Frequently Asked Questions

Sonidata records in three quality tiers: Pro (WAV 48 kHz / 24-bit) for professional delivery and post-production, High (WAV 44.1 kHz / 16-bit) for general-purpose capture, and Compressed (M4A AAC) for extended sessions where storage is a priority. Pro quality is available with a Pro subscription.

Sonidata fully implements the Universal Category System (UCS v8.2). You assign Category, Subcategory, CatID, FX Name, Creator ID, Source ID, and Location via the Naming View; the app then auto-generates a UCS-compliant filename (e.g., ANMLDog_Bark-Close_GI_MKH8060_Park.wav) and can organize files into a matching folder hierarchy automatically.

Yes. Sonidata exposes Start Recording, Stop Recording, and Toggle Recording actions to the Shortcuts app. You can trigger them from Siri, Back Tap, the Action Button (iPhone 15 Pro+), or any automation flow. The sonidata:// URL scheme is also available for third-party tools.

When a recording is running, a Live Activity appears on your Lock Screen and Dynamic Island showing a live timer, the recording name, and a red dot indicator. It starts automatically when you begin recording and disappears when you stop — no configuration needed.

Presets let you save reusable FX Name templates. Swipe right on the FX Name row to apply a saved template — including a "Last Used" shortcut. Templates support smart placeholders like <Location, State> (auto-filled from GPS) and a Time of Day button that appends the current solar period (Dawn, Morning, Day, Evening, Dusk, Night).

The Metadata Clipboard lets you prepare metadata while a recording is still running. Fill in your fields, tap Copy, then after stopping, open the new file and tap Paste to apply everything in one step. It's ideal for back-to-back field sessions where category and location stay the same.

Yes. When you attach a photo, it's embedded directly into the audio file — as an ID3v2 APIC tag in WAV files and as iTunes metadata in M4A files. This means the artwork travels with the file and is visible in Finder, Soundminer, AirDrop previews, and other tools without needing a separate image.

The CSV headers are aligned with Soundminer V5 field names — including FXName, Designer, Manufacturer, Microphone, CategoryFull, Channels, and more — so you can import directly into Soundminer without manual column remapping.

Absolutely. Use the iOS Share button in any app (Files, Voice Memos, etc.) and select Sonidata. The file is copied to a shared container and automatically moved into your Documents folder the next time you open the app — ready for UCS tagging.

Free users can record in High and Compressed quality, tag files with UCS metadata, use SmartSearch, FX Name Presets, Batch Delete, Siri Shortcuts, and the Live Activity. Pro unlocks WAV 48/24 recording, Voice Slate, Smart Location, Metadata Clipboard, Photo Attachments, Embedded Artwork, Folder Browser, Calendar Filter, Map Viewer, Batch Rename, Visual Date Export, and ZIP Export. Pro is a one-time lifetime purchase — no subscription.

Sonidata Embed is a free desktop companion app for macOS. It takes the ZIP exports from your iOS device and automatically embeds the metadata (BEXT, iXML, CUE markers, and artwork) directly into your original recorder's WAV files so they can be read natively by Soundminer, Pro Tools, and Reaper.