Lesson 15

15. How to Download Sounds from the Internet

Resource Type:

Tutorial Video

Duration:

5 minutes

Outcomes:

Learners are expected to:

SO 2.12.          find and download sound samples from the Internet

Suggested Evaluation:

Learners can be evaluated through the completion of the following projects:

Halloween Soundscape

Radio Play

Procedure:

The Internet is a great source for finding sounds to use in Audacity projects. There are countless free sounds that can be downloaded, such as drum beats, guitar solos, explosions, thunder, barking, and interviews. These sounds are often referred to as ‘samples.’

The best way to find samples on the Internet is to start by doing a search using your favorite search engine. Do a search for “free sound samples” and explore the results. You may also want to specify the exact sound you are looking for, such as hockey sounds, or baby laugh. Your search engine will provide you with a number of results for your search.

You will find many sites with free sound samples. You should be able to preview the samples on each site before you decide to download. Most samples you will find on the Internet will either be in MP3 format or WAV format. Be sure to watch the tutorial in this series on the difference between MP3 and WAV files. For best quality, you should try to download WAV files whenever possible.

As you download your samples place them all in a folder to keep them organized. You may download many samples so you need to keep them organized.

Once you have your samples downloaded you can import them into Audacity by going to the FILE menu and choosing IMPORT -> AUDIO, or by using your mouse to drag-and-dropping the sample directly into an open Audacity project. If you are not sure about importing sound into Audacity be sure to watch the tutorial in this series on opening and importing sound files in Audacity.

Once your sample is imported into Audacity you can use your Time Shift tool to move your sample around.