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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Mar 2012
Posts: 201
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OP
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Joined: Mar 2012
Posts: 201 |
How do I know if wma or wav is used?
Can I choose?
Can I delete the wma files?
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Feb 2012
Posts: 8
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Newbie
Joined: Feb 2012
Posts: 8 |
Excellent Question! I'm wondering the same. I upgraded to the Audiophile edition and want to be absolutely sure the wav files are being used, not the wma ones. I look forward to an answer too! -charley
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 27,683
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If BIAB sees both a .WMA file and a same-named .WAV file in the same place, it uses the .WAV file.
This can occur in one of two ways:
1) you uncompressed the .WMA files, making them into .WAV but keeping the same audio quality, or
2) you have the audiophile version, in which case you have purchased uncompressed higher-quality .WAV files
There is a slight speed advantage to using method one, even though the quality of the sound is unchanged, because BIAB does not have to uncompress the file first. And of course, the audiophile files would also load slightly faster.
If you have the audiophile version, yes, you may delete all the .WMA files.
If you do not have the audiophile version but chose to uncompress all the .WMA files to .WAV, you may also choose to delete the .WMA files.
Keep in mind that, if you do delete all the .WMA files, since they are about one-tenth the size of the corresponding .WAV files, you are only saving about one-eleventh the total space. It's a lot of work to go through for that small a benefit, and then you have to do it all again next update.
BIAB 2026 Win Audiophile. Software: Fender Studio One 8, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6, Song Master Pro, Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Fender Quantom HD8 & Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Mar 2012
Posts: 201
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OP
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Joined: Mar 2012
Posts: 201 |
Thanks for clearing that up! However I have a follow up question:
Is buying the audiophile edition the only way to get "good" wav files or can they be purchased as realtracks sets?
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 27,683
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I don't know. You should call PG Music Sales and ask.
I can say that I have not seen separate audiophile packages for sale, but that doesn't mean they would not be willing to discuss it; can't hurt to ask Sales.
Of course, after you buy enough individual RealTrack sets, it becomes more economical to just get them all.
BIAB 2026 Win Audiophile. Software: Fender Studio One 8, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6, Song Master Pro, Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Fender Quantom HD8 & Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: May 2012
Posts: 14
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Newbie
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 14 |
Quote:
Thanks for clearing that up! However I have a follow up question:
Is buying the audiophile edition the only way to get "good" wav files or can they be purchased as realtracks sets?
This is my understanding from a technical point of view.
The uncompressed wave files in the audiophile version take up LOTS of space...
so much space that downloading would put a 'much added' strain on the servers.
Therefore, ALL audiophile uncompressed wave files are ONLY available on disk
and they are delivered quickly in 1-2 days via the mail only.
And they must be signed for too, I might add.
Furthermore, to complicate things, this is my opinion and not that of PGMusic...
IF you have to pay for the audiophile version, you will not only have everything
that is available, but you won't be so quick to share files with others.
Here is the scenario... Friends a,b,&c get together and each purchase a separate
uncompressed audiophile *.wav set. They then share their sets (copy each others).
This now cuts PGMusic out of comissions had a,b,&c each purchased their own *.wav
audiophile versions. Therefore, PGMusic doesn't offer sets! (at least one reason)
I guess, other than honesty, there is no reason that either a, b, or c couldn't
make an audiophile purchase and share with their friends for a certain price.
However, let's get real here...
PGMusic has gone to 'deep' ends to bring you quality, and that quality HAS to be
paid for somehow! You cut PGMusic's $$$ by sharing and you cut your own throat.
And, seriously, the 2nd point is this... a lot of you would have to upgrade, or
purchase an additional external drive anyway, as the 'audiophile' versions ships
on a 750GB Harddrive... so where will you store those huge uncompressed .wav files?
You may think that PGMusic is making some kind of killing because of the difference
of $100 between the standard 'Everything you can get' pak and the 'audiophile' version,
but have you taken into account the cost of the larger harddrive and also the amount
of work they have saved you? They aren't making much off of the audiophile version imo.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: May 2000
Posts: 38,502
Veteran
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I also takes a longer time to load a hard drive with all .wav files...
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,116
Expert
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Expert
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,116 |
Quote:
And they must be signed for too, I might add.
They just put mine on the front porch. Probably just make you sign. 
Keith
2026 Audiophile Windows 11 RYZEN THREADRIPPER 3960X 4.5GHZ 128 GB RAM 2 Nvidia RTX 3090s, Vegas,Acid,SoundForge,Izotope Production,Melodyne Studio,SONAR,3 Raven Mtis
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 7,697
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Veteran
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 7,697 |
Quote:
Is buying the audiophile edition the only way to get "good" wav files...
You're making a wrong assumption here. Unless you're under 50, have extremely good (and trained) hearing because you haven't done a lot of live gigging over the years and you have worked in a recording studio for a long time, I strongly suspect you will not be able to tell the difference between the WMA's and the audiophile versions. Personally I would get the standard hard drive first and try them out. I think you will be very impressed and decide to save your money but you've got 30 days to return it and get the audiophile one.
