12 Mixdown
Mixdown renders the whole song to a WAV or MP3 file, as you hear it in the playlist.
12-1 Opening the Mixdown tab
Choose File ▸ Mixdown…. The Mixdown tab opens.
- Name — The file's name. The extension (.wav or .mp3) is shown after the field and added for you.
- Path — The folder the file goes in. Click Browse… to choose another.
- File type — WAV or MP3.
- Bit depth — 16-bit, 24-bit or 32-bit float.
- Confirm — Starts the mixdown.
When File type is MP3, Bit depth is replaced by Bitrate: 128 kbps, 192 kbps, 256 kbps or 320 kbps.
12-1-1 Defaults
| Option | Default |
|---|---|
| Name | The project's name, or Untitled for a project never saved |
| Path | A mixdowns folder next to the project file, or your Music folder for a project never saved |
| File type | WAV |
| Bit depth | 16-bit |
| Bitrate | 320 kbps |
The name and folder you choose are kept for that project until you quit. The format choices are kept until you quit. None of them are saved in the project file.
12-2 Making a mixdown
- Choose File ▸ Mixdown….
- Set Name, Path and the format.
- Click Confirm (or press Return (Enter) in Name).
The tab shows Mixing down… with a progress bar. Click Cancel to stop; nothing of the file is kept.
When it's done, the tab shows Done with the file's name and path.
- Show in Finder — Shows the file in the Finder (or your system's file manager).
- New mixdown — Returns to the options.
A mixdown carries on if you close the tab. Open it again to see how it's going. Only one mixdown runs at a time.
If a file of that name is already there, nothing is written over: the new file is numbered, for example song 2.wav.
12-3 What is rendered
- The whole playlist, from its start to the end of the last clip, then a tail of up to 10 seconds while sound (a reverb, a ringing hit) dies away. There is no option to render part of the song.
- Every track through its mixer strip as set when the mixdown starts (fader, pan, mute, solo), then the master strip and its limiter.
- The song is played once through. Loop, the metronome and the count-in are not rendered.
- Sample rate: the audio engine's rate (set by the output device; see Installing and first launch). MP3 goes no higher than 48 kHz; above that, the song is rendered at 44.1 or 48 kHz.
- 16-bit WAV files are dithered.
The mixdown renders a copy of the song taken when it starts. You can keep playing and editing meanwhile; changes don't reach the file.
NOTE
If the playlist is empty, the mixdown doesn't start and the tab says There's nothing in the playlist to mix down.
12-3-1 Effects and instruments
Effects and instruments that are switched on are rendered too, with their settings as they are when the mixdown starts. If one can't be loaded for the mixdown, the mixdown fails rather than leaving it out.