Audacity can load VST effects on all the operating systems like Windows, Linux and Mac, but it cannot load the VST instruments. In this case, there is no need for the VST enabler at all. The plugin of VST effects are found in several websites like Hitsquad: Windows, Mac, KVR Audio: Windows, Mac, Open Directory (Windows, Mac). Audacity is an open source, cross-platform audio editor and recorder. Audacity can record and play sounds and import and export WAV, AIFF, MP3, and OGG files.
Good Audio = Practice + Quality equipment + Audio editing. Now, the first two takes time and money, but the third one is easy to master. All you need is a small program called audacity.
So, Audacity is a popular audio editing software that has been there for a decade now. People use it to record and edit your musical instrument, podcast, or voice over, etc.
And in this post, we’ll see how to improve your voice over with Audacity. (video tutorial)
Improve your Audio with Audacity
#1 Download Audacity
You can download Audacity from here and install it on your computer as you do with any other program. The program is free and available for all popular program like Windows, Mac, and Linux, etc.
Once done, open Audacity.
#2 Record or Import your Audio.
-> If you have already recorded your audio using some external device, like a portable mic or something, then just import that recording to Audacity.
To do this go to File > Import > and select your recording. It’s always a good practice to create a copy of your voice recording, before importing it Audacity.
-> Or you can also record your audio with Audacity itself. Yes, Audacity is both an audio recorder and editor.
To record your audio with Audacity, connect your mic with your computer (or use the built-in one), make sure the right mic is selected under the input device. Next, click the red button to start recording and start speaking. Once you are done, click the Stop button.
#3 Remove Bad Audio
Only professional get their audio right in the first attempt. And since you are reading this, chances are you are not a professional (at least not yet). So let’s remove the repeated audio or gaps you have in your audio.
Select the portion of the waveform you want to delete and click the scissor icon. You can also press the delete key; it’s much quicker.
If you can not delete the selected audio, make sure you have stopped the recording.
ProTip: If you make any mistake like deleting something accidentally, then use the undo/redo button on Audacity (CTRL+z and CTRL + SHIFT +z).
#4 Remove Background Noise
Unless you are recording your audio in a professional studio, there will always be some background noise or hum sound. So let’s remove it.
First, select a sample of pure noise and go to Effects > Noise Removal > Get Noise Profile.
Now that Audacity knows what to filter; go back to your recording and select the entire audio (press ctrl+A). Now, again go to the noise removal dialogue box. Make sure you have default settings (see the screenshot below) and hit OK.
Usually, the default settings are sufficient. but, if you have more noise in your recording then move the slider next to Noise reduction to the right and then hit OK. Audacity will remove all noise from the recording.
Pro Tip: It’s good practice speak after 5 seconds after pressing the start button. This way you will be able to pick up the noise quite easily.
#5 Normalize

What normalization does is, it increase the audio level of the entire clip without affecting the dynamic range. So, if your sound is low, this will increase it.
But if you overdo this (or any other effects per se), it will kill your audio quality.
So select your entire clip (CTRL + A) and go to Effect > and then Normalize. Keep the settings as default (see screenshot below) and hit the OK button.
#6 Compression
Now, what compression does it decrease the difference between low and high of your audio, such that your audio sounds more even?
So, again select your audio clip, go to Effects > Compressor.
What settings should you use? Well, there is no fixed value for it, since it depends on the individual voice. I suggest you play a little bit with the threshold (keep it between -5 and -15). Keep the rest as default and hit the OK button. You will notice a reduction in the high and low end of your waveform.
#7 Equalization
We’ll add two filters here — Bass Boost and Treble Boost.
Bass boost makes your voice sound more bassy or deeper. So again select your entire clip, go to effects > equalization > select curve > bass boost.
Now, adjust the curve. By default, it’s 9 dB. If you bring the curve up, it’ll add more base to your voice and vice-versa.
Next, we’ll add Treble Boost; itmakes your voice crisp and clear. To do that repeat the same process and as we did above. Select the entire clip > go to effects > equalization > select curve > treble boost. Again, I like to keep it between 3-6 dB. And then hit OK.
However, I highly recommend not to overdo them because this may increase your voice quality, but at the same time, you are also sound like someone else. And when you speak without these filters your audience will not know who you are.
