When you’re finished with your project (all mixing/DP processing is done), you need to bounce your project to disk to get a stereo aiff file. Bouncing to disk processes all of your soundbites and the non-destructive edits you’ve applied, mixes them, and outputs the result to a file.
The basic process involves
- Selecting all of your soundbite and mix data in the sequence editor.
- Choosing the Bounce to Disk command from the Audio menu and choosing appropriate settings.
Start by making sure you are in the sequence editor. The tab in the consolidated window will say Sequence. If you have popped the pane out of the consolidated window, it will read Sequence Editor. You can use the Select All command (from the Edit menu, or [CMD]-A), but you want to make sure that you enough time for complete reverb tails in your project. Since reverb is applied through a plugin, it won’t appear as something selectable in the editor. You can drag-select to get a precise ending point.
Next, choose the Bounce to Disk command from the Audio menu.
This brings up your first of two dialog boxes for settings.
The format should be as listed (Core Audio Export: AIFF). The source should be whatever you’re listening to (Main Out 1-2; Builtin 1-2, etc.) I’m doing this from home, so my output is different than anything in the lab. You can rename the file to your project title. You should definitely change the destination folder. I always put it in my Project folder, rather than the Audio files folder within the project. It is easier to find afterwards. Click OK.
The next dialog box sets the bit resolution and sample rate.
The Bit Depth should be 16 (as shown). The Sample Rate can be “Same as Source” if your project is using a 44.1 kHz sampling rate. You can check this in the window to the right of the counters in DP. If you are unsure at all, select 44100 (or 44.1 khz) from this menu and the sample rate will be converted if needed. Your bounced file must be at 44100 SR and 16 bits.
Once you click OK, DP goes to work. It mixes as fast as it can (usually faster than real time). When it is done, quit DP. Open your bounced file in Peak. Listen to it to make sure everything was included. Look at your max amplitude. Your max amplitude should be no more than -3 or -4 dB. If it is more (-9 dB, for example), go back and raise the amplitude on your Master Fader in DP and bounce again.
In particular, check to make sure than nothing was cut off at the end of the file. If you included a lot of extra space at the end of the sequence, delete the silence down to about 4 seconds or so extra. If the file doesn’t have four seconds of silence at the end, add as needed. (In Peak, Edit | Insert Silence…).
Once you’re done with Peak editing, import the file into iTunes to convert to mp3. I’ll cover this in another post.
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