aac encode

WaveLab
#1

Hi PG,

Thanks for the 7.2 update- I’m downloading it now but I do have a feature request…

I use Wavelab as my main 2 track editor and bath processor but there is one glaring omission to Wavelab’s feature set. I can’t create/encode AAC files! Wavelab fully supports exporting mp3’s, OGG files and all PCM file formats and even ADPCM but not AAC which is a very large part of mobile audio, web or video game and audio post production.

Any chance we can get AAC encoding in Wavelab 7?
It is needed- badly!

~Chris

#2

Encoding to AAC requires an expensive license. This is currently not planned.

#3

If I remember correctly Wavelab is able to decode AAC files if you have Apple’s Quick Time installed (still no encoding though).

#4

Hi,

Just trying to understand, AAC is possible to encode with
iTunes, QTime and even 3part, right or is this not the real deal
I mean is encoding in less/lower quality or is it about license ?

regards S-EH

#5

It’s a licensing issue.

#6

PG,

I understand it requires a license, but there are apps that cost $79.00 that include AAC encoding. So the logic that its too expensive to include an AAC license with Wavelab which cost $500 doesn’t really make sense.

AAC is the final destination format for many audio production workflows. Since Wavelab is promoted for its batch processing features it is a glaring oversight that AAC exporting isn’t an option.

Wavelab is my preferred audio editor but a major reason I use it is for its batch processor. If this is never going to be included, I may have to go back to Peak. I don’t want to. I wanted Wavelab for years and waited patiently for Wavelab to come to OSX, but if Wavelab can’t and will not ever support one of the most fundamental audio formats then I may have no choice than to switchback. Because I HAVE to deliver AAC files to clients. And using something like iTunes is not a realistic option. I need to batch hundreds sometimes thousands of files and thats the point of a batch utility.

Please, reconsider adding AAC exporting to Wavelab. And if it really will never be included, then please post it publicly so that professionals that require it, know up front that they can’t use use Wavelab for such a fundamental function.

#7

So does anyone else here need to batch encode AAC files…or am I the only one on the forum wanting this.

I know others (coworkers) etc all need this regularly but on the MAC they’ve stuck with Bias Peak. Curious if I’m the only one on the WL7 forum who needs this capability considering its the primary deliverable for anything iOS (iPhone/ipad).

#8

Hi,

Try with Switch app from NCH will do folder processing

regards S-EH

#9

Thanks I’ve heard of Switch in the past. Aand double thanks for proving my point further!
Why can a FREE batch utility offer AAC encoding and Wavelab can’t or won’t?

C’mon Steinberg, please support AAC encoding in Wavelab it is a required file format for many clients. I could understand when Wavelab was only a windows software but now that its cross platform this is a serious feature omission.

#10

I understand it requires a license, but there are apps that cost $79.00 that include AAC encoding. So the logic that its too expensive to include an AAC license with Wavelab which cost $500 doesn’t really make sense.

Actually it does - the products you mention are all owned, developed and sold by Apple directly to the public. (except Bias off course) Why not approach them as developer and come back and tell us what the pricing is then…

#11

Regardless, this is a Mastering program and like it or not… aac is not an unreasonable request. Go buy something on iTunes and tell me what format it is in? Let’s be practical, if I wanted to master for aac…I would prefer to bounce the file out of WL in that format to check the sound. We should not have to use a 3rd party program, when we are paying a premium(many times over for most of us). I honestly don’t care how much it cost Steiny…when we have be asked to fork over a substantial amount over the years, so… it is a reasonable request. :smiley:

#12

Actually I do care how much it costs ‘Steiny’, because obviously that will be represented in the price I pay. I have no interest in this format, so if it adds anything to the WL price, I say leave it out. (BTW, who asked you “to fork over” any money to Steinberg? They sell software, you apparently want that software and pay the price it costs - just a business transaction.)

Luck, Arjan

#13

True.

#14

Re the discussuion Just my two penneth regards licencing.

Licencing is a commercial venture. The way they can be priced may be proportional so that a larger company pay far more more than a small company. The use of the code could even be made free just to get products out to put the pressure on the larger companies to take it on. It all about the profits.

