File opens in mono

[rjlump55]

I'm running XP Pro. with Audacity 1.2.6 installed. I have this ver installed on a Win 7 sys at the church where the live recordings are done. I save the files onto the HD and then transfer them to USB drive. I will admit, I'm a new user of Audacity as I've been working with Vega Video previously. My question is regarding the opening of a saved file recorded with Audacity. When I open it the file is in "mono" and not stereo. Yes, it was recorded in stereo and when the file is played, it plays in stereo mode. I've opened files to add to the project and they open in the stereo mode, so I'm not sure what is happening.
rjlump55

[kozikowski]

When I open it the file is in "mono" and not stereo.

When you open it how and in what?

Yes, it was recorded in stereo and when the file is played, it plays in stereo mode.

Played how and in what? Detail is good. We can't see what you're doing.

There is a setting in Audacity called "Mix Down To xxx." I think one of the options is mono rather than stereo. I need to go find it. Dig in Audacity > Preferences.

It's sometimes startling to understand that "mono" sound files play in many if not all players to both ears, so the fact that both speakers wake up, is not a guarantee of stereo. It's you're wearing headphones and the chorus is coming from the left and the homily is coming from the right -- or some other separation event. So you could have mono files all along.

There is also Two Channel Mono where exactly the same show appears on left and right.

When you were recording the event, you got two independent bouncing sound meters like this, right?

http://kozco.com/tech/audacity/Audacity1_playback.jpg

The two blue waves are clearly different if you look a bit. It's a full stereo show.

I don't believe Audacity has the ability to open a stereo show in mono. It's always been in mono. You're calling mono because it only has one track instead of a left and right, right?


The word "upgrade" is forcing itself past my lips. Audacity 1.2 is seriously old and no longer a current product. You can have serious problems with Audacity 1.2 on modern machines.


Audacity 1.2 is very old and no longer supported,
patched, corrected, or updated. Audacity 1.2 can
be unstable on newer computers.

Download and install the latest Audacity 1.3 from here...

http://audacityteam.org/download/

You can install both audacity 1.2 and Audacity 1.3 on
the same computer, but only use one at a time.

Audacity 1.2 will not open projects made on Audacity 1.3.

If you use MP3 or some of the more modern audio
compression formats, get Lame and FFMpeg software
from the same web site. Do not use older software
or software from other web sites, even though they
may have the same names.


Koz