Pro Tools Reference Guide118
VCA Master Tracks
(Pro Tools HD Only)
VCA Master tracks (or VCA Masters) emulate the
operation of voltage-controlled amplifier chan-
nels on analog consoles, where a VCA channel
fader would be used to control, group, or offset
the signal levels of other channels on the con-
sole.
VCA Master tracks do not pass audio, so they do
not have inputs, outputs, inserts or sends. A Mix
Group is assigned to a VCA Master track, which
appears in the VCA track’s Assignment selector.
The controls of the tracks in that Mix Group,
called the slave tracks, are modified by the con-
trols on the VCA Master.
MIDI Tracks
MIDI tracks store MIDI note, instrument, and
controller data. You cannot select a track format
when you create a MIDI track, because audio
does not pass through it.
Instrument Tracks
Instrument tracks are a special type of track that
provide both MIDI and audio capabilities in a
single channel strip. Instrument tracks simplify
using software and hardware instruments to
record and monitor MIDI instruments.
Track Formats
Mono Tracks
A mono audio, Auxiliary Input, Master Fader, or
Instrument track controls volume, and, in some
cases, panning, for a single channel of audio. A
mono audio track uses a single voice. A mono
track can also be routed to a multichannel out-
put.
Stereo Tracks
A stereo audio, Auxiliary Input, Master Fader, or
Instrument track is a single channel strip that
plays two channels of audio as a stereo pair. Ste-
reo audio tracks use two voices.
Multichannel Tracks (Pro Tools HD Only)
A multichannel track is a single channel strip
that plays multiple channels of audio (from 3–8
channels at a time). This allows Pro Tools to
support multichannel mixing formats including
LCRS, 5.1, 6.1, and others. Audio, Auxiliary In-
put, Master Fader, and Instrument tracks can all
use any supported multichannel format.
For more information on surround mixing with
Pro Tools, see the following chapters:
• Chapter 32, “Pro Tools Setup for Surround
(Pro Tools HD Only)”
• Chapter 33, “Multichannel Tracks and
Signal Routing (Pro Tools HD Only)”
• Chapter 34, “Surround Panning and Mixing
(Pro Tools HD Only)”
For more information, see “VCA Master
Tracks” on page 630.
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