Opening/converting Sound Designer II files

[JeffatMOTUN]

I have recently upgraded to DP 9 on Windows 7 Pro and I have many Sound Designer II files from an older version of DP on Mac that I am attempting to open/convert. I have used the Mac "Compressed Archive" function to move them from the Mac OS to Windows. Upon extracting I get the files and a sub folder entitled something like "_OS X..." that contains small files named similar to the audio files I compressed. Even with these extra files and renaming each audio file to ".sd2" extension DP 9 displays a "...cannot find resource..." type error when I attempt to import them. How can I use such files in DP 9 on Windows 7? Thanks

[mikehalloran]

You may need to convert them to .wav but that can be time consuming. So, before you go there, post a Tech Link on motu.com support and see if they have a better answer for you. If they have a workaround, post it here so that others can see the thread.

Fortunately, there are a lot of freeware converters out there. You want one that does batch conversions. As I am on a Mac, I don't have a ready list of what works well and what doesn't.

[JeffatMOTUN]

Thanks for your reply. For this post and another that you and I have been corresponding about I picked up an Intel Mac Mini running 10.7 and I have DP 8.07 working on it. You are correct in that it opens and plays my DP 2.2 files without much problem. The mix and basic plugins need tweaking but not too bad. However, it does not convert the Sound Designer II files automatically. I have found it can export as Wave format but that is not part of the project unless then imported, not too useful. I can save the project as OMF but so far I have not gotten it to save the MIDI information with that format. Is there any way to get DP 8 to convert all SDII files in a project to WAV as it opens, something like a sample rate conversion when a different rate is imported? Thanks

[Phil O]

Is there any way to get DP 8 to convert all SDII files in a project to WAV as it opens, something like a sample rate conversion when a different rate is imported? Thanks

There is an option called Convert File Format in Preferences under Automatic Conversions, but I've never used this option so I'm not sure how it works. I suspect it only converts when importing files. You might be able to force an import with something like the Load command - but I'm just speculating. Worth checking out.

Phil

[mikehalloran]

I know a few ways to do it one track at a time but if you have a lot of projects, that will take a long time. Hmmmm...

[frankf]

Check out Barbabatch. Expensive but reliable. I've been using it since launch and has been well worth it for me. https://www.audioease.com/barbabatch/index.php


Frank Ferrucci

[Phil O]

I just tried it and it works.
1) Create a new project and in Preferences check Convert File Format on Import (under Automatic Conversions).
2) Under Audio Files pick desired format.
3) Use the Load command to load appropriate chunks from your old project.

On my system it imported all the audio and converted SDII files to wav files. All tracks were in place and soundbites had correct time stamps.

Phil