my in-depth look at using logic pro x

7/23/2019 My In-Depth Look At Using Logic Pro X

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My in-depth look at using Logic Pro X

What is Logic Pro X?

Getting Started with Logic Pro X

To easily purchase and install Logic Pro X disk free, simply head to the App

Store on a acintosh de!ice" #owe!er, $efore making your purchase you

must check that you ha!e the minimum system re%uirements in order to

get the most producti!e use out of the software" These are factors suchas& 'G( of )A, a display with *+-.$y./0 resolutions or higher, 1S X

!*-""' or later, 0'.$it audio unit2s plug.ins, and a minimum of 3G( of

disk space"

The 4rst time you launch Logic, it will ask you whether you are a 4rst time

user or if you ha!e used Logic in the past" 5f you choose 4rst time user,

when opening a template, Logic will treat you with integrity as 4rst time

user, gi!ing you less to do $y simply pro!iding with a the tools needed to

get you started and on your way. this kid.glo!e stage can $e surpassed $y

turning on and o6 the ad!anced options and settings, which is accessed

through the medium of Logic2s software preferences" 78amples of what

the ad!anced option can gi!e you are& the solo and mute channel $uttons"

Also, when 4rst opening the app, Logic is ask you a$out installing the

93G( of content, which usually takes se!eral hours to install"

To launch Logic you can click on it on its icon in your dock, which is a $lack

rectangle with a platinum record in it" When launching Logic Pro X, the

4rst thing that you are presented with is its template dialogue, with each

template $eing used for di6erent genres of musical uses" When choosingand opening a template, you should notice that the window says untitled

Logic Pro is a :AW

;:igital Audio

Workstation< and

5:5 ;usical

5nstrument :igital

5nterface< se%uencer

software application"

Logic pro!ides a

!ariety of software

instruments, audio

e6ects and recording

facilities = in order to



at the top" 5n order to change this, you must sa!e your pro>ect, which is

done $y heading to the 4le $utton and click sa!e" Logic will then gi!e you

options

on where you2d like to sa!e your pro>ect, how you would like to sa!e your

new pro>ect such as how to organie your pro>ect and e!en to the e8tent

of what 4les you2d like to copy in your pro>ect"

When choosing empty template on your template options, you

immediately get this new tracks dialogue" Logic must always ha!e at least

one track opened when opened"

5AG75AG7*&



When clicking on a di6erent patch, the channel will change to

that patch change" Logic2s instrument li$rary contains of a

!ariety of sounds, ranging from horns and sa8ophones to

hea!y drums" #owe!er, these tracks can only contain 5:5

regions on them" 1ne way of creating a 5:5 region is $y

choosing the pencil tool in the tool$o8 and clicking once on

the track = $y default they are coloured green" These 5:5

regions contain sets of instructions called 5:5 e!ents, whichtell the software instrument what notes to play and when to

5f we choose the Software 5nstrument

track and lea!e the open li$rary $o8

checked, the result would look like the

e8ample image shown on the right =

image +" (y default, Logic loads up the@lassic 7lectric Piano instrument as its

open track" As we had the open li$raryB

$o8 checked, you can see all of Logic2s



78ternal 5:5 tracks are !ery similar to the Software 5nstrument tracks, as

they are designed to talk to any e8ternal sound modules you might ha!e

connected to Logic" Another type of track type is audio tracks, which hold

digital audio regions" These are tracks you can record into $y plugging in a

microphone or connecting your guitar to your audio interface" Additionally,

if you are on a laptop and you click on the 5B $utton on the trackC you2ll

see a le!el coming into the track from your ac2s $uilt.in microphone"

Guitar and (ass tracks on the other hand, are identical to the audio tracks"

The only di6erence $etween the two is that they come preloaded with

guitar patches"

Lastly, the drummer track is a $rand new concept in Logic Pro X" The

:rummer track chooses a !irtual drummer, personality and drum kit,

which you can alter the feel and performance through a medium of

controls" As you work you may 4nd it useful to sa!e certain track

con4gurations that you want to come $ack to each time you work, as this

process can sa!e a lot of time" This can $e done, $y choosing DileE Sa!e

as Template" The default place it will go to is the y TemplateB folder, as

shown in the image down $elow"

Software that2s part of your ac2s operating

system is called @ore Audio, and it2s referred to as

$uilt in input and $uilt in output $y Logic" To !iew

the core audio options, you can go in to

Applications" FtilitiesE Audio 5:5 setup" The $uilt.

