correlation between marker color and status.

Marker Color Description

This is an auto-detected marker that has been placed on a
beat by ACID.
This is a custom marker. A file may contain custom
markers if its stretch properties have been adjusted
previously, like the loops on the ACID CD.
This is a disabled marker.

Setting markers
Markers can be added to, moved within, disabled, and deleted from the track’s Beat Ruler
using the mouse. The following table briefly describes each of these actions.

Action Description
Resets all markers to their default state, but also
Clicking
sets all other values on this page back to default.
Dragging a marker Moves markers on the Beat Ruler. Moving an auto-
detected ( ) marker causes it to become a custom
marker ( ).
Double-clicking an empty Adds a new custom ( )marker to the Beat Ruler.
section of the marker ruler
Double-clicking an existing Disables the marker.
marker
Double-clicking a disabled Enables the marker and toggles it back to its default
auto-detected ( )marker color ( ). Auto-detected markers cannot be
removed.
Double-clicking a disabled Removes the marker from the Beat Ruler.
custom ( )marker

Right-clicking a marker displays a shortcut

menu, which allows you to perform many of
the same functions.

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Beatmapped-track settings

Item Description
Root note Choose a note from the drop-down list to set the base note for tracks that you want to
conform to the project key.
If you do not want a track transposed to the project key, choose Don’t transpose.
Original tempo Displays the original tempo of the track as determined by the Beatmapper Wizard.
Enter a value in the box or use the spin control to adjust the tempo.
Downbeat offset Displays the location of the track's first downbeat as determined by the Beatmap
wizard. Enter a value in the box or use the spin control to adjust the location.
Beatmap Wizard Click the Beatmap Wizard button to adjust a track's tempo information. For more
information, see Beatmapper on page 113.

Adjusting track properties for a MIDI track

Use the General tab to view MIDI file attributes and to change the track’s pitch. Use the
Voices tab to view information about which sounds are being played by each channel and to
change voicings using DLS or DLS-2 files.

Muting, soloing, and adjusting volume and panning

Select the Mute ( ) button to exclude a channel from playback, or select Solo ( ) to solo a
channel. You can add multiple channels to a solo group.
Drag the Volume fader or Pan slider to control the gain and panning of each channel. To set
a specific volume or pan level, double-click the text to the right of the fader and enter the
level in the edit box.

The Volume fader setting is added to the track

volume and any volume information in the
MIDI file. This allows you to manipulate the
volume of the track and still maintain volume
controller information that may be present in
the file. The overall volume of the MIDI track,
however, is bound at 0 and 127.

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Changing voicing properties
You can change the voice set for a MIDI file using the General MIDI sound set or a DLS
sound set. DLS is a bank of sounds that a MIDI file plays using Direct X SoftSynth. MIDI
tracks that play using the DirectX SoftSynth and DLS sounds can be routed through effects
just like normal audio tracks.
1. Click the Voices tab.
2. Choose a voice set from the drop-down list, or click Load to browse to a .dls file.
3. Click the Program drop-down list for a channel and browse to a bank and program. Any
selected DLS voice set gets merged into the GS set; it does not replace it. Therefore, you
have to look, typically under Bank 0, for the sounds that were just added.

To reset a voice mapping, choose Original from

the drop-down list.

Reloading a file
Clicking the Reload ( ) button restores all settings from the media file. Any setting
changes made on the Stretch tab of the Track Properties are discarded.
Using this button also updates the Track Properties dialog when changes are made to the
properties from an external editor.

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Replacing a file
Clicking the Replace File ( ) button displays the Replace File dialog and allows you to
replace the audio file on the current track with a new audio file. This feature only replaces
the actual audio. All track timing, effects, and envelopes remain.

A file can also be replaced from the main

ACID window by dragging an audio file from
the Explorer and dropping it on the track name
of the existing track.

Saving a file with properties

Click the Save ( ) button to save the current track and certain track properties or
export the data to a new file. If you specify a new file name, the track will be renamed in the
Track List.
The track properties that are saved include the following:
• Track type.
• Media-specific markers and regions inserted in the Chopper or on the General tab of the
Track Properties dialog.
• Everything on the Stretch tab for Beatmapped and loop files.

Exporting loops
From the File menu, choose Export Loops to create new loops using the original loop media
files in your ACID project.
A new loop file is created for every tempo and/or key change in the project, which can result
in multiple loop files being created from a single loop media file.
1. From the File menu, choose Export Loops. The Export Loops dialog displays.
2. From the Save in drop-down list, select the drive or folder to which the new files will be
saved.
3. From the Save as type drop-down list, select the file format (.wav is the default).
4. From the Template drop-down list, select an audio format.
5. Click the Save button. A progress dialog displays for each track as it is rendered to a file.
Tempo and key information are included in the file name for each loop file that is created
(bassloop 120.000 BPM A).

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Using busses
Busses can be thought of as virtual pathways where signals from multiple tracks or effects can
be mixed. As many as 26 busses can be added to the Mixer window, providing you with a
great deal of flexibility and mixing power. With busses, you can control signal levels on two
discrete stereo channels (unless the project is in mono) and each bus may be muted, soloed,
and have effects assigned to it. For more information, see Working with bus controls on page 131.
Busses are the last stage of the ACID signal flow and as such can be used to output audio
signal to specific hardware. For more information, see Routing busses to system hardware on page
136.

Adding busses to the project

Add a bus to a project by clicking the Insert Bus ( ) button in the Mixer window or by
choosing Bus from the Insert menu.

Assigning a track to a bus

If your project contains multiple busses, you can assign each track to a specific bus output.
To assign a track to a bus, click the Bus ( ) button and specify the desired bus from the
drop-down list.
Assigning tracks to busses allows you to apply settings to a series of tracks and to route tracks
to a particular hardware output.

The bus button will only be displayed if you

have more than one bus in the project.

Adjusting the bus level

When a track is assigned to a bus, its level is set to -inf. dB (mute) by default. Therefore, you
will need to adjust its playback volume with the multipurpose fader in the Track List.

Bus sends are pre-volume by default. To

change to post-volume, right-click the Bus
fader in the Track List and choose Post
Volume from the shortcut menu.

Working with bus controls

Busses may be adjusted, soloed, and muted independently.

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Adjusting the bus fader

Of course, the bus levels can be adjusted during playback and the results previewed in real-
time. In addition, the thumbs of the stereo bus faders are split. This allows you to adjust the
levels of the left and right channels independently of one another. For more information, see
Adjusting a split fader in the Mixer on page 56.

Changing the bus meter’s resolution

You may specify the meter resolution at which the bus displays its signal levels. When a bus’s
meter resolution is changed, all meters in the Mixer window are automatically changed to
reflect the new resolution setting. To change the meter resolution, right-click the meter and
choose the desired resolution from the shortcut menu.

Setting the bus level

When signals are routed through the bus, their level may cause the meter to clip. If the
meter clips, the level is displayed in red at the top of the meter and the audio is distorted.
You can lower the bus level and click the red display to reset the meter. A better way to
reduce clipping, however, is to adjust the volume of each track.

The clip can also be reset by right-clicking on

the meter and choosing Reset Clip from the
shortcut menu.

Muting a bus
Clicking a bus’ Mute ( ) button will temporarily disable playback of the bus. When a bus is
muted, it appears “grayed out” and the word Muted is displayed at the bottom of the meter.
Clicking the Mute ( ) button a second time will return the bus to normal playback.

Soloing a bus
Clicking a bus’ Solo ( ) button isolates the bus’ playback by muting all other busses. When
a bus is soloed, all remaining busses appear “grayed out” and the word Muted is displayed at
the bottom of their respective meters. Clicking the Solo ( ) button a second time will
return all busses to normal playback.

Working with multiple controls

When multiple bus and/or FX controls are selected, you can perform functions on the
controls simultaneously. These functions include the following:
• Change bus or hardware routing
• Mute/Solo

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• Delete bus or FX control (by Delete key or shortcut menu)
• Change fader level

Multiple, nonadjacent controls can be selected by holding the Ctrl key while clicking each
control’s name. Multiple, adjacent controls can be selected by clicking the first control, and
holding the Shift key while clicking the last control in the range.

The Preview fader cannot be grouped in this

manner with other Mixer controls.

Using bus effects

ACID allows you to add DirectX compatible plug-ins, either individually or as a chain, to a
bus. Plug-in chains can be built from any DirectX compatible plug-ins installed on your
system. Plug-ins (individually or as pieces of a chain) may be added to a bus at any time and
once added, may be reordered, removed, and combined with additional plug-ins to achieve
the desired effect.
Adding a plug-in to a bus will result in the track signals assigned to that bus being processed
by the plug-in. However, you must understand that plug-ins assigned at the track level will
be processed before plug-ins added at the bus level. For more information, see Using track
effects on page 109.

Do not use time-altering effects (such as Time

Stretch, Gapper/Snipper, and Pitch-Shift
without preserving duration) with an ACID
project. Time-altering effects will cause a track
to play out of synchronization with the
waveform display in the Track View and with
other tracks.

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Adding a plug-in chain

1. Click the Bus FX ( ) button. The Plug-In Chooser dialog appears.
2. Select the plug-ins that you want to add. The selected plug-ins appear in the chain area.
There are three ways to add a plug-in to the chain:
• Double-clicking the plug-in.
• Dragging the plug-in to the chain area.
• Selecting the plug-in and clicking the Add button.

If you have saved any plug-in chain packages,

double-click the FX Packages folder to view
those packages.

3. Click the OK button to save the plug-in chain. The Plug-In Chooser dialog closes. The
Audio Plug-In dialog opens and displays the plug-in chain and the settings for the plug-in
last selected on the Plug-In Chooser dialog.
4. Click a specific plug-in button and adjust the effect’s parameters manually, or choose one
of the presets from the Preset drop-down list. Also, you can reorder the plug-ins by
dragging them within the chain.

You can save an effect’s parameters as a preset

to be used in other projects. To save a preset,
enter a name in the Preset box and click the
Save Preset ( ) button.

Adding a plug-in to an existing chain

1. Click the Bus FX ( ) button. The Audio Plug-In dialog displays.
2. Click the Edit Chain ( ) button. The Plug-In Chooser dialog displays.
3. Add the desired plug-in(s) by doing any of the following:
• Double-clicking the plug-in.
• Dragging the plug-in to the chain area.
• Selecting the plug-in and clicking the Add button.
4. Click the OK button to save the plug-in chain. The Plug-In Chooser dialog closes. The
Audio Plug-In dialog opens and displays the plug-in chain and the settings for the plug-in
last selected on the Plug-In Chooser dialog.

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5. Click a specific plug-in button and adjust the effect’s parameters manually, or choose one
of the presets from the Preset drop-down list. Also, you can reorder the plug-ins by
dragging and dropping them within the chain.
6. Click the Close ( ) button to save your changes and close the Audio Plug-In dialog.

Arranging bus plug-ins on the chain

The effect of plug-ins placed on a chain is cumulative. For example, when a signal passes
through a plug-in, it “carries” those settings through the next plug-in, and “carries” both
settings through the next plug-in, and so on. Because of this cumulative effect, you may need
to rearrange the plug-ins on the chain so that one plug-in’s processing does not adversely
affect the next one in the chain.
There is no right or wrong way to order plug-ins, and the chain’s plug-in order is strictly
based on your preferences and desired output. However, certain plug-ins function better at
specific points in the chain. For example, the Dither plug-in typically works best as the last
plug-in on a chain.
1. Click the Bus FX ( ) button. The Audio Plug-In dialog displays.

Plug-in chain

2. There are two ways to arrange plug-ins in your chain:

• Drag the plug-in to a new location in the chain.
• Right-click the plug-in button and select Move Left or Move Right from the shortcut
menu.
3. Click the Close ( ) button to save your changes and close the Audio Plug-In dialog.

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Removing plug-ins from the bus chain

If after adding a plug-in you discover that it is not needed, it should be removed from the
chain. Plug-ins can be removed from plug-in chains at any time.
1. Click the Bus FX ( ) button. The Audio Plug-In dialog displays.
2. Right-click the plug-in’s button and choose Remove from the shortcut menu, or click the
Remove Selected Plug-In ( ) button.
3. Repeat step 2 to remove other plug-ins from the chain.
4. Click the Close ( ) button to save your changes and close the Audio Plug-In dialog.

You can bypass a plug-in without removing it

from the chain by clearing the check box in the
plug-in button.

Removing or bypassing bus effects

A bus can be cleared of all effects by right-clicking the Bus FX ( ) button and choosing
Delete All from the shortcut menu.

A bus’ effects can be bypassed without removing them by right-clicking the Bus FX ( )
button and choosing Bypass All from the shortcut menu. To apply them again, right-click
the Bus FX ( ) button and choose Enable All from the shortcut menu.

Routing busses to system hardware

Individual busses can be routed to specific system hardware for output. This allows you to
configure busses to route output (projects or individual tracks) to sound cards, recording
devices, mixing boards, etc.
By default, all busses are assigned to the Master bus. In this configuration, you can use them
for creating subgroups of tracks - for example, you could route all your drum tracks to a bus so
you can adjust their levels together without changing their relative levels. However, you can
also route busses to hardware outputs so you can use busses for sending tracks to external
effects processors or for mixing on an external mixer.
When you installed ACID, the application automatically identified all hardware available
for output on your computer and listed these components as options on the Audio tab in
Preferences. For more information, see Using the Audio preferences tab on page 187.

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To route busses to hardware, first verify that you are using Windows Classic Wave Driver
then choose the hardware device in the Mixer window:
1. From the Options menu, choose Preferences and click the Audio tab.
2. From the Audio device type drop-down list, choose Windows Classic Wave Driver.
3. Click OK to close the Preferences dialog.

