Adobe Audition CC 2017 for Mac: A Detailed Operation Guide

Article source: Love Mac  |  Software download link: Adobe Audition CC 2017 for Mac

Adobe Audition CC 2017 is a powerful professional digital audio workstation (DAW) designed specifically for audio post-production, editing, mixing, and restoration. Its intuitive interface and professional toolset make it an ideal choice for podcast production, video scoring, music editing, and sound design. This article will provide an in-depth analysis of its core interface, complete workflow, and efficient usage tips.

I. Detailed Explanation of the Core Interface and Workspace

After launching Audition, you will see the main interface composed of multiple panels. The default “Classic” workspace is mainly divided into the following key areas:

1. Menu Bar and Toolbar (Top): Contains all menu commands for file operations, editing, effects, views, and more. The toolbar provides quick access tools such as the waveform editing tool, time selection tool, slide tool, and more.
2. Editor Panel (Center): This is the core work area. In the “Waveform” view, it displays the amplitude waveform of the audio for precise editing; in the “Multitrack” view, it displays multiple parallel audio tracks for mixing and compositing.
3. File Panel (bottom left): Manages all media files imported or used in the current session.
4. Effects Rack/Marker Panel (bottom right): Can be switched to the “Effects Rack” panel, used to load and chain multiple audio effects in real time for selected audio clips or tracks; or switched to the “Markers” panel, used to manage marker points on the timeline.
5. Mixer Panel (right side or can be called up): Simulates a physical mixing console, used to adjust the volume, pan (balance), mute, solo, and effect sends for each track. Can be opened via “Window” > “Mixer”.
6. Level Meter Panel (bottom): Displays the volume level of the main output or selected track in real time (in decibels, dB), ensuring the signal does not overload and cause distortion (avoid exceeding 0 dB).

II. Complete Workflow: From Creation to Export

The following are the complete steps for a standard audio project from scratch to final export.

1. Create or Open a Project

Method: Launch Audition and select “New Audio File” or “New Multitrack Session” on the Start page. You can also use the menu File > New > Audio File or File > New > Multitrack Session.

• New Audio File: Suitable for single-file editing (such as recording voiceover or processing a single music file). You need to set the file name, sample rate (usually 44100 Hz or 48000 Hz), channels (stereo/mono), and bit depth (usually 32-bit).
• New Multitrack Session: Suitable for multitrack mixing (such as podcasts or songs). You need to set the session name, location, template, sample rate, and more. After creation, you will enter the “Multitrack” view.

Open an existing file: Drag an audio file directly onto the Editor panel, or use File > Open (shortcut Cmd+O).

2. Recording and Importing Assets

Recording: Make sure input devices such as microphones are connected correctly.

• In the “Waveform” view, click the red “Record” button at the bottom of the Editor panel.
• In the “Multitrack” view, first select a track, then click its “R” (arm for recording) button, and then click the red record button in the transport controls.

Importing assets: In the “Multitrack” view, drag audio files from the “Files” panel onto a track on the right, or drag external files directly into a track. In the “Waveform” view, opening a file imports it.

3. Editing and Processing Audio

Basic Editing (More Precise in Waveform View)

1. Selection: Use the Time Selection tool (shortcut T), click and drag on the waveform to select a region. Press Cmd+A to select all.
2. Cut, Copy, Paste, Delete: After selecting, use the standard shortcuts Cmd+X, Cmd+C, Cmd+V, Delete. Or use the “Edit” menu.
3. Trim: Select the desired portion and press Cmd+T to remove everything outside the selection.
4. Noise Reduction: Select a sample containing only ambient noise (such as the silence before recording), then go to Effects > Noise Reduction/Restoration > Capture Noise Print (shortcut Shift+P). Select the entire audio, then go to Effects > Noise Reduction/Restoration > Noise Reduction (process), adjust the parameters, and click “Apply”.

