Stretching on the Timeline
Hold ⌘ and drag the right edge of an audio clip to stretch it. The audio is compressed or expanded to fit the new duration. The stretch rate is calculated automatically.
You can also stretch clips with keyboard shortcuts:
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|
⌘⌃⇧→ / ⌘⌃⇧↓ | Timestretch slower (longer) |
⌘⌃⇧← / ⌘⌃⇧↑ | Timestretch faster (shorter) |
Add ⌥ to any above | Fine adjustment (1/4 of normal step) |
Modes
| Mode | Best For | How It Works |
|---|
| Off | No processing needed | Audio plays at original speed and pitch |
| Slice | Drums, percussion, loops | Repositions audio between transient markers — preserves attack and punch |
| Complex | Vocals, melodies, pads | Spectral time/pitch processing (Signalsmith Stretch) with independent rate, pitch, and formant control |
| Repitch | Quick speed changes | Varispeed resampling — changing speed also changes pitch, like a tape machine |
Parameters
Slice Mode
| Parameter | Range | Description |
|---|
| Rate | 0.25x – 4.0x | Playback speed |
| Decay | 0.0 – 1.0 | Envelope decay per slice (0 = maximum decay, 1 = no decay) |
Complex Mode
| Parameter | Range | Description |
|---|
| Rate | 0.25x – 4.0x | Playback speed |
| Pitch | -24 to +24 semitones | Pitch shift independent of speed |
| Formant | -24 to +24 semitones | Formant shift for creative voice and timbre manipulation |
| Formant Preservation | On / Off | Preserve natural formant structure during pitch shift |
| Tonality Limit | On / Off | Constrain pitch shifting to preserve tonal quality |
Target BPM
Instead of setting a rate manually, you can set a target BPM in the Inspector. Gridshift calculates the stretch rate automatically based on the source material’s BPM. You can also override the detected source BPM if the automatic detection is off.Last modified on March 28, 2026
