Audio-editing program joins the Adobe fold.

In May Adobe acquired the technology assets of Syntrillium Software, which included the program Cool Edit Pro. An audio-editing program, Cool Edit has been a strong seller for years and has become one of the top audio programs for Windows, with professional and shareware versions. The Cool Edit community has been amazingly active on the Web, and Loopology, a website featuring thousands of loops, is where most users got their content. (The loops from the site now ship with Audition.)

Adobe Audition's layout is comprised of dockable palettes, allowing interface customization. Here is a setup that centers on mixing audio tracks to synch with a video file.

The awkwardness has happened because Cool Edit Pro, with its very non-stylish shareware roots, has a completely different interface than the one shared by most Adobe products. There are some recognizable themes such as dockable palettes, but for the most part Audition sits outside the Adobe groove, something that is sure to be rectified in the next update or two.

So what does all this mean to us video producers? To be sure, there has been an audio gap in Adobe's software line, and the timing could not have been more right, as Apple's new Soundtrack program gets all cozy with Final Cut Pro. Audition has a kind of split personality. You can tell the software evolved from an audio editing program, one where users drill down to the sample level and apply all kinds of tweaking tools and perform waveform analysis. But it also has looping capabilities. You can also see that it's now set to become the flavor-of-the-month loop solution — all the rage these days — used to concoct sweeping soundtracks and hard-edged rock riffs.

For the most part the two worlds collide quite nicely. You can definitely use the program to do sample-level editing. Audition has, for example, the noise-reduction tools to knock out the hum of a microphone from a video master. It also allows you to load a video track, so you can tweak the audio and clearly see how it plays with the video. On the music creation side, the software ships with thousands of loops along with a large selection of realtime digital signal processing (DSP) effects. Both areas, editing and looping, have power tools that go deep and sweep broadly, so either camp will have little to complain about.

The interface is set up with two main editing screens: a multitrack interface for song creation and a sample-editing screen for detail work on audio clips. Hop back and forth quickly with one click. If a multitrack song contains a sample you want to alter, for instance by changing the pitch or adding an echo, you can double-click and Audition will launch into the editing screen.

Audition offers excellent tools for removing unwanted noise, such as the pops and clicks from a record or the constant hum or bump from a microphone audio track.

The program has a lot to recommend and some immediate drawbacks. My first problem was the random crashes I experienced when working with the file requestor. I can't even really call them crashes, let's just say the software went “poof” and disappeared, totally exiting for no reason. Surprising because this Audition 1.0 software has been fine-tuned for years as Cool Edit. (I spoke with Adobe, and they are aware of the problem and working on a fix.) Other than that, it's a solid program.

Another issue I have is that Audition just seems pokey. It is just a little slow loading sessions (projects as well as WAV files), and throughout the program I saw that little progress bar for commands that should have been pretty quick. A few of the many DSP effects took some time to change after I moved the slider. I am used to the immediacy of programs like Acid Pro, where I almost never see a progress bar. Just changing the tempo in Audition is a task. You must type in a text tempo amount (yuk!) and then here comes that render bar, chugging to get the whole song up, or down, to speed.

Finally, I didn't like having to use a right-click drag to move samples. It just did not feel natural.

As for good points, there are many. I love the effects presets throughout the program. Most companies throw in presets as an afterthought, but the ones in Audition are robust, varied, and plentiful. They also are great starting points for experimentation and are very well implemented.

I liked that I could solo multiple tracks at once instead of just one at a time, and I found the noise-reduction tools to be top-notch. Also, each little feature in the program is just so rich and detailed. For example, the metronome, usually a one-click toggle with a set sound in most programs, in Audition has all these options for different sounds and patterns and tempos. There is a lot of love in the program, folks, once you start drilling down.

The program adds an Edit Original hook to your project files. If you're in another Adobe program such as After Effects or Premiere, you can launch Audition to tweak your audio by choosing Edit Original.

Also excellent are the six-channel surround-sound mixing options, very intuitive with lots of buttons and knobs to direct your soundscape in any direction. Audition's beat stretching is very intelligent. You can load your own sounds and map them out to be loopable so they fit your composition.

So I am somewhat on the fence with Audition 1.0. As a loop program it did not win my heart away from Acid Pro. The toolset is there, but Audition just takes longer to do simple tasks. However, the included samples are amazing, and if you were to buy all these separately, you'd wear out your credit card. I think Audition's handicap is the result of an audio editor trying to blossom into a loop-based music program. It needs to be more optimized and more realtime at every step. But as an audio sample editor, it's excellent. With its editing tools and special audio effects, it's hard to beat.

Finally, what I really want is for Audition to become a true Adobe program, with a true Adobe interface. That change would help ease the learning curve and build acceptance as it merges into the Adobe world.

So Audition is an excellent audio tool and not a bad song generator/loop tool. It's certainly a great deal if you are getting this program as part of the Adobe Video Collection. An interface makeover and continued feature growth and user support will ensure that this new newborn, version 1.0 Adobe product becomes as legendary as many of the company's other software packages.