WAV Audio File Size Calculator
- Raseca Jallorina
- Dec 17, 2025
- 1 min read
With my recent involvement in large scale live recordings of orchestras, I have learned quickly how important preparations are. Apart from choosing the right mics or knowing the stage blocking of musicians, there is always one question I ask myself before any recording gig:
How much storage space do I need for this this multitrack recording?
One of the most overlooked aspects of preparing for a recording gig is ensuring that you have enough space to record your files in. Most live orchestral recordings I've been involved in can have upwards of 10 channels with a duration of 2 hours!
Use this simple and straightforward audio file size calculator if you'd like to get an estimate on the file size of your project.
Simply choose the sample rate and bit depth your session is using and then type in the number of tracks (channels) and the duration of your recording. I'm not a programmer so I asked the help of Google Gemini to create this calculator. Joyce tweaked this to look more like a plug-in. 😁
Try the calculator below!
Example
As an example, I recently was involved in an orchestral recording of the Sydney Youth Orchestras at White Bay Power Station. We used 32 channels of audio and recorded at 48kHz, 24-bit. I would normally compute this manually using the formula:
The concert went on for a total duration of 1 hour and 50 mins so the file size is 28.32 GB! Notice how you don't have to fumble around and convert the time 🥳
