I think this could be a nice little thread, and I wanted to kick it off with the Acid tutorial found on <!-- m --><a href="http://www.bootcampclique.com">http://www.bootcampclique.com</a><!-- m -->
Just incase any one else missed it
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A beginners Guide to Acid (Pro)
This tutorial was written for beginners using Acid 5 or above - it may work with lesser versions. It was also written with the Windows & PC platform in mind.
1 Where can I get Acid or Acid Pro?
Thatââ?¬â?¢s an excellent question, and if youââ?¬â?¢ve not got Acid yet ââ?¬â?? one you should most definitely be asking! A quick Google search for ââ?¬Å?acid proââ?¬Â will give you a few sites, and most importantly <!-- w --><a href="http://www.sonicfoundry.com">www.sonicfoundry.com</a><!-- w --> which is the company who used to make Acid. Since they were taken over by Sony however, youââ?¬â?¢re not going to get far with that link.
Where you should really go is to <!-- m --><a href="http://www.sonymediasoftware.com">http://www.sonymediasoftware.com</a><!-- m --> where you can click on ââ?¬Ë?softwareââ?ˆ ¢?¢ and then ââ?¬Ë?ACIDââ?‰? ¢ - taking you to precisely the right place. Sony are now the company which manufacture and develop Acid, and at the time of writing this article they are on version 6. Acid Pro 6.
Sony will let you download a free trial, or the cut-down Acid Xpress.
2 OK, it�s installed. What now?
After all the downloading, purchasing and installing gubbins ââ?¬â?? which you should be able to work out yourself (after all this isnââ?¬â?¢t a lesson on downloading software or installing such stuff) we can move on to the intro.
Acid is primarily a piece of ââ?¬Ë?sequencingââ?¬ â?¢ software. It will let you add a number of audio tracks to a timeline and will play and export them as a single audio file. It can be used to play more than one track at a time ââ?‰?? hence the attraction for bootleggers, and it can also be used to ââ?¬Ë?beatmatchââ?¬ ¢?¢ an audio track. Beatmatching is where you use a particular technique to determine the ââ?¬Ë?tempoââ?‰? ¢ of a piece of audio. It can then be placed alongside other pieces of audio which have been beatmatched and all audio will play in time. You will also find that Acid can handle mixing very well. With multiple channels for volume and other effects ââ?‰?? itââ?‰?¢s perfect for numerous applications.
3 The Interface ââ?¬â?? where stuff is.
When you open Acid, you are presented with an interface that looks like the image below. What I will attempt to do here is list all the relevant buttons and areas ââ?¬â?? so that you can refer to this and use it as an effective orientation. Iââ?¬â?¢m using Acid Pro 5 for this ââ?¬â?? but it will be similar with most versions.
[img:1ee07]http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/2672/overview01nw0.jpg[/img:1ee07]
1 ââ?¬â?? This is the main timeline. It scrolls left and right and will go on (to the right) for as long as you require. Each of the lines represents a measurement, although if you zoom in and out (with your mouse wheel ââ?¬â?? or the zoom buttons at the bottom left of the window) you will see they change accordingly ââ?¬â?? so this is more of a grid system to help you line up your samples and tracks.
2 ââ?¬â?? This is your folder browser ââ?¬â?? you can view all the relevant files on your drives and PC from here ââ?¬â?? and when you select a folder, itââ?¬â?¢s contents are displayed in number 3.
3 ââ?¬â?? This is the folder view window. From here you can drag and drop audio files on to the timeline and other areas accordingly. It also has similar functions to that of windows explorer ââ?¬â?? renaming, moving, copying etc if need be. When you select an audio track or sample in this window you can have it play automatically ââ?¬â?? and if itââ?¬â?¢s beatmatched you can have it play in time etc.
4 ââ?¬â?? This is the area for each tracks details. When you drag an audio track on to the timeline (or this space) you get a bar that runs in line with that particular tracks space. You can copy and paste tracks in this area as well as delete them.
5 ââ?‰?? This is the track details area. It gives you a volume slider (that can be assigned to ââ?¬Ë?panââ?‰? ¢ or other effects). It has an effects (or equaliser) button, a mute button and a solo button. It also has a rounded rectangle with an icon in it. This icon will tell you whether the track is beatmatched, a loop or a ââ?¬Ë?one-shotââ?‰?¢. Double-clicking this icon will give you even more information on the track ââ?‰?? we can detail this later.
