XO Wave: Using LAME to Encode MP3s from XO Wave (Technical Note)

Important Notice: Although XO Wave will continue to be available for some time, it will be discontinued as we prepare to bring you the next generation Digital Audio Workstation. The new software we are developing is called Xonami and it will have many, but not all, of the features of XO Wave. A discount upgrade path will be available for users who purchased XO Wave September 1^st, 2010.

We realize that there are few professional CD mastering options with the full range of capabilities offered by XO Wave, so we will continue to offer the package as long as possible. However, please keep in mind that as discontinued software:

This site may not contain up-to-date information.
Technical Support will be discontinued on November 30th.

For up-to-date information about our upcoming software, please join our mailing list.

This technical note briefly describes how the LAME MP3 encoder can be used with XO Wave on Mac OS X to encode MP3 files from XO Wave. The LAME MP3 encoder is a high-quality, open source MP3 encoder. Note that the MP3 format is protected by international patent laws, and therefore, you need a license to use these libraries on your computer. Neither XO Wave nor LAME supplies such a license. QuickTime does not include an MP3 encoder -- Apple provides one in iTunes, but it is not available to other applications, and LAME is widely regarded as higher quality than Apple's MP3 encoder across all bit rates.

LAME Framework: First, download and install the LAME Framework from VersionTracker. Follow the README's instructions to install.

LAME Component: Next, download and install the LAME QuickTime MP3 Encoder Component from VersionTracker. Follow the README's instructions to install.

Using LAME in XO Wave: Once the LAME framework and component are installed, you can export MP3 files from XO Wave with File:Export:Export to Any QuickTime Type.... In the resulting wizard, select LAME MP3. The next two steps specify export settings.

ID3 Codes: Unfortunately, when exporting the session as an MP3 file, session metadata is not converted into ID3 tags. We are working on the problem and hope to resolve it in a future release.