Click and Countoff

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How to get there

Choose Click and Countoff from the MIDI Menu.

Or, choose Playback Controls from the Window Menu to display Playback Controls (a checkmark appears by the command when displayed). Click on the Playback Settings button, then click the Click and Countoff button.

Or, click the HyperScribe Tool. Choose Playback and/or Click from the Beat Source submenu of the HyperScribe Menu. Click the Click and Countoff Button.

What it does

Use the Click and Countoff dialog box to define the countoff click settings and the metronome click used for HyperScribe recording, and for playback using Playback Controls. Set up the number of measures you want Finale to count off before starting to record. Choose when you want to hear a metronome click, and what the clicks should sound like. Increased control over the click sound includes the ability to emphasize the down beat, for example, by increasing the key velocity of the click or by lowering the pitch of the "other beats" in the measures. When you change the number of countoff measures in this dialog box, Finale automatically updates the number of countoff measures in Playback Controls as well. If you have selected Tap as your Beat Source, Finale will ignore the settings in this dialog box.

Countoff: Always • While Recording • While Playing • Never. Use the popup list to specify when you want Finale to play a countoff metronome click. Choose Always if you want a countoff of a specified number of measures before recording with HyperScribe or playing back with Playback Controls. Choose While Recording if you want the countoff only when you’re recording with HyperScribe. Choose While Playing if you want a countoff only when you’re playing back with Playback Controls, or choose Never if you don’t want any countoff at all. These global settings are saved with your preferences.
Measures__. Enter the number of measures you want Finale to count off before starting to record with HyperScribe or play back using Playback Controls. Enter 0 (zero) if you don’t want a countoff, 1 if you want one measure counted off, 2 to hear two measures, and so on. Finale uses the meter of the first measure selected for playback or for recording into to determine the meter of the countoff measure. Any change you make to the countoff is automatically updated in the Countoff text box in Playback Controls.

Note: Finale will always sound a metronome click while playing the countoff measures.

Click: Always • While Recording • While Playing • Never. Use this popup list to determine when Finale should play a metronome click to indicate the beat in your music. Choose Always if you want to hear a metronome click while recording with HyperScribe and playing back with Playback Controls. Choose While Recording if you want a metronome click only when recording with HyperScribe. Choose While Playing if you want a metronome click only when playing back with Playback Controls, or choose Never if you don’t want any metronome click to sound while recording or playing back. Note, if you have a countoff measure selected, Finale will always click for the countoff measures.
Source: MIDI Note • MIDI Data. Use this popup list to specify the type of MIDI signal for the down beat and the other beats in the measure. In general, you’ll probably choose a MIDI note rather than a MIDI event for the metronome sound. You can choose any MIDI note for the metronome click, but to distinguish the down beat click from that of other beats, you might want to choose a short percussive sound or a high note. Choose MIDI Data if you want to use something other than a MIDI Note for the metronome click.

Metronome Sound: Down Beats • Other Beats; Channel • Note • Velocity • Duration (% of the beat); Listen. The labels in the text boxes change if you choose MIDI Data; you’ll see Channel, Status, Data1, Data2, and Duration, instead of Channel, Note, Velocity, and Duration. To have Finale enter this information automatically for you, click Listen in the Down Beats or Other Beats row, then play the note or trigger the MIDI event that you’re planning to use for the metronome click. Finale will automatically enter all values except Duration for you; if you prefer, you can type these values yourself.

To enter MIDI Note information manually (MIDI Note is selected in the Source popup list), enter the MIDI channel number and the MIDI note number into the corresponding text boxes. Specify how hard the note should be struck by entering a value between 0—127 (0 being the softest, 127 the loudest) in the Velocity text boxes. Change the Duration value if you want to change the length of the metronome click sound. Enter the note length in terms of the percentage of the beat. For example, if a quarter note is a beat and you want the click to be 1/2 the length of the beat (in other words, an eighth note), type 50 (for 50%) into the Duration text box. When MIDI Data is selected in the Source popup list, enter the MIDI channel number for the click, then enter the MIDI status into Status and data byte values into Data1 and Data2. Your MIDI device’s manual should contain the values that you need to enter, depending on the effect you want to achieve.

OK • Cancel. Click Cancel to return to your score without making any changes to the dialog box. Click OK to confirm your click and countoff settings and return to the score.

Note: Finale will always sound a metronome click while playing the countoff measures.