New Software Review: Pro Tools 12

January 19th, 2016 by Zach McNees

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Avid’s Pro Tools 12

Avid’s Pro Tools has grown by leaps and bounds in the past few years. Version 11 brought a completely re-written app with a 64-bit architecture, possibly the biggest step forward for the gold standard of DAWs since its inception. Now, Pro Tools is back with version 12 and there is a lot to be excited about. Let’s see what’s new in Pro Tools 12.

Tech Specs

Avid’s Pro Tools 12 and 12 HD runs on both Mac and PC. OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.5) or higher is required for Mac users, and Windows 7 or 8 is required for PC Users. At least 4 GB of RAM, 8GB video playback, and an iLok 2 authorization is required for both PC and Mac users.

Pro Tools can now be purchased or licensed in a few different configurations. The new price point and monthly licensing options arguably makes owning Pro Tools easier and more affordable than it’s ever been:

• Perpetual license + annual upgrade plan: $599.
• Monthly subscription with upgrade plan: $29.99
• Annual subscription with Upgrade Plan (billed monthly): $24.92.

But it’s not just the business model that’s changed. Pro Tools 12 brings with it some spectacular features for improving workflow and increasing productivity. Here’s what’s new:

Clip Transparency

Clip Transparency is one of those features that you won’t believe didn’t exist until now. Audio clips now take on a translucent look as you move them, giving you immediate visual feedback when aligning tracks together.

This has been particularly useful to me in post-production projects when aligning batches of tracks to a guide mix, helping me to ensure frame-accurate sync quickly and easily. Clip transparency is probably one of the most immediately noticeable new features in Pro Tools 12 and has been an instant favorite with everyone I’ve spoken to who has used this new version.

Track Freeze / Track Commit / Track Bounce

This trifecta is the true heart Pro Tools 12’s new feature lineup. Track freeze and Track Commit allow you to quickly and easily process tracks, and even groups of tracks in place and offline. You can choose to render all of your plugins’ settings, or just a portion of them, up to certain plugin in the chain. This can save DSP, make your sessions more portable, and make sharing sessions with collaborators much easier.

Imagine you have a virtual instrument such as MIDI drums or keys. Once the performance is completed, you can use Track Freeze or Track Commit, to that instrument, audio or aux track immediately at the click of a button, rendering the track either into a new audio clip using Track Commit, or “freezing” the track in place with Track Freeze. The difference between is the two simple:

Track Freeze immediately renders your track in place, freeing up DSP previously hogged by its associated plug-ins. The only catch is that the track cannot be moved or edited in any way. The track is simply frozen in place, and is shown as greyed-out with diagonal lines. This is a quick one-step action for offline processing a track in your session that you know is finished, but is taking up lots of DSP.

Track Commit processes tracks in the same manner as Track Freeze but renders a new audio track in its place, which can then be edited and moved as you see fit. A dialogue box for Track Commit gives you a slew of options here. For instance, you can choose whether or not to render Volume, Mute and Pan automation as part of the track commit or keep them in place The newly committed tracks are then created and the old “live” tracks are then automatically made inactive and hidden.

Track Bounce allows you to select groups of tracks (or aux returns) and bounce them out immediately and on-the-fly with offline bounce. This provides a lightning fast way of creating stems for delivery.

These three new features provide a huge number of possibilities for speeding up workflow, increasing productivity and saving DSP power within a session—as well as making it easier than ever to move sessions to and from different studios.

These two videos from Avid showcase in detail some of the many ways that Track Freeze, Track Commit and Track Bounce can be useful to you, and I strongly recommend taking a moment to review them:

In addition to these big and obvious updates, there are a few other worthy new features built into Pro Tools 12 as well, including:

Avid Applications Manager

Finally! The new Avid Applications Manager helps manage software updates and add-ons all in one place. While not the sexiest feature, this is a huge and much needed new feature for keeping your Pro Tools rig up to date with the latest software version and Avid plugins. 

The applications manager alerts you when new versions are available and then downloads and installs within the manager application with just a few clicks. I have used this feature at least twice since installing and am pleased by how easy the updating process has become. No more navigating the labyrinths of the Avid website just to install a simple and much-needed patch.

