Select a zone or group in Sampler in MainStage

You can select and edit zones and groups in a number of ways. To make selection easier, you can first use the sort options.

Sort zones or groups

In MainStage Sampler, you can easily sort zones and groups in the Mapping pane Group view or Zone view. For example, to sort your zones alphabetically, click the Name subcolumn header in Zone view. If you want to sort groups by lowest to highest starting velocity, click the Low subcolumn heading in the Velocity Range column of Group view. The group with the lowest starting velocity range is displayed at the top of the list.

Do one of the following in Zone view or Group view:

Click the subcolumn header that you want to sort by.
Click the triangle in the subcolumn header to invert, or reverse, the sort order.

Select zones or groups in the Key Mapping Editor

In MainStage Sampler, you can select one or more zones or groups in the Key Mapping Editor.

When multiple groups are selected, you will see the zones of all selected groups in the Key Mapping Editor. Each selected group has a number that you can click to move focus to that specific group. The focus feature makes it easier for you to graphically edit complex mappings that contain multiple overlapping groups.

The zones of the focused group are displayed in the foreground and can be graphically edited.
The zones of the other selected groups are still visible but dimmed.
Only zones in the focused group can be selected and edited or previewed.

Figure. Key Mapping Editor, showing multiple selected zones in a group.

Click a group name to select it and to move focus to the group. Shift-click or drag (from an empty area outside any group) to select multiple groups. The Key Mapping Editor above the keyboard shows only zones that belong to the selected group, or groups. You can also remotely select groups with your MIDI keyboard.
Note: To enable group selection with your MIDI keyboard, turn on the Select from Last Played Keys > Groups or Groups and Zones menu option in the Mapping pane Edit menu.
Click a group number to move focus to that specific group when multiple groups are selected.
Click a zone to select it. Shift-click or drag (from an empty area outside any zone) to select multiple zones. You can adjust zone parameters shown below the keyboard.

Select zones or groups using Edit menu commands

In MainStage Sampler, choose one of the following zone and group selection commands from the Edit menu:
- Select All: Selects all zones and groups of the loaded sampler instrument.
- Deselect All: Selects none of the zones and groups of the loaded sampler instrument.
- Select Unused: Selects all unused zones and groups of the loaded sampler instrument.
  Note: If a group has focus in Zone view or the Key Mapping Editor, this will affect the criteria used by this command.
- Invert Selection: Switches the current selection. For example, if you have selected all unused zones and groups of the loaded sampler instrument, choosing this command will select all used zones and groups.

Select zones or groups by clicking them or pressing arrow keys

In the MainStage Sampler Mapping pane Group or Zone view, click zones and groups to select them.
- To select a single zone or group: Click the parameters of that zone or group.
- To select two nonadjacent zones and the zones between them: Shift-click the two nonadjacent zones.
- To select multiple nonadjacent zones: Command-click each zone.
Press the Up Arrow key or the Down Arrow key to select the previous or next zone or group.

Use a MIDI keyboard to switch between Sampler zones or groups

In MainStage Sampler, choose Select from Last Played Keys > Groups and Zones menu option in the Mapping pane Edit menu.

To switch between zones, press a key on a connected MIDI keyboard. You can continue to select zones by clicking them in the Mapping pane when this feature is enabled.
To switch between groups, press a key on a connected MIDI keyboard. This is useful when you want to adjust the velocity of instrument groups, for example.

Download the guides:

MainStage User Guide: Apple Books | PDF

MainStage Instruments: Apple Books | PDF

MainStage Effects: Apple Books | PDF

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