| You've already learned that you can fix the timing of Software Instrument regions in the Track Editor. GarageBand 2 also lets you modify imperfections in the timing of your Real Instrument recordings. This feature is very useful for Real Instrument regions that contain all of the right notes but are not perfectly in time with the song. Let's listen to a recorded region that needs a little timing enhancement, then fix it in the Track Editor. 1. | Open 9-2 Timing_Loops from the Lesson_09 folder.
This project contains a Real Instrument recording. Some parts are played with feeling and don't necessarily require perfect timing. Other parts need to be in time with the rhythm or percussion of the song. In this example, the Bells Toll region should fit the cadence of the metronome at 4/4 time and an 80 bpm tempo.
| 2. | Press C to turn on the cycle region and press Cmd-U to turn on the metronome (if they are not already on), then play the Bells Toll loop in the Timeline.
Note If you don't hear the metronome, change the GarageBand General preferences to play the metronome during recording and playback.  | 3. | Listen to the timing of the notes as they play along with the metronome.
All of the right notes are played and the timing is pretty good; however, it feels as if there is a hesitation before the second to the last note, which occurs around the middle of the 3rd measure. It was played slightly late, so it's not perfectly timed with the rest of the recording.
How do you fix it? You use the Track Editor's Enhance Timing slider, which enhances all regions on the selected track (both your own recordings and loops). You can even enhance the timing of a single selected region.
But first, just in case you didn't hear the timing glitch, let's duplicate the region into a second track. Then, as you modify the timing of the lower track, you'll hear a slight echo when the timing differs from the original.
| 4. | Option-drag the Bells Toll region and drag the duplicate to the track directly below the first track in the Timeline.
 Make sure that both regions start at the very beginning of the Timeline.
| 5. | Double-click the duplicate Bells Toll region in the lower track to open it in the Track Editor.
| 6. | Play the Timeline to hear both loops synchronized.
Currently both tracks play the same notes at the same time.
| 7. | While the tracks are playing, drag the Enhance Timing slider all the way to the right.
 | 8. | Make sure that the Timing pop-up in the Track Editor is set to 1/8 Note.
| 9. | Play the two regions together.
The early notes in the regions are in sync, but why is there an echo toward the end? Because the timing of the second track has been enhanced.
| 10. | Press S to solo the lower track, and then play the track with the new enhanced timing.
| 11. | Stop playback and close the Track Editor.
Congratulations! You just fixed the timing mistake that I made in my recording. Now you can apply this same technique to your own recordings.
| 12. | Press C to close the cycle region, Cmd-U to turn off the metronome, and S to unsolo the lower track.
| 13. | Select the track header for the upper track, then press Cmd-Delete to delete that track from the project. Save the finished project to your GarageBand songs folder.
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Tip The Enhance Timing slider may not work equally well with all types of musical recordings. Experiment with the different values and listen carefully to the results to find the best timing enhancement for each individual track or region. To enhance the timing of a region, select only the region. To enhance the timing of a track, select the entire track in the Track Editor.
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