in audio sound card of your ac is great, and you

can always use it whene!er you go" (ut for more

professional sounding inputs and outputs, you

should ha!e an e8ternal audio interface" 78ternal



When going into window and pressing Show 5:5 Window, this window will

show you all the types of 5:5 de!ices that your computer currently sees"

ou can also test them to !iew whether they are acti!e or not $y clicking

on Test Setup and press some keys or pads on your de!ice . if it produces

sound then your gear is connected" All these hardware de!ices that are

connected do not control Logic, $ut Logic can $e used to control them !ia

5:5 in a studio" 1n the other hand, control surfaces use 5:5, not to play

instruments in Logic, $ut more to control Logic2s play$ack system, and

!irtual mi8 console"



Logic also comes with its own $uilt in mini input de!ice" This comes in

particularly good use

when tra!elling where you

can2t take a lot of gear with

you" The musical typingkey$oard turns your key$oard

into a mini controller" Go

to WindowE Show usical

Typing to turn on" (y

pressing the )B $utton on your channel track, you will $e a$le to hear the

key$oard play"

7sta$lishing a WorkHow

The centre area of Logic2s main window is the tracks area" This is whereyou get to see all of your tracks horiontally laid out in a timeline" The

upper right of the track2s area can manage ooming horiontally and

!ertically" Tracks can $e selected $y clicking on the tracks header,

whereas if you want to select a num$er of tracks at a time, you can hold

shift and click" 1nce a track is selected, factors associated with a track

and its content will $e gi!en focus up in the inspector column on the

upper left.hand side of the main window"



5n the inspector, you shall see two channel strips" These are used in order

to !iew real.time processors" To add to this, you can also control the

!olume and panning from this strip" 1f the two channel strips, the left one

is assigned to the region or track that we ha!e currently most selected,

whereas the right one is the pro>ects master output" 5n order to close the

inspector columns, >ust press the 5B $utton"

The image a$o!e is a display of what the tool $ar looks like" 1n the right.hand side of the $ar we ha!e some $uttons to acti!ate the right

windowpanes" 5n the $rowser area, you ha!e access to your hard dri!e

and any 4les you may want to use within Logic" To the left of this, we ha!e

the Apple loops" This window pro!ides us a cool way of searching the

sampled loops that come with Logic" Ie8t to this, we ha!e the notes,

which ena$le you to write information a$out tracks or songs for later use"

After that, we ha!e the lists" This is a list !iew of important e!ents relating

to speci4c tracks, or the pro>ect as a whole" To close any of the $rowsers,

all you ha!e to do is click on their $uttons"

When you start working on di6erent tasks in Logic, you might 4nd it useful

to sa!e and recall

di6erent stress of

windows" These are

known as screen

sets" They2re accessed in

the pull.down menu with the num$er * on it" ou can tell when a screensets locked when it has a little dot to the left of the num$er"



The play head is what you see mo!ing across the screen when playing

your pro>ect" This mo!es in real.time and can $e positioned using the

transport tools or can $e ad>usted $y clicking on its wanted destination in

the time ruler" When hitting enters, Logic automatically takes the play

head to the $eginning of your pro>ect" 5n the centre of the control $ar atthe top, you ha!e the L@:" This is where you can !iew the current play

head position, set the pro>ect tempo, key and time signature" 1n the left

of the L@: you can change some di6erent display mode !iews such as&

$ars and $eats, time etc" 5n Logic Pro X, musical time is shown as $eats"

(eats di!ide $ars, di!isions di!ide $eats, and ticks di!ide di!isions" There

are +'- ticks per di!ision" ou can click directly in each of these time

scales and drag the mouse up and down to change the !alues"

1n the $ottom left or right hand side of a region, the default pointer tool

turns into a trimmer tool in order to ad>ust the length of a region" 1n thetop left or right hand side of a region, the pointer tool turns into a loop

tool, ena$ling you to loop regions when need $e" ou can choose your

tools with a small pull down menu in the upper middle of the main

window" The menu to its right is the alternate tool, this is a good shortcut,

as when you press the cmdB keyC you tool will switch to the alternate

tool" )emem$er, that the amount of tools you ha!e will change depending

on whether you what window you are in"

5f you are the type to $e sending hours upon end using the Logic software,

5 would suggest you learn the key commands in order to make your

workHow easier and a lot faster" These are shortcuts used $y an assigned

key in order to pro!ide Huidity in your session2s process" To open the key

commands editor go to Jey @ommandsE 7dit" The key command B is



auto.track oom, meaning that if you ha!e a track selected, type K and

the track ooms out to full screen" Type it again and it re!erts $ack to

normal sie" The forward slash $utton lets you go to a position" Also, c2 is

used to turn on and o6 cycle mode" 5f we type the key X, we can see the

mi8er panel at the $ottom of our arrange window" The key fB shows our4le $rowser on the left" Type oB, as in a loop and we get the loops

$rowser" Lastly, if we select a track, we can type mB to mute that

particular track, whereas ctrlmB is used to mute that speci4c region"

