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About Mx_Spot 5.0
Mx_Spot 5.0 is a Mac app for spotting music to picture. You lock it to a movie, enter timings and descriptions, and then build each cue’s beat, meter, tempo, and hit map, which can be exported as a Standard MIDI File. The app keeps spotting notes, timing notes, musical layouts, task assignments, and the recording plan in one file.
Mx_Spot 5.0 runs on any Mac with macOS 15 Sequoia or later.
New in 5.0
Timing Notes
A per-cue event list (often called breakdown timings) of time-based and music-based events. With a movie loaded, one click enters an event's timecode.
Layout window
A musical view of the cue where you click, drag and drop to build a meter, tempo and hit map. It plays back in sync with the movie, with an audible click and a moving cursor.
Meter and tempo changes
Both Timing Notes and Layout handle meter and tempo changes. Layout adds accelerandos and ritardandos with editable slopes that still land on your hits, and one-beat meter changes made by dragging a barline.
Tempo Search
Tests a grid of quarter notes, 8th notes or triplets at many tempos near your ideal tempo against the hits you've marked. Results are ranked by Most Hits or Least Total Error.
Timing Notes / Layout versions
Each cue can hold unlimited versions of its map. Audition any of them in the Layout window.
Standard MIDI File export
Export a cue's map, or all cues at once, with step-by-step import directions for Cubase Pro, Logic Pro and Digital Performer. Spotting Notes can also export one file holding every cue's Mx In and Mx Out.
Tempo Tap
Tap a few times in a green box to set an ideal tempo.
Pickup bars
Start a cue on a beat or beat fraction other than beat 1, or add an empty pickup bar.
Fermata and Warning Clicks
Put clicks in the new, faster tempo at the end of a fermata bar while keeping the timing of every downbeat.
Still There
Conform Functions
When a picture edit occurs, fixing just one timing can move all relevant timings to their new correct locations. An optional "anchor" timing, usually a cut, can be used to facilitate this function.
Project Management
Tasks can be created, and a team can be assembled. Team members can be assigned tasks and due dates, and the data can be exported to a personal calendar.
Instrumentation
Instruments and sections for the entire project are listed. Up to four instrumentation setups can be created, showing who's playing on each cue, the cue recording order for each session, exported as a CSV file, and opened in any spreadsheet. Session dates and assignments sync with Project Management global tasks.
Other CSV File Export
Cue data can be exported as a CSV file which can be opened in Excel, and then inserted into the standard Excel Cue Sheet format provided by Performance Rights Organizations. Spotting and Task data can be exported as a CSV file and opened in any spreadsheet app.
iCloud File Sharing
Mx_Spot allows collaboration using iCloud file sharing.
Color Coding
Cues are coded in 4 colors, according to whether they are underscore or source, and composed or tracked.
Download Mx_Spot
The download will consist of a zipped Mx_Spot installer package. The User Manual is available in Mx_Spot’s Help menu. Mx_Spot can run fully enabled on a free 15 day trial before an activation license must be purchased.
Purchase Mx_Spot License
A license to activate Mx_Spot on two computers can be purchased for $48.00 USD.
Clicking on the Buy Mx_Spot button will take you to the FastSpring.com store to complete the transaction.
Mx_Spot Documentation
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