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Pro Tools Reference Guide
556
Using the Pencil Tool
The Pencil tool lets you draw several types of
Pro Tools data:
• audio waveforms (see “Waveform Repair
with the Pencil Tool” on page 556)
• MIDI data (see “Using the Pencil Tool” on
page 664)
• tempo changes (see “Editing Tempo Events
in the Tempo Editor” on page 763)
• automation (see “Drawing Automation” on
page 1027).
Waveform Repair with the Pencil
Tool
On audio tracks, the Pencil tool lets you destruc-
tively “redraw” waveform data. This tool is most
commonly used to repair a pop or click in an au-
dio file. A pop or click appears as a sudden sharp
spike in a waveform. This tool only becomes ac-
tive when the Edit window is zoomed in to the
sample level.
Although you can Undo a Pencil tool edit, it is
recommended that you create a backup copy of
the target audio before using the Pencil tool.
You can do this by using the AudioSuite Dupli-
cate plug-in.
To destructively edit an audio waveform with the
Pencil tool:
1
Locate the area you want to edit.
2
Using the Zoomer tool or the Zoom buttons,
zoom down to the sample level so the waveform
appears as a continuous thin line. Adjust the
Track Height, as necessary, to edit the waveform
with greater precision. You can also use vertical
zoom for greater visual resolution.
3
Select the Pencil tool.
4
Carefully draw with the Pencil tool by drag-
ging over the area of the waveform.
Do not over-edit or the results may be undesir-
able. However, you can use the Undo command
to undo your previous edit.
The Pencil tool can independently edit different
channels of a multichannel track.
Try to limit editing to smoothing over a very
small problem area, and keep the “fixes” in char-
acter with the shape of the surrounding wave-
form.
The Pencil tool is a destructive editing tool
that permanently modifies the audio file on
disk and should be used with caution.
For information about the AudioSuite
Duplicate plug-in, see the Audio Plug-Ins
Guide.
You can recall zoom levels with the Zoom
Preset buttons (see “Zooming Options” on
page 532), or with Memory Locations (see
“Recalling Memory Locations” on
page 798). The default setting for Zoom
Preset 5 is at the sample level for Pencil ed-
iting.
Pencil tool
Repairing a “pop” with the Pencil tool