Avid Pro Tools · VST3

Scroll speed and tempo changes in Pro Tools

Does the lyric scroll follow tempo changes in Pro Tools?

Yes. The scroll is derived from the Pro Tools playhead position rather than from a fixed speed setting, so a tempo map, a half-time chorus or a rallentando is followed automatically. There is no speed dial to keep re-adjusting between sections.

Standalone teleprompter apps scroll at a set rate in words per minute. That is fine for a script and wrong for a song, because music does not move at a constant rate and the mismatch compounds over three minutes.

Reading position from the host removes the drift entirely. A section that slows down pulls the lyrics with it, and a double-time bridge speeds them up without anyone touching a control.

This is also what makes rehearsal useful. What the singer practised at soundcheck behaves identically at the take, because both were driven by the same timeline.

Step by step

  1. 1Build your tempo map in Pro Tools before the vocal session.
  2. 2Set the start marker at the first sung word.
  3. 3Play through the sections with the biggest tempo shifts and watch the pacing.
  4. 4Adjust the lead-in so the singer always reads slightly ahead.
  5. 5Save the project once it feels right.

Try it in Pro Tools tonight

14 days free, no card required. Install the VST3, paste a lyric sheet, and record one take start to finish before you decide.

Related questions

Is there a manual speed control?

You control the lead-in and the layout; the underlying pace comes from the timeline, which is what keeps it accurate.

What about free-time intros?

For a rubato intro, place the start marker at the first in-tempo line and let the singer take the intro from memory or a cue.