Pro Tools Tutorials - Selecting Edit and Playback Ranges

Making selections of audio regions, or MIDI data on playlists is something that never ends when you're working in Pro Tools. It may be to select a few bars to loop playback, or to punch-in a solo section, or maybe to just to add a fade to the tail end of a region. But regardless of whether it's playing back, recording, or editing - it requires making selections. So in this short tutorial on how to use Pro Tools, I'll explain the two basic types of selection and a few tips for how you can use them in your own sessions.

Timeline and Edit Selections

In Pro Tools, you can make two different types of selections -Timeline selections and Edit selections.

A Timeline selection enables you to determine a selection for playback or recording. Timeline selections are often made inside the timebase rulers.

Edit Selections on the other hand, are how you tell Pro Tools what you want to Edit using an editing command, or process using an audiosuite plug-in. You typically make Edit selections by dragging the selector tool across a track playlist.

Linking the Timeline and Edit Selection

For many new Pro Tools users, the fact that there are two different types of selections comes as a bit of a surprise because, by default - Pro Tools links both of them together using an optional setting called Link Timeline and Edit Selection.

With the Link Timeline and Edit Selection option enabled, making an Edit Selection will at the same time make a Timeline Selection, and vice versa. As if there's only one single type of selection. When in reality, it's both of them linked together.

In my experience linking the Timeline and Edit Selection does make good sense and seems to be a more intuitive way to do things. So in the Pro Tools tutorials I provide to new users, I generally recommend keeping the Link Timeline and Edit Selection option enabled.

At some point you'll find yourself in editing or recording situations where you'll have to make Timeline and Edit Selections individually, and that will be a better time to start unlinking them.

Using the Link Timeline and Edit Selections option

Note - During this Pro Tools tutorial I recommend that you start with the Link option enabled. Then, as you try out the different Timeline Selection techniques, toggle the option off to see how your Timeline Selection is applied.

Here's three quick ways you can enable and disable the linking option:


1. Press the button directly below the Grabber Tool icon.When the button is blue, linking is Enabled.
2. Use the keyboard shortcut Shift+forward slash to toggle linking on and off.
3. Select or deselect Link Timeline and Edit Selection within the Options menu


Making Selections in the Timeline

Let's look at three ways to make timeline selections.

1. Selecting a range inside the timebase rulers with the Selector tool
2. Entering the Selection values inside the numeric Timeline selection fields in the Transport window
3. Using the blue up and down arrow markers (timeline selection markers) in the rulers


1. Click-dragging the Selector along the timebase rulers

You can start with any tool selected and the moment you hover it over the rulers, it will temporarily become the Selector tool.

When the Selector tool icon appears all you have to do is click and drag it over the rulers to define your timeline selection. The Timeline selection indicator in the Transport window automatically update as you make your selection.

Remember When not linked, Timeline and Edit selections are totally independent of each other. To see how this works, playback your timeline selection with the Link option enabled and then with it disabled.


2. Entering the Selection values inside the numeric Timeline selection fields in the Transport window

Another way you can make Timeline Selections is by entering them in as numeric values directly into the Timeline Selection Fields in the Transport Window.

To do this, click on the first field - the Start location - and type in the Start value.
With the Start field highlighted you can also adjust the value using the Up and Down arrows on your keyboard.
You can also step between values in a row using the Left and Right arrows on your keyboard.

If you're happy with your Start selection, press Enter on your keyboard to confirm it.

Next, you'll need to input a selection End point. Or, if you prefer you can enter in the Length instead.

The steps are identical to inputting the Start time. Just click to select (either the End or the Length field, whichever you prefer), enter the numeric value and then press Return or Enter on your keyboard to finalize your selection. Once you do all three fields - Start , End and Length will display the values for the current timeline selection.

3. Using the blue up and down arrow markers (timeline selection markers) in the rulers

Whenever you create a timeline selection, two little markers appear in the rulers to identify the start and end point of the selection. The markers appear as blue arrows pointing Up and Down.

Click and drag the arrows along the ruler to make your timeline selection. Drag the Up arrow to adjust the End time and the Down arrow to adjust the Start time.

There you go!.

That covers the essentials of Pro Tools Timeline Selections.

About the Author

Chris Bryant is a music producer, pro audio consultant, and educator in Vancouver, Canada.

Learn Pro Tools online at www.pttuts.com - a complete online training library of clear and detailed Pro Tools Video Tutorials and more.