More Logic Audio mayhem - another look at the environment based protocol, this time thru the track headers and their assignments & data flow. The more you understand how this works in logic, the easie
The 8 possible Columns are:
Your selected Track Header now shows like this, with the *track name
Now you can click the '*track name' & rename it & hit enter to fix the rename... you might find that renamed title squeezes to close to the devider-line to the left of the track name - in that case, what I do is, when re-naming a Track, I simply hit the space-bar a few times then type the new Track Name - simple !!
Now go down to the next track and double-click on that header - sadly. Logic Audio does not show any sort of fixed devider line on the track headers to show the Track Name column after you've selected it to be visible by doing 'View - Track Name' - so just make sure when you go to re-name another Track, that you double-click directly verticaly underneath the first visible '*track name' that appears... Just double-click in the 'Track Name' column (even tho it's not visible until a track IS 'named'), and each time a new: '*track name' will appear ready to be typed & renamed.....
See?... now we can see the actual Track NAMES/TITLES... First let's re-name all the tracks... it takes a few minutes, but you can save this layout & reload it at any time...
I suggest you name the tracks like this, to mimic/copy the visible assigned 'Instrument Names' & 'Instrument icons' that you can see already on the left of the newly created 'Track Name' Column... BUT REMEMBER - we are simply giving the track a name at this point so that each 'Track Name' slot is full... But regrdless of 'Track Name' given, we can assign ANY type of 'Object' to this track... a 'Midi Instrument' or an 'Audio Instrument' or an 'Audio Track' etc etc... the TRACK NAME is just a title UNIQUE to that Track - More then One Track can have the exact same 'Object' assigned to it... you'll see as we go what I mean....
See?... now we can see ALL the actual TRACK NAME 'slots' in the 'Track name' Column.... we can rename 'em anytime...
But wait up!!... So WTF are those OTHER names to the left next to the icons ???? - They are the assigned INSTRUMENTS... or rather assigned INSTRUMENT 'OBJECTS'.... it'll all become clearer as we go on... let's first arrange the layout of the Track headers/strips a bit...
VIEW - INSTRUMENT NAME
Let's go back... back... ba-a-a-c-k... to the VIEW menu...
Deselect 'Instrument Name' by clicking it and the menu closes... and the screen looks like this... with only the assigned 'Object' Icon visible next to the 'Track Names' we added...
VIEW - INSTRUMENT ICON
Go Back to the view menu...
Deselect 'Instrument Icon' by clicking it and the menu closes... and the screen looks like this... Now all we have is the 'Track Name' apart from the basic control buttons like mute & record-ready.
NOTE - The left hand side lower/largest 'TRACK PARAMETER PANEL' (in red rectangle) - shows the basic info for the 'Object' the Track has assigned to it. - In this case the Track 'Midi channel 1' has: 'GM device - (sub channel 1)' assigned to it..
VIEW - TRACK INSTRUMENT CHANNEL
Meanwhile.. back at the view menu....
Select 'Track Instrument Channel' by clicking it and the menu closes... and the screen looks like this...
THE MAGIC 'H' KEY !!
Now....... press the 'H' key on your qwerty board.... This HIDES/SHOWS the left-side PARAMETERS PANEL.... we'll come back to those...
heh heh.... Also, drag the devider/seperator - which we moved over to the Right at the begginning - back to the Left, so that the Track Headers only occupy enough width to show the Track NAMES/TITLES... neat & tidy huh!!...
The only problem with this method is, quick allocation of an INSTRUMENT OR INTRUMENT OBJECT to a track from the Track Headers area alone is not possible with this minimal layout... *sigh*.... you can do that by another method, but right here i'm trying to drill into the confused Logic newbie the concept of the flow of data thru Logic's 'Tracks'....
OPTIMAL LAYOUT FOR WORKING
So back at the VIEW menu... Select 'Instrument Icon' by clicking it and the menu closes & the icons appear again on the Track headers/strips...... Then open the VIEW menu again & DE-select 'Track Instrument Channel' by clicking it and the menu closes & this column dissapears...
I tend to think it is best setup like this... with the VIEW menu selection showing:
IMPORTANT once the INSTRUMENT NAME column is DE-selected in the VIEW menu so it does NOT show on the track headers, you must do: SHIFT/Double-click on the Track header Track Name column to re-title/name them...
you can quickly assign an INSTRUMENT to that track by mouse-click/holding over a Track header to reveal the Track Assignment select list.... and you can click the qwerty 'H' key to open & close the Track/Parts Parameters panel on the left of the screen when needed....
You can always add the Column: 'Track Protect Switch', which is a good one when you get further into recording & want to Lock tracks down so they can't be edited by mistake.
