The Art of Pristine Audio: Overcoming Hiss and Harsh Sounds

Creating content can be fun most of the time. The shoot is perfect and the scenes are spotless. You are confident that you got everything right. But then, when you listen to the recording, you notice a continuous hissing sound. This takes you back as you have to decide to remove hiss from audio before editing the video. Luckily, several hiss removal approaches will work just fine. In this article, we take you through the audio cleanup process to help you with your hiss reduction efforts.

AI Vocal Remover A cross-platform for facilitating your video editing process by offering valuable benefits!

Free Download Free Download Learn More

Part 1. Audio Hiss: What is it and Why Remove it

A hiss is a broadband noise across the audible spectrum of your audio. It becomes more intense in high frequencies, affecting the quality of the vocals and instrumentals in your audio. A hiss could sound like blue noise and is often caused by the electronic components themselves, which is referred to as self or inherent noise.

A hiss is measured by decibels and is usually difficult to avoid because it is produced by electronic components. You will usually hear the hiss as air that is getting out of a narrow passage. You may also hear a reverb, which is a sound that occurs in space and sends sound waves out in all directions. Since this is a component of the original recording, it is impossible to delete it. However, hiss reduction is possible with the right editing software.

Causes of Hiss in Audio Recordings

• Electronic components such as microphones, video cameras, and interfaces create self-noise because of the heat energy created by the moving parts
• Audio circuits generate self-noise, with the noise floor being the level of the inherent noise in the circuit
• Screening and quality of electronic components, which cheap and poorly made equipment producing more hiss
• Poor-quality audio cables contribute to hiss and hum when they are picked up during recording

Importance of Removing Hiss for a Professional Sound

Removing hiss from audio is important for a professional sound because it makes the sound clearer and polished. The polished sound leads to

• Improved clarity and focus on the main vocals or instruments in a recording sound
• A more professional and smooth sound
• Increases listener engagement
• More understandable vocals and more vibrant instrumentals

Part 2. Remove Hiss from Audio With Premiere Pro: Step-by-Step Guide

When you discover hiss or reverb sound in your recordings, you may use professional video editing software to reduce it. Audacity remove hiss is a good option when you are on a budget. However, it may take longer and require more effort to reduce hiss with the software. Another great and effective approach is to remove hiss Premiere Pro. The software removes hisses, background noises, and low ambient noises in your recording. Let’s explore the steps you need to take:

Step 1: Set Up Your Project

Once you have downloaded and installed Adobe Premiere Pro, launch it on your desktop. Import the audio files with background noise or hiss.

Go to File, then import and select the files you want from your computer. Another way is to drag and drop those files from your computer’s folder onto the Premiere Pro. Then create a new sequence by right-clicking on the files and selecting New Sequence or drag the files into the Timeline.

Step 2: Add the DeNoise Effect

Hiss removal on Premiere Pro is made possible by the denoise effect. On the Windows menu, find effects and make sure the DeNoise has a checkmark on it. All the effects available are accessible on the Effects tab from the project panel. Type DeNoise in the search box, click and drag it to the audio track, then play the audio to listen to the effect in action.

Step 3: Adjust Settings

When you add an effect to your clicks, it shows in the Effects Control panel. Adjust the custom settings of the DeNoise effect until it sounds just right. Open the Clip Fx Editor from the Custom Setup to modify the amount of DeNoise you want to apply. The Gain slider and presets allow you to make appropriate adjustments.

Step 4: Repair the Audio

Using the Essential Sound Panel, repair the audio appropriately. The panel offers tools for removing background hisses and noises affecting your recording. With those simple 4 steps, you will reduce hiss in your recording and make your audio clearer.

Part 3. Remove Hiss from Audio with Wondershare Filmora : Quick Alternative

Wondershare Filmora is a great video editing software with great audio capabilities. When removing reverb and hiss in your audio, the AI Audio DeNoise feature automates the process. Filmora combines AI algorithms, helping you to remove different kinds of background noises in video and audio files. There is also a wide range of features that make editing with Filmora a breeze. With the AI Copilot, you have a virtual friend to help you in every step of your editing journey.

