Apple Loops Utility assigns wrong BPM

[pandeiroman]

Greetings Everyone,

 

I am having a hard time with the Apple Loops Utility. It is still working which is good, but when I try to make my own custom Apple Loop, the Utility is automatically assigning the wrong BPM to the .aiff file and there doesn't seem to be a way to change it no matter how I adjust the "Transients" view or tags etc.

 

I haven't mad many custom Apple Loops so it could be user error, but I carefully followed all the steps of the manual and the Groove 3 Logic 9 Operator Tutorial (can't find any good tutorials for the workflow in LPX so assuming it's relatively similar).

 

Here is my process:

 

I have a completed project with established global tempo of 104BPM (no tempo changes). I have a shaker part I recorded and really like and would like to use in other projects, so I figure - good time to learn how to make custom Apple Loops. I start with using the built in LPX approach (as per manual).

 

In case this is part of the problem, let me explain that my audio region (that I want to become the Apple Loop) was created by routing the bus of a track stack to an empty audio track and recording the clip there to then make into the Apple Loop. The reason for this is the Shaker loop is comprised of several poly-rhythmic parts originally recorded onto several tracks within the Track Stack. Couldn't find any easy way to just convert the meta-region (folder) of the track stack and then make that into a flattened audio region with all the parts....so I recorded it like a stem to another track....if there is a better way, please let me know...but I digress.

 

So then with the recorded audio region trimmed precisely to 4 Bars, I right click to get my shortcut menu and select Export>Add to Loop Library. I get the pop up dialogue and fill in the basic info rename and save. With this approach I get the Apple Loop, but the actual waveform and audible volume is significantly quieter. This is a nuisance as I want the loop to be usable in other projects without much processing. So I thought maybe this process attenuates loops somehow in it's render and should try the Apple Loops Utility.

 

When I open the same region (Shift+W) with my external audio editor set to the Apple Loops Utility (Version 3.0.1 - nothing came with LPX) and I select "Looping" from the selection box (as opposed to "non-looping") I see the file info update on the right side saying the loop is 115BPM. I repeated this entire process again to make sure it wasn't a fluke and got 90BPM with same recording perfectly trimmed.

 

I went ahead and saved them into my User Loops folder in the user Library and re-indexed and they show up in the Loop Browser, but sure enough when I drag them back into the project they came from originally, the tempo is off, though the same volume as the source. The loop I saved to the Loop Library without using the Apple Loops Utility plays at the correct tempo but much quieter (I record with plenty of headroom at -18dbfs, so it really gets quiet once the process attenuates the file).

 

So not sure where to go from here. Many thanks in advance for any help!

 

Best,

 

~pm

[pandeiroman]

UPDATE

 

Ok I continued testing and figured out part of my problem...that I must convert the region to a new audio file otherwise ALU (Apple Loops Utility) will look at the entire recording and not just the trimmed Audio region. It does however look at the trimmed region (without a Bounce In Place) when converting to Apple Loops within LogicX (bypassing using then ALU). The drawback, however, is still getting a quieter file.

 

I tested it again using the ALU now with the region converted to a new Audio File and everything worked as expected and the new Apple Loop level is the same as the original source audio. The only problem, which I am assuming is a bug as I've seen it in other searches regarding the ALU, is that the imported Audio Loop region doesn't display the waveform. You just get a flat line as if no audio were present, but at least it plays.

 

I really hope Apple gives us a better workflow to interact and create custom Apple Loops. It just seems tedious and buggy overall. Anybody else have a better approach? I have so many recordings I would like to have as custom loops in my projects for getting ideas down, but this feels so time intensive.

 

If anyone has a solution for not getting the attenuated audio when converting the Audio region within LogicX (no ALU), I would still greatly appreciate it!

 

Thanks,

~pm