Mac OS 9 Lives

Classic Mac OS Software => Digital Audio Workstations & MIDI Applications => Cubase/Nuendo by Steinberg => Topic started by: Protools5LEGuy on December 30, 2014, 09:39:44 PM

Title: 32 bit floating audio
Post by: Protools5LEGuy on December 30, 2014, 09:39:44 PM
I am working on a project that was partially recorded on Cubase 5 Win  ::)

The artist is a friend not very aware of tecnology, but he had the patience to create the steams of the audio to work on Logic/Protools. But those files came in 32 bit floating audio, and PT/Logic needs 24 bit fixed.  :P

I had to go Audacity on Leopard to convert the files...

Is there a pure OS9 method to convert to 24bits?

Title: Re: 32 bit floating audio
Post by: miracman on December 31, 2014, 12:32:06 AM
It's hard to trust any app when it comes to ... down-bit'ing (not sure how to name that). 
It's not clear to me that those apps have really understood the Fourier theorem,  or how, according to that theorem you can somewhat prepare such conversion beforehand.  (I'm saying this but yeah, trying to read about this on wikipedia made me fell asleep way before i understood anything).
I've heard really good sounding piano turn into a thundertorm of clippings just going from 24bit to 16.  Some conversions do just work easily though.. most even. 
...
Anyways, having said that... I don't know that many now widely known as "wave editors" as much as I would wish, but Peak should be able to do that (efficiently or not ;) )
There's a really stripped down version here, but I think you coud use it for that..
Title: Re: 32 bit floating audio
Post by: DieHard on December 31, 2014, 01:33:59 AM
Cubase VST 5/32 on OS9 will of course Import and play the stems (if you have a decent Audio interface); the stock Apple sound manager (even as an ASIO driver) will be limited to 16 bit/44K.  Each stem can be soloed and you can pick "Export Aduio" from the Master fader and choose 24bit as the destination file.  Cubase will have the advantage of the Apogee UV22 algorithm built it and you should not really loose any quality.  Back in the day, I did many projects in 32 bit since the "true tape" feature of cubase not only sounded excellent, but the faders in Cubase were almost impossible to "Overload" with 32 bit files.  Several advantages of 32 bit included... effect algorithms (FX plugins), could process the files without peaking via a much hotter signal and thus richer sounding FX and also the actual volumes of the faders during Mixdown had a greater range of movement before peaking.   

So even if the final project was dithered down to 24 Bit (for transfer to a DAT or Alesis Masterlink HD) or 16 Bit/44K for direct Audio burning, the benefits of working with the 32 bit files outweigh all the disk space that they would gobble up