Pro Tools for Music Production, 2nd Edition

Pro Tools for Music Production, 2nd Edition

by Mike Collins
Released November 2012
Publisher(s): Routledge
ISBN: 9781136120299

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Book description

Pro Tools for Music Production is a definitive guide to the system for new and professional users. Extensively illustrated in colour and packed with time saving hints and tips, you will want to keep to hand as a constant source of information. The book takes a real-world approach and shows how to build the right system to suit your needs. Detailed chapters on recording, editing and mixing blend essential knowledge with tutorials and practical examples from actual recordings.

The second edition features a wealth of new and updated material, including:
· Pro Tools HD systems explained
· Pro Tools 6.1 software (and up to version 6.2.3)
· Mac OSX installation and troubleshooting
· A new chapter on MIDI
· Additional and expanded tutorials
· More on Identify Beat, Beat Detective and tempo maps
· Extra coverage of plug-ins and virtual instruments
· How to use Propellerheads Reason and Ableton Live with Pro Tools
· What you need to know about the new file management capabilities
· How to transfer projects between Pro Tools and other MIDI and audio software, and between Pro Tools TDM on the Mac and Pro Tools LE on the PC

Pro Tools for Music Production is a vital source of reference to keep by your side, whether you are a working professional or a serious hobbyist looking for professional results.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Halftitle
  3. Title
  4. Copyright
  5. Contents
  6. About the author
  7. Acknowledgements
  8. 1 Pro Tools – the World’s Leading Digital Audio Workstation
    1. Introduction
    2. Who this book will appeal to
    3. What the book covers
  9. 2 The Evolution of Pro Tools – a Historical Perspective
    1. Introduction
    2. How Pro Tools came about – the move to digital
    3. The road to Pro Tools
    4. The beginnings of Pro Tools
    5. Pro Tools III
    6. The plug-ins
    7. Cubase VST
    8. The Yamaha 02R compact digital mixer
    9. The ADAT Bridge
    10. PCI expansion chassis
    11. Twenty-four-bit digital audio
    12. Pro Tools|24
    13. Pro Tools MIX
    14. Hardware controllers
    15. Developments for 2000
    16. Developments for 2001
    17. Developments for 2002
    18. Developments for 2003
    19. Summary
  10. 3 Pro Tools TDM Systems
    1. Introduction
    2. The system
    3. Native audio systems versus Pro Tools TDM systems
    4. Pro Tools TDM hardware
    5. Track counts
    6. Pro Tools|HD core systems
    7. Pro Tools|HD interfaces
      1. 192 I/O
      2. 192 Digital I/O
      3. 96 I/O
      4. 96i I/O
    8. Peripherals
      1. PRE
      2. SYNC I/O
      3. MIDI I/O
    9. Legacy interfaces
    10. Third-party interfaces
    11. Expansion chassis
    12. Pro Tools custom keyboard
    13. DigiTranslator 2.0 option
    14. MachineControl option
    15. Avid picture options
    16. Avid Mojo
    17. Do you need to use a mixer with Pro Tools?
    18. Pro Tools TDM software
    19. Summary
  11. 4 The Computer System
    1. Introduction
    2. What computer should you choose?
      1. The Power Mac G5
      2. The PCs
      3. Computer monitors
      4. The Sony VAIO
      5. The Apple PowerBook
    3. Recommended additional software
    4. Software updates
    5. Leaving your computer ‘on’ permanently versus switching ‘off’ when you are not using it
    6. Hard drives for Pro Tools
      1. Disk requirements and bandwidth
        1. Analogue to digital conversion
        2. Audio data transfer rates
        3. Audio data storage sizes
        4. Multichannel audio data transfer rates
    7. Audio file size limit
    8. Hard disk formatting
    9. Disk failure
    10. Disk maintenance and repair
    11. SCSI interface cards
    12. SCSI hard drives
    13. IDE/ATA hard drives
    14. Firewire hard drives
    15. Hard drives summary
    16. Backup systems
      1. Storage drives
        1. DVD-RAM
        2. DVD-RW/+RW
        3. CD-ROM/CD-R
        4. CD-RW
        5. Sony AIT
        6. DLT
        7. Super DLT
        8. Exabyte
        9. DAT
      2. My backup strategy
      3. Another backup strategy
    17. Mac OSX installations
      1. New for OSX
      2. Upgrading from OS9 to OSX
      3. Disk formatting/partitioning
      4. Installing Mac OSX operating system
      5. User accounts
