Audacity automatically calculates the maximum amount

[ThunderBoyDavid]

i'm using Audacity 1.3 Beta with Windows XP Home SP3.
What i'm doing is trying to make Old MP3s sound better. Kind of like ReMastering them. i know that i'm not really doing that.
i'm just trying to make the song richer and fuller.. sound better.
i use the Amplify Effect to make the song louder. Works Great!! i saw in the documentation that Audacity automatically calculates the maximum amount for Amplify to be used.

My question is... Does Audacity also automatically calculate the maximum amount for BassBoost??
Also, is there a Tutorial on making MP3s sound better... You know.. what buttons to push?.. i know that there are an infinite number of possibilities.
i was just hoping for a guide to step me through all the settings.

What i'm trying to say is, That i am VERY New to all of this.
i don't know what number i should use for the Frequency or the Boost dB... and what is a Peak Amplitude? And, why does nothing happen when i click on the Preview button??
i just want to learn as much as i can.. Audacity is a Great Program.. and i want to use it to it's full potential.
Thanks, ThunderBoyDavid

[kozikowski]

There is no 'Make It Better" button. Yes, there are an infinite number of variations.

Effect > Amplify looks at the whole song and increases the show volume until the one loudest point in the whole song reaches maximum. If you apply effects and filters and boosts first, then Amplify will again find the one loudest point in the song.

Old MP3s sound better.

Good luck with that. If the MP3 songs were recorded with high compression (small file size), the gargling/bubbling/honking is permanent.

Koz

[ThunderBoyDavid]

Thank You.
i was wondering which i should do first. BassBoost or Amplify.
Thank You for guiding me in the Right Direction.
i just got through increasing the levels in "Sailing" by Chistopher Cross.
i applied BassBoost 1st and then Amplify 2nd. The song now sounds wonderful.
The song sounds like it's Brand New. Like it was recorded with Today's equipment.
Well... maybe not that good. But it does sound better.
Thank You for Your Time, Help and Support. i Really needed it.!!!
ThunderBoyDavid

[steve]

i was wondering which i should do first. BassBoost or Amplify.

Use Bass Boost first.

You should also use Audacity 1.3.13 (new release that contains some important bug fixes) http://audacityteam.org/download/
In Audacity 1.2 ... Oh, I see you've posted in the 1.2 part of the forum in error. I'll move this topic.