Keyboard shortcuts

What this does: lists every keyboard shortcut in Helm Cues, grouped by where it works, with the menu path where one exists. Keys are macOS: ⌘ Command, ⇧ Shift, ⌥ Option, ⌃ Control.

Read this first

1. A page key works only on the page on screen. Build keys do nothing on Live.

2. Page keys don’t fire while you type in a field, or while a right-click menu or any dialog is open. ⇧Esc still runs Panic.

3. ⇧Esc is Panic. From any page and any field. No hold, no confirm. See Panic.

4. Space means three things. Build: play / pause. Live: GO. Monitor: nothing. Check the page before you press it.

5. On Live, only typing stops Space, ← → and . A focused scrubber, fader or track list does not. With a dialog open they do nothing: close it first.

Global (menu bar)

These work on any page unless the Page column says Build.

Keys	Does	Menu	Page
⌘,	Settings. With a project open it opens on the Project tab. Again: closes Settings.	Helm Cues → Preferences…	Any
⌘N · ⌘O	New project · Open project. Both switch to the Project page first.	File → New Project… · Open Project…	Any
⌘W	Close the project. No prompt, even while playing. The window stays open.	File → Close Project	Any
⌘S	Save. Says Saved. Cues already saves as you go.	File → Save	Any
⇧⌘S	Export Show Package… (.helmpkg)	File → Export Show Package…	Any
⌘T	New track. Switches to the Project page first.	File → New Track…	Project open
⌘I	Cue import / export. Switches to Build first.	File → Import / Export data…	Track selected
⌘E	Cue import / export on Export, Helm CSV picked. Switches to Build first.	File → Export → Track → Helm CSV…	Track selected
⇧⌘U	Push to Helm Cloud	File → Push to Helm Cloud	Project open
⌘Z · ⇧⌘Z	Undo · Redo. In a text field: the typing. Elsewhere: the app’s undo, 50 steps.	Edit → Undo · Redo	Any
⌘X · ⌘C · ⌘V · ⌘A	Cut · Copy · Paste · Select All	Edit	Any
⌘0	Splash. Also closes the project, with no prompt.	View → Go to Splash	Any
⌘1	Project page	View → Project	Any
⌘2 · ⌘3 · ⌘4 · ⌘5	Build · Show · Live · Monitor	View → Build · Show · Live · Monitor	Project open
⌘\	Switch Sheet ⇄ Timeline	View → Toggle Sheet / Timeline	Build
⇧⌘L	Media Library. Again: closes it.	View → Media Library…	Project open
⇧⌘D	Settings, on the Sessions page. Works with no project open. Again: closes it. From another Settings page: goes to Sessions.	View → Sessions…	Any
⇧⌘P	Project Manager	View → Project Manager…	Any
⇧⌘V	Open or close the Sequence Monitor window	Window → Sequence Monitor Window	Any
⌘= · ⌘-	Zoom in · out, both views	Build → Zoom In · Zoom Out	Build
⌘D	Duplicate… the selected cues. See Build.	Build → Duplicate…	Build
⌘F	Find cues. Puts the cursor in the search field, from any field. See Build.	Build → Find Cues…	Build
⇧Esc	Panic. Stops Live and Build, disarms Live, silences all timecode, turns off the show’s desk sequences.	Live → Panic	Any
⌘H · ⌥⌘H · ⌘Q · ⌘M · ⌃⌘F	Hide · Hide others · Quit · Minimise · Full screen	Helm Cues, Window	Any

• ⌘D is Duplicate. ⇧⌘D is Sessions.
• ⌘\ switches views. \ alone zooms to fit (Timeline only).

Build

Every key in this section is Build only.

