Chapter 20
Automating Your Mix
IN THIS CHAPTER
Understanding automation
Writing automation
Editing automation
Playing automated tracks
You likely won’t have a session without a single change in level, pan, equalization (EQ), or plug-in parameters somewhere in the song. Unless you have an external mixer or control surface, you’re stuck making these changes with your mouse. The problem with all this mouse-intensive work is that you can’t move more than one fader, panning knob, or plug-in setting at a time. To be honest, the only way you can really mix within digital systems is by using some kind of automation feature, which all full-featured digital audio workstations (DAWs) have.
Most studio-in-a-box (SIAB) and portable system do not have automation features like the ones I list in this chapter. If you have one of these systems, and you want to mix with automation, you will need to transfer your files into a computer that has a program with automation. Fortunately, most SIAB and portable ...
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