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How to Use DropZone in Cakewalk

DropZone is a virtual studio technology sampler plugin included with Cakewalk's Sonar software package. Particularly useful is the wide range of sample formats it loads, while allowing tweaks and adjustments to the samples after loading. Often overlooked due to its freebie status within Cakewalk products, DropZone works like any other instrument plugin, allowing sounds processed within it to be attached to Musical Instrument Digital Interface performance tracks, creating an audio performance that can be processed, exported or saved.

Instructions

    • 1

      Click "Views" from the Cakewalk menu bar and click on "Synth Rack" in the drop-down menu. Click the insert button on the left of the toolbar, roll over "Soft Synths" and click on "DropZone" from the list to add DropZone to the project synth rack.

    • 2

      Double-click on the keyboard icon to the left of the DropZone synthesizer in the synth rack view. The main DropZone window opens. Click on the "Empty Program" bar at the top of the window and a list of instrument programs appears. Click an instrument to use from these folders.

    • 3

      Minimize the DropZone and synth rack windows and double-click on the MIDI track to which you want to apply the DropZone instrument. In the dialog box that opens, click on "Output" and click DropZone from the list. Click "OK" and play back your MIDI track. It has the DropZone instrument applied to the performance.

    • 4

      Click "Views" from the menu bar and click "Console" to view the console screen. The DropZone track appears with the properties of an audio track, so you can apply equalization and effects to the DropZone output sound as you would any audio track in Cakewalk Sonar.

Recording Music

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