If you have selected Microsoft Sound Mapper in

the Audio device type drop-down list on the
Audio Preferences tab, you will not be able to
assign the bus to a different device.

4. In the Mixer window, click the Playback Device Selector ( ) button on the bus you want
to route.
5. Choose a hardware device from the submenu.

Deleting busses
Just as busses can be added to a project at any time, superfluous busses can be deleted. When
a bus is deleted from a project, tracks assigned to it are reassigned to the previous bus in the
Mixer window. For example, if you have tracks assigned to four busses (Bus A-D) and
remove Bus D, the tracks assigned to Bus D are reassigned to Bus C.
One way to remove a bus is to right-click the bus control in the mixer and choose Delete
from the shortcut menu.
Another way to remove a bus is from the Project Properties dialog:
1. Display the Project Properties dialog using one of the following methods:
• Choose Properties from the File menu.
• Press Alt + Enter on the keyboard.
2. Click the Audio tab.
3. Enter a value in the Number of stereo busses edit box and click OK. The appropriate
number of busses are removed from the Mixer window.

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Using assignable FX controls

Assignable FX are used when you want to send various levels of multiple tracks to a single
effect chain. Like busses, these controls reside in the Mixer window and support plug-in
chains. In addition, assignable FX outputs can be routed to project busses. Up to thirty-two
assignable FX controls can be added to a project and each control will support as many as
thirty-two DirectX plug-ins on its chain.

Assignable FX controls
An assignable FX control is displayed in the in the Mixer window when at least one plug-in
is assigned to it.

Item Name Description

Title Displays the name of the effect. To rename the
assignable FX, double-click the title, enter the
name, and press Enter . Title
Mute Mutes the assignable FX.

Solo Plays only the output of that assignable FX chain.

Assignable FX Displays the Plug-In Chooser dialog and allows you

to adjust the assignable FX attributes.
Bus Displays a list of the available busses in your
Assignment project. Select the bus to which you want to route
the assignable FX chain.

The bus assignment icon will display as ( ) for

the Master Bus or will display as the letter of the
selected bus.
Master Input Adjusts the input volume of the assignable FX.
Fader
Master Output Adjusts the output volume of the assignable FX.
Fader
Meter Displays the playback level at the output of the
assignable FX. This is the level that will be sent to
the selected audio device.
Lock/Unlock Click to lock the faders so the left and right
Fader Channels channels of stereo files will always move together.
Click again to unlock the faders.

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Adding an assignable FX control

Do not use time-altering effects (such as Time Stretch, Gapper/Snipper, and Pitch-Shift
without preserving duration) with an ACID project. Time-altering effects will cause a track
to play out of synchronization with the waveform display in the Track View and with other
tracks.
1. From the Insert menu, choose Insert Assignable FX or click the Insert FX ( ) button in
the Mixer window. The Plug-In Chooser dialog displays a list of the available plug-ins,
and the assignable FX control is added to the Mixer window.
2. Add all desired plug-ins using one of the following methods:
• Double-click the desired plug-in.
• Drag the desired plug-in to the chain area.
• Select the desired plug-in and click Add.

If you have preset plug-in chains saved,

double-click the FX Packages folder to view
those presets. For more information, see
Saving plug-in chains as FX packages on page
112.

3. Click the OK button to assign the chain to the assignable FX control. The Plug-In
Chooser dialog closes. The Audio Plug-In dialog opens and displays the plug-in chain and
the settings for the plug-in last selected on the Plug-In Chooser dialog.
4. Click a specific plug-in button and adjust the effect’s parameters manually, or choose one
of the presets from the Preset drop-down list. Also, you can reorder the plug-ins by
dragging them within the chain.

You can save an effect’s parameters as a preset

to be used in other projects. To save a preset,
enter a name in the Preset box and click the
Save Preset ( ) button.

5. Click the Close ( ) button to close the Audio Plug-In dialog.

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Adding a plug-in to an existing chain

1. Click the Assignable FX ( ) button. The Audio Plug-In dialog displays.
2. Click the Edit Chain ( ) button. The Plug-In Chooser dialog displays.
3. Add the desired plug-in(s) by doing any of the following:
• Double-clicking the plug-in.
• Dragging the plug-in to the chain area.
• Selecting the plug-in and clicking the Add button.
4. Click the OK button to save the plug-in chain. The Plug-In Chooser dialog closes. The
Audio Plug-In dialog opens and displays the plug-in chain and the settings for the plug-in
last selected on the Plug-In Chooser dialog.
5. Click a specific plug-in button and adjust the effect’s parameters manually, or choose one
of the presets from the Preset drop-down list. Also, you can reorder the plug-ins by
dragging them within the chain.
6. Click the Close ( ) button to save your changes and close the Audio Plug-In dialog.

Arranging assignable FX plug-ins on the chain

The effect of plug-ins placed on a chain is cumulative. For example, when a signal passes
through a plug-in, it “carries” those settings through the next plug-in, and “carries” both
settings through the next plug-in, and so on. Because of this cumulative effect, you may need
to rearrange the plug-ins on the chain so that one plug-in’s processing does not adversely
affect the next one in the chain.
There is no right or wrong way to order plug-ins and the chain’s plug-in order is strictly
based on your preferences and desired output. However, certain plug-ins function better at
specific points in the chain. For example, the Dither plug-in typically works best as the last
plug-in on a chain.

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To arrange assignable FX plug-ins on the chain, do the following:
1. Click the Assignable FX ( ) button. The Audio Plug-In dialog displays.

Plug-in chain

2. There are two ways to arrange plug-ins in the chain:

• Drag the plug-in to a new location in the chain.
• Right-click the plug-in button and select Move Left or Move Right from the shortcut
menu.
3. Click the Close ( ) button to save your changes and close the Audio Plug-In dialog.

Removing plug-ins from a chain

1. Click the Assignable FX ( ) button. The Audio Plug-In dialog displays.
2. Right-click the plug-in’s button and choose Remove from the shortcut menu.
3. Repeat step 2 to remove other plug-ins from the chain.
4. Click the Close ( ) button to save your changes and close the Audio Plug-In dialog.

You can bypass a plug-in without removing it

from the chain by clearing the check box in the
plug-in button.

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Routing a track to an assignable FX chain

Routing tracks to an assignable FX chain allows you to assign multiple tracks to a plug-in
chain.
1. Click the multipurpose fader button (this button displays Volume by default) and choose
the desired assignable FX chain from the submenu. The button name changes to reflect
the name of the assignable FX.

2. Drag the fader to adjust the level of the track sent to the assignable FX chain.

Assignable FX are post-volume by default. To

change to pre-volume, right-click the FX fader
in the Track List and choose Pre-volume from
the shortcut menu.

If you set the Dry Out faders in your FX chain to -inf, you can adjust the wet/dry balance
using the Volume and FX settings on the multipurpose fader. Volume will adjust the dry
signal and FX will control the effect signals.

Routing assignable FX to busses

By default, assignable FX controls are routed to the Master Bus for output. The bus then
mixes the assignable FX control’s plug-ins with all tracks routed to the same bus and outputs
the mixed signal to the appropriate output device. For more information, see Routing busses to
system hardware on page 136.
To route an assignable FX to a different bus, click the ( ) button on the assignable FX
control and specify the desired bus from the drop-down list. The drop-down list displays all
current busses in the project. For more information, see Adding busses to the project on page 131.

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Working with assignable FX controls

Assignable FX controls in the Mixer window may be adjusted, soloed, and muted
independently of one another.

Adjusting the assignable FX faders

Assignable FX controls contain two distinct faders, each of which utilizes a split thumb. The
left fader is used to adjust the level of the input signal entering the control. The right fader is
used to adjust the output level. The split thumbs allow you to adjust the levels of the left and
right channels independently of one another. For more information, see Adjusting a split fader
in the Mixer on page 56.

Changing the assignable FX meter resolution

You may specify the meter resolution at which the assignable FX control displays its signal
levels. When a control’s meter resolution is changed, all meters in the Mixer window are
automatically changed to reflect the new resolution setting. To change the assignable FX
control’s meter resolution, right-click the meter and choose the desired meter resolution
from the shortcut menu.

Setting the assignable FX level

When signals are routed through the assignable FX control, their level may cause the meter
to clip. If the meter clips, the level is displayed in red at the top of the meter and the audio is
distorted. If clipping occurs, lower the control level and click the red display to reset the
meter. Continue adjusting the fader and resetting the meter until clipping is eliminated.

The clip can also be reset by right-clicking on

the meter and choosing Reset Clip from the
shortcut menu.

Muting an assignable FX
Clicking the control’s Mute ( ) button will temporarily disable playback of the assignable
FX control. When an assignable FX control is muted, it appears “grayed out” and the word
Muted displays at the bottom of the meter. Clicking the Mute ( ) button a second time
returns the assignable FX to normal playback.

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Soloing an assignable FX
Clicking the control’s Solo ( ) button isolates the assignable FX control’s playback by
muting all other controls and busses in the Mixer window. This allows you to only hear the
tracks coming through the soloed chain. When an assignable FX control is soloed, all
remaining controls and busses appear “grayed out” and the word Muted is displayed at the
bottom of their respective meters. Clicking the Solo ( ) button a second time will return all
controls and busses to normal playback.

Working with multiple controls

When multiple bus and/or FX controls are selected, you can perform functions on the
controls simultaneously. These functions include the following:
• Change bus or hardware routing
• Mute/Solo
• Delete bus or FX control (by Delete key or shortcut menu)
• Change fader level

Multiple, nonadjacent controls can be selected by holding the Ctrl key while clicking each
control’s name. Multiple, adjacent controls can be selected by clicking the first control and
holding the Shift key while clicking the last control in the range.

The Preview fader cannot be grouped in this

manner with other Mixer controls.

Removing an assignable FX control from a project

In the Mixer window, right-click the FX control you want to delete and choose Delete from
the shortcut menu, or select the control and press the Delete key. The assignable FX control is
removed from the Mixer window.

Saving plug-in chains as FX packages

ACID allows you to save plug-in chains as packages, so that you may use them again with
other projects. If you use a combination of plug-ins often, saving them as a package will save
you time. FX packages retain their chain order and individual plug-in settings.
You may save plug-in chains as packages from existing plug-in chains or in the Plug-In
Chooser dialog during the actual creation of the chain. The plug-in chains that you save as
packages appear in the Plug-In Chooser dialog in the FX Packages folder.

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1. Click the Assignable FX ( ) button. The Plug-In Chooser dialog displays if a plug-in
chain does not already exist.
If you want to save an existing chain, click the Assignable FX ( ) button and then the
Edit Chain ( ) button from the Audio Plug-In dialog.
2. Once the Plug-In Chooser dialog displays, create a new plug-in chain or simply use the
previously created chain that is displayed in the chain area.
3. Click the Save As button. The Save Plug-In Package dialog displays.

4. Enter a name that you want to use for the package.

5. Click the OK button to save the plug-in chain as an FX package.

Organizing your plug-ins

ACID allows you to create folders for organizing your plug-ins within the Plug-In Chooser
dialog. For example, if you have third-party DirectX plug-ins installed on your system, you
can create a unique folder for storing them. You will notice that the Plug-In Chooser dialog
functions similarly to Windows Explorer. However, the Plug-In Chooser dialog only allows
you to work with plug-ins installed on your system.

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Tips and tricks

The following sections contain some creative suggestions for building projects in ACID.

Building instrument solos

In the previous section we described using an extended technique to create challenging
rhythmic variations in your projects. A slightly different version of the slice and dice
technique can be used to build instrument solos for your projects. To demonstrate this, let’s
start with an event containing a simple bass riff.
1. Slice and dice individual events to create new riffs. For more information, see The Chopper
on page 83.
2. Use the Pitch Shift feature to transpose individual notes. For more information, see Changing
an event’s key on page 100.
3. Apply Volume envelopes to simulate the varying attacks associated with live soloing. For
more information, see Adding a volume or pan envelope on page 104.
4. Use the Tempo Change feature to create passages with tempos that deviate from the
project tempo. For more information, see Working with tempo and key change markers on page
98.

Building scales
Though it is well outside the intended scope of the application, you can use ACID to build
unique scales from audio loops. To do this, you must start by isolating a specific note that the
scale will be built from and determining exactly what note it is. This can be easily
accomplished using Sound Forge’s Spectrum Analysis function. Once the note is isolated and
identified, use Save As to save the note as a new .wav file with a unique name. Finally, add
the file to the ACID project and use Pitch Shift to create all remaining notes in the scale.

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CHAPTER

Working with
5 Video

By adding a video track to your ACID Pro or ACID Music project, you can use ACID as a
scoring tool.
Video will always be added to the top track in the Track List. Depending on your horizontal
zoom level, each frame displayed in the video track may represent multiple frames from the
source video. As you zoom in, marks will be displayed to represent each frame, and you can
zoom further to view individual frames.

Working with video

Adding or replacing a video file

Use the Explorer window to find the file you want to use, and then add it to the project by
double-clicking it or dragging it into the Track View. The video will be placed in the top
track, and if the file has an audio track, it will be placed as a separate, one-shot track in the
Track View.
If your project already contains a video track, ACID will prompt you to replace the existing
video if you open another video file.

A still image (.bmp, .jpg, .psd, .gif, .png,

.tga) can also be added to the video track.

Removing the video track

Right-click anywhere in the video track and choose Remove Video.

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Hiding and showing the video track

By default, video is displayed in the Track View when it is added to a project. You can hide
or show the video track at any time by choosing Show Video from the View menu. A check
mark next to the Show Video command indicates that the video track will display.

