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May 11, 2018

Logic Pro X Automation: Your Secret Weapon For Mixes That Move

 

Automation is the secret weapon to dynamic and emotional mixes.

It’s like playing your mixes live. In a live show you might change vocal effects, or play harder, or hit the distortion pedal.

If all this movement occurs naturally, shouldn’t it occur in your mixes as well?

And it absolutely can! Automation is your key to mixes that adapt dynamically over time.

All it takes is familiarizing yourself with Logic’s intuitive and brilliant Automation system.

Automation – Where Mixes Come Alive

In a nutshell, Automation is your way of telling Logic you want things to change at certain moments. Those things could be:

  • Volume
  • Panning
  • Plugin Controls

It all starts with the letter ‘A.’ Open one of your Logic mixes, and hit Key Command A to view your mix’s Automation:

Logic Pro X Automation Key Command A

Several new menus will appear in your Track Headers. By default Logic offers Volume as the first adjustable parameter:

Logic Pro X Automation Menus Track Header

Say you want the drums to get way louder at a certain spot. Simply use the Marquee Tool to select that spot on the Track Lane:

Logic Pro X Automation Marquee Selection

Click on the area you selected, and Logic will create 4 new Automation Points, or Nodes:

Logic Pro X Automation Nodes

And drag the line between the Nodes up to add some volume to that spot:

Logic Pro X Volume Automation

But you can also adjust the nodes as well. You can adjust the level of a Node:

Logic Pro X Automation Adjust Node

Or delete them altogether by double-clicking a Node:

Logic Pro X Automation

Easy, right?

You’re not only restricted to Volume either. If you click on the menu and travel down to Main, you’ve got several other options:

Logic Pro X Automation Options

From there you can adjust:

  • Panning your track
  • Soloing your track
  • Muting your track

Want a track to drop out for a moment? Set your Automation to Mute, select that part, and adjust it to Mute:

Logic Pro X Muted Automation

And beyond that, you can also Automate just about anything else as well! This includes Plugin and Instrument parameters.

Try opening up a new Drummer track. And dig into the Automation menu:

Logic Pro X Channel EQ Automation

Your EQ, Compressor, Sends and Drum Kit are all adjustable!

 

Can’t you imagine the possibilities?

The 4 Modes of Writing Automation

Logic Pro X Writing Automation

Writing Automation can be incredibly fast using the Marquee Tool:

  • Select a section with the Marquee Tool,
  • Click within that selection,
  • Drag the nodes or line around

And I’ve found this method works great for me 99.9% of the time.

But sometimes you need a more hands on way of adjusting Automation. The classic scenario are Vocal Rides.

Vocal Rides are when you literally ride the vocals with the fader.

By riding the fader, you can write detailed and careful automation. Your vocals will sound more even. And you can actually make the most out of compression by riding them before the Compressor.

Logic recognizes this need, and provides 3 ways to write Automation. And you can access them in the field below your Output and Groups:

1. Touch Mode

Logic Pro X Automation Touch Mode

Each mode allows you to write Automation as you listen to your track. To do this:

  • Hit Spacebar to start playback,
  • Grab your fader, pan pot, or plugin knob, and
  • Begin adjusting as the track plays

As you adjust a knob or fader, you’ll see Automation being written onto your track.

What makes each mode unique is when and how it responds. Touch Mode begins writing Automation when you begin adjusting.

When you stop adjusting knobs, Touch Mode will return to wherever that knob first began.

So if you’re Track’s Fader was set to 0 dB before you touched it, once you let go of it, it will return to 0 dB.

This can be handy if you want Logic to revert back to the original setting afterwards.

2. Latch Mode

Latch Mode is like Touch Mode, except in one respect. And that’s what happens once you stop writing Automation.

You know how Touch Mode returns your knob or fader to wherever it started when you stop writing Automation?

Latch Mode does the opposite. When you let go of that fader or knob, Latch Mode just leaves it there.

So if you slowly drag the fader down to -20 dB and let go, that fader stays at -20 dB.

This can be handy if you want to end your Automation at a specific level or setting.

3. Write Mode

Write Mode is the opposite of the last 2 modes. You see, Touch and Latch won’t start writing until you begin adjusting parameters. But Write Mode starts writing Automation immediately.

Any time you start playback in Write Mode, Logic starts writing Automation. Whether you’re doing anything or not!

It’s not too often when you’ll want to use Write Mode. 9 times out of 10 Touch and Latch are far more useful.

4. Read Mode

Read Mode is what you set your track to when you’re done writing Automation. Instead of writing, Logic simply “reads” or plays back the Automation you’ve set.

