Steinberg WaveLab Pro 13 is a professional Swiss-army-knife-type solution for audio processing, well suited for any kind of creative work, including mastering, restoring, and prepping audio for distribution to the world, as well as forensic extraction, sound design, and recording, for podcasts, audiobooks, interviews, and more. New additions to version 13 include Dolby Atmos mastering, with intuitive tools for ADM file editing, loudness control, and album assembly. New plug-ins like MasterRig 2 and Vocal Chain expand creative possibilities, while multicore rendering and streamlined editing features ensure faster, more efficient production for immersive and stereo projects alike.
With over 30 new features and improvements, WaveLab Pro 13 is equally effective for mastering engineers, audio archivists, and pro-level content creators. Its advanced and precise editing, easy-to-use modules, and fast workflow make WaveLab Pro 13 the perfect final step for polishing audio before its release. It is compatible with macOS and Windows systems, and it provides improved utilization of multicore CPUs for more efficient processing of audio montages.
What's New in Wavelab Pro 13
Dolby Atmos Master Montage
The Master montage makes mastering a single ADM file flexible and efficient. At its core is the innovative Immersive Plug-in Hub, which enables standard VST 3 plug-ins to be inserted across up to 128 audio channels through a single interface. It also allows bed plug-ins like Surround Reverb to be inserted, along with clip and track plug-ins for detailed sound shaping. Full creative control is maximized by customizable side-chain routing and efficient mixdown of all channels. Sample-level editing can be performed with WaveLab's internal tools, while loudness and TruePeak normalization ensure consistent, professional results. A stereo reference track enables accurate A/B comparison and length alignment of the ADM file with a stereo master.
Dolby Atmos Album Montage
The Album montage allows multiple ADM files to be assembled into a single, cohesive album master. They can be sequenced much like a stereo montage, arranged on one or multiple tracks. Clips can be visualized in multiple formats, from stereo through to 9.1.6, with the option to update the display automatically to match the Dolby Atmos Renderer. Loudness and TruePeak normalization ensure accurate levels across multiple ADM files, with options to preserve or adjust differences between them and stereo masters. Stereo reference clips allow easy A/B comparison with the Atmos stream. Compatible ADM files can also be combined into a new file with crossfade support, ideal for live recordings or audiobooks, while multiple ADM files of any type can be merged into one.
Multicore Rendering
Full multicore support for Audio Montage elements means WaveLab 13 delivers dramatically faster workflows and unparalleled efficiency for complex projects. Multiple tasks can be processed simultaneously, significantly reducing rendering times. For example, rendering ten titles now takes only 10% of the previously required time, saving hours and allowing more focus on creativity and production quality.
Tab Synchronized Playback
Full A/B comparison of audio files and clips is now possible through WaveLab's powerful multi-tab interface, ensuring a smooth and intuitive workflow. When this option is active, switching to another tab seamlessly continues playback from the same audio position as the previous tab. This is particularly useful for comparing related files, such as different versions of the same project, for precision and ease.
Side-Chain Support
Track plug-ins with side-chain capabilities can now have clip audio signals routed directly to them. The signal level from each clip can be adjusted, giving precise control over dynamics and creative effects. Workflows for techniques like ducking and rhythmic processing are simplified, opening up new possibilities for detailed, expressive sound design.
Color Rules
The visual organization of projects is improved by allowing the colors of clips and tracks to be managed automatically, based on custom rules. These rules can reference clip or track names, applied effects, or even clip position, creating a clear and structured view of complex sessions. This feature helps users to navigate projects faster and maintain creative focus.
Enhanced Envelope Functions
Envelope editing now offers new options for greater precision and efficiency. Clone editing applies changes across all selected clips, while grouped fade editing streamlines adjustments for clip siblings. Fine control mode further enhances accuracy by damping mouse movements, allowing detailed edits without slowing down the workflow.
