In another step toward taking the Pro Tools platform to the next level, Digidesign offers a major revision of its Pro Tools digital audio workstation software. The upgrades in this new version are few in number, but they are major in scope, with several new editing tools, a refined user interface, optional video media support, MIDI sequencing and some system extension refinements that improve overall performance. For this review, I focused on music editing and MIDI features.

At the Starting Block
Pro Tools 5.0 comes on a new installation CD-ROM—no online upgrade is available. Users who bought Pro Tools|24 MIX or MIXPlus systems after April 19, 1999, are eligible for a free upgrade. Otherwise, it costs $199. As a bonus, buyers of a new MIX system receive a free TDM MIXpack consisting of Digidesign’s D-Verb, Focusrite’s d2 and Dynamics by Drawmer. Purchasers of MIXPlus systems also receive Focusrite’s d3, Line 6 Amp Farm and Access Virus. (The first TDM-based virtual synthesizer, Virus is awesome!)

New in Pro Tools 5: MIDI sequencing, Avid video import/capture/playback options, an updated interface and new editing features

Installation is routine. Double-click the installer application on the CD-ROM, and a Pro Tools 5.0 folder is created on your hard drive. (I installed the program on a Mac G3 266MHz desktop model outfitted with a 24 MIXPlus system.) Drivers and extensions are updated automatically, no hassles. However, the preference settings from my old version were not copied over. Unaware of this, I began using 5.0 and wondered why things weren’t responding normally (e.g., insertion points acted oddly, synchronization was off, missing I/O labels, etc.). Fortunately, I still had Version 4.2 installed; that was handy as a reference to remember my preferences, which I manually re-entered into the new software—a bit of a pain.

Digidesign’s ProControl worked fine with the new version and was a breeze to set up—simply enable ProControl in the Peripherals window and you’re ready to roll. Getting Mackie’s HUI to function properly was a little trickier. I set up HUI as a MIDI controller in the peripherals, as usual, but Pro Tools wouldn’t respond, reporting that it was “unable to communicate with HUI.” Turns out, with the new MIDI features, HUI must also be selected as an input device under the Input Device menu (which you’ll find in the main MIDI menu, a new item on the menu bar). Once I had done this, HUI performed flawlessly. This scenario will be the same for any MIDI controller.

A new version of TrackTransfer, Version 2.1, is installed with Pro Tools 5.0. I depend heavily on TrackTransfer to swap tracks between sessions. Unfortunately, Version 2.1 doesn’t recognize sessions created with Pro Tools versions earlier than 5.0. In order to use TrackTransfer on older sessions, they must first be converted to 5.0. To do this, open the old session in 5.0 and execute a Save As—conversion is automatic.

Better By Far
There are several significant, though inconspicuous, interface improvements that make the program a lot easier to operate. To begin, the Smart Tool button has disappeared, replaced by a small, space-efficient, bar beneath the Trimmer, Selector and Grabber tool buttons. Hitting this bar highlights all three icons and turns the cursor into the Smart Tool—pretty smart.

The Trimmer, Grabber and Pencil tool buttons now sport sub-menus. Clicking and holding the button opens up the tool’s options. Grabber modes include Time (the standard mode), Separation (the selection is cut at the same time it’s moved), or Object (moves only the object selected, regardless of whether or not the track is part of a group). The Pencil has five different drawing modes, from Freehand (the old standard), to Line (straight lines only), and Random (for way-out designs). In addition to the regular Trimmer mode, there’s Scrub (which trims and scrubs simultaneously) and TCE (the appropriate amount of time compression or expansion is applied to the selection to make it fit to the trim location—way cool). The new Trimmer and Grabber modes function in tandem with the Smart Tool, making the Smart Tool extremely flexible.

Multiple timeline rulers can now be displayed simultaneously (e.g., hours:minutes and bars:beats), in the Edit window. Location markers are visible on their own dedicated ruler, complete with names. The bright yellow markers are easy to see and can be freely dragged about. (Indeed, they’re so easy to move, a way to lock their positions down would be nice.) A large Main counter and smaller Sub counter are seen in both the Edit and Transport windows. Each counter can show all available time formats, independent of the other. Discrete Grid and Nudge displays let these two functions operate separately. For example, Grid could be set to whole notes and Nudge to a single millisecond. This is excellent for dialing in “a feel” during music production.

Digidesign 1622 I/O support has been added to the Playback Engine Setup. Once selected as an interface, the 1622’s gain is controllable directly via a 0dBV to +18dBu A/D input reference level mixer under Other Options. The 1622’s 1/4-inch I/Os are particularly nice for keeping synthesizers and other line-level instruments normaled to Pro Tools, negating the need to run everything through a mixing board—perfect for project and pro studios alike—I love it.

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Reprinted with permission from Mix Magazine, July, 2000
© 2000, Intertec Publishing, A Primedia Company All Rights Reserved