Lost in the past

[audio_pete]

I had a process to digitize audio material on my Mac setup.
But I seem to have forgotten some of the step and/or Audacity has moved on past me.

Please let me know if this is still possible.

The tape player / record player was connected directly to the Mac.
Volume set very low to avoid clipping.

I brought the file into Audacity and exported it a a double ??? highest numeric accuracy file.
I found the loud(est) part and determined how many times to multiply value and not clip.
then I multiplied the entire file with that value 1.83x.
just like it was a math problem.
this was my "normalized" file that I saved.

And of course, I did not write this process down
so am probably crazy.

Was there ever an Effect where you could multiply the data?
Was there ever a "save as" whee you could save file as double precision?
I am pretty sure there was something like this, is it in an older version of Audacity?

[Trebor]

Was there ever a "save as" whee you could save file as double precision?
I am pretty sure there was something like this, is it in an older version of Audacity?

Can "save as" different bit-depths, 16/24/32, which are the precision ...


https ://manual.audacityteam.org/man/file_export_dialog.html

Personally I can't hear any difference between 16-bit & 32-bit versions of the same audio.
CD quality recordings are 16-bit, so plenty good enough for vinyl, IMO.

[audio_pete]

Thanks for reply.

I think you are right but "remember" or think I remember that Audacity used a bit different terminology.
I was looking at from a mathematical perspective not acoustics.
Minimize rounding errors in the multiplication by using the format with the most decimals,
not trying for the last listening decimal.

I guess Amplify effect has taken the place of whatever I used to use.
Pretty black boxy to me, and with little or no explanation.

[steve]

If you're happy with "black boxy", then just ensure that the "Quality" Preferences are like this: https://manual.audacityteam.org/man/qua ... ences.html
Then use "Normalize" (https://manual.audacityteam.org/man/normalize.html) to bring the level up to -1 dB before exporting your completed recording.

If you need more detail, I could go on for pages so probably better if you ask specific questions so that we can give reasonably concise replies.

[audio_pete]

Thanks for reply.

Went back to manual for Amplify

Realized the first line of the WARNING !

"When the Amplify dialog first appears it shows in the Amplification (dB) box the amplification amount needed to create a New Peak Amplitude of 0 dB, thus maximizing the volume of the selected track. If this is your goal you can just click the OK button"

should be the first line of the instructions.
I just saw a "tutorial" that just said to delete values and hit enter ; )

But otherwise am happy with what the warning says
only hope to capture the normalization already applied to the tape / record not re normalize.

One other problem though is that I have an old version of Audacity
with out the Manage button.
So have no idea how the module actually works.

[steve]

One other problem though is that I have an old version of Audacity

Any reason to not update to the current version? (it's free: https://www.audacityteam.org/download/mac/)

[audio_pete]

A bit gun shy on updates.

Right now I have Adobe Photoshop CS5 running on my computer.
Could have CS6 but not much there.

How many upgrades would it take before I began to have to rent software online
AND depend on my pitiful online connection to use.

When I used a mainframe
I had a dedicated TIE line connecting me
my only wait was on the other people in line.

Also Apple has gotten so big, its hard for it to keep track of everything.
If you want to backup IOS devices to your own disks
you better keep track of which IOS version and iTunes version you upgrade to.

That said
I upgraded to latest Audacity after reading the fine print.

Update ok
but the promised "Manage" button had nothing to do with the underlying settings of the "Amplify" effect,
no "advanced" controls over or explanation of the algorithm.

[audio_pete]

Found part of my memory.

Turntable connected to tiny cheap RCA Integrated Stereo Amplifies
plugged into computer (Mac Mini).

After recording music
have the option to save as "64 bit float" (AIFF).

Used that and some kind of numeric multiplier then
but think the "Amplify" buttons will accomplish same thing.

I just want a copy of what is on the vinyl
not remix or re normalize
and not introduce any new clipping.

This is in place of these kind of instructions:
"Pick out the loudest section on the record and adjust recording settings"

[Trebor]

After recording music
have the option to save as "64 bit float" (AIFF) ...

I just want a copy of what is on the vinyl ...

64-bit is overkill: 16-bit will cover the dynamic-range of vinyl.

[waxcylinder]

Realized the first line of the WARNING !

"When the Amplify dialog first appears it shows in the Amplification (dB) box the amplification amount needed to create a New Peak Amplitude of 0 dB, thus maximizing the volume of the selected track. If this is your goal you can just click the OK button"

I've toned down that div box for the alpha Manual for the upcoming 2.4.0 manual - I turned it into a "tip" rather than the mare scary "alert" warning.

WC