I inadvertantly exported an audio part as an MP3 instead of a wave file. Does that degrade the file permanently or will it regain it’s full form if I convert it back to wave?
Thanks for your thoughts.
Will
It does degrade the file permanently
That’s what I was afraid of! Thanks for the verification.
Aloha S,
Just out of curiosity.
From the original Cubase project, can you ‘hear’ the diff?
MP3 vs. anything else?
TIA (thanks in advance)
{‘-’}
Yes, there is a difference between MP3 and wave sound quality. The wave has more depth and shine. Not abundantly but I can hear the difference.
I would never process an MP3 of any quality. Ideally it’s good to get everything as a WAV out of Cubase and then convert to MP3 in a mastering application like Wavelab.
Might be a little bit too demanding for a trivial software like wavelab though.
+1! 
Bane, could you please explain the reasoning behind your advice?
Edit: Ah, yes … the ol’ quote that no longer exists trick 
What’s the problem? Wavelab uses the same encoders as Cubase. The reason I like to export a WAV to Wavelab first is that it’s a very visual and more intuitive way to apply mastering processes and save your session.
The point isn’t that Wavelab is any better at converting than Cubase, but that it’s a good idea to have a high quality WAV of your session first so that you can make further edits or even lossless conversions at different kbps if necessary.
Doesn’t Cubase hold the high quality WAVs of your sessions? I can see exporting WAV from Cubase if you use another form of lossless conversion but for the MP3, it just eliminates extra steps.
I actually use WMA files, as I don’t own a legit MP3 encoder. I still find it more intuitive to carry out mastering tasks and manage Meta Data in Wavelab, but for those not owning it, yes this process would be redundant.
No problem. Do whatever makes you happy. I was just curious about your logic. Thanks for the info.