Importing audio into your Pro Tools session

If you have existing audio files on your computer, on an external drive, or on a CD, you need to import them into your session. It doesn't matter where those files reside, as long as you can find them! We'll be making new copies of those files, which will all be saved within your project's folder. Depending on the parameters of your session and the format of the audio you’ve recorded, a conversion may be necessary. You also want to be sure that the audio you are importing is copied to the “Audio Files” folder associated with your session. Pro Tools will handle all of this as long as you follow these steps-

1. From the menu bar at the top of the screen, select File > Import > Audio to Track, or, if you wish to import your audio without creating new tracks, select File>Import>Audio to Region List.
2. Navigate to the audio files you've saved on your computer, or to files on a CD, and select all that you want to import.
3. They will appear in the lower left in the “Regions in Current File” box.
4. Click the “Convert” button if it is blue-highlighted, otherwise click “Copy”. (“Copy” is used if the file format is already compatible with your session parameters, “Convert” is used if the files must be converted to match your session.)
5. Use "Add" only if you want to use the soundfile in this session, but you do NOT want to add it to the session's Audio Files folder. Doing this makes it easier to lose track of your audio files down the line, so it is recommended that you use "copy" or "convert".
6. If all the files that you want to import appear in the right-hand box “Regions to Import ” box, click “Done” to import.
7. You will be prompted for a save location after clicking “Done”. Choose the “Audio Files” folder for your session.

If you selected “Import to Tracks”, your audio will appear in new tracks on the Edit workspace, as well as in the Region List. If you selected “Import to Region List”, your audio will appear in the Region List, ready to be dragged into existing tracks, but no new tracks will be created. Your audio is now available to use and edit in your session! Yay! (Now is a good time to save.)

Note: in Pro Tools 6 and earlier, the "Import to Region List" function is accessed by clicking on the "audio" bar at the top of the Region List, which appears at the right side of the edit window.

Next: Preparing to edit and Creating new tracks »