6 ââ?¬â?? This is the audio track. It appears on the timeline in the tracksââ?¬â?¢ space when you drag out the audio. This is when you have the ââ?¬Ë?pencilââ?¬â ?¢ tool (pretty much default) selected ââ?¬â?? and draw the track on to the timeline. You will see how this works when you use it practically. This audio track displays a rough guide to the wave-form which will help you line things up and see where the track is louder or quieter etc.
7 ââ?¬â?? This area holds your volume and levels info. It will show you how loud your mix is and also how loud your previews are playing in comparison. There is also a ââ?¬Ë?project propertiesââ?¬â?¢ button here ââ?¬â?? where you can set a few general settings.
8 ââ?¬â?? This is your main timeline controls. Record, loop, play from start, play, pause, stop, go to start and go to end. Most of these speak for themselves. The record button I wonââ?¬â?¢t be covering as Iââ?¬â?¢ve never used it! The loop button relates to the blue bar at the top of your main timeline area ââ?¬â?? itââ?¬â?¢s draggable and means you can hit play and loop a section while testing different samples in the folder window.
9 ââ?¬â?? This area also provides some general controls. The main slider and numerical display is the project tempo ââ?¬â?? this is how fast or slow it is. As a very rough guide Iââ?¬â?¢ve detailed some average BPMs (beats per minute) belowââ?¬Â¦
Trip Hop 70 ââ?¬â?? 80
Hip Hop 80 ââ?¬â?? 100
Pop etc 90 ââ?¬â?? 120
Easy House & Big Beat 110 ââ?¬â?? 130
Dance & Breaks ââ?¬â?? 130 150
Faster Techno & Hard House 140 ââ?¬â?? 160
Drum & Bass 170 ââ?¬â?? 180
120 bpm is the default.
10 ââ?‰?? This is your standard menu bar that sits below the ââ?¬Ë?Fileââ?‰? ¢ etc options youââ?‰?¢ll see on most applications. It has things like new, open, save, publish and so on. It is also where you can select the pencil tool if you donââ?‰?¢t have it. Pencil tool, rubber and the select tool too.
4 Putting something in: Adding sound.
OK, so we should probably try and put something in. A good place to start would be an mp3 or wav file. I�m assuming you have some of these already (if not, then at least some samples) and that you know where they are on your PC.
So browse and find them in your folder views then when you have them ââ?¬â?? drag one on to the timeline. Now, it depends on what length the track is ââ?¬â?? as to what will happen here.
If itââ?¬â?¢s a short sample it will treat it as a loop. This means that it will automatically try and set it as a loop to the bpm you have on the project. This can be a good thing if youââ?¬â?¢re using drum loops or something that is looped well ââ?¬â?? but is a pain if itââ?¬â?¢s a short speech snippet. Iââ?¬â?¢ll explain how to fix this in a moment.
If the sample is a long sample it will bring up a dialogue box asking you if you wish to beatmatch the sample. If it is an entire track ââ?¬â?? then chances are you probably will want to beatmatch it. Iââ?¬â?¢ll go on to explain the beatmatching process in the next section. For now, letââ?¬â?¢s treat it as if you donââ?¬â?¢t want to beatmatch it ââ?¬â?? perhaps itââ?¬â?¢s a long ambient sound and you want it to play through.
Pressing cancel on the beatmatch option or dragging in the right length sample will be treated as a one-shot. This means the track is played once at its own tempo ââ?¬â?? regardless of your project tempo. You can have it play as many times as you wish ââ?¬â?? but you have to drag out each instance ââ?¬â?? as opposed to a loop which you can drag out continuously.
- Changing loops to one shots and more
OK, so youââ?¬â?¢ve dragged in a sample that you want to be a one-shot ââ?¬â?? but itââ?¬â?¢s decided to put it in as a loop. To fix this you should double click on the trackââ?¬â?¢s icon (the coloured rounded rectangle with an icon in it). This will bring up the track properties box which will look like the image below.
