Seventeenth Lesson - Posted on 2015-07-18 by Nicolas Anderson

     We now move on to Automation.  In Pro Tools, automation is the ability to control a specific parameter automatically by telling Pro Tools what to do & when to do it in real time, like volume, panning, etc.  Before such a thing as Automation existed, an entire studio staff would have to come in & alter the mix as it bounced down to a two-track stereo tape machine.  Quite a hassle to say the least.  If they left the studio, they'd have to log all the faders, every sound position, & every setting on outboard gear before they left, it took hours.  The first mixing console to offer movng faders was called NECAM, developed by Neve in the mid 1970's & based on VCA automation.  They stared out very pricey, became a high end optional feature in the 1980's, a standard feature on some 1990's desks, & now can even be found on low end gear. 

     SSL (Solid State Logic) called their moving faders "Ultimation," & also coined the term Total Recall: instead of having to log all the settings on outboard gear, Total Recall allows you to save all those positions & easily switch between sessions.  A company called Martinsounds created the Flying Faders console in 1989, in an effort to design a virtual console.  It improved upon the NECAM & the GML (George Massenburg Labs) technology.  They struck an exclusicve licensing deal with Neve but went solo in 1998.  They are still widely used today.

     In Pro Tools, there are five modes of Automation:

Off: all automation writing & playback is disabled

Read: "play only" mode

Touch: automation writing starts when a parameter is modified & stops writing when parameter is released, then it                     returns to it's original status

Latch: just like touch, but continues writing after parameter is released, automation stops being written when playback           stops

Write: automation starts when playback starts & stops when playback stops, erases peviously written automation data