Basic Question about Grabber Tool

[garrethpb]

Hi Everyone,

Please forgive the dumb question. I have used lots of DAWs in my life but by no means am I an expert. I recently purchased ProTools 12. I am actually not using it to record. I am a music theory professor and - well, it's a long story - I need to use ProTools for a paper I am working on. I just need to to the basics of editing but I am extremely frustrated right now!

Here's my question: When I try to use the "grabber" tool, it does not have the usual "open hand." It looks more like a hand with one finger pointing. Instead of allowing me to move clips, which is what I want to do, all I can seem to do with it is make changes to the volume envelope.

Can someone please tell me how to get the open hand so that I can just move some of these darn clips around?

Thank you!

[Drew Mazurek]

Originally Posted by garrethpb

Hi Everyone,

Please forgive the dumb question. I have used lots of DAWs in my life but by no means am I an expert. I recently purchased ProTools 12. I am actually not using it to record. I am a music theory professor and - well, it's a long story - I need to use ProTools for a paper I am working on. I just need to to the basics of editing but I am extremely frustrated right now!

Here's my question: When I try to use the "grabber" tool, it does not have the usual "open hand." It looks more like a hand with one finger pointing. Instead of allowing me to move clips, which is what I want to do, all I can seem to do with it is make changes to the volume envelope.

Can someone please tell me how to get the open hand so that I can just move some of these darn clips around?

Thank you!

Sounds like you're viewing the volume automation playlist. Change it to Waveform in the pulldown menu and you'll be able to drag clips around all you like.

Also, you might want to remove your home address from the location portion of your profile. It's meant for your city or state, not your actual address.

[albee1952]

A search of youtube for things like "basic editing in pro tools"(without the quotes) will be very educational

[ronwasserman]

Make sure your audio track is set to waveform.

[garrethpb]

Yay! Thank y'all so much. I actually did a lot of YouTube searching for this but everyone treats the "open hand" as the default setting (as it is) and I couldn't figure out how to get the open hand back! I had my various tracks set to be panned left or right (for a reason), hence the trouble.

Thanks again - I really appreciate it.

Also, I will get rid of my home address on my "location," lest I be visited by a bunch of audio nerds!

Thank you all...

[garrethpb]

Might as well ask question #2...

[IMG]file:///Users/gbroesche/Desktop/Screen%20Shot%202016-06-05%20at%205.12.47%20PM.png[/IMG]

I would like for my tracks to appear NOT as stereo tracks but simply as mono tracks - just one waveform, not one on top of the other. I assume there's a way to "collapse" these waveforms into a single level?

Thanks again!

[Drew Mazurek]

Originally Posted by garrethpb

I assume there's a way to "collapse" these waveforms into a single level?

Thanks again!

No, that's how stereo tracks appear in PT and always have. How else will you see the differences between the left and right?

Mono tracks are of course one waveform.

[Ben Jenssen]

Originally Posted by garrethpb

I assume there's a way to "collapse" these waveforms into a single level?

Nope. I'm pretty shure that's never been an option in protools.

Added: Actually I think that tells a bit about the "nature of PT". A more "plug-and-play" audio app might implement this, but PT is pragmatic, a stereo file is two mono files, that's it.

[The Weed]

I've never tried them, but how are interleaved files displayed?

Thanks,

[Ben Jenssen]

Originally Posted by The Weed

I've never tried them, but how are interleaved files displayed?

Thanks,

Same thing. Two lanes. Two signals.