Pro$Tools$Shortcuts$and$Tips$$Mac$OSX

Daniel'Cantor','Boston'Pro'Tools'User'Group'06/17/15

Important$things$to$remember:
! Any'of'keyboard'modiers'can'be'combined.'An'example'would'be,'cascade'all'selected!
! 'OpKon'F'will'allow'you'to'select'a'track'to'scroll'too!

Keyboard$Commands
OpKon To'all
OpKon+Shi[ To'all'SELECTED
OpKon+ Cascade'all
New'track 'Shi['N
Mix/'edit'window '=
Zoom'wider '['''''']
Zoom'taller Control'OpKon'Arrow'Keys'Up'and'Down
Select'track'up'and'down P'is'up,';'is'down
Tab'to'transient Tab
Reverse'tab'to'transient Opt,Tab'(With'Tab'To'Transient'Selected)'Fig'1
Nudge ,'='Nudge'Le[''.'='Nudge'Right.'
m'='Nudge'Le['x10.'
/'='Nudge'Right'x10.
Grid','Slip F1,F4'='shue,'slip,'grid,'spot
F5,F10(tools)'='zoom,'trim,'curser,'grabber,'scrub,'pencil

Duplicate 'D
Separate 'E
Begin'Record Numpad'3(Full'Keyboard)'OR'FuncKon'F12'(Laptop)

Turn'Pre,Roll'ON'/'OFF 'K
'Change'into'Loop'Playback Control'Click'(On'Play'BuQon)
Change'into'Loop'Recording Control'Click'(On'Record'BuQon)
Adjust'Waveform Option Command [ Option Command ]

Once'you'become'familiar'with'the'Pro'Tools'environment,'shortcuts'are'the'next'step'to'
improving'your'performance.'Although'by'now,'you'may'be'gePng'preQy'good'with'the'mouse,'
shortcuts'allow'the'user'to'perform'tasks'with'incredible'speed'and'eciency!'Using'shortcuts'is'
essenKal'when'working'in'a'professional'environment.'Many'Professional'Pro'Tools'Operators'
rely'on'ONLY'Pro'Tools'shortcuts,'and'rarely'touch'the'mouse!'This'is'because'of'the'fast'moving'
nature'of'Professional'Recording'sessions.'It'is'common'that'session'sta'will'only'be'given'a'
short'window'to'capture'a'performance.'This'leaves'liQle'Kme'to'perform'edits,'comping,'and'
view'changes.'Professional'Pro'Tools'Operators'master'these'shortcuts,'so'they'dont'nd'
themselves'interrupKon'the'creaKvity'and'work'ow'of'the'session.

the'producer'wasnt'happy'when'I'turned'on'record'enable'on'[y'tracks'individually''some'
poor'pro'tools'op

Session$Management

Tabbing'to'Transient
(Make'Sure'its'enabled!)

Holding'Shi['While'Tabbing'to'Transients'will'select'everything'on'the'way!

Figure'2'Shift-Tab

Playlists,$ Use$
them!
Not'only'are'playlists'a'great'way'to'keep'your'session'organized,'they'are'also'a'great'way'to'
manage'your'dierent'takes!'This'opens'up'all'kinds'of'possibiliKes'such'as,'accurate'and'
eecKve'vocal'comping,'A,Bing'Between'dierent'takes'for'an'arKst,'and'managing'the'
dierent'stages'of'your'edits'and'automaKon!

Note:'Its'always'a'good'idea'to'make'a'new'playlist'when'working'on'a'session;'this'allows'you'
to'quickly'switch'back'and'forth'between'dierent'stages'of'the'ediKng'process.

Handy$Playlist$Commands$While$Tracking
New'playlist Control'\
Duplicate'playlist 'Control'\
Handy$Playlist$Commands$While$Comping
Move'Edit'Select'UP P
Move'Edit'Select'DOWN ;
Solo Shi['+'S
Promote'Selected'Track Control'OpKon'V

Learn all your Save commands!

The most important is Save As .... every time you open pro tools use it and
change the date .... ask me why. I dare you.

Save Copy In
The Save Copy In, option can be a lifesaver and one of the quickest and easiest
ways to cut down the size of your session. It can also destroy your session if
done wrong.

So you have one million playlists with irrelevant audio? Dragged Dropped a heap
of files and didn't import?
Save Copy In will gather all the requested information in your session and save a
brand new copy of the session. This new session will have all audio and settings
used in the session.

One of the most powerful features of this option is that you

can chose what will be copied.
Some defining optional features of Save Copy In are:
! Selected track only
! Main Playlist only
! Plugin Root Folder
! Session Plugin Settings
! Movie/Audio
! Convert to specified format
This can easily bring your session from being
5gb to 500mb!
 Label$your$tracks$AND$your$audio
Somewhere'down'the'line,'you'will'receive'a'session'with'track'labeled'Audio'1'Audio'2
Although'this'may'be'easy'to'sort'when'there'are'only'two'tracks.'When'a'session'is'larger,'
things'can'become'dicult.

It'is'always'a'good'habit'to'label'your'tracks'AND'audio!'This'allows'anyone'opening'your'
session'to'easily'navigate'around.'Labeling'your'audio'via'the'Clip'List'is'an'essenKal'pracKce'
when'passing'your'work'onto'another'engineer.'This'will'allow'them'to'idenKfy'what'the'audio'
le'is,'and'where'it'is'in'the'session.

Markers$and$Comments

A'great'way'to'make'sure'another'engineer'understands'your'session'is'to'document'it'
extensively.'Just'like'programmers'leaving'comments'in'their'code,'audio'engineers'leave'
comments'in'their'sessions.

Pro$Tools$11$and$later$Eects$shortcuts
Bypass&every&insert&on&and&below&click&on& Control&Click
channel
Bypass&every&insert&on&and&below&click&on&all& Control&Option&Cick
channels
Bypass'all'EQs'on'session Shift&E&(channel&strips&turn&purple,&dynamics&
untouched)
Bypass&all&compressors/dynamics Shift C
(ON&SELECTED&TRACKS)
Bypass&all&Reverbs Shift V
(ON&SELECTED&TRACKS)
Bypass&all&Delays Shi['D
(ON&SELECTED&TRACKS)
Bypass&all&Modulations Shi['W
(ON&SELECTED&TRACKS)
Bypass&Inserts&AIE Shi['2
(ON&SELECTED&TRACKS)
Bypass&Inserts&FIJ Shift&3
(ON&SELECTED&TRACKS)
Bypass&Sends&AIE Shi['4
(ON&SELECTED&TRACKS)
Bypass&Sends&FIJ Shi['5
(ON&SELECTED&TRACKS)