#Reaper hot key mix edit window series#

Please keep these two analogies in mind as I will reference them throughout the article. When it comes to sound perception, I like to think of it as if I was placing each musical element in a room. Such is the role of a mixing engineer in a music production process. He/she has to have the image(Sound scope) in his mind to finally cook(Mix) the elements into a suitable dish(Song). Voila! That midi item is now colored.I like to picture the image of a cook, once he/she has all the necessary ingredients(Recorded performances) at hand. Choose the first option “Select Item and Take Colors”.ĥ. Highlight the midi item you want to color.Ĥ. These icons are added the same way you add color except instead of selecting “Track Color”, choose the menu option beneath it “Track Icon” and you will find lots and lots of icons of instruments that you can add to your track.ġ. You could also add an icon (small image) to the track to make it even easier to manage your work. Select “okay” and voila! You have a track that is colored to your choosing. At the bottom of this color palette window are about 2 dozen empty boxes where you can drag-and-drop colors you like to create a collection of colors that you like and would want to use often which eliminates the need to scroll through all of the colors looking for that particular red or blue color that you used last time.ħ. This opens another window with colors to choose from.Ħ. Choose the first one “Set tracks to custom color”ĥ. Select “Track Color” which opens up a side menu with four options.Ĥ. Highlight the track that you want to color (left-click on the track).ģ. With large projects (or small screens) the option to show multiple rows of tracks in the mixer can be very helpful. The mixer can be docked below the arrange view, or floating to be viewed on a second monitor.

Tracks can also have an expanded view, one of many layout options available in each theme. Master mono sum – enables mono master output with 4 options: Sum L + R (default), Left only, Right only, or Difference L – R.Master shows peak and RMS on expanded meter Metering – shows MIDI and audio activity for input and playback.Track Number – tracks are numbered as the appear in the project from left to right.Record Enable – click this if you want to record on this track.Polarity/Phase invert – flips the signal voltage polarity 180° Record input monitoring – listen to the input signal or notĮnvelopes/Automation – menu for automation modes and related options Volume Fader – makes the audio on this track louder or quieter.Panning – output the audio on this track on channel 1 (left output/speaker), channel 2 (right), both (center) or anywhere in between.Track Name – give your track a name to keep your project and files organized.I/O routing – opens this pop out window to configure routing in and out of the track FX chain bypass – add and edit effects for the track bypass all fx.Sends – All sends to other tracks and hardware outputs are in this section.FX Parameters (optional) – often used FX controls can be added for easy access.You can drag to change the order and copy to other tracks Inserts – All effects on the track are listed top to bottom.Track icon (optional) – you can insert an image to identify tracks, this is normally hidden MCP sections identified in default theme.The REAPER resembles the layout of a traditional hardware mixing console, but infinitely expandable, and customizable. While offering the same basic controls as the TCP, the mixer has everything laid out in an a large uncluttered way. The mixer is the part of REAPER where you mix your song. This tutorial will explain the various buttons and options of the Mixer Control Panel.

#Reaper hot key mix edit window series#

REAPER 101 is a series of short articles to help beginners get started with REAPER quickly.