Transcribe! Help : Tools menu commands


Copy to File

This command creates a new Sound file (AIFF in fact), being a copy of all or part of the current Sound file, optionally with processing effects applied.
If you do not choose to apply processing then it is similar to what can be done with the Split to Files command, but is quicker and simpler if all you want is a copy of the whole file or just one part of it.
It has two main uses.

Note that the Sound file you are working on might be any of the formats which Transcribe! reads, but the copy is always AIFF format.
The options offered are as follows. You must also specify where to put the generated Sound file. A large MP3 file on a slow machine will take some time : if you "Cancel" the operation then you will still get a valid Sound file, complete up to the point where you cancelled.


Split to Files

This function will create new Sound files (AIFF in fact) on your hard disk, extracted from the Sound file you have loaded. Its primary use is for dividing very long Sound files into separate tracks. It creates new Sound files and will not modify the source Sound file in any way.
The source file may be any of the audio sound formats supported, but the output files will always be AIFF format. The sample rate and sample format will be the same as the source.
This command is not all that strongly related to transcription, however I wanted the feature, and it made sense to include it in Transcribe! rather than write a separate application, as Transcribe! already contains 90% of what is needed to support this feature.
I sometimes copy old vinyl records, tapes of live gigs, etc. to hard disk and thence to audio CD using the CD burner on my computer. This means I regularly have audio files of perhaps 500MB to work through, locating the beginnings and ends of tracks, and saving individual tracks as Sound files. I have not found any tool which does this job quickly and easily. With Transcribe!, it's a pleasure.

The Use Of Markers
Obviously, we are not using markers here for their normally intended purpose, but they work fine nevertheless. Beat markers are entirely ignored. The opening section of the source file, up to the first section marker, will be deleted. If you want to keep the beginning, place your first section marker at the very start. If you place a measure marker at the end of a track then the source from here to the next track start (section marker) will be lost. If you want to keep the entire source then don't use a measure marker at all. A section marker not only starts a new track but also ends the last one, if it has not already been ended by a measure marker.

Naming Of Tracks
The "File Prefix" display shows the location on disk for the new files, including the first part of the file name but not the suffix. You can use the Select button to select a different location.
The AIFF file names will be constructed by appending suffixes to this. The suffix will normally be the number of the track as listed in the list box, but if you edit the section marker which begins the track, and give it a non-default label (the track name) then this will be used as a suffix instead.
Note that if a file with the same name already exists, it will be erased without warning.


Record to File

This command is a straight forward recording facility, where you feed sound into your computer either from a microphone or (more likely) an audio cable from your CD or cassette player or directly from the machine's built-in CD player, and use this command to record the result to disk as a Sound file (AIFF in fact) suitable for transcription.
AIFF files are large : about 10MBytes per minute at CD quality. Keep an eye on your disk space and delete old AIFF files when you don't need them any more.
Note that if you have an audio CD and your computer has a CDROM drive then it may be preferable to copy digitally instead of "recording". See Audio Formats for discussion of how to do this.
Most soundcards can receive audio input from a variety of sources which can include "mic", "line" and perhaps "digital i/o" (these three usually mean mini-jack connector sockets at the back of the machine) and also perhaps "CD audio" meaning a direct audio feed (connected internally) from your CDROM drive.
The "Sound Input Options" dialog (see below) allows you to select the desired input source. When the correct source is selected you will see the VU meters jumping up and down with the dynamics of the music playing.
If you are using the machine's CDROM drive to play the audio then you can use iTunes (in "Applications").
Then use the controls in the usual way to play CD audio tracks, while using Transcribe! to record them to disk.

The options offered in the "Record to File" dialog are as follows :

Shortcuts: Toolbar:

If It Doesn't Work
If you have an audio CD and your computer has a CDROM drive then it may be preferable to copy digitally instead of "recording". See Audio Formats for discussion of how to do this. This means you don't need "Record To File" at all.
However if you do want to make "Record To File" work, then by far the most common problem is that you must select the appropriate recording source, or else you will just record silence. Instructions for doing this are above. Even though the CD is playing while you "Record to File", if you have selected "Mic" or "Line" input for recording then you will record silence (unless there is something plugged into the "Mic" or "Line" inputs).
Are the VU meters jumping up and down while the music plays? If not then Transcribe! is not "hearing" the sound, probably because the correct source has not been selected.
If the recording is successful but the sound is faint and obscured by a lot of background noise, then you are probably recording from the internal microphone. Clap your hands to see if the VU meters respond. It is not a good idea to record from the internal mic as the quality will be very poor.


Return to Contents page