"All selected files are stems from one project"?

When you drag more than one audio file into Logic a dialog box pops up giving you options on how to create new tracks (or not) for the incoming audio files, but there is also a checkbox for "All selected files are stems from one project".

 

What does this option do? I can't find any documentation for it; I've seen a few articles that sort of imply that this has something to do with Smart Tempo, but nothing specific as to what happens with the option on or off. I've dragged in multiple audio files with this option checked and unchecked, and see no difference. (If it makes a difference, my audio files contain no tempo information.)

 

I also don't understand how or why Logic would care specifically about importing stems vs. individual tracks. (They are NOT the same thing.)

When you drag more than one audio file into Logic a dialog box pops up giving you options on how to create new tracks (or not) for the incoming audio files, but there is also a checkbox for "All selected files are stems from one project".

 

What does this option do? I can't find any documentation for it; I've seen a few articles that sort of imply that this has something to do with Smart Tempo, but nothing specific as to what happens with the option on or off. I've dragged in multiple audio files with this option checked and unchecked, and see no difference. (If it makes a difference, my audio files contain no tempo information.)

 

I also don't understand how or why Logic would care specifically about importing stems vs. individual tracks. (They are NOT the same thing.)

 

Remember that dragging stuff into Logic doesn’t save the files in the new project. Get the files from the Audio window. Otherwise you gonna have Logic ask you where certain files are whenever you open that project.

If you have "Audio Files" checked under "Copy the following files into your project" when you first save the project, the files are copied to the project Audio Files folder. I do it all the time when bringing audio files into my mixing template.

To actually address the question, my educated guess is that if the files are stems from the same project, all files are scanned for transients to calculate a plausible tempo map.

Ahhh, wait: so if I drag in multiple audio files AND click that checkbox Logic will scan the audio files for a common tempo map and apply it to the project? OK, that makes a lot of sense. And of course if each of the files has different tempo information Logic would have to either pick on, or ignore them all... as I mentioned, I never import audio that contains tempo information so this never came up, but now I'm going to play around with that!

 

Oh, and I did file a bug report w/ Apple on the typo (stems vs audio files... stems are not individual audio files, despite more and more people calling them that. Stems are submixes of parts of the arrangement, for example all the drums exported to a file, all the guitars, all the vocals, etc.)

stems are not individual audio files, despite more and more people calling them that. Stems are submixes of parts of the arrangement, for example all the drums exported to a file, all the guitars, all the vocals, etc.)

Stems ARE individual audio files.

 

I assume you meant to say that each stem is an individual audio file containing a submix of several tracks/instruments rather than a single individual track/instrument.

I can find nothing questionable in the term "All selected files are stems from one project". Yes, they are files, and yes, these files may (or may not) contain the stems from one project.

stems are not individual audio files

 

Sorry, @Brew.Drink.Repeat., but this may be a case like the word "impact" becoming a verb (correct usage used to be as a noun only). If enough people come to use a word a certain way, it becomes correct - like it or not.

 

I get where you are coming from, though. I first learned the word "stems" to refer to individual audio files that contained submixes of a song/project and are all the same length to make it easy to import and line up in any system (or at least all the stems starting at the same point).

 

I think now, when people refer to tracks as stems, they more often mean the second point - that all the files start from 0 or from the same point. The content of the stems has become less specific - more often they refer now to individual tracks instead of submixes.

 

I agree that "stems" is supposed to refer to submixes. It is still used correctly when submitting deliverables for broadcast on TV or Netflix, for example. You may be required to submit several different stems such as music, dialog, music ducked for dialog, dialog translations, fx, foley, etc. This is where the point of stems always being the same length or starting at the same point. This is so that the studio can pull the stems into a project and easily output different versions for release.

 

So I believe the Logic dialog calling them stems in the context of the original question is meaning specifically that the files are all the same length and belong to the same multitrack set, such as all the tracks of the same song project, not that they are submixes.

I think this post got hijacked, or at least sidetracked by the Stem/Track argument. Getting back to the original question, of what difference does checking that box make... someone earlier did point it out - Logic DOES analyze them on the way in when you select that option.

As far as I understand it: When you select that option it treats all files as stems from a single project. When not selected they are handled individually as individual tracks from various projects. Always select yes if they are stems from the same project and no if they are not. Its not any more complicated than that. Just answer the question literally, unless, you want stems from the same project to be treated as individual tracks from different projects for any reason.

As far as I understand it: When you select that option it treats all files as stems from a single project. When not selected they are handled individually as individual tracks from various projects. Always select yes if they are stems from the same project and no if they are not. Its not any more complicated than that. Just answer the question literally, unless, you want stems from the same project to be treated as individual tracks from different projects for any reason.

 

 

Could you clarify what you mean? How does logic treat files differently when they're from a single project vs various projects?

To actually address the question, my educated guess is that if the files are stems from the same project, all files are scanned for transients to calculate a plausible tempo map.

Indeed, in 10.7.0 the dialog indicates this:

To actually address the question, my educated guess is that if the files are stems from the same project, all files are scanned for transients to calculate a plausible tempo map.

Indeed, in 10.7.0 the dialog indicates this:

 

 

Thanks for this - nice of them to add that clarification

Makes a lot more sense now... still misusing the term "stems" though...