I am a new user, so if this is really basic, forgive me, but I can’t figure it out. I have a MIDI file and I just need to simply convert it to a WAV or MP3 file so that I can use it in Adobe Captivate. Can anyone help? Thanks.
You need to play the MIDI file in a suitable media player, for example QuickTime player, then record it following the method described here: http://audacityteam.org/wiki/index.php?title=Recording_audio_playing_on_the_computer
Hmm… not quite sure why you would want to spend money on that when you can do it in Audacity for free. Oh well, each to his/her own.
Regarding voice-recognition programs:
Can we use Audacity to record a conversation then ask this voice-recognition program to ‘listen’ to the Audacity recording and type the information
to a document? Could this also be saved as a MP3 file?
Sure, why not. You’ll probably need a pretty fast computer though.
Thanks for all the kind responses, but I have a MIDI file that I downloaded for free off of Microsoft’s web site and I need to convert it to WAV…how would I do that in Audacity? Can someone point me? Thanks again.
Stevethefiddle gave you the right answer in the first response you got …
Basically you can’t import Midi music directly into Audacity. Midi is not an audio format like WAV or MP3 - rather it is like a set of instructions: play this note for so long, then this other note for so long etc. (like the difference between a recipe and a meal). So what yo have to do i s to play it it some sogtware that will play MIDI - while at the same time recoirding it in Audacity.
WC
another possibility is to use http://solmire.com an online service to convert your midi to mp3 and then import it into Audacity.
hope it helps
<<<Basically you can’t import Midi music directly into Audacity.>>>
What he said. MIDI isn’t music. MIDI is a list of instructions. You have to have software or hardware that understands the instructions and then the software or hardware produces the music.
That’s one of the MIDI problems. If you feed the same MIDI file into my two keyboards, you will get different instruments playing the music. So yes, there’s a software product needed in the middle.
If you have a big enough music production system, you can intentionally cross the MIDI instructions. You can have the Sonata for Piano in B-Flat playing on a steam calliope. A performance not to be missed.
Koz
Nice 
I’d not come across that before, but it works pretty well.
Yet another option is to use TiMidity++ to directly render the MIDI file as a WAV.
I’d like to share my experience with one program. It is very easy, you can simply drag and drop necessary files to its window and click “Convert”. Converting is fast, only a few seconds. There are many instrument sets, it is possible to adjust sound by using soundfonts. I use MIDI Converter Studio for a long time and will recommend it to all.
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Thanks for the recommendation Georgie, but personally I’ll stick with Timidity++ on Windows. It’s a bit old now (as is the MIDI format itself) but it still does an excellent job, and on Windows it is very easy to use. The other major advantage is that it is FREE.
For Linux users there is also the excellent FluidSynth, which is probably the best SoundFont player available. It does run on Windows and Macs, but currently it needs to be built from source code for these platforms. I think the developers are looking to bring out a “binary” for Windows which will make installation on Windows much easier. (FluidSynth is also free, open source software).
I know about a good music editor, MIDI to MP3 Converter http:_//_maniactools.com/soft/midi_converter/index.shtml. It transfers midi to audio formats in a few seconds without using sound recording. Besides, it is possible to choose different instrument sets.
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Yes, but unlike Audacity, this one isn’t free. You need to be careful not to bump up against the problem of posting commercials on the forum.
Koz
Given the number of free midi to wav/mp3 converters that are easily available I think it is unnecessary to place adverts for commercial programs unless there is some overriding reason why the commercial program will be of benefit to forum users.
This Google search will give well over a million hits: http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=midi+converter+free