Click and Countoff
Noteman says: You can use Click and Countoff to hear clicks representing the tempo in your document for playback and/or recording. However, if you plan to export an audio file of your document with a click track, you must add an actual click track to your document.
Use the settings in the Click and Countoff dialog box to define the metronome click played when you’re recording with HyperScribe or playing back using Playback Controls. Specify the number of measures, if any, you want counted off prior to recording. Set when you want to hear a metronome click, whether a MIDI note or a MIDI event will be played for the click, its exact sound, how hard the note should be “struck”, its duration, and whether Finale should wait for a start signal before starting countoff and recording. If you have selected Tap as your Beat Source, Finale ignores the settings in this dialog box.
To set up countoff measures and the metronome click (for playback and HyperScribe recording)
- Choose MIDI/Audio > Click and Countoff to display the Click and Countoff dialog box.
- Choose an option from the Countoff pop-up menu to set the instances when Finale provides a countoff of measures before starting to record or play back.
- Choose Never if you never want a countoff.
- Choose Always if you always want a countoff when you’re playing back and recording.
- Choose While Playing or While Recording if you want a countoff only while playing back or only while recording, respectively. Finale always sounds a click when playing countoff measures.
- In the Measures text box, enter the number of measures that you want Finale to count off before recording or playing back music. Enter zero if you don’t want any countoff, 1 if you want one measure counted off, 2 to hear two measures, and so on.
If you’re only playing back, Finale uses the time signature of the first measure that you’re playing back to determine the time signature of the countoff measure. If you’re recording, Finale uses the beat duration set in the Quantization Settings dialog box.
- Choose an option from the Click pop-up menu to determine when the metronome click will play.
- Choose Never if you never want a click.
- Choose Always if you always want a click when you’re playing back and recording.
- Choose While Playing or While Recording if you want a click only while playing back or only while recording, respectively. Regardless of this setting, Finale always plays a metronome click during countoff measures.
- Choose MIDI Note or MIDI Data from the Source pop-up menu, depending on whether you want a MIDI note or MIDI event as the clicks.
You can specify different MIDI signals for the down beats and other beats. To have Finale automatically fill in the MIDI settings for you (except Duration), click Listen, then play the MIDI note or activate the MIDI event. You can also type the MIDI information into the text boxes.
- Click OK to return to the document. When you record, Finale uses the settings you just made.
