Tonverk samples that aren't 48 kHz
By Jarl, who makes TonVault.
The Tonverk runs at 48 kHz. It will load files at other sample rates, but the manual is clear that they don't play back at their best. Here's what that means, how to find those files on your card, and how to fix them without breaking anything that uses them.
What the manual says
The Tonverk loads WAV and AIFF files at 16, 24 or 32 bits, fixed or floating point, as well as M4A, CAF and FLAC. Its preferred sample rate is 48 kHz. Files at 44.1, 88.2 or 96 kHz load and play, but in the manual's words they "gracefully degrade in quality when played back". Whatever the file, the Tonverk plays it back at 48 kHz at most.
Why so many samples are at 44.1 kHz
44.1 kHz is the CD rate, and plenty of sample packs, older recordings and exports from other gear still use it. There's nothing wrong with those files. They just don't match the device.
Files at 88.2 or 96 kHz usually come from recording setups that run at a high rate. Since the Tonverk plays at 48 kHz at most, the extra rate takes close to twice the space on the card and buys nothing on playback.
How much quality do you lose?
The manual doesn't put a number on it, and I won't either. It depends on the sound. What's certain is that a file converted once, carefully, on a computer is a file the Tonverk doesn't have to compromise on.
Finding them
Finder doesn't show sample rates in a folder listing, so on a full card you'd be checking files one by one. TonVault scans the whole card, shows the rate of every sample in its library, and its health check lists each sample that isn't at 48 kHz.
| Loop 98 Tape.wav | 44.1 kHz |
Converting without breaking anything
TonVault converts copies, never the originals. It writes 48 kHz copies to a folder on your Mac, in the same folder structure as the card, and leaves the card alone.
To use them on the Tonverk, copy the files back into the folders they came from, replacing the old ones. Keep the same names and the same places, because projects and presets find a sample by where it is. A converted file with the same name in the same place is still found.
Copy the files, not the folders. If you drop a whole folder onto the card, Finder replaces the folder there with yours, which removes anything that was only on the card. Hold Option while you drop and Finder merges the two instead.
There's one exception to putting files back. Some multi-sampled instruments keep all their key zones in one long file and play ranges inside it, measured in sample frames. Converting changes the number of frames, so those ranges would point at the wrong part of the audio. TonVault marks those files before it converts anything and tells you not to put them back.
Then check
Scan the card again. The finding should be gone. If a sample went missing on the way, the health check names every preset that now points at nothing.
