Sound for Video Session: Split Poly Wav Files with 3+ Channels
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- čas přidán 5. 06. 2019
- How do you deal with poly wav files which have three or more channels when you’re working in post production, edit, and mixing?
In this episode, we show you how to split up a poly wav file using either Adobe Audition (one file at a time) or Sound Devices WaveAgent - a free app which can split up a bunch of files all at once.
#Audio #WaveAgent #Wav
Download the WaveAgent app for macOS or Windows at www.sounddevices.com/product/...
Please consider my sound for video classes available over at school.learnlightandsound.com
Gear used to record this episode:
Shure SM7B Dynamic Broadcast Microphone
Amazon: geni.us/GYU7dHy
B&H: bhpho.to/2NTUZHi
Universal Audio Apollo X6 Audio Interface
B&H: bhpho.to/2CwRx3b
Copyright 2019 by Curtis Judd
Music Copyright 2018 by Cary Judd
Used with Permission
Ethics statement: Some of the links above are Amazon.com, B&H Photo, or other affiliate links.
I find your demo's videos very useful. Thanks for putting in the effort.
Thank you Curtis!!! I just pulled the audio for my Master Thesis project in and about had a breakdown cause I thought I had messed the audio up. You're a life saver!
Great video thanks so much!
Using the multitrack recording feature on the Rodecaster and this app has saved me a lot of time working with the output. Very handy!
Thanks Gary!
This video was really helpful, as I accidentally recorded a poly file on a rented Zoom F6. Even though I am very experienced with audio, it was the first time that I worked with a poly file. I was struggling with the poly file until I saw this video.
Thank you so much Curtis. This is AJ from Didge Project. I think you just cured me from huge FCPX headaches. I have been putting the polywav files in as a single track in FCPX’s multicam clips and it has limited my mixing capacity due to not being able to set the individual audio clips from these polywav files as Roles. Wave Agent is the solution! Now I can make one file per mic from an entire recording session and create the multicam clip with a unique iso track for each mic. You rock. Keep it up!
Thanks AJ. Happy mixing!
Thankyou!!! was very stuck, damn near just used Premier to do my edit!!
Awesome! Thanks!
👍
Very cool and thanks for sharing.
And just a note if any one is using Reaper as their DAW, Reaper has this feature built in natively. It will show up to the max number of tracks available, even if they are not used for recording. But the empty ones are easy to delete after separating them.
After importing the Poly Wav file, right click on the item. Hover over "Item processing" which shows the sub-menu and select "Explode multichannel audio or MIDI items to one-channel items".
Thanks for sharing the Reaper details!
Huh. Very cool video and solution. I noticed how darn low the levels were on these boom mic tracks you were dealing with. Could you explain? Maybe that's too much of a question for a comment.
Good catch! The one clip I showed was from an actor who would be depicted holding/fidgeting with a soccer ball. It will sit back in the mix well below the dialogue. But more importantly, I was working with a high quality recorder, so I left plenty of headroom to ensure that I wouldn't be pushing up near 0dB or risk hitting the limiters. With a good recorder with great preamps and converters, there's virtually no cost for doing this. You wouldn't want to do this on prosumer recorders like the Zoom H series, because you'd be operating a bit too close to the noise floor. Hopefully that makes sense?
@@LearnLightAndSoundSessions Totally makes sense, and I appreciate you taking the time to explain it. Makes me appreciate and want to play a lot more with the levels on my MixPre now. Thanks!
Definitely experiment!
A number of podcasters have been having issues with poly wave or broadcast wave files relating to the RODEcaster Pro. You cannot arm or disarm tracks so if you record to SD with multichannel it records 14 channels every time. I believe with the 4 GB file size limits that means the RODEcaster Pro chunks the audio into an additional file every 35 minutes or so.
!
Wow, sounds like RODE has some more work to do on an upcoming firmware update. Thanks for the info!
Hi, do you have a video on how to work with a poly wave file in Davinci Resolve?
Hi Curtis, thanks for this super helpful video. Just wondering if there is any way of applying the individual track names to the file names when splitting a poly wav?
I'm not aware of an automated way to do that with these apps.
My split tracks come out all distorted but are fine pre-split...any idea why!???
Hmm, would need more details.
@@LearnLightAndSoundSessions I found out it doesn't split 32-bit (float) files
@@RipRecords There it is. Looks like they haven't updated it for 32-bit float. It would be helpful if they would.
Very cool content as always.
I`m entry level videographer and I going to buy a recorder. Do you think the preamps of the H4n pro and the zoom H5 have the same quality or zoom h5 is better?