Synchronizing audio and video

Editing the audio associated with a video file can cause it to become out of sync with the
video. To resychronize the audio and video, right-click on the audio file and choose
Synchronize with Video from the shortcut menu.

This will not work if you have changed the

audio track to a loop.

Removing the video’s audio

Right-click the audio track in the Track List and choose Delete Track from the shortcut
menu. The audio track is removed, but the video is preserved.

Changing frame numbering

ACID numbers each frame in the video track.
To change the numbering format (or turn off frame numbering), select the Editing tab in the
Preferences dialog and choose a setting from the Show source frame numbers on video
thumbnails as drop-down list.

Editing a video event

ACID provides several video editing options to help you score your video.

Moving the video event

Click within the event and drag it to a new location along the timeline.

Trimming the video event

Drag either end of the video event. The video event stays in place, but the beginning or end
of the video will move.
You cannot trim the beginning or end of the event past the event’s original end. You cannot
trim an event earlier than its starting point unless the event has been trimmed previously.

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Shifting the contents of the video event (slipping)

Hold the Alt key while dragging the video event to move the position of the video within
the event. The event itself will not move.

Slip-trimming a video event

Hold the Alt key while dragging the beginning or end of a video event. The video will move
with the event edge, and the opposite edge of the event will remain fixed.

Sliding a video event

Hold Ctrl + Alt while dragging the video event to move the event while leaving the video in
place. The relative position of the video will change as when you slip an event.

The Video window

The Video window is used to view the video as it plays or to view the frame at the cursor
position. To display the Video window, choose Video from the View menu, or press Alt + 4 .
Toolbar
buttons

Background

Shortcut
menu

Status
bar

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Toolbar
The toolbar allows you to access two commonly used functions of the Video window.

Button Description
Copies the current frame to the
Windows clipboard.
Sends the preview to an external
monitor.

Shortcut menu
Right-click anywhere in the Video window to display a shortcut menu with Video window
options.

Item Description
Copy Frame Copies the current frame to the Windows clipboard.
Default Background Sets the background color of the Video window to the default color.
Black Background Sets the background color of the Video window to black.
White Background Sets the background color of the Video window to white.
External Monitor Sends the preview to an external monitor.
Display at Media Size Displays video at the native resolution, clipping if necessary.
Show Toolbar Toggles the display of the Video window Toolbar.
Show Status Bar Toggles the display of the Video window Status Bar (it is off by default).

Status Bar
The Status Bar shows the video’s frame size, color depth, and framerate.

External monitor
ACID allows you to use your system’s external monitor for previewing video playback. You
will need an OHCI IEEE-1394 adapter and a device to convert the DV signal to video, such
as a DV camcorder, deck, or media converter.
To specify an external monitor, click the External Monitor ( ) button in the Video window,
or choose Preferences from the Options menu and click the Video tab.
Other settings for the external monitor can also be found on the Video tab. For more
information, see Using the Video preferences tab on page 189.

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Scoring video with ACID

ACID provides tools that allow you to adjust the tempo of a project to easily synchronize
audio with specific video frames.
1. Add your audio track(s) and video to your project.
2. If the Video window is not displayed, choose Video from the View menu.
3. Click the Play ( ) button to begin playback.
4. Press the key each time you want to place a time marker at a frame you want to
H
emphasize (where an explosion is heard, for example).
5. Click the Stop ( ) key to stop playback.
6. Return to the left-most time marker and fine tune its placement so it coincides exactly
with the desired video frame.

Holding the Alt key while using the right and

left arrow keys allows you to step the cursor
through your video by individual frame. You
may need to drag your time marker to the
cursor to get it on the desired frame.

7. Place the cursor at the point to which you want to synchronize your time marker. For
example, you might want the frame that you marked in step 6 to coincide with a
downbeat.
8. Right-click the time marker and select Adjust Tempo to Match Marker to Cursor from the
shortcut menu. The new tempo displays in the Track List.
9. Press the T key to insert a tempo change marker. ACID detects the adjusted tempo and
inserts it in the tempo marker’s edit box. The tempo change marker will preserve
synchronization between the time marker and location on the Beat Ruler as you perform
editing further down the timeline. For more information, see Adding a tempo or key change
marker on page 99.
10.Repeat steps 6 through 9 to synchronize the rest of your video.

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CHAPTER

Recording in
6 ACID

ACID is a loop-based audio-production tool. It is not designed for multi track recording
projects. However, the application does allow you to record audio from your system’s sound
card. This limited recording capability makes it possible for you to record audio from an
external source and place it in your project.
This feature actually makes ACID an excellent tool for recording song demos. A backing
track of the appropriate length and tempo can be built using a variety of loops, then
combined with a one-shot vocal or guitar track that you record.

Recording quickstart
If you are familiar with other Sonic Foundry applications, recording in ACID should be
fairly intuitive. The following procedure briefly outlines the steps involved in recording
audio.
1. Connect the audio source or MIDI device (ACID Pro only) to your computer.
2. For audio recording, verify that the card is properly configured for the audio source
(microphone, line level, etc.).
3. Place the cursor in the Track View at the position where recording will begin.
4. Click the Record ( ) button. The Record dialog displays.

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5. Set the desired recording properties. For more information, see Setting ACID’s recording
properties on page 154.
6. Click Start to begin recording. ACID creates a new track in the project and begins
recording incoming audio signal into it.
7. Click Stop to halt recording. The recorded audio is placed on its track as a one-shot and
can now be manipulated at the track or event level, like any other file in the project.

Setting ACID’s recording properties

Prior to recording in ACID, you must configure the application’s recording properties in the
Record dialog. This will ensure that you are recording though the appropriate device with
the desired attributes and stored in the specified folder.

Record type
Use these radio buttons to specify the type of recording you are about to make.

MIDI recording is available in ACID

Pro only.

File name
This edit box allows you to name the recorded file prior to actually recording it. If no name
is specified, ACID provides the default name Record Take and appends a unique number to
identify it. Audio is saved as a .wav file and MIDI is saved as a .mid file.

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Record folder
This edit box displays the path to the folder where recorded files will be stored. If you want
to specify an alternate location, click Browse and specify the new folder.

Free space
This field indicates the amount of available free space in the current record folder.

Time recorded
This field provides you with a running summary of the length and size (in megabytes) of the
audio currently being recorded.

Record from
By default, ACID will begin recording at the cursor position when the Record ( ) button is
clicked. However, the Record from radio buttons can be used to specify alternate starting
points for recording.
• Selecting the Start of project radio button configures ACID to start recording at the
beginning of the current project.
• Selecting the Position radio button activates the adjacent edit box and allows you to enter
the recording start position in measures and beats format.

Make new track follow project tempo

Selecting this check box configures ACID to use its stretching features to expand/contract
your recording in relation to the project tempo. However, if you are recording your audio
track at the final project tempo, this check box should be cleared to allow ACID to treat the
recorded file as a one-shot.

Record device
This drop-down list allows you to specify the hardware device (ACID Pro only) and channel
that will be used to record your audio.
If Microsoft Sound Mapper is specified in the Audio device type drop-down list in the
Preferences dialog, you cannot choose a specific device. Choose a device other than the
Sound Mapper to specify hardware devices. For more information, see Using the Audio
preferences tab on page 187.

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Attributes and the Change button

The Attributes field displays the recording sample rate and bit-depth. Sample rate is the
number of samples per second, measured in Hertz (Hz), used to record audio. You can
change the sample rate or bit-depth by clicking the Change button, which displays the
Audio tab of the Project Properties dialog. For more information, see Using the Audio properties
tab on page 184.

and the Change button do not apply

Attribute
when recording MIDI.

Monitor
Selecting this check box enables the meters, which display the incoming audio level at the
specified recording device.

Setting recording levels

When recording audio, it is important to record with the highest possible signal without
clipping. Clipping occurs when the incoming signal is too high to be represented as a digital
value and is indicated visually by a red Clip warning displayed at the top of the meters. The
aural result of clipping is distortion. Be assured that digital clipping distortion is very
different from analog clipping distortion. The saturation level of analog tape is non-exact
and pushing the levels into the red will often create a nice overdriven effect. However, the
saturation point of digital recording is exactly 0 dB and levels surpassing that result in ugly
digital distortion that can easily ruin a project.
1. Connect the audio source to the sound card’s input and verify that the card is properly
configured for the audio source (microphone, line level, etc.).
2. Click the Record ( ) button and set the desired recording properties. For more
information, see Setting ACID’s recording properties on page 154.
3. Select the Monitor check box. Incoming audio levels are displayed on the record meters
and the peak signal level is displayed (in decibels) at the top of the meters. Keep in mind
that a meter reading of 0 dB is the maximum for a digital signal and any signal that
surpasses that will distort.
4. Continue adjusting the input level of the source audio until maximum levels are achieved
without clipping.
If the meter clips, decrease the source audio level and click the numbers at the top of the
meter. The peak is reset and a new peak reading is calculated. Continue adjusting the
levels and resetting the meter until the level is maximized.

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Setting digital recording levels can be difficult.

If you are not familiar with the source audio
and have only one opportunity to capture the
recording, always allow yourself plenty of
headroom.

Recording multiple takes

Using the Loop Playback ( ) button in conjunction with the record feature allows you to
record multiple takes into an ACID project. All takes will be recorded into the same track
and saved as one *.wav file. However, each take is delineated by creating a region that is
saved with the recorded media file. To view the regions, open the recorded track’s properties.
1. Create a loop region for the part of the project you want to play while recording your
take.
Loop region

2. Make sure loop playback is enabled.

3. Begin recording. ACID will playback the specified loop region while recording your takes
on a new track.

If you are going to use this multiple take

recording method to create loops, we
recommend that you disable the Make new
Track follow project tempo option. This will
preserve the quality of the recorded audio and
improve the time stretching quality.

Reviewing and saving a take

After all desired takes are recorded, you can review them and save only the best take.
1. Click Cancel to close the Record dialog.
2. Click the Solo ( ) button corresponding to the track you just recorded.
3. Click Play From Start ( ) and review all takes.

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4. Create a time selection containing the take you want to keep.

5. From the Tools menu, choose Render to New Track. The Render to New Track dialog
displays.

Render to New Track is not available in ACID

XPress

6. Enter a name for the new file in the File name edit box and click Save. The take is saved to
a new file and a corresponding track is created.
7. Delete the track containing the original takes.

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CHAPTER

Working with
7 MIDI

ACID allows you to record MIDI tracks and use MIDI files in your projects. However, MIDI
files cannot be edited within ACID. To edit a MIDI file, right-click the track and choose
Edit in [editor name] to open the file using the MIDI editor specified on the Editing tab of the
Preferences dialog.

Adding MIDI tracks

You can add MIDI tracks to your project just as you would add other files. Just add the file to
the project and use the Draw ( ) tool or Paint ( ) tool to add events to the track.
MIDI tracks are displayed with the MIDI icon in the Track List. You can use MIDI
tracks to record and play back data from synthesizers and other MIDI-compliant equipment.
MIDI tracks can use .mid, .smf, and .rmi files.
Double-click the MIDI icon in the Track List to access the Track Properties dialog. This
dialog provides additional track information and allows you to define attributes for the track.
For more information, see Adjusting track properties for a MIDI track on page 128.

Recording MIDI tracks

The Record dialog allows you to record audio or MIDI tracks. For more information, see
Recording in ACID on page 153.

MIDI track properties

Information on properties for all track types is covered in the Advanced chapter. For more
information, see Adjusting track properties for a MIDI track on page 128.

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Playback device
Each track can be played through any device that is installed in your computer. To choose a
playback device, click the Device Selection ( ) button in the Track List.
To change the playback device for multiple tracks, select a track by clicking on its icon.
While holding the Shift key, click another track in the Track List. All of the tracks in
between will be selected. Using the Ctrl key in this manner will allow you to select multiple,
nonadjacent tracks. Change the playback device for one track, and all will change.

Selecting a playback device

1. Click the Device Selection ( )button. A list of all the available devices displays.

2. Choose a device from the list to send the current track to that device.

When using DLS files for voicing your MIDI

files, choose Master, or you will not be able to
hear the track. Also, copy the DLS file to your
local hard drive for optimum performance.

Setting device preferences

If the device you want to use is not displayed, choose MIDI Device Preferences from the
shortcut menu to open the MIDI tab in the Preferences dialog and verify that the check box
for the device is selected. For more information, see Using the MIDI preferences tab on page 188.

Rendering projects with MIDI tracks

In order to render projects that contain MIDI tracks, choose Master for playback of MIDI
tracks. Tracks that are routed to an external MIDI device will not be included in the
rendered file unless they are rerouted to the internal SoftSynth.
When MIDI is played back through a SoftSynth (soundcard/wave) it will be rendered using
the sounds of the General MIDI sound set or the current DLS sound.

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Timecode synchronization
ACID can generate MIDI timecode and MIDI clock as well as trigger from MIDI timecode.
These features allow ACID to be synchronized with other audio applications and external
audio hardware.

MIDI timecode
MIDI timecode (MTC) is a standard timecode that most applications and some hardware
devices will use to synchronize themselves. ACID will generate stable MTC at all available
frame rates for other applications to chase.

Generating MIDI timecode

1. Specify a MIDI Output device to which you will send the timecode and a Frame rate for
the timecode. These options can be found on the Sync page of the Preferences dialog. For
more information, see Using the Sync preferences tab on page 190.
2. From the Options menu, choose Generate MIDI Timecode.
ACID will now generate MTC starting wherever you click Play ( ).

