SONAR LE Documentation is based on the full version of SONAR. Some screenshots, folder paths, features and other references may differ from your installation.

Tutorial 2 – Using the Browser

The Browser lets you find and import various types of content into your projects, including audio and MIDI files, track and project templates, track icons, FX Chain presets, effect plug-ins and instruments. You can drag content and plug-ins directly into tracks. By default, the Browser is docked on the right side of the screen.

To show or hide the Browser, click the Views menu and choose Browser, or press B.

Now that we know how to show and hide the Browser, let’s take a closer look at some of its features, starting with the controls that span across the top of the Browser. Locate the section on your computer screen that looks like the following image.

First, let’s review the controls at the top of the Browser.

Control	Description
	This is the Move up button. It is used to open the folder one level above the active folder.
	Stop is used to stop play back of the selected loop.
	Play is used to listen to the currently selected loop.
	Allows you to save and recall presets to quickly access your favorite folders.

The Content Location drop-down list shown in the following figure allows you to quickly jump to popular locations on your hard drive.

Figure 19. Media Browser

A. Show Media Browser B. Browser menu C. Content Location menu D. Dock/undock E. Docking options F. Expand/collapse G. Move up one level to the parent directory H. Search filter I. File list J. Play/Stop K. Delete content preset L. Save content preset

To specify the output device to use for previewing loops and files from the Browser, click the Media button , point to Audio Preview Bus, and choose an output device from the submenu.

To work with software instruments, click the Synth button to open the Synth Rack. The Synth Rack contains the following controls.

Figure 20. Synth Rack Browser

A. Insert Synth B. Delete Synth C. Insert Synth Options D. Show Synth Rack Browser E. Synth Settings menu F. Dock/undock G. Docking options H. Expand/collapse I. Instrument list J. Synth Automation menu

 

See:

Finding and previewing audio loops

Previewing MIDI groove clips

Adding audio loops to your project