Do I need to dither when exporting?
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Also searched as: what is dither; when to use dither; dither for streaming
AI starter answer — please verify with real-world experience. Awaiting trusted contributor review.
Dithering is a process of adding low-level randomized noise to mask 'quantization distortion' that occurs when audio bit depth is reduced. You should use it every time you export a high-resolution project to a lower bit depth (usually 16-bit), but avoid it if the bit depth remains unchanged or if you are sending a pre-master to a mastering engineer.
- 1.Apply dither only when you are reducing the bit depth, such as rendering a 32-bit float or 24-bit session down to a 16-bit WAV file.
- 2.Disable dither if you are exporting at the same bit depth as your project (e.g., 24-bit project to 24-bit file) to avoid adding unnecessary noise.
- 3.Ensure dither is the absolute last step in your signal chain; do not place any processors, faders, or gain adjustments after the dither plugin.
- 4.Check your limiter settings, as many modern limiters (like FabFilter Pro-L2 or Ozone) have built-in dither that must be manually toggled on or off.
- ×Never dither more than once; multiple passes of dither will raise the noise floor to audible levels.
- ×Do not dither when exporting files for a mastering engineer, as they need the cleanest possible signal to perform their work.
- ×Avoid dithering when exporting 32-bit float files, as the noise floor is already mathematically negligible.
Modern streaming codecs (like OGG or AAC) are less sensitive to quantization noise than older formats, but dithering remains a 'best practice' because you can never be sure where your file will be played next. Always leave it as the very last process in your master chain.
Based on AI training data — may not reflect current information.
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