Steinberg Wavelab Elements 8 Manual

							Metering
Level Meter
251
Level Meters
The Level Meter shows the peak level and average loudness in the 
following way:
• The Peak Level meters display the peak levels of each channel, 
graphically and numerically.
• The VU meters measure the average loudness (RMS) of each 
channel. These meters have a built-in inertia, evening out loudness 
variations over a user-defined time span. If you are monitoring 
playback or the audio input, you can see two vertical lines following 
each VU meter bar. These lines indicate the average of the most 
recent minimum RMS values (left line) and the average of the most 
recent maximum RMS values (right line). To the left, the difference 
between the minimum and maximum average values is displayed. 
This gives you an overview of the dynamic range of the audio 
material.
• The maximum peak and loudness values are displayed to the right 
of the meter bars. The numbers in brackets to the right of the 
maximum peak values indicate the number of times that clipping 
occurs (0
 dB signal peaks). Values between 1 and 2 clips are 
acceptable, but if you get a larger number, you should lower the 
master level to avoid digital distortion.
• Recording levels should be set so that they only rarely clip. If the 
master level is set too high, the sound quality and frequency 
response are compromised at high recording levels, with 
unwanted clipping effects. If the level is set too low, noise levels 
can be high relative to the main sound being recorded.
Level Meter Settings Dialog
In this dialog, you can adjust the behavior, scale, and color of the meters.
In the Level Meter window, select Functions > Settings, or click the 
tool icon.
Peak Meter Section
Ballistics - Release rate
Determines how fast the peak level meter falls after a peak.
Ballistics - Peak hold time
Determines how long a peak value is displayed. The peak can be 
displayed as a line or a number. If the meter's height is too narrow, 
only the line is displayed. 
						

							Metering
Level Meter
252
Top/Middle/Low zone
The color buttons allow you to select colors for the low, middle, 
and top zones of the level meter. You can define the range for the 
top and middle zones by changing the corresponding values.
VU Meter (Loudness) Section
VU Meter (Loudness)
Activates/deactivates the VU meter.
Ballistics - Resolution
Sets the time that is used for determining the loudness. The 
smaller this value, the more the VU meter behaves like the Peak 
meter.
Ballistics - Range inertia
Sets the time that is used for determining the recent minimum and 
maximum value lines, and therefore determines how quickly these 
respond to changes in loudness.
Global Colors Section
In this section, you select colors for the meter background, marks (scale 
units), and grid lines.
Global Range (Peak and VU Meter) Section
In this section, you specify the minimum and maximum values of the 
displayed level range. Typically, you want to create a preset showing the 
full level range, and other presets for a detailed view of a smaller range. 
						

							Metering
Spectroscope
253
Spectroscope
The Spectroscope shows a graphical representation of the frequency 
spectrum, analyzed into 60 separate frequency bands, represented as 
vertical bars.
In the Audio Files workspace or the Audio Montage workspace, select 
Analysis > Spectroscope.
Peak levels are shown as a horizontal lines above the corresponding 
bands, indicating recent peak/maximum values. The Spectroscope 
offers a quick spectrum overview. For a more detailed analysis of the 
audio spectrum, use the Spectrometer.
On the Functions menu, you can specify whether only high audio levels 
are displayed, or whether medium and low levels are also shown. 
						

							Metering
Oscilloscope
254
Oscilloscope
The Oscilloscope offers a highly magnified view of the waveform around 
the playback cursor position.
In the Audio Files workspace or the Audio Montage workspace, select 
Analysis > Oscilloscope.
If you are analyzing stereo audio, the Oscilloscope normally shows the 
separate levels of the two channels. However, if you activate Show sum 
and subtraction on the Options pop-up menu, the upper half of the 
Oscilloscope shows the mix of the two channels and the lower half 
shows the subtraction.
Oscilloscope Settings Dialog
In this dialog, you can adjust the display colors, and activate/deactivate 
Auto-zoom. When Auto-zoom is activated, the display is optimized so 
that the highest level reaches the top of the display at all times and even 
small signals are visible.
In the Oscilloscope window, select Functions > Settings. 
						

							 255
Writing Operations
This chapter describes the CD/DVD writing processes in WaveLab 
Elements. This chapter assumes that the preparations have been 
completed, and that you are ready to run the actual writing process.
Write Audio CD Dialog
In this dialog, you can write your audio montage to an audio CD.
•When you want to write audio montages to an audio CD, in the 
Audio Montage workspace, open the CD window, and select CD 
> Write Audio CD.
Device
Here, select the disc writer that you want to use.
NOTE
On the Mac, insert a media in the drive after opening WaveLab 
Elements. Otherwise, the drive is under the control of the operating 
system and is not available for WaveLab Elements. 
						