[img:1ee07]http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/1415/trackpropertieszo5.jpg[/img:1ee07]
Use the dropdown menu displayed to change your track to the desired type ââ?¬â?? then close the dialogue.
5 Getting down to business: Putting it all together.
This is the part that may require some sense, musical knowledge and a good ear. If youââ?¬â?¢re tone-deaf, and have no clue with regard to song structure, key or any sort of musical theory then donââ?¬â?¢t be surprised when your tracks come out sounding awful. Acid Pro can facilitate your audio production, but it canââ?¬â?¢t make your production for you ââ?¬â?? itââ?¬â?¢s just a tool, not a generator.
OK, so you know how to add tracks to the mix. I guess I should mention that to remove them, you can either click on the sample youââ?¬â?¢ve dragged out and hit the delete key ââ?¬â?? or you can delete the whole track by hitting the track icon and pressing delete. This also applies to the copy-paste stuff too.
So youââ?¬â?¢re looking to build up your first bootleg? ââ?¬â?? Iââ?¬â?¢ll assume youââ?¬â?¢re a mash-up producer, but very similar principal applies to those making sample-based original work (if that is even possible) I wonââ?¬â?¢t be covering any sort of midi-input at this stage. Firstly because itââ?¬â?¢s not as important, but secondly ââ?¬â?? because Iââ?¬â?¢ve yet to get to grips with it myself.
I guess the format for bootlegs is generally 2 tracks working together to create something new. This can be an instrumental and an acapella, or perhaps 2 instrumentals, or really any sort of combination you see fit. It�s your work after all.
Itââ?¬â?¢s a case of dragging beats and samples on to the timeline, ordering them as you wish ââ?¬â?? then playing it back to see how it sounds. It then becomes a trial and error process, with probable input from other samples through your folder view.
- Beatmatching
This is, as mentioned before the process of determining the tempo (speed) and bpm (beats per minute) of a track, so that when you beatmatch two tracks and run them back to back ââ?¬â?? they play in time (or at least at the same tempo) if youââ?¬â?¢ve done everything correctly.
If you want to beatmatch a track ââ?¬â?? then you can drag it into the main timeline. If it is a long enough sample or tune ââ?¬â?? the beatmatch dialogue will appear automatically and as if you want to beatmatch the track. This way you can press yes and get on with it.
If you need to beatmatch from a track that isnââ?¬â?¢t long enough, or perhaps you didnââ?¬â?¢t want to beatmatch it before ââ?¬â?? you can double click the track icon and bring up the track properties box ââ?¬â?? then from here select ââ?¬Å?Beatmatchedââ? Â from the drop down box. You can then click the ââ?¬Ë?stretchââ?¬à ?¢ tab and then the ââ?¬Å?Beatmapper Wizardââ?¬Â button. This will bring up the dialogue for you.
OK, once in the dialogue you are presented with the sample and you are asked to specify the downbeat of the track.
[img:1ee07]http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/772/beatmapper01hp7.jpg[/img:1ee07]
The downbeat is the first beat of the first bar. In most cases this is the first of 4 beats in a bar. Most dance tracks have four beats in succession, and the track is made on multiples of four. If you count a track, you can often count all the way through but only using numbers 1 ââ?¬â?? 4 in order.
Acid can get this downbeat detection wrong on tracks ââ?¬â?? especially if there is an intro, or any sort of sound before the first beat. As a result you should always check itââ?¬â?¢s right. Press play and find out where the marker plays from. If itââ?¬â?¢s wrong ââ?¬â?? adjust it so that itââ?¬â?¢s on the first beat. Donââ?¬â?¢t worry if you loose the intro, as you can deal with this when the track is beatmatched.
Once you�ve selected the downbeat press next, and Acid will try and estimate a single loop, or bar of 4 beats. You can drag either end of this (although if the downbeat�s right just the right end will do) highlighted bar to properly line up the lines with the beats in the bar.
[img:1ee07]http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/1356/beatmapper02mh3.jpg[/img:1ee07]
If you press play to preview, you will hear a tick-tock sound of the metronome ââ?¬â?? this is what you should line up with the beat to make sure it all fits.
Once you have done this press next and you will be asked to check it all fits with the rest of the tune. This is where you can find out how well the single bar you just finalised is projected along the length of the entire song.
