Adobe Audition from a game controller
The Adobe Audition layout is built into InputConfig, free on the Mac App Store. You don't have to make an account, there are no subscriptions, and nothing is locked. Optimized for Apple silicon.
On a Mac: Audition for Mac reads its default shortcuts from this layout, so the keyboard's clicks stay out of your recording.
Yes, you can edit audio in Audition on a Mac from a game controller. A first pass is play, listen and mark, so this layout is a transport and a marker button: play on the big button, record on the next, a marker on a third. Zoom is on the triggers and the cursor on the stick, and a controller button makes far less noise near a microphone than a keyboard.
On this page: 6 sections
The layout, control by control
How the layout thinks
- Transport. Play and stop (Space) on the bottom face button, record (Shift Space) on the right, and Escape on Share or View stops playback.
- Mark. A marker (M) on the top face button and on D-pad down.
- Edit. Cut on the left face button, copy on the left stick click, paste on the right bumper, select all on D-pad up.
- Undo and redo. Undo on the left bumper and on D-pad left, redo on D-pad right.
- Zoom and move. The triggers zoom out and in (minus and equals). The left stick moves the cursor across the waveform and the right stick scrolls the timeline and track list. Options saves.
A first pass is marking while you listen. Play, mark and zoom are under your thumbs while your ears do the work.
Tune it for Audition
- No key clicks on the recording. A controller button makes far less noise than a mechanical keyboard near a microphone.
- Feel the record start. Turn on Vibrate on the record row.
- A spare button. Two rows add markers and two undo. Give one of each a new job, such as a ripple delete from Audition's shortcut list.
Audacity and Ocenaudio have their own entries. The quieter buttons are a real reason to edit near the microphone with a pad.
Get it in two clicks
- Get InputConfig free on the Mac App Store, open it, and click Smart Preset Maker on the welcome screen.
- Search for Adobe Audition and pick it. The layout is created as a preset in your sidebar, named and ready.
- Press Activate. Every row can be changed afterwards: the editor's Scan button rebinds any control the moment you touch it.
Every binding, as a table
| Controller | Sends | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Left stick left | Mouse motion left (speed 16) | Left stick left moves the cursor left across the waveform |
| Left stick right | Mouse motion right (speed 16) | Left stick right moves the cursor right across the waveform |
| Left stick up | Mouse motion up (speed 16) | Left stick up moves the cursor up |
| Left stick down | Mouse motion down (speed 16) | Left stick down moves the cursor down |
| Right stick left | Scroll left | Right stick left scrolls the timeline left |
| Right stick right | Scroll right | Right stick right scrolls the timeline right |
| Right stick up | Scroll up | Right stick up scrolls the track list up |
| Right stick down | Scroll down | Right stick down scrolls the track list down |
| Left trigger | - | Left trigger presses minus to zoom out on time |
| Right trigger | = | Right trigger presses equals to zoom in on time |
| A / Cross | Space | A presses Space to play or stop |
| B / Circle | Shift (Left), Space | B presses Shift+Space to start recording |
| X / Square | Command (Left), X | X presses Command X to cut the selection |
| Y / Triangle | M | Y presses M to add a marker at the playhead |
| LB / L1 | Command (Left), Z | Left bumper presses Command Z to undo |
| RB / R1 | Command (Left), V | Right bumper presses Command V to paste |
| L3 (left stick click) | Command (Left), C | Left stick click presses Command C to copy the selection |
| D-pad up | Command (Left), A | D-pad up presses Command A to select the entire file |
| D-pad down | M | D-pad down presses M to add a marker |
| D-pad left | Command (Left), Z | D-pad left presses Command Z to undo |
| D-pad right | Command (Left), Shift (Left), Z | D-pad right presses Command Shift Z to redo |
| Back / Share / Select | Escape | Back presses Esc to stop playback |
| Start / Options | Command (Left), S | Start presses Command S to save the file |
Button names follow the Xbox / PlayStation pair shown in the editor, so A / Cross is the bottom face button on either pad. On a Switch Pro Controller the bottom button is labeled B; the mapping still fires on position.
Questions
Why a controller for audio editing?
Marking and scrubbing without a keyboard's click on the recording, and a transport under one thumb.
Related
Completely free. You don't have to make an account, there are no subscriptions, and nothing is locked. Optimized for Apple silicon. Open source on GitHub.
Updated