Editing Audio

The Envelope tool allows you to adjust the volume of a particular part of the audio.

Fades

Audacity ships with several types of fade effects: a pair of simple linear fades, a pair of fades to help you make a crossfade, a more musically pleasing fade out (similar to that used in many recording and mastering studios) and a powerful customizable fade.

For more detail on fading please see Fade and Crossfade

Contents

1. Linear Fades (In and Out)
2. Studio Fade Out
3. Adjustable Fade
4. Crossfades

Linear Fades

These basic fades apply a fade to the selected audio such that the amplitude of the selection goes from absolute silence to the original amplitude (Fade In), or from the original amplitude to absolute silence (Fade Out). The shape of the fade is linear, so it appears as a straight line from beginning to end (when viewed in the default linear Waveform View Mode). The speed of the fade in or out is therefore constant throughout its length and depends entirely on the length selected for the fade.

Fade In

Accessed by: Effect > Fading > Fade In

A fade in is often applied over a very short audio selection (less than a second). You may get a more “musical” result by applying a linear fade in three times to the same audio selection. This approximates an exponentially shaped fade in.

Fade Out

Accessed by: Effect > Fading > Fade Out

A fade out is often applied to a longer selection than a fade in, typically to a selection up to about ten seconds long.

Studio Fade Out

Accessed by: Effect > Fading > Studio Fade Out

Produces a smooth and “musical” sounding fade out from original volume to silence by applying a doubly-curved (S-shape) fade and fading out the higher frequencies a little quicker than the lower frequencies. It gives a “going off into the distance” type of sound rather than sounding like a “mechanical” fade out. This technique has found favor in recording studios for CD and LP tracks.

You can make a simple customization of the shape of any of the above fades by repeating it using Repeat Last Effect ( Ctrl + R ). If you repeat a fade in, the audio will remain quiet for longer then rise more rapidly to the original level. Repeating a fade out will cause the level to initially drop more rapidly then tail off at a lower level.

Adjustable Fade

This has a dialog box where you can choose the shape of the fade in or fade out to be applied. You can also create “partial” fades to and from other than silence and original volume. An example of this might be a fade in from 20% of the original volume to 80% of the original volume. The “Handy Presets” at the bottom offer a choice of six pairs of fade in or fade out shapes, fading between silence and original volume.

Accessed by: Effect > Fading > Adjustable Fade.

Choosing a preset disables all the other controls irrespective of their setting. Therefore to make a partial fade you must choose the Start and End values then use the other controls above to determine the fade shape and direction.

Example of fading using Adjustable Fade

The image below shows the result of a partial fade down from original volume to 30%, applied to a the selected part of a constant amplitude sine tone. The shape is exponential (the fade down becomes slower with time), as produced by setting “Mid-fade Adjust” to a value of -50%.

By using Adjustable Fade with different settings on different sections of the audio, almost any fade shape or combination of shapes can be produced, entirely using the keyboard.

Crossfades

While you can manually create a custom crossfrade using the fades on this page, the esiest way to make a crossfade between two tracks is to use on of the two crossfade effects available in Audacity.

• Crossfade Clips: This is a simple tool which crossfades between two adjacent clips in the same track.
• Crossfade Tracks: The second is a more precise tool that crossfades between two separate audio tracks. The tracks should be positioned one above the other, with the start of the lower track overlapping the end of the upper track. Select the overlapping region in both tracks and apply the effect. The selected region of the upper track will fade out, and the selected part of the lower track will fade in. For detailed information and advanced techniques see: Creating a Crossfade.

Editing Audio

Editing is a creative and individual experience but there are a couple of strategies to make this process more efficient and streamlined.

1 Create a rough first and then fine tune.

If you are editing a work with multiple tracks of audio (e.g. music, voiceover, sound effects, etc.), create a rough cut first by placing the sound in the approximate space that you want it to play. Once your tracks are in the right order, fine tune the audio by taking out the “ums”, adjusting volume, etc.

2 Organize your sounds by using different tracks.

Organize your audio files by placing them on different tracks and labeling them (e.g. a track for music, a track for sound effects, a track for voiceover). Edit sound files in either AIPP or WAV file formats and export to MP3 later.

Finding Sound Effects

If you want to add sound effects to your project, you can either create your own (e.g. using an app like GarageBand) or download ones that have already been created. Freesound is a great resource. It has a ton of free sound effects that are openly licensed.

Freesound requires you to sign up for an account before downloading any sound effects.

Finding Music

It is important that you have permission from the copyright holder to use any music that you include in your project especially if you plan to make your project available on the Internet. Free Music Archive is a resource that allows you to search for free music that is openly licensed. There is also Audio Jungle and ccMixter.

Remember to check the copyright license and make sure to read the terms of that license. If you have any questions about copyright, contact the UBC Copyright Office.

Editing with Audacity

Audacity has many tools and effects to use but there are a few important ones to know before you begin your editing project.

Adding Sound Files

To add a sound file to your Audacity project, select File → Import Audio.

Cutting and Moving Audio

The Selection tool allows you to highlight and select parts of an audio clip. This tool allows you to select a point where you would like to make a cut in the audio.

To cut the audio, select Edit → Clip Boundaries → Split.

The Time Shift Tool allows you to move audio clips back and forth on the timeline, as well as move audio clips to other tracks.

