Different analysis each time

Auto-Align
1

Protools 2022.5 mojave
Macpro 5,1

So I made a template of 12 drum tracks. Template had no plugins anywhere. No eq .

I recorded three brand new drum performances opening a fresh session of PT each time.

I plugged in a fresh set of auto align 2 on each channel

Here’s what happened each time.

![IMG_8143|438x500](upload://75qE1pwlASVseYfp4lIYc9NInJN

Oops they will only allow one picture at a time. So:

I’m not sure if these photos will open but suffice it to say that each time autoalign2 analyzed the performance, it used a different drum as 0 . This created a very different result Everytime.

Am I doing something wrong? How can I tell autoalign2 to use the same drum as 0 each time?

Thank you

2

Hi @devinodrums,

Thanks for message.

Did you also play the same thing in each recording? If one recording had a tom-heavy beat with no snare and the other one had no toms (for example) - it makes sense that Auto-Align will choose a different Performance (Key) Time track for each recording.
(In Auto-Align 2.1.0 Open Beta we renamed Key Time as Performance Time )

Did you try to manually match the Performance Time between the different takes?
Are getting the same results after doing this?
To manually select the Performance Time track, right-click any track and select ‘Set as Performance Time’.

It’s important to note, that the tracks in a group aren’t simply being aligned to the Performance Time Track.
In AA2, every track in the group is the “Reference Track” and its algorithm uses an analysis of all of the common information that they share to compare them back and forth to one another.

The Performance Time track is simply a time ‘anchor’. By default, in an effort to reproduce the performance time as closely as possible to the original, the Key Time track is the earliest of the tracks in the group. With drums, it’s usually the snare or the kick.

If you still have any issues, we’d be happy to look into your session. You can send it to us through wetransfer.com.

Thanks,

Oran

3

Thank you, Oran. I played about three minutes of drums and saved it with no plugins added. Closed it out. Reopened it . Added auto align to the performance . Saved that file as a save as. Then repeated the test two more times each time using the original file.

I’ll try one more time with even more controls in my sample. I will play 8 bars of a groove then some fills and then back to the groove. Fills will be simple 8th note hits.

I’ll see what happens. My concern was wether or not I was applying auto align correctly. I’ll send the files once I have better controls in place.

Thank you
Tom

4

You’re welcome.

Applying Auto-Align 2 correctly is fairly simple:

  • Insert AA2 as the first insert in all the tracks you want to align.
  • Click ‘Align’ and play the entire song into Auto-Align.
  • Auto-Align will automatically align your tracks once playback is stopped.

You can also export the project’s range into AA2 to save the playback back time:

  • Click ‘Align’, and then go to File → Bounce Mix and export the project’s range .
    This doesn’t have to be in real-time.

Here’s a link to Auto-Align’s manual if you want to dive deeper:

Have a great weekend,

Oran

5

AA@ choosing a different reference every time doesnt necessarily mean that your results will sound wildly different. One thing I have noticed… if your drums are well recorded, and you got a great sound, and did a great job of getting your drums sounding great together, AND your dynamics were consistent, different performances will make AA2 choose different mics as the reference… but when you actually listen to the RESULTS, they sound very similar… and thats probably because there isnt much of a difference between the different performances… meaning you did a good job of setting up your mics and you played pretty consistently. But if your dynamics were all over the place, and you whacked a few mics while you were playing, then the results will be wildly different

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