#8 Hard limit
This is optional, but applying these filter may increase the amplitude of your voice over. So if you see spikes in your waveform that touches the ceiling, then use the hard limiter. It chops off the high pitch.
Select the entire audio > effect > scroll down till you see Hard limit. Under dB, limit selects the value between 0-5 dB and keep other two as default and hit OK.
Pro Tip: Add Chain
Finally, once you get the sweet spot in your recording. You apply the chain effect to automate everything you just did. This will save you a lot of time.
To a new chain go to File > Edit chain > Add > Give it a name. Then click on the insert option in the right half of the dialog box and add the effects one by one.
To apply the chain to a current project, select the entire clip > File > Apply Chain > Select your chain and apply it to the current project.
Closing Words
So these are some settings I use to improve my voice over. Now, this is just an overview; it will take some trial and error to get the best settings for yourself. That said if you have any problem let me know in the comments below.
Jul 09,2019 • Filed to: Record Audio • Proven solutions
What is the best Audacity plugin? Are there any better alternative for Audacity ?
Audacity is open source software that is absolutely free to download and install. This software is compatible with Windows, Mac, Linux and several other platforms. This is not only a great sound editor, but a audio recorder as well. This software is sometimes limited in certain cases, but they can be overcome with the help of a lot of Audacity plugins that are available for download absolutely free. Several Audacity plugins, like LADSPA Plugin, LV2 Plugin, Nyquist Plugin, VST Plugin, Audio Unit Plugin, and Module Plugin are available to amplify the performance of Audacity. The above mentioned Audacity plugins have been used by several people and are very popular.
Part 1. Best Audacity Alternative to Record Music from Any Sites
iMusic is a recommended music downloader, recorder and powerful tool to manage music. With iMusic, you can easily record music or any playing audio in your Mac or Windows PC with its well-balanced audio recorder. Further more, you can directly download hot music tracks from 3000+ sites like YouTube, Pandora, Spotify, etc. Let's have a quick glance at iMusic's outstanding features.
iMusic - Best Alternative for Audacity You Deserve to Own
- Built-in music library to discover hot music track, artist, or playlist.
- Download music tracks from 3000+ music sites like Pandora, YouTube, Spotify, SoundCloud, etc.
- Record music or any audio played on your Windows PC or Mac with a well balanced recorder.
- Transfer music between iDevices and Android, from PC to mobile devices or vice versa.
- Help rebuild, repair or backup iTunes Library on Mac, even in a PC Windows computer.
- Powerful music toolbox which helps to transfer music to usb, burn cd, etc.
Why Choose This Audacity Alternative
Hard Limiter Audacity Mac Download Version
- The most important feature is its ability to play as well as record songs automatically. Whenever a person is viewing a YouTube video or listening to some music of choice, the only thing the person needs to do to get the song is just press the 'Download' or 'Record' button. There can be nothing more easily done than this. The files will get saved in either the MP3 or M4A format. It automatically gets rid of the advertisements in between the tracks. The recording is a continuous procedure unless it is stopped. The settings can be adjusted in such a manner that the advertisements get filtered out automatically and the tracks are also split in an automatic fashion.
- Original sound quality is maintained by the use of a virtual sound card that captures the recorded audio and saves them in either MP3 or M4A format. The quality of the sound is customizable. It can be anything from low to high quality. This software helps to record anything that plays on Mac and save them for hearing later.
- The third feature is something of a specialty. It helps to identify the artist, title of the song, albums etc. with ease. This is done with the help of ID3 tag identification technology. This is really a ground breaking technology that gives user an unforgettable experience. This technology helps to fetch information about the music being played, from the internet.
- This software allows a person to download and store unlimited amount of music. If a person is interested in hearing music from several radio stations around the globe, then this is the best software. More than 500 radio stations are present for the person to select his or her favorite music.
Steps to Record Music by Audacity Alternative
Step 1: Download iMusic on your desktop, navigate to 'Download' interface, then find the 'Record' button.
Step 2: Go to a streaming music site to choose your favorite songs and play it . At the same time, click the 'Record 'button to start the recording process.
Step 3: After the recording process finished, you could find your recorded songs on iTunes library.
