Steinberg WaveLab 3 Operation Manual

WAVELAB
Analysis 25 – 631
Audio error detection and correction
This function can be used to detect and remove all sorts of click noise, in-
cluding digital clicks. You can also restore damaged portions of an audio 
file by using waveform replacement.
Several detection and restoration methods are available. You can detect, 
mark and name, jump to, play back and remove individual audio errors.
Selecting a detection method
Proceed as follows:
1.In WaveLab, open the file you wish to process.
2.Open the...

WAVELAB
25 – 632 Analysis
Depending on which method you have selected, different detection para-
meters are available:
The Detection method pop-up menu.
When you have selected a Detection method there are two ways to con-
tinue: selecting to detect all errors (see below) or selecting to detect indi-
vidual errors (see “Correcting individual errors” on page 634).
Automatic detection and correction
You can let WaveLab automatically remove all click noise errors that it 
can detect.
Parameter Description...

WAVELAB
Analysis 25 – 633
1.Click on the “Detect all errors” button to start the search for all detectable 
errors.
WaveLab will now search the complete file and insert a pair of markers for each found error.
Here, WaveLab has detected an error in the waveform.
2.In the Restoration method pop-up menu, select one of the available op-
tions.
A description of what the selected method does is displayed below the pop-up.
The Restoration method pop-up menu.
3.Click on the “Correct all errors” button.
WaveLab...

WAVELAB
25 – 634 Analysis
Correcting individual errors
You can of course also detect and correct individual errors, using differ-
ent detection methods and parameter settings for each error, if 
necessary. 
This is especially useful in cases that can’t be solved easily.
1.Open a file and select “Audio error detection and correction…” from the 
Analysis menu.
The “Audio error detection and correction” dialog opens.
2.Select a Detection method as described earlier.
3.Click the “Detect next error” button....

WAVELAB
Analysis 25 – 635
Options
In this section of the dialog you can activate the “Auto-play” function, 
which automatically plays back each error that is found. With the “Pre-roll 
time” and “Post-roll time” options you can define how much of the audio 
file before and after the error is to be played back.
You also have the option to automatically set green markers encompass-
ing the corrected errors.
Reset search position
When you click on this button located at the top right of the “Audio error...

WAVELAB
25 – 636 Analysis
Find the corresponding functions in the presets pop-up menu at the bot-
tom right of the dialog.
The presets pop-up menu
•To store the settings temporarily (in the computer’s RAM), select one of 
the options on the Store temporarily submenu.
•To save the settings as a preset, select “Save as…” on the presets pop-
up menu and specify a file name and location for the preset.
The Audio Range dialog
Click on the “Range” button at the top right of the dialog to open the Au-
dio Range...

WAVELAB
Analysis 25 – 637
Audio file comparer
This utility allows you to compare two files and create a file that contains 
the difference between the two, a “delta file”. This is useful for example to:
• See the effect of using an equalizer by comparing the file before and after. The 
delta file will show what was added.
• Check the noise added by a processor, again by comparing.
• Compare two digitally recorded files to check for dropouts.
Proceed as follows:
1.Make sure that the two documents you want...

WAVELAB
25 – 638 Analysis
3D Frequency Analysis
This function allows you to view a wave file in the frequency domain rather 
than in the time domain. Although a wave display (time domain) tells you a 
lot about where one sound starts or ends in a file, for example, it doesn’t 
say anything about the timbral contents of the file. A frequency graph (fre-
quency domain) does.
The graph used in WaveLab is actually something often referred to as an 
FFT (Fast Fourier Transform) plot.
Creating the graph...

WAVELAB
Analysis 25 – 639
5.Click OK to close the dialog.
6.Select 3D Frequency analysis from the Analysis menu.
The wave is analysed and the graph opens in a new window.
The frequency graph shows you how the different frequency components 
vary over time. A high “mountain” means that this frequency is very promi-
nent at that particular time.
Adjusting the view
There are a number of settings you can make that affect the way the 
graph is displayed.
1.Either select “3D Frequency analysis options…” from...

WAVELAB
25 – 640 Analysis
6.Click the Perspective tab.
7.Decide from which point of view you want to examine the graph (use the 
“freq/time” figure as a directional guide).
8.Decide whether you want a linear or exponential amplitude display.
The Wave window’s level rulers use a linear display, so this is a natural choice to start with.
9.Again, if you so desire, click Redraw.
Working with multiple views
If you wish you can view the same graph in several windows, but with dif-
ferent style and perspective...