You use the slider or arrows at the bottom to move along the entire track and find out if every bar is in time. Often the bars will go slightly out of sync, and itââ?¬â?¢s just a case of dragging one end of the particular bar to the right place ââ?¬â?? this will effect the rest of the track to a degree but should keep it all in time more accurately.
You will get used to this process and also find that some tunes just canââ?¬â?¢t be beatmatched very well ââ?¬â?? then your enjoyable task is cutting it all up in another program like Soundforge into more manageable pieces that can be looped or beatmatched more accurately.
Anyway ââ?¬â?? back to this. You finalise the entire track (or as much as you feel necessary) and then press next. You are presented with the finished screen and three tick-boxes.
[img:1ee07]http://bcc.grafytestudios.com/tutorials/beginnersguidetoacid/beatmapper-03.jpg[/img:1ee07]
The first box is ââ?¬Å?change project tempo to match beatmapped trackââ?¬Â Ã¢â?¬â?? this will take the tempo of the track you have just beatmatched (or beatmapped as they say), and apply it to the project ââ?¬â?? so the project tempo will become the same as the beatmapped track. If Iââ?¬â?¢m working to a specific tempo or have already beatmatched other tracks ââ?¬â?? I leave this unchecked.
The second box is ââ??preserve pitchââ?¬Â¦Ã¢â?ˆ ‚ this will keep the sounds in the track the same whether it is slowed down or sped up. The alternative is hearing the sounds get lower as you slow the track and higher pitched as you speed it up ââ?‰?? which is no use if you are wanting to set the key to match something else. So check this box.
The final box is ââ?¬Å?save beatmapper information with fileââ?¬Â this just means that the information on the beatmapping youââ?¬â?¢ve just done can be applied to other projects if you want to drag the same file into another project ââ?¬â?? perfect! So check this box.
OK, now youââ?¬â?¢re done ââ?¬â?? you can drag the track out and with a bit of luck it will be in time with the loops and other beatmapped tracks you want to put in to the timeline!
The other thing worth mentioning here is any part of the intro youââ?¬â?¢ve chopped off. If there were sounds before the first beat that you want to get back ââ?¬â?? then when youââ?¬â?¢ve dragged your sound out ââ?¬â?? you can go to the start of the sample and drag the edge the other way to reveal the pre-first-beat sounds. The rest will stay in time and youââ?¬â?¢ll have your intro.
Bear in mind if you do this, then if you want to move the whole sample/track about ââ?¬â?? it may go out of time, as the intro will snap to the grid on the timeline and you will have to delete it and drag it out again in the right place. Youââ?¬â?¢ll get the hang of this after itââ?¬â?¢s been done a couple of times.
- Volume levels and envelopes
Every track has a volume level ââ?¬â?? this applies to the whole track and is just a single setting. You can also apply a volume envelope to the track to fade things in and out. To do this you can do a couple of things.
Right click the track and go to insert/remove envelope ââ?‰?? then ââ?¬Ë?volumeââ?‰ ?¢. OR use the menu at the top to hit Insert > Envelopes > Volume. OR finally you could just hit ââ??[shift] & [V]ââ?¬ÂÂ. These three techniques will also remove the envelope if the need arises.
[img:1ee07]http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/5556/volumeenvelope2dx3.jpg[/img:1ee07]
[img:1ee07]http://bcc.grafytestudios.com/tutorials/beginnersguidetoacid/volume-envelope-1.jpg[/img:1ee07]
When you do this you�ll get a blue line across your audio track. This is the volume level. The default (around the middle) is 0dB (zero decibels) Which means the envelope makes no difference to the track volume.
Now, to create a fade you have to double click on the line where you want it to start or end. This will add a small box to the line which you can move about. If you move it up, the volume increases, if you move it down the volume decreases. TO have a fade you need 2 boxes ââ?¬â?? so double click to add another then you can move one to the top and one to the bottom to produce a fade effect.
[img:1ee07]http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/1685/voumeenvelopepk6.jpg[/img:1ee07]
As a last note on this ââ?¬â?? if you remove an envelope from a track after putting in fades and these key-points (the boxes) then you will loose them all and have to re-do them if you put the envelope back in.
