What’s new in WaveLab 6

A list of all feature additions and improvements of WaveLab 6 compared to its predecessor.
A big feature is not more described than a minor one, but the most important ones in a category are
set in italics…

Environment

• WaveLab now supports Windows XP Styles for windows, menus and dialogs
• MIDI command support allows triggering of WaveLab functions as well as audio scrubbing
• Smarter navigation between document windows with the Tab key
• Save screenshot of active window, including plug-ins
• Audio file information can be copied to the Windows clipboard
• RMS reference to the AES17 standard on/off
• Mouse wheel control of Master Section faders on/off
• Waveform/Track “point and drag” scrolling with the mouse wheel button
• Improved Preference dialog
• Improved VST plug-in management (preferences)
• Maximum number of files in the 'recent' menus can be defined
• Zoom selection by a click on the length indicator in the status bar
• Create Windows file links of WaveLab documents, from WaveLab
• Create file type associations from WaveLab

File Management

• Read and Write performance of audio files drastically improved

• No limitation on audio file size; support both the w64 and RIFF64 file formats.
• Smart ‘Audio File Rename’ to update all file references in other documents such as Audio
Montages, as well as peak and attribute files.
• Extremely powerful set of procedures to convert, remove, format, import and insert text, to
virtually transform any file name to another one. Automatic update of file name references in
other documents such as Montage or Audio database, peak and attribute files.
• Documented plugin architecture to allow third parties to write audio file format converters.
• Smart ‘Audio File Delete’ from within WaveLab to delete relative peak and attribute files.
• File list manager to access and sort up to 200 hundred recent files
• File list manager to access all open files from one dialog
• Erase peak files from within WaveLab
• Folder manager to set default folders and how they should be kept or updated on file
open/save.
• Define up to 3 temporary file folders, with smart usage by WaveLab at run time to improve file
performances
• Audio peak files can now be created in a separate folder
• Automatically save settings associated to an audio file (view, scroll position, Master Section
preset) in an attribute file.
• Option to display the full file path in the window caption bar
• Audio files with a header error can be opened without warning message
• Auto-split tool enhancements
o Auto-split audio files to specific file length
o Auto-split audio files according to values imported from an external text file (xml
support)
o Auto-split audio files to Audio Montage clips
o Optional fades in the Auto-split tool.

Playback and Transport

• Time code slave to ASIO positioning protocol for sample accurate sync
• Jog and shuttle with keyboard shortcuts to set cursor or selection edges
 • Cursor can return to the start play position on stop
• Fade-out when stopping playback to avoid click
• Time code window can now display position with a reduced precision (-> less screen
flickering)

Recording

• New button 'Split now' to close the current recorded file while continuing recording in a new file
• When recording into a montage track, the time indicator displays the position of the end of the
recording in the track.
• When recording, the gap between the current position and the last inserted marker is now
displayed.

Spectrum Editor

• Extremely versatile Spectrum editor for powerful manipulation of audio files in the frequency
domain. Completely integrated to wave windows.
o Extensive set of specialized manipulation tools
o High quality linear-phase filters for processing spectrogram selections both in the time
and frequency domain through the Master Section.
o Extremely flexible filtering and replacement option
o Surgical mode dedicated to audio correction allows Copy and Paste the selection or
the 'ambiance' of that selection to another place in the time/frequency domain, or
apply some specific processes to the selection
o Source / Destination mode to replace frequency ranges of audio

Audio Analysis

• K-System (Katz) support for loudness metering

• Option to monitor file rendering to disk using the various meters
• New Waveform scope to show the signal which is currently rendered or recorded
• Loudness distribution window to visualize loudness distribution in an audio file
• Phase scope: option to disable the auto-size rendering.
• Improved user interface for “Audio error detection and correction”

Audio File Editing

• Upper and lower Wave panes can be set independently to display loudness envelope,
spectrogram or waveform display, and be synchronized.
• Improved Peak files provide more accurate representations of the waveforms.
• Peak files background creation with graphical progress monitoring.
• Peak file display speed heavily improved for large files.
• Smooth delete: remove an audio range and perform a small cross-fade at the edge, for a
smooth transition.
• Selections can be saved as Audio Montage audio clips
• Info field in the status bar to indicate the mouse position and values in the time and level
domain