Could be very cool a comparison of many XLR portable audio recorders (Zoom Hseries, Tascam) testing its preamps, self-noise etc.
Hi Johnny, the H5 is slightly better than H4n Pro, but I'm not a huge fan of the XLR preamps on the H series until you get to the H6. For around $200, the Tascam DR-60DmkII has the best sounding XLR preamps I've heard. I know it isn't the form factor that most people like, but it sounds better than the others and doesn't produce as much self-noise.
Im having trouble splitting a 32bit poly file from a Mixpre 6 m2 (Advanced mode). I can split them into different tracks on WaveAgent for Premier Pro, but when played back it sounds like a recording of trainwreck.
It seems WaveAgent hasnt been undated since the release of the mark2 series so might not support 32bit, is this the problem?
Thanks
That is correct, it has not been updated. you should be able to mute the channels and move them around in Premiere.
Hi Curtis, Thank you for previous help. I have been recording on new Mixpre 6_2. Using 2 mics designated L and 2 to R in basic. Are they polyphonic files just mixed as 2 mics L and R ? So they can be separated later.
If you want to record each mic input to a separate channel, you'll want to switch to advanced mode or to custom mode.
@@curtisjudd mate thank you.
Curtis thanks so much! I recently downloaded Wave Agent and wasn’t sure how to use it this actually helps. One question though, once the files are split are they then converted from mono to stereo? Also will this allow me to eliminate any tracks that weren’t used that some how manage to apear in the generated sound report of the F8?
Hi Alejandro, Once the files are split, based on how I demonstrated here, the resulting files are mono. You could create a dual mono wav file from a mono track using WaveAgent if that's what you mean? And yes, it will allow you to eliminate any tracks that weren't used.
As long as the wave files are in order in the polywave file you can split the polywav into any combinations you want of eg. mono and stereo or quad or 6 channel wave files (eg. I need quad files for the WXYZ channels for Ambisonic use). You can eg. split to a WAVE_3_5 stereo file but not a WAVE_5_3 stereo file. (To make this second option you would have to first split to 2 mono files and then reopen in WAVEAGENT and recombine them to stereo)
Here's a sreenshot of the split selection for an example of what's possible.
docs.google.com/document/d/1cpWEft66Hnbrei2VRG9-1iU918vNsBhg/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=101627247281739850570&rtpof=true&sd=true
If you are NOT going to split to all mono files, then first hit the “Clear” button in the lower right.
Then choose file splits the way you want. For this 8 Channel polwave, the file splitting selection in the linked screenshot above will yield the following files: WAVE_1_2_3_4, WAVE_5_7, WAVE_6, WAVE_8, WAVE_7_8 (i.e a quad file, 2 stereo files and 2 mono files)
Hi Curtis......if i exceeded 4gb limit file for mix pre 10 t and its create automatically new file during record.........how i can join these two files without distortion
What would you have done to prevent this? I just got the MixPre and when I load the file in Logic it thinks it’s surround. What did I do wrong before recording ? Thanks
Hi Victor, If you record multiple microphone inputs, this is simply what happens on a MixPre and most pro-level recorders. There's nothing wrong with it, it is just a matter of learning how to work with the poly wav file in your DAW. I don't know Logic well enough to give specific info on how to split the poly wav file to separate tracks, every DAW has a way to move individual tracks to separate tracks in the DAW.
Curtis Judd I found a couple of your videos that explained it. Thanks. Sorry to bother
@@saxjam No bother at all. Happy recording!
Can the sound devices MixPre 6 ii record monophonic wave files? Currently using a Zoom F4 writing both poly to SD card 1, and monophonic to SD card 2, and I pick the card that best suites my workflow. Wondering if I can at least select which type of file I want the MixPre ii to record.
Yes - if you're just recording a single mic, turn off the L,R recording in the rec menu, go into advanced mode. That will record just the one mic input.
Hi, I am a new mixpre 6 ii user. Previously I was using the zoom H6. When I recorded audio in Zoom H6, it was saving me channels separately as wav files. But mix pre 6 ii also couldn't do that. I extend my work using additional programs. Isn't there a way to solve this during mixpre 6 ii?
Hi SERHAT AKAVCI, as far as I am aware, the MixPre only records poly wav files with all of the channels in a single file. You can turn off the stereo mix if you don't want that. Perhaps you would share more about your overall workflow? There may be a way to make this easier for you.
Hello, just wanted to pop in and say that I've received audio files that are very large (
Good luck!
Can Wave Agent create a stereo wav file when splitting a poly wav versus only mono channels? Lets say you have recorded a session on a Mix Pre 6, the poly wav has 6 channels (stereo L+R plus 4 iso channels). Can Wave Agent bounce only the stereo pair as a stereo wav or do you have to bounce mono files, then combine them in a DAW?
