Operation Manual

CHAPTER 9. TEMPO CONTROL AND WARPING 123
the sample (the grains). The warp modes differ in the selection of grains, as well as in the
details of overlapping and crossfading between grains.
Let's investigate which warp modes work best for different types of signals and how to
adjust the warping controls for clean stretching. It's also fun to misuse these controls
to achieve interesting artifacts instead of accurate stretching.
9.3.1 Beats Mode
Beats Mode works best for material where rhythm is dominant (e.g., drum loops as well as
most pieces of electronic dance music). The granulation process is optimized to preserve
transients (attacks, note onsets) in the audio material.
Use the Transients control to guide Live's assumptions about where to nd transients in
the waveform. If there is no rhythmic activity at odd 16th notes, choose 8th, etc. For
some interesting rhythmic artifacts, choose large transient values in conjunction with pitch
transposition.
9.3.2 Tones Mode
Tones Mode serves well for stretching material with a more or less clear pitch structure, such
as vocals, monophonic instruments and basslines.
Grain Size provides rough control over the average grain size used. The actual grain size is
determined in a signal-dependent manner. For signals with a clear sense of pitch contour,
a small grain size works best. Larger grain sizes help avoid artifacts that can occur when the
pitch contour is unclear, but the tradeoff can be audible repetitions.
9.3.3 Texture Mode
Texture Mode works well for sound textures with an ambiguous pitch contour (e.g., poly-
phonic orchestral music, noise, atmospheric pads, etc.). It also offers rich potential for
manipulating all kinds of sounds in a creative way.