Exporting midi as audio for mixing session

Hello, guys.

 

So, let me explain the issue I am having. After I finish the composing session, I export all my MIDI tracks as audio tracks and then load them into my mixing template. The problem is that even if I use "move to recorded position", the tracks are not organized like they were during the "MIDI" session. The are all very long, starting from the very beginning of the project (bar 1, even though the actual midi was recorded at bar 5), and therefore pretty difficult to immediately visualize where and when each individual instuments comes in in the song. I would love for the exported audio tracks to start and end exactly where they were MIDI recorded, if possible.

I hope you'll understand my poor explanation, more or less.

If you think about it, you'd find that you'd have a hard time properly positioning all the files that don't start at 1.1.1.1. , especially if the source and target tempos don't match, so having all Regions start at 1.1.1.1 is certainly the easiest way.

 

You can either cut the lead-in silence (would not take more than a minute even on a 100 track song and well worth that time) or crank up the Waveform Zoom so you can easily see where actual audio begins.

Havinf the regions starting at 1.1.1.1 would certainly be easier, but sometimes you wanna have preroll before the actual cue starts. So I usually start at bar 5.1.1.1.

 

The fact is, I remember I once exported my midi regions as audio tracks, imported into the mixing template and they actually set right in thei places as intended. Don't really know how I managed that, though. Was it maybe something about the audio format being AIFF instead on WAV?

 

Is there any method you know of to achieve what I was looking for?

You'd have to bounce in place all Regions, then import all Regions into the mixing template, Move To Recording position, still much more work than cutting off all dead air upfront.

I guess you're right. Well, thank you very much then, Christian. Helpful and straight to the point as usual.

just curious: what's the benefit of bouncing everything to audio, importing into a new logic file, then mixing? why not mix the initial project?

 

this allows you to: change a note, a phrase. a sound. timing. velocity. an effect... etc etc. just seems simpler to work with the midi data as midi. for me, anyone, that's preferable; i like that everything is amendable an any given moment...