Trying to understand sample/bit depth conversion process

I've been reading and reviewing posts, roughing it through the user manual of SONAR 4, and I'm having a hard time understanding the reasons behind the steps in the conversion process when I want to change sample and bit depths of projects. I understand the why and when, but the how has me absolutely stumped.

I also spent a moderate amount of time on the phone with tech support today also, and I'm just not completely "getting it."

Let's say I have a 48/24 project (sample rate/bit depth) that I am ready to convert to 44.1/16. SONAR 4's user manual (as well as their online help: http://www.cakewalk.com/tips/techtipmay02_3.asp) says that I need to export it to a 16-bit wave (don't know why it doesn't tell me to also check the box to convert it to 44.1, but it doesn't), and then change my default settings for a new project to 44.1/16, and then import it, check the settings, and export it AGAIN. I don't get this. Why can't I just export it as a 44.1/16 wav file and be done with it? Am I missing something?

When I talked with tech support today, he actually said that if I just created a new project that was 44.1/16 and dragged and dropped my clips into it from the 48/24 project, it would convert it on the fly. That seems so much easier. Why all the extra steps? Makes absolutely no sense to me.

Maybe doing it that way, by dragging the clips, changes the original data in the audio folder?

I was under the impression that maybe the process is that the bit depth is only changed by exporting to a wave, and that the sample rate is only changed when the wav data is imported into a new file (and then you'd have to export it again to save it), which could make sense I guess. But then why is there an option in 4 to change the sample rate when you export it to file? When I asked tech support about that, he said that wasn't quite correct (though that's what the manual does imply). He said just importing any wav file into a project will automatically convert the wav to the sample rate and bit depth settings of that project. So why not just do that?

I've scoured the web via Google, called support, perused SONAR forums. There are just a lot of seeming inconsistencies in the process. I'm concluding that the only way I'll understand this is by posting it as a question.

So . . .

Thanks in advance. Eager for replies.

TB

TB:

I'm not sure what your target is, so I'll try to help based on some assumptions:

#1 48/24 is a great environment to produce and post-produce in - That's where I hang out with all of my projects.
#2 I don't ever convert them - once I have completed a project - I File - Export with the target settings ( in your case 16, 44.1) with POWR-3 dither on to manage the word length reduction.
#3 I am suspicious of cutting and pasting between project as I am not sure what happens when the bit depth changes per the dither settings ( some folks will have more to say about that - I've never needed to do that in my work flow)
#4 I do also worry about the lack of an anti-aliasing selection when down sampling - if you have another editor (Sound Forge, Audition etc) you can save your sample rate changes for those tools.
#5 Finally - If you really want to convert your raw project from 48/24 to 44.1/16 - I think tech support is mostly correct in that export to target should do that - I'd prefer that so that I could create a second project folder for comparison - When I need to do this type of conversion I have used the batch processor in Sound Forge after saving my project settings and track autiomation etc. as a template

I hope some of my workflow fits to your question....

-D

Ah,h,h. Now that makes sense to me. Perfect sense. The old "obsolete manual" problem. Who'duhguessed.

To clarify (to previous posters and to readers), I was not intending to communicate that I was wanting to convert my project, just the audio. I was using the lingo from the "tips" link earlier in the post, which talks about converting audio from 48/24 to 44.1/16. [BTW, even tho that link is correct, for some strange reason it cannot be accessed directly, but only thru Cakewalk's "search" link. Put the words "Converting Higher Quality Audio" into the search bar to find that post].

Thank you all for replies and input. Very helpful.

So, I guess the answer is that in previous versions of SONAR one would first convert the audio to 16 by exporting it as a 16 bit wav, THEN convert it to 44.1 by importing it to a 44.1/16 project, and after checking the settings, export it again to 16. In SONAR 4, simply export it once to 44.1/16 and you're done.

I would welcome anyone's input if I'm saying that incorrectly, but I think that's it.

THANK YOU all, for your input here.

TB

Steve:
I have been hearing a lot about the 44.1 to 48 resample concens and back again. I have been focusing on tests in my classes to create some material examples of the problems associated with it. There is this great mathematician in the department above me who teaches exatly what we're talking about but uses digital images as her subject. Her and I are collaborating on some audio/image examples of dither algorithms, resampled aliasing etc. If anything interesting shows up I'll let y'all know...

-D