Audacity User Manual - Center for Online Learning

Metropolitan State University

Documented by: Aamir Gangji, Graduate Assistant at College of Management.
He can be reached at [email protected].

Introduction:

Audacity is open source software used to manipulate audio files. It can be used to record sounds
via a microphone or other audio sources, or to edit existing audio files. It is distributed under a
GNU General Public License. It is cross-platform and runs well with Windows, Mac OS X,
GNU/Linux, and other operating systems.

It can be downloaded from http://audacity.sourceforge.net/ at no cost. Its interface is well-

designed, easy to navigate, and can be followed intuitively. There are tool bars for editing and
controls, along with dropdown menus to enhance the audio files you are editing. The main
objective of this tutorial is to familiarize you with Audacity’s editing tools, using different
effects to enhance audio experience, understanding different file formats, creating multi-track
sessions, and compressing audio files to reduce file size without adversely compromising
quality.

File Formats:

Following are the most common file formats supported by the Audacity. These formats can be
easily imported and exported to and from audacity. The file formats of .WAV and .MP3 will be
featured in these tutorials.

WAV (Windows Wave Format):

This format is created by Microsoft. It usually contains uncompressed audio. Audacity

can import and export WAV files containing PCM (uncompressed) data, and some types
of ADPCM data (a simple compressed format). Audacity cannot import or export WAV
files that use other encodings, such as WMA or MPEG.

MP3:

This is a lossy compression format developed by the Fraunhofer Institute, in Germany.

MP3 files can be played by many software programs, and also many portable music
players (like the Apple iPod). Lossy compression is a way to reduce the size of a file. It
throws away some of the information in the sound file; that information is lost and cannot
be restored. Lossy encoders try to throw out information that is not noticeable to the
human ear, so that the compression does not noticeably affect the sound quality.
Audacity can import all MP3 files. Using the optional LAME encoder, Audacity can also
export files in MP3 format. You can find more details about LAME in later section of
this publication.

AIFF and AIFF-C:

 AIFF and AIFF-C are formats developed by Apple Computer, and are used by Mac
Applications. AIFF files contain uncompressed audio. Audacity can import and export all
standard AIFF and AIFF-C files.

Ogg Vorbis:

This is also a lossy compression format. It is completely free of patents and other
restrictions. Ogg Vorbis files can be played by many software programs, and by some
portable music players (like the iRiver H300).

Audacity can also import and export several other sound formats, including AU, IRCAM,
SDII, and others.

Basic Tools:
Open File:

You can open a file by clicking FILE menu and selecting OPEN sub-menu. An important
consideration is to make sure the file is in a compatible format. The formats that can be
opened are WAV, AIFF and AIFF-C, MP3, Ogg Vorbis. For more details about compatible
formats look for instructions in File Format Section. If you already have an existing file
open and you wish you add another sound file to your project, you will use the menu
PROJECT and then select Import Audio.

Save Project:

This function is accessible from FILE menu and then selecting SAVE PROJECT AS.
Saving a project allows you to re-visit your edits to audio clips in the future, and modify
changes you made to the file. Once project is saved, by default it also saves media file in
.AUP format which is only compatible with Audacity Software. After saving project it is
also recommended to export file in MP3 or WAV format because MP3 and Windows Media
Player are commonly used and can be downloaded at no cost.

Export File:

Once you edit your audio file or record your narration you can export file in MP3, WAV, and
Ogg Vorbis formats. We recommend MP3 format because it takes less storage space and
provides good quality output. Further it is also interoperable with Windows Media Player,
and I-Tunes (both are available for download at no cost). In order to export in MP3 format,
you will need the additional LAME dll file installed on your computer.
Installing LAME to Export in MP3 Format:

In order to export file in MP3 format, first you need to add LAME. dll plug-in. In can be
downloaded from internet at no cost. I recommend to download stable version instead of
beta version. Once stable version is downloaded the folder carries many different supporting
files as well, but we only need file with .dll extension.

After downloading LAME MP3 Encoder, you can go ahead and export your file in MP3
format. First click on File>Export As MP3. It will open Save File As window to select
destination and file name. After providing that it will open Edit ID3 Tag window which will
requires information regarding title, track number, genre and other information to locate
sound objects.

