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Chapter 4: Pro Tools Windows
Pro Tools provides two complementary ways of viewing a session: the Mix window and the Edit window. Pro Tools also lets you control the transport and transport-related functions in the
Transport window.
For information on the main elements of the
Mix window and Edit window, see the page ref-
erences provided in Figure 3 on page 22, and
Figure 4 on page 23.
The Mix Window
In the Mix window, tracks appear as mixer strips
(or channel strips), with controls for inserts, sends, input and output assignments, volume, panning, record enable, automation mode, and solo/mute. The following section explains each of these track controls.
To display the Pro Tools comments, inserts, sends, and Delay Compensation, select Display
> Mix Window Shows > All. You can choose to display all of these items, or some of them.
To toggle between the Mix and Edit windows: On Windows, press Control+Equals
(=); On Macintosh, press Command+Equals (=).
The Edit Window
The Edit window provides a timeline display of audio, as well as MIDI data and mixer automation for recording, editing and arranging tracks.
As in the Mix window, each track has controls for record enable, solo, mute and automation mode.
Systems with Pro Tools AVoption|V10 installed also provide a timeline display of the movie track.
To display the input/output controls, inserts, sends, and comments in the Edit window, select
Display > Edit Window Shows > All. You can choose to display all of these items, or some of them.
Chapter 4: Pro Tools Windows 21
Stereo
Audio Track
(page 87)
Send with
Send Controls
(page 455)
Plug-In Insert
(page 475)
MIDI
Track
(page 87)
Show/Hide
Tracks List
(page 96)
Automation
Mode Selector
(page 499)
Output Window button
(page 453)
Group ID
Indicator
Voice Selector
(page 101)
Mix Groups
List
(page 113)
AutoMatch
Indicator
(page 505)
Delay
Compensation
View (page 92)
Track Position
Number
(page 94)
Track Name
(page 94)
Track Color
Coding
(page 110)
Mono
Audio Track
(page 87)
Auxiliary
Input
(page 87)
Master
Fader
(page 87)
Inserts
View
(page 450)
Sends
View
(page 457)
I/O View
(page 90)
Channel Pan
(page 90)
Track
Controls
(page 24)
Channel
Volume
(page 90)
Level Meter
(page 91)
MIDI Track
Program button
(page 406)
Track
Comments
View
(page 92)
Figure 3. Pro Tools Mix window
22 Pro Tools Reference Guide
Edit Mode buttons
Tab to
Transients
Timebase
Rulers
Show/Hide
Tracks List
Timebase
Selector
Audio Track
Track View
Selector
Timeline Selections
Zoom buttons
Graphic Tempo
Editor
Edit tools
Location Indicators
Grid and
Nudge Values
Event Edit Area
Transport Controls
Timeline
Edit Groups
List
MIDI Track
MIDI Velocity View
Selected Region
MIDI Notes View
MIDI Regions List
Audio
Regions
List
Volume
Automation
View
Audio
Waveform
View
Figure 4. Pro Tools Edit window
Chapter 4: Pro Tools Windows 23
Track Controls
Automation Mode Selector (page 499)
Record Enable button (page 146)
Mix window controls for audio and MIDI tracks, wide view
Record Enable button
Track Height Selector (page 217)
Voice Selector
Track View Selector (page 215)
Edit window track controls, medium track height
Edit Tools
Trimmer
Selector
Grabber
Scrubber
Event Edit Area
The Event Edit Area provides time, pitch, and other information for the currently selected audio or MIDI data. It also lets you define selections using a key entry.
The Start, End, and Length display can be set for a different Time Scale format (such as Samples,
Bars:Beats, or Minutes:Seconds). For more infor-
mation, see “Main Time Scale” on page 241.
Selection
Indicators
Note
Attributes
Pitch
Attack
Velocity
Release
Velocity
Event Edit Area showing MIDI track information
(with a MIDI note selected in the Edit window)
Selection
Indicators
Event Edit Area (with no MIDI note selected)
Location Indicators, Grid/Nudge
Values, Current Cursor Display
The Location Indicators, Grid and Nudge values, and timeline Cursor Location display provide navigation and editing options.
Zoomer
Smart Tool
Edit tools in Edit window
Pencil
24 Pro Tools Reference Guide
The Main and Sub display can be set for a different Time Scale format (such as Samples,
Bars:Beats, or Minutes:Seconds). For more infor-
mation, see “Main Time Scale” on page 241.