Bob
Biab/RB latest build, Win 11 Pro, Ryzen 5 5600 G, 512 Gig SSD, 16 Gigs Ram, Steinberg UR22 MkII, Roland Sonic Cell, Kurzweil PC3, Hammond SK1, Korg PA3XPro, Garritan JABB, Hypercanvas, Sampletank 3, more.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: May 2012
Posts: 14
Newbie
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Newbie
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 14 |
Bob is quite right! However, if you purchase the audiophile version first, then you will have both the HQ .wav files and the compressed .wma files available to do a comparison. There is a 30-day refund period as mentioned. There are 19,876 .wav <-> .wma pairs of files and they are all located in the 'bb\Drums' & 'bb\RealTracks' folders/subfolders. The .wav <-> .wma pairs are NOT located anywhere else in the bb folder. I know, I checked. The .wma files mentioned above total 48.5 GB while the total size of the .wav files mentioned above totals 589 GB -- and for those who care that's 1,495 hours, 54 minutes, and 17 seconds of quality .wav audio files that we are talking about. Considering that these files are chopped up and served multiple times during a single song... that's a lot more hours of the same. It's also currently cheaper to upgrade from audiophile to audiophile than it is to upgrade from the EverythingPAK; and then there are also return charges, time to return, time to wait again for delivery, etc. And then there's what seems to be the biggest wait of all, and that is copying ALL of the files to the harddrive if you don't want to carry around the external drive. I did read where someone used velcro to attach the external hd to the bottom of their laptop. We know that this can block the air ports and cause overheating of the laptop and/or the hd. If you do return the audiophile version, I don't know what would keep you from using the audiophile .wav files anyway, other than honesty  But the pricing structure just mentioned deters this from happening. And if it does happen too often, PGMusic can easily disallow returns of audiophile, or only allow the audiophile version as an upgrade. Honestly, if you listen to Bob you won't spend the extra money. But if you are 'one of those' who it's going to gnaw upon that you don't have 'the best', or you ARE running a recording studio, then you should spend the extra $$$ and get it over with. Statistics show that if you do purchase the audiophile version, that you will keep it instead of returning it. I googled and did not see anywhere that you can 'sample' the two files *.wma and *.wav side-by-side. This should be added to the website imo. It will probably be added in the near future, as there is a huge interest in the difference between the EverythingPAK and the audiophile versions. If you do have the audiophile version, then you might do the following: -- rename: JazzFunkFiery^_75_Style.wav to JazzFunkFiery^_075_Style.wav ... This is a typo or an oversight of some kind, and the file should match both the JazzFunkFiery^_075_Style.bt1 and JazzFunkFiery^_075_Style.wma files that are already in that folder. Note: It is in the C:\bb\Drums\JazzFunkFiery^ folder.
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Ask sales and support questions about Band-in-a-Box using natural language.
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Introducing XPro Styles PAK 11 – Now Available for Windows Band-in-a-Box 2026 and Higher!
XPro Styles PAK 11 for Windows & Mac Band-in-a-Box® version 2026 (and higher) is here with 100 brand new RealStyles, plus 31 RealTracks/RealDrums!
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Introducing XPro Styles PAK 11 – Now Available for Mac Band-in-a-Box 2026 and Higher!
XPro Styles PAK 11 for Mac & Windows Band-in-a-Box® version 2026 (and higher) is here with 100 brand new RealStyles, plus 31 RealTracks/RealDrums!
Guess who’s back again? That’s right! It’s our XPro Styles PAK’s triumphant return with the 11th edition in this series! 100 new styles are coming your way spread across the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres. And this edition's wildcard genre explores the immense and far-reaching catalogue of electronic music! The included 31 RealTracks and RealDrums can be used with any Band-in-a-Box® 2026 (and higher) package.
Special offers available until August 31st, 2026!
All the XPro Styles PAKs 1-11 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea), or get them all in the XPro Styles PAK Bundle for only $149 (reg. $299)! Order now!
Learn more and listen to demos of XPro Styles PAKs.
Video: XPro Styles PAK 11 Overview & Styles Demos: Watch now!
XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2026 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.
Introducing Xtra Styles PAK 22 – Now Available for Mac Band-in-a-Box 2026 and Higher!
Xtra Styles PAK 22 for Mac & Windows Band-in-a-Box version 2026 (and higher) is here with 200 brand new RealStyles!
It’s time to celebrate! Xtra Styles PAK 22 for Band-in-a-Box® is here, and we've got 200 brand-new styles coming your way!
No Xtra Styles PAK is complete without the classic rock & pop, jazz, and country volumes you know and love, and we’ve got plenty to share, with 150 styles spread across too many genres to list! Of course, it also wouldn’t be complete with our special wildcard volume to add a little spice and pizzazz to the mix. This year, because we loved it so much the first time, we’ve decided to make the second iteration of our SynthMaster volume, full of new sounds, interesting genres, and 50 engaging styles, all making use of the diverse SynthMaster plugin! Here you can find genres such as airy yacht rock, sultry electrotango, and even some synth soca funk. Don’t wait, pickup up Xtra Styles PAK 22 today!
In this PAK you can find: dulcet folk ballads, funky gospel country, Brazilian jazz fusion, upbeat 1980s pop, classic Americana, a plethora of breezy bossa novas, indie singer-songwriter, scintillating synthwave, exuberant electronica, and many, many more!
Special offers available until August 31st, 2026!
All the Xtra Styles PAKs 1-22 are on special for only $29 each (reg $49), or get all 22 PAKs for $199 (reg $399)! Order now!
Learn more and listen to demos of the Xtra Styles PAK 22.
Video: Xtra Styles PAK 22 Overview & Styles Demos: Watch now!
Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 22 requires the 2026 or higher UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version because they need the RealTracks from the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.
Peter Gannon Talks Band-in-a-Box with zplane
zplane recently interviewed Peter Gannon, the founder and creator of Band-in-a-Box, about the software's early days, what sets it apart from AI, how zplane's audio algorithms are used in Band-in-a-Box, and more!
Special thanks to the team at zplane for their continued support.
Check out the full interview here: https://products.zplane.de/blog/peter-gannon-interview-pg-music
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