Ashampoo Music Studio is a module-based audio program with ten tasks: ripping CDs, burning discs, converting formats, editing audio, recording, editing tags, organizing collections, designing covers, building playlists and assembling mix tapes. Each module begins with a sequence of steps and not a free-form workspace.
Ripping and burning
The rip module prompts for the drive and then the tracks; a pencil icon lets you edit each track’s metadata on the fly, while a “Change” button lets you set a cover image for each track from disk or an online search. The track name and artwork are retrieved from an online database before being saved. A “Quick Ripping” mode does not display the format, quality, target folder and naming scheme dialogs, but instead uses the same settings as the previous rip. After three options: format, files, burner, the burn module creates audio CDs and MP3 or WMA data discs.
Editing
The music editor works on up to three tracks at once. Cut and moved segments get a live preview of their landing position, and Ashampoo Music Studio suggests an alternative position when the chosen one is invalid. Separate sliders control tempo only, pitch only, or both tempo and pitch. A loop button keeps playback contained within a dragged section until the user clicks the X to get out of the loop. The split tool will split long recordings at pauses: it will insert a cut every 30 seconds by default, and a “Tolerance” toggle switches to pause detection with a sensitivity slider. Volume work includes normalization and muting entire sections.
Conversion, tags and organizing
Conversion supports MP3, WAV, WMA, FLAC, OGG and OPUS, but not AIFF. Presets for devices select format automatically, and quality presets set sampling rate and bitrate, with a mono/stereo switch. File naming is based on placeholders in the form of % variables, there are three predefined schemes and one field for editing. The tag editor supports 18 types of tags and allows for multiple images per track. The Organize module will rename and move entire folders following such schemes, and by default it will overwrite any file with the same name, which the manual itself warns about.
Recording
The recording includes microphones, line-in and a virtual device “What you hear” and the user selects the program from the list of programs that are currently running in the computer, including programs that were launched after Ashampoo Music Studio was already running. The recorder continues to run even if a microphone battery runs out or a cable is disconnected, since it constantly monitors all available audio devices.
Create mix tapes, playlists, covers
Mix Tape can combine any number of songs into one file, crossfading them for a length of time you can set, and a DJ version slows or speeds each song to the average speed of the set. Playlists can be exported to M3U, PLS, WPL and XSPF. The cover designer prints covers and inlays from templates, with a mosaic function that auto-lays-out track images.
Limits
When audio is extracted using the Video-2-Music module, it will open in a reduced editor with only three processing functions exposed on the single track. Ashampoo Music Studio does not support multiple inputs simultaneously, cannot apply effects during live recording, and does not support editing of MIDI files. The editor has a 3-track ceiling, which means that multitrack projects are not supported. In addition to the installation time, Ashampoo Music Studio periodically checks the license via the Internet.
