We hear you. "Max doesn't have a timeline," you say. "How can I possibly compose the next 'Williams Mix' without a timeline?" Listen, Max may be missing a timeline but it still has powerful tools for timing and sequencing. Max doesn't want to baby you. Does life have a timeline? Exactly. Instead of a fixed timeline, Max lets you roll your own event sequencer using its internal transport. Handling timing yourself means you can do whatever you want. If you want branching, non-deterministic compositions, that's up to you. If you want to slave your transport to an outside timing environment like Ableton Live, that's fine too. These objects and guides will help you understand how to handle timing in Max.
See Also
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Max Basic Tutorial 4: Metro and Toggle | Max Basic Tutorial 4: Metro and Toggle |
| Max Basic Tutorial 19: Timing | Max Basic Tutorial 19: Timing |
| metro | Output a bang message at regular intervals |
| qmetro | Queue-based metronome |
| tempo | Output numbers at a metronomic tempo |
| setclock | Create and control an alternative clock |
| transport | Control a master clock |
| translate | Convert between different units of time. |
| timepoint | Bang at a specific time |
| clocker | Report elapsed time, at regular intervals |
| timer | Report elapsed time between two events |
| phasor~ | Generate sawtooth signals |