These are >ust a few key commands mentioned a$o!e, as there are 3M-

key commands assigned in Logic Pro X, not to mention that you can add

your own key commands to those that do not ha!e any" This is done in the

key commands edit window shown a$o!e"

ou can rename tracks $y dou$le clicking on its

default name in the region header, as shown in theimage to the left" #owe!er, $y selecting the te8t tool

in the tool$o8, you can name indi!idual regions"

)enaming your work is a good ha$it to get into, as it

allows your work to stay organised" To add, it

reinforces you to ha!e the a$ility to easily 4nd what

you want within a matter of seconds, rather than

minutes if your track was not named appropriately"

aking usic with Logic

The li$raries contain tons of already made and incredi$le sounding

patches" So a patch contains the instrument, e6ects and routing settings

that control the sound of a track"



:id you know

that you could

also sa!e your

own patches

in Logic? Thisis simply done

$y making

sure that you

ha!e the

patch that you

want to sa!e

is selected

only" After this,

press sa!e

and it will

automatically

direct you to the patches folder, as shown a$o!e" 1nce 4lling out the !ital

information, sa!e your patch and you shall see it when opening our

patchesB in your li$rary" ou can alternati!ely sa!e patches on your hard

dri!e to

$ring

them to

another

studioN

Smart

controls

;as seen

on the

$ottom of

the

image< can

$e mappedto

instrument parameters, audio e6ects and e!en sounds" The key $ene4t of

this tool is that when in use you don2t ha!e to e!en get in!ol!ed in the

minor details of all the e6ects on that channel, as they are already

mapped for you" #owe!er, if you2d like to customie Smart @ontrols, 4rst

click the 5B icon on the inspector panel" Iow, the ne8t step is to click on

the parameter you2d like to map" ou can tell when it2s mapped, as it will

circle with a $lue halo" After, click on the parameter you want to map it to,then click on the learn $utton = the halo will then show red" The 4nal step



is to simply click on the parameter you wish to map this kno$ to" Another

thing you can customie for

Smart @ontrols is the look of it

and actually what kno$s or

$uttons are a!aila$le" When setto automatic Smart @ontrols,

Logic chooses what type of

kno$s and what the look your

Smart @ontrols ha!e" When

selecting the Automatic Smart

@ontrols, a list of controls to

choose from appears" This is

where you can change what you

want your Smart @ontrols to look

like"



As you can see, this patch is a little di6erent to the ones shown a$o!e"

When opened, you should notice that the patch is made up of su$ordinate

patches" To sum up what is happening here = the track stacks are $eing

com$ined, and the outer layer is acting as an au8iliary track" 1ne thing

that you can do with a track stack is disconnect all the tracks" ou >ustright click on the track itself and press Hatten stack" This will then put

$oth of these su$ tracks into their own tracks in order for you to record

separate 5:5 performances on them" 5f you e!er wanted to create your

own track stack, all you ha!e to do is right click on the tracks selected and

click create track stack" The dialogue then gi!es you two options, on

whether to folder stack or summing stack" The concept of a folder stack is

more to do with if you ha!e a lot of similar sounding audio recordings,

whereas summing tracks

is for when you ha!e two

di6erent sounding

recordings that you2d like

to com$ine" @lick the one

you want and then

proceed"

5:5

When recording 5:5,

there2s some, messages

that can $e transmitted $esides >ust notes" These are things like the od

wheel or a Pitch $end or after touch, which means you press down the

note harder" All the notes

that you record are always

going to $e in horiontal

lines" #owe!er, as you can

see from the image $elow,

there are also some

!ertical ones" These are

actually what they call

continuous controller

messages" This particular


message modulates the

output of the signal that

we are hearing, meaning

it wo$$les"

To mo!e on, punch.in recording is when you replace a section of arecording" #owe!er, there are a couple of settings you ha!e to set.up to



make Logic do that" (ecause if you try to record o!er a section, $y default

Logic will >ust add your new notes to the old region" Dirst step is to go up

in the control $ar to right.click to say customie control $ar and display"

Fnder modes and functions, choose the auto punch $o8" 1nce clicking,

the auto punch lane should appear = then click the replace $utton to theleft of the auto punch $utton" o!e the auto punch lane to where!er you2d

like to punch in and start recording your new notes" Also, Logic Pro X has

this awesome way of

remem$ering the

last 5:5 se%uence

you played when

you2re >ust >amming

along to the music"

Oust the press the

shiftrB command

and your notes will

$e in your channel"

