Note: this is not an automatic tool - your files will be converted manually using appropriate versions of the software to read and upgrade your old project files.
You: Zip up your project files, without audio files, and use the "Upload Your Projects" form on the left to upload that zip file to me.
Me: I will manually convert them into projects that will open in all recent versions of Logic Pro.
You: login via the link sent to you, pay the conversion fee via PayPal, and download your converted files.
Payment is via PayPal. If you have other requirements, please contact me to discuss.
Logic's file format has changed significantly over the years, and current versions of Logic Pro will only reliably open files from version 7.x onwards. Attempting to open projects from earlier versions will prompt you to first convert the file with an earlier version of Logic. This means at minimum you will need to have a version of Logic Pro 7.2.x and a working XSkey that will authorise the software to run, as well as a Mac running a version of Mac OSX that Logic 7.2.x will run on.
(If you have those available, then you should be able convert your old files yourself, and you do not need this service.)
For many years I have converted many legacy Logic projects as favours for people on various online music and Logic communities, and I still get ongoing requests from people that Google for help and come across those posts, who don't have the ability to open their old files.
As I don't have infinite favours to offer (does anyone?), I'm now offering an easy conversion service for a modest fee to cover my time and effort, as these have to be converted manually on older systems and software versions, usually in a multi-step process.
Having your past work rendered innaccessible due to changing file formats and software versions over the years is inconvenient and annoying - everyone has a right to be able to access their old data, even if they didn't have the opportunity or foresightedness to future proof their work at the time, which is why I like to be able to help where I can. A small effort for one person can mean a lot to them, so I'm happy to help recover and return your material in a form that is useful.
With a reasonable amount of files I will turn them around within two days, but generally much quicker where I can.
Every form upload I consider to be one job, so please zip up all the project files you want converted into one uploaded zip file. Otherwise, you will be billed individually for each job, and won't get the same price discounts on multiple files.
It's important to zip the project files to keep them intact. I won't generally accept unsolicited files via email.
No - please copy off the files you want converted and upload them to me online. I don't maintain equipment to connect, read, recover and restore a range of physical media any longer. If you have drives or media you can't access to get at the files, you might need to contact a specialist in file recovery.
If one or more of your old files are incomplete or corrupted and can't be opened/converted, you won't be charged for those projects (essentially, it reduces the number of uploaded projects and the fee will drop to lower price tiers accordingly). I cannot guarantee to be able to recover or convert damaged files, but I will usually make my best efforts to try to recover data in these cases.
Otherwise, all valid Logic projects you upload I will convert to the target format.
No, these are not required to convert project files. When loading the converted project, Logic will ask you to relink your original audio files as usual.
If Logic doesn't prompt to relink missing audio files when loading the project, go to Window -> Open Project Audio, and you'll see the audio file references displayed with an orange "!" icon, indicating Logic doesn't know where the audio file is. If you double-click this, Logic will prompt you to locate where this audio file is, and will then relink it.
If you also have problems with audio files related to your projects - for example, they are in old, non-compatible formats, are corrupted or have lost their meta data and won't otherwise correctly be loaded from your projects, I'm happy to help fix or convert these where possible so they will also work with your current projects as an extra service. Please contact me to discuss.
You'll be able to download a zipfile containing your original projects, and for each of those source projects, you'll get an ".lso" Logic Pro 7.x intermediate project (which can be loaded into Logic 7/8/9.x/10.x/11.x), and a ".logicx" project for Logic Pro 10/11 in the requested format.
If you are runnning a very early version of Logic Pro, eg 10.0 - 10.2, this *might* not be able to load the .logicx project - in this case, choose the 10.4.x option, or just load the LP7 intermediate project instead, which should load without problems.
When you log into the site to check your files, you will see a list of all projects with their conversion status. All converted projects have a full screenshot showing your project open in Logic Pro X, which lets you visually check the project contains the data you'd expect to see - here's an example of what this looks like:
Once you've paid for and downloaded your files, I will keep them for another two weeks just in case any unexpected issues come up, or you need to re-download them. After that all the project files will be deleted. Don't expect me to be a backup for your old projects!
NEW - Downconverting is now an option you can select when submitting your files, so you can ask for eg a current 10.8.x Logic project to be downconverted so it will open in Logic Pro 10.5.x, for example.
No - this service is for converting legacy Logic projects (or older Notator/Creator files) into current Logic projects only. (Generic MIDIfiles are an optional target format, if you want to load the MIDI data into a different DAW.)
Please also don't just upload random files expecting me to convert them to some other files for you. I can't convert your mp3's into full Logic projects, or convert arbitrary song files from a Korg keyboard into midifiles. If you have specific conversion requirements outside the scope of this service, please contact me first before submitting a job and ask whether it's something I can do. Uploading jobs of random files just wastes everybody's time - thanks.
If you have Logic-related needs outside the scope of this conversion service, or have any other questions not covered here, feel free to drop me an email at info@difficultaudio.com to discuss.
Supported files that can be converted for modern/current versions of Apple's Logic Pro DAW:
Note: Projects from Logic Pro 7.x, 8.x, 9.x, and 10.x/11.x (Logic Pro X, Logic Pro) can all be opened directly in current versions of Logic Pro, and do not need any conversion.
Here are some miscellaneous comments from people I've rescued Logic projects for over the years:
If you have any queries or concerns, drop me a mail and I'll do my best to help!