Life’s A Batch – Tuesday Tech Tip

Set up properly, a Batch Processor automates your voiceover studio workflow. Any time you find yourself repeating steps to more than one file, consider automating that task. Reach for your Batch Processing tool and get back behind the microphone.

Over the years, I’ve developed a simple rule for computers: Don’t watch them work.

Anytime I find myself watching a progress bar increment on a computer screen, I get a little twitchy. Granted, we’re a long way past the days when you brought something to read while websites loaded over your dial-up connection. I mean, stuff moves fast (or at least it should) these days.

But, as mentioned a couple weeks ago, that almost makes it easier for inefficiencies to hide. That extra 30 seconds to render a complex Effect, or those curiously lengthy few minutes needed to save a long file as an MP3 might get obscured if I take the time to coil cords or file a few things. After all, what is a few extra minutes here and there?

The time-expanding nature of even a small chunk of minutes becomes evident the moment you suddenly need to wrangle a dozen large files.

Even a reasonably short waiting-for-the-process-to-finish chunk-o-time multiplies out to a significant investment of distracted downtime. If you are managing all of that yourself, it means you need to pay attention to the computer’s progress so you can kick the next process into gear or open the next file to work on.

Which brings us right back to watching the computer work.

Batch Processing Automates Your Studio Workflow

For serious workflow, you need a tool through which you can automate those processes. Enter the Batch Processor. As I mentioned above, a Batch Processor automates any repeated step in your workflow.

I got thinking about this recently when a member of the VO Tech Talk group asked how to deal with a client who wanted more than a hundred files re-rendered with different resolution. It reminded me of a large eLearning project I had delivered to a client who had confirmed multiple times that their workflow had been optimized for 24 bit 44.1 kHz WAV audio. Except it hadn’t. And I was looking at several hundred separate files that they needed in 16 bit 48 kHz WAV format.

It would be the same if a client suddenly decided they wanted Stereo files rather than Mono. Or, if you needed to output an MP3 for each one of the edited WAV files you had (pretty standard for an audiobook workflow). Perhaps you have to apply the same Effect to all of your Raw project files.

The key here is that you are applying a process (either a single change or “Stack” of those changes) to more than one original file. That’s when the Batch Processor will make you smile. Set it up right and point it at a group of files. Then, press “Start Processing” and let the computer work for you.

Caveat – Be Careful What You Set In Motion!
The Batch Processor is a powerful tool. If you set up any of the individual steps the wrong way, the Batch Process will happily do whatever you tell it to – similar to the water bucket wielding animated brooms in “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice”. It can also be easy to overwrite original files, so your workflow should include making “safety copies” until you are sure you don’t need them.

How to Find an Audio Batch Processing Tool

Batch processing is native in Twisted Wave, Izotope RX Standard, Adobe Audition, and Amadeus Pro. There’s an Audio Batch Converter which can be added to Studio One and if you use Reaper, you probably already are engaging their automation. (I had a couple Sound Forge power users remind me that it has a powerful batch tool). Even Audacity has a quirky, but functional implementation under the Macro function. You can actually apply a single Macro to a set of files (which get written to a “macro-output” folder) by choosing that button. And you can set up a Macro consisting of Macros you have already created, which means you can “nest” functions to create fairly complicated results.

UPDATE:
Since the time I originally published this resource, Izotope has continued to refine their RX Batch Processor (as well as improve the Loudness Control tool) –
Please refer to my “Batching It (with Izotope RX)” article for more information.

Non-DAW Specific Batch Tools – Windows and MacOS

Other voice actors I know have used these options:

Windows – AVS Audio Converter
MacOS – Sound Grinder – NCH Switch

One More Highly Recommended Workflow Tool – MRR Software “NameChanger”

I did want to remind you of NameChanger (sorry – MacOS only!) which is a dedicated batch processor that does one thing really, really well – it allows massively powerful and easy file name changing. You will never have to methodically click/pause sequentially into a series of file names again.

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