#1003006 - 07/06/05 04:06 PM
Mac 5.1 mix burning software
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goalie81
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Registered: 07/06/05
Posts: 6
Loc: Baltimore, MD
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Maybe a simple question: what Mac software is available for burning a 5.1 mix to disc? I use MOTU's Digital Performer 4 on OS X, and I was wondering what options are available for taking a 5.1 mix I create and making a CD and/or DVD in DTS and/or Dolby Digital?
I already bought Minnetonka's discWelder bronze for DVD Audio and I'm happy with it, but it would be nice to have DTS/DD mixes available too.
Thanks!
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#1003007 - 07/07/05 12:28 AM
Re: Mac 5.1 mix burning software
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AudioMaverick
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Registered: 05/19/01
Posts: 1790
Loc: Outskirts of Big Bear, CA,UNIT...
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I just replied on the other thread. Does http://www.SurCode.com make MAC versions? It is also Minnetonka. But, I cna't tell they make *any* MAC versions from their sites. But, you have DiscWelder for MAC...?
Let me know if this works. I know there are others, but don't know which they are. I'm sure someone will chime in pretty quick.
_________________________
"It's all about the... um-m-m, uh-h-h..."
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#1003008 - 07/07/05 03:47 PM
Re: Mac 5.1 mix burning software
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goalie81
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Registered: 07/06/05
Posts: 6
Loc: Baltimore, MD
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(I brought this over from a different thread as it may make more sense here under Mac software...)
>Welcome to the forums! And, thanks for the input. you seem very aligned to what "RAW" is doing, and your input will help, a lot.
Thanks- it's nice to be among friends!
I'm no pro at all though- I just like playing around with Digital Performer for recording my own music. 5.1 mixing is new to me, and after hearing SACDs and DVD-A discs like the ones from Porcupine Tree and Blue Man Group I'm sold on the depth one can use to their advantage in the mixing phase, especially for instruments like keys and guitars that fight for the same frequency space. Now, I'm just hoping to find software to let me burn something other than DVD-A so I can share it!
>Since I am a PC person, I can't relate to the MAC-look-feel issue. I wouldn't have thought of that.
"Feel" may make me sound like a Mac snob, and perhaps I am to a point. But I'd rather take an app like discWelder that works with a non-Macish interface than a pretty one that crashes or whatever. I would not say the discWelder interface is kludgy by any means; it's just not as "Mac like" as I'm used to, that's all.
>There is a MAC version of DiscWelder? How about SurCode?
I found the discWelder Bronze last month, and I think it's only been available about that long. MOTU, who makes my Digital Performer software, is including it as a trial version with the product now. I downloaded the trial version and was instantly sold on it. Plus, as I bought it through MOTU's site (which linked me to Minnetonka's), it was only $49 as an owner of DP 4.
I wish their SurCode products were available for the Macs. I wrote Minnetonka an email asking them about future Mac development of their products. They told me that they are planning more, but there's no active development. I even volunteered to be a beta tester as I'd love to use a DTS encoder, especially one for $99 that writes DTS-CDs. The only Mac product I know of from them is discWelder Bronze, which like I said is a home run for me.
I think DVD authoring products like Apple's Final Cut Pro would let me burn a Dolby Digital mix to a DVD, but that product is just way too expensive for what I'd use it for. I have no interest in video production, so the $500+ price tag seems high. Maybe I'm missing something Mac gurus?
Aside from discWelder Bronze, I know of no other standalone Mac software for taking my 5.1 mix and writing it to a CD or DVD, thus my original post. I've read that there are plug-ins for Pro Tools (SmartCode DTS and DD) and a few others, but those do not do me any good of course. I just have to wait I guess. Just as well- I can work on my mixing skills before sharing!
>I also considered the compatibility issue with 5.1. So, I chose to go with the matrixed ProLogic-II for CD encoder.
That's cool- at least you can share your mixes. It's also good to hear that you are satisfied with PL II; I've not even considered it but I'll give it a shot as my preamp has that mode. To be honest, I've never used anything except two channel stereo, or 6 channel bypass for SACD/DVD-A playback. Are there any pre-recorded commercial releases encoded with PL II? I don't recall seeing any, but from what I remember PL discs should sound better, right? I have a few of those (Mancini, Tomita, maybe a few others like Peter Gabriel's fourth disc.)
Cheers!
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#1003009 - 07/13/05 08:17 PM
Re: Mac 5.1 mix burning software
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goalie81
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Registered: 07/06/05
Posts: 6
Loc: Baltimore, MD
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I finally found software for the Mac (and PC too) that does DTS 5.1 encoding. I wrote DTS via their website, asking for Mac encoding software. They suggested the "Vortex Surround Encoder" from Immersive Media. It's pretty flexible in that it will encode multichannel audio from different types, all in one output file. The key is they all have to be the same sample rate. One of the encodings is DTS 5.1, but only at 44.1k. But I don't mind as I've already purchased discWelder Bronze for hi-res DVD-A.
I tested both products with a 5.1 mix I did of Marillion's "Between You and Me" (about 6 minutes long) with Digital Performer, which I bounced to disk as a 5.1 core audio WAV file. I took that file, and both discWelder and Vortex accepted it as-is, correctly mapping the six channels. discWelder then burned a DVD-A disc for me, while with Vortex I encoded it as a DTS 5.1 mix file, saving it to the desktop. The encoding on my dual processor G5 took just a minute or two. I took the DTS file from Vortex and burned a copy with Roxio's Toast, treating it as a WAV audio file burning an audio disc, NOT a data disc. My DVD player (Denon 5900) recognized it as a DTS CD right away, and my preamp (Outlaw 950) automatically switched to DTS once the bitstream was sent via the coax digital link (i.e. I pressed play.)
Vortex can be downloaded from the Immersive website. One excellent touch is that it is fully functional as a demo for thirty days, and after that registration is $149 through PayPal. I have found no limits to the encoding features with the demo. discWelder also has a trial demo available, but I think it's based on the number of discs it will burn so it's also fully functional. With products like this, it is excellent that the companies allow a trial period with the whole thing instead of limiting it somehow.
I found out that Toast has Dolby Digital encoding support, but only for two channel sound. I tried burning the 5.1 mix just with Toast and selecting Dolby Digital, but only L and R were written to the disc.
So, for now I've got the answer for sharing my 5.1 mixes- DTS will be the way to go for me. And if I want Dolby Digital 5.1, it looks like the A.Pack application included with DVD Studio Pro works, but I'll pas for now since it's $500. For a total of $200 I got DTS and DVD-Audio.
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#1003010 - 07/14/05 03:40 AM
Re: Mac 5.1 mix burning software
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Neil Wilkes
Gold Member
Registered: 07/06/02
Posts: 514
Loc: London, UK
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Try Universal Audio's website.
There are Mac versions of both the DTS and Dolby Digital encoder there - mac only, for some reason.
http://www.uaudio.com
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Moderator: BobbyO, Neil Wilkes
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