Based on the approved WaveLab Pro mastering solution, the WaveLab Elements highlights proven editing and analysis tools, a valuable selection of restoration and mastering plug-ins, a CD burning engine and much more all accessible through an intuitive user interface. New features in WaveLab Elements 9. WaveLab Audio Editor and Audio Montage: We use WaveLab 9.5 because the features sample-accurate audio editing combined with an impressive set of tools to speed up editing operations.eMasterSound trained ears choose between destructive Audio Editor and the non-destructive Audio Montage; depending on the editing task your song requires. Refer to Mixing Workflow to learn. Price: Wavelab Pro 9 full version £428 / around $625 Wavelab Elements 9 £73 / around $106. Pros: New interface much more approachable and workflow smoother. Still an amazing selection of tools for working with all aspects of digital audio. Excellent interoperability with Cubase Pro. MasterRig replaces chains of third-party plugs. WaveLab LE is unable to play back. The Windows MME driver is an exception from this. You can run WaveLab LE together with other applications and always give the active application access to the audio card. Select File Preferences VST Audio Connections. Select the Options tab. Activate Release Driver when WaveLab LE is in. Wavelab Pro 9.5 video tutorials - more than 5 hours of an in-depth look at the real-world capabilities and techniques for waveform editing, spectrum editing, audio analysis, advanced signal processing, montage creation, mastering and how to use all of the metering tools in Wavelab Pro 9.5.
Wavelab Pro and Wavelab Elements just got better with their latest incarnations, both now at version 9.5. Let’s see what’s new in Steinberg’s masterful audio tools.
by Vincenzo Bellanova, July 2018
New versions of Steinberg’s professional audio editors are here, with great new features that further raise the level of these already impressive software sound utilities.
In this review we will have a tour of the main new features introduced in the 9.5 versions, if you wish to learn more on how Wavelab works, you can check these earlier reviews of WaveLab 8.5 here and Wavelab 9 here.
Wavelab Pro 9.5 and Wavelab Elements are most certainly products that everyone should consider, whether you’re making music, organizing samples, are a mastering engineer or a sound designer. They are audio editors and mastering suites, so their features will move in two directions: morphing, cutting, processing, organizing audio files, or mastering (in fact, almost all of the plugins in the Master Rig have been updated with new features).
So many things are to be found in the suite – and wait, don’t forget about the batch processing options. You can drag entire folders into Wavelab and simply apply fades, or normalize levels, or add one or more effects, to a whole list of files, which can then be exported into a separate folder so you won’t lose your originals. And that is just one of Wavelab’s amazing features. Wavelab (either version) now features a 64-bit audio engine, just like Cubase, that uses double precision computation for increased accuracy and detail from summing, mixing and effects. So there is the possibility of a significant improvement when processing files with this new powerful engine. There’s more: Wavelab now supports High DPI, which means that the software is fully supported by the modern ultra-high resolution displays.
While the Pro version has a list price of €559.00 EUR, and an upgrade price of €59.99 EUR, Elements, whose features are limited compared to its full-featured sibling (but is still absolutely capable of a wide variety of tasks), is €99.00 EUR. Please note that a Steinberg eLicenser dongle, sold separately, is required to activate Pro, but software authorization (i.e., no dongle) can be used with Elements.
Spectrum Editor, Wavelet Display and Audio Inpainting
The new Spectrum Editor stands out. The redesigned Spectrogram now allows more options to customize the display, such as color scale adjustments, frequency span adjustments, and a menu with new frequency scales (these might be familiar for iZotope RX users). In fact these new features allow you to focus more precisely on some frequencies, and thus, process and edit more comfortably.
The wavelet display is a new feature that we can think of as a superior way to visualize and analyze audio material, since the Spectrogram has a fixed length in the window, and the wavelet displays a higher resolution in the time domain of the high frequencies, and a higher resolution in the frequency domain of the low end.
New visualization options are complemented by new tools, enhancing the possibilities of spectral editing in Wavelab 9.5. We now have new selection tools, like the invert selection tool for the situation in which we want to select everything except the region we intend to preserve. Then there’s the amazing Source at Cursor capability, which if we removed some audio material, will find and copy a region from another part of the file to fill the gap we left. This tool is especially good when we need to remove or restore files that processors like De Buzzer or De Noiser can’t fix. It is not only intelligent, but also very precise. In the Processing Algorithm dropdown menu, we can also notice a Transcode Picture function, which is very useful for watermarking audio by “printing” an image upon the spectrogram – a more discreet, and, again, intelligent solution.
The Audio Inpainting feature, allows us to analyze and replace the content based on other regions of the same file. We can simultaneously select a region, analyze and automatically replace it. We will have controls on the number of bands in order to adjust the area of analysis according to the type of audio material. It is particularly helpful and will save a lot of time when restoring audio dropouts or replacing accidents, noises, bleeds or mistakes with only a few clicks.
