I am new to WaveLab 7, which I am running under OS X 10.6. (Actually, it is not entirely true that I am new to it, but I have not used WaveLab for almost two years!)
I am a bit baffled as to where data is stored. Is there such a thing as a native WaveLab “project file”, or similar? All I see in the directory where I keep stuff is an mp3 file. I am looking for something like a cubase .cpr file, I guess.
What data are you speaking about? Preferences and settings?
Sorry I was a bit vague.
I meant the data associated with a particular audio file. I had been working on a recording done over Skype, and which was saved as an mp3 file. When I worked on it in WaveLab, all I saw in the directory was the mp3 file itself.
The documentation on file management is, like much of the WaveLab 7 documentation, rather inadequate. After reading some more and experimenting, I discover that I can store “companion files” alongside (in the same directory as) the audio file. The WaveLab 7 Elements manual does not even mention “companion files”, so I have no idea what they might contain.
As a consequence of the lack of documentation I have very little sense of how files are handled. Is editing non-destructive across separate WaveLab sessions? If so, then why, when I save a file at the end of a session, is the file (apparently) re-encoded?
Saving as mp3 is by definition destructive, because data gets lost. So whenever working in WL, best practice is to have a source file with the highest possible resolution. If your source is mp3, decode this by opening it in WL and then save a copy as .wav. Work from there, and render to mp3 if you want, but leave the source alone if you want to edit more later on.
Non-destructive means that whatever you do to a file is done without affecting the original file: cutting, inserting silence, applying plug-ins. UNTIL you save again, ofcourse.
Luck, Arjan
Thank you, that helps.
I am more used to cubase, so I was expecting a bit more sophisticated management of audio data in WL. However, it will be quite workable to save as wav files until I am ready to render the final product.