When setting up a

multiple takes

recording you need

to set the locators to cycle o!er aset amount of $ars" As a result,

Logic will keep cycling as we play

the part o!er and o!er again" ou

can tap the cB key to turn on and

o6 the cycle mode" 5n order to set

up how Logic deals with multiple

5:5 recording takes we ha!e to go

into DileE Pro>ect Settings under

)ecording" 5n the o!erlapping

recordings section, it should say what Logic is going to do if we record

again and again" @hange this to the

preference of your choice, $ut for

this e8ample we are going to go with

@reate Take DoldersB"

When recording three times, this is

what it made ;as seen to the left<"

This region is di6erent to others as it

has a disclosure triangle in the topleft called a Pact Takes Dolder" When



opened, you can see that there is a top region and then three su$ regions"

When clicking on other takes, the new acti!e take pops up in the top

region, as it is now the focus region" The order in which the takes place,

are the most current take to the least current take" (y ho!ering o!er your

regions, you can see that the mar%uee tool appears, ena$ling you to takecertain $its from di6erent takes in order to get the sound that you are

looking for" (y right clicking on the region, you ha!e the option to unpack

the folder to a new track" This then would gi!e you three tracks with all

three takes on it, no longer gi!ing you your su$ regions" #owe!er, when

attempting to mute or solo one of the tracks, they all solo, as they2re all

using the same instrument" #owe!er, if you press ctrlsB, then you2ll

a$le to hear >ust one region ;this

$eing the one selected<"

A useful way of recording indi!idualparts o!er time can $e done when

going to DileE Pro>ect Settings under

)ecording" (y ha!ing your

o!erlapping recording setting in Ooin

when @yclingB, you can perform this

techni%ue" When acti!ating cycle

mode, you can start recording your

indi!idual parts" This tool is

particularly good for users that areuna$le to perform well on the key$oard or whate!er 5:5 they ha!e set up

to Logic, as they can focus on one important part at a time, as the $eat

cycles" Another way you can record indi!iduals parts is if you select

@reate Tracks when @yclingB, as you can record indi!idual parts, $ut

instead Logic will put these parts on separate regions in order for you to

edit"



Step input media recording gi!es you the freedom to step in each media

e!ent

one at a

time, without play$ack occurring in real

time" Step input can $e performed withor without an e8ternal key$oard" This is done $y going

to WindowE

Show Step 5nput

Jey$oard" Across the

top left of the

key$oard,

you ha!e your note lengths represented" 1n the top

right, you ha!e !elocities represented in musical notation" 1nce adding a

region on the channel $y using the pencil tool you can simply press on the

notes you want to play and where from" To use the step input key$oard

through your 5:5 key$oard, all you ha!e to do is $ring up the piano roll

that you wish to edit and press the 5:5 input key on the top left of the

window . then go to WindowE Show Step 5nput Jey$oard and start

playing")emem$er that you ha!e to change the note length and !elocity

to get !ariation, if that2s what you want"

1ne !ery uni%ue 5:5 e6ect to e8plore is the arpeggiator" Arpeggiators go

$ack to the

$eginnings of

electronic music

in which they pro!ide a way to alter a group of notes held as a chord into

a rhythmic se%uenced arpeggio of notes" When opening the smart tools,

you should notice in the top right there is a little $utton = this is the

arpeggiator" When clicking this $utton the arpeggiator automatically is

loaded into the 5:5 e6ects" When playing your pro>ect and pressing your

5:5 key$oard2s notes, you shall notice that the arpeggiator calculates the



(P of your pro>ect and how it sounds, resulting in its timings to $e

accurate"

uantiation is the rhythmic ad>ustment of audio or 5:5 e!ents to a

speci4c time grid" Logic2s %uantiation is a really good tool, as it is non.

destructi!e, meaning that no matter how much you %uantie, you can

always get $ack the original feel"

This image

preser!es the hit.

hat when not

%uantied" (y

selecting the notes

that you want to

%uantie you canchange the rhythm

of your notes $y

their !alues" This is

can really change

the feel on the

song $eing

produced"

#owe!er,

sometimes it can

also ruin it, as you

really need to

know what you are

looking for out of

%uantiation in

order to make it

sound nice and

angelic" As you can

see, to the left is

the change of hi.

hats when

%uantiing them to

a *Q*0 Swing @

note" (y adding

swing to the notes,

it causes them to

sound more human.like rather than staggered" @hanging the !elocity of

the notes also does this"uantiing is performed in the regions list as well"



The piano roll is a useful window as it allows you to edit indi!idual notes

one at a time" 1n the top of the piano roll window you ha!e this little $lue

icon, which is called @atch $utton" When this is on, the screen will update

as the play head mo!es o6 the screen, when turned o6, it will $ring us to

that current location" To the left of the catch $utton, we ha!e the 5:5 in

and 5:5 out $utton" The 5:5 5n $utton, let2s us input the piano roll editor"