Note that the Wavelet display, Spectrum editor and Audio Inpainting are available only in the Pro version.
New Error Correction Tab and Restore Rig
The tools for correcting clicks and errors in the audio files, have now a dedicated ribbon. All of the tools for both detecting and correcting errors are clearly organized, as the other ribbons are well designed, so it is very easy to find them. Wavelab will not only check the files, but also will place a marker and will give us information on the type of error encountered. Now we have some ready-to-use presets for detecting errors and for correcting them more precisely with the same concept we just discussed, Audio Inpainting. The surrounding regions will be scanned in order to find similar material and replace the clicks we might find without introducing any unwanted unpleasantness. The Error Correction Tab is an exclusive of the Pro version.
But there’s something else that really enhances the usefulness of Wavelab: the Restore Rig, not just limited to Pro. The software now features a set of tools for further audio restoration. It replaces the Sonnox restoration suite, with the new DeNoiser, DeBuzzer and Declicker, which can control, attenuate and eliminate pops, clicks and crackles (or should that be “remove snap, crackle and pop”? [SMILEY]). If we consider these in addition to the spectral editing functions, we can see that Wavelab is filling the audio repair field with intuitive and effective tools. The algorithms of the various processors work really well, and it is quite easy to know what is happening because we can choose to listen to the output noise only. Furthermore, the meters on each of the modules provide a visual feedback on the amount of noise reduction, which in turn can give us an idea of how much processing is going on. These tools can be pushed too far resulting in artifacts and the like, but the instrumentation helps keep that sort of thing in check.
Plug-Ins
A lot of plugins have been updated, not only with larger interfaces and meters, but with new functionality as well. The Vintage Compressor now has a Mix control, so we can layer compressed (sometimes heavily compressed) and dry audio to advantage – a technique is widely referred to as parallel compression.
The Maximizer features a new limiting algorithm, Modern, for even more loudness. Another interesting capability is the Character control, which bring in more compression on the high frequencies, allowing less saturation for the low-end.
Thanks to the new interface, Autopan now allows to draw curves more freely, simply moving the dots on the screen. The EQ in the Master Rig now features a LIN button, which engages the linear phase mode for each of the bands, great feature to give even more precision during the mastering process.
The Batch Processor has been improved as well, with an Audio Mixer which can insert a new audio file in the current one. Then we have the Delay Next process, a subtle but really effective function, with which you can decide to insert a specific delay for the processing steps, so you can be sure that transients or other parts of the audio file are preserved.
DDP Player and Touchbar Integration
A couple of new interesting features are the Touchbar controls for the new MacBook OLED Bar, which guarantees a complete set of tools at our fingertips. The best part is that it is adaptive: the icons will change depending on what we are doing, and this is completely customizable. This feature can enhance the workflow for Mac users, and, moreover, surely demonstrates the attention to workflow details.
Another brand new tool is the DDP (Disc Description Protocol) player included in the Pro version, delivered as a separate application, which allows us to play and be sure that the created DDP information does not contain any errors before declaring a project complete. The interface is essential – we have the possibility to check all the metadata and, in the lower section, we can also check levels one more time with a simple meter. One point more scored for mastering engineers: Audio montage and all the possibilities included in Wavelab Pro.
Conclusions
Steinberg normally delivers the goods when it comes to upgrades, and has done so once again. The new features are, in our opinion, worth the price of upgrading. The enhanced capabilities of the plugins and the whole new set of tools for audio restoration are really making Wavelab more and more complete. An essential suite that I would personally recommend for almost every music related task, from editing clips, to mastering, audio repair and, especially (this is my personal interest) for sound designers. The possibility to edit, remove noise and polish audio files, batch rename, fade or process so many clips, is an absolute time saver.
But what, then, about Elements? Despite the paired-down functionality compared to Pro, it is absolutely worth it for the price. Why, just thinking of the new Restore Rig, added to the other functions, it is easily justified. Elements could surely be an effective way for home studio musicians to enhance their workflow and the quality of their products with a limited, but highly professional, set of tools.
Although both versions are impressively capable, we do have a modest wish list. We’d love to see further developments in the Restoration field. We could always use more plugins (who ever doesn’t want more plugins?). Finally, more comprehensive tutorials would be welcome in order to make the learning curve even faster, since the manual is, unsurprisingly, quite large. But don’t take that to mean we are not happy campers – we most certainly are.
You can check in detail the comparison between the two versions here:
And the complete list of new features, improvements and fixes, here:
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WaveLab was for many years the go-to mastering application on the Windows platform. As competing software has appeared on the market, Steinberg has been working to keep it at the cutting edge, including porting it over to the Mac a few years ago. Now at version 9, it has some significant enhancements over version 8.5. We’re looking at the Pro version here and it is, of course, more capable than the entry-level Elements version, though that is available too at a much lower price, if your requirements are more modest.
