Please help a complete beginner!

[Chloe]

Dear All,

I have very recently installed Tracktion 6 . I am hoping to record sung lyrics (via a new microphone with Xenyx mixer) on top of audio files produced by Finale music notation programme's Garritan Sounds. I would like the Mass music to be played in unison by a flute and a vibraphone and I have the audio files for this. I have two separate files, one for each instrument, so that I can set the levels independently - I hope this is sensible. Please could someone help me at all in importing files to tracks? When I import an audio file, I can play at most one track (when it works!) but I don't know how to get two tracks in unison - one overrides the other. I have tried to look this up but I can't find what to do. I would just like to play two tracks together and record the lyrics in a third track. Please help!

Thank you,

Chloe

[Lutin mutin]

Hi Chloe !

In order to import your two files, you have to "prepare" 2 tracks in T6 to be able to accept them.
Select Track one and at the bottom of the window, check its output to your audio output.
Do the same with the track two.
Once all this is done, go back to track one, and select it.
Then click on track one and import your first audio track (at the bottom of the window, there is an "import" case : click on it... and proceed).
Once the import is done, go to track two and do the same, importing your other audio file.

Check that your two audio files in they respective track in T6 are (each one) at the extreme left of the track, at the beginning of the player position "zero" (if not, you can select each of them and click and drag to the most left possible position).

Now, when you hit the space bar of your keyboard or you click on the play button, you will hear the two audio files simultaneously played...

I hope that's helps you...
Good luck !

Regards
Lutin mutin

Note :
if your name or your nick name "Chloe" indicate a french person, I can try to explain you the same in french... here on kvraudio or on the french site audiofanzine...

[Peter Widdicombe]

PS - when you record audio via microphone, you may want to have headphones on - otherwise, the voice track will have (at a lower level) the other instruments and possibly click track being recorded along with your audio.

[Chloe]

Hi Lutin Mutin and Peter Widdicombe,

Very many thanks for your very speedy, helpful replies.

Lutin Mutin, I don't quite understand how you mean to prepare the tracks - please could you see my uploaded screenshots? I am really confused and I don't know what "Output 1 + 2" means under the "settings" tab. I have seen the "import" button but I can't see where to find things before that step. Please could you help with this? I am English but I can't seem to find the right information easily - i must be missing something silly. Thank you for all your help.

Thank you for your tips for recording, Peter - that is very important information.

I would like to post a second time before I sign off, for another screenshot...

[Chloe]

Second post!

Many thanks and kind regards,

Chloe

[Lutin mutin]

Hi Chloe !

A really good idea you had in posting in the forum some of your screenshots, because... without the screenshots I was unable to understand your problem...

So, lets go to the very first screenshot.
First, for the moment, close the extreme browser window on the extreme left of T6. In order to close it, you can click on the first "button" at the extreme left of this window, button situated on the top of the "browser window" just under the "project tab" inscription.
When you click on it, this "browser" windows shuts down.

Now, at the left of the global window, you have a column containing the "heads" of the tracks. Each track is called "track 1", under this one the other is "track 2", and under "track 3" etc... (you can see this column on your first screenshot, at the right of the "browser" open window).
Just after this "tracks column", you have the place in which you will place your audio files (in your specific case as explained in your topic), but where you can also, in the respective cases, place the audio when you record audio, or the recording midi files when you create them.
And the last "column" contains the volume, the place of the eventual effects plugins, etc... and the mute and solo buttons for each track.

Now you have to "prepare" 2 tracks in order to receive the 2 audio files exported from Finale.
So you have to select each "future" receiving track.
So first, select track 1.

When you select "track 1" by clicking on the name of "track 1" or just beside it,
1. the selected track is hight-lighted by a red rectangle, and,
2. on the bottom of the large window appears a new... let say... a new bottom panel (because in Tracktion, each time you select something in the screen, the corresponding respective possible choices related to your selection appears in a specific related bottom panel).
Because you have selected "track 1", the respective bottom panel contains now all informations related with the concerned track, and in particular, in the up right corner, a case named "track destination". Under the "track destination", you will see by default "default audio output". This default audio output correspond to your second screenshot first lines : building output ==> enabled output 1+2 (output... default wave output).
So, not in the preferences panel, by in the tracks window, if you select the "default output" case by clicking on it, you will see all the possible choices you can select... In your case, you can let "default audio output", or audio 1+2, as you want.
In the bottom panel, if you click on the "name track 1" (up left), you can rename the track 1 with the more suitable name for what you will put after in the track 1 : the name of an instrument (if it is the case) or how you want to name it. But if you don't want to name it, no problem. It will stay as : "track 1".
Do the same with track 2, in order to verify that the audio output will also follow the right way...

