Audacity Problem - Volume Peaking at 0.5

How can I prevent a half-volume mono recording?

This can occur when connecting to one channel only of a device that has separate left and right channel inputs. Recording in mono will often result in a half-volume track that cannot be made louder without adding distortion. If this happens, record in stereo using Device Toolbar, then use the Audio Track Dropdown Menu to split the stereo track and close the silent channel.
(Link)

GVST Gsnap / VST's not showing up in Audacity

If you've installed the VST correctly, then it should show up in Audacity. However, if it isn't,  remember that Audacity does not recognize 64-bit plugins. So if you used a 64 bit plugin, try again with the 32 bit version.

Best Free Reverb Plugin for Audacity

My favorite reverb plugin for Audacity is one called Ambience by Smart Electronix. Ambience sounds great, comes with a great selection of presets and can be downloaded for free Here.

VST plugins aren't showing up in Audacity

If you attempted to add VST effects into Audacity, but they didn't show up in the effects dropdown box, make sure you didn't upload the 64 bit version. Currently, Audacity only supports 32 bit VST effects.

Best Compressor For Audacity - Plus Settings

I have discovered from experience that the compressor that comes with Audacity leaves much to be desired. So I searched high and low for a good replacement. The best, and most popular, is called "Chris's Dynamic Compressor" and can be downloaded Here.

To learn how to add VST effects into Audacity, check out my other post Here.

And here are the settings that I often use:

Settings Option 1

Compress ratio: .8
Comp Hardness: .35
Floor: -28
Noise gate falloff: 2.0
Max amplitude: .85 (depending on the file, sometimes .70)

Settings Option 2

Compress Ratio: 0.85
Compression Hardness: 0.5
Flor: -32
Noise Gate Falloff: 2
Maximum Amplitude: 0.95 (or 0.85)

Click on picture below for larger resolution

How To Add VST /.dll effects into Audacity

Once you have downloaded your VST (.dll file), you will need to move the .dll file (for example, Gsnap.dll) into your Audacity VST plugins folder.

But how do you find that folder?

1) Click on your "C Drive" and look for "Program Files".
2) Click on "Program Files" then search for an "Audacity" folder.
3) Then click on "Audacity" and look for a "Plugins" folder.
4) Then click on "Plugins" and paste in your newly downloaded .dll file

Next, you have to get Audacity to search for this file. To do this:

1) Open Audacity
2) Click Edit
3) Scroll Down and click on Preferences
4) Click on Effects
5) Check the box that says "Rescan VST effects next time Audacity is started"
6) Restart Audacity
7) Enjoy!

Audacity Problem: Skipping / Slowing While Recording (Windows)

1) Quit all other applications. The main issue that was slowing Audacity for me (and causing skipping) was my online backup software, which I eventually uninstalled. Some programs that might be slowing down Audacity may include a lot of the programs that appear in the "System Tray" for Windows users (in the task bar, near the clock). For example, you probably won't be needing instant messenger programs or the like while you're recording.

2) Beware of program automatic updates (such as Windows Update). They can make heavy demands on CPU or disk access at just the wrong time.

3) Turn Off Windows Firewall: Control Panel\System and Security\Windows Firewall\Customize Settings

4) Increase the Priority of Audacity: Windows 2000/XP/Vista/7 users can try Task Manager to increase the priority of Audacity once it has been launched. Access Task Manager by pressing CTRL + ALT + DEL, then click on the Processes tab. Select audacity.exe under "Image name", right-click over it and choose one of the priorities above normal. "Realtime" is not generally recommended. Try "Above normal" or "High". Sometimes, reducing the priority of any other programs you must run can help too.

5) Record to RAM. In Audacity, click: Edit, Preferences, Directories, then check the box that says"Audio cache". This will record to RAM (which is much faster than disk writing) then write to disk after recording finishes. Installing more RAM may help skips even if you don't use "Audio cache". To

6) Turn off "Auto-scroll while playing" on the Interface Preferences: ("Update display while playing" in Tracks Preferences in legacy Audacity 1.2.x). This stops the display re-drawing as the recording is made, freeing resources for recording. Alternatively minimise Audacity during the recording.

7) Try Restarting Computer: If you've tried all of the above suggestions but still experience skipping and slowing, try restarting your computer. Sometimes a fresh restart can close applications that were running in the background.

Problem: Audacity Vocals Seem Thin

In the new Audacity update, it seems to me that the vocals are thin. Equalizing the vocals made them sound even more processed. Thank God I had the old version of Audacity on my old laptop. Re-installing that fixed the "tinny" vocals. Here's the link!

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/j0t39xuog0lgpbv/DhOnKNWWpk

T Pain Gsnap Settings for Audacity

Min Freq = 40
Max Freq = 2000
Gate = -80
Speed = 1

Threshold = 320 cents
Amount = 100%
Attack = 1 ms
Release = 1 ms

Pitch Bend = 0 cents
Vibrato = 0 cents
Vib Speed = 0.1 Hz
Calibrate = 440 Hz

Great Free Autotune VST Plugins for Audacity (and other programs)

1) Gsnap. After lots and lots of testing, my personal favorite free pitch correction plugin is Gsnap. You can download two versions here:

http://www.gvst.co.uk/gsnap.htm (Newest Version)

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/gza2ayr4ylfuqe3/AADelAd4TdoDFr8UXQff-nUna?dl=0 (Older version)

2) Kerovee. My 2nd favorite free pitch correction plugin is called Kerovee. Kerovee can give your voice an awesome T-pain sound if you want. It can be downloaded at the following link:

http://www.g200kg.com/en/software/kerovee.html


3) Autotalent version 2. My 3rd favorite free pitch correction plugin is called Autotalent (version 2). Autotalent is extremely simple, yet surprisingly effective. Here's the link!

http://www.olilarkin.co.uk/downloads/oldplugins/autotalent/

Click here to read my other post about how to add VST effects (.dll files) into Audacity