I used Audacity on Fedora linux 15 years ago to read my old vinyl records using a USB turntable. At the time that worked absolutely fine and I managed to read over half of my records.
I’m now trying to re-open some of those old projects and each time I try, Audacity just crashes.
Opening one of the .aup files in a text editor tells me that those projects were created under Audacity 1.2.6. I’m now using 3.5.1/3.7.1.
The current version is supposed to open, but not save, the old format.
I’m not sure if this is the same as version 1.2.6, but I think so.
The old project format has small AUP file, and a bunch of little AU files, in a folder with the same name. Sometimes the AUP file was copied or backed-up somewhere and then you’d have an incomplete project.
You can download older versions of Audacity here but they only go back to 2.0.
…Didn’t you create WAV or MP3 files, or some other standard audio format?
FYI - An audacity project file isn’t normally needed for digitizing analog.
Rumor has it that 3. 3. 3 is supposed to reliably open old projects.
Below is a complete Project.
The two have to have the same name and they have to be in the same location or folder. No option. The AUP file tells Audacity how to construct the show from all those little 6-second sound files. Yes, they are intentionally randomly named.
Do you have both parts? Splitting the project by accident was a very common problem and is the main reason Audacity doesn’t do it that way any more.
Some of the files were converted to mp3 but due to various disc crashes a few months ago I lost about half of them, yet still have the audacity projects backed up.
Audacity came with the USB turntable so that was what I used. It was quite convenient for cleaning big crackles and pops that were lifted, and of course the whole disc side was one single file and audacity helped me split them into individual tracks nicely.
I just found it easy to work with.
I’ve got all the folders and the .aup files sitting alongside each other. I don’t appear to have lost any of those.
Hi, yes, fortunately I do still have all the folders alongside the .aup files. I’ve just gone and checked and while I cannot load any of them, they are all still there.
I can open and play each little .au file. Can you play yours?
What did you mean some of the files were converted to MP3? If something tried to “help you” by messing with the .au files, that may be the end of the world.
That’s good for a starting point. I have PCs with versions 3.7.4 and 3.3.3 of Audacity. If you want me to try to open and convert one of your ‘lost’ projects using 3.3.3, I’m happy to do that just to discover if it works. If it does work and you are using 3.5.1 & 3.7.1, I’d suggest dumping 3.5.1 in favour of 3.3.3 which is very solid. Be sure to reset your preferences in Audacity before using 3.3.3 in anger. That way you can open them in 3.3.3, save them and then should be able to open/edit them in 3.7.1.
If you want me to try opening one of your projects, please answer on here and I will send you a private message with instructions.
Mark B
Next time… Save at least 2 WAV or FLAC backups. FLAC is a popular archive format. It’s lossless, about half the size of WAV, and tagging/metadata is more standardized.
And most players can play FLACs if you have the storage space.
Or, buy the CDs or MP3s if they are available, or subscribe to a streaming service!
If I load them individually into Audacity, then yes, I can play them, but just double clicking on one tells me “The stream is in the wrong format.” Not sure what’s trying to open it.
If they open and play in Audacity you can export in the format of your choice… Or you can re-save in the new AUP3 format if you’ve got a reason for that.
I’ve tried to reply to the email you sent me but I keep getting a none delivery message. Please can you confirm your address, or shall I post the swisstransfer link here?
Well, no, because each .au file is only about ten seconds of sound. I’d have to work out the correct order and then join them all together in the correct order.
They are six seconds each and were intentionally designed so the filenames make no sense. You would think this would be insane, but I’m recalling this was done to stop run-away file damage under some conditions.
I can tell you that in a stereo (two channel) show, the little .au files alternate Left-Right-Left-Right.
If you have a way to reveal each file time and date, that does work, although it might take you the rest of your life to construct one Project.
More of us could take a shot at it if you mounted a project on an on-line file service and posted the address. You can post the address in Personal Messages.
I could open one of Dave’s projects using Audacity 3.3.3, save it as aup3 and send it back to him. Version 3.7.4 of Audacity would NOT open the old files. Only the label track was intact. I’m waiting to see if he can open it with his versions.
“I love it when a plan comes together” - Hannibal Smith (The A Team)
Mark B
Yes, I wish more people realised this. Are you sure newcomers can send personal messages? Some people I’ve helped say there is no blue ‘Message’ button. There was a thread where Steve explained it was an anti-spam measure.
Mark
The much more magic problem is resetting the hidden Configurations and Settings. Audacity keeps your customizations in a separate location so that as you update the program, you don’t have to carefully go to every setting and return it to where you like it. The settings are “sticky.”
If you return to an earlier Audacity, your environment may get stuck in the wrong Audacity, or just damaged.
A note about 3.3. 3. Yes, it has good stability and can open older Projects.
But.
You need to be in Audacity 3.6.x or later to access the Audio.com on-line storage. Earlier Audacity versions require you do all your work on the computer internal drive.
Save your work on the internal drive and close Audacity. Now you can move the work to wherever you want it. Move works to the internal drive before you open Audacity.
My silly joke is you can put your shows wherever you want, you just can’t let Audacity see you doing it.
The Audio.com on-line storage is not a license to use all drives. You only get to use Audio.com’s on-line service and your internal drive.
FLAC is a popular archive format. It’s lossless, about half the size of WAV, and tagging/metadata is more standardized.
