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Take Control of Your Mix with Mix Recall

Mix Recall is a powerful way to organize mixes within a project—Whether you want to have a mix without vocals or a version of the song using a different processing chain on the drums—Mix Recall is the perfect solution for these types of situations, but it can do more than that. Say you are handed a project from someone else using SONAR or you got a new plug-in you want to try out using a previously recorded song, Mix Recall can help you handle this as well by getting your project reset back to a neutral position.

Adding the Mix Recall Module

Check that you have the Mix Recall module available in the Control Bar. You can add it to the Control Bar if it’s not already there by right-clicking in a blank space and adding it from the menu.

Creating a Mix Scene

Start by creating a new Mix Scene with the current project setting using the [Save As New Scene] button.  This will allow us to make a change and then come back to the original point to see the difference.

Make a change to the mix by adjusting the volume on a couple of tracks or muting a track previously un-muted.

Click the [Save As New Scene] button on the Mix Recall module again to save these changes into another mix scene. Give this mix a unique name and save it. Now you can reload your previous mix and see the changes reverted back to where we started. Selecting the second mix scene with bring us back to the present state of the mix. You can also use the [Recall Previous Scene] button to toggle back and forth between 2 mix scenes or simply go back to the last mix scene you were at.

Resetting a Mix

Using a project you want to reset, click the drop down arrow on the Mix Recall module and select “Reset Mix…” from the menu. This will remove all automation envelopes, plug-ins, and reset the ProChannel back to the default modules along with any controls in SONAR.

That’s It! Now you can get back to working on your mix instead of trying to manage multiple saved versions of the same song or trying to manually remove each plug-in or automation envelope.

Advanced Techniques

  • Create a save point as you begin your mix once you have basic levels and panning so you can always go back and hear your project from the start.
  • Create save points within your mix to go back and see how it has progressed.
  • Save several iterations of a mix and bounce each when sending it to a client or friend. Here are some common iterations to save as Mix Scenes.
    • Vocal Up Mix (Plus 1-3dB)
    • Vocal Down Mix (Minus 1-3db)
    • No Vocals
    • Radio Edit Mix
  • Time box your mix by only giving yourself an allotted amount of time and dividing that up over what you need to do.  Save each stage as a Mix Scene to go back and look at your progress and how you did at each stage.

Mix Recall is available in SONAR Artist, Professional and Platinum

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6 Awesome Google Doodles For The Music Nerd

1. Les Paul’s 96th Birthday

For the man who created musical history, Google put together an interactive guitar app that allows you to strum, record, and enjoy the wonderful sounds of a classic Les Paul. A sound that has defined guitar for the past century.

2. Robert Moog’s 78th Birthday

A tribute to Robert Moog, who brought us the electronic analog Moog Synthesizer. This, just like the Les Paul, became a staple in musical history.

This highly interactive app let’s you shape just about any sound you want and then record, playback, and share it with your friends.

3. Claude Debussy’s 151st Birthday

This Doodle plays Claude Debussy’s Clair de Lune. The developer was able to sync this beautiful animation to a sequence of one of Debussy’s most recognized and magical pieces.

 

4. John Lennon’s 70th Birthday

To pay tribute to one of the most influential people of the 20th century, Google Doodler’s put together a short animation that plays Imagine synced to a psychedelic landscape of moving pictures.

5. 30th Anniversary of PAC-MAN

This one is probably more on the gamer side, but that music could never be mistaken for any other game in history. Simply click on “Insert Coin” and you’ll kill at least 5 minutes of your day reliving  the most classic game created for arcade.

 

6. Freddie Mercury’s 65th Birthday

An incredible animation for Queen’s “Having a good time” was posted to take you on a visual anecdote in memory of rock legend Freddie Mercury. The animator cleverly incorporated themes from other famous songs like “Bicycle” as well as wardrobe that Freddie sported during his years of fame.

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Meet the Bakers: Dave L

How did you get started with music?

The Beatles began my lifelong love and appreciation of music, at the age of 9. I consider myself extremely lucky to have grown up in an era with some of the most iconic bands in history. Being able to see The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Rolling Stone, Jimi Hendrix, The Who, Ten Years After, Deep Purple .. live! …was simply amazing. Not too mention the ticket prices were only $7.50!

For the past 50+ years, music has been one of the most important aspects of my life. I played flute and clarinet, in the high school band as well as attending Berklee and the University of Lowell, where I taught electronic music labs in my freshman year. At Lowell, they had an ARP 2500, (2) 2600s and one of the first Synclavier commercially produced. Working in several local music stores as well as repairing all sorts of gear also added to my skills. I continue to utilize my technical skills whether its custom designing an on-board guitar preamp or here at Cakewalk.

Continue reading “Meet the Bakers: Dave L”

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Take control of your tempo with SONAR's Audiosnap, Available in X2 Producer and studio

SONAR X2’s AudioSnap engine and tempo analysis features give you unprecedented non-destructive rhythmic and tempo control over your audio. Employing sophisticated transient detection technology, the AudioSnap engine automatically analyzes all recorded and imported audio files for rhythmic content to determine where the beats are in the music.  Continue reading “Take control of your tempo with SONAR's Audiosnap, Available in X2 Producer and studio”

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SONAR X2 Feature Peek: Smart Grid

What’s a snap grid?

