Is it ok to mix 16 bit stems with 32 bit stems?

F

Faultlinespine

New member
My question in short:
At the mixing stage, is it bad form to mix 16 bit stems with 32 bit stems? The 16 bit stems are acoustic piano while the 32 bit stems are synthesisers and synth drums. Both the 16 bit and 32 bit stems are 44100hz. Would there be a noticeable issue if mixed and mastered properly by a professional sound engineer? We are aiming for a near-industry standard final product.


More context for those who have time:
My bandmate recently recorded 4 songs on a mic'd piano in the studio and provided me with the stems. Unfortunately, there are quite a few timing issues which I've addressed in Audacity via crossfading. However there are still a number of audible clicks and pops from these timing edits I've made.

To fix this, I've purchased clickrepair which I'm told can eliminate clicks without deteriorating the sound quality (providing the threshold settings are adjusted). It only searches for the clicks and doesn't filter the sound. I've declicked the edited wav file and I can't notice any deterioration in sound quality at all. However, the clickrepair program can only export the file in 16 bit.

Unfortunately we don't have the money to re-record piano. These edited stems will be sent to a professional sound engineer to mix and master.
 
I see not a problem with mixing bitrate. For my own example, I have lots of 90s outboard gear I'll use along with plugins. All that older gear is running 16 bit. Never had a problem mix and matching.

As to clicks..... do you have a daw, or just audacity? In most dedicated recording daws editing can be done better.
 
Faultlinespine said:
My question in short:
At the mixing stage, is it bad form to mix 16 bit stems with 32 bit stems? The 16 bit stems are acoustic piano while the 32 bit stems are synthesisers and synth drums. Both the 16 bit and 32 bit stems are 44100hz. Would there be a noticeable issue if mixed and mastered properly by a professional sound engineer? We are aiming for a near-industry standard final product.


More context for those who have time:
My bandmate recently recorded 4 songs on a mic'd piano in the studio and provided me with the stems. Unfortunately, there are quite a few timing issues which I've addressed in Audacity via crossfading. However there are still a number of audible clicks and pops from these timing edits I've made.

To fix this, I've purchased clickrepair which I'm told can eliminate clicks without deteriorating the sound quality (providing the threshold settings are adjusted). It only searches for the clicks and doesn't filter the sound. I've declicked the edited wav file and I can't notice any deterioration in sound quality at all. However, the clickrepair program can only export the file in 16 bit.

Unfortunately we don't have the money to re-record piano. These edited stems will be sent to a professional sound engineer to mix and master.
Click to expand...

Answer to first question is no, not necessarily...

Audacity is likely not good at cossfades if you still hear clicks. You should try using a DAW that is better for the purpose. If you feel you needed to purchase a program to fix bad edits, then you already missed the boat man.

Not knowing/hearing exactly what you are dealing with, it is hard to judge. But you should be able to make some serious time adjustments without having clicks on the edits. You are just not using the right tools man.
 
Wow, thanks guys. If somebody could fix the clicks on the 4 piano tracks I've got, I would insist on paying because the cross fading would probably take a bit of time (like $70 US because I'm poor). Can use paypal.

If you're keen, please PM me or say so here and I'll PM a sample.

My only concern with this is, 2 of the 4 songs that I've edited (with the audible clicks), are now single wav files (can't export all the pieces from audacity cos audacity crashed and proj files lost!). Are you still able to crossfade effectively from a single wav file containing the piano with clicks? I wouldn't want to send the original stems because it involves a lot of time finding the best takes and piecing them together.
 
Note to OP and all NEWBS!

Almost all the major DAWs can be downloaded as a 30 day trial and most used without restriction. One such is Samplitude Pro X 3 and possible its (now) stablemate, Sound Forge (late of Sony)

Pretty sure Sam PX3 can do those crossfades without artifacts?

If you can't fix your problem in a months I doubt it will ever GET fixed?

Dave.
 
And Reaper is free to d/l, just $60 to register and easily does cross fades.

BTW - how can the original project files be lost - doesn't your friend still have copies?
 
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