Audio Retouching Using Audacity

Working with audio

Module - Fundamentals of Digital Audio

Overview

In this activity, students will learn how to record sound, mix sound, add effects to sound using Audacity. Also students will learn how to adjust sampling rate, bit depth of sound to see the effects of them. Learning Outcomes Upon completion of this activity, the student will know how to:
  1. Know what digital audio is
  2. Understand sampling rate, bit depth of digital audio
  3. Know how to mix different sound track
  4. Know how to add effects to digital sound
  5. Learn how to save digital audio in different formats
  6. Learn how to use Audacity

Key Terms/Skills/Concepts

Sampling rate, bit depth, fade in/fade out, WAV/AIFF/MP3/OGG, Audacity

Detailed Description

  1. Download the audio file abcsong441.mp3
  2. Start Audacity
  3. Use menu File --> Open to open the song.
  4. Now you should see 2 waves in your Audacity window.
  5. Split the stereo song into left and right channel (5 points)
  6. Delete the first 10 seconds of the Left channel (5 points)
  7. Insert 10 seconds of silence to the beginning of left channel (5 points)
  8. Delete the last 10 seconds of the right channel (5 points)
  9. Insert 10 seconds of silence to the end of right channel (5 points)
  10. Make the two waves into one stereo track (5 points)
  11. Apply fade in effect to the starting 15 seconds of the sound (5 points)
  12. Apply fade out effect to the last 15 seconds of the sound (5 points)
  13. Now record 25 seconds of your own voice in a new track starting at the 20 seconds mark. If you do not have a microphone, use your cell phone to record 15 seconds sound (10 points)
  14. Adjust the gain value of the song to -12 and adjust the gain value of your voice to +9 (5 points)
  15. Save your work into Firstname-Lastname-Audio-lab.aup (5 points)
  16. Export your audio as a .WAV(Microsoft) uncompressed file with signed 16 bit depth, 11025 sampling rate (10 points)
  17. Export your audio as an .AIFF(Apple/SGI) uncompressed file with signed 8 bit depth, 22050 sampling rate (10 points)
  18. Export your audio as a .WAV(Microsoft) uncompressed file with 64 bit depth, 44100 sampling rate (10 points)
  19. Export your audio as an .MP3 file with 44100 sampling rate and compressed with "Extreme,220-260 kbps" Quality (10 points)
  20. Upload your two WAV files, one AIFF and one MP3 file file to D2L. (10 points)
  21. Wait for your instructor to grade your work


Back to Dr. Lai's course homepage.