Tech: Audio slow-down program for practice

Subject: Tech: Audio slow-down program for practice
From: Bill D
Date: 25 May 06 - 11:19 AM

I found this in my meanderings...looks useful!
http://www.xs4all.nl/~mp2004/bp/

BestPractice
A free audio time-stretching tool for Windows
v0.98 - January 15th 2006

What?

BestPractice is a tool to slow down or speed up music, either from a file or directly from a CD. The thing is, that ordinarily the sound is distorted when slowed down our sped up - you get the effect like when playing a 45 rpm record on 33 rpm speed. BestPractice tries to correct this, so you can slow down and speed up music, while keeping the original tune. Since version 0.3 you can also change the pitch of the music without affecting its length.

Subject: RE: Tech: Audio slow-down program for practice
From: katlaughing
Date: 25 May 06 - 11:43 AM

That's excellent, Bill! Thanks!

Subject: RE: Tech: Audio slow-down program for practice
From: pavane
Date: 25 May 06 - 11:50 AM

There are a number of these programs around.

By a similar method, i.e. fiddling the sampling rates, you can change the pitch without changing the speed - some Karaoke equipment can do this.

Subject: RE: Tech: Audio slow-down program for practice
From: BanjoRay
Date: 25 May 06 - 05:47 PM

The best of a bunch that I've come across is The Amazing Slowdowner, from www.ronimusic.com. You can isolate small parts of the track and repeat them endlessly, change the pitch to suit your instrument, infinitely variable amount of slow-down, and still sounds intelligible when you've slowed it right down. Excellent. There's a free trial version which gives you full features, but you can only use it on the first couple of tracks of a CD.
Cheers
Ray

Subject: RE: Tech: Audio slow-down program for practice
From: Bill D
Date: 26 May 06 - 11:01 AM

And here is another which will do similar things http://nch.com.au/scribe/index.html It is designed for transcription, but says it will play 'most' relevant audio file types (including Real Audio!!)...I will be testing it, as my wife does a lot of transcribing.

"Express Scribe is professional audio player software designed to assist the transcription of audio recordings. It is installed on the typist's computer and controlled using the keyboard (with 'hot' keys) and / or can be used with a transcription pedal. This computer transcriber application features variable speed wave playback, foot pedal operation, file management and more. This program is free."

Subject: RE: Tech: Audio slow-down program for practice
From: Paul Burke
Date: 26 May 06 - 11:07 AM

BestPractice is really good, I especially like the duck quacking in the background sometimes. A few artifacts that make e.g. bagpipes rather gurgly when slowed down a lot, and it could really do with a position bar so you can nudge bak to hear a bit again, or forwards to the difficult part. But very promising.

Subject: RE: Tech: Audio slow-down program for practice
From: Geoff the Duck
Date: 26 May 06 - 02:19 PM

I think that I might find a duck quacking distracting.
Quack!
Geoff the Duck.