> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.gridshift.studio/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Metronome and Count-in

> Plays a click while you play or record, and counts you in before a take. Click the metronome icon in the transport bar, or press ⌘K and run Metronome On/Off.

## Turn the click on and off

Click the metronome icon in the transport bar, or run Command Palette → **Metronome On/Off**. Right-click the icon for the mode and style lists.

## Choose when the metronome plays

<video src="/videos/metronome-mode.mp4" poster="/videos/metronome-mode.jpg" aria-label="Metronome Mode in the command palette, Always is picked, and reopening the list shows the checkmark on Always" title="Metronome Mode in the command palette, Always is picked, and reopening the list shows the checkmark on Always" muted loop playsInline preload="none" />

Press `⌘K`, type `metronome mode` and press `Return`. Pick **Always**, **Recording Only** or **Never** with a few letters or the arrow keys, and press `Return`.

## Count in before recording

<video src="/videos/metronome-countin.mp4" poster="/videos/metronome-countin.jpg" aria-label="Count-In set to 2 Bars, record mode on, and Space counts two bars in before the take starts" title="Count-In set to 2 Bars, record mode on, and Space counts two bars in before the take starts" muted loop playsInline preload="none" />

Press `⌘K`, type `count-in`, press `Return` and pick a length. Select the track, turn on record mode with `Caps Lock` and press `Space`: a large beat number counts in, then playback and recording start together.

## Change the click sound

<video src="/videos/metronome-style.mp4" poster="/videos/metronome-style.jpg" aria-label="Metronome Style in the command palette, Woodblock is picked, and reopening the list shows it checked" title="Metronome Style in the command palette, Woodblock is picked, and reopening the list shows it checked" muted loop playsInline preload="none" />

Press `⌘K`, type `metronome style`, press `Return`, and pick **Hihat**, **Click** or **Woodblock**.

## Follow the groove

Select the track you are about to record on. While a groove is active, the click swings with it and adds a quieter click on each off-beat. See [Groove and Swing](/timing/groove.md).

## Good to know

* **The settings belong to Gridshift, not to a project.** They apply to every song, persist across sessions and sync across your Macs.
* **The count-in is separate from the mode.** Its clicks play even when the mode is **Never**.
* **The count-in runs only when you start recording from a stop.** During it the playhead holds and nothing records; then playback and recording start together from the playhead's start position.
* **Audio input recording starts right away**, without a count-in ([Record Audio](/record/record-audio.md)).
* **A bar has as many beats as the project's [time signature](/projects/tempo-key-meter.md) says.**

> **Details**
>
> * **Metronome On/Off sets Always from any other mode**, and **Never** from **Always**.
> * **Clicking the icon off sets Never.** Clicking it on again brings back the mode it had before, or **Recording Only** if there was none.
> * **The icon lights up in the accent color** whenever the mode is anything but **Never**.
> * **The checkmark in the list moves to the mode or style you picked.**
> * **A style change during playback is heard from the next click.**
> * **The record button's right-click menu has the count-in list too**, under **Count-In**.
> * **A large beat number counts in.** With **2 Bars** it also shows **Bar 1 of 2**.
> * **The off-beat click sits where the groove puts it.** With exactly one track selected, the metronome follows that track's groove (or its grid shift) when the track has one; otherwise it follows the project groove.

> **Settings**
>
> | Mode | Behavior |
> | - | - |
> | **Always** | Clicks during all playback |
> | **Recording Only** (default) | Clicks only while recording |
> | **Never** | Metronome off |
>
> | Count-In | Behavior |
> | - | - |
> | **Off** | Recording starts at once |
> | **1 Bar** (default) | One bar of clicks before recording |
> | **2 Bars** | Two bars of clicks before recording |
>
> Styles: **Hihat** (default), **Click**, **Woodblock**.


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