Downloading and Unzipping Large Files

We've prepared your media files and want to make sure you can get them without any hassle. Since these are uncompressed audio files they will be several gigabytes in size. We'll walk you through everything step by step.

Unzipping the file

Playing your files

What to Expect

Let's talk about file size. Your files will be between 1GB to 5GB - to put that in perspective, 1GB is about what you'd fit on an old CD-ROM, and 5GB is roughly what fits on a DVD. These typically take about 10-30 minutes to download with a decent internet connection.

If you've got files larger than 5GB you might consider having us deliver the files a USB drive along with your media.

Before You Start: Important Tips

1. Use Your Computer, Not Your Phone

Yyou'll need to use a computer because:

• These files come in a zip package that phones cannot play
• You'll need proper audio software to play multitrack recordings
• They will use way too much space on your phone, hundreds of photos' worth.
• Phone files are not a permanent storage space. It is not always easy to get files transferred from phones to computers and most users never even do this with their photos.

2. Check Your Available Space

Here's what you'll need adequate disk sapce for:

• Space for the zip file itself, measured in gigabytes (GB) or megabytes (MB).
• The that same amount of space again for when you unzip it. Compression of zip files does not reduce the size much but it does place all of the files into a single downloaded file.
• An extra 5GB so your computer can run smoothly.

Here's how to check your available space:

On Windows:

1. Click the Windows icon

2. Look for "Local Disk (C:)" under "This PC"

On Mac:

1. Open Finder (Command-N)

2. Look at the bottom of the window. If you do not see that, go to the View menu and then go to Show Status Bar and the disk space will appear at the bottom the window. If you have an external drive navigate to it see its drive available space.

3. Need More Space?

If you're running low on space, here's what you can do:

1. Buy an external USB flash drive or external SSD
2. Try emptying your Trash (Mac) or Recycle Bin (Windows)
3. Still need more? Try these handy tools that can help you identify large files you might not need anymore. Both apps let you hover over the squares or rectangles which allows you to see the name of the file and the size, and a right-click menu should allow you to open the directory in the Finder/Windows Explorer or delete them.
   • For Windows users: WinDirStat is a free tool that scans your drive and shows you a color-coded map of all your files. The bigger the rectangle, the more space it's taking up. Just hover over these blocks to see what files they represent. It's a great way to spot those huge forgotten files eating up your space.
   • For Mac users: GrandPerspective does the same thing - it creates a visual map of your files where bigger rectangles mean bigger files. Super helpful for finding those space-hogging files you might have forgotten about.

Quick tip: When using these tools, only delete files you're sure about. If you're not certain what something is, better to leave it alone.

About That "File Preview" Message

When you're downloading from Google Drive or Starchive, you might see a message about "generating preview" - don't worry about waiting for that. It's trying to preview audio files in a zip, which isn't possible. Just go ahead and click the download button to get started.

Downloading Your Files

Set Up Your Browser So you can Specify the Download Location

One last thing before you download - let's make sure your can set your browser to ask you what directory and drive you want to download these these big files:

Chrome Settings

1. Click the three dots → Settings

2. Select Downloads

3. Enable "Ask where to save each file before downloading"

4. Once you click the download link it will prompt you so select the directory and drive so save the files.

5. For Chrome before version 115 you will see a download progress bar at the bottom of the browser window. After version 115 you will see a monetary notification in the upper right under the down arrow button which is the Download icon. You can click that and see the progress in a dropdown menu. If you click on the folder icon it will take you the the location on your desktop where you have downloaded it.

Safari Settings

1. Safari menu → Preferences

2. Under General, set Download Location to "Ask for each download"

3. Once you click the download link it will prompt you so select the directory and drive so save the files.

Firefox Settings

1. Click menu (three lines) → Settings

2. Search for "download"

3. Enable "Always ask you where to save files"

4. Once you click the download link it will prompt you so select the directory and drive so save the files.

Edge Settings

1. Click Settings gear → Downloads

2. Enable "Ask me what to do with each download"

3. Once you click the download link it will prompt you so select the directory and drive so save the files.

Unzipping Your Files

Unzipping on Mac

Unzipping on Windows

If you are using Windows you can either right click the zip file and select Unzip or open the zip file and drag the files out and into a new folder.

Common Issues & Solutions

Download Problems

Download Keeps Failing or Starting Over

This usually happens when:

• Your WiFi connection is unstable - try using a wired connection if possible
• Your browser is running low on memory - try closing other tabs and restarting your browser
• Your antivirus is being overzealous - temporarily pause it during the download

Pro tip: Chrome and Firefox can usually resume interrupted downloads. If you see a "Resume" button, use it instead of starting over.

Download is Extremely Slow

If your download is taking much longer than 30 minutes:

• Check if other devices on your network are using a lot of bandwidth
• Try downloading during off-peak hours (early morning or late evening)
• Test your internet speed at speedtest.net - you'll want at least 10Mbps for smooth downloading
• If you will have an engineer that will do the mix just forward them the email with the link and they can download it.

Browser Says "File May Be Harmful"

This is a standard warning for large zip files. It's safe to proceed with the download if you got the link directly from us. Here's how to proceed in different browsers:

• Chrome: Click the ⋮ menu next to the download and select "Keep"
• Edge: Click "More options" and then "Keep anyway"
• Firefox: Click "Save File" when prompted

Common Error Messages Explained

"Not enough disk space to extract files"

This means you need to clear more space before unzipping. Remember: you need space for both the zip file AND the unzipped files. If your zip is 3GB, make sure you have at least 6GB free. Go back up to the section about disk space.

"The archive is corrupted" or "Unexpected end of archive"

This usually means the download didn't complete properly. Try:

1. Try downloading the file again
2. Using a different browser
3. If you're on a Mac, using The Unarchiver instead of the built-in utility to unzip the files as we discussed above
4. Understand that Google Drive and Strachive have very low downtime, so they are most likely not the problem.

About Your Audio Files

Inside your zip file, you'll find:

• WAV files (if we sent you uncompressed audio) - These are full-quality, uncompressed files that give you the best possible sound. They're large but what is necessary for editing and mixing in a DAW. WAV files from a multitrack tape are in mono.
• MP3 files (if we sent you any stereo/2 track files) - These are smaller files that still sound great for listening but aren't ideal for further editing.
• Multitrack tape transfers must be played in a DAW for them to make any sense to you. A DAW will play all of the files back at the same time. The default audio player on most computers will just play one file at a time. You will only hear one instrument.

Playing your files

If you have a stereo wav file, which would come from a 1/4 inch 2 track, cassette, DAT, MiniDisc, 8-track cart, or record you can use Audacity, VLC, Media Player or Apple Music to play the file.

If it is a multitrack file you can use Audacity, Reaper or GarageBand. If you needed to know how to play a multitrack file then you should also know that your song will need to be mixed. The levels are not going to be right because the will all be set to 0db. You should have someone in mind to mix ot or contact us about our mixing service. Using Audacity, Reaper or GarageBand you can drag all 8, 16 or 14 tracks into the program's window, and it make take several minutes to load all files and display their waveforms. This is a good way to know what songs you have, how they sound, help you identify the songs, and decide which ones you would like to have professionally mixed.