{"id":868921,"date":"2024-12-13T14:30:32","date_gmt":"2024-12-13T13:30:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thomann.de\/blog\/?p=868921"},"modified":"2026-04-02T13:11:38","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T11:11:38","slug":"how-to-edit-beatgrids-manually-and-why-you-should-do-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thomann.de\/blog\/en\/learn\/how-to-edit-beatgrids-manually-and-why-you-should-do-it\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Edit Beatgrids Manually \u2013 And Why You Should Do It"},"content":{"rendered":"

\ud83d\udca5 Beatgrids are vertical markers that are automatically placed in a waveform by DJ software. They are placed on the bass drum and the snare or claps of a track. <\/strong><\/p>\n

The DJ software not only uses these beatgrids to calculate the BPM number, i.e., the tempo of the track. Thanks to beatgrids, tracks can also be synced and tempo-matched at a touch of a button while maintaining phase coherence.<\/p>\n

\ud83c\udfa7 However, if you blindly rely on this feature without any musical background knowledge, you\u2019ll inevitably encounter stumbling beats on some fades, as DJ software cannot always detect the pulses of the beat correctly.<\/p>\n

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\u201cExtrapolating\u201d Beatgrids<\/strong><\/h2>\n

In general, DJ software determines the beatgrid based on the level peaks in the first bar. The software then copies this grid to the rest of the track. If the beat structure changes throughout the track, the grid no longer lines up with the actual beats.<\/p>\n

In the case of so-called shuffle beats, the software sometimes gets confused by the double hits of the bass drum and sets the marker for the second bar too late, so that the grid doesn’t fit at all, and the software displays an incorrect tempo, for example, 97 BPM instead of 130 BPM. However, there are now tools that can solve this problem, such as the flexible beatgrid editing function in Native Instruments Traktor Pro 4<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Native<\/a>
Native Instruments Traktor Pro 4<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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Drums with Soft Attacks<\/strong><\/h2>\n

DJ software detects the beats based on level peaks in the waveform. The marker is usually placed at the beginning of the section interpreted as a beat. However, not all bass drums, snares, or claps have a hard, easily recognizable attack. The softer the attack, the longer the beat in the waveform \u2013 you can also see this in the waveform display. This tolerance can lead to incorrectly positioned beatgrids.<\/p>\n

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Pickup Beats and Intros<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Not every song starts on the so-called “1”, the downbeat. Sometimes the first downbeat is preceded by an intro or fill. DJ software can misinterpret this as a downbeat, which means that the entire grid does not sit correctly on the beats.<\/p>\n

\"DJ<\/p>\n

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Laid-back Grooves<\/strong><\/h2>\n

To achieve a certain kind of groove, producers sometimes use the so-called laid-back technique. This means that the kick or snare is placed slightly behind the actual beat, which makes the groove sound slightly delayed. When mixed with another track, this can lead to a slightly out-of-sync sound.<\/p>\n

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Swinging Beats<\/strong><\/h2>\n

If the track was recorded by a drummer who didn’t play to a metronome or click, the tempo fluctuates slightly. Naturally, drums that were played live by a human don\u2019t always line up perfectly with the beats. These subtle variations can make a groove sound more lively and swinging, which is why many producers also apply this technique to computer-produced tracks. In these cases, the beatgrid often doesn’t match the actual beat, making it almost impossible to sync without errors.<\/p>\n

Now that we know what can go wrong with automatic beatgrids, let\u2019s get to work. Here\u2019s how to manually adjust beatgrids:<\/p>\n