NEWS FLASH! TAP TEMPO! I cracked the code!

Shooshie · Post by **Shooshie** » Fri Oct 12, 2007 5:53 am

DING-DONG the glitch is dead! (or at least we've got it seriously on the run)

Hey all, I may have just cracked the secret code to make Tap Tempo work consistently. It's a kludge, a workaround, but I think it finally works.

As you may know, MOTU advises the following workaround for making Tap Tempo work: Before switching to the Conductor Track, set the Tempo Slider to 400 (or its max). THEN switch to the Conductor Track, slave to external sync, record-enable the conductor track, and start tapping.

Unfortunately, it doesn't work consistently.

I think I figured out why. After another failure this morning, I started thinking "logically" about it, and came up with what I think is the REAL answer: a kludge on MOTU's kludge. I've tried my new kludge on MOTU's Kludge several times now, and it's worked every time.

It's not the Tempo Slider you set to 400. It's the CONDUCTOR TRACK, ITSELF! That's right. Set the Conductor Track to 400 at its initial tempo. For clarity, I'm looking at an empty Conductor Track (empty of tempos, that is) and I'm adding ONE tempo setting at bar 1/1/000 such that quarter note = 400 bpm. Got it?

So to summarize the whole process, assuming you've set your tapping preferences (key and countoff beats):
1) Set Conductor Track's initial Tempo to 400
2) Ok, now record enable the Conductor Track,
3) Slave to External Sync,
4) Hit RECORD,
5) Startcha Tappin'

You will now be able to direct the sequence at the tempo at which you are tapping, and it will respond instantly to your slowdowns and accelerandos.

I'm very excited. I've tried it again and again, and it works every time. I've got to call MOTU and tell them what they're doing wrong. They keep saying it's the Tempo Slider you set to 400. Nope. Conductor Track. To prove the point, I set my Tempo Slider to 20 bpm, the minimum, and used my trick above. It worked!

Try it folks. I think you're going to be pleased. Of course, that does not address the question: "Why the Fork must we use a kludge on top of a kludge to get the Tap Tempo feature to work?" Indeed, we should only have to follow the directions stated in the manual. But this is a start, folks. I'll explain to MOTU's tech support people what they're saying wrong, and they can tell the programmers what's up, and maybe we'll finally see a fix for this.

Shooshie

buzzsmith · Post by **buzzsmith** » Fri Oct 12, 2007 6:19 am

You da kludgemesiter!

Phil O · Post by **Phil O** » Fri Oct 12, 2007 7:02 am

Shoosh, you're the man! Thanks for figuring this out. I had given up.

Phil

Shooshie · Post by **Shooshie** » Fri Oct 12, 2007 9:11 am

It's still working. I think this is the answer, guys!

I can't believe it. This feature's unreliability has given me SO much grief. Some people would say it worked for them, but it did not work for me. Once in a while it would work for a single file or maybe a couple of sequences, then it would go back to being "broken" for all files. This has been going on since version 4.0 in May of 2003.

This brings back a major feature for me. I thought I was going to have to use Logic for my tempos. I can't tell you how thrilled I am to have Tap Tempo back. I'm excited! It's like getting a new version of DP in which Tap Tempo has been fixed. WOW!

Shooshie

gearboy · Post by **gearboy** » Fri Oct 12, 2007 9:42 am

This is great. Yet another feature that I thought that I was going to have to use Live for, and now I can do it right in DP. Thanks for posting this!

Jeff

jarok · Post by **jarok** » Fri Oct 12, 2007 9:48 am

Great news. Thank you Shooshie.

jarok

monkey man · Post by **monkey man** » Fri Oct 12, 2007 9:58 am

Savour it, mate.

SMP2005 · Post by **SMP2005** » Fri Oct 12, 2007 11:03 am

Nice.

I will try this. Its been a mystery.

Thank you!!

S

dosuna11 · Post by **dosuna11** » Fri Oct 12, 2007 11:55 am

Bill Gates will be proud of you!

Guitar Gaz · Post by **Guitar Gaz** » Fri Oct 12, 2007 12:07 pm

As I've said before - you are doing Motu's job for them - you should be on their payroll......

Buzzy · Post by **Buzzy** » Fri Oct 12, 2007 12:59 pm

Thank-you
Thank-you
Thank-you

.Bzz...

