path: root/manual/xml/tracks_and_busses.xml

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<section id="sn-tracks-and-busses">
	<title>Tracks and Busses</title>
	<para>
		This chapter covers basic management of tracks. Tracks are probably the most
		important objects in Ardour. They represent the fundamental way to playback
		and record audio, MIDI, and image data.
	</para>
	<mediaobject>
		<imageobject>
			<imagedata fileref="images/signal_flow.png"/>
		</imageobject>
	</mediaobject>
	<section id="creating-tracks">
		<title>Creating Tracks</title>
		<para>
			Tracks may be added to the session at any time.
		</para>
		
		<orderedlist>
			<title>Creating a new Track</title>
			<listitem>
				<para>
					Choose <menuchoice> <guimenu>Session</guimenu> <guisubmenu>Add
					Track/Bus</guisubmenu> </menuchoice>
				</para>
			</listitem>
			<listitem>
				<para>
					add_track.ps Add Track Dialog
				</para>
			</listitem>
			<listitem>
				<para>
					In the Add Tracks dialog, choose whether you wish to add a new Track or a
					new Bus.
				</para>
			</listitem>
			<listitem>
				<para>
					Enter the number of new tracks/busses you want to add.
				</para>
			</listitem>
			<listitem>
				<para>
					Choose the I/O configuration of the tracks/busses you are adding using
					the clickbox.
				</para>
			</listitem>
		</orderedlist>
		<para>
			After the track is created, it is recommended that you change its name from
			the generic name it will have been provided with. To rename a track:
		</para>
		<orderedlist>
			<title>Renaming a Track</title>
			<listitem>
				<para>
					In the editor or mixer, the track name, and select <guimenuitem>Rename</guimenuitem> from the
					dialog that appears. This will cause the "New Track Name" dialog to appear.
				</para>
			</listitem>
			<listitem>
				<para>
					In the New Track Name dialog, type a new track name, and then click the
					<guibutton>OK</guibutton> button in that dialog.
				</para>
			</listitem>
		</orderedlist>
	</section>

	<section id="deleting-tracks">
		<title>Deleting Tracks</title>
		<para>
			Deleting a track is permanent operation that cannot be undone. However,
			since the audio, MIDI, automation and other data associated with the track
			will remain as part of the session, and the actual playlist(s) that were in
			use by the track are still available. for use by other tracks. As a result,
			although inadvertently deleting a track is inconvenient, it doesn't result
			in any significant loss of information.
		</para>

		<section id="deleting-a-track">
			<title>deleting a track</title>
			<para>
				Click on the name of the track you want to delete. From the menu that
				appears, select <guimenuitem>Remove</guimenuitem>. A confirmation dialog will appear to ensure that
				you really meant to remove the track.
			</para>
		</section>
	</section>

	<section id="hiding-tracks">
		<title>Hiding Tracks</title>
		<para>
			The track list on the left edge of the Editor and Mixer can be used to hide
			or show specific tracks in either or both of those two windows. To hide a
			track, click to on the tracks name in the relevant track list. To show a
			track, click on its name in the track list. Visible tracks have their names
			shown in cyan, hidden ones in orange.
		</para>

		<para>
			You can also hide any track by clicking its hide button
			(images/hidebutton.ps).
		</para>

		<para>
			Hiding a track in the Editor has no effect on its visibility in the Mixer,
			and vice versa. Hiding a track in one or both windows does not affect the
			playback of that track's material.
		</para>
	</section>

	<section id="track-visibility">
		<title>Track Visibility</title>
		<section id="showing-all-tracks">
			<title>Showing all Tracks</title>
			<para>
				Click on the titlebar of the track list of the Editor or Mixer. From the
				menu that appears, select "Show All"
			</para>
		</section>

		<section id="hiding-all-tracks">
			<title>Hiding all Tracks</title>
			<para>
				Click on the titlebar of the track list of the Editor or Mixer. From the
				menu that appears, select "Hiding All".
			</para>
		</section>

		<section id="showing-classes-of-tracks">
			<title>Showing certain classes of tracks</title>
			<para>
				Click on the titlebar of the track list of the Editor or Mixer. From the
				menu that appears, select "Show All Audio Tracks", or "Show all Busses" as
				appropriate.
			</para>
		</section>

		<section id="hiding-classes-of-tracks">
			<title>Hiding certain classes of tracks</title>
			<para>
				Click on the titlebar of the track list of the Editor or Mixer. From the
				menu that appears, select "Hide All Audio Tracks", or "Hide all Busses" as
				appropriate.
			</para>
		</section>

