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  #1  
Old 07-19-2022, 04:06 PM
iklu iklu is offline
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Default Can you break links with audio files?

I'm very familiar with establishing links between clips in the timeline and root audio files when those links get broken by moving a session, renaming root audio files, moving the root audio files, etc. However, what if I want to break links to the root audio files myself? Is there an easy way to do that? Ideally, I want to do this with a simple toggle, and not by tricking ProTools by moving the audio files, hiding them in an offline folder, or an offline drive, etc. I just want to break the links.

In workspace, I see options to "Relink Offline," "Relink," "Copy and Relink," "Move and Relink," but I don't see an option for "Unlink." Is this available anywhere?
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  #2  
Old 07-19-2022, 05:44 PM
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Top Jimmy Top Jimmy is offline
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Default Re: Can you break links with audio files?

Unlinking has never been a feature, nor has it been a requested feature. No one I know would have any use of such a feature.

Why do you see it as a needed feature?
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  #3  
Old 07-19-2022, 06:55 PM
BScout BScout is offline
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Default Re: Can you break links with audio files?

Not anywhere. What you are asking for (in Avid speak) is offlining media. Not offered in Pro Tools.
Copy and relink is your best bet (and then deleting the copies), close/open session.
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Old 07-20-2022, 07:04 AM
Rich Breen Rich Breen is offline
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Default Re: Can you break links with audio files?

What's the use case? Knowing that might help come up with suggestions.
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  #5  
Old 07-20-2022, 07:33 AM
iklu iklu is offline
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Default Re: Can you break links with audio files?

I think I figured it out!

The use case is a podcast production workflow, where we are importing an AAF session without media, and relinking manually to a media pool that doesn't live in the session's audio files folder. Additionally, there are two identical "pools:" one is managed by the show's producers, who are editing for content, and the other, identical pool, is managed by the mix engineers. The producers don't have access to the engineer media pool. This prevents accidental deletions, file name changes, and any other errors made by the producers, from affecting the engineers' mix sessions.

So the workflow is:
1. Export AAF without media (coming from Descript, an audio editing software with a transcript interface)
2. Producers manually link the ProTools session to the "producer media pool
3. Producers say to the engineers, after making content edits, "ok the session is ready for you!"
4. Engineers copy the session into their "mix" folder, and manually break media links with the producer pool, and establish links with the engineer pool

This is accomplished via the workspace, where you can select audio for the session, right click and select "relink," which opens up the relink audio files window. The engineers then choose the "engineer media pool" as the new source, and force relink the session's audio.
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  #6  
Old 07-20-2022, 08:13 AM
daeron80 daeron80 is offline
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Default Re: Can you break links with audio files?

You can remove files from the session without deleting them from the drive. Is that what you mean?
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  #7  
Old 07-20-2022, 10:33 AM
_JJ_ _JJ_ is offline
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Default Re: Can you break links with audio files?

But isn't it more fun trying to guess why the OP would want to do this?

Let's say you have a session on your laptop's internal drive which is referencing audio from an external drive and you've chosen to NOT allow ProTools to copy audio to the session's audio folder - maybe because you're running out of space on the internal HD. But the audio you're referencing is an hour long 192/24 wav file and you only need 10 seconds of it so you don't want to copy the whole thing over and take up all that space.

So I think once you get that 10 seconds you need into your session you could consolidate it and (I believe) that will create a new 10 second wav file and deposit it into the session's audio folder. That would save space!

But that's only if all my wild guesses are correct.
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  #8  
Old 07-20-2022, 12:29 PM
BScout BScout is offline
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Default Re: Can you break links with audio files?

My guess is to unlink and then relink. For instance, your session has linked to a set of files located in a sub directory on the local computer but you really want to link to ones located on a SAN (maybe because some else is going through and denoising those on a another computer with RX.)

I'd do that by changing the folder name on the local computer temporarily, opening the PT session so now it is forced to ask how to relink, and then manually linking to the SAN files. Then go back and change the local folder name back.
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  #9  
Old 07-21-2022, 08:21 AM
Rich Breen Rich Breen is offline
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Default Re: Can you break links with audio files?

Quote:
Originally Posted by BScout View Post
...your session has linked to a set of files located in a sub directory on the local computer but you really want to link to ones located on a SAN...
Yes, that seems like a likely scenario, and even if it's not what the OP was asking, it's gotta be a common requirement. You'd think there'd be a simple way...
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  #10  
Old 07-21-2022, 10:48 AM
climber climber is offline
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Default Re: Can you break links with audio files?

it's a drag when someone posts a question, they don't provide complete info, folks try to help, but the OP doesn't respond...
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