Cakewalk and ACID loops

[maryslittlesecret]

After finally getting the hang of recording in Cakewalk, I'm trying to figure out the best way to add some of my ACID loops...

Currently, I'm creating a separate project in ACID (to make sure all the tempos and keys line up) and importing it to Cakewalk as a .wav through Virtual Jukebox. It works fine, but needless to say, it doesn't allow for much flexibility in making sure all the loops are balanced against the audio (I have to go back and 'remix' them in ACID and start over...) I'd really like to be able to add the loops one by one to Cakewalk to give me more control, but then the loops tempo and keys aren't automatically matched up...

I'm assuming there's an easier way to do this, but I'm a newbie with this stuff. Any directions, suggestions, or tips would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[AlChuck]

From ACID you can export each track as a separate WAV file at the current project tempo. So once ACID has done its thing, then you can use them in Cakewalk.

And even better, the new version of Cakewalk, SONAR (release date 3/2001) has ACID-like loop editing features and can use ACIDized loops.

 

[maryslittlesecret]

Thanks for the response. I haven't had a chance to try it yet, but I'm assuming that includes changes to the key as well as the tempo? And out of curiosity, what's the difference between 'exporting as .wav' and just doing a 'save as' after you've ACIDized the clip? Thanks!

 

[AlChuck]

Key changes too, that's what I understand (mind you, I haven't done it myself yet).

Exporting as WAV does a track-by-track creation of files (maybe they have to be selected first? -again, haven't actually done it). Save as WAV saves the stereo mix to a stereo WAV file.

 

[Leotian]

I use ACID Music percussion tracks with Guitar Studio (Cakewalk's little cousin <g>), and they work great! My methods...I build the percussion tracks with individual drum loops (one shots) instead of the full loop loops, which gives me an ACID project built out of individual drums. I use the Drum Tools and RAD Sonic Foundry discs, plus SoundScan's "Acoustic Drums" and "Acoustic Percussion" discs. Lots of great stuff on those discs.

After balancing the ACID project (and I use a guide track recorded directly into ACId to get everything lined up just right), I delete the guide track(s), and save.

Next, I go to Guitar Studio and make sure the tempo in GS is set to match the ACID tempo.

Then, back to ACID. I mute all tracks except for kick drum, save the result as a .wav file, label it "kick drum," and then I go to the snare and toms, select just those drums, mute everything else, and save that as "Snaretoms," then on to cymbals and hi hat, save it as "OH cymbals." If there's hand percussion (tambourine, etc.), I save it separately, too. Then, I import them one by one into Cakewalk/Studio, (I make the kick a mono track, and I leave the others as stereo tracks). Works just great, and I can individually tweak the different drums just like I used a "real drummer." Much richer and snappier sounds than using the ready-built ACID loops.

I've saved my favorite individual drum loops on a separate disc, so now when I build a drum track, I can readily access them instead of going to 4 or 5 different discs for loops. And, I've saved several basic drum tracks built this way (a couple of rock tracks, country, funk, ballad, etc.), which I can use to build new tracks, instead of starting from scratch.

Works for me. Sorry for the long post.

Peace.

 

[gonzo7]

I'll give you a tip that is the essence of music. Timing!! Set the tempo in cakewalk to match the tempo of your rhythm loops. This will set the measures equally in cakewalk so that your not trying to insert a wav or loop file in the middle of a cakewalk measure(this is impossible). Trust me this will make sense once you start. Make this the first step in setting up you cakewalk file. In theory you will be able to take your recorded wave files back in to Acid.