Hi all. First post from elderly computer dummy with elderly, but fully functioning, PC running xp with sp2. Bear with me…
So - Audacity 2.0.6 successfully downloaded.
MP3 successfully dragged, dropped, opened and edited.
I go to save my MP3 and discover that with a ‘non-audacity’ project MP3 I have to export - and to export an MP3 I need Lame or FFmpeg 2.2.2.
So I install Lame (from the right place)…but when I go to export my MP3, Audacity doesn’t open the hoped-for ‘export as MP3’ window (as seen in screenshots). Instead I get the standard windows save (but called ‘export…’) window with a menu of all the PC’s destinations I might want to save stuff to. So I give it a go and save/export to desktop. I get a data folder with 100+ tiny files of edits (VLC identified in my case) that I try to manually install…not the brightest idea : /
I check help/forums…
I check for old Lame .dll (is that right?), find one from 2006(!) and delete. I remove the two MP3 lines from the notepad-opened (I forget the extension) file, as advised…
Still no MP3 export window.
So I delete Lame, reboot and download FFmpeg 2.2.2 for Audacity 2.0.6. No change.
I re-check on the help/forum and go looking for library preferences. I find it! Very proud of myself. Preferences tells me that valid FFmpeg libraries have been found - do I still want to manually download? No, I don’t believe I do.
I try one last time to save my edited MP3 as an MP3 - - no change. No joy.
What edits are you making to the MP3’s? Every time you re-encode an MP3 in Audacity you lose quality. If you are just making volume edits and cut and paste edits, you can do that losslessly in MP3 direct editors.
There is no “Export as MP3” window in 2.0.6 - it’s called “Export Audio”. To get to that window, use File > Export Audio… . In the window you come to, choose “MP3 Files” to export MP3. I suggest you read only the current documentation here http://manual.audacityteam.org/o/man/file_export_dialog.html.
If you see hundreds of AU files you have not exported MP3, you have saved an Audacity Project. If you want to access that project, you have to open the AUP file for that project. Try opening the AUP from File > Recent Files top left of Audacity.
I’m snipping, fading and tempo changing - so far - on a stereo audio track of solo flute stuff. That’s a lot of little edits, but I’m only importing and exporting once. I hear what you say about loss of quality but not too bothered with this project. Whatever, I’ll check MP3 direct editors. Thanks for the link.
‘Export Audio’ with an ‘…as MP3’ option -Yep, that’s what I’m looking for. But the link you gave me for the LAME download is the one I used - and for the FF download. And I followed intructions to the letter. Promise. Including the troubleshooting instructions, as per OP. Didn’t work with the exe files. I guess I should try zip files - you think?
(I deleted all those AUP files. I could try to get them back from the bin…just to see what happens, but I want to get my ‘Export audio’ window functioning. I don’t mind doing all the editing again.)
Scrap the last part of that last post - I’ve found the Audacity project, saved as you predicted, sitting on the desktop. Opened it with Audacity and all’s good. No need to re-do! Problem remains how to save/export it as an MP3.
Should I delete the FF thing befor re-installing LAME as a zip and seeing if that works?
To begin with, simply import the MP3 you want then File > Export Audio… . That Export Audio window appears even if you don’t have LAME or FFmpeg installed. If you don’t see that window at all then you didn’t get Audacity from us. In that case I would uninstall the Audacity version you have now, and reinstall Audacity from Audacity ® | Download for Windows. Make sure that half way through the installer, you check (tick) the box that says “Reset Preferences”.
Have you now reinstalled LAME? I would do so - the instructions for using FFmpeg to export MP3 are more complex than if you have LAME. Alternatively, yes you can use the ZIP version of LAME. You can simply put the lame_enc.DLL file (extracted from the ZIP) in the same folder where Audacity is, then Audacity (supplied by us) will see LAME automatically.
