Batch

Decode many Ambisonic WAVs in one go. A batch is a queue: files decode one after another, each with its own settings.

Adding files

• The Batch card on the welcome screen.
• Drag WAVs onto the Batch card, or onto the queue.
• Open several WAVs at once from Finder (Open With ▸ Aro), or drop them on Aro's Dock icon.

Two to four mono files arriving together first get the question What are these files? They may be one recording to combine; choose Separate mono files to add them to the batch instead.

Settings

• ALL FILES ▸ Edit all sets the batch default: format, layout, decode mode, orientation, LFE, mixer, bit depth, sample rate and loudness.
• Edit on a single row overrides the default for that file. A file you haven't touched follows the default.

Each row shows its layout, decode mode and bit depth, with anything else that's switched on (sample rate, LFE, rotation, loudness) on a second line.

Choosing formats

A 4-channel file could be several things, so it waits with Choose format until you pick one. For a folder of the same recording, pick a format for one file and choose Use for all files with N channels. A format chosen in Edit all also goes to every file still waiting.

Where files go

• Next to each original (the default), or one folder you choose. Pick it from the menu at the left of the footer.
• Each file is named <file>_<layout>.wav. If that name is taken, the file gets -2, -3 and so on. A batch never overwrites anything.

Running a batch

Press Decode N files in the footer to start. The footer shows Decoding 1 of N and the overall progress, and each row has its own progress bar. Queued rows stay editable while the batch runs; the file being decoded is locked.

• ✕ on a row removes that file from the batch.
• Cancel stops the running file and marks the rest cancelled. Finished files stay; only unfinished temporary files are removed.
• A file that fails (moved, an unwritable folder, a full disk) shows the reason, and the queue carries on. Failed rows can be decoded again.

When the batch is done, Show in Finder selects every decoded file. Done returns to the queue; New batch clears it and opens the file dialog.

Limits

• Files decode one at a time.
• Batch takes Ambisonic files only, not Mid-Side or A-format recordings.
• Leaving with Home while files are still waiting asks first, because it clears the batch.