ProTools-Auxes Pre-Fader/Post Mute

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Ron Obvious
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ProTools-Auxes Pre-Fader/Post Mute

Post by Ron Obvious » Sun May 03, 2020 10:27 am

I've been at this for 44 years. On Neve's, SSL's, Mackie's, plus the modern Midas M32. > When you select [PreFader] for the Aux sends, it's still [Post Mute]. In ProTools I can't find anywhere to set the setup to be [Post Mute].

I.E. If I cut the fader for an audio channel, I would also like it the cut the [Pre-Fader] send to an Aux.

Thanks for any help in advance.

If you are bored one day, here is a recent video. Problem occurred here. Originally setup all the Aux sends for the musicians out in the studio in PROTOOLS. However when I would mute a channel it still played in their headphones. So I had to go back to "old school" and use the console monitor panel, part of the SoundTracs 4400 console to setup headphone sends. All went fine then.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7o19qnmVgP8


Good day
Ron O.

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Nick Sevilla
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Re: ProTools-Auxes Pre-Fader/Post Mute

Post by Nick Sevilla » Sun May 03, 2020 11:40 am

Hi Ron,

Mantra: "Pro Tools is not a physical console"...

Pro Tools sends can be "pre fader" or "post fader".

In "post fader" mode, the send mute follows the main mute of the channel. I.E. muting the track mutes the send.

In "pre fader" mode, the send mute does NOT follow the main mute. I.E. the muting occurs only at the send, and is fully pre fader pre mute.

This is a feature we have asked Avid forever to implement.

As a workaround, you should have those tracks you want to mute to the player's headphones, GROUPED, and have all the appropriate sends in this group as well, so you can press ONE send mute, and all will follow. I've done this and it works good when tracking people, when I want to listen to
my main mix in the control room, yet mute their headphones.

One step more than what you were used to in a console, but once you have them grouped like this, it should work for you every time. You can disable that\ group afterwards, or even make it a group that ONLY affects their sends.

You can create a new "aux mute" group, by creating a new group, disabling "follow globals", and manually assigning ONLY the Send Mute assigns.

This way, this enabled group should only control the send mutes. Then, simply have a floating fader on top of your edit window, which is one of these sends, and press mute on it whenever you want to silence their cans.

Hope this helps.

Step 1. Select all tracks you want to control (that have sends to the players).

Step 2. Create a new group, disable "follow globals", and go to the groups assignment tab, to check any / all SEND MUTE buttons, for any sends to cans you have. Deselect anything else. Only have the SEND MUTE buttons enabled on this group.

Step 3. Check this new group by pressing play, and verifying the cans get muted when you mute on of these send mutes.
Howling at the neighbors. Hoping they have more mic cables.

Ron Obvious
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Re: ProTools-Auxes Pre-Fader/Post Mute

Post by Ron Obvious » Sun May 03, 2020 1:28 pm

Hello Nick,

Thanks for the info, I will look into it tonight and see if this works. I've been with P.T's since version 2 around 1992. Of course back then P.T's was at best a semi stable "Tape Machine". It's come a long was since then. I was mostly in studio design and technical then. The tape machines were Sony 3348's and Studer A800's locked with Lynx. All cue mixers were done from the consoles and later Cue mixing stations I designed.

Anyway - WOW WOW 2020, and you still can't do pre-fader with post mute in P.T's! Stunning. I'm guessing that "folders" were a greater priority (ha).

Your work around looks interesting.

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Nick Sevilla
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Re: ProTools-Auxes Pre-Fader/Post Mute

Post by Nick Sevilla » Sun May 03, 2020 5:22 pm

Yep. I've used PT since 1996... Became a beta tester in 2000-2002 when they rolled out their newer "HD Accel" stuff.

It would not be hard to place the mute in the signal chain so it mimiced a console. Well, at least not for me.

Cheers, hopefully my workaround works for you.
Howling at the neighbors. Hoping they have more mic cables.

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