Now, it is important that you put the "player marker" at the very beginning of the future song. You have to put it at the position "0". The best solution to do that, is to press the "go home" button, situated under left of the play button (right part - middle/down position - of the global window).
==> your traction DAW is now ready to import your audio files at the right place, with the sound following the correct "channel"...
(Note :
It seem complicated, but it is not specific to tracktion. You have to do the same steps in all the DAWs. It is the reason why it is recommended to do all this process once, and after, to store all that in a specific template... next time, you recall your previous memorized template and all theses steps are already done...

And now, you have to import your audio files previously done and exported (in an .aiff or .wav file format) from your "Finale" software, placed where you choiced to place them on your computer hard drive.

To import an audio file in tracktion...
First, select the track in which to want to import it. To do so, click the name of the track concerned (track 1 - or renamed - for example) - or just beside it. The track being selected, go to the "menu" place (at the bottom left of the window) and click on "import". Choice "import an audio file", in the browser thats opens, select your file on your hard disk and click "open" in the newly open browser window.
Because you have selected previously the track 1, the audio file will be automatically placed in track 1. And because you have placed the player cursor at the position "0", the imported audio file will be placed at the very beginning of the track, at the position "0".
--> Do the same process to import the other audio files (next audio file in track 2, etc...)... in your case you have only 2 audio files to be played.

And now... tadaaa !!
Click on the player button or hit the space bar of your computer keyboard and your audio files will be played... simultaneously !
And if you want to mute or to solo one of them, do it by clicking on the respective button, at the extreme right of each respective track...

I hope this time you understand better my "english" explanations... ... thanks to your posted screenshots...

Good luck and have fun !

Lutin mutin.

[Lutin mutin]

Hi Chloe !

Now you have solved your urgent T6 problem...

In order to be able to use the traction DAW in a confortable way, I suggest you to spend a little time to view the numerous Tracktion tutorials existing in YouTube, and better, "organized" and listed on the "Tracktion.com" site with the respective theme of the video tutorial indicated clearly.

The "soul" of the traction DAW, from T1 to T7 is exactly the same. The only difference in the different versions is that more ergonomic ways to do the same things have been added, or more capabilities in doing things. Why I say that to you ?
Because the way to record audio in the T3 version is exactly the same then in the T6 version. Do you understand what I mean ? The tutorials for T5 or for T6 etc... are for explaining specific things for the concerned version. BUT the things explained in T3 applies in all the other superior versions... etc...

In order to be confortable and having fun using your T6 version, even the day you are in a "musical" hurry... ,
don't hesitate in viewing the very good tutorials yet made on the different versions of the Tracktion DAW from the T3 or T4 to your T6.
And of course, you will be always appreciated in the KVR-Tracktion forum for your creations, suggestions, help or in asking for an advice !!...


And because you say to us you are a "complete beginner", welcome to the Tracktion more ergonomic DAW's in the world !...

Good audio creations !

Lutin mutin.

[Chloe]

Hi Lutin Mutin!

THANK YOU so much!! I can hardly believe it works for me!
I am so grateful for such clear and generous explanations!

I didn't know quite where to start and I got confused about selecting tracks. I also had saved an AIFF file when I had .wav selected in Tracktion so I have now gone for the WAV option. I will look at some more of the videos now that I can get started...

THANK YOU!!!

Chloe

[Sparkesy]

Hi Chloe and Lutin Mutin.

I've been mixing bands for a long time. But like Chloe, I'm also very new to DAW operating. Thanks very much for your lovely clear and concise explanations. I'm really looking forward to getting good at this !

Good luck with your compositions, Chloe.

Cheers to you both,

Sparkesy

[Lutin mutin]

Hello new tracktionneers !...

It has been a pleasure to explain the very first steps to beginners...

And... thanks, you're welcome !

Lutin mutin.

[chico.co.uk]

There's a lot of good video tutorials from Bill Edstrom and others, that you might want to take a look at on the tracktion site too ;

https://www.tracktion.com/training/videos