Avid Behaving Badly #26: Avid 2023.3.1 can't transcode monophonic .mp3 audio

 This is is shockingly asinine.

So, you may remember from my post mere seconds ago that Avid can no longer import, well, anything. But you can link and transcode media, which is allegedly faster. And if the media you happen to be transcoding has stereo audio, you're in luck!

But god fucking forbid you just want to transcode a single track of mono audio because Avid will fail and both the elapsed time and estimated time tick up in synchronicity FOREVER.

And if you don't transcode to native media, even though the files are just AIFF-C or WAV files, avid fucking lags out constantly as it loses and re-establishes the links to them.

So WHY does this not work? Well, it has to do with newer versions of MacOS (okay, they're several years old now) not actually supporting QuickTime anymore. And .mp3 files use quicktime audio. Apparently the geniuses at Avid figured out how to use their Universal Media Engine to handle stereo .mp3 files just fine, but those literally half as complicated mono files were just. too. much.

Someone fetch me my clutching pearls and that tiny violin I keep by the door! No no, the smaller one!

Fuck off, Avid, you lazy fucks.

Here's the solution: Open the .mp3 audio files in - of all things - Quicktime Player (which kept the name for branding purposes but doesn't actually use quicktime at all now) and export each and every one of those motherfuckers as a brand spaking new .m4a.

The .m4a files will link and transcode in Avid just fine.

SO. STUPID.

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