New Audio Plug-Ins
MasterRig 2
- The next-generation mastering plug-in suite has undergone a major update, introducing a sleek modern design, fully scalable user interface, and side-chain support. It includes new and enhanced modules for EQ, compression, limiting, and stereo imaging.
VocalChain
- A state-of-the-art multi-effect tailored for vocal and speech processing, VocalChain integrates essential tools like EQ, compression, and reverb in a streamlined interface. It delivers polished, studio-quality results while simplifying complex vocal production tasks.
Underwater
- Adding a distinctive tonal effect for creative sound design, Underwater simulates the acoustic characteristics of submerged environments. Perfect for film, games, or experimental music, it delivers authentic textures with adjustable depth and resonance.
UltraShaper
- UltraShaper is a dynamic processor, which merges advanced compression with powerful transient shaping. Ideal for adding punch or smoothing dynamics, it provides detailed control for sound character shaping at both the mixing and mastering stages.
PitchShifter
- Harness the power of enhanced real-time pitch manipulation for both creative and corrective purposes. Whether adjusting vocal intonation or creating experimental effects, the PitchShifter delivers transparent processing with minimal artifacts for natural results or bold transformations.
MixerDelay
- Designed for surround and immersive formats, the MixerDelay aligns speaker channels by individually adjusting delay times. Essential for Dolby Atmos workflows, it ensures accurate spatial imaging and phase coherence throughout complex setups.
Bass Manager
- By managing bass routing and crossover points in multichannel monitoring environments, this tool optimizes low-frequency distribution, enhancing clarity and consistency in immersive mixes. It’s indispensable for Dolby Atmos production.
Improvements
Load Plug-In Chain on Multiple Clips
- Apply an entire plug-in chain to all selected clips in one step, saving time and ensuring consistent processing across a project.
Automatically Add Audio Reference Clips
- Files related to a reference track can be automatically added when inserting multiple audio files in an audio montage.
Synchronize Clips on Reference Tracks
- Reference clips will now stay aligned to their related main clips, maintaining timing and consistency during album assembly.
Customizable Clip and Track Color Palette
- The color palette can be customized by choosing the number of hues and brightness levels, creating a personalized editing environment.
Range Selection: Cover All Tracks Option
- A new selection range, which spans all tracks makes multitrack editing faster and more efficient.
Apply Random Colors to All Tracks
- Random colors can be assigned to all tracks with a single command, adding visual variety to the montage.
New Clip Selection Visualization
- Color contrast and clarity for selected clips is improved, making editing more intuitive and precise.
Easier Active Track Identification
- A clear visual indicator highlights the active track and optionally selected tracks for improved navigation.
More New Features
Plug-In Scaling
- All stock plug-ins now support user-defined interface scaling, with adjustments such as +25% or +50%.
Plug-In removal
- Plug-ins can be quickly removed from a slot by dragging them outside it, no additional commands required.
Range Selection via Marker Ruler
- Time ranges can be directly selected from the marker ruler in both the Audio Editor and Montage.
Audio Processing Load Bar
- The load bar now displays a percentage value, providing clearer insight into processing activity.
Open or Paste Files from Text-Based File Paths
- Full file paths can be copied from any text source, opening or pasting the corresponding files into a WaveLab montage, audio file, or batch processor using standard commands.
Reporting in Audio File Comparer
- Residual peak levels between two signals are now reported when minor differences exist, improving accuracy and usability in null tests.
Improved Outlines on HDPI Screens
- Waveform outlines have been refined for better clarity and precision on high-resolution displays.
WaveLab Applications
The Mastering Standard
WaveLab is the ultimate solution for professional audio mastering, its modern user interface and intuitive workflows making it fast and simple to achieve great results. It features dedicated workspaces, such as the Audio Editor for sample-level editing and refinement of single audio files and the Audio Montage for finalizing full albums, and offers a complete Dolby Atmos mastering workflow, where a single ADM can be mastered or an entire Atmos album compiled from multiple ADM files. It includes a wide range of real-time plug-in effects and processes, which can be implemented per clip, per track or across a whole album. Support for third-party VST 3 plug-ins and round trip signal routing also means that favorite effects and hardware devices are easy to include at any step in the mastering chain. With precise metering tools and audio analysis functions including loudness control and metadata editing and management, masters produced with WaveLab satisfy the requirements for any format or distribution platform.
