|
Managing plug-in settings in Pro Tools
Pro Tools’ plug-in settings are a great way to store and recall your favorite “presets” instantly. Most plug-in effects for Pro Tools ship with dozens if not hundreds of presets from the manufacturer, helping you to get started right out of the box. While these “factory presets” often serve as great starting points, modifying and storing your own sonic recipes is a vital skill in any Pro Tools workflow. In this weeks Pro Tools Corner I will show you how to manage plug-in presets and teach you a few tricks to help speed things up at mixdown.
Navigating the Plug-in Window
No matter what manufacturer developed the plug-in, all inserts in Pro Tools share a common plug-in window or “frame.” This common frame is used to house generic elements like track/insert selector, bypass, automation parameters, preset librarian menu, and the Pro Tools plug-in settings menu. While many plug-ins offer their own proprietary preset managers (like Waves), I find that in most cases it is easier and more efficient to use the resources Pro Tools provides since it will work the same for every plug-in, independent of the developer.
To Recall a Plug-in Preset click on the Librarian Menu or the Settings Select Window:
Saving User Presets:
- If you wish, first recall a factory preset or existing preset to use as a starting point.
- Click on the plug-in’s settings menu (see diagram above) and choose “Save As.” Choosing “Save” will write over the existing presets with the current settings.
- Name your preset. (Tip: you can create sub-folders within the root plug-ins settings folder to help keep things organized. For example you could create a folder called “drum comps” as a sub-directory of a compressor plug-in’s presets.)
- Continue to modify the preset, use the “compare” button to A/B changes and choose “Save” to update.
Plug-in settings are stored in one of two locations depending the preference you have selected in the settings preferences menu.
Choosing Root Settings Folder saves plug-in settings to the global settings file folder located in: System Drive>Library>Application Support>Digidesign>Plug-in Settings (Mac) and C:\Program Files\Common Files\Digidesign\DAE\Plug-in Settings\ (Windows). Save settings in the root settings folder if you want to access them from any session opened on the system. For example, you would choose the root folder if you were saving a snare compression preset that could be used again and again in many different sessions.
Choosing Session Folder saves plug-in settings to the “Plug-in Settings” folder within the session folder of the currently opened session. Save settings in the session folder if you want to access them only within that specific session. For example, you might choose the session settings folder for saving session specific EQ presets for a vocal or instrument that would only be useful within the context of that session.
Settings stored within the session settings folder can be easily distinguished from root stored settings:
Searching for Plug-in Settings
Pro Tools 7.3 added a really hip way to search for plug-in settings in the workspace browser. Once the desired plug-in setting has been found, you can simply drag the settings file directly to a track’s insert to apply the plug-in and preset all in one easy motion.
To search for plug-in settings:
- Open the workspace browser by choosing Windows > Workspace
- Initiate a search by clicking the search icon
- Choose “Plug-In Settings File” under the Kind Column
- Click search.
Here is a sample screen shot from a search I did on the term “snare”:
Note: you might need to re-order your data columns to see the “Plug-In Name” and “Plug-In Manufacturer” columns. You can sort by any column by clicking on the column name. In the above search the list has been sorted by “Plug-in Name.” This is also a great way to search for virtual instrument patches.
- To insert the plug-in and use the preset, drag and drop the settings file from the workspace to a free insert in the mixer or edit window.
Setting the user default
Did you ever wish your favorite plug-in automatically loaded your favorite preset? You can easily set up any plug-in to load a specific setting file upon insertion:
- First you must save the configuration you wish set as your user default as a plug-in setting file on your computer (see steps above).
- From the plug-in settings menu choose: Set plug-in default to > User Setting.
- Make sure the settings file you wish to save as the user default is currently loaded and choose “Set As User Default” from plug-in settings menu.
Remember, plug-in settings files will only work within the specific plug-in they are designed for. For example, you could not save a setting in Digidesign’s EQ3 and recall that same settings file in McDSP’s FilterBank EQ.
Pro Tool Tidbits:
• Celemony released updates for Melodyne Studio, Cre8, Uno and Essential.
• URS Announces the URS Classic Console Strip Pro for Mac (PC support on the way)
If you have a Pro Tools related question that you would like me to take a shot at answering or have any feedback, please send it to brian@audioMIDI.com. I will do my best to select the questions that seem to stump the most people.
As always, stay tuned to the audioMIDI.com eNews for the latest reviews and new product info.
| 
