Sound Forge: Sound Editing Tutorial

Getting Started

• Your Workspace:

When you first open Sound Forge, your workspace

will be empty:

When you open a sound file, it will show in this window.

• The Toolbars:

There are two toolbars at the top of the workspace:

one for
editing (the Editing Toolbar), and one for
controlling the
 recording and playback of sound files (the
Transport Toolbar).

• Opening a File:
You have two options of opening files.
1. Create a new file: an empty file used for recording new material.
2. Open an already existing sound file (a sample clip, song, etc.).

To create a new sound file, either click the New

button on the toolbar,
or pull down the File menu and choose New:

To open an already existing sound file, either click

Open on the toolbar,
or pull down the File menu and choose Open.

• Saving a File:

1. Make sure your data window (see next section) is selected.

2. Pull down the File menu and select Save As.
 3. Select the folder where you want to save the file in the Save In field.
4. In the Save as Type field, choose .wav, if it isn't already specified.
5. Click Save.

• The Data Window (Sound file window):

Each opened sound file has its own Data Window.

There are some navigational buttons across the
bottom of the Window:

1. The Zoom in/out buttons controls the horizontal scale of the sound wave.
2. The Level Zoom in/out buttons change the vertical scale of the sound wave.
3. The Maximize Width button changes the view so that you can see as much of the
sound wave as possible in the window.
4. The Playbar buttons allow you to jump to the beginning or end of the sound,
play, stop, or loop (repeating continuously) the sound.
Editing Your Sound

• Playing a Sound:

There are four ways to play a sound:

1. Click Play All on the Transport toolbar.

2. Click Play on the Transport toolbar. (This will act as a looping playback.)
3. Click Play on the Playbar
4. Click Play Looped on the Playbar
 While a file is playing, a vertical bar, moving across
the sound wave,
shows where you are in the sound file.

You can also use the other controls, such as Stop,

Rewind, Forward, etc.
for further control of playback.

• Playing part of a Sound:

You can begin playing back at any point in the

sound by clicking where you
want to start, and then clicking Play. To play only
a short section in the middle,
click and drag the mouse across the segment that
you want to play, then click
Play. (Don't click the Play All button, it will ignore
the selection or placement of
the cursor and play the entire sound).

• Basic Editing Operations:

Sound editing can be used to cut clips down to size,

extend the length of a clip,
and remove extra noises between sounds, among
many other things. In the Edit
menu, there are many common editing operations:
 In order to edit any section of a sound file, you must
first highlight it.
Listed below are the common editing operations:

1. Cut: deletes a selection from the sound file, and copies it to the clipboard.
(control + X)
2. Copy: copies a selection from the sound file onto the clipboard. (control + C)
3. Paste: inserts the material on the clipboard into the sound file at the cursor
position. (control + V)
4. Paste Special:
a. Mix: mixes contents of the clipboard with the current selection. (control +
M)
b. Crossfade: Crossfades (blends the overlapping area) the contents of the
clipboard with the data in the window. (control + F)
5. Trim/Crop: deletes all the data outside of the selected region. (control + T)
6. Clear/Delete: Deletes the selection. (Delete)
7. Undo: Reverses any change made. You can repeat the undo command to return
to previous versions of the sound file. (control + Z)

• Practice Basic Editing:

Let's practice some simple cutting/trimming of a

sound file.
First, download this clip:
 Rapper's Delight

Now its time to start editing:

1. Open the sound file in Sound Forge

2. Play the clip to familiarize yourself with what you are working with.

You will notice two sections of the clip: an

introduction, and a main segment
(when the bass comes in with a new drum beat).
Our goal is to get rid of the
introduction section.

3. You can either trim/crop the main section, or delete the introduction.

a. To trim/crop: highlight the section wanted, and then click on trim/crop.

b. To delete: highlight the introduction and click delete.

To get the best cut, you want to zoom in to the spot where the main section comes in and
work from there.

After your editing, the sound clip should sound

something like this:

Rapper's Delight Cropped

Congratulations! You've successfully learned how to

do simple Editing.

Effects and Processing

• The Effects Menu:

You have the option of adding all sorts of effects to

your sound file. The Effects
menu lists the different effects offered by Sound
Forge:
 Here are some brief definitions of the effects:

1. Chorus: imitates the effect of having multiple sound sources for the same sound.
2. Delay/Echo: creates copies of the sound file which are mixed into the sound to
generate echos.
3. Distortion: distorts the sound. May make the sound "fuzzy".
4. Dynamics: alters the volume of the sound file
5. Flange: creates a wish-washy effect.
6. Noise Gate: reduces extra noise between sounds in the file.
7. Pitch Bend: Alters the pitch of the sound.
8. Reverb: simulates the acoustics of different settings, such as a church hall, a
shower, a room, etc. This effect is most commonly used. (It makes sounds a little
"warmer").

• Applying Effects:

You can apply an effect to a section of the sound or

the entire sound.

1. Highlight the selected region of the sound. (or the entire sound)
2. Pull down the Effects menu and choose the effect.
3. Change the options in that effects window to what you would like, and hit OK.
4. Listen to the sound.

Effects are a form of DESTRUCTIVE EDITING

(meaning it actually alters the file).
To reverse an effect use the Undo button.

• Practice with effects:

 The best way to know what kind of effect you need
is to have a basic
understanding of what each effect sounds like.

Download this file to practice adding effects:

You've Got Mail

First, add the effect. Then, listen to the sound.

Finally, click undo and try
another. You can also add effects on top of each
other, which can make
the sound very interesting.

• The Process Menu:

The Process menu provides you with more editing

tools for the sound.

Here are some brief definitions of the most common

Processes:

1. Fade: controls level of volume.

a. Graphic: allows you to place multiple fades throughout the sound.

b. In: fades the sound from 0 to 100 percent.
c. Out: fades the sound from 100 to 0 percent.
 2. Graphic EQ: allows you to raise and lower certain frequencies within the sound.
3. Insert Silence: allows you to place a certain amount of silent time at a cursor
location.
4. Pan: controls the left/right of the sound.

a. Graphic: allows you to place multiple points of panning throughout the sound.
b. Left to Right: pans from left to right.
c. Right to Left: pans from right to left.

5. Reverse: reverses the sound.

6. Time Compress/Expand: enables you to speed up or slow down the sound,
making the length longer or shorter.
7. Volume: controls the overall volume of the sound.

• Applying a Process:

You can apply certain processes to sections, or to

the entire sound.

1. Highlight the selected region. (or the entire sound)

2. Pull down the Process menu and choose which process you want.
3. If a dialog box comes up, set the options to what you would like, and hit OK.
4. Listen to the sound

Processes are also a form of Destructive Editing.

You must hit Undo in order
to return to the original sound.

• Practice with Processing:

Like using effects, the best way to learn processing

is to practice using the
different forms.

First, Download this clip:

Livin on the Edge

 Practice adding different forms of processes onto
selected sections of the
sound. Be sure to click Undo after each try.

Next, try mixing a few processes.

You are now ready to do all forms of Sound Editing!!