FFmpeg does not interfere with LAME so you can leave FFmpeg installed. FFmpeg can still be useful if you ever want to import Windows Media files or import audio from video files.
Ooops. I DO have the ‘Export Audio’ window (dummy, see?). I did download the proper version of Audacity, from the link you gave, Gale. I’ll re-install LAME as a zip.
LAME zip for windows downloaded and sitting, for the time being, on my desktop. And here’s where my knowledge base runs out.
The read-me says:
To build, replace the file "lame-3.98.2DllBladeMP3EncDLL.def"in the LAME source code with the one in this archive…
I took at stab at what that might mean. I got as far as Edit > Preferences > ‘MP3 Library: Locate,’ where I’m asked to give the location of lame_enc.dll (‘lame_enc.dll’ already entered and waiting to be over-written, I guess)…
I need baby-step instructions from here on. Would you or another helpful soul oblige?
Audacity can’t see it there. Right-click over the downloaded ZIP file and click on “Extract All”. Then you have a folder containing lame_enc.DLL, the README and the def file. Just ignore the README and the DEF file. Copy the lame_enc.DLL to the folder where you have Audacity installed and paste lame_enc.DLL in there.
You will need to be logged in as administrator if Audacity is installed in Program Files.
And by the way, I’m duty bound to refer you to this post showing you the risks you are running with XP, especially with SP2: audacity not saving - #3 by Gale_Andrews
I should have said: I have already extracted the file onto the desktop, so I do see the 3 files - and I get that the DLL is the only one Audacity needs.
Copy the lame_enc.DLL to the folder where you have Audacity installed and paste lame_enc.DLL in there.
See, that’s the bit I don’t understand. I don’t understand exactly what I need to do to 'copy the lame_enc.DLL to the folder where have Audacity installed’ - and then ‘paste lame_enc.DLL in there’.
So if you could please tell me exactly how to find where Audacity is installed (I know the name of the location - see above - but don’t know how to access it other than via the start >search do-dad), and then tell me what to do to ‘copy the lame_enc.DLL to that folder’…and then what to do to ‘paste lame_enc.DLL in there’, I’d be dead grateful : )
[At the risk of displaying just how dumb I can be about these things, this is what I tried: To find out where Audacity lives and access it, I used the start > search function. From the selection of temp, exe, etc files that showed up, I assumed that ‘C:Documents and SettingsApplication DataAudacity’ is the folder I’m looking for(?). So I drag/dropped the lame_enc.DLL file into the window containing that folder, closed search, and re-started Audacity. Audacity is still looking for the lame_enc.DLL…]
OK, but most users find that easier than locating the lame_enc.DLL in Audacity’s Libraries Preferences.
And even that should not have been necessary if when you installed LAME, you installed it to its default location in Program Files (or Program Files (x86) if you have a 64-bit machine).
That’s the folder where Audacity keeps its application data, like the audacity.cfg file that Audacity stores its settings in.
Audacity.exe should be what you are looking for. That should be either the installer, or the Audacity application itself.
Otherwise, have you tried looking in the Program Files/Audacity or Program Files (x86)/Audacity folder? That’s where most people install Audacity.
Guess what? I found programme files! Yes. And, within it, all the Audacity files! I’ve got my unzipped LAME DLL sitting on the desktop, eagerly awaiting something useful to do with itself. So now…?
Edit: I couldn’t wait, so I tried to export my audio as MP3 and - hey presto - it happened!! So that’s it…or is there anything else to be done? …Can I delete the BLADEMP3…DEF file that came with the zip (as well as the Read-me?)?
Well, if you are satisfied with our unsurpassed, almost immediate technical support, would you like to make a donation http://audacityteam.org/donate/?
The only other consideration may be if you are satisfied with the MP3 quality. If it sounds a bit honky or tinkly, press Options… in that Export Audio window and change to a higher bit rate. If you want the file smaller and want to risk more loss of quality, reduce the bit rate.
