Time signature not visible in tabulature

• Dec 19, 2014 - 14:32
Type
Functional
Severity
3
Status
by design
Project

If user wanted to have a score with tabulature only (or a guitar tab with a local time signature change), he cannot put a time signature.

Repro:
1. Create a score or add an instrument with a tabulature only.
2. Try to set a time signature.

Expected: Have a time signature
Actual: No time signature symbol (although it is in there logically).

Win7, abbf2c8


Comments

Severity

It's not a bug, it's a feature or by design.

To have a time signature when creating a score with tab, you must choose the Full staff type.
full.jpg

Result:

step2.jpg

With the other staves type (simple and common), it's at any moment possible to add this time signature by going to: Staff Properties -> Advanced Style Properties -> Show time signature.

So, you have:
step3.jpg

Attachment Size
full.jpg 31.61 KB
step2.jpg 16.15 KB
step3.jpg 15.12 KB

OK I get it, but it is highly counter-intuitive. I created a score with a tab, wanted to set a time signature and I couldn't. I don't think every guitarist knows what is a difference between "common", "simple" and "full" style. Or maybe they do... I'm not a guitarist myself, just experimenting with MuseScore.

The "default" is not to display the time signature in a tab staff for simple and common types. It could have been different indeed.

Severity
Status (old) active by design

The terms themselves are not universal - I think we made them up - but guitarists would not necessarily expect to see time signatures in tab, since there are usually no rhythms. Only the tab styles that include rhythms would normally have time signatures, and I think one would indeed expect to need to switch on that option somehow.