Viewing outgoing timecode

To view the outgoing timecode, use the Time Display directly above the Track List. Right-
click the Time Display and choose MIDI Timecode Out from the shortcut menu. The text will
now display the outgoing MTC time.

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Trigger from MIDI timecode

You can trigger ACID playback using MIDI timecode (MTC). This means that ACID
playback will be initiated by receiving timecode from another device.

Triggering playback from MIDI timecode

1. Connect a word clock signal between your computer and triggering device to lock
synchronization.
2. Configure your trigger device to send MIDI timecode (MTC) to your computer.
3. From the Options menu, choose Preferences and select the Sync tab to configure ACID
to receive MTC.
• From the Input device drop-down list, choose the port from which you will receive MTC.
• From the Frame rate drop-down list, choose the frame rate that your trigger device will
use to send MTC to ACID.
4. From the Options menu, choose Timecode, and choose Trigger from MIDI Timecode from
the submenu.
When an incoming MTC signal is received, ACID will begin playing from the position
indicated by the timecode. If ACID is not receiving MTC, you can play and edit
normally.

Viewing incoming timecode

To view the incoming timecode, use the Time Display directly above the Track List. Right-
click the Time Display and choose MIDI Timecode In from the shortcut menu. The text in the
left-hand display will now show the incoming MTC time.

This display will also show status and error information. If Trigger from MIDI Timecode is
enabled but no MTC is detected, the display will show Listening...; If the wrong frame rate of
MTC is being detected the display will show Wrong format.

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MIDI clock
MIDI clock differs from MTC in that it contains tempo as well as positional information.
MIDI clock is essentially measured in ticks from the beginning of the project. MIDI clock
sends 24 ticks per quarter note.
The advantage of using MIDI clock is that ACID can send its tempo changes to the chasing
application and they will be preserved.

Generating MIDI clock

1. Specify a MIDI Output device to which you will send the clock. This option can be found
on the Sync page of the Preferences dialog. For more information, see Using the Sync
preferences tab on page 190.
2. From the Options menu, choose Generate MIDI Clock.
ACID will now generate MIDI clock when you click Play ( ).

Viewing outgoing MIDI clock

To view the outgoing clock, use the Time Display directly above the Track List. Right-click
the Time Display and choose MIDI Clock Out from the shortcut menu. The text will now
display the outgoing MIDI clock time.

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The Sonic Foundry Virtual MIDI Router

The Sonic Foundry Virtual MIDI Router (VMR) is a software-only driver that allows you to
control ACID from other MIDI-capable applications—and vice-versa—without using MIDI
hardware.
A MIDI router transfers MIDI data from one port to another. The Sonic Foundry VMR
driver transfers MIDI data but requires no hardware. The driver provides up to four devices
for MIDI output and input. Each of the output devices sends all MIDI data to its
corresponding input device.
If one application sends MIDI data through the #3 Sonic Foundry MIDI Router output
device, another application can receive this MIDI data as input from the #3 Sonic Foundry
MIDI Router input device.

The first character of the device name is a

device number from 1 to 4. The device number
is placed at the beginning of the name for
compatibility with sequencer software that tries
to display device names in very small spaces.

The Sonic Foundry VMR can be very useful for synchronizing two MIDI-capable
applications. You can trigger ACID from your MIDI sequencer, or you can drive your MIDI
sequencer from ACID using MTC or MIDI clock. This and more can be accomplished
without using MIDI hardware for routing.

Installing the Sonic Foundry Virtual MIDI Router (VMR)

The Sonic Foundry Virtual MIDI Router (VMR) is included on the ACID content CD.

Installing VMR on Windows 98 or Me

1. Click the Start ( ) button, choose Settings, and choose Control Panel from the
submenu.
2. Double-click the Add New Hardware icon in the Control Panel window. The Add New
Hardware Wizard displays.
3. Click the Next button. The Add New Hardware Wizard asks if you want Windows to
automatically detect your hardware.
4. Click the No radio button.
5. Click the Next button. The next window allows you to select the type of hardware you
want to install.

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6. In the Hardware type list, click the Sound, video, and game controllers option and click the
Next button. The next window allows you to select the manufacturer and model for your
hardware.
7. Click the Have Disk... button.
8. Insert the ACID CD into your CD-ROM drive.
9. In the path list box, type E:\Extras\Virtual MIDI Router\Win9x (where “E” is your CD-ROM
drive) and click the OK button.
10.In the Models list, click the Sonic Foundry Virtual MIDI Router, and click the OK button.
11.Click the Finish button.
12.Restart Windows. When Windows restarts, all programs that support MIDI (including
ACID) can use the Virtual MIDI Router.

Installing VMR on Windows 2000

1. Click the button, choose Settings, and choose Control Panel from the submenu.
2. Double-click the Add/Remove Hardware icon in the Control Panel window. The Add
New Hardware Wizard displays.
3. Click the Next button. The Add/Remove Hardware Wizard asks what sort of hardware
task you want to perform.
4. Click the Add/Troubleshoot a device radio button and click the Next button. The Add/
Remove Hardware Wizard displays a list of hardware devices installed on your computer.
5. Choose Add a new device and click the Next button. The Add/Remove Hardware Wizard
asks if you want Windows to automatically detect your hardware.
6. Click the No, I want to select the hardware from a list radio button and click the Next button.
The next window allows you to select the type of hardware you want to install.
7. In the Hardware types list, click the Sound, video, and game controllers option and click the
Next button. The next window allows you to select the manufacturer and model for your
hardware.
8. Click the Have Disk... button.
9. Insert the ACID CD into your CD-ROM drive.
10.In the Copy manufacturer’s files from box, type E:\Extras\Virtual MIDI
Router\WinNT\x86\OEMSETUP.inf (where “E” is your CD-ROM drive) and click the OK
button.
11.In the Models list, click the Sonic Foundry Virtual MIDI Router, and click the OK button.
12.Click the Next button.

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13.Click the Next button.

14.Select the number of ports you would like to enable from the Virtual MIDI Routing Ports
list and click OK.
15.When the installation is complete, you are prompted to restart Windows to complete the
driver installation. Click the Yes button.
Once Windows has restarted, all programs that support MIDI (including ACID) can use
the Virtual MIDI Router.

Configuring the Virtual MIDI Router

After installing the Sonic Foundry Virtual MIDI Router (VMR), a new MIDI device is
created with the name Sonic Foundry MIDI Router. If you want to install additional devices
for MIDI routing (the VMR supports up to four), you must configure the VMR.
When only one routing device is used, the name of the driver is displayed as Sonic Foundry
MIDI Router. When multiple ports are used, each port is labeled starting with a number (1 -
the number of ports) to identify each connection.

Configuring VMR for Windows 98 and Me

If you have a large number of MIDI devices in your system, or a multi-port MIDI board such
as an eight-port MIDI interface, you may have problems installing additional VMR MIDI
interface ports. Windows 9x will crash on startup if more than 11 MIDI devices are installed.
If you have trouble with MIDI devices causing system errors after installing the VMR, you
should reduce the number of ports in use by the VMR, remove the VMR, or reduce the
number of MIDI devices in your system.
1. Click the button, choose Settings, and choose Control Panel from the submenu.
2. Double-click the Multimedia icon in the Control Panel window. The Multimedia
Properties window displays.
3. Click the Devices tab.
4. Expand the MIDI Devices and Instruments list by double-clicking it.
5. Click the Sonic Foundry MIDI Router device and click Properties. The Sonic Foundry MIDI
Router Properties window displays.
6. In the General page of the Properties window, click the Settings button. The Configure
Sonic Foundry VMR window displays.
7. Select the number of ports you would like to enable from the Virtual MIDI Routing Ports list.
8. Click OK in all of the windows.
9. Restart Windows for the settings to take effect.

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Configuring VRM for Windows 2000
1. Click the button, choose Settings, and choose Control Panel from the submenu.
2. Double-click the Sounds and Multimedia icon in the Control Panel window. The Sounds
and Multimedia Properties window displays.
3. Click the Hardware tab.
4. Select the Sonic Foundry Virtual MIDI Router from the list of devices and click the Properties
button.
5. Click the Properties tab.
6. Double-click the MIDI Devices and Instruments icon.
7. Select the Sonic Foundry Virtual MIDI Router and click the Properties button.
8. Click the Settings button in the Properties window.
9. In the Configure Sonic Foundry VMR window, select the number of ports you would like
to enable from the Virtual MIDI Routing Ports list.
10.Click OK in all of the windows.
11.Restart Windows for the settings to take effect.

Syncing ACID to other hardware

Another way of using ACID is to sync it to your desired hardware component.
• When working with MIDI sequencers, generate MIDI Clock for the desired component
in the Sync tab of the Preferences dialog.

• When working with non-musical clocks (such as analog tape recorders), generate MIDI
timecode for the desired component in the Sync tab of the Preferences dialog.

• When working with digital equipment or applications, use a combination of MIDI

timecode and hardware word clock.

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APPENDIX

Customizing
A ACID

ACID may be customized to your project needs and working preferences. You may change
these settings at any time. If you use the same settings for all of your projects, you may set
ACID to use your settings as ACID defaults (presets).
In this chapter, you will find information about functions that allow you to customize the
appearance of ACID, set a project’s properties, and set the application’s preferences.

Working with ACID windows

ACID has various windows that allow you to perform specific tasks related to your project or
manage your media. These window can “float” on the workspace or be “docked” in the
Window Docking Area of ACID. All these windows may be viewed or hidden via the View
menu or their respective shortcut keys. The following lists the windows as they appear on
the View menu.

Window Shortcut keys Description

Explorer Alt+1 Allows you to view and access your media files without leaving the work
area. You may also preview media files and place them in your project from
this window.
Chopper Alt+2 Allows you to select portions of a media file that can be placed into tracks as
events.

Mixer Alt+3 Allows you to change the attributes of busses, assignable FX, and project
properties.
Video Alt+4 Displays a project’s video output at the current cursor position in the
timeline.
Audio Plug-In/ Alt+5 If you’re using ACID Pro, this allows you to view and alter FX chains
ACID FX and settings for assignable, bus, and track FX.
If you're using ACID Music, this allows you to view and alter the ACID
FX settings for the selected track. Use ACID FX to apply distortion, EQ,
low-frequency oscillator (chorus, flanger, phaser, or wah-wah), delay,
and reverb to your tracks.
Track Properties Alt+6 Allows you to view and change track attributes.

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Docking/Floating ACID windows

The Window Docking Area allows you to keep frequently used windows available, but out of
the way, while you are working with a project. You can specify how the Docking Area looks
by how you dock windows. Windows may be docked in the following ways:
• You may divide the area into sections (e.g. right, middle, and left) or a single section and
“stack” them. Windows that are not visible will display a tab that you can click to display
it. Also, you may use the window’s shortcut keys to display it.

Tabs

• All windows can be docked so they are all visible. The size of your monitor will determine
how wide each window will appear. This option may be useful if you want quick access to
all windows and your system has a dual monitor setup.

When the last window in the Docking Area is

closed or removed, the Docking Area
minimizes automatically. When the Docking
Area is minimized, dragging a dockable
window over the bottom of the application
window will cause the Docking Area to open
again.

Docking a window
1. If the window is floating on the workspace, click the window’s title bar and drag it below
the Track View. As you drag the window, you will see the window’s outline appear.
2. Position the window’s outline in the Docking Area where you want it and release the
mouse.

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Floating a window
You may float a window so that it does not appear in the Docking Area.
1. On the window that you want to float, click the move bar and drag the window to the
workspace. As you drag the window, you will see the window’s outline appear.
2. Position the window anywhere in the workspace and release the mouse. The floating
window may be moved again by clicking and dragging it to the new position or docking it
again.

Resizing a window
The Track List, Track View and Docking area components can be sized to your preferences
by dragging the dividers between them.

Using the Explorer window

The ACID Explorer window works similarly to the Windows Explorer. Primarily, you will
use the Explorer window to place media files into your projects. However, the Explorer
window allows you to do the following:
• Locate, preview, rename, and delete media files.
• Create folders, rename existing folders, organize media files, and delete folders and their
contents.

The Explorer window

The ACID Explorer window is a dockable window and is the primary window that you will
use when creating a new project or adding media to an existing project. Below is an
overview of the Explorer window.
Select drive/folder name

Toolbar

Content’s
List pane

Tree View
pane

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The Explorer toolbar

Button Description Button Description

Selects and opens the folder or drive one level Stops play back of the selected media
above the active folder. file.
Displays any content changes in the active When enabled, automatically plays a
folder or drive if a file was added, renamed or media file when it is selected.
deleted.
Adds the selected folder to your Favorites Displays Explorer viewing options.
folder. The Favorites folder contains media
files that you use most often.
Plays the selected media file.

Managing media
You may organize your media files in the Explorer window. In addition, you may preview
media files prior to placing them in the project.

Finding media
The Explorer window’s Tree View pane allows you to select the drive or folder and view its
contents in the Contents List pane.
1. From the drop-down list, select the drive that you want to view, or select any drive or
folder from the list that is already displaying in the Tree View pane.
2. Click the plus sign next to the drive or folder to display its contents. (The plus sign
becomes a minus sign. Click the minus sign to hide the drive or folders contents.)
3. Click a folder from Tree View pane and the files in it will display in the Contents List
pane.

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Moving media files and folders
You may move single or multiple files and folders to different drives, or existing folders to
better organize your media library.
1. Using the drop-down list, navigate to the drive that contains the file or folder that you
want to move.
2. In the Tree View or Contents List pane, select the file or folder by clicking it. To select
multiple folders, hold down either the Shift or Ctrl keys.
3. Drag the selected item(s) to the desired folder within the Tree View or Contents List
pane. If you want to move the selected item(s) to a different drive, drag them to the
desired drive in the Tree View pane.
4. Release the mouse and the selected item(s) will be placed in the new location.

