Using the Source Editor to edit audio sources

The Source Editor can be used to edit the following types of objects:

Audio Source (A WAV or AMB file)
Source Plug-ins (Silence, Sine, Tone Generator, and so on)

The operations described in the following sections can be applied to source (WAV/AMB) files non-destructively.

All these operations are processed offline and not in real-time in the game. They are stored in the project's Work Units. They are reversible and support undo operations (Edit > Undo, Ctrl+Z).

Trimming the content of audio sources

Trimming the content in the WAV file saves space in WAV data. It can be used to remove silence at the beginning or the end of WAV files. Trimming the content is a non-destructive operation that occurs during conversion of the source material.

	Note
	The editing functions such as trimming, looping, and fades are not available for Audio Source objects in the Interactive Music Hierarchy, because these operations are available as part of the Music Segment and Music Clip objects.

To trim the source:

Drag the Trim Start (blue square handle located on the lower-left corner of the waveform) to the right.
Drag the Trim End (blue square handle located on the lower-right corner of the waveform) to the left.

Editing fade-in and fade-out

A fade-in and fade-out can be created in the Source Editor by dragging the fade handles (blue triangle). Fades are applied to the converted file, and do not require additional processing during the playback of the source.

To create a fade-in and a fade-out

Drag the Fade-in handle (blue triangle handle, located on the top-left corner of the waveform) to the right.
Drag the Fade-out handle (blue triangle handle, located on the top-right corner of the waveform) to the left.

Looping audio sources

Loop points are used when the audio source is contained by a Sound object that has the Loop property enabled. If loop points are present in the WAV file, they are used by default until the loop points in the editor are moved. As soon as the loop points are modified in the editor, the loop points from the file are no longer used.

The loop points are only used in the following conditions:

The Override file loop point is enabled
The parent Sound object is looping

	Note
	Setting or modifying the loop points in the Source Editor does not modify the original WAV file. This is a non-destructive operation. The loop points are stored in the project.

Editing crossfade durations

A crossfade duration can be defined on the audio source to obtain a smoother looping behavior in case a clicking sound is heard during the loop.

	Note
	To avoid looping clicks and pops, it is always recommended to position loop points at a zero crossing positions of the PCM data.

To adjust the loop points, with a crossfade:

Drag the Loop Start (green handle, located on the top-left corner of the waveform) to the right.
Drag the Loop End (Red handle, located on the top-right corner of the waveform) to the left.
Define a crossfade duration.

Adding and editing file markers

Audio source files can have markers, sometimes referred to as sync points or cue points. Markers have unique IDs tied to a position in the file. Wwise can use these markers in the Source Editor's graph view. It can also edit them or add its own, without impacting the original file.

Click and drag markers as desired to the location you want to flag in the source file. You might, for example, want to show where there are problems in the file. Alternatively, perhaps you want to highlight the start of something important. If it were dialogue, you might try to demarcate the speaking points of different characters. Mark things according to whatever works best for your situation.

These are the Marker Input Modes to choose from in the Source Editor's side panel:

Use File Markers: The source audio file's markers are used.
Use Markers From Transients: Markers are placed by automatic onset detection. These will not appear until you move the Marker Detection Sensitivity slider. The higher the sensitivity, the higher the chance to have markers. Adjust the slider so that detected onsets are closest to what you desire. Then you can edit them manually. Once you edit a marker, the markers mode changes to Manual Markers.
Manual Markers: The markers as set by the user are used. Selecting Manual Markers does not change the markers from what they were in the previous selection. Whether file markers or markers from transients, users can directly edit them at any time. As soon as anything is edited, the marker's selection is set to Manual Markers.

Within the Source Editor graph view, there are four convenient shortcut menu options for working with markers.

Marker-specific shortcut menu options:

Add Marker: This option appears when opening the shortcut menu from anywhere within the Source Editor's graph view outside of an existing marker. It creates a new, unlabeled marker at the specifically selected point of the graph view's timeline.
Delete All Markers: This option appears when opening the shortcut menu from anywhere within the Source Editor's graph view. It removes all the markers from the source file. This does not affect the original file markers.
Delete Marker: This option appears only when opening the shortcut menu from a specific marker handle. It removes that marker. It does not affect the original file marker.
Edit Marker Label…: This option appears only when opening the shortcut menu from a specific marker handle. It prompts the Edit Label dialog, loaded with the selected marker's current label, where you can change the label as desired.
Edit Markers in List View: This option appears when opening the shortcut menu from anywhere within the Source Editor's graph view. It prompts the List View, where two marker-specific columns can be viewed and edited for all the source file's markers (including the ones created in Wwise).

	Reverting your marker changes
	Apart from using undo operations (Edit > Undo, Ctrl+Z), you can easily return to the original file's markers by changing the Marker Input Mode to Import From File. Careful though! All your manual inputs will disappear.

The following image gives an overview of basic marker options within the Wwise Source Editor.

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