A Mac window setup for music producers
Plugin windows everywhere, a mixer, an arrangement and a browser for samples. How to keep a music app's many windows under control on a Mac.
Most of the clutter in music apps is plugin windows. Keep them inside the music app's own window handling, and keep the app itself in one place.
Inside the music app
- Use the app's option to link plugin windows so only one is open at a time.
- Save screensets or window layouts if your app has them, one for arranging and one for mixing.
- Learn the keys for the mixer and editor so you switch views instead of opening windows.
Outside it
- Keep the sample browser, notes or lyrics, and a reference track player beside the app, not over it.
- A second display for the mixer works well if you have one.
With a window manager
Plugin windows are small and come and go, so they are best left floating. In ClutterFreeMac, set your music app to always float in Settings, Apps, so its windows are left exactly as it arranges them, and use the strip for everything else: browser, notes, chat.
Questions
How do I manage plugin windows on a Mac?
Use your music app's own setting to link plugin windows, so one replaces the next, and save screensets for different tasks.
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