Whitelabel.net Frequently Asked Questions

General Questions

Why do Whitelabel.net tracks only play as low quality 32kbps audio?

The Whitelabel.net audio files (wl.mp3 files), play as high quality 320kbps audio in Serato Scratch Live with Rane hardware attached or in Serato ITCH with an ITCH controller attached. In the Scratch Live and ITCH Preview Player and all other mp3 playing programs the files will play as low quality 32kbps audio.

If you are playing a wl.mp3 file in Scratch Live with Rane hardware attached, or in Serato ITCH with an ITCH controller attached and it is playing as low quality 32kbps audio, then you may have an old software version.  Whitelabel file playback requires at least Scratch Live 1.7.4 or ITCH 1.1. Software updates can be downloaded from www.serato.com/downloads.

If you are playing a wl.mp3 file in Scratch Live 1.7.4 or higher with Rane hardware attached, or in Serato ITCH 1.1 or higher with an ITCH controller attached and it is playing as low quality 32kbps audio, then the file may have been damaged by another mp3 editing program. If the high quality audio in your wl.mp3 has been damaged then you will need to download the affected track again.

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The Whitelabel.net website isn't working properly for me. Are there any special things I need?

Whitelabel.net is tested to work on these browsers:

You will also need Flash installed and have Javascript enabled to be able to preview and download tracks. For most people Flash will already be installed and Javascript enabled by default.

If the website is not working properly for you, check whether you are using one of the supported browser versions and ensure that you have Flash installed and Javascript enabled in your browser's settings.

If you continue to have problems then please file a help request.

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Why are my Whitelabel files being saved with a .mpeg extension? They won't play!

This is usually caused by a Windows registry key being changed. It is likely you have installed a program recently and the installer for that application has changed this key from .mp3 to .mpeg for what ever reason.

To fix the issue, download the following zip file, extract it and run the key file: serato.com

You will get 3 or so prompts before the key is applied. The change should be honored instantly. If not, try rebooting and giving it another go.

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Why can't I download certain releases?

A lot of the promo music on Whitelabel.net is available to all DJs, however some releases are not available to everyone.

Some releases are only delivered to a particular territory for legal reasons.  Some record labels want to send worldwide but simply can't because they don't have worldwide clearance.

Other releases are only delivered to DJs who are interested in particular genres.  Let us know what genres you play by updating your profile.

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Can I play wl.mp3 files in software other than Serato Scratch Live or ITCH?

Yes, but you'll only hear the low quality preview version.

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What is Whitelabel.net?

The Serato Whitelabel Delivery Network, or Whitelabel.net for short, is a digital delivery service for promotional releases of new music.

Whitelabel.net uses a custom file format: Whitelabel MP3s (file extension .wl.mp3). These files will play as a low quality preview in any MP3 player, and a high quality version within Serato Scratch Live and ITCH DJ software. The Whitelabel.net format files are specially prepared for use in Serato Scratch Live and ITCH - they have had their overviews built, they are tagged with song and artist info, BPM, and album art where possible. Audio quality is equivalent to a 320kbps MP3 when played in Scratch Live and ITCH DJ software.

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What does 'This Release is watermarked' mean?

Some releases on Whitelabel.net use watermarking technology to embed a log ID into the audio data of tracks that you download.

The log ID is transparently interspersed into the high quality audio portion of .wl.mp3 files and has no audible influence on the sound quality of the files.

The log ID can be extracted from the audio data and can be used to tell us who downloaded the track. This provides us with a mechanism to determine if someone has leaked a Track onto file sharing networks or is using some other means to distribute the track in a way that violates the Whitelabel.net User Agreement.

Every download of a watermarked track contains a unique log ID. The log ID is simply a number - it contains no personally identifying information. If a 3rd party were able to extract the watermarked log ID from a Whitelabel.net track it would simply reveal a number and is, in itself, meaningless without access to Whitelabel.net download logs.

Only Serato and record labels who release watermarked tracks have the ability to determine who downloaded a track via the watermarking technology and Whitelabel.net download logs.

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Known Issues/Workarounds

Whitelabel.net files may no longer work after being scanned by Mixed In Key or Platinum Notes

Running Whitelabel.net files through older versions of Mixed In Key or Platinum Notes can cause the files to only play at 32kps in Scratch Live or ITCH (even with hardware devices attached).

If you wish to use Mixed In Key or Platinum Notes with Whitelabel.net audio files it is recommended to upgrade to Mixed In Key 4.0 for Windows, Mixed In Key 4.1 for Mac OSX or Platinum Notes 3.0 (Windows or Mac OSX).

There may still be some incompatibilities with older Whitelabel.net audio files when using Mixed In Key or Platinum Notes. Files downloaded from Whitelabel.net prior to mid-March 2010 should, where ever possible, be downloaded again to ensure maximum compatibility with Mixed In Key and Platinum Notes.

But, as some Releases are no longer available for download, it is recommended that you create back ups of your Whitelabel.net audio files before using Mixed In Key, Platinum Notes or any 3rd party software that re-writes MP3 ID3 tags.

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Editing the tags of a wl.mp3 track in some editors may destroy the high quality audio

Some ID3 tag editors will alter ID3 tags other than the ones you ask them to. This can destroy the high quality portion of the wl.mp3 file. If this happens you will have to download the affected track again.

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I'm using Scratch Live 1.9.0. Why can't I unlock locked Whitelabel files (.wl.mp3)?

There is a bug in Scratch Live 1.9.0 (build number 19035) that effects your ability to unlock locked Whitelabel.net mp3 files (files with the ".wl.mp3" file extension).

When Scratch Live first detects the presence of a locked ".wl.mp3" file you are presented with an email and password box along with an "Unlock" button. Entering your email address and password then clicking the "Unlock" should unlock the locked file.

The bug:
After entering your email address and password clicking the "Unlock" button has no effect

The workaround:
Enter your email address and password but, rather than clicking the "Unlock" button, make sure the cursor is placed in the password field and click the 'Enter/Return' key.

This bug has been fixed in Scratch Live 1.9.1. Scratch Live 1.9.1 is a free upgrade for all Scratch Live users and is available here and here.

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Why does copying, moving or deleting .wl.mp3 files take so long on Windows 7?

Some users have experience poor performance when copying, moving or deleting .wl.mp3 files on Windows 7. This would appear to be a bug within Windows 7 which Serato is endeavoring to work through with Microsoft.

In the meantime, system performance can be improved to some extent by switching to a non-column view in Windows Explorer such as an Icon view or Tiles view. Alternatively, if Details view must be used, performance is improved by removing columns from the view that display music related meta data such artist, track name, track duration etc.

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