Effects Don't Stick

Audacity Help Forum Windows
1

Using Audacity 3.1.3 with Windows 10.

After I edit voiceover narratives, I “shape them” using 3 effects: Noise Reduction, Normalize, and Filter Curve EQ. If I save the Audacity file, and then open it up, none of these has “stuck.” I need to do them all over again.

Is this the way it is supposed to work? That is, do I need to do the effects, then export into WAV and then just assume the saved Audacity file will not have the effects applied?

2

OK, so I’m confused. Are you talking about saving the Audacity .aup3 project file or Exporting the .WAV file.

Regardless, if you open an .aup3 Audacity project file, modify it (e.g. with Effects), then save it, the changes will be reflected in the updated .aup3 project file.

Is it possible that you opened/imported a pre 3.0.0 .aup project file then saved it as a .aup3 project, then re-imported the original .aup project, and not the newly saved project ?

3

I’m confused too… When you apply an effect in Audacity it gets applied immediately (unlike a how a DAW normally works).

You can optionally “undo”, but not always if you don’t undo right away.

But the original file is not touched (unless you export and over-write it) and the project won’t be changed if you don’t save or re-save it. Typically you’d export as a new WAV (or MP3, etc.) with the original unchanged.

4

Sorry I wasn’t clear.

Here is my question/issue:

  1. I edit a voiceover/narration in audacity.
  2. I then apply Effects to improve the sound. I know these Effects “take” because I can see the waveform change, and I can hear the difference.
  3. I save the file in .aup
  4. But when I open it back up later, most of the effects (like Filter Curve EQ, Normalize) are gone. Like I never applied them.

So my question is : Is this “normal”?

I know I can export into .wmv. But if I ever want to go back into the .aup to re-edit, I would like the previously applied Effects to already be part of the file.

My workaround is to import the .wmv back into Audacity and start a “new project.”

Thanks for yourhelp.

5

Not if you are using Audacity 3.1.3.
“.aup” was the file extension for projects made with Audacity 1.x and 2.x, but the format changed in Audacity 3.x. The new project format is “.aup3”.
After saving the project, look for a “.aup3” file.

6

Sorry I was imprecise.

I am saving in .aup 3. I am using Audacity 3.1.3. None of these files was ever saved in and earlier (non-aup3) file format.

Thanks.

7

No, that’s not normal. In fact, it sounds impossible unless:
a) You have not actually saved the project.
b) You have two or more versions of the project (2 or more projects with the same audio) and you are getting mixed up about which is which.
c) Magic / haunted / supernatural phenomenon.