1n the left of the piano roll editor, we ha!e a representation of a piano

key$oard showing what notes correspond to the horiontal lanes in this

window" ou can actually click on them and play notes" ou can also the

piano roll to select a $unch of notes that happen to $e in that lane" The

little rectangles that you see are the 5:5 notes = they !ary in lengths and

are also colour coded" The colour coding shows the !elocity of the notes"

To create a note, you can right click and choose @reate Iote, or you can

use the pencil tool" Iow, to edit a note, the pointer tool is really the most

e6ecti!e" When mo!ing to the outside edge of a note, the pointer tool

turns into the trimmer tool, meaning that 5 can edit the length of the note

to whate!er !alue 5 want" 5f you want to mo!e the 5:5 note, simply click

right in the middle of the note and your pointer turns into a little hand that

can pull the note up or down to make it play di6erent keys" Iotice that

when you are mo!ing the note, it2s sliding around" 5n order to constrain

this mo!ement, >ust hold the shiftB key and drag"

When using !elocity, each note colour determines !elocity, $ut also inside

the note there2s a line and the longer the line is to the edge of the not, the

higher the !elocity is" When changing the !elocity, the !elocity slider in

the $ottom left of the piano roll is changing" So you can use the R tool or

you can keep it on the pointer tool and >ust select the note and change its

!elocity that way" 5n the edit menu of the piano roll, there is a whole

arsenal of di6erent options you ha!e for editing" Dor e8ample, if you go to

SelectE 7%ual @oloured Iotes, any note of the same !elocity will then $e

selected"



Pitch shifting and

modulation can $e

edited using 5:5 draw"

When you see grey

marks on 5:5 regions,it sym$olies that the

region contains


5:5 data as well as the

notes that we see

horiontally" Within the

piano roll, there is a

$ottom that shows

three lines positioned

on top of one another

to the upper left hand

side of the window, click on this to !iew the 5:5 draw data" The data that

you see is your continuous controller data" 1n the left it shall tell you what

you are looking at" 5:5 :raw is really e6ecti!e $ecause you can edit each

indi!idual node ;this $eing the little dots of e6ects<" Pulling them up or

down or sliding them across can edit these nodes, whereas dou$le clicking

on a node can delete it" Fsing the pencil tool, you can draw in di6erent

!alues of nodes"

The Step 7ditor allows you to !iew and edit multiple continuous controller

5:5 messages at a time in the Piano )oll editor" When clicking on a lane,

the lane inspector shows up to show us information a$out that lane" This

shows us the !alues of each lane when selected"



The 7!ents List

pro!ides a non.graphical

editor for e!ents in your

Logic pro>ect, $oth

regions in the timelineand 5:5 e!ents within

these regions" Fsing

the 7!ents List, you

can change the

positioning of

any track" When clicking

on a region, the

7!ents List will update

to show you what2s

happening inside"

Audio

5n order to import sound into Logic, you can do this through the medium of

dragging from your 4nder into Logic, or you can go to DileE 5mportE Audio

Dile" The good thing a$out importing from your 4le options is that you get

to see more information a$out the 4le, as it tells you its sample rate, time

etc" ou can also audition the 4le from this area as well" Lastly, you can

import audio $y going to All Diles"



5n order to open the loop $rowser, click the

loop $utton to the top right of your edit

window" 5n the middle of the loops shows the

keyword search, pro!iding a whole $unch of

words to help us search and sort throughthese thousands of Apple Li$s to 4nd the one

that 4ts your song" To audition these Apple

Loops you can click on them and Logic will

automatically play $ack the loop" As you can

see, all the loops are assigned to a certain

tempo, howe!er, when auditioning a loop, it

will seamlessly play $ack not in the tempo of

it2s Iati!e Tempo $ut rather our own Pro>ect

Tempo" When hearing a loop that you like,

simply drag it into your edit window" ou can also search

for speci4c loops that you want" Some apple loops are

green with a note icon, whereas others are $lue with an

audio form icon" The green apple loops are 5:5

information, whereas the $lue is audio" When you drag

the greens into your main window, you can actually load

up an instrument patch and $ring in 5:5 information"

#owe!er, when dragging a green apple loop into an

audio track, Logic will automatically Hatten the 5:5 into an audio 4le" ou

can !iew whether not a region is mono or stereo due to its sign to the

right of where the name of the region is" 5f the sign has two intertwined

circles then it is a stereo region, whereas if it is one circle with a line at the

$ottom of it, then it is a mono region"

Diles that are not apple loops do not automatically conform to your

pro>ects tempo" To 4gure out the tempo of an unknown tempo region, you

can ;with the region selected< go up to 7ditE TempoE:etect Tempo of

Selected )egion" After that, in order to change the tempo of this region,

make sure that you ha!e a loop around your region" When the region isselected, go to the 7dit enuE TempoE Ad>ust Tempo using )egion Length

and Locators" Another way of changing the region2s tempo is $y going to

7ditE Time StretchE Time Stretch )egion Length to Locators" There is also

a way to create loops out of regions in order for you to ha!e access to

them in any song" With the region selected go to DileE 78portE )egion to

Loop Li$rary"

