- Quick specs
- Price: Free
- Operating system: Windows XP, Windows 2000, Windows NT, Windows 98
- Date added: March 17, 2006
- Total Downloads: 2,843,457
- Downloads last week: 13,202
- See full specifications
A newer version of Audacity is available.
(Download doesn't provide access to previous versions of this program.)
- CNET editors' rating: stars
- Average user rating: stars out of 544 votes
See all user reviews
CNET editors' review
Reviewed by: CNET Staff
With so many audio editors out there, finding the right tool for the job can be tricky. The multiplatform, open-source editor Audacity has leaped to the top of our list with its clean interface, excellent features, and support for 32-bit floating-point audio. Audacity succeeds at being both feature-rich and flexible, while keeping the toolbar and work space uncluttered. It does this by relegating most functions--such as effects, edits, and project management--to handy drop-down menus.
Audacity supports uncompressed audio standards such as WAV and AIFF in addition to OGG and MP3 files. A full complement of basic effects such as reverb, delay, and compression are included. Virtual Studio Technology (VST), Linux Audio Developers Simple Plugin Architecture (LAPSDA), and Nyquist plug-ins also are available if you're looking to expand. Another eye-catching feature is the Beat Analyzer, which helps you peg the beats per minute of a phrase.
The performance of most functions is quick--even CPU-hogging tasks such as exporting to MP3 or adding complex effects. Though Audacity doesn't offer advanced effects or features out of the box, its usability and price set this freeware wonder above the crowd.
Publisher's description
From Audacity Developer Team :This editor can record and play sounds and import and export WAV, AIFF, MP3, and OGG files. Edit your sounds using cut, copy, and paste features (with unlimited undo functionality), mix tracks, or apply effects to your recordings. The program also has a built-in amplitude-envelope editor, a customizable spectrogram mode, and a frequency-analysis window for audio-analysis applications. Built-in effects include bass boost, wah wah, and noise removal, and the program also supports VST plug-in effects. This program is open-source, and this version adds tool tips, keyboard shortcuts, and OGG exporting and fixes some bugs.
Version 1.2.4b has a Meter Toolbar added for monitoring volume levels during playback and recording, allows you to export multiple files at once, attempts to automatically correct latency in full-duplex recordings, and contains some bug fixes.
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User reviews of Audacity 1.2.4b
- Average user rating: 4.4 stars out of 544 votes
- My rating: 0 stars Write review
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Showing 5 of 68 user reviewsSee all 68 user reviews
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35 out of 38 people found this review helpful
Version: Audacity 1.2.4b
Pros: This an excellent piece of software, published with open code for FREE. Though not difficult at all in using it, even for a novice user, it requires 5 minutes of study, because there are so many options for the user. But after that, there is nothing you want to do with your MP3's that Audacity can't do. You can remove silent beginning and ends of your MP3's, you can cut off noice, you can reverb, you can... do anything you imaging about music. It is a Real gift and a great surprise that is offered for FREE.
Cons: After Audacity, other softwares about sound do not have anything to offer and justify even a low price. Don't think any more. Take it.
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10 out of 11 people found this review helpful
Version: Audacity 1.2.4b
Pros: I use Audacity to do some simple edits of some old MP3 and OGG music files - fading in/out and trimming live tracks, applying EQ to old recordings to clean them up, etc. The UI is easy to navigate, and there is a surprisingly large number of tools. The program seems to be fairly efficient, and operates with good speed, even on my decidedly less than state-of-the-art PC.
The 1.3 beta release adds a more precise method of marking edit points, which is a welcome improvement, and it seems stable. Audacity isn't the most comprehensive audio editor out there, but it offers a lot for free.
Cons: Will not export to variable-rate MP3s, and the only MP3 parameter that can be set is the (constant) bit rate. I sometimes export to WAV and then use the LAME command line to work around that.
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7 out of 7 people found this review helpful
Version: Audacity 1.2.4b
Pros: This FREE program allows you to edit music. You can change the speed, tempo, pitch, and even add fading. It gives you many options to change the way music sounds. You can also convert music with this some. I actually made a bunch of Wav files out of mp3s and I use those Wav files as sounds on my computer. Most editing programs like this cost cash. A matter of fact most programs dealing with music cost cash to use or have the extra features. To have Audacity for free is surprising but fun. If you like music you will like this alot.
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3 out of 4 people found this review helpful
Version: Audacity 1.2.4b
Pros: This program is faster, more stable, and has a more user-friendly and visually appealing interface than Nero's wave editor. I recommend it highly.
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Version: Audacity 1.2.4b
"Bow down, this software is king!"
Pros: Perfect for podcasting. I can edit 4 audio tracks so I can save it as one. My radio show is so much better now that I have this program.
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