Ripple clip placement
Ripple places a moved clip against the preceding end and keeps its timeline start fixed when trimming the source start. Command-click Ripple to lock it out.
Fast editing, studio session import & hardware control
Editing and mixing in Head Chef
Trim clips, move audio and balance channels using single-key shortcuts. Compatible existing projects can supply audio and selected timing details, with the format-specific limits below.
Timeline editing
Edit modes, timeline zoom and clip fades
Free clip placement
Move audio clips and trim their boundaries independently of the bar grid.
Exact position prompt
Place opens a position prompt for the selected clip. Enter a target sample and choose the clip start, sync point or end as its anchor.
Absolute & Relative snap
Press F4 to switch between Absolute Grid and Relative Grid (REL GRID) across sample steps (1 ms to 2 s at 48 kHz, with Nudge down to 1 sample), while Piano Roll notes snap to 1/4, 1/8, 1/16 or 1/32.
Single-key editing, zoom & track heights
Press R or T to zoom out or in around the cursor, A and S to trim the selected audio clip to the cursor, Cmd+Up or Cmd+Down to step track heights across six sizes (Micro to Jumbo), and Cmd+Opt+] or Cmd+Opt+[ to magnify quiet waveforms up to 16 times.
Linear, Equal-Power & S-Curve fades
Use D and G for fade-in and fade-out ranges or F for symmetric fades, with Linear, Equal-Power curve and S-Curve shapes. For audible level rides in playback and Render Mix, adjust the on-clip Clip Gain badge (-144 dB to +36 dB) or draw a 1024-point Clip Gain Line (Ctrl+Shift+-).
Project clock, metronome & live MIDI input
Project Clock, Built-In Metronome and MIDI Keyboards
Six sample rates and four stereo pan laws
Pressing Cmd+Num 2 opens the Project Clock and Session Setup dialog. Sessions run at 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz, 176.4 kHz or 192 kHz with selectable stereo pan depths of -2.5 dB, -3.0 dB, -4.5 dB or -6.0 dB.
Counter and ruler formats
Choose Bars | Beats, Min : Sec or Samples for the counters. Link the ruler to the primary counter or choose its format independently.
Plug-and-play USB & CoreMIDI keyboards
Connect up to 16 USB or CoreMIDI keyboards automatically with hot-plug detection, sustain pedal (CC64), pitch bend and mod wheel (CC1), or audition notes on Mini Bar’s three-octave keyboard (C3 to B5, keys A through K). Live input routes to the selected instrument track across Mini Bar, Substance, Octet, Voltage 80 and Voltage 78, while clicking an audio track, aux return or Main strip keeps your last active instrument playing.
Built-in Metronome & Count-In
Toggle the accented bar-and-beat metronome (Click or Num 7) with Studio or Woodblock and Bip click sounds and a 1-bar or 2-bar Count-In (up to 4 bars with Num 8) before recording or playback. Metronome clicks monitor in the studio and are automatically excluded from Render Mix exported files.
Interchange, edit history & mono recording
Session import, edit history and mono audio recording
Audio from compatible projects
Open a compatible project to bring its supported audio into Head Chef. Check the first-region and timeline limits below. Consolidate separate regions in the original application before import.
Shared Undo/Redo and session recall
Undo and Redo apply to completed edits across the same project. Save a session to reopen its recorded media, channel settings and instrument sounds.
Tape Scrubbing, Mono Recording & ARA 2
Scrub the timeline ruler with continuous varispeed tape audition. Record a mono take at the start of a saved empty session with recovery after interruption. This capture path has no backing playback or software input monitoring. Compatible ARA 2 editors can apply pitch or timing changes to a clip.
| Project file | Audio and timing boundary |
|---|---|
.ptx · .ptf · .pts | One continuous audio region per track, with its supported sample position and source bounds. Exactly adjacent slices of the same file and channel can join automatically. Separate regions require consolidation before import. |
.rpp | The first audio item per track, including its timeline position, source offset and length, plus supported mixer settings. Further items do not become additional clips. |
.als | The first audio clip per track. Position is derived from its start at a single project tempo; warp maps and complete multi-clip arrangements are not reconstructed. |
.logicx · .band | Supported project metadata and audio pool. Imported audio starts at zero; general timeline placements are not reconstructed. |
.cpr | Referenced audio and an available project tempo. Qualifying Broadcast Wave origin timestamps can supply positions; other audio starts at zero. |
.song | One referenced full audio file per track at frame zero. General timeline clip boundaries are not reconstructed. |
.ardour | The first audio region in each playlist, including its sample position and source offset. |
.dawproject | One referenced full audio file per source track at frame zero, plus supported channel and routing settings. |
.adl · .omf · .aaf | Supported edit-list events retain timing, with a separate Head Chef source track per event. |
.mid · .midi · .smf | Standard MIDI Files (Formats 0 and 1 plus Format 2) import as editable MIDI tracks and clips, preserving notes, tempo changes and time signatures. |
Plug-in settings and automation remain in the original DAW. Project-file imports do not reconstruct complete MIDI arrangements. Keep your original project and media while checking the imported session.