If the folder contains media files that are being

used in projects, ACID will prompt you to
locate the media files when that project is
opened again.

Creating new folders

You may create folders within the Explorer window to store media files or other folders.
1. Navigate to the drive and folder location where you want to create the new folder.
2. Right-click in a blank area of the Contents List pane and choose New Folder from the
shortcut menu.
3. Enter the name of the new folder and press the Enter key to save the name.
Once the new folder is created, you may begin moving media files to it or move it to a
new location.

Renaming media files and folders

You may rename media files and folders that are not currently being used in an open project
within the Explorer window. You cannot rename media files that are being used in an open
project. To rename these files, save and close the open project before renaming them.
1. Select a media file or folder in the Tree View or Contents List pane.
2. Right-click to display a shortcut menu.
3. From the shortcut menu, choose Rename.
4. Type the new name for the media file or folder and press the Enter key to save the name.

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If the media file or folder that you renamed is

being used in a project, ACID will prompt you
to set the new path where the project’s media
file(s) reside.

Deleting media files and folders

You may delete media files and folders that are not currently being used in an open project
within the Explorer window. You cannot delete media files that are being used in an open
project. To delete these files, save and close the open project before deleting them.
1. Select a media file or folder in the Tree View or Contents List pane. To select multiple
files, hold down either the Shift or Ctrl keys.
2. Right-click the file or folder and choose Delete from the shortcut menu. The Confirm
Delete dialog will appear.
3. Click the Yes button to delete the media file or folder.
Click the No button to keep the media file or folder.

If the media file or folder that you deleted is

being used in a project, ACID will notify you
that the files are missing. Simply, delete the
tracks from the project where the files where
placed.

Adding media to ACID Favorites

ACID includes a Favorites folder found in the Tree View pane. You may add folders that
contain media files that you frequently use in projects. Once the folder is added to Favorites,
you may simply access it to find the media files and place them in your project.
1. Select a folder in the Tree View or Contents List pane. To select multiple folders, hold
down either the Shift or Ctrl keys.
2. Click the Add to Favorites ( ) button.
You can also right-click the selected folder to display a shortcut menu. From the shortcut
menu, choose Add to Favorites.

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The folder will appear within the Favorites folder in the Tree View pane.

Folders added
to Favorites

Using the Explorer Transport controls

The Explorer window contains transport controls that allow you to listen to audio files
before placing them into your project. When you play back a media file, you may monitor its
volume level on the preview bus that is located in the Mixer window. For more information,
see Using the Mixer window on page 55.

Previewing a media file

1. Select the media file that you want to preview.
2. Click Start Preview ( ) button. The media file will begin looped playback. Its levels may
be monitored on the preview bus.
3. Press the Stop Preview ( ) button to quit playback.
4. Repeat steps 1-3 to preview other media files.

Using Auto Preview

The Auto Preview ( ) button, when enabled, sets ACID to automatically play back media
files when you select them in the Contents List pane. If your project is currently playing
when you select a new file, the new file will play back along with your project. This feature
allows you to listen to the media file in the context of your project.
The Auto Preview ( ) button is a toggle feature, so it is either on or off. Click the button to
turn Auto Preview on or off.

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Using the Explorer view options

The Explorer window allows you to change the way the files and folders are displayed. You
may toggle through the display options by clicking the View ( ) button or selecting a
display option from the button’s submenu. Following are descriptions of each display option.

View Description
Tree View Displays all the drives and folders where media is located.
Summary View Displays information about the selected media file: the media’s storage
path.
Details Displays a media file’s size and the date when it was created or last
modified. The individual columns, in the Contents List view, are scalable
so you can read longer text entry information.
All Files Displays all file types, including non-media files, in the selected folder.

Changing the Time ruler format

You may specify a time format that the ACID Time ruler displays. The ruler, located below
the Track View, displays real-time in several formats. You may change the ruler format in
one of the following ways:
• From the Options menu, choose Ruler Format and select the desired format.
• Right-click the Time ruler and select the desired format from the shortcut menu. This
can be done from the Track View, Chopper, and Track Properties dialog.

The following table describes the time formats available in ACID:

Time Format Description

Samples Displays the Time Ruler in samples.
Time Displays the Time Ruler in hours:minutes:seconds.milliseconds.
Seconds Displays the Time Ruler in seconds.
Time & Frames Displays the Time Ruler in hours:minutes:seconds.frames with a frame rate equal to that of your
video.
Absolute Frames Displays the Time Ruler in total frames from the beginning of the project.
Feet & Frames 16 mm Displays the Time Ruler in feet+frames at a rate of 40 frames per foot.
Feet & Frames 35 mm Displays the Time Ruler in feet+frames at a rate of 16 frames per foot.
SMPTE Film Sync Displays the Time Ruler in hours:minutes:seconds:frames with a frame rate of 24 frames per
(24 fps) second for synchronizing with film.
SMPTE EBU (25 fps) Displays the Time Ruler in hours:minutes:seconds:frames with a frame rate of 25 frames per
second for European Broadcasting Union.
SMPTE Non-Drop Displays the Time Ruler in hours:minutes:seconds:frames with a frame rate of 29.97 frames per
(29.97 fps) second.
SMPTE Drop Displays the Time Ruler in hours:minutes:seconds;frames with a frame rate of 29.97 frames per
(29.97 fps) second using dropped frame numbers.
SMPTE 30 (30 fps) Displays the Time Ruler in hours:minutes:seconds:frames with a frame rate of 30 frames per
second.

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Using the Ruler Offset

The Ruler Offset allows you to change the project’s ruler settings to start at a specific time.
Typically, this feature is used in conjunction with SMPTE and MIDI projects and when
their timelines are the main reference. Basically, the Ruler Offset allows you to set the
ACID Time ruler based on another project’s timeline for reference purposes, i.e., the
SMTPE or MIDI timelines.
When a new value is entered along the timeline, ACID will adjust the Ruler’s time units at
the cursor position and at the start of the timeline. For example, if the cursor is positioned at
the 2:00 minute mark and you enter 15:00 minutes, the start of the project will being at
13:00 minutes. The Ruler Offset feature works the same for all time formats in ACID.
1. Position the cursor anywhere along the timeline.
2. On the Time ruler, right-click to display a shortcut menu.
3. From the shortcut menu, choose Set Time at Cursor. An edit box opens at the cursor
position.

4. Enter a time value using the number keys.

5. Press the Enter key to set the cursor position’s time value. The value that you enter at the
cursor’s position will affect all time values that precede and follow it.

Using the project grid

The project grid appears on the Track View and is mainly used to align the events in your
project. The grid divides your project into equal units based on the setting that you choose.
The grid setting can be based on the project type or how you prefer to work.
It is important to remember that in some cases the grid lines and the Ruler will not align or
“match.” This is because they are two independent functions. However, you may set the grid
to align to the Ruler, which is the ACID default setting.
This table outlines the grid formats that you may use.

Ruler Marks 8th Note Triplets

Measures 16th Notes
Half Notes 16th Note Triplets
Quarter Notes 32 Notes
Quarter Note Triplets 32nd Note Triplets
8th Notes

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Setting the grid type

You may change the grid type at any time and apply it to your project. There are two ways to
set the grid type for your project.
• From the Options menu, choose Grid Spacing and then the type of grid you want from the
submenu.
• Right-click the Marker bar and choose Grid Spacing and then the type of grid that you
want from the shortcut menu.

Using the Toolbar

ACID is preset to display the Toolbar below the Menu bar. However, you may hide and
customize the Toolbar to suit your preferences. The settings that you apply to the Toolbar
will remain set until you change them again.

Hiding and displaying the Toolbar

You may hide the Toolbar to create more workspace or if you prefer to use the ACID
shortcut keys when working with your project.

Hiding the Toolbar

There are two ways to hide the Toolbar depending on whether it is docked or floating.
• If the Toolbar is docked or floating, choose Toolbar from the View menu. The check mark
next to the command is removed and the Toolbar disappears. The Toolbar will remain
hidden until you display it again.
• If the Toolbar is floating, you may simply click the Toolbar’s close ( ) button in the
upper right hand corner.

Displaying the Toolbar

From the View menu, choose Toolbar. A check mark will appear next to the command and
the Toolbar will appear in its preset position. The Toolbar will remain visible until you hide
it again.

Reordering the Toolbar Buttons

ACID allows you to change the Toolbar’s button order to suit your preferences. You may
either reorder the buttons directly on the workspace or via the Customize Toolbar dialog.

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Reordering buttons on the ACID workspace
1. Hold the Shift key and drag the button that you want to move to the new location on the
Toolbar. You will see a hand icon ( ) within an outline of the button that you are
moving.
2. Release the mouse to drop the button in its new location.

If you drag the button “off” the Toolbar, the

button will be removed.

3. Repeat steps 1-3 to reorder more Toolbar buttons.

Reordering buttons on the Customize Toolbar dialog

The Customize Toolbar dialog allows you to control the order and functionality available on
the Toolbar. You may return the Toolbar to its default settings by pressing the Reset button
on this dialog.
1. From the Options menu, choose Customize Toolbar. The Customize Toolbar dialog
displays.

2. On the Current toolbar buttons pane, select the button that you want to move and click the
Move Up or Move Down buttons.
3. Repeat step 2 to reorder more buttons.
4. Click the Close button to save the Toolbar changes and close the dialog.

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Adding buttons to the Toolbar

ACID includes a series of buttons that you may add to the Toolbar. These buttons are listed
in the Customize Toolbar dialog. You may also add separators on the Toolbar to organize the
buttons to your preferences.
You may return the Toolbar to its default settings by pressing the Reset button on the
dialog.
1. From the Options menu, choose Customize Toolbar. The Customize Toolbar dialog
displays.
2. On the Available toolbar buttons pane, use the scroll bars to locate the button that you want
to add and select it. The icons are what will be displayed on the Toolbar.
3. On the Current toolbar buttons pane, select the button that you want the newly added
button to proceed in order.
For example, if you want to add the Save As button and want it to precede the Properties
button, select the Properties button on the Current toolbar buttons pane.

4. Click the Add button. The new button will be added “above” the selected button on the
Current toolbar buttons pane.

You may also double-click a button to add it to

the Toolbar.

5. Repeat steps 2-4 to add more buttons to the Toolbar.

6. Click the Close button to save the Toolbar settings and close the dialog.

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Removing buttons from the Toolbar

You may remove buttons and separators from the Toolbar. If you have added buttons to the
Toolbar, removing unused or unwanted buttons allows you to maximize the Toolbar’s space.
You may remove Toolbar buttons either directly on the workspace or via the Customize
Toolbar dialog.

Removing buttons on the ACID workspace

1. Hold the Shift key and drag the button that you want to remove “off” the Toolbar. You
will see a hand icon ( ) within an outline of the button that you are removing.
2. Release the mouse to remove the button.
3. Repeat steps 1-3 to move remove more Toolbar buttons.

Removing buttons on the Customize Toolbar dialog

You may return the Toolbar to its default settings by pressing the Reset button on this
dialog.
1. From the Options menu, choose Customize Toolbar. The Customize Toolbar dialog will
appear.
2. On the Current toolbar buttons pane, select the button that you want to remove.
3. Click the Remove button. The button will be removed from the Current toolbar buttons
pane and not appear on the Toolbar.

You may also double click the button to remove

it.

4. Repeat steps 2-3 to remove more buttons from the Toolbar.

5. Click the Close button to save the Toolbar settings and exit the dialog.

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Using the Time Display

The Time Display window above the Track List reflects the cursor’s position on the
timeline.

Changing cursor position

You can edit the cursor position using time as it is displayed on either the Time ruler or Beat
ruler:
• To set the cursor’s position based on the Time ruler, right-click the Time Display and
choose Edit Time Position from the shortcut menu.
• To set the cursor’s position based on the Beat ruler, right-click the Time Display and
choose Edit Cursor Position from the shortcut menu.

Once you make your selection from the shortcut menu, an edit box appears for the
appropriate time display. Enter the cursor’s new position and press Enter .

You can also edit the cursor position directly by

double-clicking the desired Time Display field
and entering the new cursor position.

Changing the Time Display

The Time Display window always reflects the format of the Time ruler. You may change the
ruler settings for the Time ruler via the Time Display window.
1. Right-click the Time Display window to display a shortcut menu.

2. Choose Time at Cursor Format to display a submenu.

3. Choose the desired time format.
Both the Time window and Time ruler will display the chosen time format.

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Setting the Time display monitor

The Time Display window can be used to monitor incoming or outgoing MIDI timecode.
ACID can be set to monitor MIDI in the following ways:
• Display MIDI timecode generated from external sources.
• Display MIDI timecode and clock information that is being generated.

Within ACID, the Time Display settings work in conjunction with your project’s properties
and MIDI setup options.
1. Right-click the Time Display window to display a shortcut menu.

2. From the shortcut menu, choose the type of MIDI monitoring that ACID will display.
Once you have made your selection, the Time Display window displays both the MIDI
code being input or output and a status message.

Setting project properties

ACID has many settings that you can use with a project. Some settings are simply
informational details about the project, while others control how ACID will work and
handle your project and its output. If you have multiple projects, ACID stores the settings
used for each project, so you do not need to alter settings when you open a different project:
saving you time.
The Project Properties dialog may be accessed two ways:
• From the File menu, choose Properties.
• Press the Alt + Enter shortcut keys.

