Guide to Adding Sample Packs in Pro Tools

Guide to Adding Sample Packs in Pro Tools

Sample packs have emerged as versatile additions for any artist. They improve the style of your music greatly if applied properly. But adding sample packs to the diverse selection of DAWs on the market can be confusing. In this guide, you'll learn how to import sample packs into your projects in Pro Tools.

Step 1: Download Sample Packs

You can head to our site for various sample packs tailored to different genres and moods. You'll get access to your purchased sample packs instantly and can download them.

Step 2: Locate Files

Now it's time to find where they are saved. On Windows, click the "File Explorer" icon in your taskbar or press Windows + E on your keyboard to open the file explorer window. In the left sidebar, you should see "Quick Access." Click on it to find the "Downloads" folder listed. Alternatively, you can navigate to "This PC" > "Downloads."


Once inside the "Downloads" folder, you'll find your downloaded sample packs. Depending on the pack, they might be in ZIP or other compressed formats.


On macOS, finding your downloaded sample packs is straightforward. Click on the "Finder" icon in your Dock, or you can press Command + Space to open Spotlight search and type "Finder" to launch it. In the left sidebar of Finder, you'll see "Downloads." Click on it to access your downloaded files. Within the "Downloads" folder, you'll see the downloaded sample packs.


It's a good practice to keep your downloaded sample packs organized in a dedicated folder for easy access. You can create a "Sample Packs" folder in your Documents or Music directory and move your downloaded files there.

Step 3: Extract Compressed Files

You can easily extract them using the inbuilt OS tools. Right-click on them in the case of Windows and click on Uncompress files. You can double-click the file on macOS, which will automatically be uncompressed. Alternatively, you can use dedicated software like WinRAR and 7zip to uncompress them.

Step 4: Add Sample Packs

This process is the same for Windows and macOS since it is done inside the application. So, you can rest easy knowing that the process is correct in any OS. 


First, click on the ‘Window’menu and New Workspace and then Default.

Window menu

After that, a file explorer menu will appear. 

File Explorer menu

Navigate to the location where the uncompressed files are located and import them.

Location of sample packs

You can preview the samples by clicking the waves next to their file names.


Don’t forget to click on the triangle-shaped button. It will adjust the tempo of the samples to match the project.

Clicking on the triangular button

Now, double-click on the selected sample, and it will import it perfectly. 


You can also extrapolate this process onto other DAWs since this is a universal process. There is a quick method of dragging and dropping, but this is the proper way. We hope this guide helped you in adding sample packs in Pro Tools.

Back to blog