In my opinion, there is no automatic or semi automatic manner to set up appropriate input gains across a whole project with a large number of tracks. But you could consider grouping the channels and making adjustments in groups where appropriate. This could save some time. But I’m guessing you have already thought of this.
If we want to create a phasey mess for ourselves and we duplicate the original track 12 more times
(13 tracks of the very same audio event in total)
If you want to create a phasey mess you’ll have to try something else.
Just duplicating audio causes no phase issues.
for 1268 tracks they invented VCA’s, though I highly doubt (but excuse my ignorance if I’m wrong, as I have no experience with orchestral scoring) you REALLY need 1268 tracks in 1 project, that’s just not manageable at all.
no one will say “hé I think we need to turn track 923 down a bit, as it clashes with track 371 in the midrange”
Nice work Grim!
Glad someone actually bothered to read it. There’s one more in there if you dig a little deeper.
I think a lot of you are overthinking this severely.
You have a source:
- something needs to be recorded, a voice, an instrument, whatever. You record it with the correct gain and have a new a new audiotrack in your daw. > done
- you use a VSTi or external instrument via midi, you set the desired volume via the gear or plugin
- you load a sample or earlier wave, these are either already normalled to 0dB, or you can do that yourself if you wish (or not)
All of the above has nothing to do with mixing, it’s just taking care of optimal signal to noise ratios
Now, if you have collected multiple channels in one of the above ways, you’ll notice that you will exceed maximum headroom and things sound like poop, regardless of headroom you will also find that not changing volume of some instruments, your mix will sound like poop, so you need to setup up the volume relationships between the channels.
This means you start with your first channel, leaving some headroom, not peaking at zero already and you build the relative volume relationships with the other channels from there.
If you left enough headroom, you can finish your mix without clipping, if you didn’t leave enough headroom, you turn down the main fader (if no individual channels are clipping) or select all faders and turn them down, leaving the main fader on unity.
The rest is just overcomplicating things. The daw doesn’t care whether you take the volume down with the pre-gain, the vsti, the instrument/audio clip, your first insert input, or your channel fader, or your group fader, or your main fader IT DOESN’T MATTER…
As long as you don’t clip badly designed VST(i)'s, you’re golden. 
but you will hear that as it will distort.
Now go make fabulous music!
+1 I totally agree, but it has everything to do with mixing it is the neccesary pre fase badly needed
Different solutions for different problems I would say…
If he mixbus overloads due to high channelcount, use a vca to lower all channels and maintain fader resolution.
If the audio itself is to hot, and you havent yet adjusted dynamic plugins, use the handle in the project or the pre-gain.
Of course not.
Speaking for myself, however I think ZeroZero works the similar, the 1268 tracks are a template and every track is set up but deactivated. (in Zero’s case I think 1 Kontakt instance or Play instance for every single track) Having them set up this way ready for activation saves a huge amount of time.
Finally somebody talking sense! And don’t forget, the master is there for a reason and can be used in more positions than just unity!