Do you have questions about Audacity?
When aspiring voice talent enter the business, they usually start with Audacity. Audacity is a free, open source software platform for recording and editing sounds. It is available for Mac OS X, Microsoft Windows, GNU/Linux, and other operating systems. Audacity, created by Dominic Mazzoni, is easily accessible for download online.
In this article
Audacity is a free, easy-to-use audio editor and recorder for Windows, Mac OS X, GNU/Linux, and other operating systems. You can use Audacity to:
- Record live audio.
- Convert tapes and records into digital recordings or CDs.
- Edit Ogg Vorbis, MP3, and WAV sound files.
- Cut, copy, splice, and mix sounds together.
- Change the speed or pitch of a recording.
Learn more about the Audacity program and download it here.
If you have questions or comments for the Audacity developers, you can reach them by email for a helping hand with their product.
Or, you can check the Audacity Frequently Asked Questions, available 24/7 online.
Audacity has grown in popularity, indeed so much that we have a solution regarding the software in our FAQ database and also provide support for Audacity questions.
Our in-house Audacity specialist, is inviting you to comment on this blog post, including questions about getting started with Audacity, editing, you name it! If you have a question about Audacity, please leave a comment on this blog post and we’ll answer your question, multimedia style.
Comments
Well, since you asked…..I am having problems running Audacity on my MacBook, which is an Intel machine. Audacity wasn’t that stable on my old OS9 Mac, but it’s even less so on the new box. I have posted queries in various forums, but no one seems to be able to offer advice. Can you? Thanks in advance.
Even though I own (and use) my Protools Suite, whenever I have auditions popping up on InteractiveVoices, I break out Audacity to get the job done fast and easy. It doesn’t need to create a project folder, or store a lot of files on your computer – in fact I usually just keep it in memory until I’m done recording and export as an MP3, which I upload directly to InteractiveVoices. Fast, easy, and free!
I love Audacity! So easy to work with and I’ve been told I can get better results use the pitch change than with a fancy mixer like Eventide. So many export options,too. It’s really the only software I use.
‘Love the Audacity interface, but usually one or two edits into the process of cleaning-up my audio track, I lose the ability to delete anamolies. I drag the cursor to hilite, but the delete key no longer works in cutting unwanted clicks and pops. Wassup with that?
Dave C.
I’d like to take this time to thank Mr. Mazzoni for creating the Audacity Software, along with anyone else who helped him. For the record, I did try to download it once and it was offline. However, I too, (like Andrew just commented above) have great software, (Final Cut Pro–but it’s at my work office). I would like to try again, and if someone could please tell me what all is needed just to do “quick” auditions from home, I would really appreciate it. I have a PC w/Mcsf 2000, and a sound card, but what comes next? Where are the best mics?
Sorry – the fastest solution to instant auditions is Adobe Audition (formally Cool Edit). It’s the most intuitive audio software in the marketplace.
I too like Audacity and it’s interface. Very simple and easy to use. I don’t have as much experience with it as some here, but I have used it and it works very nicely. My main squeeze is Sound Forge.
In relation to Sherri’s comment above, I picked up an Apex 435 Studio Condenser mic for $100 (cdn) and found it to give incredible clarity and warmth during auditions. It truly is a cut above the rest for the minimal cost. I use other more expensive mics as well, but find myself using the Apex more often. And yes, I agree with Kevan’s comment…Adobe Audition is excellent software to use for recording/editing/sfx. I use it or Cool Edit Pro 2.1 (now Audition) and the results speak for themselves. Hope this helps.
Cheers!
Blair Wilson
In Audacity, can I ‘punch on the fly’? That is, can I go into record mode while playing an audio file midway?
For Harish,
From the fabulous Help facility in Audition 2 comes the following:
**To punch into a selected range in Multitrack View
If you’re dissatisfied with a time range of a recorded clip, you can select that range and punch in a new recording, leaving the original clip intact. Though you can record into a specific range without punching in, punching in lets you hear audio immediately before and after a range; that audio provides vital context for creating natural musical transitions.
For particularly important or difficult sections, you can punch in multiple takes, and then select or edit takes to create the best performance. Adobe Audition saves two seconds of audio on either side of a punch-in range, so you can seamlessly edit and crossfade takes. (See To display, remove, or play hidden clips.)
Note: You can’t punch into a loop-enabled clip. For information about disabling loops, see To override original loop properties.
In the Main panel, drag the Time Selection tool in the appropriate track to select a time range for the clip.
Make sure that the correct track input is selected. (See To assign inputs and outputs to audio tracks.)
Choose Clip > Punch In.
