Click and Countoff dialog box

How to get there

You can access the Click and Countoff dialog box in three ways:

  • Choose MIDI/Audio > Click and Countoff.
  • Choose Window > Playback Controls. Expand the Playback Controls and then click the Click and Countoff button.
  • Choose the HyperScribe tool icon. Choose HyperScribe > Beat Source > Playback and/or Click. Click the Click and Countoff button.

What it does

Use the Click and Countoff dialog box to define the metronome settings used for recording with ClosedHyperScribeA patented method of entering music in Finale by transcribing a real-time MIDI performance into notation. It transcribes the music onto one or two staves, even if you alter the tempo as you play. and for playing back with the Playback Controls. Set up the number of measures you want Finale to count off before starting to record. Choose when you want to hear a metronome click and how you want the click to sound. Increased control over the click sound includes the ability to emphasize the down beat, for example, by increasing the key velocity of the click or by lowering the pitch of the "other beats" in the measures. When you change the number of countoff measures in this dialog box, Finale automatically updates the number of countoff measures in the Playback Controls as well. If you have selected Tap from the Beat Source submenu, Finale ignores the settings in this dialog box. See Click and Countoff.

  • Countoff: Always • While Recording • While Playing • Never. Use this pop-up menu to specify when you want Finale to play a countoff metronome click. Choose Always if you want a countoff of a specified number of measures before recording with HyperScribe or playing back with the Playback Controls. Choose While Recording if you want the countoff only when you’re recording with HyperScribe. Choose While Playing if you want a countoff only when you’re playing back with Playback Controls or choose Never if you don’t want any countoff at all. These global settings are saved with your preferences.
  • Measures ___. Enter the number of measures you want Finale to count off before starting to record with HyperScribe or play back using Playback Controls. Enter 0 (zero) if you don’t want a countoff, 1 if you want one measure counted off, 2 to hear two measures, and so on. Finale uses the meter of the first measure selected for playback or for recording to determine the meter of the countoff measure. Any change you make to the countoff is reflected automatically in the Playback Controls.
  • Noteman says: Finale always sounds a metronome click while playing the countoff measures.

  • Click: Always • While Recording • While Playing • Never. Use this pop-up menu to specify when you want Finale to play a metronome click to indicate the beat in your music. Choose Always if you want to hear a metronome click while recording with HyperScribe and playing back with the Playback Controls. Choose While Recording if you want a metronome click only when recording with HyperScribe. Choose While Playing if you want a metronome click only when playing back with Playback Controls or choose Never if you don’t want any metronome click to sound while recording or playing back. Note, if you have a countoff measure selected, Finale always clicks for the countoff measures.
  • Source: Finale Click • MIDI Note • MIDI Data. Use this pop-up menu to specify the type of MIDI signal used for the down beat and the other beats in the measure. Select Finale Click to use the internal click, which offers the same metronome sound regardless of your playback device or the document's reverb settings. Choose MIDI Note to specify a specific MIDI sound for the metronome click in the parameters below. You can choose any MIDI note for the metronome click, but to distinguish the down beat click from that of other beats, you might want to select a short percussive sound or a high note. Choose MIDI Data if you want to use something other than a MIDI Note for the metronome click.
  • Down Beats • Other Beats • Listen. The number of text boxes and labels for the text boxes change depending on whether you have selected Finale Click, MIDI Note, or MIDI Data selected for the source. All three options include the settings for Down Beats and Other Beats. With MIDI Note selected, you'll see Velocity, Duration, Channel, and Note options. With MIDI Data selected, you’ll see Channel, Status, Data1, Data2, and Duration. To have Finale enter this information automatically for you, click Listen in the Down Beats or Other Beats row, then play the note or trigger the MIDI event that you’re planning to use for the metronome click. Finale automatically enters all values except Duration for you; if you prefer, you can type these values yourself.

    To enter MIDI Note information manually (MIDI Note is selected in the Source pop-up menu), specify how hard the note should be struck by entering a value between 0—127 (0 being the softest, 127 the loudest) in the Velocity text boxes. Change the Duration value if you want to change the length of the metronome click sound. Enter the note length in terms of the percentage of the beat. For example, if a quarter note is a beat and you want the click to be 1/2 the length of the beat (in other words, an eighth note), type 50 (for 50%) into the Duration text box. Enter the MIDI channel number and the MIDI note number into the corresponding text boxes. When MIDI Data is selected in the Source pop-up menu, enter the MIDI channel number for the click, then enter the MIDI status into Status and data byte values into Data1 and Data2. Your MIDI device’s manual should contain the values that you need to enter, depending on the effect you want to achieve.

  • Cancel • OK. Click OK (or press RETURN) to confirm, or Cancel to discard, the changes you’ve made and return to the score.

See also:

Recording with HyperScribe

Click and Countoff