Specifications

Pro Tools Reference Guide 514
Multichannel Audio Tracks
Multichannel audio tracks contain an individ-
ual channel for each signal in the track (for ex-
ample, a 5.1 track would have six channels for
left, center, right, left surround, right surround,
and LFE).
Multichannel audio tracks can be:
• Recorded directly into Pro Tools, using multi-
ple microphones or microphone arrays, or
routed to appropriate multichannel Pro Tools
Input paths
• Imported from other Pro Tools sessions
• Edited, processed, and mixed in combination
with mono and stereo tracks
5.1 format audio files and tracks conform to the
Film track layout standard. Regardless of path
mapping in the I/O Setup dialog, all 5.1 format
audio tracks and meters follow the Film stan-
dard track layout:
L C R Ls Rs LFE
Multichannel audio tracks are not required to
mix in multichannel formats. Mono, stereo, and
all supported track formats can be mixed using
Pro Tools track outputs and sends. See “Multi-
channel Signal Routing” on page 516.
Placing Audio in Multichannel
Tracks
You can drag audio files and regions from the
Audio Regions List, or from other tracks, to
place them in multichannel audio tracks.
To do so, the number of channels being dragged
must match the destination track format. For
example, you can only drag a stereo pair or two
mono regions onto a stereo audio track. Simi-
larly, you can only place audio into an LCR track
when you have selected three regions. With 5.1
tracks, you must select six mono files or regions.
Solo, Mute, and Gain in Multichannel
Tracks and Paths
Stereo and multichannel tracks consist of multi-
ple audio signals, linked together. By default,
multichannel tracks are linked and are con-
trolled by a single channel fader, solo and mute
switch.
5.1 format multichannel audio track
When dragged into a multichannel track,
audio files are placed from top to bottom in
the exact order that they appear in the Re-
gions List or playlist from which they came.
For this reason, you may want to rename
audio files before dragging them, so that
they are in a preferred order. Rename them
so that sorting them By Region Name in the
Regions List results in the preferred order.
(For example, with a 5.1-format track, you
can rename the audio tracks, so that the ar-
rangement of the tracks corresponds to L, C,
R, Ls, Rs, and LFE.)