Tick-Based Timing

Pro Tools is a sample-based program with an internal MIDI resolution of 960,000 pulses per quarter note (ppq). However, when the Time Scale is set to Bars|Beats, the display resolution in Pro Tools is 960 ppq and the Timebase is tick-based.

In the Bars|Beats Time Scale, Pro Tools is tick-based (960 ticks to a quarter note). Some amount of sample-rounding may occur when placing events at certain locations (see Sample Rounding and Edit Operations).

When working in Bars|Beats, you will often want to specify tick values for a number of operations, including:

Placing and spotting clips

Setting lengths for clips or MIDI notes

Locating and setting play and record ranges (including pre- and post-roll)

Specifying settings in the Quantize and Change Duration pages of the Event Operations window

Setting the Grid and Nudge values

When the Main Time Scale is set to Bars|Beats, and you are using tempo changes, set the Linearity Display Mode to Linear Tick Display (see Changing the Linearity Display Mode). This will keep the Bars|Beats ruler fixed (at the selected zoom level) and sample-based rulers such as Minutes:Seconds will scale to fit any tempo changes while bar lengths remain constant.

The following table lists the number of ticks for each of the main note sizes:

 

Note Value	Normal	Dotted	Triplet
1/2 note	1920	2880	1280
1/4 note	960	1440	640
1/8 note	480	720	320
1/16 note	240	360	160
1/32 note	120	180	80
1/64 note	60	90	40