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Audacity

Score7.8 out of 10

107 Reviews and Ratings

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What is Audacity?

Audacity is a free and open source audio recording and editing software.

Categories & Use Cases

Reviews

What users are saying about Audacity.
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Audacity for audio podcast produciton

John KostuchView profile
Host in Social Media at CentreSteer Media (1-10 employees employees)

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Audacity does the work. I use it to edit and produce my podcast. Audacity has the features need to efficiently produce my podcast. The UI is clear and easy to use. I am able to import the files easily and export in the file type needed for the podcast. Audacity processing is fast and efficient; and the program is stable and reliable.

Pros

  • displays tracks for ease of editing and ordering
  • imports all necessary file times
  • efficiently processes files for export

Cons

  • easier to grab and re-order tracks, the grab area is small
  • I am constantly zooming in and out to grab a small piece of track; make it easier to grab an audio clip
  • a button to move the focus to the beginning of the tracks

Return on Investment

  • I don't have to pay for a good audio editing program.

Usability

Other Software Used

Descript

Audacity youll learn it as fast as you output

Incentivized
Gabriel ZangView profile
Product Specialist in Information Technology at Techdinamics Integrations Inc. (51-200 employees employees)

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Easy and fast editing of audio content for video tutorials and training animations. Raw content is provided and generated for projects of all the company's sectors, and we can easily handle cutting, improving (through effects) and preparing these for production.

Pros

  • Provide easy cutting and merging tools
  • Great and easy to simple effects
  • Export in many useful formats

Cons

  • Customizable multi-panel workspace panels
  • AI transcripted audio, for ease of locating audio chunks
  • Color highlights of the audio work area for special operations (focus, loop, delete, etc.)

Return on Investment

  • Boosted sales
  • Sped up production times
  • Sped up collaboration efficiency due to very low learning curve

Usability

Alternatives Considered

Sound Forge and Adobe Audition

Other Software Used

Adobe Premiere Pro, OpenShot Video Editor, Freemake Video Converter

Audacity review

Incentivized
Verified User
Consultant in Information Technology (1-10 employees employees)

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

I have used this program to record outgoing messages and ringtones for clients. I have also used it to increase the volume of certain digitally recorded cassette tapes. Sometimes a straight recorded outgoing message can have issues with volume and speed. Audacity makes it easy to adjust speed and volume. Not sure if there is another free program that can do this. Garage Band is more complicated. Also, when creating ringtones you can get very precise easily.

Pros

  • trimming
  • volume adjustments
  • increasing or decreasing speed of recording

Cons

  • clearer editing tools for novice

Return on Investment

  • It will help me stand out, as being an individual.
  • I am not a typical computer user.

Usability

Alternatives Considered

GarageBand and Avid Pro Tools

Other Software Used

QuickBooks Desktop Pro, Cyberduck, TeamViewer, Malwarebytes, Affinity Photo, Affinity Designer, Affinity Publisher, PDF Expert by Readdle

Value, Ease of Use and Efficiency for Podcasts

Incentivized
Alex GreenwoodView profile
Principal and Owner in Professional Services at AGPR/AlexanderG Public Relations, LLC (1-10 employees employees)

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use Audacity to edit and record two podcasts. It is a major help in efficiency and affordability.

Pros

  • Edit Audio for podcasts or commercials.
  • Record Audio for podcasts or commercials.
  • Convert Audio for podcasts or commercials.

Cons

  • Sometimes Audacity will update and create an issue for users, but those are generally resolved quickly.
  • The learning curve may be steep for newbies.
  • It occasionally hangs up my computer and I have to reboot.

Most Important Features

  • Edits MP3s quickly
  • Ease of use
  • Free

Return on Investment

  • It has saved us hours of time.
  • It has saved us lots of budget.
  • It is an indispensable part of our workflow.

Alternatives Considered

GarageBand

Other Software Used

Canva

Archivist experience with Audacity

Incentivized
Holly Fitzpatrick
Kelley School of Business Selection Archivist Assistant in Marketing at Indiana University Bloomington (5001-10,000 employees employees)

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

I use Audacity for audio recording, editing, normalizing audio levels, and more. It's especially handy when I need to sync prerecorded audio segments to a presentation so it can be viewed more than once by attendees at their own pace. The program offers quite a bit of functionality for a free software.

Pros

  • Splicing audio segments together
  • Recording & re-recording directly in the program
  • Editing sound levels so segments aren't dramatically louder or quieter than another

Cons

  • Adding more instructions: it's a simple program but users may need an external guide to get started
  • Automatic filter for background noise
  • Speech to text captioning

Most Important Features

  • In-program recording
  • Simple audio splicing, editing, normalization
  • Export to suitable file types, MP3 WAV FLAC

Return on Investment

  • Very positive ROI given it is a free program
  • No subscription fee!
  • Open-source, can add plugins as needed

Alternatives Considered

iMovie

Other Software Used

Adobe After Effects, Adobe PhotoShop, Microsoft SharePoint, iMovie

Usability