Hi. O
I’m not new to Audacity, but not an expert either. I’ve recorded tracks, edited them, compressed them. Normalised to minus 1db. No clipping. Sound great. I export them to save them. I then re-open them the next day,..the wav form is riddles with vertical red peak lines! And some wavs that were perfect when saved are now flat topped…. as if I had used a Limiter, which I didn’t. Please can anyone explain this? a waste of tow days work! Thanks all. You might prevent a suicide!
Did you export as MP3 (or other lossy format)?
Lossy compression is “imperfect” and some peaks get higher and some lower. Try normalizing to -2dB.
If that’s not the problem, check the volume slider to the left of the waveform to make sure you’re not boosting.
And note that mixing is done by summation so if you are mixing the levels will increase.
Hi DVD Doug. Thanks. I record at 48khz, (not 44.1) , and in 32 bit float. I import those wavs into Audacity; my Aidacity settings are matched at 48khz, and 32bit float. My “Quality” settings ( in Audacity “ preferences) are set at “Best/Slowest”. I really do not understand what is wrong; it is a day of work wasted each time. The file on screen looks perfect, and I normalise to minus 1db; I then listen of course before expeoring the file to save it. No prob. I then open it next day to work on it, and the wav is covered in vertical red lines, peaks. So I dont get it at all. I can only think that when Auadicty RE-imoirts it is somehow corrupting it and boosting it?? I am very careful to work at “best” quailty always. The ONLY poyher possibility I can think of is that Audacity is corruopting it DURING the exprotinging process, but as I say all my settings are for it to be saved exactly as it should be. (If I had a second editing programme I could oepn it in THAT, to see if it is only Audacity causing this; otherwise…what? My computer?? Thanks for your input, but I’m sure it is n’t me being mean with the quailty. oh! I also checked the volume to the left of the file, good point. I dont usually mess with them but just looked and they are all on 0.db; no boost. I’m only exproting three tracsk too; one is vocal. the other two are from X/Y precision mic’s on the guitar, so it is not a complex mix. Best wishes, Steve
Take a look at this post thread and see if it contains any information useful to you.
You don’t say anywhere what type of file you are exporting the audio to. If you are saving the audio to a FLAC file, it will be converted to 24-bit, which will increase the likelihood of clipping, which is what I observed in the other thread of posts.
If you are saving the audio to a format that is 32-bit float, there is some other reason for the “clipping” that you are observing.
That being said, 32-bit float has enough headroom to store the sound of a supernova, if equipment is ever created that could do that. The red you are seeing in the waveform is potential clipping that could happen when the sound comes out of a speaker.
None of this information solves your problem of why the audio you exported is not the same when you import it back again.
Hi. Tha’s me only ever doign what I do and having blinkers on. I always export as “wav/microsoft”, and at the 48Khz and 32bir float setting. . Ive no experience of using Flac or Oggs, Ac3s, etc. I ‘m not vastly techy, but Ive obly experted as Wav as I knoew it was better than MP3, or I will sometimes expert as MP3 329 KBps if I am sending something by email and I want a smaller file. So basically I am recording a Wav, 48Khz, 32 bit float on my Zoom H6 recorder. Then I get that to Audacity for tweaks, compression, normalise etc. T
I always edit and play back using my AKG K612Pro headphones, or occassionallythe closed back version for comparison. hen always play back as I edit. When happy with the sound I then export still as wav, 48, 32, and think “I’ll carry on with that tomorrow”. When I re-open the red lines are there. Worse, despite me using 32 bit float, when I then highlight the track and “reduce amplification by a acouple of DB to “tame” it again and get rid of th ered lines, the wav form is then sometimes Flat topped! So when I then listen to it in my headphones those now flattened peaks show digital noise, and I cannot rescue it. I have to then get the original recorded wavs , and start all over again. As I say I am no Great Expert, but nonehtless I have been recording my stuff, either at home or my live gigs, always as Wav, (although only as 32 bit float for a year now as my old gear didnt do that) and I have sent the end product and had it played on radio, and by the BBC etc, and I have truly never come across this problem before. It;s probably, compared to many people, pretty much “ the basics” ; and when I am recording live it is just me singing with guitar, maybe 4 minute somngs at the most, so no multiple tracks to confuse the issue. It SHOULD… be simple. But suddenly it isnt. If I hadnt been doing this succesfully for years I’d be more convinced it is just me and my ignorance ( it could still be I suppose;!) but as I say it’s not been an issue before. If you save a file that sounds good, mp3 or wav or whatver, it should surely re-open in the same as you saved it, so you can carry own with the work. I am baffled. It might be the laptop even, as I seem to be running out of Audacity options! 
I hope not of course. Thanks again; yes I should have mentioned that I only use Wav, if that helps. Best wishes again, Steve
The only thing I can think of is when you are exporting the audio to make sure that the it’s 32-bit float and not signed 32-bit.
Like I said, mixing is done by summation so the volume will increase.
Audacity works in 32-bit float so Audacity itself won’t clip. But you CAN clip your DAC (digital-to-analog converter) if you play at “full digital volume”.
One work-around is to export as 32-bit floating point WAV, which has no upper (or lower limits). Then re-import and normalize before exporting as your final desired format. It will “show red” when you import but it’s not actually clipped.
Hi DVD Doug. Thanks. I record at 48khz, (not 44.1) , and in 32 bit float. I import those wavs into Audacity; my Aidacity settings are matched at 48khz, and 32bit float.
Your ADC (analog-to-digital converter (probably) doesn’t support floating point so will clip at 0dB. It’s normal for Audacity to convert that to 32-bit float.
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