Dle8time can $e used to conform an out of time audio recording to your

song" 5t uses slice technology, as it allows you to slice up your audio into

rhythmic slices, and then retime those slices without any resampling ordestructi!e processing" 5n order to ena$le He8 mode, dou$le click to pull



up the audio 4le editor and click the twirling icon on the upper left of the

$rowser" 1nce turning on He8 pitch, you shall see the slices that 5 was

referring to earlier on your audio region" The He8 pitch menu gi!es you a

!ariety of options on what elastic audio you2d like to select when slicing

your audio region" our choice of elastic audio is dependent on your genreof audio" These elastic audio genres consist of& monophonic, slicing,

rhythmic, polyphonic, speed ;DX<, and tempophone ;DX<" onophonic is

usually used for low fre%uency algorithms, e"g" $aselines" When you use

onophonic He8, your recording should $e relati!ely dry without any

audi$le re!er$eration" The slicing mode on the other hand, is really good

for percussi!e non.tonal audio material like drums" Slicing cuts up the

audio material at transient markers, and then shifts the audio when

playing each slice at its original speed"

There2s also the Polyphonic mode, which is really good for chordal or

comple8 material" 5t uses a process called phase !ocoding, meaning that it

does not a6ect the pitch" )hythmic time stretches the material looping

audio $etween slices in order to 4ll in any gaps" Lastly, tempo phone is

the e6ect of a historical tape $ased time stretching de!ice" #owe!er,when your elastic audio is on Dle8 Time = AutomaticB, Logic will select

what He8 pitch it $elie!es is $est to use for your audio region" 1nce

choosing your elastic audio, you can conform your slices to your particular

tempo $y pulling and dragging them"

Groo!e tracks are not ena$led $y default, to ena$le them you want to

right click in the Track header and choose @on4gure Track #eader" ake

sure that the Groo!e Track $utton is ticked" 1nce that is done, if you go to

the left.hand side of the track headers and ho!er o!er the track num$ers,

all of a sudden each track num$er has a star appear" This lets us set anytrack into our aster Groo!e track" Fnfortunately, you can only ha!e one



master groo!e track per Logic pro>ect" 1nce deciding what track you2d like

to $e your starred groo!e

track, a $o8 appears at the

side of each region2s header"

This $o8 is ticked for any tracksthat you want to match the

groo!e of your starred groo!e

track" When a $o8 is ticked,

you2ll see that the wa!eform

mo!es, this happens in order

for the region to rhythmically

conform to match the feel of

the starred groo!e track"

When $andsQmusicians

play instruments li!e in

the studio, they ha!e

tendency to not $e

e8actly on $eat all the time" 5norder to 48 this minute

pro$lem, Logic has a

$uilt in $eat mapping

detector, allowing for

$ands to perform $etter

once editing them within

the software" The result

of $eat mapping is that

the $eat is going to $e

right on the metronome and the metronome itself will $e the timing grade

of Logic, as it will $e pulling and pushing to match" (y heading to the

glo$al tracks !iew, make sure that the $eat mapping $o8 is ticked" ou

normally ha!e to oom in %uite a lot to use this techni%ue 4nely" What you

want to do when the $eat is in front or $ehind the timescale grid is to gra$

the line and drag it o!er, so it sort of matches the $eat" Although it looks

like you are retiming your $eat, you are notC you are simply retiming the

$ackground grid" This is %uite a time consuming method, as you ha!e to

edit each indi!idual $eat, howe!er, once complete you will ne!er look

$ack = the results are astonishing"



(efore recording audio, you need to decide on three options for the audio

4les that you2ll $e recording" Go to Glo$al PreferencesE Logic ProE

PreferencesE Audio in order to !iew your 4le type, sample rate and $it

depth" The default $it depth is +', when un.ticking the $o8 it will

automatically change to *0 $it" #owe!er, 5 would recommend you lea!e itat +' $it, as it2s the $est %uality you can record to in Logic" 5t will take up

for space, $ut it will not ha!e as much dynamic range" Iow, go to the

Pro>ect SettingsE Glo$al PressE DileE Pro>ect SettingsE Audio, in order to

!iew your sample rate" )emem$er, the higher the sample rate when

recording is the higher the %uality" The only trade o6 is disk space, $ut

hard disks are really cheap nowadays" 1nce this is done, the ne8t thing

you should do is check your input, to make sure that all your hardware set

up is connected to Logic2s interface"