One of the most useful features of a DAW is the snap grid. When enabled, a snap grid locks all movement to a defined value. The value can be absolute (e.g. seconds) or musical (e.g. quarter notes) and some programs optionally show grid lines that reflect at least some portion of the grid.

The whole thing makes moving a clip by a beat or a MIDI event by a 64th note much much easier than trying to “eyeball it”. Snap grids are vitally important to almost every DAW user. In most cases, a user relies on the snap grid regularly throughout every session. 

But not all snap grids are created equal. Some only offer the most basic snap options and functionality. Some don’t display their state or give the user easy access to the settings. And many are pretty dumb when it comes to anticipating what the user needs from moment to moment.

Considering the importance and near constant use of a snap grid in music production, we thought this was an area where SONAR could increase its level of intelligence and truly shine. Let SONAR think about snap so you don’t have to. Continue reading “SONAR X2 Feature Peek: Smart Grid”

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How Tim Wynn used SONAR X1 to Create the Music for THE DARKNESS II

SONAR X1 user Tim Wynn is the Quintessential modern day composer/producer, and a rising Hollywood name whose diverse portfolio includes feature films, television series, documentaries and video games for major clients such as ABC, Activision, Electronic Arts, Fox, Fuji, Marvel, Sony, THQ, Universal and Warner Bros.

With several globally successful franchises already to his credit ranging from blockbuster video games such as Command & Conquer, Dungeon Siege, GUN, The Punisher, Red Faction, The Simpsons and Warhawk to adding to the sound of the hit television series Supernatural, Tim Wynn is gaining international recognition as a leader in a new generation of highly talented and versatile composers.  His recent releases include Fox Digital’s debut release, the comedy-horror web series Wolfpack of Reseda; the world’s first 3D television series Tokyo Control; the hit drama series Lucky Seven for Fuji TV, and 2K’s The Darkness II, the action-horror video game based on the best-selling Top Cow comics.

The Darkness II is the sequel to the critically acclaimed 2007 release The Darkness. Inspired by the popular comic book series produced by Top Cow Productions, Inc., The Darkness II is an intense first person shooter that puts you in the role of Jackie Estacado, don of a New York crime family and wielder of an ancient force of chaos known as The Darkness. Continue reading “How Tim Wynn used SONAR X1 to Create the Music for THE DARKNESS II”

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Parallel Compression in SONAR

A common question I get asked when doing J.A.M. Sessions, webinars, and other events, is how to setup parallel compression in SONAR. The next asked question is usually what parallel compression  is and why it should be used.

Parallel compression is a mixing technique most commonly used on drums where one signal is split into two allowing them to be processed separately, or in parallel, and mixed together.

Typically a drum bus will be split into two drum buses where one drum bus will be compressed heavily and the other drum bus will be compressed lightly, if at all.

The reason for doing this is that heavy compression on drums can sound good but can also cause a major loss of transients and attack. Blending heavily and lightly compressed drum buses yields the best of both worlds.

There are a few ways to set up parallel compression in SONAR X1 Producer Expanded so I will show you how I do it using quick grouping, effects sends, multiple busses, and the ProChannel’s PC4K S-Type Bus Compressor.

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Mixing and Mastering a Song Using only the Z3TA+ Effects Engine in SONAR

One of the great aspects about SONAR X1 is that it’s a very diverse D.A.W.  There are so many different ways to create music and it’s great for people who like to experiment with sounds and develop unique sonic pallets.  One of the main reasons why many pro users choose SONAR is because there are a lot of veiled jewels and tools that help musicians to sculpt a unique and individualized sound.

Similar to the Beatscape Content articles that were posted, I decided to dive into another one of my favorite hidden treasures of SONAR of which some people may not be aware; the pristine and fat FX engine of Z3TA+ that can be used as a standard VST effects unit.

When I first started using SONAR I loved the fact that it came with so many great VST plugins.  It wasn’t until 6 months into using the program when someone pointed out to me that you could use the Z3TA+ synth as an actual VST effect anywhere you use regular plugins – on clips, in bins, on busses… etc.  After dragging Z3TA+ onto a track I was instantly surprised at what I heard. Continue reading “Mixing and Mastering a Song Using only the Z3TA+ Effects Engine in SONAR”

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How Jon Lee Uses SONAR X1 Expanded to Create Music for Some of America's Favorite TV Shows

Some artists spend more time trying to catapult their image into the status spotlight than they do actually creating music.  Some artists lay low under the radar diligently doing their thing.  In this day and age, there really is no right or wrong way to be an artist in the music industry, you just have to do what you do best and run with it.  If the content is great, it will find its way.

A great artist example of this notion in my book is SONAR X1 Expanded user Jon Lee.  Working and residing in Santa Monica, Jon Lee lays low under the radar while creating music and sound-scapes for some of today’s most popular “verite” style TV reality shows.  If you have seen the show Cops, than you are probably familiar with one of the most prominent production companies in the biz, “Langley Productions.”

Continue reading “How Jon Lee Uses SONAR X1 Expanded to Create Music for Some of America's Favorite TV Shows”