Conversion Options

Convert provides the primary way to interactively process audio assets with a myriad of options.

To Convert Assets

1. Select the desired assets in the Asset List.
2. Select the Convert tab in the Info/Processing Section.
3. Specify settings.
4. Click Convert to initiate the conversion.  A progress sheet will be displayed during the operation.  You may pause the process by clicking on the Pause button and then resume the process by clicking on the Resume button.

The following sections describe the settings in detail.

General

Destination
Choose where the processed files will go.

• Same as source file(s) location - Places the processed files in the same folder as the source files.
• Specify a location - Drag and Drop a folder onto the Path Bar or click the Set... button and specify the folder to contain the processed files.

Retain Original Folder Structure
Turn this option on to recreate the entire folder structure in the destination location.  This can be very helpful when you have a complex folder hierarchy that you wish to keep intact.

Naming Options
Select how the processed files are to be named.

• Original Filename (change extension) - The original extension will be removed and an extension will be added based on the output file type.
• Original Filename (add extension) - The original filename will be used entirely and an extension will be added based on the output file type.
• Original Filename (no change) - The original filename will be used.
  

Limit Filenames to 31 Characters
Turn this option on to limit the processed filenames to 31 characters.  This may be necessary if the processed files are to be used with older OSs or older applications.

Open With
Turn this option on to automatically open the processed files in another application, such as Pro Tools, Logic Audio, Quicktime Player, or others.

To Add an Application to the Open With Menu

1. Select Select Open With Application... from the File menu.
2. Select the application in the dialog box.
3. Click Choose and the selected application will be added to all application menus.

Audio

File Type

• Select the desired output file type. 
• Set the specific options for the file type by clicking the Settings... button.

Codec

• Select the desired output codec. 
• Set the specific options for the codec (if available) by clicking the Settings... button.  

Bit Depth

• Select the desired output bit depth.
• Select Unchanged to use the bit depth of each source asset for its corresponding output file(s).

Sample Rate

• Select the desired output sample rate.
• Select Unchanged to use the sample rate of each source asset for its corresponding output file(s).
• If available, select one of the standard Pull-up/Pull-down sample rates.
• Select Adjust Source File Sample Rate to automatically apply the appropriate Pull-up/Pull-down adjustment to the sample rate of the source asset.
• Select Other... and enter a custom sample rate in Hz.  For example, a sample rate of 10kHz would be 10000 at the prompt.

Channels

• Select the desired number of channels.
• Select Unchanged to use the number of channels of each source asset for its corresponding output file(s).

Format

• Select Interleaved Files to create one output file for each source asset.
• Select Split Files to create an output file for each channel for each source asset.  Extension sets can be defined in Preferences.  Refer to the Preferences section of this document for more details.
• Select Unchanged to create Interleaved or Split Files according to the format of the source asset.

Normalize
Turn this option on to adjust the gain of the audio content to a target level.

• Select Peak to specify the target level of the peak sample.
• Select RMS (Root Mean Squared) to specify the target level of the perceived volume or loudness.  Since RMS is based on adjusting a kind of average, it is possible to select a setting that will cause clipping. If this situation is detected, an alert will be displayed with a recommended maximum setting that will prevent clipping.
• Select a Specific value to specify the target level.

Note: If needed, during processing, the source audio assets will be analyzed to determine their current level.

Note: RMS normalizing can be very effective in adjusting the levels of a group of files so they all play at the same sound level. To do this, process all assets in the group at the same time.

Note: The best way to achieve an even sound level across files is to ensure that they are leveled properly during recording or when exported from a sound editor.

Metadata

The Metadata Tab allows you to set up how metadata will be written to the output files during processing.  There are many powerful things you can do using the settings in this tab.  For example, you could specify copyright information that would be written to every MP3 file that is created, no matter what the source format or metadata specify

Note:  For further information on supported metadata, refer to "Appendix B" at the end of this document.   

Produce Metadata
Turn this option on to write metadata to the output file.  Whatever metadata is supported by the file type and codec will be written and any equivalent metadata will be used. 

Copy from Selection
Select a single asset in the Asset List and click Copy from Selection to copy all the metadata from the asset to the fields in the Metadata List.

Reset All
Click Reset All to clear all fields in the Metadata List.

Metadata List
Shows the current state of how metadata will be processed.

To Set a Specific Value for a Metadata Item

• For a text or numeric metadata item, OPTION+click in the Value cell for that item and enter the text or number and hit Return to commit or Escape to cancel.
• For a complex metadata item, click the Gray Arrow on the right side of the Value cell to bring up the specific editor for that metadata item.

Note: Metadata in the Metadata tab takes precedence over the metadata associated with the original file when writing to output files.