Folders as busses

-1 from me I'm afraid - they're for fundamentally different purposes and should stay like that.

While I get the request, at least with the new Aux Track/Patch Point thing one can now have an output in the same folder.
 

A built-in "Aux Track + Folder" option?

As I havent installed the Jamaica-plains update yet, and haven't actually played around with the patch-point / Aux busses yet I'm doing a bit of guessing here:
 
- I somehow like the proposed idea! Just have all guitars, vocals, drums in seperate folder and voila corresponding "bus" already exists. -> Problem I see is that I'd usually have one folder with vocals, within that folder I'd have main-vox and backgrnd-vox tracks each sent to different bus.
 
- Wouldn't it be better (and maybe simpler to implement) if the folder refers to a patch-point instead of an aux-bus. (Referencing would only need to be done to the patch-point "name")
I.e. all tracks added to a folder would be patched through the patch-point associated with the folder. If and when a aux-track is also added to the folder it will also automatically be linked to the patch-point thus "closing the loop"
If im thinking right it's practically the same as suggested idea, with the difference that a folder could also remain without an aux-bus AND could automatically have all tracks patched to a certain pre-defined patch-point that could be inserted completely different place (eg. bus-pane)
 
?? Am I talking nonsense here ?? 

BobF

stevec
A built-in "Aux Track + Folder" option?

Yes!!  Aux track that is also a folder.  Or a Folder that is also an Aux track.  Whichever you prefer

Actually I was thinking about the possibility of expanding the current macro that creates the audio track and accompanying patch point to also nest that new Aux Track in a new Folder of the same name, in one operation.   It seemed like a quicker short-term solution that creating a new track type that is a true Aux Track/Folder hybrid.   Not that I would mind the latter, mind you.    

stevec

BobF

stevec
A built-in "Aux Track + Folder" option?

Yes!!  Aux track that is also a folder.  Or a Folder that is also an Aux track.  Whichever you prefer

Actually I was thinking about the possibility of expanding the current macro that creates the audio track and accompanying patch point to also nest that new Aux Track in a new Folder of the same name, in one operation.   It seemed like a quicker short-term solution that creating a new track type that is a true Aux Track/Folder hybrid.   Not that I would mind the latter, mind you.    

I like what you've described Steve.  I just think it would be cool, especially considering the bus-like qualities of patch point/Aux tracks, if dragging a track into such a folder automatically took the output of the track to its input.
 
I really, really hate to say this, but think of that other DAW that's really inexpensive and has a lousy UI.  THAT is the idea I have in mind.
 
 

No worries BobF!
I somehow like the idea, but the question is; why would one want it? (a new hybrid bus/aux style folder type). Would it be in order to have better overview of tracks and assigned outputs? I know OP mentioned automation as well, but apart from that:
Have a look at this thread I just started:
http://forum.cakewalk.com...cted-bus-m3303307.aspx
Looking from a console-view perspective my busses would be the "folders". I.e. 'activate' a bus and you will see the tracks going into that bus. And if it could be implemented for track-view and auxes as well (as Steve suggested). You would have that functionality as well.
It would seem quite do-able as the track-manager already does a great part, just not automatically and not within the console-view interface.
I know people are requesting expanded/collapsed folders from track-view to reflect in console-view so I think all ideas are intertwined and based on need for clutter free and clean overview of the project...

M@
creating a folder would automatically create a new patch-point, and automatically assign this patch-point to all audio tracks which get created within the folder and at the same time NOT automatically create an aux-track (within this folder) with this patch-point as it's input.
But re-reading it all I think that you & OP literally meant the FOLDER to be the aux track. Am I right?

 
Well this is kind of an implementation detail. One way or another you would need input/output/pan and perhaps some other mixing/summing controls for the folder. Basically whatever is available on a bus today (and on an audio track today since now Sonar has eliminated the distinction between the two, other than which pane they're in).

The main thing you gain w/ this feature above and beyond aux tracks is the organization/collapsibility of folders, which I think is worth a lot!

I thought of a key aspect of this request which I have added to the OP: Summing controls for the FolderBus e.g. gain and pan would be available when the folder is collapsed. That will be a huge time saver. In fact the more parameters (assignment, automation, individual gain/pan) that can be done w/ the folder collapsed the better, and will enable major abstraction and declutterization in the TV.