5f you are recording a $and, what you usually want to do is set up to load

audio tracks with di6erent inputs ;which you can do $y clicking on

ascending tracks<" The ne8t thing that you want to do is to make sure that

the $and is a$le to hear them through their headphone mi8" 5n order to

set up a headphone mi8, go to the mi8 window and select all of your

tracks" Ie8t, go to your sends and choose an a!aila$le $us ;an internal

mi8 pathway that takes the audio from one place to another within Logic<"

)ename the track to whate!er you want ;e"g" headphone mi8<, as you

want to keep your pro>ect organised, as it enhances your eciency and

workHow" After this, turn up your $us sends at each indi!idual region

channel, in order for the !olumes to $e heard"

1nce this is complete go to the Logic Pro Preferences and make sure that

in your audio folder, 5nput monitoring le!el for record.ena$led channel



strips is ticked, as you want to record and input ena$le multiple channels

at one time"

5f you ha!en2t noticed already, looping a region that is not lined up with

the $ackground grid causes the region to gradually get out of sync o!er

time" #owe!er, this pro$lem can $e sol!ed $y using repeat regionsC you

can access repeat regions $y typing cmdrB"

There are a few ways to slice up a region" ou can use the mar%uee tool

$y selecting an area around the part of the region that you wish to slice"

When letting go, a single click will make a slice o!er the length of the

mar%uee" Another way of slicing is $y placing the play head where you

want to put it and pressing cmdtB" Lastly, you can use the scissor tool

in order to slice as well, as you can cut where you want the slice to

happen" (y using the drag modes, you can ad>ust the way that you sliceregions due to their mo!ement throughout the timeline" The default drag

mode is no o!erlap = its use is for trimming regions once placed o!er

them, gi!ing reasoning for the name" The ne8t mode is o!erlap, which

works in a similar way" ou ha!e the freedom to mo!e your region around

where!er you want, $ut if you co!er up another region and then pull

away, it actually acted as a temporarily o!erlap" Also, cross fade drag

mode is interesting $ecause whene!er you o!erlap a region, Logic will

make a cross fade for that length of time" Iow, the $ottom drag modes

;shue right and shue left<, are a little $it dangerous" 5t acts as a

magnet, due to it snapping to the ne8t region to its leftB or rightB" This

can $e a time sa!er if you want to line up a $unch of regions" #owe!er,

when attempting to trim regions, shue can $e fatal, as if you try to trim,

let2s say the right side of a region, the region itself and any preceding

regions will mo!e down $y that amount" As a result, your whole track

channel could $e out of time with the rest of your pro>ect"

Dle8 pitch can $e used as a track $ased tool" Dirst, turn on He8 $y pressing

the $utton in the audio 4le editor region" At the !ery top of the He8 list, we

can ena$le He8 pitch" 1nce performed, you shall see 5:5.like $locks forthe audio regions" (y mo!ing these $locks up and down, you can change

the pitch of the audio region selected" When ooming in closer to the

$locks, you shall see that the $locks ha!e si8 dots around them" They all

ha!e di6erent >o$s" The upper edge dots ena$le you to ad>ust the pitch

drift $y mo!ing up and down" The upper middle dot on the other hand,

can ad>ust 4ne pitch, making the pitch slightly higher or lower" Also, you

can increase and decrease !i$rato $y pulling the middle $ottom dot" The

$ottom right edge dot is used for format shift, in order to mo!e the

formant" Lastly, the $ottom left edge dot is used for gain control, causingyou to increase and decrease le!els in d( of each indi!idual note"



(y using

Snap

mode to

$ar, you can

mo!e a

region

forward or

$ackwards a

whole $arC

mo!ing it

relati!e to

the time grid

$ehind it"

#owe!er,

when you set the Snap )egion to a$solute, the region will mo!e to the

nearest $ar $oundary" This causes the region to $e out of sync if you lined

with the $ackground grid" An anchor point always sets to the $eginning of

a region" (y default, the anchor point is set to the start of where the

region is, $ut can $e placed where!er you2d like within your region" (y

switching o!er to the audio 4le editor, you can see the anchor point at the

$ottom of the $rowser" (y mo!ing the anchor point to where the sound

$egins, when $eing mo!ed $y $ar, it should mo!e and line the region with

the place of the anchor point" When mo!ing $ack to the editing window,

you shall see that the region has a dot at the $ottom, showing that your

anchor point has $een ena$led"

