Logic Pro Exercise 1a – Setting up a project in Logic Pro using the integrated Dolby Atmos workflow – Dolby Professional Support Learning

Exercise Objectives:

This exercise is designed to reinforce concepts covered in the first 6 modules of the training. The objective is to set up a project using the integrated Dolby Atmos workflow, import audio, explore panning, measure loudness, and export an ADM BWF master file.

Download the Logic_ExerciseContent.zip to the Logic workstation and unzip on the media drive. This zip file contains 3 Logic projects (95BPM, 146BPM, and Loudness) as well as stems, MIDI files, and a Logic template. For the purposes of this exercise we will be using the 95BPM stems. The 146BPM stems can be used in a similar manner, though the track counts will differ.

The Logic projects and template will be used in the Dolby Atmos Music Panner workflow exercises, which are covered in the next few modules, and are not designed to be used with the integrated Dolby Atmos workflow within Logic.

Logic comes with two pre-existing demo projects (Spatial Audio Demo Grid and MONTERO – Spatial Audio) that should also be used for learning and experimentation.

Launch Logic
- Depending on your Preferences, Logic may open an empty project, the most recent project, or prompt you to choose. For the purposes of this exercise, ensure that the New Project dialog is open
  - File>New from Template or Command+N

In the New Project tab, select Empty Project and set the following:
- Tempo – 95
- Sample Rate – 48 kHz
- Frame Rate – 24 fps
- Spatial Audio – Dolby Atmos
- Surround Format – 7.1.2

- Click Create
By default, an empty Logic project requires at least 1 track. When a new project is created it will automatically open the New Track dialog:
- Create 7 mono audio tracks with Audio Output set to Surround
  - To create a mono track, set Audio Input to a mono input (such as Input 1)

- - Click Create
Reopen the New Track dialog
- Track>New Tracks… or Command+Alt+N
- Create 6 stereo audio tracks with Audio Output set to Surround
  - To create a stereo track, set Audio Input to a stereo input (such as Input 1+2)

- - Click Create
Verify I/O Assignments
- Navigate to Audio Preferences from the Menu bar:
  - Logic Pro>Preferences>Audio…
- In the I/O Assignments tab, set the Surround Output to match the physical speaker setup (i.e. 7.1.4) and verify the correct routing
  - Note that this may need to changed depending on the output configuration of the core audio device feeding your monitoring system

- Close the Preferences window
Verify Project Settings
- Open the Project Settings from the Menu bar:
  - File>Project Settings>Audio

- - Mix>Dolby Atmos…

- Verify the settings that were set when the project was created:
  - Sample Rate – 48 kHz
  - Spatial Audio – Dolby Atmos
  - Surround Format – 7.1.2

- Close the Project Settings window
Import the tracks from the provided folder onto the timeline
- Drag and drop the individual audio files from a finder window onto a timeline track

- Navigate to the location of the audio files in the All Files browser within Logic and drag and drop the audio files from the browser onto a timeline track
- The drum and percussion tracks should be placed on the mono tracks
- The synth, bass, bell, and FX tracks should be placed on the stereo tracks
- Ensure audio starts at the beginning of the timeline for all tracks
- Rename any tracks if desired

Assign tracks to objects
- Any track can be assigned to an object, but for this session try assigning:
  - Hi Hat
  - Shaker
  - Pulse Basses
  - Synths
  - Bells
  - FX
- To assign a track to an object:
  - Click on the Output slot in the track’s channel strip
    - Assign the Output to the 3D Object Panner

- Repeat for all objects
- Open the Dolby Atmos plug-in window:
  - Double click on the Atmos plug-in on the Master Channel
  - Verify that the objects are listed on the right side of the window

- - Close the plug-in window
Start mixing – experiment with a number of different techniques
- For bed tracks:
  - Place the kick drum track at the front of the room
  - Place the snare drum slightly to one side
  - Place the ride, crash and reverse crash cymbals around the room and experiment with elevation
  - Experiment with recording and drawing automation
- For object tracks:
  - Place the bass objects in precise locations
  - Automate slow, subtle movements for the hi hats and shaker
  - Create precise gestures for the FX hits
  - Explore and experiment with different pans and placement for the remaining beds and objects
- Set the binaural render mode for bed channels and objects
  - Open the Dolby Atmos plug-in window
  - Set the Monitoring Format to Binaural
  - For each bed channel and object, click on the binaural render mode and set to near, mid, far, or off

- - For information on binaural render mode settings, refer to Module 7.4
Once the mix is complete, perform a loudness measurement on the whole song
- Insert the Loudness Meter plug-in after the Dolby Atmos plug-in on the master channel strip
  - The Loudness Meter plug-in is located at Metering>Loudness Meter>7.1.4

- Open the Dolby Atmos plug-in and set the Monitoring Format to 5.1
- Open the Loudness Meter plug-in and click Reset
- Set the playhead to the beginning of the track
- Click Start in the Loudness Meter plug-in
- Press play in Logic and let the song play through
- When the song has finished, press Pause in the Loudness Meter plug-in

- Use the Integrated loudness value for measurement
  - Refer to the specific delivery requirements of a streaming service or platform when measuring for target loudness

Export an ADM BWF master file
- Navigate to File>Export>Project as ADM BWF…
- Choose a filename and output directory
- Click save

Navigation

Next: Logic Pro Exercise 1b – Setting up a project in Logic Pro and the Dolby Atmos Renderer

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