Free Download For Win 7 or later(64-bit)

Free Download For macOS 10.14 or later

AI Audio Denoise

Removing hiss and other background noises with Filmora is quick and easy with the AI Audio DeNoise feature. The AI DeNoise features offer several benefits that automatically improve the quality of your audio:

• Removing Background Noise Accurately: Users have three noise reduction options to use separately or combined for accurate noise reduction. The first is AI Voice Enhancement which increases the voice in low volume, removing a small amount of background noise. Then you have Reverb Reduction which reduces audio reverberation to improve the clarity of voice in reverberant environments like empty halls. The other option is Hiss Reduction which removes electrical noise from audio transmission and recording devices.
• Clean up Audio: The AI-powered feature reduces background noise easily and efficiently. Save more time editing your files while improving the audio quality.
• Meet Needs of Multiple Scenes: By reducing or removing noise from your video, the AI Audio DeNoise feature helps you produce quality videos and audio for all scenarios. You can edit the audio specifically for a podcast, an online meeting, or even online courses.

To remove hiss and reverb from audio with Filmora, follow these simple steps:

Step 1Import and Select the Audio File

Once you launch Filmora, import your audio or video files to Filmora and add them to the Timeline. Then click on the clip you want to remove the noise and the audio settings window will appear.

Step 2Adjust Audio Appropriately

Adjust the audio denoise functions to improve the quality of the audio. This includes the hiss reduction, reverb reduction, and voice enhancement. This will improve the overall quality of your audio.

Part 4. Tips and Tricks to Avoid Hiss and Reverb Noise

The problem of hissing sound and reverb noise usually comes from the equipment itself. However, some background noise may add to the problem. Making a few adjustments to the recording stage may help in reducing hiss and background noise:

• Optimize the Recording Space

The noise-producing items in your recording space may add to the hissing noise in your audio. While most of the noise may seem innocent, they may amplify themselves when listening to the recorded footage. Optimizing your space before you start, such as closing the windows and doors or turning off your electronic devices will help to reduce the noise.

• Reduce Subject-to-Microphone Distance

Keeping the microphone as close as possible to the subject will drastically improve the speech-to-noise ratio. The microphone will record more of the subject’s voice than the background noise, giving you a clearer audio output.

• Use a Microphone with Gain-Boost

An enhanced gain microphone preamp helps to reduce hiss and notice from the audio in an incredible way. Specifically, the camera’s preamplifier does not add gain because the volume setting is kept low.

• Use Directional Microphones

Usually, microphones signal outside their axis. This is often the case for cardioid polar and short gun patterns. This quality is great for reducing noise when you use directional microphones. The microphone will only focus on what you are interested in, ignoring the background noise.

• Turn Off Camera’s Auto-Gain

The AGC or Auto Gain Control feature is popular in modern cameras. It automatically adjusts the gain for low- and high-volume sounds to make them even. However, it can enhance everything for a quiet setting, causing hissing background noise. Turning the feature off gives you more control over what sounds to focus on.

• Reduce the Number of Open Microphones

Open microphones will continue recording audio even when you are not interested in that sound. Keeping this number low will help reduce hissing sound by focusing only on what you are recording.

Conclusion

Hiss and reverb background noise is an annoying problem. The unwanted sounds affect the quality of your audio and the level of engagement in your footage. While eliminating causes of hiss when recording is the best way to reduce it, sometimes you may notice when it is too late. Using the right editing software will help you reduce the noise and improve the quality of your audio. Wondershare Filmora allows you to do this with the AI Audio Denoise feature. The AI-powered feature will automatically reduce hiss noise and reverb in your clips, giving you clearer and more engaging audio.

Free Download Free Download Learn More

Part 1. Audio Hiss: What is it and Why Remove it

A hiss is a broadband noise across the audible spectrum of your audio. It becomes more intense in high frequencies, affecting the quality of the vocals and instrumentals in your audio. A hiss could sound like blue noise and is often caused by the electronic components themselves, which is referred to as self or inherent noise.

A hiss is measured by decibels and is usually difficult to avoid because it is produced by electronic components. You will usually hear the hiss as air that is getting out of a narrow passage. You may also hear a reverb, which is a sound that occurs in space and sends sound waves out in all directions. Since this is a component of the original recording, it is impossible to delete it. However, hiss reduction is possible with the right editing software.

