Setting Up a Pro Tools LE Session

• 1). Designate the input and output options. Go to “Setup > Hardware” and choose your Pro Tools hardware device (e.g. an Mbox 2 Pro) under the “Peripherals” window. Also set the Sample Rate in the drop-down box on the hardware screen. Choose “I/O...” from the “Setup” menu and assign specific devices such as microphones to stereo or mono inputs.
  
  
• 2). Open a “New Session” (Cmnd-N on Macintosh; Cntrl-N on Windows) under the “File” menu item. Pro Tools stores all of the tracks, edits and settings for a session in a separate folder called a session folder. In the “New Session” window you can choose where the session folder will be stored, the audio file type (AIFF, WAV, or SD II), the sample rate for this session and the bit depth of the recording.
  
  
• 3). In the “New Session” window that appears where the session folder will be stored, choose the audio file type (AIFF, WAV or SD II), the sample rate for this session and the bit depth of the recording .
  
  

Creating a New Audio Track

• 1). Create a new track in the “Edit” window that opens for the session. Choose “Track,” “New” and accept the default of one new track. Specify whether it is a Mono or Stereo track, and choose “Audio Track” from the drop-down menu. Then click “Create.”
  
  
• 2). Name the new track by double-clicking in the left-hand window that defaults to “Audio 1.” A window will open that lets you name the track (such as “Jim vocal” or “Piano” and attach any comments about what information the track will contain. Click “OK.”
  
  
• 3). Open the “Mix” window (Cmnd-W on the Macintosh; Cntrl-W in Windows). Set the input and output for the track by clicking the track buttons that initially read “no input” and “no output.”
  
  

Recording an Audio Track

• 1). In the “Edit” window, click the “R” to the left of the track menu. This “Track Record Enable” button will turn red, and the recording meter will indicate that the software is receiving a signal from a microphone or instrument. At this point the track is “armed,” but a signal will not be recorded unless the “Record Enable” button is also clicked.
  
  
• 2). Choose the "Record Enable" button at the top right-hand end of the menu bar, or on the floating transport window. The Record Enable button will turn red and blink. When you press the “Play” button on the menu bar or transport window, recording will begin from the cursor position.
  
  
• 3). End recording by pressing the “Stop” button on the menu bar or transport window. Listen to the recorded track by clicking on the timeline at the beginning of the recorded segment and pressing the “Play” button. Save the recording by choosing “Save” from the “File” menu.
  
  
• 4). Add new tracks with different instruments and vocals. Move the tracks in relation to each other by choosing the "Slip Mode" in the upper left-hand corner of the menu bar, and using the "Grabber Tool" (the icon that looks like an open hand) to select the track and slide it along the timeline. You can mute certain tracks by pressing the "M" button in the track window. Or you can solo a particular track by choosing the "S" button.