Audacity, for those who don't remember or are not familiar with it, is a free and open-source digital audio editor and recording software, available for Windows, macOS, Linux, and other Unix-like operating systems. The project was started in 1999 by Dominic Mazzoni and Roger Dannenberg at Carnegie Mellon University, and released on May 28, 2000.
With over 114.1 million downloads since March 2015, Audacity was registered as the most popular download software, after being previously downloaded 200 million times from other sources. In 2019, then-lead developer James Crook started the fork DarkAudacity to experiment with a new look and other UX changes. Most of its changes were eventually incorporated into the mainline version and the fork ended. In April 2021, it was announced that Muse Group (owners of MuseScore and Ultimate Guitar free open source software for music composition and production) would acquire the Audacity trademark and continue to develop the application, which remains free and open source.
Over a year later, Muse Group announced the latest version of the popular audio editor and recorder, and the introduction of their new audio.com quick sharing service. Free to all, audio.com allows creators to easily share audio files by simply sending a link to intended recipients, or to create their own catalog of original audio. Creators can make their own profile with a biography, link to their social profiles, easily upload their audio files either publicly or privately, and share projects in their account using it as cloud storage.
"Since Muse Group’s acquisition of Audacity in 2021, the intention has remained clear — to improve Audacity’s functionality and features for an easier user experience," says Martin Keary, Head of Product at Audacity. "The combination of Audacity 3.2 with quick audio sharing and cloud storage brings freely accessible music software to creators everywhere. This is an important step on our journey of turning a much-loved audio tool into a fully-fledged DAW."
"The addition of audio.com further empowers creators to build their own portfolio of original audio," adds Lukas Lyrestam, Head of Product at audio.com. "By either exporting it from Audacity or directly uploading it on audio.com, anyone now has the opportunity to easily create and share their original sound with the world, be it music or podcast."
Audacity 3.2
With Audacity 3.2, effects and crossfades can now be adjusted in real-time, allowing for changes in timing and precise edits while listening to audio — a game-changing feature for many creators. Audacity 3.2 also brings improved non-destructive audio capabilities, where creators can tweak the effects without changes being permanently written into the audio file.
VST3 (Virtual Studio Technology) support is also enhanced with the new production update. Audacity 3.2 delivers a more streamlined experience for creators with a completely rewritten code base, providing the most stable and reliable VST platform to date.
For user experience, Audacity 3.2 introduces a clearer and more consistent set of visuals in the top bar for a smoother editing experience, with the audio output bar and volume slider combined for more efficient functionality. A new ‘Audio Setup’ option also allows for quick and easy changes to input, mic and output settings. Muse Group is continuing to develop the product through user experience feedback, which will be available through regular updates.
Audacity 3.2 is now available globally for free.
www.mu.se