Position the start-time indicator a few seconds before the selected range.
The Arm For Record button for the track is now activated in the Main panel.
In the Transport panel, do one of the following:
To punch in a single take, click the Record button .
To punch in multiple takes, right-click the Record button, choose a Loop While Recording option, and then click the Loop While Recording button.**
While it is an expensive option, the DVD instructional & Loopology (5000 !!) + the forum, RSS feed for info from Adobe, amongst the best Help of ANY app I’ve seen (thanks to the original Cool Edit guys) and etc are so much added value to such a good and useful toy, I cannot praise it highly enough.
M
Anybody figured out how to use Audacity with a Mbox (as alternative to ProTools). MAC or Windows? Everything I read seems to indicate this doesn’t work.
Is there a way of marking places to edit on Audacity?
I’m a musician. I’m also blind. I’d love to get Audacity, but it would have to work with Jaws. Does anybody know if there are Jaws scripts for this program? If not, how accessible is Audacity for the visually impaired.
I have Audacity and just got the Snowball mic problems. Anyone know how to make these 2 see eye to eye?
It records great but after a period of time to record again, I have to unplug the mic and replug it in and Audacity is fine with no error messages for a while.
Very frustrating… all I want to do is record seamlessly and am having a hard time with it.
Any help?
Thanks Ed
Is Audacity compatible with Windows Vista or is there an update that will make it so?
Does anyone know if Microsoft Vista is compatible with Cool Edit?
Are there any answers to the “Will Audacity show Mbox as a recording device?” questions above? Inquiring minds want to know…:)
Yes, Audacity and Mbox work together with mic. I’ve been more of a GarageBand user, but decided to check out Audacity. I followed the instructions: set preferences to playback using internal and recording to Digidesign HW, plugged in mic, set 48v power to on and voila mic works. I did have to pump up the volume on the Mbox.
Audacity is free, but not as nice as GarageBand. Also, GarageBand is close to free.
I was hoping that Audacity for Mac OS X 10.3 and 10.4 would allow me to record any audio I hear on my computer simply by engaging record. Audacity version for Windows does the trick. This is so frustrating not to be able to record the audio I want. Patching the output back into the input is time consuming and the line level is very low. Boosting the sound creates noise. I will buy an upgraded CD version of Audacity that will do what I need. Thank you.
I am having trouble typing in name of tracks with Audacity. After selecting “add label at selection” no letters appear.
Any ideas?
I downloaded Audacity 1.2.6 to my Vista machine today and thus far it seems to be solid. I can’t say I’ve driven it too hard as of yet but everything popped up right where it’s supposed to be.
Got to say that I’m thrilled about the comment above about the MBox working with Audacity. That’ll make life easier and recordings tastier!
db
Hi all – installed Audacity but it’s not recognizing audio signals coming into my line-in on my Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Audio card. I’m trying to record old vinyl LP’s using a phono preamp. The Mixer and Meter Toolbars are totally greyed out. I’m on a new PC with Vista.
Any ideas what I’m doing wrong?
Thanks!
How do you run Audacity with Mbox?
Hi there,
Thank you for commenting.
I suggest you check out the Audacity support forums for more information.
Best,
Stephanie
i just want to learn how to remove the vocals from an mp3 song. i followed the instructions on a link to you tube but it didnt work.
As far as I can see it’s a piece of junk. I’ve tried recording with it several times, and the playback reveals skips that I have absolutely no idea how to avoid or fix, and there isn’t a thing in Help dealing with this problem.
When I record, the data is saved in multiple 12 second files. This makes it difficult to edit. How can I make a recording that saves as one long file instead of being broken up? Please help!!
I have not been real pleased with the results I am getting on Audacity. There have been inconsistancies in the program’s performance whether it be transfering vinyl to
CDs or recoding guitar and vocals. I read through the tutorials and comments but nothing helps. If it is because of user error I would sure like to be straightened out.
For now if only I could get straight forward directives on how to consistantly activate the effects scroll down menu
and then actually make the options work! Also it would be nice to always be able to record, edit, and export/import recorded vinyl tracks so they could be successfully transfered to CDs.
Add drawings please to articles. I think it will be more interesting!
I got a new laptop w/ windows 7, built in mic, and tried the new beta. the program records for around 3 or so secs and then suddenly gets really quiet. if i turn the volume up on my amp it eventually gets quiet again. Also, it seems to add a wah effect when it gets quieter. any suggestions???
Hi,
How can I remove the clicks that result in cutting and pasting?
I am running Audacity 3.1 beta version on Windows 7 on a 64 bit PC.
Thanks in advance for your response.