LADSPA Plugin
This is one plug-in that is mostly in use for Linux based machines. The full form of LADSPA is Linux Audio Developer's Simple Plug-in API. Audacity has got in built support for all the LADSPA Plugin. This is an API that is used for audio filtering and audio signal processing purpose. Although this API was initially developed to work on Linux platform only, but later on, it was adjusted to work on several other platforms as well. Numerous audio LADSPA Plugin are available for free to download and use as per the requirement of the user. ladspa-sdk-1.12-1.i386.rpm [7.3 | 8.0 | 9], ladspa-sdk-example-plugins-1.12-1.i386.rpm [7.3 | 8.0 | 9], ladspa-sdk-1.12-1.src.rpm [all], ladspa-sdk-1.12-1 [fc1], ladspa-sdk-example-plugins-1.12-1 [fc1], ladspa-sdk-1.12-1 source [all], are some of the LADSPA Plugin available for use to increase the RPM.

LV2 Plugin
This is actually an upgraded version of LADSPA. Audacity has in-built support for the LV2 Plugin as well. This plug-in is mostly built for Linux based machines, but Audacity is open ended software that supports LV2 for all kinds of operating platform. This is a great option for all Audacity users. For installing the plugin of LV2, a person needs to place the plugin in the system LV2 locator and then restart Audacity. The plugin actually support the generation and processing of all audio files that are run through Audacity. LV2 is actually replacing the older LADSPA plug-in which is a bit limited performance wise. LV2 has got MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) facility and that is missing in LADSPA plug-in. LV2 Plugin can almost behave like instruments, and this is missing in LADSPA. The most common LV2 Plugin include a delay, an equalizer, a compressor and a reverb. These are just some of the basic LV2 Plugin.
Nyquist Plugin
Audacity does have built-in support for Nyquist Plugin as well. It is always possible for a user to download more Nyquist Plugin or program more Nyquist Plugin as per the need of the user by using Nyquist programming language. Audacity does not limit the use of this plug-in to a specific platform, but it can be used in any platform that is running Audacity. For the Audacity audio editor, the Nyquist Plugin actually fulfill the purpose of analyzing the job.
VST Plugin
Audacity can load VST effects on all the operating systems like Windows, Linux and Mac, but it cannot load the VST instruments. In this case, there is no need for the VST enabler at all. The plugin of VST effects are found in several websites like Hitsquad: Windows, Mac, KVR Audio: Windows, Mac, Open Directory (Windows, Mac). VST Plugin while working in tandem with Audacity makes editing and mixing of sounds very easy and the final output is really awesome. This plug-in is very high quality sound effecting modules, and they are far better than those that come inbuilt with Audacity. So people that need very high sound mixing quality or need the editing of sounds to be perfect favor the VST Plugin. The plug-in includes noise reducers, sound compressors, sound enhancers and several other important sound editing options.
Audio Unit Plugin
Audacity Hard Limiter Plug In
This is another great set of plug-in that goes well with Audacity and it only works on Mac platform. A system plug-in directory is the place from where Audacity loads this plug-in. Each time a new Audacity is installed in a machine, it will not automatically recognize the already existing audio units within the system. It has to be enabled from the plug-in manager of Audacity. Similar to the VST Plugin, the Audio Units display their full range of GUI interface. There are some limitations of this Plug-in as far as display is concerned. It does not always display the full range of bands selected, as it cannot resize itself automatically. The go around strategy involves selecting the number of bands and then closing it. After closing as soon as it is re opened, all bands fit in smoothly.
Module Plugin
Some new features can be added to Audacity using experimental modules. To load modules into Audacity requires a person to follow certain steps. The first requirement is to add the 'Modules' folder within the installation folder of Audacity. The second step involves adding the files like mod-nyq-bench.dll (Windows) or mod-nyq-bench.so (Mac OS X) in the folder 'Modules'. Then, the person must resort to restarting Audacity and opening the 'Modules preferences'. It can be seen that the file is showing as new, and this means that no choice or preference has been made yet. Now the person has to click the drop down and shift it to 'Enabled'. After changing, the person needs to pres 'OK' and then restart Audacity. As soon as Audacity restarts, a person can see the different modules to work on as per his or her preference.