Getting Started
Mixing templates
Your Pro Tools session template is fMusic's map of your studio. fMusic reads categories, routes, and template tracks from it, so every imported session lands in your structure, pre-routed and ready to mix. fMusic ships with a factory template, Forte_Template_26, already connected: its routing folders are where the factory categories come from.
What the template gives you
When fMusic reads a template, every routing folder in it becomes an import category: the folder's name becomes the category name, its color becomes the category color, its input bus becomes the category's default route, and its first track becomes the template track used by the template placement modes. Loading a template is how routing gets set up once instead of per session.
Reading a template is not an fMusic-only operation: Pro Tools has to open it, so your currently open Pro Tools session closes and reopens during the read. fMusic always asks first ("Read this template in Pro Tools?"), and restores your session when it is done.
If the categories generated from the template differ from the ones you already have, fMusic asks a second question: generate the new categories, or keep yours. The template stays loaded either way; the choice only affects the category table.
How to set it up
In Settings > Import & Organize > Mode & template, use the "Pro Tools session template" row (Select template...) to pick your .ptxt or .ptx. fMusic asks before reading it, then offers to generate categories from its routing folders.
Each routing folder in the template becomes a category with its name, color, input bus as the default route, and its first track as the template track. Adjust names, order, and destinations in the Categories table.
Drag your audio into fMusic. Tracks are recognized, named, colored, and routed into the template structure. To start a brand-new session from the template, pick the Template destination in the import setup.
Starting a session from the template
In the import setup, the Destination card offers Template alongside Current, New, and Existing Session. Pick where the template comes from with Template from: Installed lists the templates in Pro Tools' own Session Templates folder (with Group and Template pickers), while From settings uses the file loaded in Import settings. Give the new session a name (Session Filename) and a folder (Save In), and fMusic creates the session from the template automatically, launching Pro Tools first if it is closed.
Routing and template placement modes
The Placement mode setting decides how tracks meet your template:
- Routing (the default): each track is created and routed to its category's bus. With Move into routing folders on, a track whose bus is a routing folder's input is created inside that folder.
- Match template: the template's structure comes in first, and each track is created against the template row its category names.
- Track preset: the template's structure comes in first, and every track receives its Pro Tools Track Preset: routing, plugins, inserts, sends, and color.
Suite feature. Match template and Track preset require fMusic Suite. On Intro and Studio the two modes stay visible in the picker, disabled with a SUITE badge; Routing is available on every tier.
For the full routing configuration, see How to assign routings.