Multi-track Mixing and Editing

1. Clip Moving and Splitting: Use the Move tool (shortcut V) to drag clips. Use the Split tool (shortcut R) to click on a clip to split it.
2. Volume and Fade In/Out: Move the mouse to the center line at the top of a clip; when the cursor changes to a volume icon, drag up or down to adjust the gain of that segment. Drag in the upper-left or upper-right corner of a clip to create a fade-in or fade-out curve.
3. Add effects: In the “Effects Rack” panel, click the slot on the right and select an effect device from the list (such as “Delay & Echo”, “Reverb”, “Equalizer”). Parameter adjustments take effect in real time. Effects can be applied to a single clip (right-click the clip and select “Effects Rack”) or to an entire track (select “Effects Rack” at the track header).

4. Mixing and Automation

In the “Multitrack” view, use the mixer or track controls for overall balancing.

• Track volume and pan: Drag the fader or pan knob on the left side of the track.
• Automation: Click the “Automation” button on the track (shown as “Read”), and select the parameter to automate (such as volume). Then enable “Write” mode, play the session and move the fader in real time, or draw control points directly on the clip’s automation line (press V then switch to the pen tool P).

5. Export the final audio

1. In the “Multitrack” view, make sure the time selection tool (T) is selected, and drag on the timeline to select the range to export (if nothing is selected, the entire session length is exported by default).
2. Go to File > Export > Multitrack Mixdown > Entire Session.
3. In the dialog that appears, set:
   • Format: Commonly MP3 (lossy) or WAV (lossless).
   • Location: Select the save path.
   • Filename: Enter a name.
   • For MP3, you need to select the bitrate in “Format Settings” (e.g., 192 kbps or higher to ensure quality).
4. Click “OK” to start exporting. In the “Waveform” view, the export command is File > Export > File (shortcut Cmd+Shift+E).

III. Advanced Tips for Common Features

1. Spectral Frequency Display Editing: In the “Waveform” view, press Shift+D to switch to the spectral frequency display. Use the Spot Healing Brush tool (shortcut B) to paint on the spectrogram, which can intelligently remove instantaneous noise such as coughs and clicks without affecting the surrounding audio.
2. Loudness Matching: For podcasts or video series, ensure all audio outputs have consistent volume. In the “Multitrack” view, select the clip or track to process, and go to the Window > Match Loudness panel. Drag the target file into it, set the standard (e.g., “ITU-R BS.1770-3”), and click “Run” to adjust automatically.
3. Save Effect Rack Presets: After configuring an effect chain in the “Effects Rack” panel, click the menu icon in the upper right corner of the panel and select “Save Preset” for quick recall next time.
4. Quick Mute/Solo: In the Multitrack view, hold the Option key and click the “S” (Solo) button of a track to solo that track and automatically mute all other tracks; hold the Option key and click the “M” (Mute) button to do the same.

IV. Common Issues and Solutions

• Issue 1: No sound during playback
  • Check the menu Audition > Preferences > Audio Hardware, and make sure the “Device Type” and “Default Input/Output” are set correctly (e.g., Core Audio). Check the system sound settings.
  • Confirm that the audio track or main output is not muted, and that the volume fader has not been pulled down to the minimum.
  • Check whether the level meter shows any signal. If not, it may be an audio driver issue; try restarting the software or resetting the preferences (hold Shift while launching).
• Issue 2: Latency or echo during recording
  • In Preferences > Audio Hardware, try reducing the “I/O Buffer Size” (e.g., 128 or 256 samples), but too small a value may cause crackling. You need to balance performance and latency.
  • If using real-time monitoring, make sure monitoring is not simultaneously enabled in the system or other software, to avoid a signal feedback loop.
• Issue 3: Playback stutters after applying effects
  • Some effects (such as certain reverbs) require heavy CPU processing. You can temporarily disable effects in the “Effects Rack” panel (click the power button next to the effect name), or try increasing the “Playback Buffer” in “Preferences > Playback”.
  • In multi-track sessions, you can first “Render and Replace” a clip (right-click the clip) to bake in the effects and reduce real-time processing load.

V. Keyboard Shortcuts Summary (Mac Version)