REAPER Audio Workflows
How to set up a vocal template in REAPER (so every session starts ready)
Published July 25, 2026 · Updated July 26, 2026
A vocal template saves the setup you rebuild every time, your track, its FX chain, the record input, monitoring, and any routing, so you can load a ready-to-record vocal in one step. REAPER gives you three levels of this: a saved FX chain (just the plugins and their settings), a track template (a whole vocal track with its FX, input, and sends), and a project template (your entire session). Build one clean vocal track the way you like it, then save it with Track › Save tracks as track template. It ships with REAPER, so there is nothing to buy. A template saves your settings, though. It does not improve the recording itself.
If you record vocals in REAPER, you have probably done the same chore more than once: make a track, set the input, arm it, add an EQ and a compressor, tweak them, set up a reverb send, and only then start singing. Doing that from scratch every session wastes time and, worse, means your setup is a little different each time. A template fixes both. You get the same starting point on demand, in seconds.
This guide covers what a template actually saves, how to build a vocal track worth reusing, and the three ways to save and reload it in REAPER. It also covers what a template will not do, so you do not expect it to fix problems that live in the recording, not the settings.
The three kinds of template in REAPER
REAPER has three separate features that people all call "templates." They overlap, so it helps to know which one you actually want.
- FX chain. Just the stack of plugins on a track, with their settings and order. Save it once and drop the same chain onto any track in any project. This is the smallest, most portable option.
- Track template. A whole track (or several), including its name, record input, input monitoring, the full FX chain, and any sends and receives. Folder layouts are kept too. Use this to drop a fully wired vocal track into a song you are already working on.
- Project template. An entire project: every track, its routing, and the project and media settings. Use this to start a brand new song from a known layout. Note that a project template does not save markers, and opening one closes your current project.
If you mostly add a vocal to existing beats or sessions, a track template is the sweet spot. If you always start songs the same way, a project template saves more. An FX chain is handy when you just want the same processing on a new track without the rest of the setup.
Step 1: Build one vocal track worth reusing
A template only captures whatever you set up, so spend a few minutes getting one track right before you save it. Start a fresh project and add a single track.
Add and name the track
Press Ctrl+T (Cmd+T on macOS) to insert a track and name it something clear like Lead Vocal. The name is saved in the template, so a good one pays off every time you load it.
Set the record input and monitoring
Arm the track and choose the input your mic is on (mono, not stereo, for a single mic). If you monitor through REAPER, turn on input monitoring now. These states are saved with a track template, so you will not have to set them again.
Add your FX chain
Click the track’s FX button and add the processing you use on most vocals, for example a high-pass and EQ, a compressor, and a de-esser. Keep it lean, especially if you monitor through it while recording. For which plugins to use and the order that makes sense, see the full chain guide linked below.
Add routing you always use
If you send every vocal to a reverb or delay bus, set that send up now. A track template remembers sends and receives, so your effects routing loads with the track.
The values you save are a starting point, not a preset that will be right for every voice. A compressor threshold or an EQ cut that suits one singer will need nudging for the next. Save reasonable defaults and plan to adjust them per session, rather than expecting the template to be finished audio.
If you want the exact processing to put on this track, our walkthrough of the REAPER vocal chain with stock plugins covers the build order for beginners, and the vocal EQ cheat sheet for REAPER gives frequency-by-frequency starting points. This article is about saving that setup so you never rebuild it.
Step 2: Save it as a track template
Once the track is set up the way you like, saving it takes a few seconds.
Select the track
Click the track to select it. If you built more than one track you want to reuse together, such as a lead and a doubles bus, select all of them.
Save the template
Open the Track menu and choose Save tracks as track template. Give it a clear name like Lead Vocal 48k. REAPER stores it in your TrackTemplates folder by default.
Decide whether to include items
The save dialog has options to include the track’s media items and envelopes. For a reusable vocal starting point, leave these unchecked, or the old take will come along every time you load the template. Only include items when you specifically want them, such as a click or a guide part.
