For everything we can do on the PC we mistakenly think that, in order to obtain professional results, we must use expensive paid programs. If this discussion can be valid for images (where Photoshop is honestly unbeatable), the same cannot be said for audio recordings, where we can harness the power of a free and open source program like Audacity.
In fact, in this guide we will show you how to record with Audacity in all the most frequent scenarios when we use the PC, so that we can always have a complete and efficient audio recording program.
The steps will be described in a simple and clear way, so that even novice users with audio programs can use Audacity without too many obstacles.
READ ALSO: Audacity for free in Italian, best mp3 audio editor
How to register with Audacity
By following the instructions in the following chapters we will be able to install Audacity on our computer and record from various sources, so that we can obtain a recording from the microphone, from an external audio source (a mixer for example), from the sounds of the PC itself (including sounds generated from a browser or media player).Download and installation
First we install the program directly from the official website, where we will only have to click on the Audacity for Windows button to start the download of the installer. The program is also available for Mac and Linux, but in the guide we will focus on the version for Windows.At the end of the download, we double-click on the file you just downloaded to start the program's installer, which is very simple and without surprises (just accept the user license and always click Next and Install ). After installation we can start Audacity by double clicking on the program icon on the desktop or by looking for its name in the Windows Start menu.
How to record with Audacity with a microphone
After getting familiar with the program interface, we can start recording starting from the simple microphone, to be connected to the 3.5mm pink Jack socket (present both on the back of the PC and on the front of some houses). If we don't have a microphone available, we can buy an inexpensive one like this -> XIAOKOA PC Condenser microphone (€ 19).Once the microphone is properly connected to the PC, let's go to Audacity, click on the drop-down menu in the upper part of the window (where MME is written) and select WASAPI as Windows ; after this adjustment let's move to the two drop-down menus next to it and set Microphone (with the name of the sound card) and 2 (stereo) recording channels .
If everything is configured correctly, we should see the microphone power lines (top right) rise and fall each time we try to speak into it. If the power lines show a low volume, we can adjust it by moving the volume slider located just below the Play button. To start the actual recording, simply press the Rec key and start talking or singing; when we are satisfied, press the Stop button to end the acquisition. Pressing the Play button we can immediately listen to the recording via microphone and use one of the other tools made available by the program to cut or modify the audio track.
To save the recording in MP3 format, go to the top menu File, go to the path Export -> Export as MP3 and choose, in the window that will appear, a name for the file, the path where to save it and the quality of the same; to confirm all the settings, press Save .
How to record with Audacity from external source
If we have a mixer or another external audio source, we can connect it to the PC using a 3.5mm jack cable, to be connected to the blue socket of the same name (usually present behind the PC). If we wanted to make a high quality acquisition, we recommend considering the purchase of a dedicated sound card like this -> Creative Sound Blaster Z (€ 83).After connecting the external audio source, open Audacity and select, in the same drop-down menu seen in the previous chapter, the Windows DirectSound driver, accompanied by the name of the mixer that we intend to use and the number of channels to be acquired (in the drop-down menus just next to it) ).
We immediately carry out tests by starting the sound from the external audio source and checking that the power lines at the top right move (we can always adjust the volume of the acquisition with the cursor under the Play button).
To start recording just press the Rec button, while to stop it we use the Stop button. With the Play button we can listen to the recording immediately, so as to evaluate its acquisition before saving it to an MP3 file (always using the File menu -> Export -> Export as MP3 ).
How to record PC sounds with Audacity
One of the most appreciated features of Audacity is certainly the possibility of acquiring the sounds emitted by the same operating system (system sounds and notifications) or the sounds emitted by programs (including browsers).To do this we open Audacity on our computer, move on the famous drop-down menu for the choice of drivers and configure Windows WASAPI in the first drop-down menu and the Loudspeakers item (loopback) in the second drop-down menu right next to it.
Now the program is configured to be able to acquire system sounds, including music that we can start on any Internet browser. To start recording we click the Rec button (taking care to start the sound to be recorded immediately after), while to stop we use the Stop button. With the Play button we can immediately listen to the recording and, if satisfied with the result, we can save everything in MP3 using the File -> Export -> Export as MP3 item.
Conclusions
As we have seen, Audacity offers all the tools to be able to record from numerous audio sources in a simple way, with the possibility of saving also the sounds emitted by the PC (including the sounds emitted by the browser or by other multimedia programs).Still on the subject of audio recordings, we can read our guide on how to record audio and sound on a PC from a microphone, web or other sources, so that we can also test excellent alternatives to Audacity.
If we are looking for a valid alternative to acquire sounds from Web pages, we recommend reading our article on How to record audio from the Internet and PC with the Windows recorder .