Yes, just click the boxes for the stereo channels in the File 1 column.
Yes, see my post above.Lots of flexibility.
The Wave Agent site says it doesn't support 32-bit float. That's a problem. Any work arounds? Can I import poly wav files into FCPX 10.4.x and split the files there?
Hi philip, it is my understanding from speaking with Paul Isaacs from Sound Devices that Wav Agent can still split 32-bit float wav files, it just cannot play them back correctly. You can *sort* of split them in FCPX using the audio inspector.
@@curtisjudd Many thanks!
@@JeffSanders I'll test on this end when I have a few minutes. Thanks for the feedback.
@@curtisjudd Any update on this, Same Issue. Thanks Curtis, You're the only person covering this.
@@HoneLoke Yes: czcams.com/video/kjxxnnh7ywM/video.html
Hi Curtis, My MixPre-6 II polywav does not break the files up in premiere. Instead, it became a stereo file. It was working the day before where I will pan my shotgun to L and all my Lavs to R. At the end of the day I will have 1 single WAV file for every recording. When I import them into Pro Tools or Premiere timeline, it will be split into individual mono files automatically. I believe it is a setting issue in my mix pre 6 II. How can I rectify that? Thanks
Hi GAV1N. Switch to Basic mode if you only want a stereo mix with L and R channels. If you want a stereo mix plus isolation microphone channels, switch to advanced mode in the System menu. Best wishes.
@@curtisjudd Thanks for the reply. My mixpre 6 is already in advanced mode. What else could it be?
Hi Curtis, I just did some testing. Apparently, when I am using just 2 channel it became a stereo file. When I have more than 2 I get individuals channels.
Do you have the LR Stereo mix enabled as well? Probably best to contact Sound Devices support if so. Best wishes!
Hi Curtis, I have a Fostex R302 which has 3 XLR inputs. You can specify panning an input to Left, Centre or Right and it outputs one file with the centre being a stereo mix. Is there any way to isolate into three individual files?
Hi doubledark2 - unfortunately, no. If the recorder can only record the stereo mix, you get two channels max. If you're working with a boom and two lavs, I'd pan the boom hard left and the two lavs hard right. That at least would be workable in post production.
@@LearnLightAndSoundSessions thanks Curtis (was wanting to use a boom with a safety channel plus a lav)
@@doubledark2 One question - I have not worked with the Fostex R302 - is it in fact only a stereo recorder or can it record the 3 independent microphone inputs as well?
@@curtisjudd it can record three mic inputs but only outputs one stereo file
@@doubledark2 Ok, I was afraid of that. I'd probably forego the safety track and put the boom on left, lavalier on the right.
Of course, some DAWs will break the file up automatically, and if you just set up your templates or add the tracks and label appropriately, you can just drop the polywave(s) in the project. (I was going to try WaveAgent but saw there's a problem with latest OS X version? - I use Logic Pro X which does automatically break the polywave, and I use it all the time...)
Thanks Keith. Yes, others report issues with Mojave, but it seems to be working here for me. More research to do on that...
Just heard back from Sound Devices re: WaveAgent on macOS Mojave:
Hey Curtis,
Thanks for reaching out! Yes, Wave Agent is compatible with Mojave. I just tested it on my system running the latest MacOS.
We had a customer reach out about this today and this is the message we sent him:
“More than likely what’s happening is when the “.DMG” file is clicked it mounts an Image to the desktop (does not open a window). You can click on that mounted image and in there is where you’ll find the Wave Agent installer.
Let me know if that works for you or if you’re having a different experience.
Two side notes:
- When installing Wave Agent you do not need to change your security preferences to allow the legacy drivers to install
- There is a note on our Wave Agent page:
“On rare occasions, upon restarting a Mac, the computer may freeze on the Apple logo. If this happens, restart Mac in Safe Mode by holding down the left SHIFT key upon restart. Launch Disk Utility, run First Aid allow First Aid to repair permissions then re-start the computer.”
Let us know if you have any questions.
Thanks,
Daniel Szafranek
Sound Devices, LLC
I have tired to use this, but the exported files from the MixPre 3 II are just blown out noise once they have been split by WaveAgent. The wave form is just a solid block from -0.5 to 0.5, but if I open the combined Poly file the tracks show and play at the recorded gain values. I then have to remove the tracks I don't want and save as a single WAV.
This is also the case I just import the file too WaveAgent and press play to review. Just massed audio... I must of missed something.
Note: Wave Agent doesn't handle 32-bit float files correctly. I need to find another utility which does. Most of the major DAWs do so I've been using Audition to handle 32-bit float files for now.