Iotating di6erent arrangement sections of a song can $e an incredi$le

time sa!er when you2re na!igating around in your pro>ect" 5n the main

window you can open the glo$al tracks $y clicking the down arrow, up

a$o!e the track headers" So, with the play head at the $eginning of your

pro>ect, you can click the plus $utton on the arrangement track, to startan arrangement marker" 5f you click right on your arrangement track



name, Logic will gi!e you 4!e things to name your marker& intro, !erse,

chorus, $ridge or outro" Iot only can you use these arrangement tracks to

know where each element is in a song, $ut you can actually use them to

%uickly select across all the tracks and mo!e whole sections"

i8ing and astering

1rganiation is key for when mo!ing into the mi8ing stage of your pro>ect"

5n the mi8 window, they are normally a lot of tracks to look at, gi!ing

reasoning for why you can 4lter your tracks out $y type" So if 5

optionclickB on any type of channel that 5 wanted to see, that channel

of tracks would appear only" 5t2s good to $e consistent a$out your track

order, as you can sift through your order easily" 1nce you ha!e your tracks

in order, it2s good to colour code them $y type" This gi!es you easy !isual

access to di6erent track types" )emem$er, track colours can $e di6erentthan region colours" (y assigning tracks to groups, you can mo!e faders

and manipulate e6ects within those groups simultaneously" As a result,

you are cutting $ack on the time spent mi8ing, making it $etter for the

accuracy of your ears" Lastly, in order to na!igate %uickly through your

pro>ect, you should con!ert your arrangement sections to markers" To do

so, position your cursor at the start of each arrangement, and make a new

marker in the arker2s glo$al track lane" 1nce naming your markers, open

the List menu and go to arkers = now when you optionclickB on a

marker name, the play head will go e8actly to that spot in the mi8"

Space designer is a con!olution re!er$

used in Logic Pro X" The Google

de4nition of what re!er$ is is an e6ect

where$y the sound $eing produced $y

an ampli4ed musical instrument is

made to re!er$erate slightly" (y adding

little amounts of re!er$, you can add

su$tlety to your mi8, as it creates

warm" They are mainly known for $eingused on !ocals, $ut are also used on other instruments"

:elay on the other hand, is to make

something late or slow" :elay is

$asically a held up !ersion of re!er$C

shown to the left is an e8ample of

Logic2s delay = tape delay" This is not

only good for creating rhythmic Huidity

in your pro>ect $ut can also cause the



psychoacoustics such as& the cocktail party e6ect and haas e6ect" This

creates spatial awareness within the mi8"

Gates act as gates"""$asically they $lock certain

fre%uencies from entering, forcing them not to $e heard"

The image to the left is an e8ample of a gate used in

Logic called noise gate"

A compressor is used to reduce the

masses of dynamic range of sound signal

within your pro>ect" This is a useful tool,

as it deducts loudness throughout your

mi8" This also lea!es headroom for your

mi8, resulting in it $eing more useful

when in the mastering stage, as it is well

away from peaking le!els" To the left is a

Logic compressor"

To the left is an e8ample of an e%ualisation ;7<

plug.in" 7%ualisation is the process of ad>usting

the $alance $etween fre%uency components

within an electronic signal" any 7 plug.ins are

di6erent as some allow you to mo!e thefre%uencies a6ected whereas others don2t" This

e8ample to the left does"

Panning is used to create space within your

pro>ect, $y putting a region into the stereo

4eld ;left or right< . and can $e performed

through automation" #ard pans ;L@)< are unusual to come across these

days $ut can sometimes enhance a mi8" 7!ery track is di6erent, so

panning the hi hat on one track may not work for the ne8t, so the only

thing 5 can say is e8periment with this one, as they are no guidesQrules"

When recording and mi8ing, you must make sure that your le!els do not

peak, as this will cause a series of distortions to occur, resulting in the

harmonics $eing lost throughout your pro>ect" A constant

challengeQstruggle in today2s mi8ing world is the idea of loud $eing $etter

sounding, $etter %uality, and o!erall >ust a $etter song" So, in order to

satisfy the consumers needs and wants, make sure that you know how

and where to use limiters and compressors without losing a lot of the

songs harmonics, in the mi8ing and mastering stages"

(ouncing down your mi8



Logic $ounces from the

indicated start point of

your pro>ect to the end

$y the left pointing arrow

in the $ar ruler" (y mo!ingin the L@:, you can

change the length of your pro>ect"

Lea!ing the L@: too far from the

end of your pro>ect will cause silence to occur when

listening to the 4nal $ounce 4le" (ut, you also need

to make sure that it isn2t too close to the end of

your audio regions

$ecause you don2t want

to cut anything o6" ou also want to make sure that any tracks are not

soloed or muted $efore you $alance, and that nothing is cycling, as it will

$ounce only that cycled part of your mi8" Iow, go to DileE (ounceE

Pro>ect or Section in order to $ounce your pro>ect" 1nce 4lling out the !ital

information, $ounce your pro>ect to your preferred destination" 1nce

4nished, listen to your 4nished product"

my in-depth look at using logic pro x

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