manual/include/adding-tracks-busses-and-vcas.html

<figure class="left">
    <img class="mini" src="/images/add-track-or-bus.png" alt="the add-track dialog">
    <figcaption>
      The Add Track/Bus/VCA dialog.
    </figcaption>
</figure>

<p>
  A track, bus or VCA can be added to a session by either:
</p>

<ul>
  <li>Choosing <kbd class="menu">Track &gt; Add Track, Bus or VCA&hellip;</kbd>.</li>
  <li><kbd class="mouse">Right</kbd>-clicking in an empty part of the track controls area.</li>
  <li>Clicking the <kbd class="menu">Plus (&plus;)</kbd> button underneath the list of tracks in the mixer.</li>
</ul>
<p>
  Any of these actions will open the Add Track/Bus/VCA dialog.
</p>

<p>
  The list of available track templates (both factory and user-created ones)
  in the left panel allows to choose the <a href="@@track-types">track(s) type</a>
  (e.g. Audio, MIDI, bus, VCA etc.). Some templates can do even more, like the
  factory-provided <kbd class="menu">Live Band</kbd> that automatically creates
  a number of usual tracks for a common band setup. See <a
  href="@@newopen-session-dialog">New Session</a> for more information about
  templates.
</p>

<p>
  The common templates have parameters to tweak:
</p>

<table class="dl">
  <tr><th>Add</th>
  <td>Selects the number of tracks, busses or VCAs to create.</td></tr>
  <tr><th>Name</th>
  <td>Defines the name of the new track(s). If multiple tracks are created, or if
a track with the same name already exists, a space and number will be happened
at the end (e.g.: Audio 1, Audio 2&hellip;).</td></tr>
  <tr><th>Configuration</th>
  <td>This menu allows to choose from a number of route templates, which determine
the number of input ports and optionally contain plugins and other mixer strip
configuration. The most common choices here are <em>mono</em> and
<em>stereo</em>.</td></tr>
  <tr><th>Instrument</th>
  <td>This option is only available for MIDI tracks and busses and allows the
selection of a default instrument from the list of available plugins.</td></tr>
  <tr><th>Group</th>
  <td>Tracks and busses can be assigned groups so that a selected range of
  operations are applied to all members of a group at the same time (selecting
  record enable, or editing, for example). This option assigns the new track/bus
  to an existing group, or create a new group.</td></tr>
  <tr><th>Pin Mode</th>
  <td>Defines how the number of output responds to adding a plugin with a
  different number of outputs than the track itself. In <em>Strict I/O</em> mode,
  plugins cannot alter the track's channel count, while in <em>Flexible I/O</em>
  mode, it will automatically adapt
  to the I/O of its plugins. See <a href="@@trackbus-signal-flow">Signal flow</a>
  to learn more about those options.</td></tr>
  <tr><th>Record mode</th>
  <td>This option is only available for audio tracks and affects how it behaves
  when recording. See <a href="@@track-types#trackmodes">Track Modes</a> for
  details.</td></tr>
  <tr><th>Position</th>
  <td>Defines where in the track list is the track created. The default is
<em>Last</em>, i.e. after all the tracks and busses, and can also be
<em>First</em>, <em>Before Selection</em> (to place it just above the selected
track) or <em>After selection</em>.</td></tr>
</table>

<p>
  Multiple tracks of different types can be created by using the <kbd
  class="menu">Add selected items (and leave dialog open)</kbd> button, which, used
  in conjunction with the <kbd class="menu">Add</kbd> field, allows for a very efficient
  and fast way to create a base track setup.
</p>

<p>
  New tracks appear in both the editor and mixer windows. The editor window
  shows the timeline, with any recorded data, and the mixer shows just the
  processing elements of the track (its plugins, fader and so on).
</p>

<h2>Removing Tracks and Busses</h2>
<p>
  <dfn>Removing</dfn> tracks and busses, is done by selecting them, <kbd
  class="mouse">right</kbd>-clicking and choosing <kbd class="menu">Remove</kbd>
  from the menu. A warning dialog will pop up, as track removal cannot be undone;
  this option should be used with care!
</p>