Quick automation guide

The following table summarizes Console and Track view automation.

 

What you can automate	Parameters you can automate	How you can automate them
Individual tracks	Gain, pan, mute, bus send gain, bus send balance, MIDI controllers, MIDI chorus and reverb, pitch wheel, channel aftertouch, RPN and NRPN.	Draw envelopes in the Clips pane, record the fader movements, or take a snapshot.
Buses	Input gain and pan, output gain and pan.	Draw envelopes in the Clips pane, record the fader movements, or take a snapshot.
Individual effects	Varies with the effect.	Draw envelopes in the Clips pane, record the fader movements, or take a snapshot.
Soft Synth controls	Varies with the synth.	See Drawing soft synth automation in the Clips pane and Automating controls from the Synth Rack.
Groups of faders or other controls	Whatever the faders or other controls in the group control.	Record fader movements.
Individual clips	Gain and pan for audio clips, velocity for MIDI clips.	Draw envelopes in the Clips pane.

In addition, SONAR allows you to copy and paste envelopes between tracks. The only controls that you can’t automate are the Arm, Solo, Pre/Post, Interleave (Mono/Stereo selector), Bus Enable, and Phase buttons, and the Trim fader.

 

For step-by-step instructions, see:

Automation

Automation methods

Automation write modes (Platinum and Professional only)

Automation time base

Automation Read and Automation Write buttons

Recording individual fader or knob movements

Automation lanes

Creating and editing automation envelopes

Automating track mute

Envelope mode and Offset mode

Converting MIDI controllers to envelopes

Snapshots

Automating effects

Recording automation data from an external controller