Reference Guide

1452
View Reference
Step Sequencer View
and the default value is 4 steps. Changes are undoable.
• Fit to Quarters. Fit to Quarters will force the pattern duration to fit the specified number of
quarter notes.
• Entry Mode Toggle. This button toggles between Monophonic mode and Polyphonic mode,
which affects the behavior when entering new notes. In Monophonic mode, only one note (row)
may be assigned for each step. Monophonic mode is useful for sequencing melodic lines. When
you click in a column to enter a new note, any existing notes in the same column will be removed
automatically in Monophonic mode. In Polyphonic mode, you can enter multiple notes in the same
column.
• Step Record. The Step Record button toggles step recording on/off. See To step record notes
from a MIDI device.
• Play. The Play button is used to start/stop the Step Sequencer when SONAR’s main transport
is idle.
• Position Indicator. The Position indicator shows the current measure and beat position in the
step sequencer.
Below the main toolbar are three additional buttons:
• Insert Row. Click this button to insert a new row above the selected row. This command is
undoable.
• Delete Row. Click this button to delete the selected row. This command is undoable.
• Options. Click this button to load and save patterns and set global options. The pop-up menu
contains the following commands:
• Load Pattern. Click to load a Pattern file (.spp) into the Step Sequencer.
• Save Pattern As. Click to save the current pattern as a Pattern file (.spp).
• Clear Pattern. Click to clear all steps in the current pattern.
Note: When changing the number of steps per beat, you can configure how existing notes are
affected. By default, SONAR will preserve the original pattern whenever possible as you add or
remove beats. Doing so ensures that notes retain their original position within each beat. If you
prefer, you can instruct SONAR to instead append additional steps at the end of each beat. To
toggle the behavior, click the Options button and select Preserve Pattern for Step Sizes
on the pop-up menu (enabled by default).
Note: When you adjust the Fit to Quarters value, the clip duration may change depending on
whether or not the clip has been rolled out to expose additional pattern iterations:
• If the clip has a single pattern iteration. When you change the Fit to Quarters value
(number of quarter notes), the clip duration will continue to equal the length of one pattern
iteration. That is, the clip will not be rolled out.
• If the clip has multiple pattern iterations. When you change the Fit to Quarters value
(number of quarter notes), the new clip duration will either equal the old clip duration or the
length of the new pattern, whichever is greater.