'MORE ON THAT LATER' (1) - ASSIGNED 'INSTRUMENTS' ??
Ok... so a TRACK has:
'OBJECT NAME' or 'OBJECT ICON'
Whatever you assign to a track is an: 'OBJECT' - represented on an ENVIRONMENT LAYER by an ICON...
In the case of a midi Instrument, it is a 'MIDI INSTRUMENT OBJECT', which has a selectable set of parameters for midi IN & OUT, patch/bank-names etc - In the case of an audio track it is an: 'AUDIO MIXER TRACK OBJECT' with fader, pan, aux sends, eq & fx inserts etc... In the case of an: 'AUDIO INSTRUMENT', it is a mixer slot into which one plugs a selected logic, vsti or dxi instrument... In the case of a selected Mix-Automation Object, it is simply selecting a 'socket' which ALL assigned audio Mixer or sub-group/buss channels route their midi movement data to...
Yes... Instruments in your studio are represented by a graphic representation of INSTRUMENT OBJECTS on the environment layers - you can then assign them to any track...
There is more on this in the other LOGIC ENVIRONMENT Articles in the Dancetech ARTICLES section, but basicaly this 'preset' INSTRUMENT/OBJECT has all the info for stuff like patch/bank names, which midi OUT port & IN port to use, etc.... INTRUMENT & all other types of OBJECT live on the environment layers.
SO - A TRACK IS SIMPLY A BLANK 'SLOT' TO WHICH YOU CAN ASSIGN DIFFERENT 'INSTRUMENTS' OR 'INSTRUMENT OBJECTS'... AN 'INSTRUMENT' OR 'INSTRUMENT OBJECT' IS SIMPLY A PRESET FOR IN, OUT AND OTHER PARAMETERS... THESE PRESET 'OBJECTS' RESIDE ON THE 'ENVIRONMENT LAYERS' WHICH YOU ONLY NEED TO ACCESS TO EDIT 'OBJECTS' OR TO ADD NEW 'OBJECTS'.
Anyways... To assign the Intrument Object (midi instrument) or Audio Track Object or Audio Instrument Object etc to a Track, simply LEFT click/hold down on any Track header...
(If you double-click instead, you actualy OPEN the 'Environment Layer' on which the assigned 'Object' is residing for editing purposes)
Ok, so you LEFT click/hold down on a track header/strip & this menu appears...
So - audio or midi... You can assign to a Track either:
I think now is the time for a flow chart.....
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here we can see the midi data coming IN via your midi In port (which ever one you are plugged into)
In the case of 'Midi Instrument Objects', these main 'Instrument Objects' have all the settings for Midi IN & OUT ports etc & patchname lists etc... you can bolt other 'Objects to these main 'Instrument-Objects' by dragging little cables accross like on a patchbay... It's your area for building & editing these OBJECTS which can then be assigned to Tracks.
In the case of 'Audio Objects, (everything on the audio mixer, fx, vsti's & dxi's & logic Instruments), these are mostly preset & fixed... however, there are a few other audio objects you can initiate - you'd better read the article 'Logic Input Monitoring' for more on that.
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How do you get vst instruments to work in logic 4.7 platinium. I down loaded
some free vst instruments but when I install them they don`t show in the program. I can just use emagics own.
Using LA Pro ISIS (3.6) - need help arming an audio track in audio mixer layer, when I select input the choices are 1-8, but 3-8 are sort of greyed out. They can be selected so that they read on the select button, but I get PC/AV error 31 input not available for recording. Any suggestions?
Thanks and regards,
Marty
Hi,
I recorded a song in Logic, using VST instruments and some samples, I want to save my song as a WAV. file to upload it to a website, how can I do it (the file is now saved as an LSO file)
thanks
Anyone know where I can find more info on setting up the Environment objects in Logic Audio 5? I've looked at the pages on this site but if anyone knows where I can find more info, plz let me know.
cheerz
everyhting in logic is an object you'd have to be more specific about what sort of objects you want to create. There are articles in this site covering various common ones, but not all of course. One thing we havent covered is setting up synth objects tho - with the posrts and patchlist creation or loading etc.
so nice
I've installed a couple of DXi instruments to my PC and cannot open them in Logic 5. how do I configure my setup?? I'm only seeing Logic instrument options.
I am running Logic Pro 6 on a Mac... I do a lot of
work using the General MIdi (quicktime) instrument,
and I make ringtones for cellphones.
I have a Mackie Universal controller mixer which is
great. My question is when I write Latch or Touch
fader messages that I create on a GM track on the
mixer - how do I write that information directly into
the MIDI code? How can the fader actions be
programmed directly into the midi messages so
that when I export it out as a General MIDI file, it
will be in the code?
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