Time Shift multiple tracks

[Raoul McAlister]

Hi,

I am transitioning from Cool Edit. In CE it is possible, within a session, to group multiple tracks, more or less permanently, and it is possible to move these along the time continuum. This is a handy feature when trying to put programs together and parts have to be jiggled around a bit. Is there a similar functionality in Audacity?

Regards
Raoul

[TDKtalks]

Hi Raoul. I too have just posted asking the same. I split 1 project (too long) into 2. So the 2nd 1/2 starts at time = 25 mins. I need to shift all 20 tracks to start at time = 0.

Have you had any luck?

Thanks
TDKtalks

[Mark White]

Guys,

You can just use the time shift tool in the upper left hand corner (ver. 1.2.6). There are some Tutorials here: http://audacityteam.org/wiki/index.php?title=Tutorials
This is a good one at this web site:
https://vspace.vassar.edu/babailey/sound-training02-interface.mov
Hope that helps. Happy recording!

Mark

[Raoul McAlister]

Hi Mark,

I am still having trouble with this issue. Audacity has the capability to select multiple tracks (using SHIFT + selecting the track). The relative position of these selected tracks to eachother can be preserved as you move them along the time axis. However, this grouping lasts only as long as the next act of selecting tracks. Once you do somethng else, the grouping is not preserved and you have to re-instate it.

In Audition/Coole Edit, there is a facility to permanently group tracks together so that they may be shifted along the time axis and this grouping is preserved and maintained until the user terminates it.

This functionality is useful for podcasts where similar formats are used show to show and certain tracks (eg IDs or intro music or ads) are used in the same way each time. The grouped tracks can then be time shifted to fit in with the requirements of the new show.

Thanks and Regards
Raoul

[TDKtalks]

Yes, I finally figured it out. Select the first track, by holding down the SHIFT key and clicking on the track on the left side. It will turn a darker color, showing you it is selected. Keep selecting all the tracks. With all tracks you want to move now selected, select the first track and drag it, while holding down the left mouse button on the mouse. All tracks you selected should move as a group. Every now and then, audacity drops a track. Its very finicky this way, I find.
Also, I am using the latest (BETA) audacity.

This problem comes up all hte time, as most of my shows have atleast 15 tracks or so. I find a gap in the early tracks, say tracks 1 & 2. So tracks 3 to 15 all have to move as a group, as I already alighed all their start / stop times. A reeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaalllllllllllllllllllll pain, this is.

[Raoul McAlister]

HI TDKtalks,

The selection process you describe works. However, Audacity does not / can not it seems preserve these groupings beyond the next selection of a track.

Perhaps it is something the developers can work on.

Regards
Raoul

[Bob Hindley]

I can make no headway on this at all. I have a long recording with lots of overlapping tracks. I've deleted a chunk of track 5
and need to move the remaining tracks, preserving the overlaps. No matter what I do, I can move only one track at once. I can select two tracks using shift-click. But when I use the time-shift tool to click and drag, only one of the tracks moves. This is regardless of where I click to drag.
I'm using Audacity 1.2.6 on Windows XP.

What am I doing wrong?
Regards
Bob

[Bob Hindley]

Ah! I've managed it. I downloaded the latest beta version. This enables me to time-shift 2 tracks together by shift-clicking to select the 2 tracks. But it wouldn't work when selecting 3 tracks. To move tracks 5 to 30, I had to select all then de-select tracks 1 to 4. Then I could drag all the remaining selection OK.

Regards
Bob