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- Herausgeber: Packt Publishing
- Kategorie: Fachliteratur
- Sprache: Englisch
Pro Tools HD is a digital audio workstation platform for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X operating systems. It is the leading audio software when it comes to professional audio work. Working effectively with audio and producing professional music with Pro Tools HD is not an easy task.
Beginning with what the software is about, we will take you all the way through to the steps required to efficiently record your audio. You will discover how to improve the workflow of Pro Tools software and receive innovative tips to enable flawless editing in music production, film scoring, film, and television post-production.
Packed with concise and clear instructions on using Pro Tools HD: Advanced Techniques and Workflows, this book starts with different possible hardware and software combinations to help you understand the strengths and limitations of each, before taking you through powerful editing and advanced mixing techniques.
When it comes to choosing a ProTools HD system there are different technologies available and therefore, many ways to use the system optimally so, you will learn about some digital audio concepts for better software optimisation. You will then learn editing using Beat detective, as well as covering excellent workflow and routing concepts to take full advantage of ProTools mixing capabilities, integrating both hardware analogue units with your favorite plugins. Finally, you will see how you can export your project safer, faster and better.
This guide shows you the framework to enable you to take your usage of ProTools to the next level by explaining and discussing new and advanced features to achieve industry standard techniques.
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Seitenzahl: 164
Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2013
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Table of Contents
Pro Tools HD: Advanced Techniques and Workflows
Pro Tools HD: Advanced Techniques and Workflows
Copyright © 2013 Packt Publishing
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embedded in critical articles or reviews.
Every effort has been made in the preparation of this book to ensure the accuracy of the information presented. However, the information contained in this book is sold without warranty, either express or implied. Neither the author, nor Packt Publishing, and its dealers and distributors will be held liable for any damages caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by this book.
Packt Publishing has endeavored to provide trademark information about all of the companies and products mentioned in this book by the appropriate use of capitals. However, Packt Publishing cannot guarantee the accuracy of this information.
First published: October 2013
Production Reference: 1181013
Published by Packt Publishing Ltd.
Livery Place
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Birmingham B3 2PB, UK.
ISBN 978-1-84969-816-0
www.packtpub.com
Cover Image by Edouard Camou (<[email protected]>)
Credits
Author
Edouard Camou
Reviewers
Roey Izhaki
Marco Sonzini
Acquisition Editors
Sam Birch
Mary Nadar
Commissioning Editor
Meeta Rajani
Technical Editors
Amit Ramadas
Amit Shetty
Copy Editors
Brandt D'Mello
Gladson Monteiro
Adithi Shetty
Kirti Pai
Project Coordinator
Akash Poojary
Proofreader
Stephen Swaney
Indexers
Monica Ajmera Mehta
Rekha Nair
Graphics
Sheetal Aute
Production Coordinator
Conidon Miranda
Cover Work
Conidon Miranda
About the Author
Edouard Camou is a French sound engineer and the founder of the Sinewavz sound services in London. He has many years' experience in the studio and the live music industry, supported by a Recording Arts degree (with a first class) and an Avid Pro Tools certification. He studied and worked at SAE for a while and then redesigned and upgraded Musicland Studios in London, which now has two live rooms and a bigger control room to focus on band recording, album mixing and mastering. Edouard has been involved on many different projects for artists, labels, post-production companies, video games, acoustics, and live venues. He also mastered a single that became a 2012 favorite on national UK radio.
About the Reviewers
Roey Izhaki is the author of Mixing Audio. He has been involved with mixing since the early 90s. He is an academic lecturer in the field of audio engineering and gives mixing seminars across Europe at various schools and exhibitions. He is currently lecturing at the Audio Engineering department at SAE Institute, London.
Marco Sonzini, 28, is an Italian-born audio engineer and a Pro Tools operator. He approached the music world at age 7, studying classical guitar at Conservatorio Nicolini in Piacenza throughout middle school and high school. He graduated with a degree in Science and Technology of Music Communication at the University of Milan, then he moved to Los Angeles, completing his degree with honors in the Audio Engineering program at the Los Angeles Recording School, where he also became a Pro Tools 210M and 210P Certified Operator.
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Preface
Pro Tools is a very powerful software full of functionalities. This book is designed as a comprehensive guide for advanced user techniques to improve workflow and creative use of the software.
What this book covers
Chapter 1, System Optimization, helps you understand the technology behind Pro Tools to get the best out of it.
Chapter 2, Editing Techniques, discusses the advanced use of editing tools, Beat Detective, and Elastic Audio to improve and manipulate audio.
Chapter 3, Advanced Mixing, helps you integrate analog equipment into your mix and learn how to use internal routing and automations to increase creative output.
Chapter 4, Importing and Exporting Options, highlights good file management practices to import, export, recover, and also help the workflow of our mix.
What you need for this book
To use the techniques described in this book, you will need a Pro Tools HD Accel, HDX, or HD Native system, or a Pro Tools 10 license with Complete Production Toolkit. Basic Pro Tools knowledge is also recommended.
Who this book is for
This book is for any Pro Tools user wishing to get more out of the software. It not only relates to advanced Pro Tools tools and techniques, but is also accessible through the use of many examples and a step-by-step approach where we link and discuss the software features for real-world use.
Conventions
In this book, you will find a number of styles of text that distinguish between different kinds of information. Here are some examples of these styles, and an explanation of their meaning.
Code words in text are shown as follows: "Create a new track name Recording and select the same input number as the one used for the insert."
New terms and important words are shown in bold. Words that you see on the screen, in menus or dialog boxes for example, appear in the text like this: "Navigate to Preferences | Display | Color Coding."
Note
Warnings or important notes appear in a box like this.
Tip
Tips and tricks appear like this.
