This article includes the following:

• Resizing and zooming the audio track
• Editing Audio
• Cutting, copying, and pasting audio
• Duplicating audio
• Shifting audio
• Trimming an audio clip
• Selecting within an audio clip
• Moving or copying an audio clip
• Separating audio clips
• Consolidating audio clips
• Working with fades on audio clips with the Editing Tool
• Crossfading between audio clips with the Editing Tool

 

 

Resizing and zooming the audio track

You can resize an audio track to simplify editing. At the top of the Edit workspace, click the Tracks icon, and choose a new track height size. 

 

This resizes all tracks to the new size.

 

 

 

• To resize an individual track, drag up or down from the lower edge of the Track controls area.

 

• To expand the track to the full available editing space, press the E key  (if the system is not in MIDI Keyboard Mode).
• To resize (zoom) the track horizontally, click the plus and minus buttons at the bottom of the Edit workspace (or use the keyboard shortcuts Command+[ to zoom out, and Command+] to zoom in).
• On a trackpad, you can pinch in or out to zoom the timeline horizontally.
• With a mousewheel, you can hold the Option key and scroll to zoom horizontally.

To vertically zoom (increase or decrease the waveform size) on audio tracks:

Type Command+Option+[ to zoom out (decrease waveform size). Type Command+Option+] to zoom in (increase waveform size). You can also zoom with a mouse or trackpad, by holding Option and scrolling.

Zooming waveforms

 

Editing Audio

You can edit audio with the Editing Tool and key commands. 

When you hover the mouse cursor over an audio or MIDI clip, it becomes the Editing Tool. Where you place the cursor, and what the editing context is, determines the Editing Tool behavior.

Audio clips and fades

An audio clip is a self-contained section of audio that is either recorded, imported, pasted, or duplicated on an audio track. Audio tracks can contain multiple clips, and clips can overlap or be combined or split.

Making selections

• To select audio, hover your cursor near the vertical middle of the clip. The cursor changes to the select Editing Tool. Click and drag to the right or left to select the audio range. Selections conform to the Snap setting and grid.
• To extend or shorten a selection, press Shift, then click the location to which you want to extend or shorten the selection.
• To make a free selection when Snap is enabled, press Command, then make the selection. 
• To select on multiple tracks, press Shift to select multiple tracks, then make your selection. 
• To extend a selection you have already made to more tracks, press Shift, then click on the tracks you want to add to the selection.

Moving a clip

To move a clip, hover at the top or in the lower half of a clip. The move tool appears. Click and drag the clip to a new location. You can drag a clip on the same track, or to another track, if it is the same type (audio or MIDI). If you have Snap enabled, the moved clip snaps to the grid. To move without snapping to the grid, press the Command key while you drag.

 

When you move an audio clip, it can overlap an existing clip. You can see this overlapping area when dragging the audio clip.The audio on top of the moved clips plays. If you later move the clip again, any underlying clips that exist are revealed. If you fade or crossfade audio, the underlying audio can be revealed or used in the fade or crossfade, depending on the length of the overlapping and underlying audio clips. 

 

Cutting, copying, and pasting audio

To cut audio, select the audio and press Command+X. The audio is cut, and placed on  the clipboard, ready to be pasted. When you cut audio, a gap is left in the audio file from which you cut. Note that when you cut audio, you are cutting a representation of the audio, but the cut is non-destructive, and the original audio file remains unchanged. You can trim the edges of the cut section to restore the audio you have cut.

To copy audio, select the audio and press Command+C. The audio is copied, and placed on the clipboard, ready to be pasted. 

To paste audio, place the playhead or make a selection, and press Command+V. Note that the full length of the cut or copied selection is pasted, and the underlying audio and audio structure under the paste is not retained. For example, if you paste an audio selection over other layered clips and crossfades, those elements are not restored if you later move, cut, or delete the overlaying clip. 

Tip: If you want to place an audio clip while retaining the underlying clip structure, Move the clip instead of pasting it.

Duplicating audio

When you duplicate audio, you copy the audio selection and immediately paste it starting at the end of the current audio selection. Any existing audio is replaced. Duplicated audio, like pasted audio, does not retain the underlying clip structure.

Press Command+D to duplicate audio. 

Shifting audio

The shift workflow allows you to edit audio and keep your arrangement flowing around your edits. For example, you can cut or paste audio or MIDI, and have the audio on one or more tracks shift back or forward in time to accommodate the cut or paste.

 

Shift+X

Use Shift+X to cut the selection, and shift all the following audio or MIDI data to fill the space that is removed. You can do this on a single track, multiple selected tracks, or all tracks.

Shift+V

Use Shift+V to paste a selection, and shift all the following audio or MIDI data to accommodate the pasted data. You can do this on a single track, multiple selected tracks, or all tracks.

Shift+D

Use Shift+D to duplicate (copy and paste) the selection, and shift all the following audio or MIDI data to fill the space that is removed. You can do this on a single track, multiple selected tracks, or all tracks.

