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

SONAR X-Series users will love these 55 improvements in the new SONAR

SONAR X-Series users will love these 55 improvements in the new SONAR

While there have been hundreds of fixes and enhancements added to SONAR since X3, we’ve compiled this list of the ones we think X-Series users will be particularly fond of.

Recording

  • Fixed clip & metronome placement during loop record
  • Fixed complex looping scenarios
  • Fixed MIDI issues during audio loop recording
  • Mute Previous Takes no longer interferes with Comping mode

Editing

  • Improved transient detection
  • Speed improvements when editing MIDI in PRV
  • Improved drag selection
  • Improved editing with the Smart Tool
  • Improved Lasso for audio transients at all zoom levels
  • Edit > Select > From/Thru no longer clears selections
  • Fixed Delete Hole issue when selecting empty measure in Track View
  • Fixed issues with Shift+Click on audio clips
  • Improved clip behaviors when using auto crossfade
  • Improved clip dragging graphics and offset handling
  • Improved note selection in PRV
  • Improved Melodyne behavior after setting region

Mixing

  • Sends now feed side-chain on project open
  • Fixed jumps when rewriting automation
  • Fixed VST3 behaviors in Clip FX bins
  • Improved console view EQ display
  • Fixed Dim Solo issue when using instrument tracks
  • Fixed plug-in output errors
  • Fixed plug-in removal issue on Simple Instrument Tracks

Chris Broderick SONAR Platinum ImprovementsChris Broderick has been focusing on his band Act of Defiance and their new record on Metal Blade Records. “We recorded all vocals, cello, lead, rhythm, classical and acoustic guitars at Ill-Fated Studio’s in Los Angeles, CA on SONAR Platinum. The features we gained upgrading from X3 to Platinum really helped us capture this new record.”


Audio / MIDI Engine

  • Fixed intermittent crash when switching driver modes
  • Fixes to Bounce to Clips for MIDI
  • Fixes to the Arpeggiator Preset workflow
  • Improved MIDI input port detection

UI

  • Fixed layout issues when removing icon from header
  • Fixed muted waveform drawing
  • Fixed waveform draw with tempo changes
  • Improved waveform draw on Groove Clips
  • Fixed waveform redraw on cropped clips when dragging
  • Improved clip fade waveform
  • Improved scroll in Console View
  • Improved Timecode unification in all views
  • Improved Track Folder grouping
  • Improved workflow when changing a Screenset

Murder FM SONAR Platinum X3 improvementsNorman Matthew of the band Murder FM not only used Platinum on his recent record produced by Beau Hill, but his band is also using it live on tour. “Platinum is ridiculously stable. Our show has developed into something more dynamic–and we like triggering some sounds that we used on the record on tour. SONAR Platinum works so well for us on stage as well as in the studio.”


PRV

  • Controller pane no longer resets size when switching tracks
  • Drum Pane now persists when re-opening PRV
  • Fixed PRV piano keyboard collapse when PRV maximized
  • Fixed right-click snap in PRV
  • Fixed Show/Hide state in PRV Track Pane

Other Views – LCV / Lyric / Marker / Meter etc.

  • Fixed orphan window in projects opened from Playlist
  • Fixed Screenset recalls
  • Fixed Take Lane rearrange on undo
  • Fixed vertical zoom behaviors when hiding tracks
  • Improved double-click behaviors on MIDI clips in Track View/PRV
  • Improved Step Sequencer behavior when using a clip assigned to a drum map

Misc.

  • Fixed bounced clip time base reset problem
  • Fixed Now Time marker movement when pressing Pause
  • Fixed silent drum map note issues after tempo changes
  • Fixed a crash when trying to open a moved project from recent file list
  • Fixes to BitBridge which could cause a project to hang on closing
  • Improved recall of Remote Control for synths

Javier Colon Platinum better than SONAR X3Javier Colon, winner of NBC’s The Voice continues his lifelong musical journey with a new record deal and album coming out on Concord Music Group this spring. “I’ve been using SONAR for a long time, but going from X3 to Platinum was the best upgrade I’ve had. Platinum was like a writing partner for me with this new record.”


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