It’s always best to change your Automation Mode to Read when you’ve nailed that perfect ride of a fader or knob.

Track-Based vs Region-Based Automation

Logic Pro X Track-based and Region-based Automation

Not only can you write automation for just about anything in Logic. But you can also decide what style of Automation works best for you!

If you’re working with loops or samples, you may find you want your Automation to repeat.

For example, say you have a shaker loop. And you want that shaker to pan from left to right super fast:

Logic Pro X Region-Based Automation

And you want to loop that shaker throughout the song. Are you going to want to write that panning Automation for the whole song?

Heck no! That’ll take waaaay too long.

But if you set your Automation to Region-based Automation, do it once and you’re done.

The Automation you write is Region-specific. So when you loop that Region, the Automation repeats:

Logic Pro X Region-Based Automation

 

But in the case of vocals, your Automation may not be Region specific at all. Instead your Automation rides span the length of the Vocal Track.

In that case, you’ll want Track-based Automation.

To select between the two modes, you can use the handy menu in the Track Header:

Logic Pro X Region and Track Based Automation Menu

And what’s best of all, you can Copy and Paste Regions in either mode, and all the Automation sticks along for the ride!

Logic Pro X Copying and Pasting Automation

Adjusting Automation En Masse

After you’ve written Automation in painstaking detail, you may find you need to adjust all the nodes later.

Say you rode your vocals, and every whisper and shout is locked in.

But it turns out your vocals as a whole are too quiet in the mix. What the heck do you do?

You sure as heck don’t want to go back and rewrite that Automation. I think we can agree that watching paint dry would be more enticing.

That’s why Logic also provides a way to adjust all your Automation together:

Logic Pro X Automation Trim

With the Automation Trim, you can boost or reduce the level of your Automation across the whole track!

You don’t have to select anything. You don’t have to worry about missing nodes. Just click on the Trim, and drag away.

Conclusion

Automation is your secret weapon to dynamic mixes that move.

By telling Logic to adapt your plugins and faders, you increase the emotional impact and story your mixes tell.

So go ahead – give your mixes the secret of movement πŸ™‚

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Filed Under: Mixing, Workflow

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Sean Michael says

    May 11, 2018 at 4:51 am

    Great video and invaluable information once again!!

    Reply
    • chris.vandeviver says

      May 11, 2018 at 11:49 am

      Thanks so much for checking it out Sean Michael πŸ™‚

      Reply
  2. Shawn says

    May 17, 2018 at 2:22 pm

    Hey you should do a tutorial on making sure a bounce comes out loud and but crisp still

    Reply
    • Shawn says

      May 17, 2018 at 2:22 pm

      loud but crisp*

      Reply
    • chris.vandeviver says

      May 17, 2018 at 2:27 pm

      Already on it πŸ˜‰

      Reply
  3. Eric says

    March 27, 2019 at 1:30 pm

    Hey Chris, thanks for the great overview of Automation. This will be sure to help out! I’ve read a lot about automating vocals to keep them on top of the mix, and I’m curious if this is something that you do in every scenario, or if you have a rule -of-thumb for *when* to automate.

    Secondly, I came across this post while researching the Waves Plugin, Vocal Rider. Have you used any plug ins like this? Do they seem worth the investment, or have you found yourself sticking to automating yourself?

    Reply
    • chris.vandeviver says

      March 27, 2019 at 2:04 pm

      Hey Eric! I believe vocal riding is a necessity for getting that modern, locked in vocal sound.

      However, vocal riding is a tedious task, so I rely on plugins instead to save the hours vocal riding can take.

      I owned the Waves Vocal Rider for a short bit, but ultimately sold my license. I just never found the results satisfying. Instead I rely on Melda’s mAutoVolume. Dialing it in is SUPER easy, and always spot on:

      https://www.meldaproduction.com/MAutoVolume

      Reply
  4. Sultrix says

    December 9, 2020 at 6:39 am

    Hi
    Thanks for the article. Wish you were in NYC. Would love to do some logic sessions with you.
    I am preparing a song for mastering.
    The master volume is to high.
    Every track has volume automation.
    I am trying to drag down the volume of the entire song a few db.
    How do I drag down the automation volume for all the tracks at once equally?
    Also, One track in my song is a DRUMMER track with multiple-output. Within that there is automation for the Kick , snare , etc.
    Any ideas for a simple drag down without ruining the vibe of the song?
    thanks for your help.
    Version: Logic 10.6.0

    Reply

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