Pontypool
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Q: How do I edit QuickTime audio recordings?

How do I make simple edits of QuickTime audio recordings? Very basic, please, as I'll have to teach myself.

 

I have a late 2011 MacBook Pro, currently running on Yosemite, although I should probably upgrade to El Capitan.

 

I've made a number of simple audio recordings on QuickTime for a local history site - but why doesn't there seem to be a facility to Edit them on QuickTime? All that the Trim option seems to do is cut off one end or another. Once edited, I'll need to export the recordings.

 

I've researched installing Audacity or WavePad, but there seem to be many pitfalls, as well as being far more complicated than I need. Surely what I want should be very simple?

 

Any suggestions appreciated!

MacBook Pro, OS X Yosemite (10.10.3), 2.4 Ghz, Intel Core i5

Posted on Mar 9, 2016 12:10 PM

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Pontypool

Q: How do I edit QuickTime audio recordings?

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  • by Duane,

    Duane Duane Mar 9, 2016 1:09 PM in response to Pontypool
    Level 10 (124,018 points)
    Mar 9, 2016 1:09 PM in response to Pontypool

    What exactly are you trying to do? You mention "simple edits" but then the trim tool doesn't seem to be enough.

     

    What pitfalls are you worried about by using Audacity?

  • by Pontypool,

    Pontypool Pontypool Mar 9, 2016 1:20 PM in response to Duane
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Mar 9, 2016 1:20 PM in response to Duane

    Hi, Duane, good to hear from you.

     

    Maybe I've been using the Trim tool wrongly - all I seem able to do is to trim sections off the start or the finish of the clip. I don't seem able to take out sections as I go along.

     

    As for Audacity, I think my QuickTime files are AAC, and wiki says this:

     

     

    When I googled FFmpeg it became rather complicated around what sort I would need...

  • by Duane,Helpful

    Duane Duane Mar 9, 2016 1:31 PM in response to Pontypool
    Level 10 (124,018 points)
    Mar 9, 2016 1:31 PM in response to Pontypool

    The instructions for installing the FFmpeg library are in the Audacity wiki.

     

    Mac OS X

    • Installer:
    1. Go to the external download page
      Left-click this link, do not right-click.
    2. Directly underneath "For FFmpeg/LAME on Mac OSX click below:", left-click the link ffmpeg-mac-2.2.2.dmg and save the file anywhere on your computer.
    3. When you have finished downloading, double-click the DMG file to mount it (if you download with Safari, the ffmpeg virtual disk image will be extracted and mounted automatically after downloading). If the DMG window is not on top, go to Finder, then under "Devices" on the left, click the "ffmpeg-mac-2.2.2" DMG.
    4. In the DMG window, double-click the "ffmpeg-mac-2.2.2.pkg" to launch the standard OS X package installer.
    5. Click through the steps in the installer, accepting the defaults in all cases. This will install the FFmpeg libraries in /Library/Application Support/audacity/libs.
    6. Restart Audacity if it was running when you installed FFmpeg then Audacity should detect FFmpeg automatically.
    7. If you have problems with Audacity detecting FFmpeg, follow the steps to manually locate FFmpeg.

  • by Pontypool,

    Pontypool Pontypool Mar 9, 2016 1:33 PM in response to Duane
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Mar 9, 2016 1:33 PM in response to Duane

    Okay, thanks, Duane, I'll give Audacity a try...

  • by Alberto Ravasio,

    Alberto Ravasio Alberto Ravasio Mar 9, 2016 2:46 PM in response to Pontypool
    Level 5 (4,070 points)
    Mar 9, 2016 2:46 PM in response to Pontypool

    Maybe Fission is what you are looking for.

  • by Pontypool,

    Pontypool Pontypool Mar 9, 2016 3:07 PM in response to Alberto Ravasio
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Mar 9, 2016 3:07 PM in response to Alberto Ravasio

    I've had a quick look, Alberto - thank you for the suggestion.

     

    Can you tell me any more in simple terms - why do you like Fission, can you rate the Free download against the Purchase?

  • by Alberto Ravasio,

    Alberto Ravasio Alberto Ravasio Mar 9, 2016 11:18 PM in response to Pontypool
    Level 5 (4,070 points)
    Mar 9, 2016 11:18 PM in response to Pontypool

    Fission is a commercial product. It's not free. The free download is a sort of fully functional trial and as stated

     

    "Before purchase, audio saved with Fission will be degraded via audio fades"

     

    All the program's features are explained on the page I gave you in my previous post.

  • by Pontypool,

    Pontypool Pontypool Apr 24, 2016 12:34 PM in response to Alberto Ravasio
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Apr 24, 2016 12:34 PM in response to Alberto Ravasio

    Thanks, Alberto, it's taken me a while to get back to you as Life intervened. I'll think about the Fission option, so thanks for the help.