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To speed up a Logic Pro project at one steady rate, show Beats & Project in the control bar LCD, then drag the tempo value upward or double-click it and enter a BPM. Use the Tempo track or Tempo List for changes across a song, and Smart Tempo when a recording should determine the tempo. Before changing anything, consider whether audio regions should follow the new project tempo.
Raise the project tempo to one fixed BPM
- Show the tempo control. In the control bar LCD, open the display menu and choose Beats & Project if the tempo is not visible.
- Change the value. Click and drag the tempo value upward to increase it. For an exact target, double-click the value, type the BPM, and confirm.
- Play the project and check the result. Listen to audio, software instrument recordings, Drummer regions, and Apple Loops. A new project defaults to 120 bpm, and Apple documents a project tempo range of 5–990 bpm. Those are the software’s default and documented limits, not recommendations for a particular song. Apple’s project-properties guide explains project tempo; its tempo-setting guide covers the LCD control and range.
Choose the method that fits the timing you want
| Goal | Logic Pro method | Timing source |
|---|---|---|
| Set one steady BPM | Tempo value in the LCD | Your chosen BPM |
| Estimate a pulse by tapping | Tap Tempo key command | Your taps |
| Change speed by section or over time | Tempo track or Tempo List | Tempo events you set |
| Follow a freely performed recording | Smart Tempo: Adapt or Automatic | Beat detection in the recording |
| Calculate a loop’s tempo from its musical length | Edit > Tempo > Adjust Tempo using Region Length and Locators | The selected region and locator span |
Estimate a tempo with Tap Tempo
Logic Pro includes Tap Tempo as a key command. Assign the command in the user key-command configuration, then tap along to the pulse you want. Apple’s guide says an alert appears the first time, asking whether to enable Tap Tempo; it does not establish a universal default key binding. See Apple’s guide to setting project tempo for the command details.
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Create a tempo change across the song
For a gradual acceleration, a slower bridge, or distinct tempos in different sections, add or edit tempo events in the Tempo track or Tempo List. This creates a tempo map rather than replacing the project with one constant BPM. Apple describes both controls in its tempo-setting guide.
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Have Logic Pro follow a recording
Smart Tempo determines whether the project follows a performance or the performance follows the project. Choose the mode based on which timing you want to preserve:
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- Keep Project Tempo: Keeps the project tempo. Audio follows it when the region’s Flex & Follow setting is enabled.
- Adapt Project Tempo: Changes the project tempo to match a recording or imported region. This is useful for a free performance recorded without a metronome, but it can alter the existing tempo map.
- Automatic: Chooses Keep or Adapt behavior based on whether a tempo reference is present and other project conditions.
After recording in Adapt mode, switch to Auto or Keep if later recordings should not change the tempo map created from the first performance. If beat detection needs correction, review it in Smart Tempo Editor. Apple explains the modes in its Smart Tempo guide and Smart Tempo overview; its guide to working in Smart Tempo Editor covers refining detected timing.
Match the project tempo to an audio loop
When a loop has a known musical length, use its region and locator span to calculate a matching tempo instead of guessing.
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- Select the audio region.
- Set the left and right locators to closely match the region’s musical length, usually to the nearest bar.
- Choose Edit > Tempo > Adjust Tempo using Region Length and Locators.
- Choose Globally to adjust the entire project tempo, or Create to add a local tempo change across the section occupied by the region.
The region length remains constant while Logic Pro recalculates project tempo. See Apple’s instructions for matching project tempo to an audio region.
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Changing project tempo can affect audio and software instrument recordings, Drummer regions, and Apple Loops. For audio, the region’s Flex & Follow setting controls whether and how it follows project tempo changes. If a part shifts in timing or sounds different after a tempo edit, inspect that setting on the affected region and listen again. Apple covers this behavior in its project-properties guide and Smart Tempo guide.
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Menu labels and controls can vary by Logic Pro release. The cited tempo and Smart Tempo guide pages are labeled version 10.7 for macOS 11.0; check the guide for your installed version if a control is in a different place.
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