Pro Tools offers a ton of really cool features for managing tracks when editing and mixing.

In a previous article, we looked at the command focus mode for editing. In this article, we’ll look at a much simpler command focus mode that can make mix grouping really easy.

It might be worth mentioning now that there are four places you can focus your keyboard commands: Editing, Regions, Edit Groups, and Mix Groups. When you’re in the Mix Window, the only command focus mode available is Mix Groups. So if you switch to the Mix Window, pressing a letter will enable and disable the corresponding group i.d.

Now consider what occurs when you create a group: a window appears that allows you to choose the group i.d. to use. If you create a group and choose a group i.d. that relates to its members in some way, you’ll be able to use that command focus mode to enable and disable all you need.

Here are some examples: Group D = Drums Group G = Guitars Group B = BGV’s Group K = Keys See a pattern? This is yet another example of where a few minutes of forethought when you’re setting up your session can save an immeasurable amount of time as you move forward.

Good luck and happy grouping!