Steinberg WaveLab 3 Operation Manual

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Basic methods 5 – 61
Units of time and level
For rulers
You can specify the time and level (amplitude) formats for each ruler in 
each window, by right-clicking on the ruler and selecting a format from 
the pop-up menu that appears.
Time formats
Level formats
• To make a ruler format the default (to be used in new Wave windows), you 
need to save it as part of the default window style.
See “Styling WaveLab – Wave windows” on page 734.
Menu name Description
Time Positions are shown as hours, minutes, seconds and milliseconds. At large 
magnification factors, hundredths of milliseconds are shown.
Samples Positions are shown as number of samples. How many samples there are to 
a second depends on the sample rate of the wave. For 44.1 kHz for exam-
ple, there are 44100 samples for each second.
Time code Also called SMPTE. Positions are shown in the following format:
hours:minutes:seconds:frames.
The number of frames per second is set on the Preferences–Sync tab.
Meter Positions are shown as bars, beats and ticks, as specified on the Prefer-
ences–Sync tab.
File size Positions are shown in file size units, MegaBytes, where the decimals repre-
sent kiloBytes.
Menu name Description
% Amplitude (level) is shown as a percentage of full level.
dB Amplitude is shown in decibels, a logarithmic scale used in audio engineer-
ing.
Decimal This is the actual value of the amplitude as stored in computer memory (al-
ways displayed as 16 bits). Please note that the range is from negative to 
positive with “0” representing “no signal”. 
						

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5 – 62 Basic methods
Setting values
In dialog boxes, you will find yourself adjusting values. The following tech-
niques apply:
Typing values
As in most other Windows programs you can “tab to” or click directly on 
a value and type in a new one.
Using the spin controls/value fields
Values can be set using either the regular Windows spin controls, or any 
of the other methods described below.
• Clicking either arrow raises/lowers the value.
• Keeping the mouse button pressed over an arrow will “scroll” the value.
• Holding down [Ctrl] makes the value change in larger steps.
• Holding down [Ctrl]+[Shift] changes the value to its minimum/maximum.
• The last adjusted control can be changed using the [↑] and [↓] keys, also in com-
bination with [Ctrl] or [Ctrl]+[Shift] as described above.
• You can also click and hold in the value field and move the pointer up or down to 
change values.
• Pointing in a value field will display the available parameter range.
• The down arrow to the right of the spin controls brings up a history pop-up where 
the last applied value change(s) in the current dialog are shown and can be se-
lected.
Using sliders and pop-ups
Many times, the most convenient way of changing a value is using Wave-
Lab’s proprietary sliders and pop-ups:
1.Click with the right mouse button on the spin control (in some windows 
you can also double-click with the left mouse button).
2.If a pop-up menu appears, select one of the options on it.
The spin controls
The history pop-up  
						

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Basic methods 5 – 63
3.If one or more sliders appear, drag the handle(s) or click the arrows to set 
the value.
The setting is shown in the value box “behind” the slider window.
4.When you have finished, click outside the slider window.
• If the value is “segmented” (for example divided into minutes and seconds, etc.), 
more than one slider will appear, each used for adjusting one of the “segments”.
• The slider window can be dragged to any position on the screen, using the “ title 
bar” at the top.
• The last-used slider can also be adjusted using the computer keyboard: .
In effect processor panels
In the Master Section you will find either generic or custom effect panels 
for each effect processor. In custom panels, values are adjusted using 
special methods, see “The Effects pane” on page 225.
Using a wheel mouse
If you are using a mouse with a scroll wheel or similar, you can take ad-
vantage of the wheel for various operations in WaveLab:
Scrolling
If you point at a waveform, the wheel scrolls the view horizontally.
These keys Move the slider handle
[↑] and [↓] One step up/down.
[Page Up] and [Page Down] A few steps up/down.
[Home] and [End] To the top/bottom.
In this case, four faders appear, one 
for the integer and three for the dec-
imals.
The value gets updated when you 
move the sliders.  
						

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5 – 64 Basic methods
Zooming
If you hold down [Ctrl] and point at a waveform, the wheel zooms the view 
horizontally.
If you hold down [Ctrl] and [Shift] and point at a waveform, the wheel 
zooms the view vertically.
Changing values
If you point at an edit field in a dialog, the wheel can be used to adjust the 
value.
• If you hold down [Ctrl], the value changes in bigger increments.
• If you hold down [Ctrl]+[Shift] the value jumps to the minimum or maximum.
Master Section
•When working in the Master Section window, the wheel can be used to 
adjust the master volume. 
You have to point in the Master Section for this to work.
• This functionality can be turned off in the Preferences–Environment tab. 
						

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Basic methods 5 – 65
Presets
Many dialogs in WaveLab have either a Presets tab or a Presets pop-up 
menu. If you think of the dialogs as forms, presets allow those forms to be 
filled out automatically. WaveLab comes with a selection of presets for 
most dialogs that use them, but the real power of presets becomes evi-
dent when you start creating your own!
• For some WaveLab effect panels there is a Preset button instead of a Pre-
sets tab or pop-up menu. Clicking the button opens the Presets dialog 
which has the same items as described below.
Depending on how presets are displayed in a certain dialog (tab or menu) 
they are handled slightly differently, but both cases are described below.
A number of presets in the Harmonization dialog
Loading presets
1.Open the dialog you wish to use and click on its Presets tab or pull down 
its Presets menu.
2.Select the preset you want to use. 
3.Where applicable, click the Load button.
• A quick way to load a preset is to right-click on the Preset tab and select a 
preset from the menu that appears.  
						

