Exporting stems in Pro Tools while including your track's effects involves consolidating the audio clips on each track and then exporting the resulting consolidated files. This method captures the signal flow, including insert effects, volume, and pan, up to the point of consolidation.
Understanding Stems with Effects in Pro Tools
When exporting stems, you typically want to provide individual audio files for different elements of your mix (like vocals, drums, bass, etc.). Including effects means these exported files will sound similar to how they do within your Pro Tools session on their respective tracks.
The consolidation method is a common way to achieve this, as it creates a new audio file that is the rendered output of a track or selection, incorporating the processing applied via inserts, volume, and pan.
The Consolidation Method for Effect-Laden Stems
Based on the provided reference, exporting stems with effects can be achieved by following these steps:
- Select Tracks: Highlight all the tracks you wish to export as stems. It's often recommended to select from the end to the beginning of the session for consistency in some workflows.
- Consolidate Clips: Use the
Editmenu at the top and selectConsolidate Clip. This action renders the selected clips on each track into a single, continuous audio file for the entire selected duration. This newly created audio file will inherently include the processing from the track's inserts, volume, and pan settings up to that point. - Export Clips: With the newly consolidated clips still selected, use the Pro Tools shortcut to export them as files.
This process effectively 'prints' the track's effects onto the new consolidated audio file before exporting it, ensuring your stems include that processing.
Step-by-Step Guide to Exporting Stems Using Consolidation
Here is the detailed procedure based on the reference:
- Select Tracks: In your Pro Tools session, ensure the tracks you want to export as stems are visible and easily accessible. Select all desired tracks. The reference suggests selecting from the end to the beginning. You can do this by clicking the track nameplate of the last track you want to include and then Shift-clicking the track nameplate of the first track.
- Select Duration: Make a timeline selection covering the entire duration you want the stems to cover, typically the full length of your song or project.
- Consolidate Clips: Go to the main menu bar, click
Edit, and selectConsolidate Clip. Pro Tools will process each selected track individually, creating a single, continuous audio file clip for each track across the selected timeline range. These new clips will appear on their respective tracks and will reflect the track's audio with insert effects, volume, and pan applied. - Export Clips as Files: Ensure the consolidated clips are still selected. Use the appropriate keyboard shortcut to open the Export Selected Clips as Files dialog:
- Mac:
Shift + Command + K - Windows:
Control + Shift + K
- Mac:
- Configure Export: In the Export Selected Clips as Files dialog box, choose your desired file format (e.g., WAV or AIFF), bit depth, sample rate, and destination folder. Make sure "Multiple Files" is selected (which is usually the default when exporting multiple clips).
- Export: Click
Export. Pro Tools will create separate audio files for each consolidated track in your chosen location.
Export Shortcut
Here's a quick reference for the export shortcut:
| Operating System | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| macOS | Shift + Command + K |
| Windows | Control + Shift + K |
Important Considerations
- What Effects are Included? This method primarily captures effects applied as inserts directly on the track, as well as the track's volume and pan settings.
- Send Effects: Effects used on Aux tracks via sends (like reverb or delay) will not be included in the consolidated clip of the source track unless you also consolidate and export the Aux Return track itself as a separate stem, or route the source track's output through a bus to an Aux track with the effect and consolidate the Aux track.
- Native vs. DSP: The consolidation process will render both native (AAX Native) and DSP (AAX DSP, HDX) plugins.
- Clip vs. Track Selection: While the reference mentions selecting tracks, the
Consolidate Clipcommand operates on the clips within the selection range on those tracks. It's crucial to have a timeline selection and the tracks selected.
By using the consolidate method described, you can reliably export stems from Pro Tools that include the effects processed directly on each track, providing your collaborators or subsequent mix stages with audio files that have the intended sound characteristics baked in.
