---
-layout: default
-title: Using Ardour Clock Displays
----
-
+title: Times
+---
+
+
+
<p>
+
<dfn>Clocks</dfn> in Ardour are used to display <dfn>time values</dfn> precisely.
+
In many cases, they are also one way to edit (change) time values, and in a few
- cases, the only way. All clocks share the same basic appearance and functionality,
+
+ cases, the only way. All clocks share the same basic appearance and functionality,
+
which is described below, but a few clocks serve particularly important roles.
+
</p>
+
+
<h2>Transport Clocks</h2>
+
+
+
<p>
+
In the transport bar of the editor window there are two clocks (unless you
+
are on a very small screen), that display the current position of the playhead
+
and additional information related to transport control and the timeline. These
+
are called the <dfn>transport clocks</dfn>; the left one is the primary
- transport clock and the right one is the secondary transport clock.
+
+ transport clock and the right one is the secondary transport clock.
+
They look like this:
+
</p>
-<img src="/images/new_main_clocks.png" alt="An image of the transport clocks in Ardour 3" />
+
+
+
+<img src="/images/a3_new_main_clocks.png" alt="An image of the transport clocks in Ardour 3" />
+
+
+
<p>
+
Editing the time in the transport clocks will reposition the playhead in the same
+
way that various other editing operations will.
+
</p>
+
+
<h3>The Big Clock</h3>
+
<p>
+
To show the current playhead position in a big, resizable window, activate
- <kbd class="menu">Window > Big Clock</kbd>. The big clock is very useful
+
+ <kbd class="menu">Window > Big Clock</kbd>. The big clock is very useful
+
when you need to work away from the screen but still want to see the playhead
+
position clearly (such as when working with a remote control device across
+
a room). The big clock will change its visual appearance to indicate when active
+
recording is taking place. Below on the left is a screenshot showing a fairly
+
large big clock window filling a good part of the display, and on the right,
+
the same clock during active recording.
+
</p>
+
<a href="/images/bigclock.png"><img src="/images/bigclock.png" height="100" alt="an image of the big clock filling a screen" /></a> <a href="/images/bigclock-recording.png"><img src="/images/bigclock-recording.png" height="100" alt="an image of the big clock while recording"
+
/></a>
+
+
<h3>The Special Role of the Secondary Transport Clock</h3>
+
<p>
+
On a few occasions Ardour needs to display time values to the user, but there
+
is no obvious way to specify what units to use. The most common case is the big
- cursor that appears when dragging regions. For this and other similar cases,
+
+ cursor that appears when dragging regions. For this and other similar cases,
+
Ardour will display time using the same units as the secondary clock.
+
</p>
+
<h4>Why are there two transport clocks?</h4>
+
<p>
+
Having two transport clocks lets you see the playhead position in two different
+
time units without having to change any settings. For example, you can see the
+
playhead position in both timecode units and BBT time.
+
</p>
+
+
<h3>Selection and Punch Clocks</h3>
+
<p>
+
The transport bar also contains a set of 5 clocks that show the current
+
<dfn>selection range</dfn> and <dfn>punch ranges</dfn>. Clicking on the punch
+
range clocks will locate to either the beginning or end of the punch range.
+
Similarly, clicking on the range clocks will locate to either the beginning
- or end of the current selection. In this screen shot there is no current
+
+ or end of the current selection. In this screen shot there is no current
+
selection range, so the selection clocks show an "off" state.
+
</p>
+
+
<img src="/images/selectionpunchclocks.png" alt="An image of the the selection and punch clocks in Ardour 3" />
+
+
<h2>Clock Modes</h2>
+
<p>
+
Every clock in Ardour has four different, selectable <dfn>clock
- modes</dfn>. Each mode displays time using different units.
- You can change the clock mode by <kbd class="mouse">Right</kbd>-clicking
+
+ modes</dfn>. Each mode displays time using different units.
+
+ You can change the clock mode by <kbd class="mouse">Right</kbd>-clicking
+
on the clock and selecting the desired mode from the menu. Some clocks are
+
entirely independent of any other clock's mode; others are linked so that
+
changing one changes all clocks in that group. The different modes are:
+
</p>
+
<dl>
+
<dt>Timecode</dt>
+
<dd>Time is shown as <dfn><abbr title="Society of Motion Picture and Television
- Engineers">SMPTE</abbr> timecode</dfn> in Hours:Minutes:Seconds:Frames,
- measured from the timecode zero point on the timeline (which may not
+
+ Engineers">SMPTE</abbr> timecode</dfn> in Hours:Minutes:Seconds:Frames,
+
+ measured from the timecode zero point on the timeline (which may not
+
correspond to the session start and/or absolute zero on the timeline,
- depending on configurable timecode offsets).
