Waveforms Distorting in Abelton.

[mono point]

Hi,

I have some field recordings that I'm trying to put into a composition. However the audio seems to distort in certain places. I looked at the waveform in track view and the places where it distorts is where the waveform goes out and beyond the view space. It seems as though the sound is being compressed automatically by ableton and I have not put any compressors or limiters on the audio.

Has this happened to anyone else?

Thanks in advance.

[Angstrom]

"Beyond the viewspace". That's digital 1. Binary stops there. You are clipping your waves. Turn your inputs down.

[mono point]

"Beyond the viewspace". That's digital 1. Binary stops there. You are clipping your waves. Turn your inputs down.

How would I go about turning my inputs down?

Thanks.

[chrk]

Decibels relative to full scale, commonly abbreviated dBFS, measures decibel amplitude levels in digital systems such as pulse-code modulation (PCM) which have a defined maximum available peak level.

[siliconarc]

sounds like you've recorded the audio too 'hot' and it's clipped.
you'll either need to fix it digitally or go out and record again.
to fix, you can use the DeClip module in iZotope RX. PM me if you want me to do it for you.

[mono point]

Decibels relative to full scale, commonly abbreviated dBFS, measures decibel amplitude levels in digital systems such as pulse-code modulation (PCM) which have a defined maximum available peak level.

Thanks Chrk, but I needed instructions not just a definition. It's something I have never encountered before.

[chrk]

Thanks Chrk, but I needed instructions not just a definition. It's something I have never encountered before.

I'm terrybly sorry, your post after Angstrom's hadn't registered with me at all. Mine was meant to be flippant, but not THAT much.

How would I go about turning my inputs down?

That you can of course only do while recording, and how you do it depends on your recording device. Even if you're using your smartphone the recording app should have a peak meter and some gain control, AGC (Automatic Gain Control) or a built in limiter.

But both latter solutions aren't ideal because they mess with the dynamics of the recorded signal. You better have a manual gain control and see that your signal comes in between -12 and -6 dBfs.

Live can't do much for you once you got flat tops like that. You should take garyboozy's offer of giving it a try with iZotope's RX. I could give it a shot with Sound Forges "Clipped Peak Restoration" myself.

If it's OK with you, I'd love to do one of your worst recordings (a minute or two in its original format) publicly with Gary's RX and my Sound Forge to see how the two are comparing to each other.

[penguinpajamas]

Look up what clipping is. Essentially, you can't go "out of the range" of the viewer, as there isn't anything past that range, so you distort your audio if you try and do that. It's called clipping.