Step 3: Reuse it in any project
This is the payoff. In any session, new or existing, right-click an empty area of the track panel on the left, or open the Track menu, and choose Insert track from template, then pick your saved template. The track drops in fully configured: name, input, monitoring, FX, and sends. Unlike a project template, inserting a track template does not close or replace your current project, so it is safe to use mid-song.
Because the input and FX load with the track, a good track template can take you from an empty project to armed and ready in a single step. That is the whole point: less setup, more consistent results, and the same vocal chain on every song.
The lighter option: save just the FX chain
Sometimes you do not want a whole track, just the same plugins on a track that already exists. That is an FX chain. Open the track’s FX window, click the FX button at the top left, and choose Save FX chain (you can also right-click the plugin list and choose Save selected FX as chain to save only the plugins you highlight). To load it later, click the FX button on any track and pick your saved chain from the FX chains list. Saved chains live in the FXChains folder.
An FX chain is the most portable piece of your setup. It carries the processing and settings without the track name, input, or routing, which makes it easy to reuse across very different projects.
Make a whole session ready: project templates
If you always start a song the same way, save the entire project. Set up your tracks, routing, and preferences in an empty project, then go to File › Project templates › Save project as template and name it. To open it later, use the same File › Project templates menu and pick it from the list.
If you want one project template to load every time you start REAPER or create a new project, name that template default. REAPER will use it as the starting point for new projects. This is the quickest way to make every new session open with your vocal track already in place.
Where REAPER keeps your templates
All of these live in one place. Go to Options › Show REAPER resource path in explorer/finder to open the folder REAPER stores your settings in. Inside you will find TrackTemplates, ProjectTemplates, and FXChains subfolders. Knowing this is useful for two reasons: you can back these folders up, and you can copy them to a new computer so your setup follows you.
| You want to | Use this | How to save |
|---|---|---|
| Reuse the same plugins on a new track | FX chain | FX window, FX › Save FX chain |
| Drop a wired vocal track into an existing song | Track template | Track › Save tracks as track template |
| Start a whole new song from a known layout | Project template | File › Project templates › Save project as template |
| Open every new project already set up | Project template named default | Save a project template and name it default |
What a template will not do
A template is a time-saver, not a quality upgrade. It is worth being clear about the difference.
- It will not improve your recording. A template recalls settings, so a noisy room, a boomy mic position, or a distorted take will load in exactly as flawed as you saved it. Fix the source first.
- It will not set itself for a new voice. Your saved EQ and compression are a starting point. A deeper or brighter singer, or a louder performance, will need the settings nudged.
- It will not match a new song. Tempo, key, and arrangement are yours to set each time. A template gives you the tools in place, not a finished mix.
- It will not rescue an over-processed chain. Saving a heavy, over-tweaked setup just makes it fast to over-process again. Get the sound right before you save it.
A good vocal template removes the boring, repetitive part of starting a session and keeps your setup consistent from song to song. What it cannot do is make a rough recording sound finished. It gets you to the same solid starting line faster, and the work of shaping each vocal still happens after that.
Build one clean vocal track with the input, monitoring, FX, and routing you use most, then save it with Track › Save tracks as track template and reload it any time with Insert track from template. Save just the plugins as an FX chain when that is all you need, or a whole session as a project template, and name a project template default to load it automatically. Treat the saved settings as a starting point, not a finished sound.
Need a chain to put in your template?
The free StudioRescue vocal chain is a ready-made stack of REAPER’s stock plugins, set up for a cleaner home vocal. Load it on a track, adjust to taste, then save it as your track template so it is one click away every session. Stock plugins only, nothing to buy.
Get the free vocal chainSources
- Cockos, REAPER User Guide (current version 7.78, released July 18, 2026) - track templates, project templates, FX chains, and the resource path. reaper.fm/userguide
- Cockos, REAPER version history - confirms current release 7.78 (July 18, 2026). reaper.fm/whatsnew.txt
- Sound on Sound, "REAPER: Total Recall With Track Templates" - saving and inserting track templates, including what a template stores. soundonsound.com