How to Add Alert Sounds to a Mac OS X Leopard

On a Mac OS X Leopard operating system, you can give your computer a custom audio alert instead of using the generic tones installed by default on your computer. As long as the audio clips are AIFF format, Mac OS X allows you to use all kinds of clips, including musical tracks, a voiceover, or musical theme. Get creative and add your favorite alert sound to your operating system

Instructions

1. Double click the "Macintosh HD" drive on the desktop and click "Home" on the left panel. Navigate to the "~/Library/Sounds" folder and double click it to open it. The "~/Library/Sounds" folder contains all the sound files used on your operating system.

2. Locate the sound clip you want to add to the alerts from the location you have it on your computer and drag it into the "~/Library/Sounds." Make sure the sound clip is in AIFF format. If your sound clip is in another format, convert it to AIFF using iTunes. To do so, launch iTunes and click the "Preferences" menu. Click "General" and click "Import Settings."

3. Choose "AIFF Encoder" in the "Import using" menu and click "Custom" in the "Settings" menu. Select "48.000 kHz" sample rate and a 16-Bit sample size. Select "Stereo" under "Channels" and click "OK." Click "OK" again.

4. Import the sound clip you want to convert to the iTunes library. After importing it, click the sound clip and click "Advanced." Click "Convert Selection to AIFF" to convert the sound clip to AIFF audio format. When the conversion completes, drag the newly created AIFF audio clip to the "~/Library/Sounds" folder.

5. Click the "Apple" log on the top left corner on your screen and click "System Preferences." Click "Sounds" and click "Sound Effects." You should see the AIFF file you uploaded together with other sound clips in the "~/Library/Sounds" folder.

6. Select the AIFF audio clip you uploaded to activate it as your new custom sound.

References

• Apple Support: How to Convert MP3 or AAC Files to AIFF Format