G5 DUAL 2.0 | 10.4.9 | 4GB RAM | DP 5.11 | 828 mkII fw | Reason 3.05 | Colossus | Izotope Ozone - Spectron - Trash | Gearbox Plug-In | Pod XT Live | Variax 600 | Radium 49 || Studio Computer ••º••º••º MacPro Quad Core 2.66 | 10.4.8 | 4GB RAM | Receptor ||

bjornln · Post by **bjornln** » Fri Oct 12, 2007 1:00 pm

Shooshie wrote:It's still working. I think this is the answer, guys!

I can't believe it. This feature's unreliability has given me SO much grief. Some people would say it worked for them, but it did not work for me. Once in a while it would work for a single file or maybe a couple of sequences, then it would go back to being "broken" for all files. This has been going on since version 4.0 in May of 2003.

This brings back a major feature for me. I thought I was going to have to use Logic for my tempos. I can't tell you how thrilled I am to have Tap Tempo back. I'm excited! It's like getting a new version of DP in which Tap Tempo has been fixed. WOW!

Shooshie

As this probably is an important part in figuring this bug out...
Have you reported it to Motu ?

/B

Frodo · Post by **Frodo** » Fri Oct 12, 2007 1:34 pm

See, this is a perfect example why Unicornation is wholly indispensable. I can't think of a *better* example, although there are tons of other users who have contributed and continue to contribute as generously and as selflessly.

But Shooshie has just taken the definition of the word "hero" to another level. Thank you, kind sir, for your dedication, liberality, and your unflappable powers of discernment. I don't know how you do it, but I'm eternally grateful for it and to YOU.

One thing I'm still dealing with while working with Tap Tempo is that even where all else is set up to work, I start tapping and the audio track to which I want to tap goes mute for 10-15 seconds or more, then it starts playing while I'm still tapping. Of course, my tapping is completely off by that point.

The only thing that dislodges this is to disable the external sync feature, play the track with either the conductor track or tempo slider activated, then reset the Tap Tempo external sync. Even here, it takes several tries before it works properly.

Mind, I just had a project of a dozen tracks where Tap Tempo had to be used. I got through them, but it wasn't easy.

My DP Book of Kludge is now into its third volume. While MOTU might publish info on this for the sake of unsuspecting users, their time would perhaps be better utilized by---

<drum roll>

FIXING the problem...?

Frodo · Post by **Frodo** » Fri Oct 12, 2007 1:41 pm

bjornln wrote:
Shooshie wrote:It's still working. I think this is the answer, guys!

I can't believe it. This feature's unreliability has given me SO much grief. Some people would say it worked for them, but it did not work for me. Once in a while it would work for a single file or maybe a couple of sequences, then it would go back to being "broken" for all files. This has been going on since version 4.0 in May of 2003.

This brings back a major feature for me. I thought I was going to have to use Logic for my tempos. I can't tell you how thrilled I am to have Tap Tempo back. I'm excited! It's like getting a new version of DP in which Tap Tempo has been fixed. WOW!

Shooshie
As this probably is an important part in figuring this bug out...
Have you reported it to Motu ?

/B

I can assure you that Shooshie has been all over MOTU about this for years. It was through Shooshie that I learned the misleading workaround from MOTU. Rest assured that by this time MOTU has heard from Shooshie about this.

Shooshie · Post by **Shooshie** » Fri Oct 12, 2007 2:53 pm

Frodo wrote: I can assure you that Shooshie has been all over MOTU about this for years. It was through Shooshie that I learned the misleading workaround from MOTU. Rest assured that by this time MOTU has heard from Shooshie about this.

Frodo's right! After I posted my original "discovery," I went to a coffee shop with my wife and our dog to celebrate. As soon as I got home, I called MOTU Tech Support and talked to Joseph (?... Joe?) who immediately began trying to spell 'Shooshie' so he could look up my registration status. I finally said "don't worry about all that. I'm calling to help YOU, and it's FREE." Once he heard it, he said he'd try it to verify it himself, and that he'd tell the rest of Tech Support.

Now... to tell Programming. Or at least tell the guy who writes the manual, and we'll make it official instead of a kludge.

:D:D

Shooshie