There seems to be no end to the stream of audio software being released for playing music and organising your collection but if you actually happen to be involved in the creative process you may notice a distinct lack of variety in the tools on offer. Sure Pro Tools does it all but not everyone is willing to fork out hundreds or even thousands of dollars for the required breakout box and other associated hardware. For those with a slight interest in audio editing and who would like to get a taste for what is involved, Digital Audio Editor proves to be a great platform, both thanks to the basic set of editing tools it offers and its pleasant, easy-to-use interface.
On getting started you can open any audio file you have saved or record a track from a CD or for example, your favourite internet radio station. Once you’ve chosen the sample rate and made a recording, you are given a visualisation of the wave form on both the left and right stereo channels. On a very basic level, you can simply select chunks of audio and manipulate them as you want; cutting, pasting, copying or mixing. Luckily, for those who like to experiment, you can set the level of undos available anywhere between one and one thousand meaning that even if you make a complete mess you can still get back to the original sample. However, if you do go into detailed editing beware that the trial version doesn't allow you to save files.
Of course, it features all the tools you'd expect to help you fade in and out, normalize samples, convert sample rates and add delay effects among others. However, when choosing an effect to add, there is no way to preview how it will sound which compares poorly to Sound Forge, another quality audio editor that lets you hear a short clip of the audio with the effect applied. In the case of Digital Audio Editor, this could well lead to a lot of time wasted waiting for effects to load and then going back again to adjust them to perfection.
All considered, Digital Audio Editor warrants its price tag of $40 (considering the professional solution will set you back $300), especially for users who have simple editing work to do such as cleaning up a podcast or correcting the sound levels of a mixed track. However if you are intent on doing some serious editing work then you would be better served by the pricier but more complete Sound Forge. As such, this makes a great option for beginners, hobbyists or anyone who's just curious.
