I am looking at bat sound files, so using lots of very high frequency short WAV files. Every time I open up a file and close it within Audacity and open up a new file it open up Audacity in another window. So once I have finished going through for example 28 files, Audacity has opened up 28 times in other windows. I don’t want to have to open and close Audacity every time I want to open a file but this seems to be the only way for to prevent this from occurring. How can I move between files easily? Thank you.
Use File > Import > Audio… to import files into the same project window.
If you have more questions, please tell us what version of Audacity you have (see the pink panel at the top of the page).
Gale
Hello Gale.
Thanks for the response. When I do this there is a Error importing pop-up:
“file name” is an Audacity project file.
Use the file>Open command to open Audacity projects.
When I first opened files there was a pop up that asked how I wanted to open the files, one option was with a duplication and one was direct from source (I think). I opted for the direct from source option (this was the first option of the list I think) and checked the box to not show the pop-up again.
I am using 2.1.2
Sorry I sure it is very simple,
Sarah.
If you saved an AUP Audacity project, those must be opened in separate Audacity windows. Check if you still have the file that you imported into that project. If you imported a WAV file into that project and used the direct from source option, you can open the AUP file in a text editor like Notepad to see the name and location of the WAV file (it will be mentioned as “aliasfile”).
If you open the AUP file in a text editor, be careful not to change the file accidentally.
Note that if you choose the direct from source option when importing a WAV file then save a project, you must not delete, move or rename that WAV file. This is because the project depends on that WAV file continuing to exist in the same place and with the same name. It is much safer to copy in the WAV files.
You can still change back to copy in. Edit > Preferences… then choose the “Import / Export” section. Select the “Make a copy” button at the top and click OK.
Gale
I think you need to open each and every aup file you have (not all at the same time!) and export each and every one of those as a WAV file.
Then you’ll have a library of sounds to work with. You can import as many wavs into one Audacity project as you like.
Now you have a bunch of projects you can’t listen too simultaneously.
I guess you’ll be recording at 192 kHz sample rate, so the settings for your export need to be 192/16 or 192/24 bits if you need to retain the full dynamics for something else than just playing back.
Depending on what the goal is, filtering everything below 5 kHz or so might be beneficial, especially when playing back to other bats.
Hello,
Thank you. I had no idea I was not able to delete, move or rename the WAV files. I started renaming them all with a prefix of the bat species recorded within that file. I have back ups.
Why would I want to save an Audacity project? Rather than the WAV files?
Thank you, this is really useful information. I have not used data like this before so it’s a bit of a learning curve!
I have been recording at 384000 to get the higher bat calls in the area. Natterer’s bats vocalize upto 145 kHz.
Regarding the settings for exports, do I set this by the following: Edit>Preference>Quality>Default sample rate 384000kHz.
Thank you.
You would want to save an Audacity project if you wanted to continue editing the WAV files in another session. “Editing” means doing things like cutting pieces out, or removing noise or making the file louder or softer.
When saving a project and only reading the WAV files “directly” from source, you can’t rename or move the imported WAV files.
Projects can contain more information than a WAV file can, for example “envelope points” for volume adjustments over time, but only Audacity can open Audacity projects. So for using the WAV files in other applications like Windows Media Player, you have to File > Export as WAV.
Gale
You can move or rename the WAV files when you’re done editing and no longer use the project files.
I seldom save Audacity projects, as I use Audacity mainly for small edits, like noise removal, cutting and cleaning up. That’s usually less than half an hour per audio file, so there’s not much use in keeping the project around.
Why would I want to save an Audacity project? Rather than the WAV files?
Someone who mixes music, might take weeks to work on the project and will probably need to save the project and export only when the tracks are mixed down to stereo.
I have been recording at 384000 to get the higher bat calls in the area. Natterer’s bats vocalize upto 145 kHz.
Even common mice can attain 125 kHz when they are really excited. I don’t think we have Myotis here. But I’m not a specialist in bat species. I’ve only recforded them for a friend who is a biologist, studying bat colonies. He uses sound patterns to help determinate species and count the number of members in colonies.
Regarding the settings for exports, do I set this by the following: Edit>Preference>Quality>Default sample rate 384000kHz.
If you mainly do bat sound, I’d set that as a default too.
Thanks this is really helpful.
I haven’t been editing the files at all, and will not need to (as far as I am aware). All I need to do is look at them and (ideally) change the prefix of the file name so files can be instantly recognisable by the species of bat within that recording. So I don’t need the project files either. So if this is the case I can rename the WAV files? Or not? I was only saving as Audacity Project files as I had no idea what I was doing and was experimenting.
“If you mainly do bat sound, I’d set that as a default too.”
I only do bat sound. I thought the defaults were set in Preferences. If not, where else do I need to set this? Thank you.
Do you need to see the waveform to judge the bat species? If not you could much more quickly use a good file management program like xplorer2 which has audio file preview. Select the WAV, play it then rename it in the file manager.
For 100% safety do not rename the WAV while it is displayed in Audacity, whether you save a project or not.
That said, you can rename the WAV while Audacity is open as long as you are 100% sure you copied the WAV in and did no read it directly.
The Default Sample Rate is set in Preferences. But if you only work with one bat file for each Audacity window, Audacity will change the project rate to the rate of the imported file whatever the Default Sample Rate is.
Gale