The transport is for moving specified tracks (or segments/groups thereof) in and out of the AW.
The Song 1 and Song2 folders contain your projects(songs). Export to Transpor will move specified tracks out of a song (project) folder and into the transport. In the process you can name the track with a recognizable name. In the song folder they are (mysteriously) numbered by the machine, so you have great difficulty finding the one you want. You discovered that. All those numbered files are all the takes and retakes, punch in/out segments, mixdowns etc. like a haystack made up entirely from needles. Easy to find a needle, but which one ???? So - use the Export > transport folder to specify what you want to move out while you are working in a song (project), because finding what you want in the Song folder is next to impossible as there are no logical names or date/time stamps.
If you do all your post production on the AW, then the transport folder will be used primarily for moving specified Stereo Tracks (mixdowns) out so they can then be made into mp3 files and mailed or archived as wav as "finished" mixes. If you want to mix or edit on another platform though, the transport folder can be used to get individual tracks too, for import into that other platform
As for archiving complete projects on the 1600, you can use the partitions that appear when connected via USB as you would any folder on your PC. Move or copy an .AWS folder from song 1 or 2 to your PC Hardrive or to a peripheral attached to that HD and it will sit there as an archive. You can then delete the song (project) from your AW to free up HD space there. When you want to work on it again, copy that .AWS folder back into Song1 or 2 folder (no matter which it came from originally) and it should reappear in the Song list of the AW. Just remember that when you delete a project, that you have backed up to a PC, from the AW then it is no longer "backed up" as there is only one copy in existence, now on the PC. So back up the backups for important stuff!! The AW16G process of creating backup discs does not exist on the 1600. All backup need be done via USB to PC. Archiving of a complete project does not involve the transport folder at all.
Never change the name of any .AWS folder while it resides on your PC in any way though, as the AW will not recognize it when trying to remount. It is tempting to amend file names for future recognition, but this will create problems. I know from experience.
(It is ok to rename individual files that came to your PC via the transport folder though as they are specified copies and have therefore become external to the Project(Song)
But do clean up (delete items) in the transport folder every now and again. that folder has a size limit (2GB??). If it gets filled past its capacity the machine begins to act strangely. (Again, I know from personal experience). I have had trouble with some long multi-track sessions of concerts because of this. I never lost anything, but it was arduous getting my stuff. So watch out if the transport gets cluttered with many, many small files or a few really long files. Not to worry if you keep it reasonably tidy though.
Hope this helps,
_________________ Byron
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