Exporting with time/pitch manipulation plugins

Having trouble with LMMS? Ask about it here.
EDIT: I have found the issue to be with the playback software default to Windows, not LMMS.

I've found recently more than ever that using anything under maximum samplerate gives a sound akin to the whole track having a lowpass filter on it. This has occured with every track I have made recently, most noticable in the snares and hats being significantly duller in the exported file than in LMMS; the snare usually sounds like it has a huge lowpass filter on it, and the hat is sometimes almost unnoticeable as it gets drowned out. The only way I have found to mitigate this is to export as WAV with maximum samplerate, usually giving a ~300mb file.

This would be fine if not for the fact that whenever I use a VST such as dBlue TapeStop that slows down and stretches the sample, the rate of this effect is much faster than playback in LMMS indicates; for example, a slow down to stop that lasts about half a second instead now happens in about 0.1 of a second (estimating here), and the effect I'm trying to achieve is essentially lost.

This change to the rate of the speed-up/slow-down effects is not an issue when extracting with lower samplerates, so there are two possible solutions I'd love to hear any suggestions for:
  • Is there a way I can get a higher-quality export without the dull/lowpass at a lower samplerate to avoid this problem? I've seen some pages talk about using limiters etc, I'd love more detailed advice on this.
  • Alternatively, if high quality exports are not possible at a lower samplerate, is it possible to make sure the speed of the effects I apply are unchanged during exporting? Could oversampling be used for this, and if so, with what settings?
First off, Welcome to the Forum HangmanGrime !
Here are all important links:
http://lmms.io/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=4740
-A few rules and useful forum instructions
If you like to introduce yourself, to the community, go here:
http://lmms.io/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=4480

The only way I have found to mitigate this is to export as WAV with maximum samplerate, usually giving a ~300mb file.
Yes wave creates large files, but is also the best quality
Are you trying to export to mp3 -or?
a slow down to stop that lasts about half a second instead now happens in about 0.1 of a second (estimating here),


That does sound like an issue with the plugin
You can instead try the method i made a video for:

Is there a way I can get a higher-quality export without the dull/lowpass at a lower samplerate to avoid this problem?
Yes, and the method is really simple:
Either Record the output through a recorder-app, like audacity
or
Export to a large high-Q wave-file first, and then master that file in (audacity*)-conversion to best mp3 option.

*or similar app
musikbear wrote:
Thu May 25, 2023 6:16 pm
First off, Welcome to the Forum HangmanGrime !
Here are all important links:
http://lmms.io/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=4740
-A few rules and useful forum instructions
If you like to introduce yourself, to the community, go here:
http://lmms.io/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=4480

The only way I have found to mitigate this is to export as WAV with maximum samplerate, usually giving a ~300mb file.
Yes wave creates large files, but is also the best quality
Are you trying to export to mp3 -or?
a slow down to stop that lasts about half a second instead now happens in about 0.1 of a second (estimating here),


That does sound like an issue with the plugin
You can instead try the method i made a video for:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYZYjwwZuDM
Is there a way I can get a higher-quality export without the dull/lowpass at a lower samplerate to avoid this problem?
Yes, and the method is really simple:
Either Record the output through a recorder-app, like audacity
or
Export to a large high-Q wave-file first, and then master that file in (audacity*)-conversion to best mp3 option.

*or similar app
Hi there,

Thank you for all the useful information! I'm not gonna lie, I've literally been using this DAW for years and somehow never realised what the "range" slider is for, although to be fair I use mainly external VSTs with which the pitch bend does not work anyway; very useful for sample manipulation though thank you!

I have since realised that the export quality issue I was experiencing was not due to LMMS at all, but Windows Media Player occasionally playing things back in a horrible low-quality way. The reason I attributed it to LMMS is because when I would do a big export with a large samplerate, Windows Media Player would refuse to play it, so I would have to play it through Windows Media Player Legacy, in which the export sounds great.
I just now realised that if I play back the lower-samplerate version in Legacy it still sounds clean and great, and toggling the EQ on Media Player will sometimes fix the lo-fi issue. This also explains why I never realised this issue before; I've been using this software for 7 years, I've just been more particular and taking my music more serious now than ever before.

Either way, thank you for the help, I will leave my post up in case someone else is experiencing something similar.
That was a lot of great data, so thank you! Even though I use mostly external VSTs, with which the pitch bend does not work anyhow, I have to admit that I have been using this DAW for years without ever realising what the "range" slider is for; really handy for sample manipulation, though; thank you!

Since then, I've recognised that Windows Media Player, and not LMMS, was to blame for the terrible export quality I was experiencing. I came to that conclusion based of my experience with huge exports with a high samplerate in LMMS being rejected by Windows Media Player yet playing well in Windows Media Player Legacy.
HangmanGrime wrote:
Thu May 25, 2023 6:42 pm
musikbear wrote:
Thu May 25, 2023 6:16 pm
First off, Welcome to the Forum HangmanGrime !
Here are all important links:
http://lmms.io/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=4740
-A few rules and useful forum instructions
If you like to introduce yourself, to the community, go here:
http://lmms.io/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=4480

The only way I have found to mitigate this is to export as WAV with maximum samplerate, usually giving a ~300mb file.
Yes wave creates large files, but is also the best quality
Are you trying to export to mp3 -or?
a slow down to stop that lasts about half a second instead now happens in about 0.1 of a second (estimating here),


That does sound like an issue with the plugin
You can instead try the method i made a video for:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYZYjwwZuDM connections
Is there a way I can get a higher-quality export without the dull/lowpass at a lower samplerate to avoid this problem?
Yes, and the method is really simple:
Either Record the output through a recorder-app, like audacity
or
Export to a large high-Q wave-file first, and then master that file in (audacity*)-conversion to best mp3 option.

*or similar app
Hi there,

Thank you for all the useful information! I'm not gonna lie, I've literally been using this DAW for years and somehow never realised what the "range" slider is for, although to be fair I use mainly external VSTs with which the pitch bend does not work anyway; very useful for sample manipulation though thank you!

I have since realised that the export quality issue I was experiencing was not due to LMMS at all, but Windows Media Player occasionally playing things back in a horrible low-quality way. The reason I attributed it to LMMS is because when I would do a big export with a large samplerate, Windows Media Player would refuse to play it, so I would have to play it through Windows Media Player Legacy, in which the export sounds great.
I just now realised that if I play back the lower-samplerate version in Legacy it still sounds clean and great, and toggling the EQ on Media Player will sometimes fix the lo-fi issue. This also explains why I never realised this issue before; I've been using this software for 7 years, I've just been more particular and taking my music more serious now than ever before.

Either way, thank you for the help, I will leave my post up in case someone else is experiencing something similar.
I tried the method shown in the video, it was quite effective