Trying to import dual mono files to be converted to stereo.
I know it can be done but can’t find the start process.
Perhaps it doesn’t start from an import menu.
All pointers even manual pages gratefully accepted.
Cheers
David
Thank you Sven-Erik
I had found that bit in the manual the issue I have is that it implies that WL can identify what a dual mono file is.
That would appear to need setting some sort of pattern match parameter and ensuring the files are named in a way that WL can decide the two files are part of a dual mono process and just two mono files.
My files are named xxMAINL and xxMAINR and I’ve tried to add that pattern to WL so it can match and identify them as dual mono (which I want to be treated as single stereo) but I guess either I’ve done that incorrectly or the batch process I am trying to create to process such files needs some extra info to work with them.
So I’m trying find my error in the bit about how WL will identity the incoming files as a dual mono group.
I see that you can create multi mono file groups when dealing with three or more mono files, but as dual mono is probably going to be common I suspect they are dealt with more simply in its stereo processing chains and not as multi mono.
So I think my problem is in incorrectly defined patterns that WL uses to recognise a file as part of dual mono. But as ever I can’t see it for looking lol. My pattern for the above files is *MAIN.
Cheers
David
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Thank you Phillipe
I had found that bit, but the suffix tab threw me because I thought the suffix is .wav. The file name prefix has the pattern.
I did define that pattern as shown, but then I dragged two files with that pattern into the WL files window and it didn’t seem to recognise them as a dual mono set.
So is this down to the way I imported / brought files into WL?
Actually just thinking about it does the pattern match screen support wildcards in that box, is that my error?
Cheers
David
Use exactly as on my picture (which is not like on yours), and it works.
I have tried it.
Getting closer.
I modified pattern window to exactly match file prefix name (no wildcards)
I noticed I hadn’t picked an output format - so changed to stereo as my desired output.
My result two stereo files one for each input.
So presumably I only need to input one of the two dual mono source files and the pattern match picks up the other in the same source location automatically and uses both to create a single stereo file?
Is that correct?
Cheers
David
What I did was drag the two xxMAINL.wav and xxMAINR.wav files and drop them onto WaveLab. They were then combined into a single stereo file.
The common suffixes are not enough. The files needs to have a common root. This is not the case on your picture, where the roots are 21 and 22.
So
1: The pattern matching box cannot support wildcard chars. ie **MAINL /**MAINR ?
So each has to be the full actual prefix file name?
My use of the term prefix in file name is that the same as your terminology of “Common root” the first part of the file name before the .WAV suffix?
I think we’ve hit this terminology confusion difference before in previous issues.
Cheers
David
You can make it work using settings on my picture below.
But you should consider changing your file name convention. They are far away from any standard I have seen, I must say.
You use in your example:
21MAINL.wav
22MAINR.wav
The root, the common prefix, is just “2”. 
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Thanks Phillipe, think that sorts what I am trying to do.
Those names I am using are the default naming conventions produced from my hardware mixer the source of those files and can’t be changed at source.
I was looking to batch process from the source data if possible. I’ll give that new pattern a try now. Will mark as solution if it works for me.
Btw what’s the purpose of the Advanced button and pattern box which I believe can use wildcards? Is that just another way of doing it
ie xxMAINx anything with that pattern would be used for both L and R in dual mono?
Cheers
David
It is usable when the channel identification is not a suffix, but something inside the name.
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Well still can’t get the suffix boxes to work. I even renamed the audio wav files to match the pattern exactly as in your example above. But on dragging the files to the files window it still doesn’t pick the two files up as dual mono.
My file renames at source were 1MAINL.WAV and 2MAINR.WAV
The prefix of the file is identical to the pattern in the audio file parameter settings.
That’s why I found the suffix label as odd as for me the terminology of suffix for the above file names is WAV. The prefix for me is 1MAINL and 2MAINR
So I still can’t see where the problem is.
I’ll just have to keep experimenting to see I can work out the logic in how the pattern matching matches characters in the file name.
I wonder if this could this be a WL cache issue between testing differing matching patterns in those boxes with a cache holding the previous pattern? Does WL have or indeed need any cache clearing tools in its programming.
Cheers
David
WaveLab recognizes something like:
rootMAINL.wav
rootMAINR.wav
The prefix is the same: “root”, or whatever you like. This is how you should name your files (using the settings of my first picture).
This is what I get.
Pic 1 the pattern and files
Pic 2 the result two mono files after drag and dropping to file window.
What the heck am I missing?
Hi!
There need to be a space between Main and L
(not like this) First-MainL.Wav
(but like this) First-Main L.Wav
regards S-EH
Eureka Found the error…
When I go to the File parameter window the drop down windows defaults to Name Creation. If I put the patterns in without changing that to Name Interpretation xx it doesn’t work. If I put the pattern in after selecting the Name Interpretation xx first it works.
So it my understanding of the drop down menu for the multiple different patterns you can store there which has caught me out. There presumably is some expected behaviour when accessing that File parameter window for the first time.
So I now know to do it just don’t understand why the default state is not the first empty Name Interpretation xx field.
Clearly seem to not be your typical user here re the way Im reading the screen.
David
1 Like