Transport and marking

Keys	Does	Menu
Space	Play / pause	Build → Play / Pause
Tab	Switch Sheet ⇄ Timeline	View → Toggle Sheet / Timeline (⌘\)
M	Drop a marker at the playhead into the active stack. No stacks: makes one and activates it. A locked active stack takes nothing; a toast says so.	Build → Add Marker
C	Add Cue… dialog, into the active stack	Build → Add Cue…
A · ⇧A	The next · previous stack becomes active	Build → Next Active Stack · Previous Active Stack
F	Follow playhead: Static → Window → Follow. Resumes a paused follow.	View → Follow Playhead
[ · ]	Loop start A · loop end B at the playhead	Build → Set Loop Start · Set Loop End
⇧L	Loop on / off	Build → Loop On/Off
⇧R	Measure on / off	Build → Measure On/Off

Cues and the selection

Keys	Does	Menu
← · →	Selected cues 1 frame earlier · later, any unlocked stack. Nothing selected: the playhead.	Right-click a cue → Nudge
⇧← · ⇧→	The same, 10 frames	—
⌘← · ⌘→	Selected cues 1 beat, at that cue’s tempo. No BPM: a toast says Set a BPM first.	Right-click a cue → Nudge
⌘A	Every row on the sheet, or in the open stack. With a search on: the matches.	Build → Select All Markers
⌫ · Delete	Delete the selected cues. One undo step. A locked stack’s cues stay.	Build → Delete Selected
⌘D	Duplicate…	Build → Duplicate…
⌘F	Find cues	Build → Find Cues…

Esc on Build

One press does one thing. With the open stack’s cue list or a lane header focused, their Esc comes first (see below). Otherwise it does the first that applies:

1. Leave the text field. In the search field it also clears the search.

2. Close the Audio or Tools menu.

3. Clear the media-lane clip selection (when the lanes have the last click).

4. Clear the measurement.

5. Leave the open stack.

6. Back: stops playback and returns to the previous page.

Timeline view, or Media lanes open

⌘ not held.

Keys	Does	Menu
= · -	Zoom in · out	Build → Zoom In · Zoom Out
\	Zoom to fit	Build → Zoom to Fit
⇧\	Zoom to the selected clips	—
Home · End	Playhead to start · end	—
↑ · ↓	Playhead to the previous · next clip edge on an unlocked lane	—
⌥S	Cycle Snap: Off → Frame → Beat	Build → Cycle Snap (Off · Frame · Beat)
⌥↑ · ⌥↓	Move the selected lane up · down	—

Find cues field

Keys	Does
Enter · ⇧Enter	Playhead to the next · previous match. Wraps round.
Esc	Clear the search and leave the field. ⇧Esc is still Panic.
Any other key	Types. No Build key fires from the field.

Tempo lane BPM field

Click a flag to open it. Enter or Space on a focused flag opens it too.

Keys	Does
Enter	Set the BPM. Clicking away sets it too.
Esc	Cancel. ⇧Esc is still Panic.
↑ · ↓	BPM ±0.1. With ⇧: ±1.

Beat Builder panel

The cursor in the panel. Every other key stays Build’s.

Keys	Does
⌘↩	Build the run. One undo step. Editing a beat group: Done.
Enter	In a field: keep the value and hand the keys back to Build
← → ↑ ↓	In the pattern grid: move between cells
Space or Enter	In the pattern grid: turn the cell on or off
Esc	Close the panel

See Beat grid and tempo.

Open stack’s cue list

The list has focus.

Keys	Does
↑ · ↓	Select the row above · below the one you last picked. Rows a search hides are skipped. Nothing picked: ↓ starts at the top, ↑ at the bottom.
Enter	One row selected: rename it inline. Enter · Esc keep · cancel.
⌫ · Delete	Delete the selected rows
Esc	Cancel the edit or form, else clear the selection
⌘A	Select every row
⌘Z · ⇧⌘Z	Undo · Redo

Stacks list

Keys	Does
⇧F10	The row’s right-click menu, with the name focused
Enter · Space	Click the focused control

Tab on Build switches views, so reach the stack rows with ⇧Tab.

Side panel and Tools fields

Where	Keys
Cue inspector fields	Enter saves. Leaving the field saves.
Clip inspector fields	Enter keeps · Esc reverts
Tools → BPM, a tempo row	Enter commits
Sequence Options fields	Enter saves · Esc cancels

Media lanes

Build only. These act when your last click was in the media lanes or the clip inspector. Every clip key is also in Build → Clips.

