Coming from Cubase (and most other standardized audio apps) to Ardour..

OK I’m not one for wanting to spend hours trying to figure out how to do simple things in new software. However, if someone can help me with this…

In cubase the first thing I do is create a new ‘Audio Part’ that is usually on bar in length. I then proceed to add audio files to the ‘Audio Part’ and work by cutting and pasting the audio part to various positions in the timeline.

From my experience with Ardour it seems regions are the equivalent to ‘Audio Parts’ in cubase. However I don’t seem to be able to use them in the same way. Is it possible to create a region of a specific length (say four bars) and numerous audio files to it and copy, paste, cut it how I need it?

Well, the following works for me :

I don’t define the length of a region before recording. I just record, a region is created with my audio inside. I trim the borders, split some parts of it (with the ‘s’ shortcut key) move then around, cut ([Ctrl]+x), copy ([Ctrl]+c) or paste ([Ctrl]+v) them.

I also worked with Cubase, it is a bit different. Is there anything you still miss ?

Marc-Olivier Barre,
Kinoko en Orbite

An audio region is a “view” or a “window” to an audio file. Thus: there is no such thing as an audio region without audio. (We will have midi tracks in 2.0 quite soon, but that’s another matter altogether).

Why would you want a region with no audio?

Is there any way to create region without recording audio?

I don’t want a region with no audio file…I want to be able to create a region of a length that I choose and then place audio files into it. This is how virtually all other audio sequencers function which is why you can go between cubase, logic, muse, rosegarden (the last two of course aren’t powerful enough) without too much of a learning curve. So I guess it comes down to this:

Is Ardour considered a recording tool rather than a seqencer? On the front page of Ardour.org it draws a comparison with the other apps (DP, Cubase etc).

It seems to me to be more oriented toward people who want to record audio rather than seqence or compose (which is a shame because it’s the only linux app presently available that comes close to the features it’s commercial rivals, sometimes exceeding them). Cubase/Logic caters for both of these scenario’s.

Like I said before, in Ardour a region is a view to a sound file on disk. (whether it be midi or PCM audio)

Just place the sound files (region) in the order you want. You don’t need to create a region to put audio files in. You can just place the regions on the track the way you want them.

If you need the possibility of copying this easily, you can just select all the regions and copy / paste them or ctrl-mousedrag them to the place you want them.

But I guess what you are looking for is a “chunk” containing a number of regions in a certain configuration you can copy all over your session but be able to dynamically change all of them by only editing the chunk. Ardour does not support this.

{ We have some code for these kinds of chunks (or something similar at least), but it isn’t usable. }

Has something like this been implemented yet or is it being planned for the 2.0 release? Also, great job guys, I love this application!

Simply, the answer is yes.
You can sequence with ardour but it is (IMHO) better for recording, mixing and post, software. Think more of it like Nuendo or Pro-Tools. This doesn’t stop you from importing audio which will create the regions you are looking for.

If you like the way MusE or Rosegarden work for sequencing your audio but want to do the final mix in Ardour, you can record your parts from the sequencer into ardour via jack.

Thanks to jack transport, there’s lots of other ways to combine these packages and more. This gives a much more powerful and flexible system than any of the commercial apps.

Play and experiment, I’m sure you’ll find a way that suits your work flow.

Good Luck