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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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I'm having trouble understanding the timebase functions. I've entered a tune. The style is too fast for the tune but would work at half time. The metronome is at 200, I would like the rhythm to play at 100. But there's no change if I change normal time to half time.

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Good question which does not come up too often. Here is what the manual says about "timebase".

"With the "Timebase" option you can play any RealTracks at normal, half time, double time or triple time. Half time is used for fast tempo songs when a much slower tempo RealTrack has been chosen. Double time is used for slow tempo songs (e.g. ballads) when a much faster tempo RealTrack is chosen. This allows you, for example, in a ballad at a tempo of 70, to add a RealTracks Sax solo with a tempo of 140, and play it as a double time, which will match the ballad tempo of 70. All of your existing RealTracks can be used at three different tempos (normal, half-time, double time)."

As you see, this does not necessarily change the "feel" as one might expect with the term "half time". This is more a BIAB term for stretching or compressing the available audio real tracks to cover broader tempos.

Perhaps you need to extend the bars 2x e.g., instead of \c,c,d,f\ change to \c c\ d f\. This is another feature in BIAB .


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One thing to keep in mind is that the RealDrums do not give you these timebase options that you have in the RealTracks. I generally decide on the drum beat and tempo I want, then make the other instruments fit that.


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To elaborate a little more on what Dan has said... this is how I understand the Timebase feature (rightly or wrongly!)...

From a BIAB's perspective, 'Doubletime' means that the length of time it takes for a measure to play is double the length of time that the Realtrack would normally take to play a measure. From a tempo setting perspective, this means that the tempo must be halved (i.e. it is set to 65 bpm) if the notes are going take twice as long to play.

As a result of the above, using the 'Doubletime' setting will mean that 4 beats of Realtrack will now be played every two beats of the song given the bar setting of 65 bpm.

In the same way as the above, the timebase setting of 'Halftime' is an indicator for the Realtrack that says that 4 beats of the present song will play in 'half the length of time' that 4 beats of the Realtrack will play. That is, the song's tempo must be 260 bpm. As a consequence, the Realtrack now play its 4 beats over 2 bars of the song.

One particularly useful consequence of using the 'Halftime' setting is that the Realtrack is essentially playing in cut time (i.e. with a 2-beat feel in a 4/4 tempo). This can be quite effective in a backing.

Regards,
Noel

Last edited by Noel96; 06/12/16 03:56 PM.

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