Its another reason us consumers use various software tools to reach our goals.

Cheers
David

#15

Sorry Clyde but I don’t believe your statement is true…

The apps I’ve been mentioning thus far are “Switch” by NCH software and “Sample Manager” & “WaveEditor” by AudioFile Engineering. Neither company has any connection to Apple Inc that I’m aware of and in the case of AudioFile Engineering they are very small developer. So my point is valid and remains, these companies are offering AAC encoding for under $80.00 along with all of their other features.

I understand you may not need to encode AAC files. Heck, you may not even use a Mac or care about this common audio file format for your work at all. And while that is fine for you, Wavelab is promoted as being a pro audio application that is cross platform. And In this day and age, Mac support requires many professionals to make AAC files for their clients. For example the mobile video game industry and iOS developers (iPhone and iPad) prefer audio files in the AAC or CAF file format. And then of course the music industry has iTunes which is based on AAC as well. So, the Mac platform uses AAC files as a very common format and the fact that Steinberg is ignoring it is only to their (and ours as a user base) detriment. It just doesn’t make Steinberg look like its really committed to Wavelab as a cross platform application if it is ignoring such a fundamental file format.

And as for me, even if a feature isn’t one I need directly for my current work, I can understand it being good for the app and user base as a whole because I want the tools I use to be successful and profitable for the company that makes them so that I can keep getting updates and improvements. I want Wavelab to be a success on the Mac because I waited so long for it to come to the Mac. But if it isn’t going to support one of the most common audio file formats then my concern is Steinberg isn’t really committed to Wavelab on the Mac. Which means they are wasting both their time, energy and money as well as mine.

Finally, since Bias was mentioned in this thread too, lets go ahead and look at it. Peak is Wavelab’s most direct competition on the Mac platform and Peak has been the most widely used audio editor on the Mac for years. It has a similar feature set to WL7 including editing, batch processing, cd burning and while Wavelab and Peak cost the same $499.00, Peak includes AAC encoding. So my point is if Steinberg wants Wavelab to grow its market share (which I’m guessing is the whole reason it was coded for the Mac in the first place) then they need to include basic functionality like supporting common file formats.

#16

It’s possible to have external program/app open up inside WaveLab 7
check menu Tools / Config external tools, maybe this can work in
the meantime and it’s nice to have this option built in.

regards S-EH

#17

I have to agree with wavcatcher on this as i own AudioFile Engineering’s WaveEditor.Wavelab is a built like a tank compared to it,it costs much much more and it’s aimed at professionals.AAC is a commonly used format, and should be included even as an option…

#18

The implementation of AAC in NCH package is not Apple, it’s Dolby Labs.
As stated on their website in the small print at http://www.nch.com.au/acm/formats.html

aac - the Advanced Audio Coding format is based on the MPEG4 audio standard owned by Dolby. A copy-protected version of this format has been developed by Apple for use in music downloaded from their iTunes Music Store. Sample .aac file.

Licensing costs still apply, and if there are no licenses paid to Dolby then this is a reverse engineered hack.
Dolby Labs, like Apple, are also not known for excessive Altruism in licensing costs.

#19

Good info and research Neil.

Regarding the licensing fees- As a user, I pay for the software I use and hope the companies I buy software from are paying their licensing fees much the same!

And I don’t want this thread to be taken the wrong way. I really like Wavelab 7 and want to continue using it for all my editing and batching needs. But AAC is a very common format that many of my clients are requesting so I’m hoping Steinberg brings AAC support to all it’s products- including Wavelab.

#20

BTW, it is also useful (to me) to be able to decode .aac files, especially those derived from DAB, for technical examination and quality control.

There seems to be at least two options. For those that need this facility, then as was the case with Sound Forge and .mp3 when I first started using it 12 years ago, you can pay an additional license fee for the codec plugin. Or you can for what seems to me a very reasonable fee, get the Proferssional version of Easy CD-DA Convertor from poikosoft, to carry out the conversion, and many others. For the WL plug-in, I assume the additional cost would be less than the unlimited license fee for ECD-DAPro.