Keys	Does	Menu
⌘A	Select every clip. Never the Master’s.	—
⌫ · Delete	Delete the selected clips and their linked partners. Works while the lanes are open, wherever the last click was.	Build → Clips → Delete Clips
⇧⌫	Ripple delete: delete and close the gap	Build → Clips → Ripple Delete Clips
Esc	Clear the clip selection. ⇧Esc is still Panic.	—
S · ⌘K	Split at the playhead: the selected clips under it, else the clip under the pointer. Linked partners split too.	Build → Clips → Split at Playhead
⇧S	Split every unlocked lane the playhead crosses	Build → Clips → Split Every Lane at Playhead
Q · W	Trim the selected clips’ head · tail to the playhead. Never ripples.	Build → Clips → Trim Head to Playhead · Trim Tail to Playhead
← · →	Selected clips 1 frame earlier · later. ⇧ = 10 frames. ⌘ = 1 beat with Grid lock on, else 1 frame.	Build → Clips → Nudge Clips a Frame Earlier · Later
⌘L	Link the selected clips, or unlink them	Build → Clips → Link / Unlink Clips
⇧⌘E	Disable the selected clips, or enable them when all are off	Build → Clips → Enable / Disable Clips
—	Cycle Ripple: Off → Lane → All	Build → Clips → Cycle Ripple (Off · Lane · All)

Lane header focused:

Keys	Does
Enter	Rename the lane. Enter · Esc keep · drop. Clicking away keeps.
← · →	Shift that lane’s clips 1 frame. ⇧ = 10 frames.
Esc	Deselect the lane

Level knob focused: ↑ ↓ ← → ±1 %, ⇧ ±10 %, 0 resets to 100 %.

Live

Keys	Does	Menu
Space	GO. Plays the cued sequence. Never pauses. Does nothing if already playing. On a session peer it sends GO to the host (operator or better).	Live → Go
← · →	Seek 5 s back · forward	—
⇧← · ⇧→	Previous · next track	Live → Previous Track · Next Track
.	Stop: pause and rewind	Live → Stop
⇧Esc	Panic, at once	Live → Panic
Enter · Esc	Palette rename: keep · cancel	—

• Live → Arm / Disarm, Add Cue Palette and Reset Played have no keys.
• The PANIC button fires after a 600 ms hold. Space or Enter on the focused button holds the same way and never reaches GO.
• Flat scrub strip focused: ← → seek 5 s.
• The filter dialog closes on Esc.

Monitor and the extra windows

Keys	Where	Does
—	Monitor page	Read-only. Space, ← →, ⇧← ⇧→ and . do nothing.
Space	Sequence Monitor window	Play / pause Build’s player, only while Build is on screen
Esc	Sequence Monitor window	Close its menu or zone filter
Esc	Video Output window	Close its menu

Project and Show pages

Keys	Where	Does
Enter · Space	A sequence row or a running-order row	Open it in Build
Enter · Esc	Renaming a sequence, a show or a running-order row	Keep · cancel
Enter	A sequence’s MA number field	Keep

The Project Manager has no keys.

Dialogs and menus

Where	Keys
Right-click menus (not the Media Library’s)	↑ ↓ move · Home · End · → open a submenu · ← close it · Enter or Space choose · Esc closes the submenu, then the menu. Other keys do nothing.
Prompt	Enter OK (only with a valid entry) · Esc cancel
Tempo change	Enter OK · Esc cancel · ↑ ↓ BPM ±0.1, ⇧ ±1 · ⇧Esc closes it and runs Panic
Duplicate · Renumber	Enter in a field, or ⌘↩, runs · Esc cancel
New Project · New Track	⌘↩ create · Esc close, when no field has the cursor
New Stack	⌘↩ create · Esc close
Edit Stack	⌘↩ save · Esc close
Media Picker	Enter confirm (with a pick) · Esc cancel · double-click an item picks it
Media Library	⌘A select everything shown · Esc: in the search or a folder name, leave the field; with two or more selected, clear them; else close
Settings · Diagnostics · MA3 check	Esc close, when no field has the cursor
Settings → Sessions	Device label: Enter keeps · device rename: Enter keeps, Esc reverts · Groups: Esc closes
Other dialogs	Esc close
Busy notice (import, export)	Page keys are blocked until it finishes. Menu shortcuts are not: ⌘W, ⌘0, ⌘1–5 and ⇧Esc still work.

