it appears when i edit a wav in audition in such a way that i need to make a mixdown of a multisession (remix, shorter version of longer song, etc.) that when i export the file that audition normalizes the track as it exports ... is there anyway to prevent that from happening? i would rather use replaygain instead of allowing audition to remaster my creation. thanks for any info.

What option are you using for mixdown? I've never had such problem. I'm usually using "Output" for source.

"Mixdown" refer to something done in multi-track mode. Multiple tracks, each in its own file, are mixed into a single stereo file. What happens to the amplitude was covered in Algebra II: the amplitude of the mixdown is the sum of the input amplitudes. There is no normalization or amplification of any sort taking place.

There is nothing in CoolEdit about "exporting" so I don't quite know what options Audition may have. CoolEdit and Audition will bboth save the wav file in many different formats, which might be called exporting. If that is the process involved in your work, I don't think any normalization or amplification can happen here either. Perhaps if you lay out your process in more detail we might see a clue.