Timing and Sequencing Events

Timing and Sequencing Events

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 sync 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 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