Do you actually Freeze / Bounce In Your Daw?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Killah_Trakz
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Killah_Trakz

Who Cares!
or do you just group and feel your pc can handle the challenge, and to the ptle folks how do u deal with this.
 
I'm not sure I understand.

Are you saying do we lock/freeze effects tracs rather than running all effects real-time?

Not many computers can run a whole lot of effects real time, so yeah it only makes sence to lock effects that aren't bieng tweaked.
 
in my sonar 4, once i record a track, add the effects and am happy with the outcome, i always "freeze" the track to save CPU consumption.

if i feel i need to change it later in the mix, its easy to unfreeze it, make the changes, and freeze it again.
 
It depends on what I'm doing. I bounce when finishing a mix that is post production, like a dubbing mix of dialogue, foley, roomtone, etc. But a music mix I will do real time, usually using my outboard gear.
 
I rarely ever run out of CPU unless I really load up the effects but at that point it all sounds so crappy I get up and walk away.
 
I see no reason not to freeze/lock a track when I'm done with it, even if it may be only temporarily. Not only does it save on CPU cycles, but it also makes it harder to accidentally make on-the-fly changes to the wrong track.

G.
 
SouthSIDE Glen said:
I see no reason not to freeze/lock a track when I'm done with it, even if it may be only temporarily. Not only does it save on CPU cycles, but it also makes it harder to accidentally make on-the-fly changes to the wrong track.

G.
That's good logic, so long as your recording app has the ability to unlock.

In Sonar, for example (until version 5), when you applied an effect, the underlying wave was actually altered. While there was an undo button, it only worked until you exited the program. After that you were forever stuck with what you did. With version 5 they introduced a Freeze feature, which allowed you to later unfreeze.

For people like me, who tweak a project until it bleeds and cries uncle, I can never commit to something I can't later undo. There were workarounds, such as cloning the track, applying the effect to the clone, and archiving the original track. But I'm too lazy for that, so I just ran everything in real time. :)
 
dachay2tnr said:
In Sonar, for example (until version 5), when you applied an effect, the underlying wave was actually altered. While there was an undo button, it only worked until you exited the program. After that you were forever stuck with what you did.
Ah yeah, that had to suck. And under those conditions I'd agree. I was assuming software that had the "unlock" capability. I didn't realize Sonar didn't have that until 5; I've kind of come to take it for granted for a while now. Even the most jaded of us can get spoiled, I guess :o .

G.
 
dachay2tnr said:
In Sonar, for example (until version 5), when you applied an effect, the underlying wave was actually altered. While there was an undo button, it only worked until you exited the program. After that you were forever stuck with what you did. With version 5 they introduced a Freeze feature, which allowed you to later unfreeze.

Sonar introduced the Freeze feature in version 4. And even before then, you could put the effects in the FX bin and they wouldn't alter the audio file.

I use Sonar 4. There is no reason not to Freeze tracks in my opinion, it takes like a literal 3 extra seconds and it saves a lot of processing power. However, you can't freeze effects on busses, so freezing is only an option you can use for insert effects.
 
I only freeze if I'm getting close to running out of CPU. Sometimes this won't be obvious until I go to mixdown and get the famous pops and clicks. So in that event I'll freeze everything and mix that sucker back down. I've noticed that reverb plugs like to rape my CPU the most so I'm especially watchful of their drag on my processor.
 
I normally freeze/bounce as a matter of course... but this current tune I'm working on, is kind of a pickle as the snare channel out of Battery is what's taking up the most CPU, and I can't bounce that until I finish the tune as the drum track isn't a simple 4 bar loop type thing, so I need to keep it unfrozen, until it's done. Normally I handle this at the sound design stage, but in this case I've got 4 different snares, each of which is velocity switched. all interacting with one another, so yeah... I got a Reaktor reverb, EQ, a Reaktor contraption doing some slight envelope followed aliasing+quantization, compression, delay and more EQ going on there with the Reaktor stuff taking up most of the processing.
 
I usually have to start freezing at around 20 tracks. I use Tracktion 2, and it seem that reverbs and compressors use up the most resources. but for tracking purposes, simply disableing or muting works just as good, and you don't have to sit and wait for the freeze.
 
The first thing I do before mixing is to archive any tracks that aren't being used. This takes a huge load off of the processor. Then I use reverbs as aux sends rather than individual tracks so I am only running one instance except maybe on the snare and on the vocal. As far as eq, compression, etc., when I get to a point in the mix where I am comfortable with that track, I will freeze it except for vocals because eq and compression can make such a big difference. Then I group all the drums together on one output, the guitars on another output, lead vocal on another and so on so that I have 4 or 5 faders to work with rather than 25 - 30.

Thomas
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i don't think you can "freeze" a track in PT..you can audiosuite most plugins, so if you're having problems with running out of CPU steam then you can always audiosuite any and all tracks that you're happy with.

i don't find this much of a problem, so i've never really done it..
 
MessianicDreams said:
i don't think you can "freeze" a track in PT..you can audiosuite most plugins, so if you're having problems with running out of CPU steam then you can always audiosuite any and all tracks that you're happy with.

i don't find this much of a problem, so i've never really done it..

the "freeze" concept I'm not very familiar with...but you can also just route all your tracks to another stereo audio track and re-record the track with the effects. that way you don't replace any of your other tracks with an audio suite plugin.
 
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