Location Indicators (page 250)
Cursor Location
Grid value
Nudge value
Edit window display showing MIDI track information
The Transport Window
Cursor value
The Transport window can be set to show basic transport controls, counters, and MIDI controls.
The counters in the Transport window mirror the Location Indicators at the top of the Edit window.
Basic Transport Controls and
Counters
Return to Zero
Online
Rewind
Stop
Play
Record Status LED
Fast Forward
Go to End
Record
Pre-Roll
Post-Roll
Transport Master Start, End, and Length for Timeline Selection
Input Status LED
Transport window showing basic transport controls and counters
Online Puts Pro Tools online so that playback and recording is triggered by an external time code source.
Return to Zero Locates to the beginning of the session.
Rewind Rewinds from the current play location.
You can also click repeatedly to rewind incrementally, by an amount based on the Main
Time Scale, as follows:
Rewind Increments
Main Time Scale Format Increment Amount
Min:Sec
Time code
1 second
1 frame
(Pro Tools TDM or
DV Toolkit for Pro Tools LE)
Bars:Beats
Feet+Frame
1 bar
1 foot
(Pro Tools TDM or
DV Toolkit for Pro Tools LE)
Sample 1 second
With the Numeric Keypad Mode set to
Transport, you can rewind by pressing 1.
Stop Stops playback or recording.
You can also stop the Transport with the following shortcuts:
• Press the Spacebar.
• With Numeric Keypad Mode set to Transport, press 0.
Chapter 4: Pro Tools Windows 25
Play Starts playback or (if the Record button was clicked first) recording from the Timeline insertion point.
With the Transport stopped, Right-click Play
(Windows) or Control-click Play (Macintosh) to toggle Loop Playback mode. When enabled, a loop symbol appears in the Play button.
You can also initiate playback with the following shortcuts:
• Press the Spacebar.
• With the Numeric Keypad Mode set to
Transport, press 0.
You can play at half-speed with the following shortcuts:
• Press Shift+Spacebar.
• Shift-click (Macintosh) the Play button.
Fast Forward Fast forwards from the Timeline insertion point. You can also click repeatedly to fast forward incrementally (by an amount based on the Main Time Scale).
Fast Forward Increments
Main Time Scale Format Increment Amount
Min:Sec
Time code
1 second
1 frame
(Pro Tools TDM or
DV Toolkit for Pro Tools LE)
Bars:Beats
Feet+Frame
1 bar
1 foot
(Pro Tools TDM or
DV Toolkit for Pro Tools LE)
Sample 1 second
Go to End Locates to the end of the session.
You can press Control+Enter (Windows) or
Option+Return (Macintosh) on the
QWERTY keyboard to locate to the end of the session.
Record Arms Pro Tools for recording (the button flashes). Clicking Play then initiates recording.
With the Transport stopped, Right-click Record
(Windows) or Control-click Record (Macintosh) to cycle through the four record modes. The
Record button changes to indicate the currently selected mode: blank for Nondestructive, “D” for Destructive, a loop symbol for Loop Record, and “P” for QuickPunch.
You can also begin recording with the following shortcuts:
• Press F12.
• Control+Spacebar (Windows) or press
Command+Spacebar (Macintosh).
• With the Numeric Keypad Mode set to
Transport, press 3.
To initiate recording at half-speed, press
Control+Shift+Spacebar (Windows) or
Command+Shift+Spacebar (Macintosh).
Record Status LED When lit (red), indicates that at least one audio track is currently record-enabled. When off (grey), no tracks are currently record-enabled.
Input Status LED When lit (green), indicates that at least one audio track is currently set to
Input Only monitoring (regardless of record enable status). When off (grey), all tracks are in
Auto Input monitoring.
With Numeric Keypad Mode set to Transport, you can fast forward by pressing 2.
26 Pro Tools Reference Guide
Pre-Roll During playback or record, specifies the amount that plays before the play (timeline) cursor location or beginning of the timeline selection. Pre-roll is particularly useful with punch recording since it provides you with time to
“catch the beat” before reaching the punch-in point. To set the pre-roll amount, enter a new value in this field, or drag the Pre-Roll flag in the
Main Timebase Ruler.
To enable pre-roll, click the Pre-Roll button to the left of the pre-roll field so it becomes highlighted.
