JPF Home Page Forums Musician Gear and Techniques General Technical Forum Audacity Question

OK...I'm back asking more Audacity questions...I have recorded several tracks and want to use the effects but it won't light up to use fade in fade out reverb or any of the effects...how do you get that to come on?...I read it has to be on audio but I can't find it...any help is appreciated...Thanks

Highlight the track or section you want to work with and your options should be available.

Thanks Dak...that is working now...but if I want to do another effect it won't light up a second time...do you have to do all you want the 1st time?

Ted,
If you click on the left side of the track where the mute-solo and volume and pan bars are it highlights the track. Then, click on Effects to add your effect. If the track is still highlighted you can click Effects again and add another effect. If it isn't highlighted then just click on the left side of track again. It's just another way of doing it.

There we go David...thanks...now look out!!...I'm armed and dangerous...

Ted you can also place the cursor and then go to edit and click on start to cursor or cursor to end to highlight that portion of track. You can alternatively just drag across a small piece of track to highlight that tiny portion. The undo/redo/repeat options are available and are useful if you make a mistake.

Jim...thanks...now...what if I record 4 or 5 tracks and I want someone else to record a vocal or lead or some other part of the song...how do I save it and send it so they can open it in Audacity at their end?

I suggest sending the file as a wav or mp3 not as a aup file only openable with Audacity I do not know if that would work on another PC. Go to file and then export as.....either wav or Mp3. You may need to download lame as it is required to convert to Mp3 format. It is available free on the Audacity download site. Your friend then simply opens the file with his version of Audacity.

I agree, Ted. Send them an MP3 for them to import, and then they can open a new track and record their part. Once they've recorded their part, they should delete or mute the track that has your parts, then export their recording as a new WAV file, and send that new singled out track back to you. Then you import that new WAV file into your original file, and it will be a new track. Highlight it all, and move it to the right place (because it will probably be off...the vocals or whatever will start at the wrong spot...but when you move it to the right spot, everything else on the track should align just right).

Well IDK guys...once I make it into an mp3 its done...I can't do that and then put it back into my Audacity and work on it somemore...unless there is a way to do that that I don't understand yet...my thought would be to leave it as an Audacity file...attach it to an email and have someone open it with Audacity at their end....no?

I would like to do a test...just something simple...if one of you has Audacity I would like to send it the way you describe as an mp3 or Wav and you add something to it and send it back...if it works I then won't be afraid to send an original out and I will feel confident I'm doing things right...

Any takers?

I may be wrong but won't he be losing quality by converting to MP3, sending to someone, them converting to wav adding a part and sending it back?

Ted,
I would click on File, then on Export As Wav. Make sure to put what folder you want to save in at the top where it says save in: and name the wav at the bottom where it says file name.
This will save all the tracks together as one wav. Then you can send it to someone and they can import it into Audacity.

Remember though a lot of people can't get big files.

Thanks David...I think your right...if I convert it to a mp3 it is much smaller with less info...

Hi Ted. You are correct about MP3 not being as good quality as wav however it is the track you get back that is important. Most musicians can work with an MP3 work track BUT lay down their important parts as a wav.
Usually because of the huge size of a wav compared to MP3 it cannot be sent as an attachment to an email. Snail mail is a slow laborious method of exchanging worktapes so many people use MP3.

Hi again Ted aup (Audacity) files cannot be sent to another PC even one with Audacity. All it is is a shortcut to stuff saved on YOUR pc. So it is impossible for another PC to open a shortcut when the file it is a shorcut for is not there.

http://audacityteam.org/wiki/index.php?title=File_Management_Tips

This link explains more. My advice is to keep each track as a seperate entity saving it individually so you can work on and edit each individually. But keep a mixdown MP3 as a working demo. I save EACH TRACK SEPARATELY as such and such song bass, such and such vocal, such and such piano, etc.

Ted, you're missing an important fact: Your aup. file still remains when you export something as an MP3. Exporting it as an MP3 creates a NEW file that asks to be named and placed, and your Audacity file is still there, unaffected.

Ted, you're missing an important fact: Your aup. file still remains when you export something as an MP3. Exporting it as an MP3 creates a NEW file that asks to be named and placed, and your Audacity file is still there, unaffected.

Thanks MK...I sent a wav file to my wifes PC...I had to use yousenditcause it was so big...I got it somehow into an Audacity program I loaded on her computer...the spectragram looked diff but I could record...

I think your right...I have seen that aup. file..if that is it then it would all be good...thanks again

Ted The only reason why you may ever need to export a wav is if the quality is actally needed at the other end. If you are just looking for someone to add a track to an existing project an Mp3 should be good enough for them to work from. It is the single track file you get back with the new stuff that needs to be of this quality. This track has to be just the stuff your friend lays down. If it contains anything else eg a full mixdown then it cannot be edited properly when you get it back.

Jim...thanks...I see what you are saying...

OK...I'm a pain in the A**..I know...but now here is my next problem...

Since I have been doing all these tracks for recording I'm running out of C drive space....does anyone know how I can move programs into another drive I have that is empty...it has 58 gigs of space unused and I would like to move all my music stuff there...

Any ideas how I do that?

Thanks

Easy just cut and paste. or right click and click on send to "wherever". Check it has arrived. Once it is there just delete it from C. Depending on speed of PC and amount of stuff you have it could take a while. Tip... do it in small portions a few files at a time. Any probs send me a PM.

Another tip.... invest in a good external hard drive with as large a storage as you can get (I have several 500gb that I use) they are not that expensive around $100. Back up all important files MUSIC, PHOTOS, COLLECTIONS, PASSWORDS AND UNLOCK KEYS, LYRICS, RECORDINGS, VIDEOS ETC Do it as per the way I explained but keep the original copies on your existing PC or hard drive. That way if your pc ever crashes and burns you will not have lost any of the really important stuff. A few folk have been in tears when this has happened imagine years of work and irreplaceable stuff lost...forever.

To throw another wrench into the works, if you want to send quality files.
There are several very good lossless audio compressors. The sender and receiver would have the compression tool, the sender would compress and send. Upon receiving the file the receiver would uncompress and import to Audacity do what they need, export, compress and send back as needed.
FLAC, Monkey's Audio and Shorten are three and all are free.

Jim

invest in a good external hard drive with as large a storage as you can get ...

That is good advice...I should do it...only so much $$ to go around right now...bought a drum machine instead

Dak...

To throw another wrench into the works, if you want to send quality files.
There are several very good lossless audio compressors. The sender and receiver would have the compression tool, the sender would compress and send. Upon receiving the file the receiver would uncompress and import to Audacity do what they need, export, compress and send back as needed.
FLAC, Monkey's Audio and Shorten are three and all are free.

very good to know this...that would seem to really help keep the sound quality the same...thanks