Audacity Tutorial

Audacity is a free program that allows easy audio editing.

Initial Setup Audacity is a free program you need to download and install at http://audacity.sourceforge.net/download/.

Mp3 Export Many Mp3s are encoded and will also require you to download and install a program called Lame to be able to export these files. http://audacity.sourceforge.net/help/faq?s=install&item=lame-mp3

Control Toolbar Basics

Mixer Toolbar Left slider controls Playback Volume, the right one Recording Volume, and the dropdown lets you choose the input source (this will normally be your microphone).

Shortcut Edit Toolbar Edit Toolbar provides shortcuts to: Cut, Copy, Past, Trim Outside Selection, Silence Selection, Undo, Redo, Zoom In, Zoom Out, Fit Selection, Fit Project.

Track View The track section provides a convenient view of the tracks in your project. The waveform indicates the volume level. Use the "X" in top left corner to remove track from project.

Recording Voice Make sure the microphone is connected to the computer. 1. Select Microphone as the Input Source. 2. Simply press the red button on the Control Toolbar to start. 3. When you're finished recording press the yellow stop button. Before recording for the first time, experiment with the microphone positioning and recording level (slider with a mic symbol).

Use Existing Sound Files (such as a recorded lecture) Simply choose Project > Import Audio and navigate to the sound file you want to use. Once Audacity is done importing the file, it will appear as a new track. No changes will be done to the original file. Caution: Until you export your final clip, do not move the imported sound files.

Editing Editing consists of selecting segments of tracks and applying actions or effects to them, this way you can easily remove unwanted parts, add your own voice recording to a music track, combine parts of multiple tracks together, and more. Until you save your project, any editing can be undone. Once you master several basic skills, you will have a powerful tool at your hands.

Selection Being able to select segments from a track is a crucial skill in editing sound clips. Make sure the selection tool is active. Click somewhere on the track waveform and drag until you have selected the desired segment Release the mouse button To make sure you selected the right part, you can replay the selection (click the green round play button).

Adjusting the Selection Move the cursor over the start or end of the selection until it becomes a pointing finger Click and drag to change the selection Repeat those steps until you are satisfied. Additionally, to perform a selection you can place the selection cursor somewhere on the waveform by single-clicking, and go to Edit > Select > Start to Cursor or Cursor to End.

Basic Effects Deleting: To delete a segment choose Edit > Delete or press the Del button. Cutting: To cut a segment out choose Edit > Cut. Pasting: To paste a segment choose Edit > Paste. Fade In/Fade Out: To have the volume increase or decrease gradually, choose Effects > Fade In or Fade Out.

Exporting Sound File vs. Project Audacity works with project files. Those cannot be opened by other software. In order for others to be able to play your sound clip, you need to export it first.

Choose a File Format and Bit Rate

Exporting as an Mp3 Preferred format for exporting sound clips is mp3. Mp3 reduces file size considerably allowing for easy transfer over a network, it can be played on any computer. The quality/file size is determined by the bit rate: the lower the bit rate, the smaller the file size but also lower quality.

Bit Rate Settings 128kbps is well suitable for music 32kbps provides reasonable quality for voice recordings

Final Step Once you are finished editing your sound clip, go to File > Export MP3 and select a file name and location for the exported file.

The bigger the file (less compression) the better the quality. For most in-class audio lectures 32 kbps will work. Format Bit Rate File Size Tips WAV NA 10MB CD Quality MP3 128kbps 1MB CD Quality MP3 64kbps 400K FM Radio Quality MP3 32kbps 250K Acceptable Quality