Hi, I'm wondering what the best way is to do the following. I was asked to digitize a lecture off a cassette tape. I created a large audio file (948.5 MB) of side 1 and it's on track 1. Then I turned the tape over and created an audio files of the rest, a much shorter file (37.4 MB), on track 2. I put some effects, DeEssor, etc. on track 1. The same plug-ins do not sound good on the shorter track 2 so I will put some different effects on that track as well. The goal is to glue the 2 files together and bounce out to a stereo file, probably an MP3, to get it to fit on a CD. What's the best way to do this since each track will have different effects? Do I bounce each separate track and then glue the 2 stereo files together and bounce that file again? Will that preserve the discrete effects of each track? Is MP3 the best compression for size or what is M4A:AAC? Shall I do Apple Lossless? I appreciate any help. Thank you! Beder

Hi Beder, The best and simplest way would be to put each audio files on separate track (as you did) and make sure the transition is smooth. Then your whole project in one go. The final format will depend on what you want to do with your project. 1-)AIFF will give you the best audio quality and a bigger file size, perfect for a CD. Apple Lossless will be about half the size of the AIFF. 2-)MP3 will give you good audio quality and a smaller file size. This would be the format to choose if you intend the file to played over the internet. AAC does sound a bit better than MP3 (at the same bit rate) but MP3 is more widely supported.

Hey, I agree with Christian.. Just a word missing from the great post above: Then [i]bounce[/i] your whole project in one go. ;-) Rounik

Thanks a Rounik! (I mean thanks a LOT Rounik) ;-)

LOL! ;-)

Hi, Thank you Christian and Rounik for your replies. However, I don't totally understand. The 2 tracks are pieces of one lecture. So, track 2 is the end of the lecture. Don't I have to glue the 2 tracks together onto 1 track before I bounce? >The best and simplest way would be to put each audio file on separate track (as you >did) and make sure the transition is smooth. Then [bounce] your whole project in one >go. What does this mean, make sure the transition is smooth? I trimmed the end of the track 1 file with search zero crossing enabled in Arrange. Is that what you mean? If I keep the 2 files on 2 separate tracks and bounce will it bounce into 1 contiguous file? I've never done that before. Do I have to shift-select both tracks before I bounce? I'm also concerned about the size of the files, close to 1 GB, fitting on a CD. Is it just trial and error? In other words, what's the chance that the bounced files to AIFF, which I know is the best quality, will fit on a CD? I would like the best sound because the sound wasn't that great to begin with. I really appreciate your help! Thanks. Beder

Hi Beder, To make the transitions smooth you could have both audio regions on the same track and trim them, and use the crossfade tool to have them join smoothly. You could have them on separate tracks and use the cross fade tool to draw fade out's and fade-in's. Bouncing is another term for mixing down. What this means is that any region in the Arrange which plays when you playback will be 'bounced' into a single stereo file. You don't need to select which tracks you want to bounce, Logic will bounce everything unless it is muted or one particular track or region is soloed. Go to: File > Bounce... and select the type of output (aiff or wav at 44.1khz is good for CD). Importantly specify what parts of your Arrange you want to bounce. e.g. start 1 1 1 1 and end 190 1 1 1 (wherever your project ends). Don't worry about the size of the file, although there's no point recording bad quality audio into Logic at a sample rate higher than 44.1khz if it's final destination will be CD. More important than the size of the file is the length. If it is longer than 74 minutes it won't fit onto a standard audio CD. Do check out Core Logic 101 [url]http://www.macprovideo.com/tutorial/Logic8101[/url] As this will help you identify which tools are good for a specific job and help to explain tracks, regions, fading, bouncing etc. If you have any questions or anything above is unclear, do let us know! Take care, Rounik