Post-Roll During playback or record, specifies the amount that plays after the end of a timeline selection. Post-roll is useful in punch recording since playback continues after the punch-out point so you can check for a smooth transition to previously recorded material. To set the postroll amount, enter a new value in this field, or drag the Post-Roll flag in the Main Timebase
Ruler.
To enable post-roll, click the Post-Roll button to the left of the post-roll field so it becomes highlighted.
Start Specifies the beginning of the play or record range. You can set the start point by entering a location in this field, or by dragging the corresponding Playback Marker in the Main
Timebase Ruler. For more information, see
“Playback Markers” on page 174.
End Specifies the end of the play or record range.
You can set the end point by entering a location in this field, or by dragging the corresponding
Playback Marker in the Main Timebase Ruler.
For more information, see “Playback Markers” on page 174.
Length Specifies the length for the play or record range. You can set the length by entering a location in this field, or by selecting a range in any
Timebase Ruler.
When the Edit and Timeline selections are linked, you can drag in a track’s playlist to
set the play and record range. See “Linking or Unlinking Edit and Timeline Selections” on page 256
Transport Master Selector Specifies the “master” for transport functions and provides a control to take enabled devices offline.
To set a Transport Master:
1 Click the Transport Master selector, click the
Transport pop-up menu, and select a Transport
Master: Pro Tools, Machine, MMC (MIDI Machine Control), or Remote.
To take a device offline:
1 Click the Transport Master selector, click the
Online pop-up menu, and uncheck the device
(MIDI or Machine). Device choices depend on the current Transport Master, and which devices have been set up in Pro Tools.
To bring the device back online, recheck it in the Online pop-up menu.
If you are using an MMC device, see
Chapter 35, “Working with Synchronization.”
If you are using the Digidesign Machine-
Control option, see the MachineControl
Guide.
Chapter 4: Pro Tools Windows 27
MIDI Controls
Conductor
Wait for Note
Countoff
Click
MIDI Merge
Meter
Tempo
Beat Value pop-up menu
Tempo slider
Transport window showing MIDI controls
Wait for Note When selected, recording does not begin until a MIDI event is received. This ensures that you begin recording when you’re ready to play, and that the first note, or other
MIDI data, is recorded precisely at the beginning of the record range.
You can press F11 to turn on Wait for Note, unless the Operation preference for “Disable F11 for Wait for Note” is selected.
Click When selected, a metronome sounds during playback and recording (as specified by the settings in the Click/Countoff Options dialog).
Double-click the Click button to open the
Click/Countoff Options dialog.
With the Numeric Keypad Mode set to
Transport, you can press 7 to enable the
Click.
Countoff When selected, Pro Tools counts off a specified number of measures (indicated in the button) before playback or recording begins.
Double-click the Countoff button, to open the
Click/Countoff Options dialog.
With the Numeric Keypad Mode set to
Transport, you can press 8 to enable the
Countoff.
MIDI Merge When selected (Merge mode), recorded MIDI data is merged with existing track material. When deselected (Replace mode), recorded MIDI data replaces existing track material.
With the Numeric Keypad Mode set to
Transport, you can press 9 to enable MIDI
Merge.
Conductor When selected, Pro Tools uses the tempo map defined in the Tempo Ruler. When deselected, Pro Tools switches to Manual Tempo mode and ignores the Tempo Track.
In Manual Tempo mode, you can enter a BPM value in the tempo field, or tap in the tempo by clicking the Tap button.
Meter Displays the session’s current meter based on the play location. Double-click the Meter button to open the Change Meter window.
Tempo Displays the session’s current tempo based on the play location. In Manual Tempo mode, you can enter a BPM value into this field.
In addition, when the tempo field is selected, you can tap in a tempo from a MIDI controller.
28 Pro Tools Reference Guide
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Key Features
- Record, edit, mix, and master audio projects with ease
- Create professional-quality audio content
- Work with up to 32 tracks of audio
- Use a variety of powerful editing tools
- Mix your tracks with precision using the built-in mixer
- Master your tracks to perfection using the included mastering tools
Related manuals
Frequently Answers and Questions
What's the difference between Pro Tools LE and Pro Tools HD?
Can I use Pro Tools LE to record live performances?
Can I use Pro Tools LE to edit and mix audio for video projects?
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