How to Get a Song on GarageBand to the Desktop
Apple's GarageBand is a basic audio and MIDI recording and editing suite that comes with the Mac operating system. Among digital audio workstation applications, GarageBand is recognized as one of the easiest for inexperienced digital audio enthusiasts to use. At the same time, GarageBand includes many of the tools found in professional digital audio applications, such as Apple's Logic. One such tool is the ability to export audio files to any location on your hard drive in a variety of formats, or even to an iWeb or iMovie project.
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Instructions
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Launch GarageBand. When it loads, it displays its project selection dialog by default.
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Select the project you want to export to your desktop in the dialog and click "Choose." GarageBand loads the project and displays it in its last saved state.
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Open the "GarageBand" menu and select "Preferences." The preferences dialog will appear.
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Click on the "Advanced" tab in the preferences dialog. A list of advanced options will appear.
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Place a checkmark next to the "Auto Normalize" option, then close the preferences dialog. This will ensure that the exported song will be at a good, consistent listening level, without allowing it to distort.
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Open the "Share" menu and select "Export Song to Disk." A dialog containing various export options will appear.
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Select a file format from the first drop-down menu in the pop-up dialog. Select "MP3" if you want to play the song on a variety of devices, including computers with operating systems other than OS X. Select "AAC" if you intend to play the song in iTunes or on any Apple device. AAC generally has better quality, but will result in a larger file that is limited to use with devices compatible with the format. MP3 provides slightly lower audio quality, but can be played on most digital music devices.
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Click the "Export" button. A second pop-up dialog, labeled "Export to Disk," will appear.
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Enter a name for the song in the "Save As" field.
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Open the drop-down menu labeled "Where" and select "Desktop" from the pop-up menu.
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Click the "Save" button. GarageBand encodes the audio file in the selected format and saves it on your desktop.
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References
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