+
+ depending on configurable timecode offsets).
+
The frames value is dictated by either the session <abbr title="Frames Per
- Second">FPS</abbr> setting, or, if slaved to an external timecode master,
- the master's setting. In the transport clocks, the FPS value is shown below
+
+ Second">FPS</abbr> setting, or, if slaved to an external timecode master,
+
+ the master's setting. In the transport clocks, the FPS value is shown below
+
the time display, along with an indication of the current timecode source
+
(<samp>INT</samp> means that Ardour is its own timecode source).</dd>
+
<dt>BBT</dt>
+
<dd>Time is shown as Bars:Beats:Ticks, indicating <dfn>musical time</dfn> measured
+
from the start of the session. The transport clocks show the current tempo
+
in <abbr title="Beats Per Minute">bpm</abbr> and meter below the time
+
display.</dd>
+
<dt>Minutes:Seconds</dt>
+
<dd>Time is shown as Hours:Minutes:Seconds.Milliseconds, measured from the
- absolute start of the timeline (ignoring the session start and any timecode
+
+ absolute start of the timeline (ignoring the session start and any timecode
+
offsets).</dd>
+
<dt>Samples</dt>
- <dd>Time is shown as a <dfn>sample count</dfn> from the absolute start of the timeline
+
+ <dd>Time is shown as a <dfn>sample count</dfn> from the absolute start of the timeline
+
(ignoring the session start and any timecode offsets). The number of
+
samples per second is given by the current sample rate, and in the transport
- clocks, this rate is shown below the time display along with any
+
+ clocks, this rate is shown below the time display along with any
+
pullup/pulldown adjustment.</dd>
+
</dl>
+
+
<h3>Special Modes for the Transport Clocks</h3>
+
<p>
- In addition to the time-unit modes mentioned above, each of the two transport
+
+ In addition to the time-unit modes mentioned above, each of the two transport
+
clocks (if you work on a small screen, you may only have one) can be
- independently set to display <dfn>Delta to Edit Point</dfn> in whatever time
+
+ independently set to display <dfn>Delta to Edit Point</dfn> in whatever time
+
units its current mode indicates. This setting means that the clock shows the
- distance between the playhead and the current edit point, and it may show a
- positive or negative value depending on the temporal order of these two points.
+
+ distance between the playhead and the current edit point, and it may show a
+
+ positive or negative value depending on the temporal order of these two points.
+
The clocks will use a different color when in this mode to avoid confusion.
+
</p>
+
<p>
- To switch either (or both!) of the transport clocks into this mode, use
+
+ To switch either (or both!) of the transport clocks into this mode, use
+
<kbd class="menu"> Edit > Preferences > Transport</kbd> and select
+
the relevant checkboxes.
+
</p>
+
<p>
- Note that when in <samp>Delta to Edit Point</samp> mode, the transport clocks
+
+ Note that when in <samp>Delta to Edit Point</samp> mode, the transport clocks
+
cannot be edited.
+
</p>
+
+
<h2>Changing clock values with the keyboard</h2>
+
<p>
- New values for the clock can be typed in after clicking on the relevant clock.
- Clicking on the clock will show a thin vertical cursor bar just to the right
- of the next character to be overwritten. Enter time in the same order as the
- current clock mode — if the clock is in Timecode mode, you need to enter
- hours, minutes, seconds, frames. So, to change to a time of 12:15:20:15 you
- would type <kbd class="input">1 2 1 5 2 0 1 5</kbd>. Each number you type will
- appear in a different color, from right to left, overwriting the existing value.
+
+ New values for the clock can be typed in after clicking on the relevant clock.
+
+ Clicking on the clock will show a thin vertical cursor bar just to the right
+
+ of the next character to be overwritten. Enter time in the same order as the
+
+ current clock mode—if the clock is in Timecode mode, you need to enter
+
+ hours, minutes, seconds, frames. So, to change to a time of 12:15:20:15 you
+
+ would type <kbd class="input">1 2 1 5 2 0 1 5</kbd>. Each number you type will
+
+ appear in a different color, from right to left, overwriting the existing value.
