Choosing the perfect loop...Browse through 100's of loops-tempo synced pitch shifted

I recently made the switch from Ableton Live to Sonar due to the fact that my compositions were getting too complex for Live to handle, and I'm happy that I made the switch, but there are still some things I miss about Live and I find myself still going back to Live loading mix-downs from sonar when I want to add or change a major part because of the ease of the tempo synced loop auditioning. among other things.  Is there a way to browse through hundreds of loops quickly during playback, hearing them tempo synced to the measure and with the ability to change pitch?  Is there a plugin that can do this? Sound quality is no biggie, this is just for the process of choosing the loops I want to include.  If it is a vst/vsti the ability to drag and drop the sample from the plugin to Sonar would be important (some plugins don't work doing this I believe due to lack of x64 OS support ie(ezplayer).

If anyone knows a solution, I would be happy to hear it.

hyperconnected


I recently made the switch from Ableton Live to Sonar due to the fact that my compositions were getting too complex for Live to handle, and I'm happy that I made the switch, but there are still some things I miss about Live and I find myself still going back to Live loading mix-downs from sonar when I want to add or change a major part because of the ease of the tempo synced loop auditioning. among other things.  Is there a way to browse through hundreds of loops quickly during playback, hearing them tempo synced to the measure and with the ability to change pitch?  Is there a plugin that can do this? Sound quality is no biggie, this is just for the process of choosing the loops I want to include.  If it is a vst/vsti the ability to drag and drop the sample from the plugin to Sonar would be important (some plugins don't work doing this I believe due to lack of x64 OS support ie(ezplayer).

If anyone knows a solution, I would be happy to hear it.

To expand on Mesh's reply ...
 
"Loop Explorer" was renamed to "Media Browser" in Sonar 8.x.   That's what you could use.
As he points out, you can use CTL while clicking to audition multiple loops at the same time.
However, you can also hold the ALT key which will force loops in a different BPM to play at the Project's BPM.
 
(I wish we could just use a toggle for that, but oh well).
 
However, another trick many use (including me) is to open a drum module like SD3, or Ni's Maschine, or Motu's BPM, or Battery 3, etc -- most of these will play wav's (single shots and/or loops) and other formats and will play them in the project's tempo (BPM).
 
And, as Mesh also points out, you could use the Matrix for non-linear techniques, but it's not meant for just auditioning (though it can be used as such).
 
It's funny that you're going to Sonar from Live, whereas Live is the first host other than Sonar that I'm liking.
I wouldn't be giving up Sonar for Live, however.  I'm only adding it as another tool in the music making arsenal.
 
There are some really great things Live has (feature wise) that I'd love to see in Sonar -- and visa versa.
 
And while I have been spending quite a bit of time with Live over the last month or so, Sonar still has the workflow and feature set that keeps me happy most of the time.   Sonar is a truly powerful Host. 
 
And, like any other complex program (which all hosts are), it takes time for one to get into the 'deep' with them.
So enjoy the journey :)
 
 
 

Brandon Ryan [Cakewalk
]

If you drop one or more pitch markers in the timeline, loops in the Media Browser will preview in the right key - and they'll even change key depending on where you are in the timeline and what that respective pitch marker is set to.

Wow, thanks for reminding me (us) about that.  Ya know, I totally forgot about pitch markers lol.
Thanks Brandon :D
 

Brandon Ryan [Cakewalk
]

ba_midi

Brandon Ryan [Cakewalk
]

If you drop one or more pitch markers in the timeline, loops in the Media Browser will preview in the right key - and they'll even change key depending on where you are in the timeline and what that respective pitch marker is set to.

Wow, thanks for reminding me (us) about that.  Ya know, I totally forgot about pitch markers lol.
Thanks Brandon :D

My pleasure Billy! Funny when a program gets so deep that a feature that was "blow away" not that long ago gets forgotten in the back of the closet.

SO true :)   I've pointed out in a thread recently about how deep Sonar is, and that it takes time (as it does with anything deep).  But it also proves why forums are invaluable -- even to those who have gone deep.
(Not to be confused with "off the deep end" LOL).
 
 

Hi Billy, If I recall correctly.......when auditioning loops, the loops (BPM) automatically follows the Project BPM. (I've never had to use the ALT key for this). However, loops that are say 85 BPM following a project at 170 BPM, will sound terrible as the loops weren't constructed to handle that extreme of a change. I actually didn't know about the loop pitch marker.....,(most of the time you get used to working in a routine manner and when you learn another aspect of the program......it's like....."I can see said the blind man".

 
Mesh,
I stand corrected, but using the ALT key is necessary for non-acidized files/One-Shots.
There are quite a number of libraries that have a 2, 4, or x bar phrase that are not 'loops'  and they are recorded in a specific BPM.  The one-shots do need the use of the ALT key to play within the project tempo.
 
So thanks for reminding me so I could make this clarification.