							Writing Operations
Write Audio CD Dialog
256
Refresh
Scans the system for connected optical devices. This is done 
automatically, when this dialog opens. Click the update icon after 
you insert a new blank media to update the Speed menu.
NOTE
On the Mac, insert a media in the drive after opening WaveLab Elements. 
Otherwise, the drive is under the control of the operating system and is 
not available for WaveLab Elements.
Eject optical medium
Ejects the optical medium present in the selected drive.
Information about selected device
Opens the Device information dialog, that shows information 
about the selected device.
Erase optical disc
Erases the optical disc present in the selected drive, provided it is 
a rewritable media.
Bypass Master Section
If this option is activated, the audio signal is not processed through 
the Master Section before being written to the media.
Speed
Lets you select the writing speed. The highest speed depends 
both on the capabilities of your writing device and of the media 
present in the device.
Copies
Lets you enter the number of copies that you want to write.
Test only, do not write
If this option is activated, clicking OK initiates a simulation of 
writing the CD. If this test is passed, the real write operation will 
succeed. If the test fails, try again at a lower writing speed.
Render to temporary file before writing
If this option is activated, a disk image is created before writing, 
which eliminates the risk of buffer underruns. This is useful if your 
project uses many audio plug-ins while writing. It is activated 
automatically when writing multiple copies. While this option 
makes the writing operation longer, it may allow you to select an 
higher writing speed.
CD-Extra compatible (new session possible)
If this option is activated, the resulting audio CD is compatible with 
the CD-Extra format. 
						

							Writing Operations
Erase Optical Media Dialog
257
Eject after completion
If this option is activated, the disc is ejected after the write process.
Erase Optical Media Dialog
In this dialog, you can quickly or fully erase the disc before writing.
In the Write Audio CD dialog, click the eraser icon.
Quick erase
Erases the table of contents of the disc.
Full erase
Erases all parts of the disc.
Force erasing even if a disk appears to be blank
If this option is activated, the disc is erased, even if it is declared 
as blank. Use this option to make sure that discs that were partially 
or minimally erased are fully erased. 
						

							Writing Operations
About Writing Audio Montages
258
About Writing Audio Montages
You can write audio montages to an audio CD.
Writing an Audio Montage to an Audio CD
PREREQUISITE 
Set up your audio montage, and make your CD writing settings in the 
Global preferences.
NOTE
On the Mac, insert a media in the drive after opening WaveLab 
Elements. Otherwise, the drive is under the control of the operating 
system and is not available for WaveLab Elements.
PROCEDURE
1. Optional: Check the audio montage to make sure that all starts, 
ends, and transitions are as intended.
2. Optional: In the CD window, select Functions > Check CD 
conformity, to check that all settings conform to the Red Book 
standard.
3. Insert an empty CD into your drive.
4. In the CD window, select Functions > Write Audio CD.
5. From the Device pop-up menu, select the writing device that you 
want to use.
6. If you want to bypass the Master Section, activate Bypass Master 
Section.
7. Select the writing speed from the Speed pop-up menu.
8. Select the number of copies that you want to write.
When you want to write more than one copy, it is recommended to 
activate Render to temporary file before writing. 
						

							Writing Operations
About Writing Audio Montages
259
9. Optional: Activate one or several of the following options:
• Activate Test only, do not write, if you want to test if the writing 
operation would be successful.
• Activate Render to temporary file before writing, if your audio 
montage uses many plug-ins. This way, the audio data is sent to 
the CD writer fast enough.
• Activate CD-Extra compatible (new session possible), if you want 
the resulting audio CD to be compatible with the CD-Extra format.
• Activate Eject after completion, if you want the disc to be 
automatically ejected after the writing operation.
10. Click OK.
RESULT 
The writing operation starts.
RELATED LINKS:
“Write Audio CD Dialog” on page 255
About CD-Text
CD-Text is an extension of the Red Book Compact Disc standard and 
allows you to store text information such as title, songwriter, composer, 
and disc ID on an audio CD.
The text data is then displayed by CD players that support the CD-Text 
format. The CD-Text can also be included in the audio CD report.
CD-Text Editor Dialog
In this dialog, you can specify information such as track title, performer, 
and songwriter, that is written onto the CD as CD-Text.
You can add information about the disc itself and each individual track. 
This information is entered in the text fields that scroll horizontally. There 
is one pane of fields for the disc itself and a pane for each track. 
						

							Writing Operations
About Writing Audio Montages260
In the Audio Montage workspace, in the CD window, select the track for 
which you want to edit th e CD-Text, and select Functions > Edit 
CD-Text .
Copies the name of the CD tr ack start marker to this field.
Copies the name of each CD track start marker  to the title field of 
each CD track.
Copies the text to all tracks  located after the current one.
Scrollbar Use the scrollbar to navigate across  all CD-Texts. The first position 
corresponds to the whol e C

D, other positions to individual tracks.
Language selection Here, select how characters sh ould be encoded on the CD.
NOTE
If a character is not CD-Text co mpatible, it is displayed as a ? character.
Restrict to ASCII
To ensure the maximum compatibilit y with CD players, it is 
recommended to restri ct the characters to ASCII when using the 
Western European  option. If this option is  activated, and you type 
a non-compatible character, a  ? character is displayed.
Enable CD-Text writing If this option is activated, t he CD-Text is written onto the CD.