+
Mid-edit, after typing <kbd class="input">3 2 2 2</kbd> the clock might look like this:
+
</p>
+
<img src="/images/clockedit.png" alt="An image of a clock being edited in Ardour 3" />
+
<p>
+
To finish the edit, press <kbd>↵</kbd> or <kbd>Tab</kbd>. To exit an
- edit without changing the clock press <kbd>ESC</kbd>. If you mis-type an entry
- so that the new value would be illegal (for example, resulting in more than 30
- frames when Timecode is set to 30 frames per second), the clock will reset at
+
+ edit without changing the clock press <kbd>ESC</kbd>. If you mis-type an entry
+
+ so that the new value would be illegal (for example, resulting in more than 30
+
+ frames when Timecode is set to 30 frames per second), the clock will reset at
+
the end of the edit, and move the cursor back to the start so that you can
+
start over.
+
</p>
+
+
<h3>Avoiding the mouse entirely</h3>
+
<p>
- There is a shortcut available for those who wish to be able to edit the transport
- clocks entirely without the mouse. It can be found in
+
+ There is a shortcut available for those who wish to be able to edit the transport
+
+ clocks entirely without the mouse. It can be found in
+
<kbd class="menu">Window > Key Bindings > Transport > Focus On
+
Clock</kbd>. If bound to a key (<kbd>÷</kbd> on the numerical
- keypad is the
- default), then pressing that key is equivalent to clicking on the primary (left)
+
+ keypad is the
+
+ default), then pressing that key is equivalent to clicking on the primary (left)
+
transport clock, and editing can begin immediately.
+
</p>
+
+
<h3>Entering Partial Times</h3>
+
<p>
- One detail of the editing design that is not immediately obvious is that it is
+
+ One detail of the editing design that is not immediately obvious is that it is
+
possible to enter part of a full time value. Suppose that the clock is in BBT
- mode, displaying <samp>024|03|0029</samp>, and you want to alter the value to
- the first beat of the current bar. Click on the clock and type
- <kbd class="input">0 1 0 0 0 0</kbd>. Similarly, if it is in Minutes:Seconds
- mode, displaying <samp>02:03:04.456</samp>, and you want to get to exactly 2
- hours, click on the clock and type <kbd class="input">0 0 0 0 0 0 0</kbd> to
+
+ mode, displaying <samp>024|03|0029</samp>, and you want to alter the value to
+
+ the first beat of the current bar. Click on the clock and type
+
+ <kbd class="input">0 1 0 0 0 0</kbd>. Similarly, if it is in Minutes:Seconds
+
+ mode, displaying <samp>02:03:04.456</samp>, and you want to get to exactly 2
+
+ hours, click on the clock and type <kbd class="input">0 0 0 0 0 0 0</kbd> to
+
reset the minutes, seconds and milliseconds fields.
+
</p>
+
+
<h3>Entering Delta Times</h3>
+
<p>
- You can also type values into the clock that are intended as a relative change,
- rather than a new absolute value. Simply end the edit by pressing
+
+ You can also type values into the clock that are intended as a relative change,
+
+ rather than a new absolute value. Simply end the edit by pressing
+
<kbd>+</kbd> or <kbd>-</kbd> (the ones on any keypad will also work). The plus
- key will add the entered value to the current value of the clock, minus will
- subtract it. For example, if the clock is in Samples mode and displays
- <samp>2917839</samp>, you move it back 2000 samples by typing
+
+ key will add the entered value to the current value of the clock, minus will
+
+ subtract it. For example, if the clock is in Samples mode and displays
+
+ <samp>2917839</samp>, you move it back 2000 samples by typing
+
<kbd class="input">2 0 0 0</kbd> and <kbd>-</kbd>, rather than ending with
+
Enter or Tab. </p>
-
+
+
+
<h2>Changing clock values with the mouse</h2>
+
+
<h3>Using a scroll wheel</h3>
+
+
+
<p>
+
Position the mouse pointer over the clock, and move the scroll wheel. Moving
- the scroll wheel up (<kbd class="mouse">⇑</kbd>) increases the value
+
+ the scroll wheel up (<kbd class="mouse">⇑</kbd>) increases the value
+
shown on the clock, moving it down (<kbd class="mouse">⇑</kbd>)
+
decreases it. The step size is equal to the unit of the field
+
you are hovering over (seconds, hours, etc.).
+
</p>
+
+
<h3>Dragging the mouse</h3>
+
+
+
<p>
- Position the mouse pointer over the clock, press the left mouse button and drag.
+
+ Position the mouse pointer over the clock, press the left mouse button and drag.
+
Dragging upwards increases the value shown on the clock, dragging downwards
+
decreases it, again with a step size equal to the unit of the field you
+
began the drag on.
+
</p>
-
+
+
+
+
+
projects / ardour-manual / blobdiff