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The Project Properties dialog has two tabs: Summary and Audio. To display a properties
page, click the desired tab. The following list describes how to work with the property tabs:
• To enter information, click inside a field and type.
• Press the Tab key to move to a different field.
• Click the Apply button to save information, but keep the Project Properties dialog open.
• Click the OK button or press the Enter key to save the information and close the Project
Properties dialog.
• Click the Cancel button to keep the original information, if any existed, and close the
Project Properties dialog.

Using the Summary properties tab

This tab allows you to enter information about the project. These fields may be left blank or
if information exists, you may change it at any time.

Field Description
Title Enter the name or title of the open project.
Artist Enter the name of the narrator, band, or artist(s) being
recorded into the project.
Engineer Enter the name(s) of the people who mixed and edited
the project.
Copyright Enter the date and ownership rights of the project.
Comments Enter information that identifies and describes the
project.
Check box Click the Start all new projects with these settings check box
if your projects’ requirements do not change or you want
consistent settings for future projects.

Using the Audio properties tab

This tab allows you to set different characteristics the project will use to handle the audio.
Since audio requires a lot of disk space, this page displays the available drive space where
ACID stores recorded audio.

Field Description
Number of additional stereo Enter the number of stereo busses that you want in your project. You may
busses add up to 26 busses. The busses appear in the Mixer window.
Sample rate Choose a sample rate from the drop-down list or enter your own rate. The
sample rate range is 2,000 Hz to 96,000 Hz. Higher sample rates result in
better quality sound, but also means larger audio files.
Bit-depth Choose a bit depth from the drop-down list. A higher bit-depth results in
better quality sound, but also means larger audio files.
Check box Click the Start all new projects with these settings check box if your projects’
requirements do not change or you want consistent settings for future
projects.

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Setting ACID preferences

From the Options menu, choose Preferences to display the Preferences dialog.

Using the General preferences tab

Item Description
Automatically open last project on Select this check box if you want ACID to reopen the project that was open the
startup last time ACID was closed. When the check box is cleared, ACID starts with a
blank project.
Show logo splash screen on startup Select this box if you want the ACID logo splash screen to be displayed when
ACID starts.
Use Net Notify to stay informed When this check box is selected, ACID will periodically display information from
about Sonic Foundry products Sonic Foundry at startup. Clear the check box to bypass the Net Notify dialog.
Draw contents of events Select this check box if you want ACID to draw waveforms in events. Clearing
the check box can improve performance on some systems.
Create undos for FX parameter Select this check box if you want ACID to create Undos when a plug-in
changes parameter is changed in the FX pages.
Confirm media file deletion when When this check box is selected, a message box will appear asking if you want
still in use to delete a media file that is currently in use by the project.
Close media files when ACID is not When this check box is selected, files can be edited in external editors while
the active application they are contained in events in ACID.
Enable multimedia keyboard When this check box is selected, you can use a multimedia keyboard to control
support playback of a project.
Automatically render large Wave The .wav format is limited by a maximum file size of ~2GB. When this check
files as Wave64 box is selected, you can render larger files as Sonic Foundry Wave64 files.
Prompt for region and marker When this check box is selected, an edit box is displayed so you can name
names if not playing markers and regions as you place them.
Create project file backups on save When this check box is selected, ACID will make a backup of project files when
(.acd-bak) you open them. Backup files are stored in the same folder as your project and
use the same extension .acd.bak. You can use backup project files to revert to
a project’s previous state.
Preserve pitch for new Beatmapped Select the check box if you want ACID maintain the pitch of Beatmapped tracks
tracks when tempo changes when the project tempo changes.
Automatically start the Select the check box if you want ACID to start the Beatmapper Wizard when
Beatmapper Wizard for long files you add a file that is longer than 30 seconds to your project.
Recently used project list Select the check box and enter a number in the edit box if you want ACID to list
your most recently used projects at the bottom of the File menu.

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Item Description
Temporary files folder Displays the folder where temporary files are created. Click the Browse button
to specify a new folder.
When a media file is added to a project from a removable device, ACID stores a
copy of the media file in a temporary subfolder within the ACID program folder.
This keeps the media file available for use even if the source of the media is no
longer accessible.
Be aware that these subfolders are cleared when you close ACID. However,
they are not cleared if ACID closes inappropriately.
Free storage space in selected This field displays the amount of space available in the folder specified in the
folder Temporary storage folder box.
Default All Restores the General page options to the default settings.

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Using the Audio preferences tab

Setting Audio preferences

Item Description
Audio device type Choose a driver type from the drop-down list. The Microsoft Sound Mapper is the
default setting. If you want to activate specific sound cards, choose Windows
Classic Wave Driver and choose a device from the Default audio playback device
drop-down list.
Default audio playback device Choose the device that you want to use for playing sound data.
Selecting a device such as the Microsoft Sound Mapper allows Windows to select
an appropriate device to use for the current sound data.
If you have selected Microsoft Sound Mapper, you will not be able to assign
busses to different devices.
Playback buffering The Playback Buffering (seconds) slider specifies the total amount of
buffering that ACID uses during playback. The larger the number, the more
buffering that ACID will do during playback. This value must be as low as
possible without gapping. To set it, start at .25 and play back a typical song.
Move some of the track faders. If the playback gaps at all, try increasing
this slider in small increments until the gapping stops. As you increase this
slider, the RAM meter at the bottom of the ACID window will indicate more
RAM usage.
If you simply cannot get playback to be free of gapping, you need to either
decrease the number of tracks you are trying to play simultaneously, install
more RAM in your computer so you can increase buffering, buy a faster
access hard drive, or minimize the number of DirectX plug-ins you are
trying to use simultaneously.
Open files as loops if between Enter a lower and upper limit to specify which files ACID will open as loops if
(seconds) stretching properties are not saved in the file.
Files that are shorter than the lower limit will be opened as one-shot tracks;
files longer than the upper limit will start the Beatmapper Wizard.
Quick fade edit edges of audio When the check box is selected, ACID will place a rapid fade on the edges of
events audio events (10ms by default) to soften potentially harsh transitions.
When the command is not selected, edges of new events are not faded
(fades that were applied before the check box is cleared are not removed).
Right-click an event and select or clear the Quick Fade Edges command to
override the default event fade behavior for individual events.
Quick fade time Enter a time (in milliseconds) to specify the duration of fades applied to the
edges of events.

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Setting advanced audio preferences

Hardware
Audio Devices This list displays all of the audio devices that are installed in your computer.
Selecting a device allows you to set the options below for that device.
Interpolate position When this box is checked, ACID will attempt to compensate for inaccurate
devices by interpolating the playback or recording position. If you notice
that your playback cursor is offset from what you are hearing, select this
option for the playback device.
Position bias If the position of playback or record does not match what you hear after you
enable Interpolate position, you can attempt to compensate using the
Position bias slider. Moving this slider will offset the position forward or
backward to compensate for the inaccuracies of the device
Do not pre-roll buffers before When this box is checked, ACID will not create buffers prior to starting
starting playback playback. Some devices do not behave properly if this check box is cleared. If
your audio stutters when you start playback, try selecting this option.
Record Latency
Automatically detect and offset Select this check box to automatically compensate for offset between the
hardware recording latency time you initiate recording and when your sound card starts recording.
User recording latency offset Drag this slider to specify an offset value.

Using the MIDI preferences tab

Item Description
Make these devices available Select the MIDI devices that you want to be available when you click the Device
for MIDI track playback and Selection button in the Track List.
synchronization
MIDI Thru device for Choose a device from the drop-down list to send MIDI messages to a second device
recording for playback. For example, if you are recording using a MIDI controller keyboard, that
keyboard itself doesn't produce sound. In order to hear what you are playing set a
MIDI Thru device. ACID will record MIDI messages and send them to the MIDI Thru
device chosen so you can hear what you are playing/recording.
SysEx messages are not sent to the MIDI Thru device.
Default DLS set for MIDI From the drop-down list, choose the DLS set that you want to use when playing
playback back MIDI tracks, or click Load to browse to a DLS file.
Default All Restores all MIDI preferences to the default settings.

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Using the Video preferences tab

Item Description
Show source frame numbers Choose a setting from the drop-down list to change the format used to display
on video thumbnails as frame numbers in the video track, or choose None to turn off frame
numbering.
External monitor device Choose a DV output device from the drop-down list. This is the interface to
which your video device is connected.
Details Displays information about the device selected in the Device drop-down list.
If project format is invalid for If your source media does not conform to DV standards, choose a setting from
DV output, conform to the the drop-down list. ACID will adjust the video to display properly on your
following external monitor.
Sync offset (frames) If your audio is not synchronized with your external monitor, you can configure
an offset for your hardware. Drag the slider to synchronize audio and video.
This setting affects synchronization for previewing on an external monitor.
Audio and video synchronization in your ACID project is unaffected.
Default All Restores all Video preferences to the default settings.

Using the Editing preferences tab

Item Description
Project tempo range Use the up and down arrows or enter a value in the edit boxes to specify the
minimum and maximum tempo available in the ACID project. Changing this
option will affect the resolution of the Tempo slider.
Editing Application X Enter the name of each editor you want to have displayed in the Track List
shortcut menu.
Right-click in the Track List, and choose Edit in [editor name] to edit the
media file associated with a track.
You can specify any editing tool you want to use; however, this feature was
designed for use with destructive audio/MIDI editors.
Browse Click Browse and select the .exe file for each editor you want to have available in
the Track List shortcut menu.
Name Enter the name that you want to use to identify each editor. The name is
displayed in the Track List shortcut menu and the Tools menu.
Clear Removes the specified editor from the Editing page.
Check for Sonic Foundry When this check box is selected, ACID will automatically search for available
editors Sonic Foundry editors on your computer. If one is located, it will be placed as an
available editor in the Editing Application X field.
Default All Restores all Editing preferences to the default settings.

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Using the CD preferences tab

Item Description
Write drive Select the drive you want to use to create CDs from the drop-down list.
Write speed Select the speed of your CD recorder from the drop-down list.
Audio extract optimization If you experience gapping or glitching in tracks that you've extracted from
CDs, adjust the slider.
Autoname extracted CD tracks Select this check box if you want ACID to automatically assign file names to
tracks that you've extracted from CDs.
File names will include the CD's serial number and track number.
Default All Restores all CD preferences to the default settings.

Using the Sync preferences tab

Setting Sync preferences

Generate MIDI Timecode settings

Output device Select a MIDI device from the drop-down list. MIDI timecode will be sent to this
device. The MTC slave should also be set to this device. This device will not be
available for MIDI playback.
Frame rate Select a frame rate from the drop-down list. ACID will use this frame rate to
generate the MIDI timecode. The MTC slave must be set to the same frame
rate.
Generate MIDI Clock settings
Output device Select a MIDI device from the drop-down list. MIDI Clock will be sent to this
device. The MIDI Clock slave should also be set to this device.
Trigger from MIDI Timecode settings
Input device Select a MIDI device from the drop-down list. MIDI timecode will be received
from this device. The MTC master should also be set to this device.
Frame rate Select a frame rate from the drop-down list. This value specifies the frame rate
at which the MTC master will send timecode to ACID.
Advanced Click to open the Advanced Sync Preferences dialog.
Default All Restores all Sync preferences to the default settings.

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Setting advanced Sync preferences

MTC Input
Free-wheel for timecode loss Select this check box if you want ACID to continue to play if timecode is lost.
Enabling this option can compensate for infrequent losses in timecode. If you
frequently lose timecode, you should perform troubleshooting to determine the cause
of the problem.
Free-wheel slack time Use the up and down arrows or enter a value in the edit box to specify the amount of
time that timecode can be lost before the Free-wheel playback time starts. A
longer time is more tolerant of breaks in the incoming timecode.
Free-wheel playback time Use the up and down arrows or enter a value in the edit box to specify the amount of
time that ACID will play back after the Free-wheel slack time has been exceeded.
Synchronization delay time Use the up and down arrows or enter a value in the edit box to specify the amount of
time it takes for ACID to synchronize itself to incoming timecode.
On slower computers, this time should be set to approximately two seconds. On
faster computers, it may be set lower.
Setting this value too low can sometimes result in audible pitch shifting at the start of
playback.
Offset adjust If ACID is consistently behind or ahead of your MTC generator, enter a value in the
box to adjust a synchronization offset with quarter-frame accuracy.
If ACID is behind, set this value to a negative number. A setting of - 4 usually does the
trick.
If ACID is ahead, set this value to a positive number. A setting of +4 usually does the
trick, though it is rare that ACID will sync ahead.
MTC Output
Use internal timer for MTC Select this check box if you want ACID to base its MTC on the CPU clock. When
generation this check box is cleared, MTC will be generated from the clock on the sound
card.
Internal time resolution Select a resolution from the drop-down list if the Use internal timer for MTC
generation box is selected. High numbers indicate low resolution and vice-versa.
Full-frame message Select a radio button to determine when ACID will send full-frame timecode messages
generation while Generate MIDI Timecode is enabled. Full-frame messages are used by some
external synchronizable audio devices to seek to a proper location prior to actually
starting synchronization. Tape-based recorders especially benefit from seeking to full-
frame messages because of the time it takes to move the transport to the proper
location. However, full-frame messages are ignored by some devices, and may
actually cause unexpected behavior in other devices.
Refer to your hardware documentation to find out if your hardware supports full-
frame messages.

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MIDI Clock Output

Send Start instead of Select this check box if you want ACID so send a Start command rather than a
Continue when beginning Continue command when Generate MIDI Clock is enabled.
playback When the check box is cleared, ACID sends a Continue command, as this type of
command allows the chasing device to start from a specific time. However, some
older sequencers that support MIDI Clock chase do not support the Continue
command and must start playback from the beginning every time.
Song Position Pointer Select a radio button to determine when ACID will send Song Position Pointer
generation messages while Generate MIDI Clock is enabled.
Song Position Pointer messages are used by MIDI applications and devices to seek to a
proper location prior to starting synchronization.

