Pro Tools 7 Session Secrets

1
Pro Tools 7 Session Secrets

• Chapter 5
• Mixing in Pro Tools Directing Audio Traffic

2
Pro Tools Recording techniques in this chapter
include

• Automation Recipes
• Panning Techniques
• Routing Options
• EQ and Compression Ideas

3
Automation Recipes

• Pro Tools has 6 total automation modes.
• Automation can be draw in, or recorded real time
  with a mouse or through a control surface.
• Pro Tools offers multiple tools to edit
  automation.
• Automation can be disabled to A/B your mix.
• Automation can be copied and pasted between
  automation playlists and tracks. For example a
  volume curve can be copied to the same type of
  playlist or pasted to an fx automation playlist
  such as reverb decay.
• Check Preferences / Automation to configure the
  automation parameters for your workflow.
• Use to ride vocals, raise instruments levels for
  solos, panning, ducking instruments under vocals
  etc..

4
Panning Techniques

• Center your lower frequencies. Low end tone off
  center loses energy.
• Center your main vocals. Pan your background and
  double and tripe tracks at different spots in the
  stereo image. Panned fx also greatly enhance the
  since of space.
• Create a believable stereo image for your drums
  if you want to capture a natural sound. Pan your
  percussion to give a since of separation.
• Be aware of mixing and panning when wearing
  headphones. You get a different sense of space
  than when monitoring with speakers.
• Guitars can live in the center mono or hard
  panned in stereo and offset by a few samples.

5
Routing Options

• Busses are for internal routing only.
• Sends can be routed to Busses or Interface
  outputs.
• The number of the bus you Send on needs to be the
  same as the bus you use as an Input for your Aux
  or Audio track. That completes the loop.
• Aux tracks dont take a voice.
• Multiple tracks can be submixed down to a mono or
  stereo Aux to maximize control and apply common
  fx. Submixing drums this way is common. You can
  lower or raise the volume for the entire group of
  instruments without losing their relative levels
• Submixing down to an audio track can free up
  voices in an LE system without any of the
  consequences of old style tape bouncing. I.E.
  eight tracks of background vocals become stereo.

6
EQ and Compression Ideas

• Most instruments are compressed and Eq-ed a
  little if not quite a bit.
• Compression on an electric guitar can offer
  sustain.
• EQ can make an acoustic guitar sound natural and
  full or fake and thin. An electric can be Eq-ed
  drastically without sounding fake or awkward.
• Compression helps vocals stay on top of a mix
  without being too loud or getting lost.
• EQ can help bring out sizzle or depth in a vocal
  track but used too much or incorrectly can cause
  sibilance, muddiness or hollowness.
• Compression on live drums can change the sound
  from tight to big and give be natural or used to
  create an effect.