noise reduction does not work

hello, i have a strange problem:

i have a file, i do the noise reduction on it, and when i hear it in audacity (i click on the green play button) everything is fine. the noise is reduced. then i export this audio, in a file, for example wav. then i open this wav file for example in winamp AND THE NOISE IS STILL THERE!!! . BUT what is also strange, if i open this wav file in audacity again, the noise in this file IS REDUCED!!!

and i have tried to save it in different formats, like mp3, aiff, etc. always the same result!

what can i do? (i am using audacity 2.1.3 and win 7)

thanks

If you are using Windows Media Player or iTunes, then they may be playing the original unprocessed file in their library rather than the new processed file. Try using a better media player such as Foobar2000 or VLC.

Or change the name of the file. People get in trouble all the time by “stepping on” the old file with corrections instead of creating a completely new file.

This can get you into very serious trouble if the machine damages an Export. In one swoop, it can take out the corrections, the edit and the original sound file reducing you to live recording the work again.

Koz

thank you for the answers!! it worked great. with vlc there is much less noise then with another player. …but this is actually the audio file of a video. i extracted it from the video, now i have to put it back in the video…so, what do you think, in i put it back in the video, and the upload on youtube. how bad will be the noise then for somebody listening to that on youtube?? and: for that reason: which file format shall i take for the audio, wav, mp3, etc, or is there something “better”, in audacity? and when i save the video (with audio included), what format shall i use??

thank you so much!!

I know this thread is a few years old but I’m having the same issue. I’m using Audacity 2.3.0 on Windows 10.

I have imported a .wav, used the Noise Reduction effect to clear out some background noise, and when I play it back in Audacity, it sounds great. But, when I export this as a .wav, the exported file sounds just like the original - the background noise is still in there. I have tried saving with a different file name but no dice. Any suggestions?

How are you playing it outside of Audacity?

Are you using the same speakers / headphones when listening to Audacity and your other media player?

Are you exporting as 8-bits? If so, that’s normal quantization noise.

There is always quantization noise with digital audio. It’s audible at 8-bits and inaudible at 16-bits or better. (It might not be audible at 12-bits but 12-bits is not a “standard” format.)

Ah, I see where you’re nudging me. I tried it with headphones and the export file is matching what plays in Audacity. They must have been playing through different speakers before. Thanks for the help!