Quick start

This walks the whole path once: open the app, get sound in and out, put something on the timeline, mix it, and export a file. Each step links to the page that covers it properly.

First launch

The first time you open Neutral Tracks it scans the plugins already installed on your Mac. A large collection takes a few minutes, and it happens once. You can keep working while it runs.

Then pick your audio device. If you have an audio interface, choose it; if not, your Mac’s built-in output works fine for everything except recording with a microphone. The buffer size is the one setting worth knowing: smaller means less delay when you play, larger means the machine has an easier time. Start where it lands, and only change it if playing feels late or the audio crackles.

Get something on the timeline

There are two ways in, and the rest of the manual assumes you’ve done one of them.

Drag an audio file from the browser panel, or from the Finder, onto the timeline. It becomes a clip on a new track, and it will follow the project tempo if it has a detectable one.

Or record. Create an audio track, choose which input on your interface it listens to, arm it, and press record. Every pass lands in its own take lane, so a second attempt never destroys the first.

Arrange

Clips move by dragging. The cursor changes to tell you what a drag will do: near an edge it trims, at the top corners it fades, and in the middle it moves. Split at the playhead with ⌘T, delete with Delete, and undo anything: every edit is reversible.

Mix

Open the mixer to see a channel strip per track: fader, pan, sends, and the plugin chain. Set rough levels first with the faders, then reach for plugins. The stock Neutral collection is already installed (an EQ, a compressor, a limiter, reverb, delay, and more), and every plugin you already own is there too.

Export

Export writes the finished file. Pick a format (WAV or AIFF for mastering and archiving, MP3 or FLAC for sharing), a bit depth, and whether to render the whole project or just a time range. The export is bit-for-bit what you heard, run offline as fast as your machine allows.

Where to go next

Recording, editing, mixing, and export each have their own pages with the details this one skips. The keyboard shortcuts page is worth a look early: the shortcuts are rebindable, and there are presets matching the DAW you came from.