How do I change waveform size?

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How do I change waveform size?

Hi,

I'm importing WAV files from Pro Tools onto an audio track in iMovie 6. The problem is that the waveforms are so fat that they show virtually no detail. In contrast, the extracted audio track from my camcorder, is small enough so that I can see all the details.

It's not just a matter of volume, because both tracks are roughly at the same volume. So how do I make the WAV track waveform small enough so I can read detail?

Thanks,
Bruce

2 x 2.66 Ghz Dual-Core

Posted on Jul 21, 2008 1:11 PM

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Answer 1

Klaus1

Level 9

52,879 points

Jul 21, 2008 2:58 PM in response to Bruce Siegel

Have you tried extending the timeline?

That will expand the waveform and make it clearer.

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Answer 2

Bruce Siegel Author

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Jul 21, 2008 3:20 PM in response to Klaus1

Hi Klaus,

Thanks for the response. Extending the timeline helps, but only by a very small amount. I still end up with a waveform that's nearly a solid bar, with only a hint of detail at the edges. It's hard to know where I am in the soundtrack and thus difficult to line it up with the video.

Bruce

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Answer 3

Klaus1

Level 9

52,879 points

Jul 21, 2008 3:34 PM in response to Bruce Siegel

Hi Bruce and welcome to the forums (should have said that before)!

Extending the timeline helps, but only by a very small amount

With the timeline fully extended, you still cannot see the waveforms on the separate sound track?

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Answer 4

Bruce Siegel Author

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Jul 21, 2008 5:04 PM in response to Klaus1

Klaus, I can see the waveform, but it's all one solid mess. By way of contrast, on the soundtrack that has the audio from the camcorder, the waveform ranges from thick to invisible depending on the loudness of the audio.

But on the imported WAV, the waveform fills almost the entire width of the track, even at the quietest places. It's only at the very top and bottom edges of the waveform that you can see a tiny hint of variation. It's unusable as a guide to the content of the track.

Why should the two waveforms look so entirely different if their volume levels are roughly the same?

Message was edited by: Bruce Siegel

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Answer 5

Klaus1

Level 9

52,879 points

Jul 21, 2008 5:20 PM in response to Bruce Siegel

I guess it's because its a WAV file and not a DV file.

I am out of ideas, so hope somebody else can jump in.

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Answer 6

Bruce Siegel Author

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Jul 21, 2008 6:33 PM in response to Klaus1

OK—your response gave me a clue. I tried importing the audio as mp3 rather than as wav or aiff (both of which I had already tried). And the waveform looks beautiful! I can make out all the detail now.

Thanks for your help, Claus! I guess iMovie is set up to import audio as mp3 rather than wav or aiff. Anybody else have a similar experience?

Bruce

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Answer 7

Rich839

Level 8

48,168 points

Jul 21, 2008 6:47 PM in response to Bruce Siegel

I have found that iMovie is not consistently precise when displaying wave forms. That is, they sometimes will be precise for one song and very muddled and without detail for another song. Beats me why this happens. It hasn't helped to try to cure the problem by dragging the song into another project or changing the audio format to .aiff. Opening the song in GarageBand hasn't seemed to help, either. However, you could try those things to see if they work in your case, particularly since you are working with a WAV file.

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Answer 8

Klaus1

Level 9

52,879 points

Jul 22, 2008 2:31 AM in response to Bruce Siegel

I guess iMovie is set up to import audio as mp3 rather than wav or aiff.

Nope. As you may see, all iMovie's sound effects files etc are aiff files. I always use aiff files when importing music into iMovie.

I can suggest (because it is what I do in this situation) that you import the track into Audacity:

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/

which gives pretty precise waveforms, and edit there. Then save the result as an aiff file in iTunes, from where it can be imported into iMovie and carefully positioned.

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