Adjusting Volume

The Envelope tool allows you to adjust the volume of a particular part of the audio.

Fade In/Fade Out

You may want to use the Fade In/Fade Out effect to make the transition from one sound to another more pleasant. Highlight the piece of audio that you want to fade using the Selection tool and then select Effect → Fade In or Fade Out.

Exporting Audio

If you are creating something like a podcast, then you will probably want to export as an MP3 file.

To export, select File → Export → Export as MP3. Fill in as much information as you can in the metadata fields. This will be visible to podcast hosting platforms such as iTunes.

Podcast Hosting

Once you’ve created your podcast, you’ll need to find a hosting platform so that your listeners can download your episodes. There are many different ones to choose from including Buzzsprout, Captivate or Libsyn. You might also choose to host your podcast on your website or blog if you have enough bandwidth.

Remember to include a transcript of your podcast with your episode so that it is as accessible as possible.

How to Fade In and Fade Out in Audacity

Fading is a useful tool in a podcaster’s arsenal. The effect allows you to create smooth transitions between your audio clips to make a seamless listening experience for your audience.

There are a few ways to use Audacity to create to add a fade effect. This guide breaks down each method so you can choose the one that works best for you.

JUMP TO A SECTION:

• Option #1. Linear fades
• Option #2. Studio Fade Out
• Option #3. Crossfade
• Option #4. Use the Envelope tool

Option #1. Linear fades

The easiest way to create a fade within Audacity is to use the classic Fade In or Fade Out effect.

These basic fades are also called Linear fades. They apply constant speed and amplification throughout the selected portion of audio.

In these fades, the amplitude of the audio goes from zero to full volume, or full volume back down to zero.

To apply this effect, grab your Selection tool, which looks like a cursor. Select the desired portion of the audio file, and go to Effect > Fade Out.

Adding this effect creates a Linear Fade starting at zero and will amplify the track to full volume over the course of one second.

You can make your audio selection longer if you want the fade to come in more gradually, or select a smaller section to make the duration of the fade shorter.

Apply fade out to individual clips

Press Cmd + I (or Ctrl+ I) to split a track into multiple sections so you can apply a fade to an individual segment of audio.

In this example, we split the clip at eight seconds and moved the second portion over with the Time Shift tool.

To apply a fade-out to the first clip, highlight the section of audio you want to fade, and go to Effect > Fade Out.

Option #2. Studio Fade Out

The Studio Fade Out is a less abrupt version of the classic fade and follows an s-shaped curve instead of a line.

This type of fade is used mostly in musical tracks. While some creators think the effect is less jarring and more artistic, others can’t tell much of a difference.

To apply the effect, select your portion of audio, go to the Effect menu, scroll down to the bottom, and click Studio Fade Out.

Option #3. Crossfade

A crossfade is an effect applied to two separate clips that make one section of audio fade out while another fades in.

Audacity merges the two clips so they overlap, which can help create smooth transitions. Let’s break down the two ways to apply crossfades within Audacity.

Crossfade Clips

To apply a crossfade across two clips on the same track, make sure your two clips are next to each other using the Time Shift Tool.

Use the Selection tool to select the area you want to crossfade, then click Effect > Crossfade Clips to merge the selected audio.

Crossfade Tracks

When creating a podcast episode, you’ll likely work with multiple clips across at least two different tracks.

To apply a crossfade between two clips on separate tracks, take your Selection tool and arrange the clips, so they line up.

Use the cursor to choose where you want the fade to start, drag it across the tracks you want to Crossfade, and go to Effect > Crossfade Tracks.

The Crossfade Tracks Menu will pop up with options to create a Custom Curve or adjust the fade direction. Unless you’re a digital audio expert, we recommend leaving the default settings as they are.

Click Ok to apply the crossfading effect. Upon playback, you’ll hear your first track get softer at the end and the second one gets louder at the beginning.

Option #4. Use the Envelope tool

The Envelope tool is especially helpful if you work with multiple tracks, or just want optimal control over your fades.

This tool allows you to manually adjust the volume level at any point along the track to create precise and fully customized fade shapes.

Click the toolset icon at the top of the toolbar to activate the Envelope tool.

You’ll see dark grey bars appear above and below the waveforms on the Timeline. These represent the volume of each track.

After you select the Envelope tool, click on the grey line. A white box should appear.

You can click on this white box to adjust the volume level at that specific time point, and create new ones across the Timeline wherever you want.

Now, you have full, second-by-second control of your track’s volume level.

For instance, in this clip, we made it louder for the first second. Then, we dipped the volume lower at four seconds.

This feature is especially convenient if you’re editing several types of clips strung together like an intro, music segues, narrated portions, and interviews.

More Audacity tutorials

Audacity is excellent audio editing software for Mac, Linux, and Windows, and is widely used by podcasters of all skill levels. Check out these tutorials for more tips and tricks for using the tool!

• How to Remove Background Noise in Audacity
• How to Move Audio in Audacity
• How to Edit a Podcast in Audacity
• How to Use the Compressor in Audacity
• How to Normalize Audio in Audacity
• How to Cut a Track in Audacity
• How to Export Files as MP3

Alban Brooke

Alban Brooke is the Head of Marketing at Buzzsprout and the co-host of Buzzcast. Have any questions about this guide? Reach out on Twitter.