Build playing speed gradually, from slow practice to full tempo
The goal is not just to reach 1×. It is to play the same phrase cleanly and steadily as the tempo rises. You can build speed with a YouTube video, a local audio or video file, a metronome or Quick Jam. Find a starting speed at which you can control the notes, rhythm and movement. Increase it a little at a time; if notes disappear or the timing rushes, return to the last speed you could play well.
Find a starting speed you can control
Listen to the phrase once at its normal speed and locate the part that trips you up. A loop of two bars may be enough, but leave in the notes that lead into and out of it; otherwise you may learn only how to start in the middle. Loop the passage and slow it in steps until you can play its notes and rhythm clearly several times in a row.
The starting number is not a grade. If you can play it steadily at 0.6× today, start there; if the movement still feels tense, go slower. If you keep making the same mistake even at a slow speed, shorten the passage or adjust the movement. Repetition and acceleration alone will not correct it. Pitch-preserving slowdown lets you compare the original notes, although very slow playback may sound less natural. Check important details at normal speed too.
Move up one small step at a time
- Repeat at the starting speed. Can you enter on the beat and finish in time on several consecutive attempts, not just once by chance?
- Increase the speed slightly and repeat. For example, move from 0.60× to 0.65×. If you miss notes, tighten up or lose the phrase, return to 0.60× and work out which movement or beat caused the problem.
- Widen the passage near full speed. Join it to the phrase before and after it, then play the whole section at 1×. Playing the hardest two bars in isolation does not guarantee that you can enter them from the previous phrase.
These numbers are examples, not a required ladder for every instrument. Whether you can play the next repetition steadily matters more than the highest speed you touched today.
With a song or video: speed up each loop
For an embeddable YouTube video or a local audio or video file you have the right to use, mark the passage and choose a starting speed. Turn on Auto and set its Speed step-up options: how many loops happen before each increase and how large the increase is. The song's Stats record playback practice time at each speed, so you can look back at the steps from slow practice towards full tempo. Auto counts loops; it cannot hear whether you played accurately or decide when you need to step back.
For example, begin at 0.60× and add 0.05× after every three loops. The next step is 0.65×. Auto stops increasing at 1×, but the passage keeps looping. If you lose control, turn Auto off or lower the speed manually and work through the problem. The loop count and step size are saved for this song; you must turn Auto on again next time, so it will not silently keep accelerating.
Looping and Auto are free. Practising with an embeddable YouTube video needs no account. Importing your own file is free but requires a free account; speed practice with that file does not require Pro.
The preview ends by opening this song's Stats. Each speed bar shows how much Practice mode playback time you spent on that passage at that speed; time at the same speed adds up across sessions. The record counts real elapsed playback time, regardless of the speed multiplier, and excludes pauses.
Without the recording: metronome and Quick Jam
For scales, sight-reading or a movement that does not need the original recording, use the metronome's Auto speed-up. Set a starting and target BPM, how much to add and how many bars to wait between increases. It holds the target tempo when it gets there. This counts bars, not repetitions of a recorded passage.
To build speed with accompaniment, enter chords and choose a style in Quick Jam. Set the starting and target BPM; its Auto speed-up increases the band's tempo after the chosen number of loops. Time spent with the metronome or Quick Jam also enters your practice record.
First check which note value each metronome click represents in your music. A quarter-note click at 120 BPM cannot be compared directly with a song playing at 0.75×: the former is beats per minute, the latter is a playback rate relative to the original. If you have a recording, use it to check the music's accents and groove rather than relying on the numbers alone.
Pick up where you left off
When you reopen this song in Practice mode from your library, it restores the playback speed you last used there. You can carry on from that speed. To see how much playback practice happened at each speed, open the song's Stats. Listen or record yourself at normal speed to check the timing and how the phrases connect.
Questions about building speed
What speed should I start at?
Start where you can complete the phrase steadily. There is no universal 0.5× or 0.75× rule. If the same spot fails repeatedly, shorten the passage or separate the difficult movement.
Does reaching 1× mean I have learned the phrase?
Not necessarily. Rejoin the difficult part to its surroundings and check the timing, sound and stability of the whole section. One successful run at full speed is a check, not permanent mastery.
How is metronome tempo training different from stepping up a song's speed?
A YouTube or local recording speeds up by playback multiplier after a set number of loops; Auto stops at 1×. You can still set playback speed manually as high as 2×. The metronome increases BPM after your chosen number of bars, while Quick Jam increases BPM after your chosen number of accompaniment loops. Playback multiplier and BPM are not interchangeable; time in all three practice modes enters your practice record.
Choose one phrase that keeps catching you. Start at a speed you can play steadily, check the notes and rhythm at each step, then join it back to the whole section.