New User needs help with vocals

I am a new user of Audacity, I don’t understand the lingo and I need help. I have version 1.2.4 and Windows 7. I imported a digital voice recording and can not get the recording to sound like the voices that were recorded. I’ve read the online manual, I’ve gone through the FAQ’s and read through this forum, but have been unsuccessful in solving my problem. I’ve slowed down the speed, fiddled with the pitch, but haven’t been able to get anything other than distorted sounds. I’m not sure what I should be looking for and have been fiddling with just about everything. Can someone help?

I’m surprised that Audacity 1.2 even runs on Win7. You should upgrade to Audacity 2.0, so we’ll have a fighting chance to get all this working.

http://audacityteam.org/download/

Now. Everybody always skips lightly over the most important bits. Recorded exactly what and how under what circumstances? Part numbers, number of people, how far from the microphone? Has this ever worked before? Is the equipment paint still damp it’s so new?

Are you recording a theatrical drama in your living room? A podcast around your dining room table? A rock concert?

Are the voices harsh and cracky, popping, muffled? Do they sound like Donald Duck? Are there holes in the performance?

We need to build your life in our heads in order to figure out what happened. You can’t give us too much information.

Koz