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APPENDIX

Glossary
B
The glossary contains terms and their definitions that you may come across in the manual.
However, this glossary does not simply deal with ACID, but also includes relevant industry
terms.

.acd-zip An ACID project file that contains all information regarding the project including
track layout, envelope settings, and effects parameters. In addition, all audio files
used in the project are embedded into the project file.

Activation Code This number is based on the Computer ID number of the computer on which
ACID is installed. Each computer has a unique number, similar to a license plate.
An activation code is created based on that number. When you register ACID,
Sonic Foundry will generate an activation code for you. Once the code is
entered, ACID will not time out. Since the activation number is based on the
Computer ID, it is important that you have ACID installed on the computer
where you will be using it.

Adaptive Delta Pulse A method of compressing audio data. Although the theory for compression using
Code Modulation ADPCM is standard, there are many different algorithms employed. For example,
(ADPCM) Microsoft's ADPCM algorithm is not compatible with the International
Multimedia Association's (IMA) approved ADPCM.

Advanced See, Windows Media Format.

Streaming Format
(ASF)

Aliasing A type of distortion that occurs when digitally recording high frequencies with a
low sample rate. For example, in a motion picture, when a car's wheels appear to
slowly spin backward while the car is quickly moving forward, you are seeing the
effects of aliasing. Similarly, when you try to record a frequency greater than one
half of the sampling rate (the Nyquist Frequency), instead of hearing a high
pitch, you may hear a low-frequency rumble.
To prevent aliasing, an anti-aliasing filter is used to remove high-frequencies
before recording. Once the sound has been recorded, aliasing distortion is
impossible to remove without also removing other frequencies from the sound.
This same anti-aliasing filter must be applied when resampling to a lower sample
rate.

APPENDIX B GLOSSARY
194

Attack The attack of a sound is the initial portion of the sound. Percussive sounds
(drums, piano, guitar plucks) are said to have a fast attack. This means that the
sound reaches its maximum amplitude in a very short time. Sounds that slowly
swell up in volume (soft strings and wind sounds) are said to have a slow attack.

Audio Compression The Audio Compression Manager, from Microsoft, is a standard interface for
Manager (ACM) audio compression and signal processing for Windows. The ACM can be used by
Windows programs to compress and decompress .wav files.

Audio Interchange An audio file format developed by Apple Computer.

File Format (AIFF)

Audio Proxy File See, Proxy File.

(.sfap0)

ASX File ASF Stream Redirector file. See, Redirector File.

Attenuation A decrease in the level of a signal.

Bandwidth When discussing audio equalization, each frequency band has a width associated
with it that determines the range of frequencies that are affected by the EQ. An
EQ band with a wide bandwidth will affect a wider range of frequencies than one
with a narrow bandwidth.
When discussing network connections, refers to the rate of signals transmitted;
the amount of data that can be transmitted in a fixed amount of time (stated in
bits/second): a 56 Kbps network connection is capable of receiving 56,000 bits of
data per second.

Beatmapped track A file that has tempo information added to is as a result of going through the
Beatmapper Wizard.

Beats Per Minute The tempo of a piece of music can be written as a number of beats in one minute.
(BPM) If the tempo is 60 BPM, a single beat will occur once every second.

Bit The most elementary unit in digital systems. Its value can only be 1 or 0,
corresponding to a voltage in an electronic circuit. Bits are used to represent
values in the binary numbering system. As an example, the 8-bit binary number
10011010 represents the unsigned value of 154 in the decimal system. In digital
sampling, a binary number is used to store individual sound levels, called samples.

Bit Depth The number of bits used to represent a single sample. For example, 8- or 16-bit
are common sample sizes. While 8-bit samples take up less memory (and hard
disk space), they are inherently noisier than 16-bit samples.

Buffer Memory used as an intermediate repository in which data is temporarily held

while waiting to be transferred between two locations. A buffer ensures that there
is an uninterrupted flow of data between computers. Media players may need to
rebuffer when there is network congestion.

Bus A virtual pathway where signals from tracks and effects are mixed. A bus's output
is a physical audio device in the computer from which the signal will be heard.

GLOSSARY APPENDIX B
 195

Byte Refers to a set of 8 bits. An 8-bit sample requires one byte of memory to store,
while a 16-bit sample takes two bytes of memory to store.

Clipboard The clipboard is where data that you have cut or copied from ACID is stored.
You can then paste the data back into ACID at a different location.

Clipping Occurs when the amplitude of a sound is above the maximum allowed recording
level. In digital systems, clipping is seen as a clamping of the data to a maximum
value, such as 32,767 in 16-bit data. Clipping causes sound to distort.

Codec Coder/decoder: refers to any technology for compressing and decompressing data.
The term codec can refer to software, hardware, or a combination of both
technologies.

Compression Ratio A compression ratio controls the ratio of input to output levels above a specific
(audio) threshold. This ratio determines how much a signal has to rise above the
threshold for every 1 dB of increase in the output. For example, with a ratio of
3:1, the input level must increase by three decibels to produce a one-decibel
output-level increase:
• Threshold = -10 dB
• Compression Ratio = 3:1
• Input = -7dB
• Output = -9 dB
Because the input is 3dB louder than the threshold and the compression ratio is
3:1, the resulting signal is 1 dB louder than the threshold.

Compression Ratio The ratio of the size of the original noncompressed file to the compressed
(file size) contents. For example, a 3:1 compression ratio means that the compressed file is
one-third the size of the original.

Computer ID Each computer has a unique number, similar to a license plate. An activation
number is created based on that number. Since the activation number is based on
the Computer ID, it is important that you have ACID installed on the computer
where you will be using it. The Computer ID is automatically detected and
provided to you when you install ACID.
The Computer ID is used for registration purposes only. It doesn't give Sonic
Foundry access to any personal information and can't be used for any purpose
other than for generating a unique activation number for you to use ACID.

Crossfade Mixing two pieces of audio by fading one out as the other fades in.

DC Offset DC offset occurs when hardware, such as a sound card, adds DC current to a
recorded audio signal. This current results in a recorded wave is not centered
around the zero baseline. Glitches and other unexpected results can occur when
sound effects are applied to files that contain DC offsets.
In the following example, the red line represents 0 dB. The lower waveform
exhibits DC offset; note that the waveform is centered approximately 2 dB above
the baseline.

APPENDIX B GLOSSARY
196

Decibel (dB) A unit used to represent a ratio between two numbers using a logarithmic scale.
For example, when comparing the numbers 14 and 7, you could say 14 is two
times greater than the number 7; or you could say 14 is 6 dB greater than the
number 7. Where did we pull that 6 dB from? Engineers use the equation dB = 20
x log (V1/V2) when comparing two instantaneous values. Decibels are
commonly used when dealing with sound because the ear perceives loudness in a
logarithmic scale.
In ACID, most measurements are given in decibels. For example, if you want to
double the amplitude of a sound, you apply a 6 dB gain. A sample value of 32,767
(maximum positive sample value for 16-bit sound) can be referred to as having a
value of 0 dB. Likewise, a sample value of 16,384 can be referred to having a
value of -6 dB.

Device Driver A program that enables Windows to connect different hardware and software.
For example, a sound card device driver is used by Windows software to control
sound card recording and playback.

Digital Rights A system for delivering songs, videos, and other media over the Internet in a file
Management (DRM) format that protects copyrighted material. Current proposals include some form
of certificates that validate copyright ownership and restrict unauthorized
redistribution.

Digital Signal A general term describing anything that alters digital data. Signal processors
Processing (DSP) have existed for a very long time (tone controls, distortion boxes, wah-wah
pedals) in the analog (electrical) domain. Digital Signal Processors alter the data
after it has been digitized by using a combination of programming and
mathematical techniques. DSP techniques are used to perform many effects such
as equalization and reverb simulation.
Since most DSP is performed with simple arithmetic operations (additions and
multiplications), both your computer's processor and specialized DSP chips can
be used to perform any DSP operation. The difference is that DSP chips are
optimized specifically for mathematical functions while your computer's
microprocessor is not. This results in a difference in processing speed.

DirectX A set of Application Program Interfaces designed by Microsoft for multimedia

development. A DirectX plug-in, such as the Sonic Foundry Noise Reduction
DirectX Plug-In, uses the DirectX Media Streaming Services (DMSS) API.
Because DMSS is a standard API, a DirectX plug-in can be used in any
application that supports DMSS.

Disk-Based Files Disk-based files are usually longer audio clips that are played from hard disk
rather than being stored in RAM. Disk-based files are used for vocals or any other
long audio file that does not loop.

Downbeat This term is used in the Beatmapper to mean the first beat of the first measure.

Downloadable A DLS file stores a custom sound set, which you can load into your SoftSynth-
Sound (DLS) giving you another set of voices for playback.

GLOSSARY APPENDIX B
 197

Drag and Drop A quick way to perform certain operations using the mouse. To drag and drop,
you click and hold a highlighted selection, drag it (hold the left mouse button
down and move the mouse) and drop it (let go of the mouse button) at another
position on the screen.

Dynamic Range The difference between the maximum and minimum signal levels. It can refer to
a musical performance (high- volume vs. low-volume signals) or to electrical
equipment (peak level before distortion vs. noise floor). For example, orchestral
music has a wide dynamic range, while thrash metal has a very small (always
loud) range.

Envelopes Envelopes allow you to automate the change of a certain parameter over time. In
the case of volume, you can create a fade out (which requires a change over time)
by adding an envelope and creating a point in the line to indicate where the fade
starts. Then you pull the end point of the envelope down to -infinity.

Equalization (EQ) Equalizing a sound file is a process by which certain frequency bands are raised or
lowered in level. EQ has various uses. The most common use for ACID users is to
simply adjust the subjective timbral qualities of a sound.

Event An instance of a media file on a track. An event may play an entire media file or
a portion of the file.

File Format A file format specifies the way in which data is stored on your floppy disks or hard
drive. In Windows, the most common file format is the Microsoft .wav format.

Frame Rate Audio uses frame rates only for the purposes of synching to video or other audio.
To synchronize with audio a rate of 30 non-drop is typically used. To synchronize
with video, 29.97 drop is usually used.

Frequency The frequency spectrum of a signal refers to its range of frequencies. In audio, the
Spectrum frequency range is basically 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz. The frequency spectrum
sometimes refers to the distribution of these frequencies. For example, bass-heavy
sounds have a large frequency content in the low end (20 Hz - 200 Hz) of the
spectrum.

Hertz (Hz) The unit of measurement for frequency or cycles per second (CPS).

Insert Increment Sections of silence between selections that are made in the Chopper and painted
into the track view.

Insertion Point The insertion point (also referred to as the cursor position) is analogous to the
cursor in a word processor. It is where markers or commands may be inserted
depending on the operation. The Insertion Point appears as a vertical flashing
black line and can be moved by clicking the left mouse button anywhere in the
full-view control area.

Loop Loops are small audio clips that are designed to create a repeating beat or pattern.
Loops are usually one to four measures long and are stored completely in RAM
for playback.

APPENDIX B GLOSSARY
198

Marker A marker is an anchored, accessible reference point in a file.

MIDI Channel An informational pathway over which MIDI data can travel.

Media Control A standard way for Windows programs to communicate with multimedia devices
Interface (MCI) such as sound cards and CD players. If a device has an MCI device driver, it can
easily be controlled by most multimedia Windows software.

Media File Files that may be placed within the ACID project. After a media file is placed
into the project, it is referred to as an event.

MIDI Clock A MIDI device-specific timing reference. It is not absolute time like MIDI
timecode (MTC); instead it is a tempo-dependent number of "ticks" per quarter
note. MIDI clock is convenient for synchronizing devices that need to perform
tempo changes mid-song. ACID supports MIDI clock out, but does not support
MIDI clock in.

MIDI Port A MIDI port is the physical MIDI connection on a piece of MIDI hardware. This
port can be a MIDI in, out or through. Your computer must have a MIDI-capable
card to output MIDI timecode to an external device or to receive MIDI timecode
from an external device.

MIDI timecode MTC is an addendum to the MIDI 1.0 specification and provides a way to specify
(MTC) absolute time for synchronizing MIDI-capable applications. MTC is essentially a
MIDI representation of SMPTE timecode.

Multiple-Bit-Rate Multiple-bit-rate encoding (also known as Intelligent Streaming for the

Encoding Windows Media platform and SureStream™ for the RealMedia G2 platform)
allows you to create a single file that contains streams for several bit rates. A
multiple-bit-rate file can accommodate users with different Internet connection
speeds, or these files can automatically change to a different bit rate to
compensate for network congestion without interrupting playback.
To take advantage of multiple-bit-rate encoding, you must publish your media
files to a Windows Media server or a RealServerG2.

Musical Instrument A standard language of control messages that provides for communication
Device Interface between any MIDI-compliant devices. Anything from synthesizers to lights to
(MIDI) factory equipment can be controlled via MIDI. ACID uses MIDI for
synchronization purposes.

Normalize Refers to raising the volume so that the highest level sample in the file reaches a
user defined level. Use normalization to make sure you are using all of the
dynamic range available to you.

Nyquist Frequency The Nyquist Frequency (or Nyquist Rate) is one half of the sample rate and
represents the highest frequency that can be recorded using the sample rate
without aliasing. For example, the Nyquist Frequency of 44,100 Hz is 22,050 Hz.
Any frequencies higher than 22,050 Hz will produce aliasing distortion in the
sample if no anti-aliasing filter is used while recording.