- Keys and pitch.
The key of a track is itââ?¬â?¢s ââ?¬Ë?base noteââ?¬â?¢ If you donââ?¬â?¢t have any musical knowledge, then you should know that all music (or at least most) is created in a specific key. All notes have a key and there are the letters A to G to denote these keys.
A piano for instance has a number of keys. They run from A to G all the way up or down.
The black keys are ââ?¬Ë?semi-tonesââ?‰?¢ the white keys are tones, or notes. Semi-tones are referred to as ââ?¬Ë?sharpââ?‰? ¢ or ââ?¬Ë?flatââ?‰? ¢ for example, the black note on the diagram to the left of the keyboard can be referred to as C-sharp or D-flat. The black notes are sharp to the note below them or flat to the note above them. The next note from the left would be D-sharp or E-flat. The other thing to note here is that ââ?¬Ë?sharpââ?‰? ¢ is known by the ââ?¬Ë?#ââ?‰?¢ symbol and ââ?¬Ë?flatââ?‰? ¢ is known by the ââ?¬Ë?bââ?‰?¢ symbol.
Although this isnââ?¬â?¢t too important ââ?¬â?? it will explain a few things in a moment.
So every tune will have a note that harmonises with the rest of the tune. A note that is the root note for the track. It�s difficult to explain this to somebody with no musical knowledge so if you want to learn more about the whole key explanation thing, then it would be wise to search for some basic music theory somewhere.
OK, so you have 2 tracks lined up and playing at the same time, but they donââ?¬â?¢t go well together, so you might be able to fix this. If the vocals perhaps sound a bit out of tune on your acapella and perhaps if they were a bit higher theyââ?¬â?¢d work ââ?¬â?? then you can open the track properties (double click the rounded box/icon for that track) and try to fix this.
In the ââ?¬Ë?stretchââ?¬à ?¢ tab you will see another dropdown box that has the letters A to G as mentioned above with corresponding sharps and flats too. This means that you can make your sounds higher or lower with this method. By selecting one of these and then going back to see how it sounds you can match two tracks.
[img:1ee07]http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/7/keychangemq2.jpg[/img:1ee07]
Now, merely making both tracks have the letter G wonââ?¬â?¢t do anything ââ?¬â?? it will just pitch them both up. You have to make relative changes, because although the key letters will change the track ââ?¬â?? they only relate directly to that one track, as opposed to the other tracks too.
This can be a difficult part to master, so it�s worth a bit of trial and error to get you orientated with it all.
For more accurate adjustments to this youââ?¬â?¢ll see a pitch shift (semitones) box in the track properties ââ?¬â?? here you can have up to 3 decimal places on pitch shift. 1.000 = a single semitone, and 12.000 will equal an ââ?¬Ë?octaveââ?¬â ?¢ which is 8 notes. G (through A) to G. you can also use negative numbers here to express a pitch down.
6 Getting something out: Saving and rendering.
So you�ve constructed your masterpiece, and want to make sure the world can hear it. First you need to render it.
What I would do is make sure all your volume levels are ok ââ?¬â?? make sure itââ?¬â?¢s the same volume at the end as at the start of the mix etc. Basically just check it through to make sure it sounds ok.
Now, you can save it. Now, File>Save will let you save the Acid file ââ?¬â?? which holds info about the project ââ?¬â?? and this will also save a backup of the acid file alongside it. This is for recovery purposes if Acid crashes.
This however wonââ?¬â?¢t get you an mp3 at the end. What you need to do for that is use the File>Render Asââ?¬Â¦ option. A box will come up asking for a filename and then you have a few options for rendering the file ââ?¬â?? you can chose mp3, wav and various other formats. Mp3 is the most common as you probably know already and as far as bit-rates go ââ?¬â?? thatââ?¬â?¢s a whole other discussion. Generally you should render a wav (windows ââ?¬â?? not the scott-studios one) file for a master copy (although this will take up more space on your hard-disk) and also render an mp3 file for sending to people on the internet or posting on websites etc. The wav can be used to make more copies and also to write CDs.
So there you have it ââ?¬â?? a beginnerââ?¬â?¢s guide to Acid.
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Tutorial written by Alex C for BCC.
Producing Tips 
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