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Chapter 1. System Optimization
In this chapter, we will discuss the various Pro Tools hardware and software setups for mixing and recording as well as their architecture and possible limits. We will also look at some interesting tips to improve our MIDI workflow.
The Pro Tools range
Pro Tools is currently undergoing a transition period for its professional solutions. The legacy hardware HD Accel is now being replaced by HDX, allowing users to choose between different technologies and setups. Simultaneously, the software has been updated to versions 10 and 11, two major updates that now coexist with three types of technologies. In this book we will focus on the latest Pro Tools HD range compared to the legacy HD Accel.
Next, we will look at the different possible hardware and software options and discuss how choosing one or the other could affect your workflow. Since we can combine software and hardware in different ways, it is important to compare their strengths and understand their limitations.
Hardware solutions
Avid currently sells HDX and HD Native solutions but still supports the legacy Accel range. This new range came along with a brand new set of interfaces, replacing the legacy Accel range but still supporting 192 and 96 "blue" interfaces that we will not discuss here. However, it is worth mentioning that they really increased the sound quality of their AD and DA convertors, bringing the Avid HD range to sit among the best sounding interfaces in the market. Let's now have a look at the Avid range of DSP cards.
Pro Tools HD Accel
The audio industry flagship for many years, Pro Tools HD Accel is a DSP-based system using Time Division Multiplexing (TDM) coding. It became very expensive because the user would need to purchase many additional cards to achieve a comfortable amount of processing power. You can have up to seven cards per computer for an HD7. Even if it is now technologically unjustified, its quality and studio presence are still current, and since you can still use it with PT10 (PT11 does not support it anymore), we should discuss it.
Pro Tools HD Accel operates at 24-bit for TDM plugin processing with a 48-bit, fixed-point summing engine. Its DSP chips can run specially coded TDM plugins, but its delay compensation engine is limited to a maximum of 4095 samples. Real Time Audio Suite (RTAS) can also be used with this system, but as I will explain later on, should be used in a particular order alongside TDM ones.
The most basic configuration (HD1) only uses a core card to host the mixer and I/O; it can also provide some TDM processing power. HD2 through HD7 use additional Accel cards to increase the amount of TDM processing as well as track and voice count.
Each card on the system can accommodate 32 inputs and outputs via the Digidesign 192 blue interfaces. As an example, an HD3 system consisting of one core card, two Accel cards, and six Digidesign 192 blue interfaces could accommodate 96 inputs and outputs.
Pro Tools HDX
The long-awaited replacement for HD Accel came up as HDX with upgraded Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) enabled cards and a new Avid Audio eXtensions plugin format that can run on both native (AAX) and accelerated (AAX-DSP) technologies. According to Avid's press release, a single card is comparable to five times the power of a TDM one, while the summing engine was upgraded to a 64-bit floating point and plugin processing to a 32-bit float for greater precision and headroom. The delay compensation engine was also increased to a maximum of 16,383 samples, enough to run the vast majority of plugins comfortably. For those too hungry for samples, we should use the audio suite instead.
The new AAX plugin format brings a better unification between HD and native systems. Before, RTAS and TDM plugins had to be coded differently, hence the sonic differences between the two. With AAX and AAX-DSP, the code can be ported from one to the other without any change, keeping the same sonic characteristics.
Because of the power increase and change in technology, HDX requires only one type of card. A single HDX will allow for 64 I/O, but its processing capabilities will also bring you enough power to run many AAX-DSP plugins and make most sessions happen entirely on an HDX 1 system.
Pro Tools HD Native
Pro Tools HD Native, like HDX, runs with a PCIE card but does not offer any processing power. Therefore, it is a light version of HDX that can only handle a maximum of 64 I/O because we cannot combine multiple HD Native cards together like we would with HDX. The chip handles input and output routing, allowing for low latency monitoring and to connect Avid interfaces. All other processing happens on the computer's CPU. It is also interesting to note that we can acquire HD native as an internal PCIE card or Thunderbolt external box.
Software options
The Pro Tools range has evolved quite a bit over the years. The most recent change to the Pro Tools software choice is the abandoning of LE versions. Now Pro Tools has three versions—Pro Tools Express, Pro Tools, and Pro Tools HD—each aimed at a different market. The latest release, Version 11, also saw the abandoning of the Complete Production Toolkit, which was a convenient upgrade path to many Pro Tools users who could not afford a full HD license.
Pro Tools HD 10/Pro Tools 10 with Complete Production Toolkit using third-party interfaces
It is possible to run an HD license on a native system (no cards) and still benefit from almost all the features. Purchasing the Complete Production Toolkit will also give you HD features from a standard Pro Tools license. Both rely solely on your CPU's processing power but rest assured that you will not loose any quality using another manufacturer's hardware; the summing engine is the same for HDX and all HD Native solutions except when using the latest Pro Tools 11.
Note
You might hear sonic changes, but they will be caused by the change of converters within the audio interface.
Mixing with this setup can work very well if you have a fast enough computer, but low latency monitoring will be limited to output 1 and 2 and will therefore be disabled for surround applications. More on low latency monitoring later in this chapter.
Pro Tools HD 10 or Pro Tools 10 with Complete Production Toolkit using Avid interfaces
Using an Avid interface will unlock the full capabilities of the software, speeding up the workflow by compensating automatically for hardware inserts as well as allowing low latency monitoring across all I/Os with or without AAX-DSP plugins for added recording or mixing power.
Pro Tools HD 11 update
The same rules apply when it comes to limitations using third-party interfaces, but the latest release of Pro Tools is a complete 64-bit rewrite of the application, increasing available system memory and performance. I will concentrate on the audio engine and what it means for us later, but just to give you an idea of how significant this update is, here are the highlights:
