There are instances when one might want to use only the instrumental version of the song. This is most pertinent to audio production while creating small projects or short video clips. The best and most efficient way to obtain the instrumental version of the song is by obtaining the instrumental track from the master mix. However, recording companies rarely distribute instrumental tracks unless it is used as a soundtrack for a movie, advertisement or a tv show. Hence, the next best alternative is manually generating an instrumental mix from the song. This process will not work for all songs but should do fine for most purposes. 

This tutorial will demonstrate how to do this using Audacity. The software is cross platform and free so you can download it for both Macs and Windows.

First of all open the song. File --> Open

Next, you want to split the track into two channels. Click on the song title bar (on the left hand side). Click on the title bar and then select "Split Stereo Track."

Now two separate channels for the song will be displayed. Highlight any one of the two tracks, then go to Effect --> Invert.

You are pretty much done now. Just click on the song title bar for each channel and select "Mono."

You can preview the clip to test how it sounds. Now just save the song and you are done.

Please note the following.

This will only work with songs that have stereo recording (in other words most CD's and modern mp3's are fine)
The effect will not be perfect for all songs, "echo" effects of the originial vocals might still be present.

Have you ever wished to be able to play your favorite cassette tape or LP on your computer? Have you ever wanted to include a piece from a cassette tape or a LP in a presentation for your class? This is absolutely possible and it is also very easy. This blog entry will explain how to rip music to a hard drive, using the equipment in the Multimedia Technology Services office, located in Library, room 135.

You need to use the audio processing system that is located closest to the door of the MTS office. 

Recording Cassette Tapes to a Hard Drive:
Step 1: Insert the cassette tape in the JVC cassette player. You may use any of the trays.
Step 2: On the side of the computer, there is an "Analog Audio Source" controller. Press on the "Cassette" button.
Step 3: Start the Audacity application on the Mac computer, located below the JVC cassette player.
Step 4: Press the "Record" button in the Audacity application.
Step 5: Press the "Play" button on the JVC cassette player that corresponds to the tray in which you have inserted the cassette tape.
Whenever you are done with the recording, press the "Stop" button in Audacity, and then the "Stop" button on the JVC cassette player.
You may listen to your digitized recording by pressing the "Play" button in Audacity.
To save your project, click on the "File" button, located in the  top line of the screen. You may also export the project to WAV or MP3, by clicking on the "Export as WAV" or "Export as MP3" options.

Recording Vinyl LP's to a Hard Drive.
Step 1: Insert the vinyl LP in the turntable.
Step 2: On the side of the computer, there is an "Analog Audio Source" controller. Press on the "Turntable" button.
Step 3: Start the Audacity application on the Mac computer, located below the turntable.
Step 4: Press the "Record" button in the Audacity application.
Step 5: Press the "Start" button on the turntable.
Whenever you are done with the recording, press the "Stop" button in Audacity, and then the "Stop" button on the turntable.
You may listen to your digitized recording by pressing the "Play" button in Audacity.
To save your project, click on the "File" button, located in the  top line of the screen. You may also export the project to WAV or MP3, by clicking on the "Export as WAV" or "Export as MP3" options.

While digitizing either a cassette tape or a LP, your screen should look similar to the one below. It should show blue bars, representing the input of content.

Editing your recording:

If you would like to remove a particular part of your recording, you may highlight the exact part of the recording and click on the "Cut" button (scissors) at the top part of the screen. *To highlight a part, drag the mouse over the recording from the start point to the end point of the material that needs to be cut.
If the recording is not clear, or there are hissing sounds or echo, you may do the following in order to remove the undesired effects. Highlight the whole recording (or just parts of the recording that you want to improve) and go to the "Effect" tab at the very top part of the screen. Then, select "Noise Removal" and adjust to the extent that the noise needs to be removed.

After you have edited your recording, you have to save it (again) in order to keep the changes.

Nero is an easy and very fast software product that allows you to burn your files on CDs or DVDs. This blog post will explain how to burn your projects in a few simple steps.

Open Nero. If you do not have it installed on your computer, you may download a copy for free from http://www.nero.com/enu/downloads-nero9-free.php

Depending on the software version you have, the colors and the icons may look different from those shown above, but generally all versions have similar looks and identical functions.

In the top part of the program's screen, you will find large icons.
The first icon will lead you to the Favorites menu. This is the menu that contains the most frequently used functions of the program.

1) Make Data CD: Lets you burn on a CD documents, archives, photos, mp3 files, movie files, and any other types of files.
2) Make Data DVD: Lets you burn on a DVD documents, archives, photos, mp3 files, movie files, etc. (You need to have the necessary hardware: a RW-DVD ROM)
3) Make Audio CD: A regular 700mb CD can contain up to 80mins of music. This type of CD is usually read by all players. If you have a player that reads mp3 files, it might be a better option to burn a Data CD with mp3 files, because it will contain more music.
4) Make Video CD: Lets you burn a video CD. It is usually read by most DVD players.
5) Copy CD: Lets you copy the content of one CD to another CD. For this option, you need to have two different ROMs. Insert the matrix CD in the first ROM, and insert the blank CD in the RW-ROM.
6) Copy DVD: Let you copy the content of one CD/DVD to a DVD. Just as in "Copy CD," you need to have the necessary hardware.
7) Make Photo Slide Show (VCD): Lets you make slide shows with your pictures. It can be played on DVD Players.

The following example will explain in more details how to burn a Data CD. The steps in this example are universal, and can be used in any of the other options.
Step 1. Select "Make Data CD" from the Favorites menu.
Step 2. Click on the Add Tab, located in the right side of the screen.

Step 3. A new window opens. Select file(s) and press the "Add" button on the new window. When you are finished with adding files, press "Cancel."
Step 4. All of the added files should be listed in front of you. You can add more or delete some of the files, through operating with the "Add" and "Delete" buttons on the right side.
Step 5. When you are done with the selection of files, continue to the next step, by clicking on the "Next" button. Hint: Make sure the total content of your project is not greater than 700mb, because this is the maximum capacity of most CDs.
Step 6. You can insert a name for your CD. After you have done that, click on "Burn." The CD should start burning. The burning process can take up to 12-15minutes in some cases, so be patient. When the content is burnt on the CD, the RW-ROM will automatically open.

You can also erase a CD/DVD, if this is allowed, depending on the type of CD or DVD you are using. To do that, go to the Extras Screen, and select the appropriate option.

Audacity is very intuitive so almost anyone should be able to figure out the controls after playing with it for a while. However, one of the hardest tools to figure out and/or use properly is the draw tool. For some reason, it won't work properly unless you zoom in. Therefore, I'm posting some directions to clarify the slightly confusing aspects of using this tool.

In order to erase unwanted noise from your recording, you can use the Draw Tool. It can do this with great accuracy.

            1. Find the exact place the blip or crackle takes place.

            2. Use the Zoom button to zoom in, until you can see individual plot points, and dots.

            3. Use draw tool to click on one area and then move the mouse in a horizontal line. The horizontal line at 0.0 will represent silence.

            4. In addition, Alt+Click smoothes an area down into a line. Ctrl+click and hold edits one dot at a time, but can move the dot with a mouse.

• Open up Audacity.
• Open up the audio program.
• In Audacity, go to the mixer toolbar and switch the option from line in(your microphone) to wave out mix in the pulldown menu.
• 
• Go to file-->preferences-->channels(a pulldown menu) and change channels from 1(mono) to 2(stereo).
• Press Record in audacity
• Press Play in the other window.
• Press Stop when you are done recording. You will have recorded the whole sound clip when you are done. To test this, press Play in Audacity to make sure you have whole clip.