PROBLEM: The Split tool has inadequate functionality for the purpose it attempts to serve. When working with Grouped Tracks that have multiple takes, it will split all the lanes in all the tracks, but not so if you’ve accidentally highlighted a track with the Select tool. This can be most deleterious to a phase and timing coherency because it dramatically increases the likelihood of accidentally applying an edit to an individual track, instead of the entire group, which is the whole purpose of the Group Edit function. As I’m sure you astute gentlemen already know, Group Editing is vital to comping and editing multitrack drums with multiple takes. I hypothesize that more than a couple laptops have had excessive force applied to their displays out of frustration from such an error. But fear not, dear reader, for I have come up with a possibly brilliant and easy to implement solution!
SOLUTION: A simple check box option to use the Right Mouse Click Button to Split all lanes on all tracks within a group when group editing… basically giving the same function that occurs when using the Comp Tool and then holding Option, which transforms the hand into Scissors. In the Editor Preferences → Tool Modifiers → Categories → Comp Tool → there could be a simple check box that says “Right Click to Split Lanes” so when you have lanes grouped, it splits all of them… Oh wait, there IS NO COMP TOOL under Tool Modifiers ->Categories!!! Fiddlesticks! What an unfortunate oversight, one that I assume could be easily remedied in a future minor update! In my humble opinion, having the Toolbox pop up on a Right Click is not making the best use of an entire mouse button, but I can see how that could be vital to some peoples’ workflow, which is why I think a simple check box option would be an elegant and non-intrusive solution!
WHY THIS IS A MOST ELEGANT SOLUTION: Because it’s fast and reversible, in case there are other parts of your workflow where Right Click is vital in its current form, a check box can simply be unchecked!
BONUS POINTS: My fellow distinguished gentlemen! Is there a possibility to add another check box option that moves the cursor anywhere you click with the mouse? Holding Shift for an entire session has become most tiresome, and constantly moving the mouse to the top of a very small ruler at the top of the screen is perhaps not the most ideal solution.
No matter your decision, thank you for not being like Pro Tools.
Hi Martin! My description was imprecise. When I said “highlight a track”, what I should have said was that when using the Object Selection Tool, if I click on an Audio Event in one of the takes lanes, it changes the result of the Option+Left Click Modifier… You know, the more I type this out, the more I realize thats its REALLY hard to explain with words haha… Let me see if I can post a video here in a couple of hours…
Yes I definitely meant the Object Selection Tool! Forgive me I’m still trying to remember all the correct terminology.
And yes I’m aware of the Split at Cursor key command! However for some reason when I use that key command, it Splits every Audio Event in the entire project, even the ones that are not grouped in the Group Tracks… and I don’t know why this is happening. Maybe I chose an incorrect option or check box somewhere?
But lets assume that the Split At Cursor only split the Grouped Audio Tracks. Essentially what I’m requesting is a way to be able to assign that Key Command (Alt+X) to the Right Mouse Button… or better yet, the same behavior as using the Option Modifier for Split when using the Comp Tool. This way, I could use the Right Mouse Button for Splitting all the lanes (takes) in the entire group, and the Left Mouse button would be only selecting takes with the Comp tool. This would free up my left hand to hit all the other key commands I need.
Correct! Currently you have to hold Shift+Left Click to move the cursor anywhere you want. It would be most advantageous to some of us to have a check box that would remove the need to hold down the Shift button… it seems like an easy option to add!
It is. However, every user has ideas for one or two checkboxes to be added. These are called modes from a programmer’s point of view. With every mode you add to a program future development becomes potentially more difficult. That’s why Steinberg already signalled to us users that they rather not add more modes.
Of course, your wish might be exactly the one they are going to add. One never knows…
Ooooooooohhhhhhh!!! I didn’t know that! One thing I loved about Reaper is their Mouse Modifiers. You could basically program the mouse to ring your doorbell if you wanted. They have an absurd amount of On/Off type buttons that let you do all these hyper specific tasks hinges, similar to Cubase’s “Toolbox” , but x1000. They seemed to add more and more things to it with every few updates… it just have been built from the ground up to be able to do that…
Oh well… maybe I’ll get lucky and Steinberg will be able to add some of these without too much trouble. Which reminds me of the thing I hated about Pro Tools… they literally added nothing ever. One time I asked a PT group how you can change key commands, and the only reply I got back was, and I quote “hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha”