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5 – 66 Basic methods
Creating a preset
1.Open the dialog you wish to use and set up the dialog as desired.
2.Click on the Presets tab or pull down the Preset menu.
3.Click on the name line and type in a name for the preset or click the Save 
As… menu item and type in a name in the dialog that appears.
4.Where applicable, click the Add button.
Modifying a preset
1.Load the preset you want to modify, as described above.
2.Make the desired settings in the dialog.
3.Click the Update button or click the Save item.
Deleting a preset
1.In the Presets tab, click on the preset you want to delete.
2.Click the Delete button.
Or…
1.From the Presets menu, select the option Explore presets.
2.In the Explorer window that appears, select the preset file you want to de-
lete and press [Delete].
Store temporarily and Restore
Some dialogs also allow you to quickly save and load up to 5 presets with 
the Store temporarily and Restore menu items. This is useful if you want to 
quickly test and compare different settings.
1.Select the option “Store temporarily” and from the submenu 
select the 
number under which you want to save (#1 – 
#5).
2.To quickly load the saved settings again, select the corresponding num-
ber from the Restore submenu.
How presets are saved
The presets are automatically saved when you quit the program. The next 
time you load the program, the presets are ready and waiting, just as you 
left them. Furthermore the presets are “global” to all files. No matter which 
file you are working on, you still have access to all your presets. 
						

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Basic methods 5 – 67
About non-modal dialogs
Many of the dialog boxes in WaveLab are “non-modal”. This means that 
the window behind the dialog can be operated even though the dialog 
box is still up on the screen.
For example, when you have a Processing dialog up on screen, you can 
still work with the Wave window and the main menus. For example, this 
allows you to perform the following operations without closing the dialog.
• Play back the wave to hear the effect of any applied processing.
• Adjust the selection before re-processing.
• Use the menu to undo the last processing.
Keyboard commands
Windows normally does not allow you to select from menus and use key-
board accelerators when a dialog box is the active window. However, we 
have provided a few special key shortcuts for the most crucial commands:
Key Command
[F3] Undo
[F4] Redo
[F6] Play selection
[Shift]+[F6] Activate loop and play selection
[F7] Stop
[F8] Play 
						

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5 – 68 Basic methods
Using the computer keyboard
When you are working with WaveLab, the computer keyboard has several 
different uses:
Transport controls
The Transport functions (such as Play, Stop, Record and so on) can all be 
managed from the computer keyboard. The keyboard commands for these 
functions are located on the numeric keypad, to the right on the computer 
keyboard. See “Using the Transport bar” on page 135 in this book.
Keyboard shortcuts
Shortcuts for menus
Many of the items in WaveLab’s menus have a computer keyboard equiva-
lent – an “accelerator”, listed on the menu. Some abbreviations might need 
an explanation:
Due to the large number of functions in WaveLab, some key commands 
consist of double or triple key strokes (known as “key sequences”). These 
are displayed with the different keys separated by comma signs. 
For example, “Alt+F12, T” means “hold down [Alt] and press [F12], re-
lease, then press [T]”.
Customizable shortcuts
You can define you own key shortcuts for a number of functions in the 
program, see “Customizable key/MIDI commands” on page 746.
Additional shortcuts
In addition to the above, there are key commands that are not listed on the 
menus or in this manual. Check the Key Commands chapter in the online 
documentation for a full list.
Abbreviation Description
KPThe numeric keypad. “KP 2” for example means the “2” key on the 
numeric keypad.
BkSp The Backspace key.
F1 to F12 The Function keys. 
						

							6
Editing in the Wave window 
						

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6 – 70 Editing in the Wave window
About this chapter
The Wave window is the heart of WaveLab’s audio editing capabilities. 
This is where you view, play back and edit individual audio files. This chap-
ter describes how to open and save audio files, how to perform wave edit-
ing and how to handle the Wave window itself.
Creating new empty documents
If you want to start with an empty file, for assembling material from other 
files for example, proceed as follows:
Using menus
1.Select New from the File menu, and Wave from the submenu that ap-
pears.
Or, right-click the New icon on the Standard Commands control bar.
2.Fill out the dialog that appears.
See “Supported file formats” on page 113 for details about the various options.
By dragging
This is only possible if the currently active window is a Wave window (or 
if no document windows are open).
1.Make sure “Create window using mouse” is activated in the Preferences–
Wave edit tab.
2.Drag to make up a box in an empty free area of the WaveLab application 
window.
This must be of a certain minimum size. If you don’t get a new window, try again with a big-
ger box. The new window “inherits” its attributes from the last active window. If no window 
is open, the dialog box settings for units are used instead.
About display options
There are a number of options that govern how a window will look when it 
is first created. These are all found on the Preferences–Wave edit tab. 
Click the question mark icon in the dialog for details.