Third-party product names are trademarks of their respective owners. Compatibility references do not imply affiliation.
Sketching, harmony & bidirectional transfer
Jam Console and Studio transfer
Four-part backing & pass memory
Roll an idea for the whole band with one shared shuffle. Hold the style you like, lock a bass line, switch between Same and Evolve passes, step back through recent rolls, then Keep this pass from Jam’s recent-pass memory.
List · Movement · Fifths · Find paths
Explore Functional and Colour chord suggestions or Unexpected next steps, insert voice-led bridge chords with explicit durations, enable Chord Track following and run Detect chords as a separate harmonic layer.
Section variations & song building
Add contrasting sections or make variations on any section, then Build song with drum-fill transitions and a two-bar ending and hear the whole form with Play song. Record your guitar or microphone in Jam over the band with a count-in and your dry signal kept, or play a keyboard on any sound.
Use in Studio & Explore in Jam
Open selected Jam parts and takes as independent Studio tracks with Keep Jam timing or Fit Studio tempo, each with its matching sound and amp, or copy Studio clips and harmony into a Jam with Explore in Jam. Both copies stay editable.
Routing, hardware & local control
Track organization, control surfaces and MCP
Folders, groups & VCA membership
Organize tracks into collapsible folders, link mix or edit groups, and assign VCA masters directly in the Arrange and Mix console or via MCP session tools. Committed VCA changes adjust member gain while retaining saved channel settings.
Mackie Control Universal
Set a surface to Mackie Control mode and select its MIDI input and output. Control channel faders, pan and transport with motor-fader feedback.
Model Context Protocol session tools
Built-in Model Context Protocol (MCP) tools expose session inspection, track creation, transport control and mix adjustments to local studio automation scripts.
Interactive reference
Searchable keyboard shortcut explorer
Search Head Chef’s macOS shortcuts by action or key chord, or choose a category.
| Action | Category | Scope | Shortcut |
|---|---|---|---|
| Play or pause; record when ready | Transport & View | Arrange & Mix | Space |
| Start or Stop timeline recording | Transport & View | Arrange & Mix | Cmd+Space / F12 |
| Play or stop transport from numeric keypad | Transport & View | Arrange & Mix | Num 0 |
| Start timeline recording from numeric keypad | Transport & View | Arrange & Mix | Num 3 |
| Toggle built-in metronome click | Transport & View | Arrange & Mix | Num 7 |
| Toggle 1-bar · 2-bar · 4-bar recording count-in | Transport & View | Arrange & Mix | Num 8 |
| Toggle Mix Console and Arrange view | Transport & View | Global | Cmd+= |
| Open or close the separate Mix Window | Transport & View | Global | Shift+Cmd+= |
| Open Project Clock & Session Setup | Transport & View | Global | Cmd+Num 2 |
| Open Audio Engine settings | Transport & View | Global | Cmd+, |
| Open searchable Keyboard Shortcuts reference | Transport & View | Global | Ctrl+Shift+K |
| Activate Ripple edit mode | Edit Modes & Zoom | Arrange | F1 |
| Activate Free edit mode | Edit Modes & Zoom | Arrange | F2 |
| Activate Place edit mode | Edit Modes & Zoom | Arrange | F3 |
| Activate Grid edit mode | Edit Modes & Zoom | Arrange | F4 |
| Horizontal timeline zoom out or in | Edit Modes & Zoom | Arrange | R / T |
| Fit selected clip in timeline | Edit Modes & Zoom | Arrange | Opt+F |
| Taller or shorter selected track height (Micro to Jumbo) | Edit Modes & Zoom | Arrange | Cmd+Up / Cmd+Down |
| Taller or shorter audio waveforms | Edit Modes & Zoom | Arrange | Cmd+Opt+] / Cmd+Opt+[ |
| Trim clip start or end to cursor | Clips & Fades | Arrange | A / S |
| Create fade-in or fade-out to cursor | Clips & Fades | Arrange | D / G |
| Next or previous clip boundary on the selected track | Clips & Fades | Arrange | Tab / Opt+Tab |
| Apply symmetric clip fades | Clips & Fades | Arrange | F |
| Raise or lower selected clip gain | Clips & Fades | Arrange | Ctrl+Shift+Up / Ctrl+Shift+Down |
| Show or hide editable Clip Gain Line | Clips & Fades | Arrange | Ctrl+Shift+- |
| Import audio | Tracks & Session | Global | Cmd+Shift+I |
| Render mix to disk | Tracks & Session | Global | Cmd+Opt+B |
| Toggle Mute or Solo on the selected track | Tracks & Session | Arrange & Mix | Shift+M / Shift+S |
| Fine-adjust continuous controls or reset to default | Tracks & Session | Global | Cmd-drag / Opt-click |
| Undo or Redo session action | Tracks & Session | Global | Cmd+Z / Cmd+Shift+Z |
No keyboard shortcuts match that filter.