Mouse with modifiers

Build:

• ⌘, ⌥ or ⌃ + scroll, or pinch: zoom at the pointer.
• Scroll, zoomed in: on the Sheet waveform, moves along the track. On the Timeline lanes, up and down scrolls the lanes; swipe sideways or hold ⇧ to move along the track.
• ⌥-drag on the waveform: measure. Hold ⇧ as well to land the ends on beats. ⌥-click clears it.
• ⌘-drag on the Master strip (Timeline): slide the audio under the ruler.
• Click: select one cue and seek. ⌘-click: add or drop one. ⇧-click: add a run. No seek with a modifier.
• Double-click a marker, cue label or lane dot of another stack: that stack becomes active.
• ⌥-click a stack row or a Timeline lane label: make it active without opening it.
• Cue markers and lane dots always snap while dragged. ⇧ or ⌘ at the press selects instead of dragging.
• Tempo lane: click a flag to type its BPM, drag it to move (it snaps), double-click the empty lane for a tempo change, right-click for the rest.
• Double-click the resize bar under the waveform: reset its height.

Clips (media lanes):

Gesture	Does
Drag	Move. Linked partners move with it. Clips on a locked lane never drag.
⌥-drag	Copy
⌥⌘-drag	Slip: the media moves under the clip. Start and length stay. A dashed ghost shows the whole file.
⌥⇧-drag	Slide between touching neighbours: they give and take the length. No snap.
Drag an edge	Trim the head · tail
Drag a top corner	Fade in · out
Hold ⇧ while dragging	Ignore snap: move, copy, trim, the Master crop grips and file drops
Drag on an empty lane	Box-select clips. With ⌘: add to the selection. A plain click seeks and clears.
Double-click a lane name	Rename the lane
Drop files from Finder or the Media Library	A lane of the file’s kind: clips end to end from the drop point. The empty grid, or a lane of another kind: a new lane.
Clip inspector: drag a field label	Scrub the value. ⇧ = a tenth the rate.
Level knob: drag · double-click	Set the level, ⇧ for 0.1 % steps · reset to 100 %

Elsewhere:

• Live setlist: double-click a row loads and plays it at once. A single click only cues it.
• Double-click to rename: a Live palette header, the show name on the Show page, a Media Library folder.
• Double-click to reset a size: a media lane’s height, the Media lanes panel, the Live rail width, a Live palette.
• New Stack / Edit Stack: right-click a colour swatch removes it, with no confirm.

When it goes wrong

• ⇧Esc stopped the show. ⇧Esc is Panic, with no hold and no confirm, from any field. Arm Live, cue the track and GO to run again. Esc alone is never Panic.
• Space did the wrong thing. Check the page. Build plays and pauses; Live is GO and never pauses; Monitor does nothing. The Sequence Monitor window’s Space drives Build’s player, only on Build.
• Space did nothing on Live. A dialog is open, or the cursor is in a text field. Close the dialog or press Esc, then GO.
• A key does nothing. A text field, a dialog or a right-click menu has the keys. Press Esc once and try again. The ⋯ and display dropdowns take no keys: use the mouse.
• ⌘W closed the show mid-set. ⌘W and ⌘0 close the project without asking, even while playing. Reopen it from the Project Manager (⇧⌘P).
• ⌘D opened Duplicate, not Sessions. Sessions is ⇧⌘D.
• \ did not zoom. \ zooms only in the Timeline, or with Media lanes open. ⌘\ switches views.
• Tab switched views instead of moving focus. On Build, Tab is Sheet ⇄ Timeline. Use ⇧Tab to move focus.
• ← → or ⌫ did nothing; a toast says Unlock … to edit. The selected cues are in a locked stack. Click its padlock, or right-click a cue → Unlock ….
• M did nothing; a toast says … is locked. The active stack is locked. Unlock it, or press A for another stack.
• Esc in New Project does nothing. It ignores Esc while its name field has the cursor. Click outside the field, then press Esc.