@@curtisjudd ah of course, useing the II in 32 is the change. Thanks. I'm useing audacity at the moment but that's hit and miss and I often have to remove the channels and save the remaining content as new, then repeat for other channels. Could be user error. I keep an eye out for updates. Thanks for taking the time to reply.
I have a question about the beginning of this video so when you showing use in Adobe. When you talking about that the wav.poly files "iso tracks" being just able to just playback only a mix down version. So does that mean you have to split the channels to get left/right edit for each channel?
Iso tracks in film production are usually mono microphone tracks. You can set up many recorders to record a stereo mix and iso tracks as well. If you just want a stereo mix, then I'd turn off the iso recording. I hope I understood your question correctly.
Not quiet. Here is sinereo,
I recorded wav poly of two booms. One for each speaker for the video . Due to covid no lavs. And I sent the record file via dropbox to the editor. And he is telling me it's a mix down version not iso. So I'm wondering does he have to separate the tracks like you talk in the video?
@@chrishernandez9797 I cannot tell from the information provided. When you play back the audio clip, is one person only in the left speaker and the other person only in the right speaker?
Correct his playback he only hears on speaker on L and the other speaker on the R . So when he edits the levels it's also messing with the other speakers. And instead of just manipulating just on speaker in L/R for his playback and edit. Does that make sense?
@@chrishernandez9797 They should be able to convert each track to a mono file in their video editing app. Or, you could split them into mono files and send those to them.
Just FYI, I love Wave Agent but I don't think it handles floating point wav files. Might become more of a factor with the F6 recoding natively 32 bit floating point. I tried using it with files exported in RX7 to 32 bit float, did not work.
Great to know, thanks Gregg!
@@LearnLightAndSoundSessions I'm currently looking for a tool similar to Wave Agent but for 32bit float files... do you guys have any suggestions?
@@BruceBaerLee I haven't found a stand-alone app for that yet. I've been using Audition to split up poly wav files. I am told by Paul Isaacs that Wave Agent will still save meta data changes to 32-bit float files, just don't try to play back 32-bit files in Wave Agent. So, for example, if you need to change the timecode stamp, you can still do that.
Hey Curtis, thanks so much for the video - when I import my files (recorded on Zoom F6 at 32-bit float), I'm getting distortion, do you know if I'm doing anything wrong? P.S. Thanks for all the great content, it's informed a lot of my choices when investing in audio equipment! :)
Hi, which app are you using to play back the audio, and are you pulling down any bits that exceed 0dB before playing back?
@@curtisjudd thanks for getting back to me. That was playback in Wave Agent itself and the exported files from there are then distorted too. The files opened in Audition aren’t distorted though - strange! Maybe it’s a bug?
@@reonatron Waveagent is the problem. It is not able to play back 32-bit float files correctly.
WaveAgent does not install on latest mac operating system.
Hi Paul, thanks for the update. I've got it running here on Mojave. Were you referring to Catalina, the beta?
@@curtisjudd No
I tried it on my iMac pro and on my laptop both running Mojave and it would not even install. Clicking on it just did nothing.
As you got it going I shall try again but tried 6 times without any success.
No, does not open the mpg file and install - tried every way.
Must be something simple. I appreciate thesis not your problem.
@@ClimateRealism Just sent a note over to SD support to see what they say re: Mojave support. It may be that I installed Wave Agent prior to upgrading to Mojave. More to come.
Paul, Sound Devices replied with this when asked whether WaveAgent is supported on macOS 10.14 Mojave:
Hey Curtis,
Thanks for reaching out! Yes, Wave Agent is compatible with Mojave. I just tested it on my system running the latest MacOS.
We had a customer reach out about this today and this is the message we sent him:
“More than likely what’s happening is when the “.DMG” file is clicked it mounts an Image to the desktop (does not open a window). You can click on that mounted image and in there is where you’ll find the Wave Agent installer.
Let me know if that works for you or if you’re having a different experience.
Two side notes:
- When installing Wave Agent you do not need to change your security preferences to allow the legacy drivers to install
- There is a note on our Wave Agent page:
“On rare occasions, upon restarting a Mac, the computer may freeze on the Apple logo. If this happens, restart Mac in Safe Mode by holding down the left SHIFT key upon restart. Launch Disk Utility, run First Aid allow First Aid to repair permissions then re-start the computer.”
Let us know if you have any questions.
Thanks,
Daniel Szafranek
Sound Devices, LLC
As with all things Apple these days, this excellent software is not allowed to work on Big Sur. Swell.
I'm also not sure whether Sound Devices is still maintaining the app. 😞