Loading audio files

LTCast streams audio from disk and generates timecode from the playhead position. If the audio file contains an embedded LTC track, LTCast reads the timecode directly from that signal rather than generating it from scratch.

Two ways to load a file

• Drag and drop — drag an audio file from your file manager onto the LTCast window; drop it onto the waveform area or anywhere in the main panel
• File picker — click the waveform area when it is empty to open a system file picker; select your file and confirm

Supported formats: .wav, .aiff, .mp3, .flac, .ogg, .m4a.

What happens after loading

Once a file is loaded, LTCast:

• Draws the music waveform in the waveform view
• Scans both audio channels for an embedded LTC signal
• If LTC is found, draws the LTC channel waveform below the music waveform and updates the timecode display to the detected start address
• Shows the detected frame rate next to the timecode display

If no LTC is found in the file, LTCast generates timecode from position zero. You can set a custom start address using the Global Offset field.

LTC channel auto-detection

LTCast scans both the left and right channels of the audio file and selects the channel with the strongest LTC signal. The detected channel is shown in the LTC Channel selector above the waveform.

• Auto — LTCast picks the best channel automatically (default)
• Left — force LTC decode from the left channel
• Right — force LTC decode from the right channel

Override the channel manually if the auto-detection picks the wrong one, or if your file has LTC on a specific channel by convention.

Frame rate auto-detection

LTCast reads the embedded LTC signal and identifies the frame rate: 24, 25, 29.97 Drop-Frame, or 30 fps. The detected rate appears next to the timecode display.

If the auto-detection picks an incorrect rate — for example, if the file has a low signal level that makes detection ambiguous — use the Force FPS selector to override it. LTCast will decode the LTC using the forced rate regardless of what it detects from the signal.

File size and streaming

LTCast streams audio directly from disk and does not load the entire file into memory. There is no practical file size limit beyond available storage space. Files on network drives (NAS, SMB shares) are also supported, though local storage is recommended for shows to avoid network latency.

Video files

Video files (.mp4, .mov, etc.) are not loaded through the audio file path. Use Import Video in the song settings to attach a video reference file. See the Video Reference section for details.