help 
Hello, everyone:
Iām sure this question has been asked to death, but Iāve got a song that Iād like to convert to an mp3, but I donāt want to lose the files associated with it after I do so.
Can anyone help me here? Not only am I new to the boards, Iām new to n-track as well. Iām having difficulty, so any help would be appreciated.
Thanks, sky
You have to do a mixdown first. File - mixdown. That will create a .wav file.
Then you can click File convert wav to - mp3.
Also, I would highly recommend getting dbpoweramp, you can get it free on the net and it converts anything to anything very simply. Then you can take your wav file and convert it to whatever quality mp3 you want.
My song has a bass track, a piano track and a guitar track. If I convert the entire file to an mp3 do I lose the orignal componets?
I know Iām not using the proper vernacular here, so sorry if this question is confused.
Thanks
If you go to File-Mixdown song, you will not lose anything, you will just mix your components into one wav file. If you then convert to mp3 (you can select to mixdown to mp3 as well as the wav file) you will only suffer a loss in quality, which is always the case with mp3s.
Before you mixdown, or after, make sure you save the song as a packed song fileā¦ i.e File/ Save as packed song file. Then you can remix again later if your not happy with the way it sounds.
These are good questions Sky. Welcome aboard by the wayā¦ Someday sigh Iād like to write out a āNoobs Guide to insert DAW of choice hereā in this case āDAW of choiceā would be n-Track of course. There are a TON of similarities between Digital Audio Workstation software(s). The basic stuff is very, very similarā¦ things like setting up your audio/MIDI hardware, file (project) management, mixing down to a stereo file etcā¦
The first thing you should do when starting a project, is do a āSave Asā¦ā and point n-Track to a folder where the project file (e.g. MyBigHit.sng) AND your recorded tracks are stored. There are some preferences to be explored in n (and most all DAWās) as to how this is accomplished. To make your life much, MUCH, easier take the time to learn how your programs file management system works. Make it work the way you want it to minimize āNow where did THAT file go?ā situations as well as āOH CRAP! Itās gone! Itās ALL gone!ā disasters. Learn it with some āgoof-aroundā type projects FIRST!.. Just in caseā¦ The āPacked Songā format is a great feature to get in the habit of using to make sure stuff is still around when you want it.
Oh yeah, also remember, your ābig hitā is just 1ās and 0ās on a spinning platter coated with iron oxide. Itās there NOWā¦ but will it be there tomorrow? BACKUPS! There are many schemes/methods. I have my machine setup thus;
C: == WinXP Pro and all my music makinā programs
D: == project data drive - all the audio/MIDI is streamed to this drive with each project getting a folder.
E: == CD/DVD burner
F: == CD/DVD burner
PLUSā¦
Several external USB2.0 hard disks. Data backed up on two regularly when I have active āstuffā going on. The C: drive gets imaged with Acronis TrueImage once in a while so if something poops, I can install a new drive and be up and running again in half an hour or less. Really important stuff goes on multiple copies of CDās or DVDās and at LEAST ONE copy kept off site. Look at it this way;
ONE backup is NOT a BACKUP, TWO is better than NOTHING, THREE is the MINIMUM with one stored off site.
Hehā¦ if I were doing this at a commercial studio and with my level of ādata loss paranoiaā Iād go broke trying to keep backups! 
I HATE losing stuffā¦
D
PS If you work with a lot of samples and/or VSTiās that use samples on disk, investing in another fast, internal hard disk for streaming samples is a good idea!
Oh, thanks so much to all of you for helping me.
Yay! It worked. I never knew a computer program could be so much fun. Now I just have to purchase an āon airā sign for my office door.
Thanks, sky 
Donāt forget to post it somewhere when you finish it.
We like to hear other folks work around here. 
Quote: (skyvixen @ Aug. 04 2008, 1:57 PM)
I never knew a computer program could be so much fun.
I'm sorry but I just have to agree with that comment and a lot of happy faces:
Now, about posting it.
Thereās another party involved, and yano, this isnāt anything we wrote ourselves. Iād have to ask permission first. Basically itās just me playing the piano (badly) and him playing bass and guitar (very well, as per usual).
I should investigate this forum a bit more closely to see where everyone puts their finished product.
Iām such a nerd. 
Looking at you post, youāre saying itās not an original song? If so Soundclick has a policy on posting cover versions that you need to check out, but itās a great site. Motagator is also an option and quite user friendly. I use both of them and also set up my own webpage through Yahoo geocities which costs around $200 a year.
Good Luck and let us hear the finished product
My Webpage
Hi skyvixen and All:
Iāve been busyā¦
This thread has progressed to the second pageā¦
Itās so refreshing to hear that this application and making music is fun and easy and all to useā¦
I read in one of your replies that you want to put a light over your office doorā¦
The door on my office got tore offā¦ It made it easier to come-and-goā¦ when they choseā¦
Billā¦