Re: Audacity - file formats i can edit ?

Reply #125 – 2022-03-08 07:16:52

i have come across a file that says "untitled hidden track".  it runs for 6 seconds, and then goes on to play a good song.  when i do a "properties" on the file, it is quite small.  so it shows that it is about 6 seconds long.

any way that i can get to the real song, and get rid of the 6 seconds of nonsense ?

Re: Audacity - file formats i can edit ?

Reply #126 – 2022-03-08 13:38:13

If it is mp3 or aac, you can use mp3directcut to losslessly cut the song.

Re: Audacity - file formats i can edit ?

Reply #127 – 2022-03-09 04:53:06

thanks.  neither foobar, audacity or vlc will play the song.  it just plays the 6 seconds of the titled track.  itunes is the only program that i have used that will play the song.  i was hoping to take the hidden track, and make it a separate track.  so i could manipulate it like a regular song.  i found no way to do that, so i am not gonna fiddle around with it.  i have seen other cds with hidden tracks.  i find it an absolutely annoying gimic.

Re: Audacity - file formats i can edit ?

Reply #128 – 2022-04-10 04:39:33

if a normalized song sounds softer to you than the rest of your songs, it is probably because there are one or more peaks in the song that keeps the volume of the rest of the song down.  easiest fix is to de-amplify the peaks, and then re-normalize it

Re: Audacity - file formats i can edit ?

Reply #129 – 2022-06-23 03:49:11

it has been awhile since i last posted.  i normalized all my files to 89 db.  the surprise is that there is quite a bit of difference in loudness between these new mono m4a files and the stereo mp3 files.  the m4a files are considerably louder.  does that surprise any of you ?  my first fixit is i am normalizing all the mp3 files to 91 db.  and see if that brings them a bit closer

Re: Audacity - file formats i can edit ?

Reply #130 – 2023-02-14 02:45:55

hi, havent been here for awhile.  thought i would give a new update.  now that i have all the tools, i am enjoying this LIFELONG project of downloading and editing my music to the computer.  a note about "loudness".  i am using the program  SOUND NORMALIZER.  it does a good job.  all such programs seem to all work on the same wave form principle.  you give it a loudness, and then they up the waveform, until the first peak reaches the asked for decibel level.  if any of your song seems unusually softer than most of the rest of them, the first thing to do is look at the wave form, and see if it has a small number of peaks.  if there is one or a few peaks that are higher than the rest of the song, this will prevent the entire song from going any higher. 

i will 1) go back and de-amplify the small number of peaks, and then re-do the normalization process.  or 2) amplify the areas in between all the peaks.  very rarely will you notice any differences in the song, other than the loudness levels are more even.

if it is a ballad, sometimes i dont mind soft and loud sections.  although i often make soft sections, louder.  but if it is a faster song, where the "beat" is important, i almost never like it when some sections are louder than others.  so i will bring up the softer sections.

if anyone has any questions on loudness normalization, feel free to ask.  at this point, there is little that i have not run into, in terms of typical musical editing.  i edit almost every single song.  getting rid of most introductions, ends of songs that drag on, irritating music in the middle of the song, etc. 

if it is a stereo recording, i can usually take a song that i like ( good melody ), and make it sound good enough for me to keep.  on about 9 out of 10 songs.  it all depends on what i dont like, and how the song was recorded.  but i have developed a lot of techniques, so i dont have to give up on too many songs.