The Lowdown
Although Wavelab can record audio, it is primarily an advanced editing, analysis and mastering suite that goes far beyond what Cubase, with its focus much more firmly on tracking audio and MIDI, can do. In fact this version does bring much greater integration with Cubase Pro than has ever been possible before, as we shall see. The most obvious change is that the interface has been refined and reworked. This was always an area in which Wavelab lagged behind a little, due to its years of legacy Windows code and while it still looks more Windows than Mac in terms of style, Steinberg has intimated that the move towards a more platform-neutral look will continue in future updates.
Wavelab 9 Download
Part of the issue has been that Wavelab has so many tools and functions that organizing them in a way that makes sense can be a challenge. There’s now a single window interface with adjustable sections, and many windows can be picked up and detached, or docked. You also get window preset layout controls as you’d expect, and shortcuts that appear when you detach a window to dock it in various places around the interface.
In the centre of the screen is the new ribbon and tab bar where many of the tools live, and it sits above the audio editor where you will spend much of your time. This bar is also contextual so it changes based on what kind of content you select. File groups also let you manage and work on multiple files at once, and the new interface is a marked improvement from the previous version. Although there are still many buttons, the reliance on drop-down menus has lessened and there are tooltips available when you hover over items, which helps a lot. In the same vein, a new Project Manager section helps you keep track of all your projects and the components of those projects using a tree structure, with full drag and drop capability.
Rig it up!
The Master section to the right has also been overhauled and now has 12 effect slots, with processing configuration able to be set for all plug-ins individually, including mid/side configurations. A new Resampler lets you easily change sample rates and again the whole thing has a more approachable and refined feel. Another entirely new feature is MasterRig, a dedicated mastering suite inside a single plug-in with eight slots and six effects. Each module is multiband-capable and the EQ, compressor and saturator also have M/S compatibility. MasterRig feels like a more integrated processing solution than Wavelab has had before: its modules can be freely moved and set up and there are a decent selection of presets to get you started.
MasterRig, a new dedicated suite of mastering processors
Speaking of flexibility, you can now get access to the mid and side parts of your audio in both the audio montage and audio editor sections, meaning more power than simply working in stereo or mono. Similarly the master section now also lets you audition the M/S signal separately, and your own third-party plug-ins can be applied to M/S signal as well.
Go Pro
Earlier we mentioned improved Cubase Pro integration and this is something that really shines if you do have the latest versions of both programs. You can now send audio clips through from a live Cubase Pro (or indeed Nuendo) project into Wavelab for editing via a shortcut and take advantage of the latter’s much more advanced analysis and editing tools including spectral repair before sending the file back to Cubase with a single click. No manual exporting or importing is required. Similarly, there’s an option when exporting a mixdown from Cubase Pro to send it directly to Wavelab. If you have used this workflow it’s even possible to re-edit a Cubase project using a shortcut inside Wavelab, say for example when you need to tweak a mix that has been shown to be imperfect while you were mastering it. This level of interoperability is perhaps a little overdue but no less welcome for it, and it’s great to be able to move seamlessly to Wavelab for those editing tasks that are beyond Cubase.
As always there’s a grab bag of smaller but still useful additions and improvements including envelope-based automation for clip-based send effects, rendering out of multiple data at the export stage, surround exports to MP3 and AAC and customizable naming when exporting large numbers of files. You also get a new multiband expander and an envelope shaper in addition to the existing plug-in set. Some or all of these are likely to be great timesavers for many users.
Back to the ‘Lab
Wavelab is an incredibly powerful audio suite and the new features help to improve workflow, ease of use and productivity. The new MasterRig is excellent and all the existing tools for advanced analysis, editing and audio montage are still present and more refined and easy to use. The new interface is far preferable to the old one and addresses one of the more long-standing issues that Wavelab had.
As a new purchase, the Pro version is sensibly priced if you plan to do this stuff with any degree of regularity or professionalism : there are tools here you just don’t get in Cubase or indeed in lesser mastering apps. Upgrade pricing varies depending on which version of Wavelab Pro you currently have, but it starts at just £79 from 8.5 and £110 from version 8. For owners of these versions, the new features are definitely worth having. And indeed if you are coming up from an even earlier version, you will find much to like. The Elements version is available for £73 though as you might expect its feature set is more consumer-level.
Wavelab 9.5 Manual
Price: Wavelab Pro 9 full version £428 / around $625 | Wavelab Elements 9 £73 / around $106
Pros: New interface much more approachable and workflow smoother. Still an amazing selection of tools for working with all aspects of digital audio. Excellent interoperability with Cubase Pro. MasterRig replaces chains of third-party plugs. Everything you need for editing, metering and mastering professionally.
Cons: Arguably still some polishing of the GUI to do, though this is almost certainly going to appear in a future version.
Web: www.steinberg.net