What is a .song file (and how to open one)
Updated October 2026
Work in another DAW? Convert the .song to a native project
Upload the .song (or the zipped song folder with its Media) and download a native Logic, Ableton, FL Studio, Pro Tools or REAPER project — tracks, MIDI, audio and the mix rebuilt natively. Free to start — see current plans. Your project uploads over an encrypted connection into a private space only you control — delete it anytime.
Open the converter →A .song file is a Studio One project — the file Studio One saves. PreSonus made Studio One and Fender renamed it Fender Studio Pro in version 8; it still calls a project a song, hence the extension.
It doesn’t contain your audio. Studio One keeps a song in a song folder, with the recordings in Media/ and automatic backups in History/ beside the .song. The whole folder is the portable project; a bare .song arrives without its sound.
What’s actually inside a .song file
Unusually, a .song is a zip archive of XML documents: the arrangement with its tempo and time-signature maps and every track’s events (Song/song.xml), the clip pool, the mixer console with its inserts and sends (Devices/audiomixer.xml), every plug-in’s saved state as a preset file, automation envelopes, and the notes of each instrument part. That layout has held from Studio One 3 through Fender Studio Pro 8 — which is what lets tools outside Studio One read it.
How to open a .song file
The straightforward answer: Studio One opens .song files — Fender Studio Pro from version 8 — on macOS or Windows. Double-click the file, or open it from Studio One’s start page. Keep the .song in its song folder so the audio resolves.
How to open a .song without Studio One
No other DAW opens a .song natively — not Logic, not Ableton, not FL Studio, not Pro Tools. But you can convert it to your DAW’s own format: Doseedo converts a .song into a native Logic .logicx, Ableton .als, FL Studio .flp, Pro Tools session, or REAPER .rpp — a real, editable project, not a folder of stems. Tracks arrive with their names, volume, pan and mute, audio events with their files, MIDI notes, the full tempo and time-signature maps and markers; going to Logic, Ableton or Pro Tools, sends arrive too, and third-party plug-ins come across with their saved state where they’re installed. The honest limits: Studio One’s own built-in effects and instruments arrive by name only (Pro EQ becomes Ableton’s EQ Eight with its settings), automation isn’t promised yet, and REAPER takes no plug-in state. Studio One 6.5 and later can also export a .dawproject — Bitwig Studio and Cubase 14+ import that directly, but Logic, Ableton, FL Studio and Pro Tools don’t.
The same conversion runs on your own machine too. Dø Desktop for macOS and Windows 10/11 reads the .song on your drive and writes a native Logic Pro, Ableton Live, FL Studio, Pro Tools or REAPER project next to it — nothing uploads, there is no size ceiling and no monthly count. $39.99 once, not a subscription.
Can you convert a .song to MP3?
Not with a file converter — the file contains no audio, only the song that arranges it. To get an MP3 you export: open the song in Studio One and use Song → Export Mixdown, or ask whoever sent it for a bounce or stems. A project converter like Doseedo changes the project format (Studio One → Logic, Ableton, FL Studio, Pro Tools or REAPER), not the audio format.
.song vs song folder vs .dawproject — quick glossary
.song— Studio One project. The zip of XML this guide is about: arrangement, mixer, plug-in states and notes.- Song folder — the
.songwith itsMedia/(the audio) andHistory/(backups). The complete, portable project. .dawproject— DAWproject export. The open interchange file Studio One 6.5+ exports and imports; going the other way, it is what Doseedo writes when you convert a project into Studio One.
Work in another DAW? Convert the .song to a native project
Upload the .song (or the zipped song folder with its Media) and download a native Logic, Ableton, FL Studio, Pro Tools or REAPER project — tracks, MIDI, audio and the mix rebuilt natively. Free to start — see current plans. Your project uploads over an encrypted connection into a private space only you control — delete it anytime.
Studio One to Logic converter →FAQ
Can I open a .song file without Studio One?
Not in another DAW directly — no other DAW reads Studio One’s format. You convert instead: Doseedo rebuilds the .song as a native Logic Pro, Ableton Live, FL Studio, Pro Tools or REAPER project you can actually edit, with the tracks, MIDI, audio, tempo map, markers and mixer in place.
Can Logic, Ableton, FL Studio or Pro Tools open a .song file?
Not natively. Studio One can export a .dawproject, but none of those four reads DAWproject either. Converting the song rebuilds it in the DAW’s own format; third-party plug-ins come across with their saved state where they’re installed, and Studio One’s own devices arrive by name.
Why does my .song open with missing audio?
Because a .song holds no audio — the recordings live in the Media folder of the song folder. Ask for the whole song folder (or a zip of it), which is also what you upload to convert it with the audio included.
Is a Fender Studio Pro .song the same format?
Yes. Fender Studio Pro 8 is Studio One renamed, and it saves the same .song format; songs from Studio One 3 through Studio Pro 8 convert the same way.
Can I convert a .song to MP3?
Not with a file converter — open it in Studio One and use Song → Export Mixdown, or ask whoever made it for a bounce. Project converters change the project format, not the audio format.