When I export a stereo mix from Cubase 14 pro and re-import it the levels change.
When I render a mix within the project the levels are correct.
Even when I export and re-import the correctly rendered mix the level drops.
If I open either elsewhere, WaveLab for example, the levels are correct.
I have tried re-importing and drag and drop. Re-importing combines with another track, which is obviously useless – drag and drop at least lands as a new audio file but loses level.
Any advice about what I might be doing wrong appreciated.
For something like this folks are going to need to know exactly what you are doing in order to offer useful advice. Can you provide a step-by-step description so we can try and replicate it.
I don’t understand what this might mean.
Thanks for getting back.
I am exporting a mix of a project in two ways.
1 - exporting audio as a stereo file from stereo out.
2 - Rendering a mix as another audio track within the project and then exporting that.
Both files open in WaveLab and play back at the correct level.
But when I re-import them back into the Cubase project they came from they shrink by about 3 or 4 db.
Anything on the master bus? Or master fader not at unity gain?
Which meters are telling you they are different levels?
Maybe a screencap of the two mixdowns (internal and re-imported) showing the difference would help?
This is confusing me a bit:
What is the difference between rendering a mix within the project and rendering a mix as another track within the project??
This sounds like the same thing but you have two different results?
2 - Rendering a mix as another audio track within the project and then exporting that.
Both files open in WaveLab and play back at the correct level.
But when I re-import them back into the Cubase project they came from they shrink by about 3 or 4 db.
So far in 100% of the cases whenever someone had such an issue it was a user setting in the project, not a bug in the software.
You can confirm whether this is the case on your Cubase by creating an empty project and importing the audio file there.
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Maybe there are some unintended Pre-Gain settings in the Project?
You might try starting from scratch and create a test Project so you can explore what’s happening in a more controlled environment.
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Hi All, thanks for input.
I have followed all your suggestions.
I was trying to get a stereo mix to do some mastering. There are plenty of work-arounds. I just stumbled on the one way that doesn’t work.
Exporting a mix is fine because it opens in WaveLab or a new Cubase project exactly as it was exported.
What Cubase doesn’t seem to like is re-importing a stereo mix into a project from the mixdown folder of the same project. If I move it to another location and then bring it back it is fine…but drag and drop from the mixdown folder and it loses level – or import without first opening a new empty audio track and it will land on the last audio stem/clip and combine with that.
I don’t think there are any ‘import audio settings’ that apply to this – and I have not altered any of the levels myself. Pre-gain and fader all zero on the re-imported track and the stereo out.
Drag and drop to the track list to create a new track - I guess it’s appending because you’re dropping to the arrangement window.
And where you drag and drop from simply cannot change the volume it imports at…there has to something else you’re missing.
You seem to have worked around it anyway, but if you want to work out what is happening maybe post a video to show the difference between drag and drop from the two locations.
I just mixed down a project. I my case, sample rate and bit depth was set to the same as the project settings and the destination folder was the default “Mixdown” folder.
Upon completion I dragged the resulting audio file from Windows File Explorer to the very bottom of my project window, thus creating a new audio track in the process.
Since I have insert effects on my Stereo Out bus, I removed the output routing on that track and instead enabled one of my Cue Sends that I use for bypassing any Stereo Out bus processing. (I call this bus “Reference” and in Audio Connections > Control Room, it is not connected to any physical output. See screenshot below.)
In Control Room I can now toggle between my Mix bus and this Cue bus and doing so did not reveal any differences in level or otherwise.
Hi All
Obviously I can do this any number of ways but just out of curiosity I have an identical stereo wav file in the mixdown folder of the original project and also copied to my desktop.
I imported and dragged and dropped each file from both its locations into a new project. They are identical files and they remain that way in all four cases in the new project. The waveforms are identical and the levels are identical.
I then did exactly the same thing with exactly the same files into the project from which the mixdown was exported.
Drag and drop and import from the desktop location, and import from the mixdown folder all have identical waveforms and levels…but drag and drop from the mix down folder loses about 4db. The 4th waveform is visibly smaller and the level is lower.
I have done exactly the same thing eight times with the same file. Seven work one doesn’t. There are no other inserts, sends, pre-gain or fader settings on the stereo out or any of the imported tracks.