GLOSSARY APPENDIX B
 199

Offline Media A media file that cannot be located on the computer. If you choose to leave the
media offline, you can continue to edit events on the track; the events will point
to the original location of the source media file.

One-Shot One-shots are chunks of audio that are not designed to loop, and they are
streamed from the hard disk rather than stored in RAM if they are longer than
three seconds. Things such as cymbal crashes and sound bites could be considered
one-shots.
Unlike loops, one-shots will not change pitch or tempo with the rest of a project.

Pan To place a mono or stereo sound source perceptually between 2 or more speakers.

Peak Data File The file created by ACID when a file is opened for the first time. This file stores
the information regarding the graphic display of the waveform so that opening a
file is almost instantaneous. This file is stored in the directory where the audio
file resides and has a .sfk extension. If this file is not in the same directory as the
audio file or is deleted, it will be recalculated the next time you open the file.

Proxy File Working with certain types of media files with particular audio compression
schemes can be inefficient and slow. To compensate for this, ACID creates audio
proxy files for these formats to dramatically increase speed and performance.
The file is saved as a proprietary .sfap0 file, with the same name as the original
media file and has the same characteristics as the original audio stream. The
conversion happens automatically and does not result in a loss of quality or
synchronization. Audio proxy files can be safely deleted at any time since ACID
will recreate these files as needed.

Pulse Code PCM is the most common representation of uncompressed audio signals. This
Modulation (PCM) method of coding yields the highest fidelity possible when using digital storage.
PCM is the standard format for .wav and .aif files.

Quantization The correction of rhythms in a MIDI sequence.

Real-Time A proposed standard for controlling broadcast of streaming media. RTSP was
Streaming Protocol submitted by a body of companies including RealNetworks and Netscape.
(RTSP)

Redirector File A metafile that provides information to a media player about streaming-media
files. To start a streaming media presentation, a Web page will include a link to a
redirector file. Linking to a redirector file allows a file to stream; if you link to the
media file, it will be downloaded before playback.
Windows Media redirector files use the .asx or .wax extension; RealMedia
redirector files use the .ram, .rpm, or .smi extension.

Region A region in ACID is a section of time used to subdivide your project into
segments.

Rendering The process in which ACID saves the project to a specific file format like .wma
or .mp3.

APPENDIX B GLOSSARY
200

Resample The act of recalculating samples in a sound file at a different rate than the file
was originally recorded. If a sample is resampled at a lower rate, sample points are
removed from the sound file, decreasing its size, but also decreasing its available
frequency range. Resampling to a higher sample rate, ACID will interpolate extra
sample points in the sound file. This increases the size of the sound file, but does
not increase the quality. When down-sampling, one must be aware of aliasing.

Sample The word sample is used in many different (and often confusing) ways when
talking about digital sound. Here are some of the different meanings:
• A discrete point in time which a sound signal is divided into when digitizing.
For example, an audio CD-ROM contains 44,100 samples per second. Each
sample is really only a number that contains the amplitude value of a waveform
measured over time.
• A sound that has been recorded in a digital format; used by musicians who
make short recordings of musical instruments to be used for composition and
performance of music or sound effects. These recordings are called samples. In
this Help system, we try to use sound file instead of sample whenever referring
to a digital recording.
• The act of recording sound digitally, i.e. to sample an instrument means to
digitize and store it.

Sample Rate The Sample Rate (also referred to as the Sampling Rate or Sampling Frequency)
is the number of samples per second used to store a sound. High sample rates,
such as 44,100 Hz provide higher fidelity than lower sample rates, such as 11,025
Hz. However, more storage space is required when using higher sample rates.

Sample Size See, Bit Depth.

Sample Value The Sample Value (also referred to as sample amplitude) is the number stored by
a single sample. In 16-bit audio, these values range from -32768 to 32767. In 8-
bit audio, they range from -128 to 127. The maximum allowed sample value is
often referred to as 100% or 0 dB.

Secure Digital Music The Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI) is a consortium of recording industry
Initiative (SDMI) and technology companies organized to develop standards for the secure
distribution of digital music. The SDMI specification will answer consumer
demand for convenient accessibility to quality digital music, enable copyright
protection for artists' work, and enable technology and music companies to build
successful businesses.

Shortcut Menu A context-sensitive menu that appears when you click certain areas of the
screen. The functions available in the shortcut menu depend on the object being
clicked on as well as the state of the program. As with any menu, you can select
an item from the shortcut menu to perform an operation. Shortcut menus are
used frequently in ACID for quick access to many commands.

GLOSSARY APPENDIX B
 201

Signal-to-Noise The signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is a measurement of the difference between a

Ratio recorded signal and noise levels. A high SNR is always the goal.
The maximum signal-to-noise ratio of digital audio is determined by the number
of bits per sample. In 16-bit audio, the signal to noise ratio is 96 dB, while in 8-bit
audio its 48 dB. However, in practice this SNR is never achieved, especially
when using low-end electronics.

Society of Motion SMPTE timecode is used to synchronize time between devices. The timecode is
Picture and calculated in Hours:Minutes:Second:Frames, where Frames are fractions of a
Television Engineers second based on the frame rate. Frame rates for SMPTE timecode are 24, 25,
(SMPTE) 29.97 and 30 frames per second.

Streaming A method of data transfer in which a file is played while it is downloading.

Streaming technologies allow Internet users to receive data as a steady,
continuous stream after a brief buffering period. Without streaming, users would
have to download files completely before playback.

Tempo Tempo is the rhythmic rate of a musical composition, usually specified in beats
per minute (BPM).

Threshold A threshold determines the level at which the signal processor begins acting on
the signal. During normalization, levels above this threshold are attenuated
(cut).

Time Format The format by which ACID displays the Time Ruler and selection times. These
can include: Time, Seconds, Frames and all standard SMPTE frame rates.

Track A discrete timeline for audio data. Audio events sit on tracks and determine
when a sound starts and stops. Multiple audio tracks are played together to give
you a composite sound that you hear through your speakers.

Track List The Track List contains the master controls for each track. From here you can
adjust the mix, select playback devices, and reorder tracks.

Track View The majority of the Track View is made up of the space where you will draw
events on each track.

µ-Law µ-Law (mu-Law) is a companded compression algorithm for voice signals defined
by the Geneva Recommendations (G.711). The G.711 recommendation defines
µ-Law as a method of encoding 16-bit PCM signals into a non-linear 8-bit
format. The algorithm is commonly used in European and Asian
telecommunications. µ-Law is very similar to A-Law, however, each uses a
slightly different coder and decoder.

Undo/Redo These commands allow you to change a project back to a previous state, when
you don't like the changes you have made, or reapply the changes after you have
undone them.

APPENDIX B GLOSSARY
202

Virtual MIDI Router A software-only router for MIDI data between programs. ACID uses the VMR to
(VMR) receive MIDI timecode and send MIDI clock. No MIDI hardware or cables are
required for a VMR, so routing can only be performed between programs running
on the same PC. Sonic Foundry supplies a VMR with ACID called the Sonic
Foundry Virtual MIDI Router.

wav An digital audio standard developed by Microsoft and IBM. One minute of
uncompressed audio requires 10 MB of storage.

Waveform A waveform is the visual representation of wave-like phenomena, such as sound

or light. For example, when the amplitude of sound pressure is graphed over time,
pressure variations usually form a smooth waveform.

Waveform Display Each event shows a graph of the sound data waveform. The vertical axis
corresponds to the amplitude of the wave. For 16-bit sounds, the amplitude range
is -32,768 to +32,767. For 8-bit sounds, the range is -128 to +127. The horizontal
axis corresponds to time, with the left-most point being the start of the
waveform. In memory, the horizontal axis corresponds to the number of samples
from the start of the sound file.

Windows Media Microsoft's Windows Media file format that can handle audio and video
Format presentations and other data such as scripts, URL flips, images and HTML tags.
Advanced Streaming Format files can be saved with the .asf or .wma extensions.

GLOSSARY APPENDIX B
 i

Index

A Extracting media, 34
Writing media, 63
ACID windows, 169
CD preferences tab, 190
Adding
Assignable FX, 139 Changing the track color, 48
Busses, 131 Chopper, 83–86
Events, 35
Media to a project, 32 Chopper keyboard shortcuts, 85
Video, 147 Chopper tricks, 119
Adjusting the mix, 49 Command markers, 71
Assignable FX Copying events, 43
Adding, 139
Crossfade, 103
Deleting, 144
Routing to busses, 142 Cursor, 39–42, 182
Saving an FX package, 144
Customer Service/Sales, 2
Using the control, 143
Cutting events, 45
Audio preferences tab, 187
Cutting events, ripple mode, 92
Audio properties tab, 184
D
B
Deleting
Beatmapper wizard, 113
A video’s audio, 148
Bus effects, 133 Assignable FX, 144
Busses, 137
Busses
Events, 37, 45
Adding, 131
Tracks, 49
Deleting, 137
Video, 147
Using effects, 133
Using the control, 131 Deleting events, ripple mode, 94
Docking a window, 170
C
Downloading media from the Web, 34
CD

INDEX
ii

Duplicating tracks, 48 Bus, 133

Track, 109
E
G
Editing events, 43
General preferences tab, 185
Editing preferences tab, 189
General track properties, 124
Effects
Bus, 133 Getting media from the Web, 34
Track, 109
Glossary, 193
Envelope tool, 107
Go to, 39
Envelopes
Grid, 177
Event, 101
Track, 103
H
Erasing events, 37
Hiding/showing a video track, 148
Event envelopes, 101
Event properties, 38 I
Events Insert time, 115
Changing length, 36
Inserting from Chopper, 90
Changing pitch, 100
Editing, 43 Installation, 11
Editing with Ripple edit, 92
Erasing, 37 J
Joining, 82
Moving, 37 Joining events, 82
Painting, 35
Selecting, 40 K
Snapping, 77
Key change
Splitting, 78
Event, 100
Explorer window, 171–176 Project, 98
Track, 100
Exporting loops, 130
Key change marker, 98
External monitor, 150
Keyboard shortcuts, 22
Extract media from CD, 34

F L
Looped playback, 54
Faders, Mixer, 56
Fit to time, 115 M
Floating a window, 171 Main window, 13
Frame numbering, 148 Markers, 67–73, 98
FX MIDI

INDEX
 iii
Adding tracks, 159 Changing tempo, 97
Generating clock, 163 Playing, 53
Generating timecode, 161 Publishing, 62
Rendering, 160 Save/Render, 58
Selecting a playback device, 160 Starting, 29
Setting device preferences, 160
Project properties, 29, 183
Triggering from timecode, 162
Viewing incoming timecode, 162 Properties
Viewing outgoing clock, 163 Event, 38
Viewing outgoing timecode, 161 Project, 29, 183
Track, 124
MIDI preferences tab, 188
Proxy file, 199
MIDI timecode synchronization, 161
Publishing a project, 62
MIDI track properties, 128
Mix to a single track, 116 R
Mixer window, 55 Recording, 153–158
Moving events, 37, 148 Redo, 52
Multipurpose fader, 17 Regions, 74–76
Muting a track, 50 Registration assistance, 1

O Removing
A video track, 147
Online Help, 12 A video’s audio, 148
Renaming tracks, 48
P
Render to a new track, 116
Painting events, 35
Rendering a project, 60
Pasting events, 43
Rendering formats, 61
Pasting events, ripple mode, 95
Reordering tracks, 47
Playing a project, 53
Resizing a window, 171
Preferences
Audio, 187 Resizing tracks, 48
CD, 190 Ripple editing, 92
Editing, 189 Cutting events, 92
General, 185 Deleting events, 94
MIDI, 188 Pasting events, 95
Sync, 190
Routing assignable FX to busses, 142
Video, 189
Ruler offset, 177
Previewing media, 31
Project S
Adding media, 32
Changing pitch, 98 Saving a project, 58

INDEX
iv

Scoring video, 151 Tracks

Adding envelopes, 104
Selecting events, 40–42
Adding FX, 109
Serial number, 12 Adjusting mix, 49
Sliding a video event, 149 Adjusting several simultaneously, 51
Changing color, 48
Slipping a video event, 149 Changing pitch, 100
Slip-trimming a video event, 149 Copying, cutting, pasting, 49
Deleting, 49
Snapping, 77 Duplicating, 48
Soloing a track, 51 Muting, 50
Renaming, 48
Splitting events, 78 Reordering, 47
Standard markers, 67 Resizing, 48
Soloing, 51
Stretch properties, 123
Transport controls, 19
Summary properties tab, 184
Trimming events, 46, 148
Sync preferences tab, 190
Synchronizing audio and video, 148 U
System requirements, 11 Undo, 51

T Undo history, 53

Technical Support, 2 V
Tempo change, project, 97 Video
Tempo marker, 98 Adding, 147
Changing frame numbering, 148
Time display, 182 Editing events, 148
Time markers, 70 Hiding/showing, 148
Removing, 147
Time ruler, 18, 176
Removing associated audio, 148
Time, adjusting, 115 Scoring, 151
Synchronizing with audio, 148
Timecode synchronization, 161–164
Video preferences tab, 189
Tips and tricks, 65, 117, 146
Video window, 149
Toolbar, main, 15, 178–181
Virtual MIDI Router, 164–167
Track effects, 109
Track envelope, 103–107 W
Track List, 16 Window Docking Area, 20
Track properties, 124–130 Window, main, 13
Track types, 46 Writing to CD, 63
Track View, 18

INDEX
 v

Z
Zoom controls, 19

INDEX
vi

INDEX