Audio File Rendering

• Multiple Marker regions can be rendered in just one operation, either in place or as new files
• Automatic cross-fades can be applied at the edges of rendered audio ranges for smoother
transitions
• For offline processing, option to have the whole wave processed if no selection exists.
• Updated MP3 encoder

Offline Processing

• Superior Time stretching / Pitch correction (DIRAC, by Stefan M. Bernsee)

 • Pitch quantize to adjust discrete notes in the audio material.
• Loudness Normalizer (multi-pass) to adjust the loudness of a file to a given value (RMS)
• Pan normalizer to balance the loudness of both channels
• Advanced ' Insert silence'function generates 'ambiance'background noise rather than digital
silence, with optional cross-fades
• Level envelope to control the audio level
• Effect morphing to gradually blend two processed audio ranges through a custom envelope for
sample accurate effect transitions and emulate parameter automation.
• Improved offline Sample rate converter.
• EQ1 plug-in is now available as an offline process.

Master Section

• Smart global bypass tool to compensate for the loudness change between the input and
output
• Master Section presets can be associated and stored independently within each audio file
• Master Section preset associated with an Audio Montage can be saved automatically
• Global bypass switch now indicated even if Master Section is folded (red LED)
• Plugin manager: plugins in can be automatically set in a sub-menu (eg. all Waves plugins)

Plugins

• External gear: to process audio through some external device

• Audio input: replace the ' Live input'
, with now the option to record the result processed through
the Master Section.
• Crystal Resampler: a top quality sample rate converter.
• New plugin generic user interface
• Resizer plug-in to limit or extend the size of an audio file (Batch processor).

Audio Database

• Import of file attributes from text files

• Export of database to text file
• Audio Montage clip support

Miscellaneous

• Batch marker renaming with powerful customisable rules and external importation of
information.
• Flexible marker type converter
• Export of clip and marker lists in various formats including XML
• CD grabber: new track renumbering options.
• Signal generator: frequency sweeps can be linear or exponential. Frequency up to 96kHz can
be generated. For levels, decibel values can be entered.

Audio Montage: General

• Batch processing of Audio Montages

• Batch clip renaming with powerful user-defined rules and import of external information
• XML import/export of montages for advanced users
• AES31: missing files can be searched.

Audio Montage: Editing

• Fades of all selected clips can be edited simultaneously.

• Edges of all selected clips can be adjusted simultaneously.
• Move a cross-fade region while keeping its length.
• Resize a cross-fade region symmetrically while keeping its centred position.
• Clip auto-grouping by automatically move all clips '
touching each other'as a group.
 • Each clip can now store a list of underlying audio files and switch from one to another
• Clip volume/fade envelope can be pre or post effect send
• Move clips to their relative BWF time stamp position
• Update all peak files of the montage’s audio files
• Clip saving as independent file made easier
• Clip file insertion improved
• No limitation of clip size (in the same way as no limitation of audio file length)
• Phase of clips file can be inverted

Audio Montage : File tab

• New pane to list all regions of an audio file, with drag and drop insertion
• Replacement of audio files used in the Audio Montage by other audio files
• Renaming of files which are used in the Audio Montage
• Export of the file list as text document

Audio Montage : Plug-in tab (new)

• Visualize and manage all plug-ins used in a montage in a variety of ways.

• Copy and paste plug-ins or plug-in presets between clips or tracks
• Create and save plug-in chains

Audio Montage : CD/DVD tab

• Render CD/DVD tracks as new audio files, and replace or not the corresponding regions
• Updated CD-Text dialog to ease operations
• The CD-Wizard now allows creating CD-Track of at least 4 sec if the related clips are shorter
than this.
• CD report: the logo is now embedded to the report, hence the report can be moved with more
ease to another computer

Audio Montage : rendering

• Multi-region processing: all marker regions can be rendered in one operation as new files.
• Option to perform a short fade at the edges of rendered audio ranges for smoother transitions.
• Shortcut to update a Master Section preset
• Shortcut to render an audio file range in place.