When you're using Pro Tools, one thing is for sure - you'll constantly be making selections of either audio, or MIDI data.. It might be to select a few MIDI notes to quantize, or to select a drum groove to loop, or determine a recording range. But regardless of whether it's playing back, recording, or editing - it requires making selections. So in this Pro Tools tutorial article, you're going about selections types (there's two of them) and a few tips on how to use them.

Timeline Selections and Edit Selections

When you make a selection in Pro Tools, it will either be an Edit selection, or a Timeline selection.

When you want to select a range of your session to record or playback, you'd make a Timeline selection - usually by clicking and dragging across a timeline ruler.

Edit Selections are made across regions on track playlist - or across multiple track playlists in the Edit Window. You use them to determine a range of audio or MIDI data to apply an editing function to.

The Link Timeline and Edit Selection Option

For many new Pro Tools users, the fact that there are two different types of selections comes as a bit of a surprise because, by default - Pro Tools links both of them together using an optional setting called Link Timeline and Edit Selection.

By linking the two types of selections it's really as though they're on and the same. Making a timeline selection smultaneously creates and edit selection, and the other way around.

In my experience linking the Timeline and Edit Selection does make good sense and seems to be a more intuitive way to do things. So in the Pro Tools tutorials I provide to new users, I generally recommend keeping the Link Timeline and Edit Selection option enabled.

At some point you'll find yourself in editing or recording situations where you'll have to make Timeline and Edit Selections individually, and that will be a better time to start unlinking them.

How to enable and disable the Link option

Note - You'll want to be able to unlink and re-link the selections throughout this tutorial so you can see for yourself how the timeline selections work. Start with them linked and playback your selections. Then unlink them, and do play it back again.

You can activate and deactivate the Link option using these three methods:

Press the button directly below the Grabber Tool icon.When the button is grey, linking is disabled.

Press Shift+Forward Slash to toggle Link Timeline and Edit Selection on and off.

Select or deselect Link Timeline and Edit Selection within the Options menu

How to make Timeline Selections

Let's look at three ways to make timeline selections.

Click-dragging the Selector Tool over and across the Timebase rulers

Using the Timeline selection fields within the Transport window

Using the Timeline selection markers in the timebase rulers

1. Dragging the Selector across the timebase rulers

You can start with any tool selected and the moment you hover it over the rulers, it will temporarily become the Selector tool.

When the Selector tool icon appears all you have to do is click and drag it over the rulers to define your timeline selection. The Timeline selection indicator in the Transport window automatically update as you make your selection.

Note When not linked, Timeline and Edit selections are totally independent of each other. To see how this works, playback your timeline selection with the Link option enabled and then with it disabled.

2. Using the Timeline selection fields within the Transport window

You can also create a Timeline selection by inputting your Start and End, or Length values into the timeline selection fields in the Transport Window.

To do this, click on the first field - the Start location - and type in the Start value.

With the Start field highlighted you can also adjust the value using the Up and Down arrows on your keyboard.

You can also step between values in a row using the Left and Right arrows on your keyboard.

Press Enter or Return on your keyboard to confirm the Start time of your selection when you're done.

Now you should add either the End point of the selection. Or the Selection Length.

The routine is the same as setting the Start field. Just click on the End field and type in a value for when you want the selection to end. Then press Return or Enter to confirm it. When you do the value in the Length field will automatically update to reflect the resulting length between your Start and End times.

3. Using the Timeline selection markers in the timebase rulers

Whenever you create a timeline selection, two little markers appear in the rulers to identify the start and end point of the selection. The markers appear as blue arrows pointing Up and Down.

Just move your cursor over one of the markers until your cursor turns into a Grabber Tool and then drag them to wherever you want them timeline selection to begin or end. The Down arrow is the selection Start and the Up arrow is the selection End.

That's all there is to it!.

Those are the basics of setting your Timeline Selections in Pro Tools.