Control Tools:

Skip to Start Play Record Pause Stop Skip to End

Skip to Start:

This button will move audio track to the starting point in the file. It will not function when
audio is paused. It will work only when audio is stopped using STOP button or if audio
stops automatically after playing the file. The other important aspect is that it is not a
Rewind Button, which means it will not Rewind audio track if you want to hear any
 particular portion again. It will only take the track to starting point. To "rewind" - use the
file position pointer in the file's timeline.

Play:

It performs normal play function so that you can hear and enjoy your audio experience. For
continuous playback you need to click SHIFT + PLAY. It will loop play audio file over and
over again.

Shift + Play (Loop Play)

Record:

This is an important tool which lets you record audio through the microphone (or other sound
source). It converts analog signal into digital to enable computer to play recorded files.

Voice recordings are useful as narrations to be used in presentations, or as interviews.

Recording through Audacity is a simple process. First, verify that the microphone is
properly connected to computer. The microphone should be plugged into a designated slot
which usually reads Mic or marked with Pink Color. After ensuring that microphone is
properly plugged, simply hit RECORD button. Audacity will start converting your analog
signals into digital signals. You can also see this by oscillating sound wave on your screen.
Once recorded, you can listen to your recorded audio by clicking PLAY button. Below is an
image of recorded file.

Pause:

It will Pause the track. You can continue to play from same point after clicking Play button.

Stop:

It will stop the track. In order to perform functions such as Skip to Start, Skip to End, edits,
and applying effects it is important to stop the track rather then pause it.

Skip to End:

This button will move audio track to the end. It will NOT function when audio is paused. It
will work only when audio is stopped using STOP button. The other important
 consideration is that it is not a Fast Forward Button, which means it will not forward audio.
It will only take the track to ending point. To "fast forward" - click on the file's timeline at
the position you wish to hear.

Edit Tools:

The basic editing tools available with Audacity are Selection Tool, Envelop Tool, Draw Tool,
Zoom Tool, Time Shift Tool, and Multi-Tool Mode.

Select Envelop Draw

Zoom Time Shift Multi-Tool Mode

Select Tool:

Audacity comes with a cursor to let you select parts of an audio sample. The selection tool
allows you to click and highlight the region you wish to edit. The portion that is selected is
shown in dark grey color to differentiate it from unselected part. It is also shown in graphic
below. To unselect just click on any place on screen. To select entire audio file, go to Edit >
Select > All.

Envelope Tool:

The envelop tool allows you to manually adjust the volumes within your sound file. This is
very useful to compensate for differences in speaker voices during interviews. First select
envelope tool from Edit Tool Bar. It will show two blue bars at the top and lower part of the
sample. Single click on the starting and ending points where you want to adjust the volume.
This will result in two sets of white dots on sample. Now you can adjust the loudness within
this range by widening or narrowing the blue bars. Widening will increase the loudness and
vice versa. This is an example of non-destructive editing which means audacity allows to
revert back to original sound file by series of undo’s or turning off edit effects.
Zoom Tool:

This tool is like using magnifying glass on audio file. It lets you left-click to zoom in and
right-click to zoom out. Zoom particular part of audio file by left-click and drag across that
part of sample. It will fill screen with that particular portion of audio file.

Time Shift:

Time Shift Tool lets you move audio samples from one point in timeline to another point.
For example, if you have a narration track and also a background music track, you might
want to move the narration to start 30-seconds after the background music starts. This can be
done by moving the narration audio file to start at 30-seconds into the timeline by using
Time Shift Tool. You can use this tool to insert silences in the track, or to reposition the
starting points of a sound track. It is indicated by arrow in the following image.

→→→→→→

Multi-Tool Mode:

This tool lets users perform multiple edit actions simultaneously. One can adjust volume,
expanding or narrowing bars, zoom out by right clicking, and select any part of audio file at
the same time.

