Region Exports - Logic is Not Exporting the Entire Region

[Grilled Cheese PhD]

 

If I select a number of audio regions in the arrange window, and then export them all as audio files, Logic is cutting off the start or end of some of them.

The problem seems random. If I export 10 regions, sometimes I will get 10 good files, but other times I might get 8-9 good ones and 1-2 with the start or end trimmed off. It’s usually just a fraction of a second that gets cut off, but that’s enough to ruin the initial transient on a drum hit or guitar pluck for example. 

• I have checked that my region edits are perfect. Logic really is cutting off the heads and tails of some during export. 
   
• I have some plugins active on the tracks from which I export, both Logic plugins and some third party. 

This is a problem for me at the moment as I am creating some virtual instruments. This involves recording many individual notes, trimming them carefully to create one-region-per-note, and then exporting all regions to individual audio files. I need Logic to do this properly, otherwise I end up creating a Sampler instrument, start playing it, and then discover that some of the notes are incomplete. I then have to re-export the bad files and reintroduce them into the Sampler instrument. Hassle town.

I’m using the latest version of Logic, MBP M1 Max.

Cheers!

Cheesy.

 

Edited July 12, 2022 by Grilled Cheese PhD

[Atlas007]

To create Sampler instruments from audio region, have you tried the method described here?

[Grilled Cheese PhD]

1 hour ago, Atlas007 said:

To create Sampler instruments from audio region, have you tried the method described here?

Hi Atlas007! Thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately I'm not a big fan of this method. It's a bit simple and I prefer to use the region export function as it allows me to use Logic's handy file naming protocols.

In any case, Logic should be able to export multiple regions without error. 

I've attached an example to reveal what's happening. Screenshot A shows the original region on top (with a fade out added) and the exported file beneath it. Both are exactly the same length, down to the last sample. 

Screenshot B zooms in very closely on the start of these regions. As you can see, the initial transient is missing from the exported file. Logic failed to render the file properly during export. 

WEIRD! 

Again, the problem is random. When I export a bunch of files, only some of them are affected in this way. 

Edited July 14, 2022 by Grilled Cheese PhD

[Atlas007]

Just a bunch of hunches: are all your regions starting on the down beat of a bar? Are there any Normalization used during the export? Any snap option used? Any automation involved? What if you don't use fades on those regions?

[Grilled Cheese PhD]

9 minutes ago, Atlas007 said:

Just a bunch of hunches: are all your regions starting on the down beat of a bar? Are there any Normalization used during the export? Any snap option used? Any automation involved? What if you don't use fades on those regions?

Interesting. The regions start at various random places. I could try positioning each one on the start of a bar, but it shouldn't really matter where they are on the timeline. It's just audio data. 

No normalisation. No snapping. No automation. All files have a fade. 

I am using plugin processing during exports, so it's possible that they are affecting results in some way. Hunch #348734B: Perhaps plugin delay compensation is messing with the process in some way, given the fact that it's only milliseconds of data that's missing at the start of some files. 

I'll do a few tests to try and eliminate some variables and narrow down the cause. 

Edited July 14, 2022 by Grilled Cheese PhD

[Atlas007]

11 minutes ago, Grilled Cheese PhD said:

I am using plugin processing during exports, so it's possible that they are affecting results in some way. Hunch #348734B: Perhaps plugin delay compensation is messing with the process in some way, given the fact that it's only milliseconds of data that's missing at the start of some files. 

Oh, I bet that # is the winning one...

[Grilled Cheese PhD]

During testing, I just found another glitch. 

I right clicked on one of these selected regions and selected "Export as audio file(s)".

With the regions soloed (which is why they are yellow) all the files exported as silence. Un-soloing the regions and re-bouncing them yielded a correct result. 

Any way... more testing to do. Just thought I'd share this unexpected result. 

[Atlas007]

Please keep us posted!

Thanx for sharing your experience!!

[David Nahmani]

On 7/12/2022 at 2:17 PM, Grilled Cheese PhD said:

I have some plugins active on the tracks from which I export, both Logic plugins and some third party. 

It sounds like your issue may be tied in to the plug-ins. If you remove them, can you reproduce your issue? 

[polanoid]

5 hours ago, Grilled Cheese PhD said:

Screenshot A

It would be easier to tell what's going on if you posted an example project instead of screenshots. If that is possible.

[Grilled Cheese PhD]

 

Oh dear. Hanging my head in shame. This error has been my fault…

I have been using a plug-in that is not Apple Silicon compatible in my project: Native Instruments Transient Master.

Exporting Audio regions to new Audio files works just fine if I (a) remove the plug-in or (b) run Logic in Rosetta mode. 

Sorry about this. I’m fully aware of AS compatibility issues and I should have checked this sooner. 

The reason I overlooked this is because most of the plugins in my collection are AS compatible, and even though Transient Master isn’t compatible, it works just fine in native mode during playback. Only  during audio file exports is it unreliable.

 

Edited July 16, 2022 by Grilled Cheese PhD