Editing for DJs
How to use the musical grid and BPM in QuickEdit
Set the tempo and first beat of a track to place entries, cuts and regions on bars and subdivisions.
Open QuickEditThe editor interface is in Spanish for now. Button names appear in Spanish, followed by their meaning in English.
Line up the first beat
Connect a file in Montaje (session) and zoom into the waveform until you find the beat that starts the phrase. Place the cursor there, open Rejilla (grid) and type the track’s BPM. Use Cursor como primer golpe (cursor as first beat) to store the reference time. If you already have the exact value, enter it in seconds.
The web grid is set by hand. Its lines represent a fixed tempo in 4/4. If a song changes tempo, check the alignment in the section you are going to edit and use markers to remember the specific points that matter.
Choose the division
Use the bar division to plan intros and outros. Switch to beats or subdivisions to fine-tune a cut. At 120 BPM a beat lasts 0.5 s and a bar 2 s. If the first beat is at 0.25 s, the next bar starts at 2.25 s. Turn on Ajuste magnético (snap) to pull the cursor or the edges to the grid. Adjust the zoom to tell the beats apart.
Check the tempo by ear
Listen at the start and several bars later. If the beats drift further and further from the lines, check the BPM. If they are all shifted by about the same amount, adjust the first beat. Save the project to keep the grid together with the clips and markers.