Audio Editor
WaveLab offers a wide variety of surgical sound-shaping functions, using either destructive or non-destructive editing, allowing the most appropriate choice for any project. Precision tools include level, time and pitch processing, high-resolution spectral editing, audio inpainting, mid/side processing (left, right or both channels), and much more, all assisted by a range of visualization options. With a large selection of included plug-ins, third-party VST plug-ins, and even external editing software and hardware effects devices can be integrated into the WaveLab workflow. Meanwhile, ARA support means all of WaveLab's advanced editing tools can be used within projects in any compatible DAW.
Advanced Audio Analysis
WaveLab features the most advanced audio analysis tools available. The SuperVision plug-in is a fully customizable multi-display analyzer, which works alongside WaveLab's comprehensive range of meters, including peak level, loudness errors, phase, spectrogram, wavelet display, and more, to ensure there is always an accurate view of the sound with which you are working. But WaveLab goes much further, with deep analysis tools to see into sounds. These are of vital help in allowing you to forensically analyze, process, and extract important information from audio recordings.
Audio Restoration
WaveLab's high-end audio restoration tools are renowned for their ability to improve old and imperfect recordings, including the RestoRig restoration plug-in suite for removing a wide array of unwanted noise and artefacts and spectral editing to target specific parts of the audio spectrum. A huge array of plug-ins come as standard, with the ability to host third-party plug-ins. It is also possible to incorporate external audio editors like SpectraLayers for specific editing tasks, while external hardware effects devices can also be integrated—all helping to make improving audio quality fast and intuitive.
Industry-Leading Batch Processing
- WaveLab has an entire workspace dedicated to batch processing, which can be a huge time-saver for audio professionals. With a vast array of plug-in effects and high-quality processors from which you can select, you can create many different plug-in collections and render many files in different formats in one go.
- You can also create watch folders with predefined processes, formats, plug-ins or any other kind of audio file handling and, without even having to open WaveLab, you can drag files into that folder on your desktop to process them all automatically and in one go.
- WaveLab’s advanced batch processing is the best way to create professional sound libraries, knowing that all files will have the same characteristics, like level, format, pitch, length, and much more.
Metadata Editing
WaveLab features very comprehensive and flexible metadata editing capabilities, which can be utilized regardless of use case, source material or end result. As well as the full range of metadata codes—including ID3 v1 (for MP3 files) and v2, which conform with iTunes standards—lyrics and pictures can be added to the metadata of each file. WaveLab comes with metadata presets that can be edited and used to create your own presets. These can then be saved and applied to audio files, using batch processing to save time.
Recording and Podcasts
WaveLab supports both stereo and multitrack recording, making it the ideal tool for a wide range of recording situations. Any location sound, including interviews, can be recorded and prepared for broadcast or online publishing within the application, WaveLab also includes a dedicated podcast workspace for recording, organizing episodes and preparation for publishing. All the powerful, intuitive podcasting features from WaveLab Cast are included in WaveLab Pro. These include simple device setup, one-knob sound enhancement and refinement, episode management, and direct upload to podcast distribution services such as Spreaker, Podbean, and Soundcloud.
Sound Design and Sampling
WaveLab is a fantastic tool for sound designers, not only because of its industry-leading audio analysis, editing, and restoration functions, but because its advanced processing tools are perfect for capturing samples and creating loops, ensuring audio files are in peak condition before importing them into a sampler or soft synth. Sounds can either be recorded manually or automatically by enabling WaveLab's sound/silence detection parameters. It can also automatically create individual files by splitting recordings into multisamples. With many parameters for splitting, editing, naming, looping, and more, samples can be created quickly, easily, and without getting in the way of creativity.