Who doesn’t love cutting costs? At times, it can be a wonderful and powerful activity. However, we often find ourselves missing the luxuries we once had, such as cable TV. Even the lack of smaller things like ringtones can drive us crazy. Luckily, Guiding Tech has found a way to make our own ringtones — and we’re here to show you how to do it entirely with free apps! Curious?
We need Garageband for Windows. Until then, we’ll be using Audacity, an open source audio editing program available for Windows, OS X, and Linux. It’s a great, easy to use tool that can modify and transform audio files. In this case, we will convert an ordinary audio file into an MP3 ringtone.
First, you’ll need an audio file that you want to set as your ringtone. Don’t be afraid to be original with your ringtone! If you are completely out of ideas, people often like to include the chorus of their favorite song or instrument in their songs. No need to worry about getting caught up in finding the perfect song — you can always make a different ringtone! Make sure that this audio file is not DRM protected.
Of course, your phone also needs to be able to set .mp3 files as ringtones! BlackBerry users can certainly set their MP3 files as ringtones. I’m not entirely sure about iPhone users (though I don’t see why not), but in case you can’t, here are instructions on how to convert a .mp3 file into a ringtone file.
Now, let’s see the steps to create ringtones with Audacity.
Step 1. Download Audacity and install it.
Step 2. Then, open the audio file by dragging and dropping it into Audacity or going to File > Import > Audio. Select your audio file and press OK.
Your audio will then load up on the home screen.
Step 3. You can press the green Play button to preview your audio file. Conversely, you can also create your own talking ringtone by recording your own voice into your phone using the red Record button. I’ve heard some super funny ringtones before, so again – don’t be afraid to get creative!
Audacity has a lot of tools. In this tutorial, you only need to know one thing: the selection tool. That’s what looks like the letter I. This tool lets you select any part of a .mp3 file, and cut and paste from an audio file. Clicking once on a part of an audio file and then clicking play means that Audacity will start playing the audio file from that point on.
Step 4. To illustrate, I’ll navigate to the chorus of the song, then cut everything from before.
You can use the left and arrow keys to move the part you’re selecting: if you want to go a little ahead in the song, press the right arrow — and if you just want to move a little earlier in the song, press the left arrow.
So I highlight the part before the chorus with the selection tool. Please Note: If you’re a perfectionist and you’re planning on making your ringtone fade out, you may want to leave a small section before the chorus, so that when your ringtone fades, the transition from low to higher volume is the one that leads right up to the chorus.
Step 5. Then I cut it! Go to Edit > Crop or press CTRL + X. Audacity will automatically move the chorus to the front. Perfect!
Step 6. From here, I can save and export — but I want to make my ringtone fade out so the transition isn’t as abrupt as most ringtones are. I want a bell that gradually gets louder. So I’m going to highlight a small part of the song again.
Then I’ll choose Effect > Fade In.
Step 7. Now notice how the song fades out. Keep tweaking it if you want to tweak it. When you’re happy with your results, go to File > Export. Select the MP3 file. This will prompt you to locate a file named lame_enc.dll. You can download it here.
I downloaded the .exe version, it automatically extracted lame_enc.dll for you. Remember where it was extracted! I can’t find it right now (and Windows 7’s search is merciless – I miss Spotlight) and you only need it to locate it once.
Step 8. Switch back to Audacity and navigate to the location where you extracted lame_enc.dll. Select it and this will allow you to start exporting MP3 files. Save your ringtone and name it appropriately.
Step 9. Now all you have to do is copy and paste it into your phone. Then go to your phone settings and choose the MP3 ringtone file as your ringtone! You are done. ????
If you want to get more creative, Audacity has a ton of effects (i.e. Pitch Shift, Invert, etc.) Now you’ve just saved yourself some data and some money on downloads and you can make more ringtones! Send them to your friends and family. Enjoy!
Categories: How to
Source: thpttranhungdao.edu.vn/en/
