Solved How to align multiple events?

[Henrik]

Is there a function to easily align events to have the same starting point across multiple channels/tracks?

What I did prior to the below screenshot:
1. Create a new empty song
2. Song > Import File
3. Select multiple files to import. These are stereo songs of various length.
4. Cmd+A (select all events)
5. Enable Additional Views > Strip Silence
6. Apply Strip Silence (Open Threshold -30 dB, Close Threshold -65 dB)

And then have them left-aligned:

 

[Henrik]

And also, how to trim multiple events in one operation, to have them the same length or size? (effectively filling out the shorter events with empty audio).

Example:

 

[lokeyfly]

You may want to use song data import. An easier way to bring in tracks and events right as they were originally set. That would be an earlier preparation, but I bring it up as a fix prior to what you're showing.

Since in the display you provide, all events are highlighted, I'm afraid in this case, the answer is no. Snap would shift all in that occurence. How your events came in that way is a little perplexing. You likely just dragged them in as some bulk dump. Never a one fix adjustment as you can see.

And also, how to trim multiple events in one operation, to have them the same length or size?

The same holds true as above. You wouldn't edit anything unless all tracks and events were first timed correctly. Yes, when they are aligned correctly, you can perform some global cuts and edits by highlighting all (Control + A), and slice, or delete or add time along the timeline which performs global cuts/deletions.
Again, if you imported song data from the start, you would have no such misaligned issues, so my best recommendation is fix the issue prior to what you presented here. If that is possible.

 

[lokeyfly]

On a different angle of attack, and lets assume even the start of events werent truly aligned properly, it would be interesting to select all events, and select [Detect Transients]. Then unhighlight all, and move each event based on a very visual (louder) indication such as what looks to be about two measures in, from your first display. This would snap position to what should be pretty reliable. It is FAR more important to position by sight, and proofed by ear, than expecting some global result. Perhaps in the future, this might be assisted by AI, and likely so. Until then, go for quick repositioning using tools like Transient detect, position one by one, and simply do the work. Proof a few moves by soloing tracks, and work that way.

 

[Henrik]

As always, thanks so much, @lokeyfly. I'm still reading your latest reply, but please see that I've updated my first post with info, which I should have included from the get go. I'm sorry!

 

[Henrik]

I'm trying to avoid manually touching/moving hundreds of events one by one.

 

[lokeyfly]

OK, cool. Thanks for noting!
I'll look and respond later. Gotta make the doughnuts (but the morning coffee is good).
Talk later. ️

 

[Henrik]

Man, I wish I also had some sweets or cookies to the coffee right now, I have nothing!

 

[lokeyfly]

Same here. NYC everything bagel with cream cheese will have to do for today. Best bagels there are.
Psssst, its the water (shhhhh, mums the word). Talk later and thanks for adding the added steps.

In short, check how song data import can be saved and imported. Many DAW's use this now, so its a very viable benefit when available. I dont use it much yet, but in the coming year, Im assisting and potentially collaborating with an old friend who now went from Logic to Studio One. So I think I'm going to be diving into this a lot. Up until now, I'm still old school and simply stemmed. Sort of being in the same boat.
Chow for now.

 

[SwitchBack]

Is there a function to easily align events to have the same starting point across multiple channels/tracks?

Maybe a macro with a lot of 'nudge backs' and then a 'move to cursor'?

 

[Lukas]

Is there a function to easily align events to have the same starting point across multiple channels/tracks?

There's no function for that in Studio One out of the box.

But Scoring Tools has "Sync Events" and "Sync Events to Cursor" commands that do exactly that.

Sync Events To Cursor | Scoring Tools Manual

Online manual for Scoring Tools for Studio One. Tips, tutorials, and in-depth feature guides.

manual.studioonescripts.com

If there's no Sync Point, then the events are synced by their start position - basically setting them all to the same start.

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[Henrik]

Maybe a macro with a lot of 'nudge backs' and then a 'move to cursor'?

Thanks, that's a good option! I selected all events across all channels and dragged the selection fully left and then used the action "Nudge Beat Back" multiple times (takes less repeats) to get the remaining events fully left.

 

[Henrik]

@Lukas, cool to see the feature is already in Scoring Tools. I haven't looked into it yet, but will do.

 

[Surf.Whammy]

Scoring Tools looks like it does the first thing you want to do (align the starts) with "Sync Events" and "Sync Events to Cursor", so long as you set "Sync Points" to ensure the sounds are aligned, which is different from the starts of the audio clips being aligned, where an extreme example might be that an Audio Track is recorded but the singer doesn't actually start singing until a few bars after recording starts: so the audio clip begins with a few measures of room noise but you want to align it when the singer actually starts singing.

A few thoughts . . .

I do not know how to do what you are asking to be able to do as a high-level type of action on a group of audio clips; but I think it can be done, just not as a group type of activity.

In the first example, it's probably not so difficult to move the audio clips individually to the left or right along the timeline, where this might work for subsets of audio clips that appear to be aligned the same way; but the problem is not so simple, because there is no guarantee that the sound of each audio clip actually starts when it appears to start in the visual representation of the audio.

For example, the actual sound in an audio clip might not start at the far-left of the audio clip, instead being perhaps an1/8th of a beat or less to the right. This suggests aligning all the audio clips to the same starting point in the timeline will not automagically align when their sounds start.

Depending on the width of the timeline, the audio clips might appear to be aligned, but their sounds start at different times.

Yet, if you adjust the spacing or width of the timeline so the increments or time steps are very small, then you should be able to align everything, so that the sounds start being heard at the same time; but getting it precise is going to be a one-at-a-time thing, as far as I am aware.

The first image shows how with a shorter timeline the two audio clips look aligned; but with a longer timeline, it's obvious the starts of sounds are not the same.

In the second example where you want the tails of audio clips to align visually, the key bit of information when all you want to happen is that "empty sound" or silence is appended to the right of the shorter audio clips, then the audio clips already are followed by "empty sound" or silence, but it's not obvious visually.

It might not be so visually pleasing if all the tails end at different times; but the audio clip tails already are padded with silence, just not in a visually obvious rectangular way. The shorter tails are followed by silence.

 

[Henrik]

..but the problem is not so simple, because there is no guarantee that the sound of each audio clip actually starts when it appears to start in the visual representation of the audio.

I understand your point, but for this job, step 6: Apply Strip Silence (Open Threshold -30 dB) is perfectly adequate.

 

[lokeyfly]

3. Select multiple files to import. These are stereo songs of varying lengths.

I see from your newly added list that these files are stereo songs of various length.
I was likely being overly cautious (for ones benefit) because I thought these were tracks from some pre existing song. Effectively stems. The waveform shapes sort of lent to that possibility as well.

So given that, you have a great fix from Lukas. Great! All is good with audio event alignment in such cases.
Good deal.

 

[Wolfger]

And also, how to trim multiple events in one operation, to have them the same length or size? (effectively filling out the shorter events with empty audio).

Example:

View attachment 2416

You could do it like this:

Select all events---> then command: Merge to Audio Part, Audio Parts of same length will be created

Then command: Bounce selection (turn snap off)

You could easily create a macro for this also.

 

[Surf.Whammy]

You could do it like this:

View attachment 2425

Select all events---> then command: Merge to Audio Part, Audio Parts of same length will be created

View attachment 2426

Then command: Bounce selection (turn snap off)

View attachment 2427

You could easily create a macro for this also.

This is brilliant and embarrassingly obvious. I should have seen this.