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DP9: Quick Audio Export Tip

The Scenario: You have a DP9 sequence working, and you need one specific part of an audio track for another purpose. You need to bring the audio into another application, send it to a client or partner, or you're in some other situation where you need just a PART of one of your audio files to use outside of DP.

The Problem: You need this done right NOW, your project's Audio Files folder is a mess and unorganized, and you don't want to interrupt your work flow to bounce to disk, or export a full audio track.

The Solution: Here is a quick 3 step process to find a specific part of one of your audio files on you hard drive. This can be done with your mouse and keyboard, without needing to dive through any menus in DP (and should only take about 15 seconds!).

• In the Sequence Editor, click on the soundbite you need.

If you are looking for only a section of a soundbite, hold (or double-tap) the "C" key for the Scissors Tool ("C" is set by default in the Commands List), and snip a beginning and end point for the section of the soundbite you are looking for (as shown in the picture below). Let go of the "C" key (or double-tap the "A" key to reselect your main pointer tool) and click the new soundbite so it is the only soundbite selected.

• Trigger the "Merge Soundbite" key command (Option-Shift-M for Mac, or Alt-Shift-M for Win). Merging soundbites writes a new audio file in your Audio Files folder from the selected soundbites, which in this case, is the new one you just isolated. (Note: Merging will print any signal processing from plug-ins on your soundbite's audio track).
• After Merging, re-click on the same soundbite, (which was quickly re-drawn, then given a new name), and trigger the "Reveal in Finder / Show in Explorer" key command (Option-R for Mac, or Alt-R for Win). A new Finder or Windows Explorer window will appear with your new soundbite selected. From here, you can quickly copy/paste the soundbite from your Audio Files folder, to you Desktop, or other location on your hard drive. (It is recommended you copy/paste the audio file versus removing it from the Audio Files folder completely.)

Both "Merge Soundbite" and "Reveal in Finder" (or "Show in Explorer") can be found in the Audio Drop-down menu, but this task can be done in under 15 seconds using their key commands and your mouse:

Click (to select), Option-Shift-M (to Merge), Option-R (to Reveal), Command-C (to Copy), Command-V (to Paste).

DP9 provides dozens of other options for exporting audio from your DP sequence that may be more useful in different situations, (check out this video for a run-down of all of your options). However, keep this technique handy, as it just may be the fastest way to grab a section of your audio file from your hard drive during the heat of a session.