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Track Organization

 

When mixing any project it is all about ORGANIZATION.  Using the project file we just created, complete the next steps that are used in a typical mixing session.   

 

1.  Group the instruments into like types...drag them to location. Keep your kit parts together, guitar parts together, voices etc.  I often build high instruments on top, low ones on the bottom. 

 

2.   Color the audio regions in your tracks...

 

Do one of the following:

Select the track, choose Track > Assign Track Color, then select a color from the Color palette.

Control-click the track header, choose Assign Track Color from the shortcut menu, then select a color from the Color palette.

This can be done automatically.  See the video below. 

I like dark colors for low instruments Brighter for high. 

 

3.    Add icons for your tracks and make sure every track is labeled correctly.

4.  Consider creating Track stacks to group instrument types together. 

Track Stacks provide a convenient way to organize and control tracks, to manage projects with high track counts, and to create and manage audio subgroups.

 

There are two types of Track Stacks: folder stacks and summing stacks.

 

Both types have a main track and one or more subtracks. The track header for the main track features a disclosure triangle that lets you show or hide the subtracks. When you close the stack, only the main track appears in the Tracks area.

Subtracks can include any track type: audio, software instrument (including layered and multi-output software instruments), external MIDI instrument, or aux tracks. Folder stacks can also include summing stacks as subtracks.

Folder stacks

Folder stacks let you combine multiple tracks and control them as one unit, without changing the audio routing of the individual subtracks. When you create a folder stack, the channel strip assigned to the main track is called the stack master. Using the main track or the stack master channel strip, you can mute, solo, and adjust the volume level for the folder stack. 

There are no regions on the main track of a folder stack, only on its subtracks. When the folder stack is closed, the main track displays an overview of the combined contents of all subtracks.

When you mute a folder stack using the Mute button on the main track (or stack master channel strip), the mute or solo state of individual subtracks is preserved, and becomes active again when the main track is unmuted.

 

 

 

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Summing stacks

Summing stacks let you combine multiple tracks and route their output to an audio subgroup. When you create a summing stack, the outputs from the subtracks are routed to a bus. The destination aux of the bus is assigned to the main track.  This is a great tool for building complex synth racks in order to combine multiple sounds together controlled by one MIDI file. 

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OTHER NAVIGATION TOOLS
POST A SCREEN SHOT OF YOUR ORGANIZED TRACKS WHEN YOU ARE COMPLETE
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