		<section id="reordering-tracks">
			<title>Reordering Tracks</title>
			<para>
				Tracks may be reordered by clicking on their name in one of the track
				lists and dragging it to a new position in the list. Note that the order
				of tracks in the editor is totally independent of their order in the
				mixer.
			</para>
		</section>
	</section>

	<section id="io-configuration">
		<title>I/O Configuration</title>
		<para></para>
	</section>

	<section id="soloing-tracks">
		<title>Soloing Tracks</title>
		<para>
			"Soloing" a track refers to changing some aspect of the signal flow through
			Ardour that makes it possible to listen to one (or just a few) tracks at a
			time. It is often done during mixing and mastering to help an audio
			engineer listen carefully to parts of the mix.
		</para>

		<para>
			Tracks may be soloed at any time. When one or more tracks are soloed, all
			non-soloedntracks will no longer be audible.
		</para>

		<para>
			Soloing tracks does not affect the solo status of busses, nor vice versa.
			That is, soloing a track leaves all busses audible and soloing a track
			leaves all tracks "audible". You may not actually be able to hear the
			"audible" material if it is routed through a non-soloed bus.
		</para>

		<para>
			This design is intended to allow FX busses and master outs to be useful
			even when soloing. Soloing is made significantly more complex by the
			presence of control outs (see control_outs_soloing for more details on
			soloing with control outs).
		</para>

		<section id="rude-solo-light">
			<title>Rude Solo Light</title>
			<para>
				Whenever one or more tracks are soloed, the "rude solo light" in the
				transport window will flash. You can cancel any current solos by clicking
				on the "rude solo light".
			</para>
		</section>

		<section id="solo-modes">
			<title>Solo modes</title>
			<para>
				Ardour has two solo modes.
			</para>

			<variablelist>
				<title></title>
				<varlistentry>
					<term>solo latch</term>
					<listitem>
						<para>
							soloing a track adds it to the set of soloed tracks, so you may have
							any number of soloed tracks.
						</para>
					</listitem>
				</varlistentry>

				<varlistentry>
					<term>solo unlatch</term>
					<listitem>
						<para>
							soloing a track unsolos any other soloed track, so you can have only
							one soloed track at a time.
						</para>
					</listitem>
				</varlistentry>
			</variablelist>
		</section>

		<section id="changing-solo-mode">
			<title>Changing Solo Mode</title>
			<para>
				To change the solo mode, goto the Options editor (options_editor) and view
				the <guilabel>Misc</guilabel> tab.
			</para>
		</section>

		<section id="soloing-a-track">
			<title>Soloing a Track</title>
			<para>
				To toggle the solo state of a track, click on the solo button in either
				the mixer strip for the track or the track controls section in the editor.
			</para>

			<para>
				To toggle the solo state of all tracks in an edit or mix group, use Ctrl1
				on the solo button of a track in the group. If you do this in the Editor,
				the edit group will be used; in the Mixer, the mix group will be used.
			</para>

			<para>
				To toggle the solo state of all tracks, use
				<keycombo><keycap>Ctrl</keycap><keycap>Shift</keycap><mousebutton>Button1</mousebutton></keycombo>
				on a track solo button.
			</para>
		</section>

		<section id="solo-safe">
			<title>Solo safe</title>
			<para>
				To protect a track's current solo status, use Shift1 on that track's solo
				button. The color of the button will change to a pale blue to indicate
				"solo safe" status. No changes to the solo state for that
				track are possible until "solo safe" has been unset for the track.
			</para>
		</section>

		<section id="momentary-solo">
			<title>Momentary solo</title>
			<para>
				Use 2 on a track's solo button to solo the track for as long as the mouse
				button is pressed.
			</para>
		</section>
	</section>

	<section id="track-display-size">
		<title>Track Display Size</title>
		<para>
			In the editor window, tracks always extend across the full extent of the
			track display area, but they can have varying heights. In the mixer window,
			tracks always from the top to the bottom of the mixer (as strips), but they
			can have varying widths.
		</para>

		<section id="changing-editor-track-height">
			<title>Changing editor track height</title>
			<para></para>
		</section>

		<section id="changing-mixer-track-width">
			<title>Changing mixer track width</title>
			<para></para>
		</section>
	</section>

	<section id="track-groups">
		<title>Grouping Tracks</title>
		<section id="creating-a-track-group">
			<title>Creating a Group</title>
			<para></para>
		</section>

		<section id="renaming-track-group">
			<title>Renaming a Group</title>
			<para></para>
		</section>

		<section id="changing-members-of-a-track-group">
			<title>Changing members of a group</title>
			<para></para>
		</section>

		<section id="deleting-a-track-group">
			<title>Deleting a Group</title>
			<para></para>
		</section>
	</section>
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