Shift+I

Use Shift+I to insert space, and shift audio or MIDI data following your selection by the length of the selection. You can do this on a single track, multiple selected tracks, or all tracks.

Shift+Delete

Use Shift+Delete to delete your selection and shift audio or MIDI data following your selection by the length of the selection. You can do this on a single track, multiple selected tracks, or all tracks.

Trimming an audio clip

Hover the Editing Tool near the bottom at the start or end of a clip to trim the length of the clip. Click and drag to the right from the start of the clip, or to the left from the end of the clip to trim its length. Note that trimming follows the Snap settings, unless you hold the Command key while trimming.

Trim tool

 

Trim in progress

Selecting within an audio clip

Hover just above the vertical center at the start or end of a clip to select. Note that this works anywhere in a clip, not just at the start or end. Click and drag to select. Selections follow the Snap settings, unless you hold the Command key while selecting.

Tool appearance

Selection made

Moving or copying an audio clip

When you hover near the vertical and horizontal center, the cursor changes to the move/copy Crosshair Arrows Editing Tool. Drag the clip to a new location or a different track. Note that selections snap to the Snap settings, unless you hold the Command key while dragging. Option+Click to create a copy of the clip that you can then drag to a new location or track.

 

Separating audio clips

You can separate audio clips to create two or more audio clips from an existing clip.

• Separate an audio clip at the playhead with the menu command Edit > Separate Selection, or Command+E.
• Separate a selection on the current grid with the menu command Edit > Separate on Grid.

 

Consolidating audio clips

You can combine two or more selected clips together by consolidating clips. You can also consolidate clips with spaces between them. When you consolidate such files, LUNA adds silence for the length of the space in the consolidated audio file.

• To consolidate, select one or more clips, and choose the menu item Edit > Consolidate, or Option+Shift+3.

 

Working with fades on audio clips with the Editing Tool

Hover near the top at the start or end of an audio clip to show the Fade Editing Tool.

Creating a fade

Click and drag to the right from the beginning of the clip or to the left from the end of the clip to create a fade in or out. Fades follow the snap settings, unless you hold the Command key while dragging. 

Note: When you trim a clip that has a fade applied, the original fade length is preserved.

 

Editing the length of a fade

Hover over the fade boundary marker. The Fade Editing Tool appears. You can click and drag a fade to change its length. Fade length adjustments follow the snap settings, unless you click the Command key while dragging.

Editing the slope of an audio fade

Hover over the fade slope adjust point at the center of the fade. The Fade Slope Editing Tool appears, indicating you can adjust the fade slope.

Click and drag with the Fade Slope Editing Tool to adjust the fade slope. Drag up or down to adjust the slope of the fade to be more or less gradual. Drag towards the clip boundary or fade boundary to change how quickly the fade slopes in or out. Option+Click on a fade to reset to the original fade.

Right-click or Control+Click on a Fade to switch between Equal Power and Equal Gain mode.

Tip: Equal Gain is the default mode, and it works better for phase-coherent material, for example when fading between clips from the same guitar track or drum track. Equal Power mode works better for material that is less similar, dissimilar, or not phase-coherent, for example two different vocalists or two different guitar recordings.

Crossfading between audio clips with the Editing Tool

To see the Crossfade Editing Tool, hover your cursor over the vertical center of the boundary where two clips meet, or on the vertical center of the edge of one clip if you are crossfading across a gap.

Crossfade tool at clip boundary

 

Crossfade tool at clip edge (crossfading across a gap)

 

Drag the crossfade tool across the clip boundary or across the gap to crossfade between the clips. Crossfade adjustments follow the snap settings, unless you click the Command key while dragging.

 

To adjust where the crossfade is centered, click and drag from the crossfade slope adjust point. Option+Click the crossfade slope adjust point to reset the crossfade to default.

To lengthen or shorten one end of the crossfade, hover your cursor over an edge of the crossfade. The crossfade boundary markers (white inverted triangles) appear at the upper edge of each side of the crossfade. Click the marker you want to adjust. The hand cursor appears. Drag to shorten or lengthen a crossfade edge. 

 

To move or delete a crossfade, click in the lower half of the crossfade. Drag the crossfade to move it. Note that you can only drag a crossfade as long as there is audio material underlying the fade being crossfaded. Crossfades snap to the Snap settings. To move the crossfade freely when Snap is enabled, click the Command key while dragging. 

To delete a crossfade, select the crossfade, then press the Delete key.

To switch Equal Power and Equal Gain mode for the crossfade, Right-click or Control+click in the center of the crossfade, and choose the mode.

Tip: Equal Gain is the default mode, and is recommended for phase-coherent material, for example when fading between clips from the same guitar track or drum track. Equal Power mode works better for material that is less similar, dissimilar, or not phase-coherent, for example two different vocalists or two different guitar recordings.