PLEASE HELP! Saving Session in Cool Edit Pro

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Hi! WOuld be really great if someone could answer this simple question dealing with cool edit pro in particular. I always save my session mixdowns as WAV files for their superior audio quality. However, when saving a session in cool edit pro is it not better to save the individual files as mp3's to save space? Sessions can get quite big and it seems like too muck to save every individual file as a WAV file. When the session is re-opened I notice no difference in the sound having saved the individual files as I have. Are the open Mp3 files converted to some kind of standard before mixdown? I have one session that is a mix of mp3 and wav files (kinda by accident), does this put anything off balance in any way? Get paranoid about consistency in my sessions though I notice no difference when analyzing the files. Silly questions I hope.
 
Don't do it!

Whether you can hear it or not, MP3 is a lossy compression algorithm. Even worse, every time Cool Edit opens your session, it converts your files to a form of wave to work on. Then, if you save as MP3 again, it is re-compressed and any error present from the initial compression are multiplied. The technical phrase is "concatenation".

You don't say what bit rate of MP3 you're using but, unless you're using something like 320 kbps, have a look at the frequency response of your files...everything about about 15k will be missing. Now compare the frequency readout of an original wave file in Cool Edit to an MP3 version of the same thing. You'll see a lot of the detail is smoothed off and lost.

Storage is cheap now...I bought a terabyte hard drive for under a hundred dollars recently. Don't compromise your quality with compression. Work in wave the compress your final mix if you must.
 
Thanks for replying! but...

Thanks for replying! But I always save the mixdown in wav. It's just the individual track files. If you start a session and save it as a wav before saving the actual session... is there really any difference if you save it as a wav after reopening the saved session (saved with the individual files as mp3's)? It would seem like the mp3's are just storing data. I'm still saving the mixdown in wav. Is there really any difference from mixdown to mixdown if they are all saved as wav?
 
Yes. A big difference.

Cool Edit Pro did not do real time effects so any processing you apply to your tracks will involve opening the file to wave, then re-saving to MP3 with more compression artifacts every time you do so. You might not hear the differences the first save or two (though with good monitors I can hear the difference even the first time) but the artifacts will rapidly multiply.

Even the first save as an MP3 affects quality but, unless your mixing is unusual, you'll be applying things like EQ, reverb, compression, etc. to the files and every time you do this, you'll be losing bucketloads of quality if MP3 is involved.

MP3 is a distribution format, not a production format.
 
well for the most part the mp3 files have only been saved once. When I save the mixdown as wav does it save all the mp3 files as mp3 within the final mixdown wav? the final mixdown wav quality is all I care about. If the final mixdown is saved as wav... isn't the whole work transcripted as wav on the whole? I'm only concerned for the individual tracks as to how they sound in the final mixdown wav.

Otherwise, should i convert the mp3 files to wav at this point? Is that still possible after saving? The mp3 files are mp3 pro, which cool edit pro says goes through a decompression when opened. Not sure hmm..

Sorry. You know how it is. Thanks so much for your assistance
 
But I always save the mixdown in wav. It's just the individual track files.
Click to expand...
So you're basically making high resolution mixes of low resolution sources.

Not unlike taking a really good photograph of a really bad photograph.
 
Help Help said:
Otherwise, should i convert the mp3 files to wav at this point? Is that still possible after saving? The mp3 files are mp3 pro, which cool edit pro says goes through a decompression when opened. Not sure hmm..
Click to expand...

Well, the mere act of opening the file in CEP is converting it to Wave. At that point just use the "Save As" command on each file to give them new, slightly different names and select "Windows PCM .wav" as the file type. That will prevent any further degradation of the sound quality throughout the mixing process.

FYI, on the rare occasion I have to import an MP3 into a mix, this is exactly what I do.
 
Well the mixes are all done. I understand your point if I was to further process the file. But it's done. So is there any benefit of converting the mp3 files to wav at this point? If the degradation to the audio has already occured and is permanent? Saving to wave now would keep waves exactly as they are now correct?

Anyways, really appreciate your feedback my good man. Been really disappointing as I did everything so well. Then damaged it with my lousy saving. Most tracks still sound pretty good. It's just knowing they could be better. I have two that are all wav, and the sound quality is noticeable. Bugs me
 
One last question ha. Does repeat savings of the wav mixdown effect the individual mp3 files? I'm not resaving the individual files, just the mixdown. I wouldn't think it would anyway
 
Unless you plan to use the MP3 files again, just leave them as they are. Converting to wave doesn't improve them, just stops further degradation. However, if you even decide to go back and remix or something, use the "Save As" command next time you open them.

Anything you do to the mixed track doesn't affect the source files--it doesn't even open them once you've mixed and saved the mix.
 
I know that. I just mean in an open session. Resaving the session to mixdown. Does doing so effect the individual source files? No alterations so they stay the same right?
 
If you've made any changes to the session since the last save, then it's worth saving the tracks as Wave to prevent yet another MP3 coding. If you just open the session, mixdown, then close the session without re-saving it then it makes no difference since nothing gets over-written.
 
But I can make changes to the mix right? And save the mixdown. As long as I don't make changes to the individual tracks?
 
Yes, you can change the balance of the mix and do another mixdown without changing/re-saving the individual tracks. However, if it was me, I'd probably do the Save As routine if I was going to make changes to the mix--it would be all too easy to decide you need to tweak EQ or something and forget about the MP3 problem.

...at least it would be for me. When in the throes of "mix mania" I try to protect myself from possible accidents!
 
Thanks for all your help. Real disappointed in myself for not knowing this all sooner. Everything would be perfect if I had. Oh well, settle for what I have I guess. THanks
 
Hi kan someone help please? I’m having trouble saving a session in Cool Edit Pro. When I click Save, the window blinks and nothing happens. This is my first time encountering this issue. I have space on the memory. Why is my session not saving?
 
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