Mixing with Paths and Sub-Paths

It is rare that every track needs to be “flown” (actively panned in between more than a pair of speakers). In most situations, certain elements are placed in certain speakers and remain there, providing the foundation for a mix.

The following figure illustrates an example of how panning and signal routing can be combined in a multichannel mix.

See Extending Stereo Mixing Conventions to Surround Mixing for related information.

When to Assign Multichannel Outputs

Assign 5.1 paths only to those tracks that need to be panned to all six channels.

For example, a sound effects track with a jet fly-over should be assigned a 5.1 path to fly the sound from front-to-back. In a music mix, you can fly a solo instrument or make a synth pad swirl around the room as a special effect.

Elements that need to be heard in all speakers simultaneously can also be assigned to the multichannel output, whether or not they require active panning in the sound field.

When to Use Sub-Paths

To help simplify large sessions, use sub-paths to route static (or, stationary) elements directly to the output channel or channels.

For example, film dialog is often mixed to the center channel to anchor this essential sound element to the picture. Instead of assigning a six-channel panner to dialog tracks and panning the tracks to the center speaker only, you can route the dialog track’s main output to a mono (Center) sub-path.