      6. The Internet connection
      7. Software updates
      8. Logging in
      9. Forgot your password?
      10. Pro Tools issues
      11. Mac tips
      12. Get info
    18. Troubleshooting
      1. Hardware problems
      2. Mac software problems – freezes, foibles and crashes
      3. Start-up problems
      4. A hard drive problem
      5. A true story
      6. Repairing disk permissions and disk volumes
      7. Battery-backed RAM
      8. Zapping the PRAM
      9. Unreadable CD
      10. More help
    19. Summary
  12. 5 Recording and Editing MIDI
    1. MIDI features overview
    2. Recording MIDI data
      1. Configuring the Apple MIDI setup for Mac OSX
      2. Setting up to record MIDI into Pro Tools
      3. Recording onto a MIDI track
      4. Loop recording MIDI
      5. Playing back a recorded MIDI track
      6. Assigning multiple destinations to a MIDI track
      7. Recording Sysex into Pro Tools
      8. How to record audio from an external synthesizer into Pro Tools
      9. How to record virtual instruments into Pro Tools
      10. How to use Groove Control with Stylus
      11. How to record virtual instruments as Audio
    3. Editing MIDI data
      1. Editing issues
      2. Graphic editing
      3. Event List editing
      4. The MIDI menu
      5. Applying grooves
      6. Drum patterns
      7. Editing notes
      8. Working with patterns
    4. Summary
  13. 6 Recording
    1. Introduction
      1. Digitizing audio
      2. Digital audio caveats
      3. Practical considerations
    2. Things you should know about before recording with Pro Tools
      1. Monitoring
      2. Drum punch-ins
      3. The rulers
      4. Edit window view options
      5. Meter and tempo
      6. Setting the default tempo
      7. Manual Tempo mode
      8. Recording to a click
      9. Setting up a click
      10. Destructive Record
      11. Playlists
      12. Punch-in and -out using pre- and post-roll
      13. Voices, channels and tracks
        1. Pro Tools|24 MIX systems
        2. Pro Tools|HD and HD Accel systems
        3. Voiceable tracks
      14. QuickPunch
      15. How QuickPunch affects the available voice count
      16. Loop Recording audio
      17. Half-speed recording and playback
      18. Recording shortcuts
      19. Markers
      20. Time stamping
      21. Importing tracks from CD into Pro Tools
    3. Working on a real recording session
      1. Opening a new session
      2. AutoSave
      3. Recording audio
      4. Topping and tailing
      5. Naming audio files
      6. Importing audio
      7. A quick edit
      8. Setting up markers
      9. Using Identify Beat to create a tempo map
      10. Inserting Bar|Beat Markers
      11. Dragging Bar|Beat Markers
      12. Editing Bar|Beat Markers
      13. Why not Beat Detective?
      14. Pitch shifting to suit a particular vocalist
      15. A basic synthesizer tracking session
      16. Overdubbing piano, guitar, bass and vocals
    4. Summary
  14. 7 Editing
    1. Introduction
    2. Edit window features
    3. Edit window set-up
    4. Markers window set-up
    5. Scrolling options
    6. Playback cursor locator
    7. Zooming and navigation
    8. Keyboard commands and shortcuts
    9. The Edit tools
      1. Zoom tool
      2. Trim tool
      3. Selector tool
      4. Grabber tool
      5. Smart tool
      6. Scrub tool
      7. Pencil tool
    10. The Transport window
    11. Crossfades
    12. Auto fade-in and fade-out
    13. Editing accuracy
    14. Tab to transients
    15. Editing regions
    16. Grid modes
    17. Time Compression/Expansion edits
    18. Linked selections
    19. Beat Detective
    20. Beat Detective basic operation
    21. Practical editing techniques
      1. Fixing a note or chord played late
      2. Editing vocals
      3. Zero crossing edits
      4. Editing before the downbeat
      5. Arranging sections
      6. Using playlists
      7. Spot mode and time stamping
    22. Summary
  15. 8 Mixing
    1. Introduction
    2. Tracks
    3. Sends
    4. Output windows for tracks and sends
    5. Automation
      1. Automation playlists
      2. Automation write modes
      3. Trim mode
      4. Snapshot automation
    6. Mixdown
    7. A note on terminology
    8. Mixing to analogue tape
    9. Mixing to DAT
    10. Mixing to digital media
    11. Making your own CDs
    12. Audio compression
    13. Bounce To Disk
    14. Recording to tracks
    15. When to use the Dither plug-in
