Audio recording software has come a long way from being a simple record button embedded in the operating system. These can be as complex as Adobe Audition or as simple as the Sound Recorder in Windows.

All these have their own purposes. While for the vast majority of us, the built-in audio recorder in our operating systems would be just fine, some might require a little bit more control over the way their audio is recorded. 

Audacity provides the perfect platform for such scenarios. It’s free and open-source, so you aren’t exactly making an investment and at the same time, it has a bunch of features that can give you a lot of controls with recording and editing audio.

In this article, we’re going to talk about how you can record audio using Audacity.

Also read: How to turn up Mic volume in Windows 10?

Recording audio using Audacity

Before we get started with recording audio inside of Audacity, make sure your mic is connected to your PC, switched on and functional. 

Step 1: Launch Audacity and make sure that the desired mic is selected in the mic drop-down menu.

Step 2: Next make sure that you’ve selected the desired recording channels. The drop-down for selecting recording channels is right next to the one for selecting the mic.  

Step 3: Once you’ve ensured the right settings are in place, hit the big red dot button to start recording your audio. 

Alternatively, you can also press R to record or Shift + R to record a new track in case you’re recording in mono. 

Step 4: Press the Stop button to stop the recording. If you want to pause the recording and resume it again, use the Pause button to the left of the Stop button.

Step 5: Once you’re done recording, head over to File and select Export; then export your recording in the desired format. You can modify things like the output quality and filename at the time of export. 

Also read: How to turn up Mic volume in Windows 10?