Overview

Similar to video files, audio files can end up becoming unnecessarily large. However as humans can't often easily tell the difference between high/low quality audio (especially if they are using poor hardware), files should be compressed. Please note that these tips are for students/staff submitting work in which the audio's functionality is more important than the quality.


Contents


Editing audio with Adobe Audition

Tools

The university provides video editing software on most university machines. For the tips outlined in this guide we would recommend using Adobe Audition.


Exclamation mark iconImportant: 

  • Before you proceed with any of these suggestions, be sure to keep a back up of your work as the quality of your audio could potentially be lost permanently.
  • It can be tempting to use 3rd party software that compress files for you - but beware that many of these sites could infect your device with a virus.


1. Reduce audio length

The easiest step is to ensure that you remove any unnecessary audio from the final version. Normally this can be achieved by trimming the beginning and end of the audio as well as removing any long pauses throughout. You might also want to consider rerecording parts of the audio that could be shortened. 

2. Select the correct file type

The type of file you choose to save your audio with will have the biggest impact on file size as well as quality. MP3s for example are one of the most popular file types for generating small file sizes, however the quality of audio will be reduced. If you would like to maintain quality then it is best to utilise a file type such as FLAC, however the file types WAV and AIFF are uncompressed and should be avoided. Adobe Audition allows you to do this as you export the file.

Selecting an audio file type, in this example a .MP3.

3. Lower The sample and bit rate

When you use Adobe Audition to create your file it is possible to lower the bitrate which will reduce the file size. This reduces the amount of data stored at each second in the track which will unfortunately compromise audio quality. 

Lowering the bit rate on an MP3.

Hyperlink iconLinks: View the Supported File Formats In Adobe Audition guidance for more information.


Question mark iconFurther Support

For general queries about the Learning Space, students should first contact their module leader or personal tutor. For any other comments or issues within this guide, please contact the Digital Learning Team via dlsupport@falmouth.ac.uk. Alternatively, please refer to the numerous help guides found on our Knowledge Base


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