I like to use multiple MIDI tracks for my drums: one track for kick, one for snare, one for hats, etc. All those MIDI tracks go to the same synth instance (e.g., Session Drummer 3).

I'd like to start using drum maps, but I've concluded in this post that I should probably be using track templates to store my mapped drum kits so that I don't have to set them up manually for each song.

However, the track template feature apparently only lets you store one track as a template; it doesn't let you store multiple tracks in a single template. This is fine for a single-midi-track synth like a bass or guitar part, but it doesn't work with multiple-midi-track synths like a drum kit, piano (left and right hands in separate tracks), horn and string ensembles, etc.

So I'm wondering what our options are for saving sets of tracks as a template, so that we can load them up in other projects.

Is there such a thing as a track folder template?

Or should we use be using track lanes instead of individual tracks?

What do you guys do when you want to insert a synth with multiple [named] MIDI tracks already assigned to it? (And for drums, those MIDI tracks all need to be assigned to the correct drum map).

If you make a folder with all the tracks then save the folder as a track template..I have done this for the Virus Ti.. so it launches the vst with the correct options, adds multiple midi ins, names the midi tracks and adds track icons.. 
 
So i am sure you can do the same for a drum set folder

Mystic38


If you make a folder with all the tracks then save the folder as a track template..I have done this for the Virus Ti.. so it launches the vst with the correct options, adds multiple midi ins, names the midi tracks and adds track icons.. 
 
So i am sure you can do the same for a drum set folder

...what he said :-)

How do you save the track folder?

If I right click on an empty space for an individual track, I see "Save as Track Template...". I don't see that option for track folders.

Tripecac


How do you save the track folder?

If I right click on an empty space for an individual track, I see "Save as Track Template...". I don't see that option for track folders.

ctrl click on all the tracks in the folder in the top left portion (so all the track select blue squares is lit)..the folder itself will also be lit. right click on one of these tracks and "save as track template"..

Awesome! That worked!!!

Do you often use track templates like that when working with Cakewalk and Native Instruments synths?

Tripecac


Awesome! That worked!!!

Do you often use track templates like that when working with Cakewalk and Native Instruments synths?

oh yup.. its time well spent making them. I made a default project template with the skylight and layout of screensets i am comfortable with, whihc made a huge difference.., then made track templates for (for example) Maschine with 8 audio outs, all with icons and which also launches its own "drums" bus with icon, and for the Virus, with 4 midi inputs, three audio outs and track names and icons.. in addition to saving time when launching, having the same layout each time aids familiarity..

which also launches its own "drums" bus with icon

Does this mean you control-clicked the bus before saving the tracks as a track template? Is the in the bus pane, or is it actually an audio track?

One thing that has me excited about track templates is that I can finally create a default project with no tracks in it! Right now, my default project has 4 instances of Kontakt loaded (drums, bass, piano, organ), which take a while to load, and then I have to delete [or replace] those Kontakt instances if I decided to try other synths, and I'm never sure how much "residue" is left behind.

Starting off with a blank slate for each project will not only save some time when starting a project, but will also encourage more variance in the instrumentation. In other words, I won't feel "pressured" to keep using the same 4 Kontakt instances in each song...

You mentioned screensets... How often do you switch screen sets? I've never used them, since I always tend to have track view on my right monitor and piano roll on the left, with synth and fx windows treated as temporary popups (which I don't keep open long).

Hey - question - why do you use 4 separate instances of Kontakt?

All of those instruments can be loaded into a single multi-rack within 1 copy of Kontakt.

I do this all the time.

Bob Bone

Hey - question - why do you use 4 separate instances of Kontakt?

I tried using a single big instance of Kontakt for all my MIDI instruments before, but found it cumbersome. I ended up switching to Simple Instrument Tracks (where each track gets its own Kontakt instance), and found that much easier to manage, though I don't know if it's less efficient. For drums I have a bunch of tracks pointing at a single Kontakt instance.

The important thing is that each Kontakt instance only has one instrument in it (unless I am layering different drum kits together, which is rare). So each Kontakt instance represents a "musician". This setup lets me avoid thinking about MIDI channels and output routing.

More info here if you are curious: http://forum.cakewalk.com/tm.aspx?m=2253267