How do you loop a single midi track ONLY in a multitrack project?

[aidan o driscoll]

Hi Guys,

I have a single track in a project with a background drone going continuously.

However the "sweet spot" for the drone note is the centre two bars of a four bar midi note. Track plays from start, hits the loop start at bar 2 and end of loop at start of bar 4, goes back to start of loop at bar 2 and around and around. This so you get the initial start of the drone but the continuous drone is the loop part:

 

So is it possible to loop one track ONLY like this within a multitrack project, leaving all other tracks to play from start to end of project/song without looping?

 

Edited February 11, 2019 by aidan o driscoll

[abacab]

No.

[Base 57]

Groove Clips.

[mettelus]

I would recommend trying the Matrix View.  Unlike a groove clip, you do not need to specify length of it (where the last groove clip will be the end), but merely start/stop it and it will continue to loop cells indefinitely for you. You can leave it looping till the cows come home, and for this reason is also a good tool for jamming with.

Here is an older tutorial video for the Matrix View that is still relevant (a few controls have changed).

Edited February 12, 2019 by mettelus

[abacab]

The Matrix view can loop clips. But the main transport will loop all tracks in the track view between the loop in/out markers. So in that context it isn't possible to loop just one track in the track view, without looping them all.

[mettelus]

No transport looping for this. The 2-bar section mentioned in the OP can be dragged from the track into the Matrix View and set to loop, synced to the transport. That "track" will then be driven by the Matrix View, while the rest of the project will still be driven by the transport. The Matrix View is a looper that outputs to a project track.

Edited February 12, 2019 by mettelus

[aidan o driscoll]

OK, thanks guys.

Essentially I think NO is the answer.

The MATRIX view I dont think will work either? 

In the case of the image shown in OP its one continuous MIDI note ( not sample ) for 4 bars playing an evolving ambient type synth sound. It starts quieter and then builds in bar 2 and 3 then fades in bar 4. By using the standard loop thing it plays in with bar 1 but then loops the evolved "full" sound in bar 2 and 3 continuously which is the exact "sound" I want looped for the whole ambient piece as an underlying soundscape. 

Think of it this way, the sound builds UP in bar 1, then plays full volume in bar 2 and 3 before fading in bar 4. 

I tried to freeze it, split it at start of bar 2 end of bar 3 and then drag drop that middle part to the MATRIX. Yes Matrix continuous looped it but when it hit end of loop you get that "glitch" as it ends coming back around to start.

By looping the 2nd and 3rd bar of the one midi note w/o freeze you get a seamless continuous play. 

So hope that explains it a bit more ..
 

 

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[abacab]

The Matrix is a workaround for looping a clip along with your project as you have described.

But a couple of other methods just popped into my head.

1. You didn't mention what instrument you were using for the ambient synth sound. But if it is actually a synthesizer maybe you could adjust the ADSR envelope for a continuous sustain, until a note off message is received by MIDI. You had mentioned it was fading by bar 4, and that is most likely due to the envelope in the synth. Now if it is a sample based synth, you are limited by the real length of the sample used, and it cannot be extended  indefinitely on playback with only an envelope.

2. Otherwise,   you could record a sample of the ambient synth playback into an audio track. Then  you could import that audio clip into a sampler. In the sampler, set the loop point and use that to repeat the part you want as long as the note is held. Use the sampler plugin in place of the synth with the ambient patch. If you are careful with the zero crossing at the loop point, you should be able to eliminate glitching as it loops.

https://www.tx16wx.com/

Edited February 14, 2019 by abacab