Configuring the Console and Track views

The Console and Track view can be reconfigured in a variety of ways. You can:

Choose the tracks that you want to see

Adjust the display of audio meters and clip indicators

Change the number of buses

Set control snap-to positions

Insert new tracks

Name tracks and buses

Note: The Console view has additional controls to configure its appearance. See Console view for more information.

Meters are helpful in determining the relative volumes of your audio tracks and in detecting and preventing overload. By default, the Console view displays output level meters in main out modules at all times, and displays record level meters in individual tracks whenever they are armed and have an audio input. The display of meters, however, can place a considerable load on your computer. Showing only the peak indicators, or hiding the meters entirely, can reduce the load on your computer. This may increase the number of audio tracks and real-time effects you can play back at one time.

In the Track view, there are several ways to configure which tracks are displayed.

To hide selected tracks

1.	Select the tracks you want to hide.

2.	Right-click a selected track and select Hide Track, or press CTRL+H.

To display only selected tracks

1.	Select the tracks you want to display.

2.	Press CTRL+SHIFT+H.

To show all tracks and buses

To show all tracks and buses, do one of the following:

Click the Tracks menu in the Track view and select Show All Tracks and Buses.

Long press or right-click the Track Manager button , then select Show All Tracks and Buses.

Press SHIFT+H.

To choose the tracks that are displayed using the Track Manager

1.	Click the Track view Tracks menu and choose Track Manager to open the Track Manager dialog box.

2.

In the list, check those tracks you would like displayed in the view in which you are working, and uncheck the rest. You can use SHIFT-click, CTRL-click, or the quick select buttons to select multiple modules; press the SPACEBAR to check or uncheck all the selected modules at once. Please note that the track display selections you make in the Track view do not affect those in the Console view and vice versa.

3.

Click OK.

You can create per-project presets in the Track Manager dialog box. This is useful if you have a large project and you want to hide all other tracks apart from a certain group of tracks. For example, on a rock project you could have a “Drums only” or “Guitars” preset; on an orchestral project, you may wish to have a “Strings Section” preset that hides all tracks apart from your strings tracks.

 

Note: Tracks within the Tracks Manager presets are “opted-out” - i.e. it remembers which tracks you want to hide, rather than which tracks you want to show (to avoid not being able to see newly created tracks).

Creating a Track Manager preset

To create a Track Manager preset:

1.	Only show the tracks that you want to save as a preset. Do one of the following to hide any tracks that you don’t want to see:

Right-click a track and select Hide Track

Select the track(s) and press CTRL+H

2.	Long press or right-click the Track Manager button , then select New Preset to open the New Track Manager Preset dialog box.

3.	Type a descriptive name, then click OK.

You can also create and load presets in the Track Manager dialog box. For details, see Track Manager dialog.

Selecting a Track Manager preset

To select a Track Manager preset, long press or right-click the Track Manager button , then select the desired preset.

Showing only specific track types

To only show a specific track type (audio, MIDI, Instrument, Aux, or track folders), long press or right-click the Track Manager button , point to Show Only, then select the desired track type.

To hide a bus or track

Right-click on the module and choose Hide Track or Hide Bus.

To show or hide meters in the Track view

Click the Track view Options menu, point to Meter Options and select one of the following options:

Track Record Meters. Displays record meters for any armed track.

Track Playback Meters. Displays playback meters.

Bus Meters. Displays meters in buses.

For more information about metering options, see Changing the meters’ display.

To change a meter’s range

Right-click on the meter and choose a new range.

To add a bus

1.	Right-click in the Bus pane (to add a bus at the end of the current buses) or over an existing bus (to add a bus before it).

2.	Select Insert Stereo Bus or Insert Surround Bus from the menu that appears.

A bus appears in the Bus pane.

To delete a bus

1.	Right-click in the Bus pane over an existing bus.

2.	Select Delete Bus from the menu that appears.

The bus is deleted from the Bus pane.

Note: If you have any track or bus routed through the bus you delete, the signal will be rerouted to the deleted bus’s output.

To create a bus send in a track

1.	Right-click in an empty part of the Track pane (Track view) or a track module (Console view).

2.	Select Insert Send for a list of buses available.

3.	Select a bus from the list.

 

See also:

Insert Send Assistant

To set the snap-to position of a knob or fader

1.	Set the control to the desired position.

2.	Right-click on the control and choose Value > Set Snap-To=Current.

From now on, the control returns to this position when double-clicked.

To insert a new track

1.	Right-click in the Console view or on the header of a track in the Track view.

2.	Choose Insert Audio Track or Insert MIDI Track.

Sonar adds a new track to the project.

To rename a track or bus

1.	In the Console view, click on the module name. In the Track view double-click on the Track name.

2.	Type a new name.

3.	Press ENTER.

If you rename a track, the new name is copied to the Track view. If no name has been assigned to a track, the Console view and Track view display the track’s number.

To link left/right faders in a Console view module

1.	In the module whose faders you want to link, adjust the volume of each fader to the appropriate level.

2.	Click the Link button .