LAB SIX IN PROTOOLS

RECORDING AUDIO: PROTOOLS

Recording sounds into the computer can be done using an audio
editor or ProTools. Audio editors are designed to record sounds, and
the process is therefore more straightforward in these programs.

CREATING A NEW DOCUMENT

Before recording in ProTools, you will need to open a new
document. Follow the procedure outlined in Lab Two to create a
new session.

CREATING A TRACK
Next, you will need a track to record your audio. Follow the
procedure outlined in Lab Two to create an audio track.

SETTING THE TRACK INTO RECORD MODE

Click on the Record button (1) on the track controls buttons in the
Edit Window. This will highlight the track and make it red.

Setting a track in ProTools to record

Activating the Record button sets the selected track to record
audio information.
Make sure that the input to the track is set to Mic/Line 1
(2, above). This selects the microphone at the back of the Mbox in
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the lower input. If the microphone is connected to the upper input,

then within ProTools, this is Mic/Line 2.
If you cannot see the I/O, then select Edit Window Shows
from the Display menu and click on I/O View.

Displaying the input controls for a track

This can also be set in the icon within the Edit Window:

The Track View display icon in the Edit Window

Sending a signal to the computer should now create activity in
the tracks vertical Peak Level meter (3, three images above).

RECORDING A SIGNAL
When you are ready to record, click on the Record button (the
circle) located at the upper right of the Edit Window.

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The Transport controls, after clicking the record button

After you click on it, it will flash red, indicating that ProTools
is ready to record information. To actually record, click on the Play
button (the triangle).

The Transport Controls while recording

The track will display the recorded audio while it is recording.
The data will show in blue over a red background:

The track being updated while recording.

When you are done, click on the square Stop button on the
Transport controls or press the space bar to stop recording.
ProTools has now recorded your audio to the hard drive as an
audio file. It has been saved in the Audio Files folder within the
current sessions folder, which was created when you created a
new session.
Because it is an audio file, it will not be temporarily stored in
memory. Instead, ProTools will display the audio file name within
the Audio Region List. If it is your first recording for this session
on the first audio track, ProTools will name it Audio-1-01.

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IF YOU MAKE A MISTAKE

OR WANT TO RECORD AGAIN
The analogy between ProTools and the traditional tape studio
breaks down when it comes to recording audio data. Audio editors
more closely follow the model of the traditional working method.
When you make a mistake while recording, and want to rerecord
over what you have recorded, you simply rewind to the beginning
of the file and record again. This method will effectively erase the
previous material.
ProTools works in a different way. Rewinding to the
beginning of the track and rerecording over the previous recording
will not erase the previous data. Instead, ProTools will record a new
audio file and display it as a region over top of the region you
previously recorded. The new recording will also appear in the
Audio Region List, beneath the previous recording.
If you make several attempts at recording, many regions will
appear in the Audio Region List.

The Audio Region List after only four audio recordings. The
non-bold regions are the result of rerecording over only a
portion of the existing region in the track, causing additional
regions to appear.
Organizing the Audio Region List, including renaming
regions and deleting extraneous files, will be discussed in later.

NORMALIZING IN PROTOOLS
All the considerations that apply to amplifying audio files in
Amadeus apply equally within ProTools. The only difference is the
normalizing procedure itself.
First, highlight the region that you wish to normalize. Then
select Normalize under the AudioSuite menu, found under the
Other submenu.

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The Normalize command in the AudioSuite menu within

ProTools

Now the AudioSuite Normalize plug-in will open.

The Normalize plug-in within ProTools.

You can alter the maximum amount of amplification using the
slider. Select process when complete.
The new processed region appears in the Audio Region List,
below, with the file suffix -NORM-01 added to the regions original
file name.

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Notice that this region has replaced your original region

within the track, but the original remains within the Audio Region
List.

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