    16. Mixing precision
    17. The Dithered Mixer plug-ins
    18. Mixer automation
    19. Setting up a mix session
      1. Choosing views
      2. Setting up groups
      3. Using Automation ‘snapshots’
      4. Editing and inserting breakpoints manually to create automation
      5. Writing mutes
      6. Alternatives
      7. Setting up Auxiliary routings
      8. Mixing vocals
      9. Panning the instruments
      10. The final mix
    20. Summary
  16. 9 Audio Plug-ins
    1. Introduction
    2. Plug-in types
    3. Using real-time plug-ins
    4. Plug-in delays
    5. Making plug-ins inactive
    6. AudioSuite plug-ins
    7. Real-time TDM and RTAS plug-ins
    8. Multi-channel RTAS plug-ins
      1. D-Verb
      2. Dither
      3. POW-r Dither
      4. Dynamics
      5. EQ
      6. Delays
        1. Short Mod Delay II and Slap Delay II
        2. Medium Mod Delay II
        3. Long and Extra Long Mod Delay II
        4. Tempo, meter, duration and groove
      7. Mono In, Stereo Out Mod Delays
    9. Multi-channel TDM plug-ins
      1. The Real-time Pitch Processor
      2. TimeAdjuster
    10. Multi-mono TDM and RTAS plug-ins
      1. Click
      2. DeEsser
      3. Signal Generator
      4. Trim
        1. Using the Trim plug-in
    11. Inserting Plug-ins during playback
    12. Optional Digidesign plug-ins
    13. Digidesign distributed third-party plug-ins
    14. Plug-in packs
    15. More goodies
    16. Summary
  17. 10 Virtual Instruments
    1. Introduction
    2. Digidesign
      1. Access Virus Indigo TDM Synthesizer plug-in
      2. Waldorf Q TDM
      3. Orange Vocoder
    3. Spectrasonics
      1. Stylus
      2. Atmosphere
      3. Trilogy
    4. Propellerheads
      1. Reason
    5. Bitheadz
      1. Unity Session
    6. Native Instruments
    7. Native Instruments Studio Collection
      1. B-4
      2. Pro-53
      3. Battery
    8. Emagic software for use with TDM hardware
      1. HD Extension
      2. Host TDM Enabler
      3. ESB TDM
      4. Epic TDM
      5. Logic Pro update
    9. Summary
  18. 11 ReWire
    1. Introduction
    2. ReWire in action with Reason
    3. Setting up the Reason synthesizers
    4. Routing MIDI from Pro Tools to Reason
    5. Playing ReWire application sequences in sync with Pro Tools
    6. Using Ableton Live with Pro Tools
    7. Recording from Ableton Live into Pro Tools
    8. Looping playback
    9. Caveats
    10. Summary
  19. 12 Midi + Audio Sequencers
    1. Introduction
    2. MOTU Digital Performer
    3. Emagic Logic Audio
    4. Steinberg Nuendo
      1. Using Nuendo with Pro Tools hardware
    5. Steinberg Cubase SX
      1. Using Cubase SX with Pro Tools TDM cards
    6. BIAS Deck
      1. Using Deck with Digidesign cards
    7. Cakewalk Sonar
    8. Ableton Live
    9. Sony Acid Pro
    10. Summary
  20. Appendices
    1. Appendix 1: Hardware Control
      1. Introduction
      2. Digidesign ProControl
      3. ProControl modules
        1. ProControl rear panel
        2. ProControl summary
      4. Digidesign/Focusrite Control|24
        1. Control|24 control surface
        2. Control|24 rear panel
        3. Control|24 summary
      5. Mackie HUI
        1. Getting into the details
        2. Rear panel
        3. Monitoring
        4. Summary
      6. Hardware control summary
    2. Appendix 2: File Management
      1. Introduction
      2. The Workspace Browser
      3. Volume Browsers
      4. Catalogs
      5. The Project Browser
      6. Unique file IDs
      7. Missing files
      8. Relinking missing files in an open session
    3. Appendix 3: Transferring Projects
      1. Pro Tools transfers
      2. Getting ready to make the transfers
      3. Transferring MIDI
      4. Importing MIDI files
      5. Exporting MIDI files
      6. Importing tracks and track attributes
      7. Time code mapping options
      8. Track playlist options
      9. Selecting session data to import
      10. Transferring audio
      11. Preparing for OMFI transfers
      12. Exporting OMFI files from Pro Tools
      13. Importing OMFI files into Pro Tools
      14. Moving sessions between platforms
      15. Moving between PT LE and PT TDM
      16. Summary
    4. Appendix 4: Pro Tools 6.4
  21. Glossary
  22. Bibliography
  23. Index

Product information

  • Title: Pro Tools for Music Production, 2nd Edition
  • Author(s): Mike Collins
  • Release date: November 2012
  • Publisher(s): Routledge
  • ISBN: 9781136120299