How to Mix Music with GoldWave
The program GoldWave Digital Audio Editor allows you to use your computer as a high-end audio recorder and editor. While not a multitrack mixer, Goldwave works well with stereo and mono tracks. Mixing two digital audio files into a single track will create a professional sound for your own music mix, fading the end of the first track into the beginning of the second.
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Things You'll Need
- Windows-based computer
- GoldWave Digital Audio Editor
- Two or more audio files that you'd like to mix together
Instructions
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Download and Install GoldWave
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1
Download the latest version of GoldWave from GoldWave.ca. You'll see the setup program "gwavexxx.exe" ("xxx" stands for the current version). Double-click this file and follow the installation instructions. GoldWave will start automatically at the end of the installation routine.
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2
Once GoldWave has started, click the "Open" icon to find and load your first sound file. The program can open a variety of audio file types. GoldWave's file browser includes a "Preview" button (the blue triangle on the right side of the browser window) that allows you to listen to any sound file before loading it. Double-click the sound file of your choice, and you'll see a new window that contains the wave form image of the file.
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3
Make a copy of your work and make your modifications to this new file, not your original. Click the "Copy" button and then the "P.New" button. This command copies the contents of the original and pastes it in a new window. GoldWave will call this file "Untitled1." Close your original file to keep from accidentally making changes to it.
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4
Click the "Open" button to find and load your second audio file. Click the "Copy" and "P.New" buttons on this second file and close the original. At this point, you will have two sound file windows ("Untitled1" and "Untitled2") that contain new copies of your two original clips.
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5
To create your music mix, fade the first file into the second file. Select "Untitled1" and click "Copy." This command puts the whole song into the clipboard. Select "Untitled2," select "Edit" from the menu bar and click on "Crossfade" in the drop-down menu ("Ctrl+D" works, too). The "Crossfade" window will open.
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6
The graphic at the top of the new window will show the "Untitled2" wave form on the left and the clipboard wave form on the right. To reverse this order, click one of the radio buttons in the clipboard position box, selecting either "End of selection" or "Beginning of selection." Immediately under this graphic you'll see slider that allows you to set the duration of the cross-fade. You can choose from .01 of a second up to 20 seconds. The "Preview" option available on the right side of this window lets you hear what your mix will sound like. For now, stick with the default choice of "Linear" in the Fade Curves box, the standard cross-fade sound for mixes. If you want to experiment, use the "Undo" button to eliminate experiments you don't want to keep.
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7
Listen to your new file. If you hear what you wanted to hear, save it under a new name (click "Save"). If it doesn't meet your expectations, click "Undo" and begin again.
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8
To add another song to the mix, repeat steps 2 through 7. Treat your newly created combination as a single song and fade the new third tune to the end of it.
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Tips & Warnings
You'll get better results when the two source files are of similar volume. You can use "Effect--Volume--Maximize Volume" on each file to bring them to the same level.
A CD player will not recognize your mix as individual songs.
Save your work often as you proceed through the steps.
References
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Comstock/Getty Images