Cut/Copy/Paste:

Cut Copy Paste

 Standard Cut, Copy, and Paste tools are provided. These let you cut/copy a certain part of an
audio file and paste it anyplace in the sample or even in a new file. It offers the flexibility to
omit undesired parts of audio sample, and the same part of an audio file can be used more
then once. To Cut/Copy, use the SELECT tool to select the desired part of the file, then
click on appropriate tool to CUT or COPY the portion of audio sample. Click the cursor to
the position the segment is to be pasted, and then use the PASTE tool. You can also paste
that portion in new file. Note: cut, copy, and paste operations will not work if a file is in
PAUSE mode. Press STOP before making these edits.

Delete/Trim:

You can remove undesired parts of an audio file. First select the part of audio file you want to
delete, then go to Edit > Delete. The difference between delete and cut tool is that with the
delete command, the deleted portion is omitted forever whereas with Cut tool places the
section on the clipboard.

Unlike Delete command, Trim retains the selected part and deletes all other parts of the audio
file. First select the part you want to retain, then go to Edit>Trim. This will remove anything
before or after your selected portion of audio.

Generate Tools:

Silence:

This option enables users to mute certain part of audio file. For instance, if you want to omit
undesired part of audio from narration or interview this is one of the ways to do it. Other ways
as described in previous sections of this document are using Cut Tool or Delete/Trim Tool. In
order to use this tool first select portion of audio file you want to mute then select Generate>
Silence from drop down menu. It is an example of Destructive Editing Technique which
means audio file cannot be restored to its original form after applying this technique.

Effect Tools:

Normalize:

This tool helps to normalize audio file which means that the dynamics of the audio file will be
adjusted to increase the volume of the audio file without clipping/distortion. Its most common
use is to standardize the volume-levels of multiple audio tracks. It can be access from
dropdown menu by selecting Effects> Normalize.
Fade In/Out:

The Fade In tool enables the user to create crescendo effect by having the sound file start at
zero volume and then increasing the sound level gradually in the highlighted range. The Fade-
Out effect does the same in reverse, slowly decreasing the volume level to zero in the selected
range. These tools can be used to create some effects with music at the beginning of
presentation slides. Fade In/Out can be access from dropdown menu by selecting Effects>
Fade In or Fade Out. Following images shows visual effects of Fade In and Fade Out tool.

Fade Out Effect Fade In Effect

Pitch:

Audacity lets you change the pitch of your sound file. The Pitch of a sound is the range of
frequencies. Raising the pitch up makes all the frequencies higher. Lowering the pitch makes
all the frequencies lower. To apply this effect, first select the portion of audio file for which
you want to change the pitch, then select from dropdown menu Effects>Change Pitch. It
offers three different options to change Pitch. If you have a good understanding of notes then
you can select from first option to choose the specific change in scales/notes. The second
option lets you change frequency to adjust pitch. The easiest option is to use the slider bar at
the bottom which allows you to adjust the pitch by moving pointer on slider bar. You can also
preview the effects before applying it permanently.
Speed:

This tool enables you to adjust the speed of audio file by affecting tempo and pitch. You can
use this functionality by highlighting the section of the sound file you wish to change and then
selecting from dropdown menu Effects> Change Speed. You can adjust speed by using slider
bar which reflects the percentage change in speed. You can also adjust speed by adjusting
RPM. Once changes made you can preview before applying it permanently.

Compressor:

The Compressor reduces the dynamic range of sound. The dynamic range is the difference
between loudest part and softest part in audio file. It is often used to make volume levels more
balanced in narration (leading to a crisper sound).

In above windows you can see different criteria to adjust dynamic range. Threshold is a level
above which sounds will be reduced. Ratio is a magnitude with which you want sounds above
threshold level to be reduced. Higher ratio will cause more significant reduction in loud
sounds above threshold.
Others:

Add Labels to Selection:

This is a good way to organize complex changes made to audio sample. This functionality can
be used by selecting the sound track you wish to label, and then using the menus Project> Add
Label at Selection. This enables a user to keep the track of all modifications made to audio
sample. It can be a good reference for future when you re-visit the project. Below is an image
showing the description of what modification made in audio sample at particular point in
timeline.

Editing ID3 Track:

This option will enable you to record information about the audio sample for exporting in
WAV or MP3 format. The following screenshot shows that you can enter a title for the audio
sample, artist/author name, and other relevant information. This can be important from
organizational perspective to track and identify sound objects.