Dashboard

The Dashboard now replaces the Quick Start dialogue box upon opening Pro Tools. Like the old Quick Start dialogue, Dashboard allows you to create a new session from scratch or from a template, or load a recent session. But all this has become much more cohesive: Dashboard’s layout allows for you to create a session with the parameters you need from file type and sample rate, bit depth and I/O settings and choose precisely where to store the session, all without ever leaving Dashboard.

Session Metadata



Pro Tools 12 finally brings with it a Metadata Inspector window. This allows you to input metadata for the session such as Artist, Contributors, Sample Rate, bit Depth, Location, and so on. The metadata is stored within the Pro Tools session file, keeping your essential session notes all in one place. 

While the “Contributors” line arguably covers it, it would be nice to see an update to the Metadata Inspector window in the future that allows for specific input for engineers and producers. Metadata Inspector is a great addition that allows for easier notation of credits when moving sessions to and from different studios.

I/O Setup Improvements



Another addition that makes sessions more portable and easy to share is the new Monitor Path I/O feature.

With Pro Tools 12, you get to designate a default “Monitor Path” for the main output of your sessions. This means that when you open a session created on one Pro Tools system on another Pro Tools system (with its own unique Monitor path configuration) the program automatically maps the session’s Monitor path to the new system’s assigned Monitor path.

Also new to the I/O section (in Pro Tools HD only) is the ability to downmix and upmix to physical output paths on your audio interface of greater or lesser width. For example, you can assign a 5.1 output path to a stereo output path, which will then be downmixed to stereo by Pro Tools internally.

Batch Fades



With Batch Fades, you can control separate input, output and crossfade preset settings all in one shot, which allows for greater flexibility when editing. The Batch Fades window also allows you to store presets that can be recalled directly from a keyboard or control surface.

Pro Tools Control iOS App



This is a truly useful (and free) addendum to Pro Tools. The Pro Tools Control app works seamlessly with the Avid EUCON technology to allow you to control their Pro Tools sessions remotely via iPad. Controls for transport, faders, pan and much more are all available through touch screen with the Control iOS app, allowing you to tweaks settings or hit record from just about anywhere.

Bundled Plugins

A killer new collection of bundled plugins are available for both Pro Tools and Pro Tools HD users, exclusively through the All Access Annual Upgrade and Support Plan, Annual Plug-in and Support Plan, or a Pro Tools subscription.

Eleven Effects adds 17 brand new plugins to your Pro Tools rig with stomp boxes for distortion, compression, reverb, delay, modulation and more. Many of these stomp boxes are modeled closely after some of the most iconic and recognizable guitar pedals in the world. 

These boxes sound fantastic. I was thrilled with how each of them performed on a number of instruments from guitar and bass to drums and even vocals.

Also included in the plug-in bundle for HD customers are:

• Avid’s Space convolution reverb
• Pro Multiband Dynamics
• Pro Subharmonic
• ReVibe II
• Reverb One and
• Avid’s System 5 console dynamics including:
• Pro Compressor
• Pro Expander and
• Pro Limiter

To Be Critical

The missing link for many of my colleagues is the lack of options for obtaining an official Pro Tools HD license without buying new Avid hardware. Pro Tools HD is currently available only through bundles with the purchase of new Native or HD hardware. This is the single most asked-for option within the community in my opinion.

Summing it Up

Pro Tools 12 offers unparalleled DAW functionality and an absolutely killer list of new features. 

It’s clear that Avid has been listening to its users and, at long last, has responded with an update that increases productivity and functionality across the board. Avid has also gone the extra mile by creating the Applications Manager to ensure that plug-ins, firmware and drivers now can be updated and installed quickly and easily in one central location.

All of this makes for a better experience when working which means less stress, more fun and less time wasted each day. I didn’t even know that I wanted it, but now that I’ve experienced it, I’ve got to admit that Pro Tools 12 is a must-have!

Zach McNees is a Brooklyn-based producer/engineer/mixer and live recordist whose work includes Björk, Rob Thomas, The Gregory Brothers, Pixies, and many more. Zach’s post-production work includes House Hunters International (HGTV), VICE (HBO), All-American Makers (Science Channel) and the award winning documentary short “For The Love of Dogs”. Get in touch with Zach at http://www.zachmcnees.com.