Causes of Hiss in Audio Recordings

• Electronic components such as microphones, video cameras, and interfaces create self-noise because of the heat energy created by the moving parts
• Audio circuits generate self-noise, with the noise floor being the level of the inherent noise in the circuit
• Screening and quality of electronic components, which cheap and poorly made equipment producing more hiss
• Poor-quality audio cables contribute to hiss and hum when they are picked up during recording

Importance of Removing Hiss for a Professional Sound

Removing hiss from audio is important for a professional sound because it makes the sound clearer and polished. The polished sound leads to

• Improved clarity and focus on the main vocals or instruments in a recording sound
• A more professional and smooth sound
• Increases listener engagement
• More understandable vocals and more vibrant instrumentals

Part 2. Remove Hiss from Audio With Premiere Pro: Step-by-Step Guide

When you discover hiss or reverb sound in your recordings, you may use professional video editing software to reduce it. Audacity remove hiss is a good option when you are on a budget. However, it may take longer and require more effort to reduce hiss with the software. Another great and effective approach is to remove hiss Premiere Pro. The software removes hisses, background noises, and low ambient noises in your recording. Let’s explore the steps you need to take:

Step 1: Set Up Your Project

Once you have downloaded and installed Adobe Premiere Pro, launch it on your desktop. Import the audio files with background noise or hiss.

Go to File, then import and select the files you want from your computer. Another way is to drag and drop those files from your computer’s folder onto the Premiere Pro. Then create a new sequence by right-clicking on the files and selecting New Sequence or drag the files into the Timeline.

Step 2: Add the DeNoise Effect

Hiss removal on Premiere Pro is made possible by the denoise effect. On the Windows menu, find effects and make sure the DeNoise has a checkmark on it. All the effects available are accessible on the Effects tab from the project panel. Type DeNoise in the search box, click and drag it to the audio track, then play the audio to listen to the effect in action.

Step 3: Adjust Settings

When you add an effect to your clicks, it shows in the Effects Control panel. Adjust the custom settings of the DeNoise effect until it sounds just right. Open the Clip Fx Editor from the Custom Setup to modify the amount of DeNoise you want to apply. The Gain slider and presets allow you to make appropriate adjustments.

Step 4: Repair the Audio

Using the Essential Sound Panel, repair the audio appropriately. The panel offers tools for removing background hisses and noises affecting your recording. With those simple 4 steps, you will reduce hiss in your recording and make your audio clearer.

Part 3. Remove Hiss from Audio with Wondershare Filmora : Quick Alternative

Wondershare Filmora is a great video editing software with great audio capabilities. When removing reverb and hiss in your audio, the AI Audio DeNoise feature automates the process. Filmora combines AI algorithms, helping you to remove different kinds of background noises in video and audio files. There is also a wide range of features that make editing with Filmora a breeze. With the AI Copilot, you have a virtual friend to help you in every step of your editing journey.

Free Download For Win 7 or later(64-bit)

Free Download For macOS 10.14 or later

AI Audio Denoise

Removing hiss and other background noises with Filmora is quick and easy with the AI Audio DeNoise feature. The AI DeNoise features offer several benefits that automatically improve the quality of your audio:

• Removing Background Noise Accurately: Users have three noise reduction options to use separately or combined for accurate noise reduction. The first is AI Voice Enhancement which increases the voice in low volume, removing a small amount of background noise. Then you have Reverb Reduction which reduces audio reverberation to improve the clarity of voice in reverberant environments like empty halls. The other option is Hiss Reduction which removes electrical noise from audio transmission and recording devices.
• Clean up Audio: The AI-powered feature reduces background noise easily and efficiently. Save more time editing your files while improving the audio quality.
• Meet Needs of Multiple Scenes: By reducing or removing noise from your video, the AI Audio DeNoise feature helps you produce quality videos and audio for all scenarios. You can edit the audio specifically for a podcast, an online meeting, or even online courses.

To remove hiss and reverb from audio with Filmora, follow these simple steps:

Step 1Import and Select the Audio File

Once you launch Filmora, import your audio or video files to Filmora and add them to the Timeline. Then click on the clip you want to remove the noise and the audio settings window will appear.

Step 2Adjust Audio Appropriately

Adjust the audio denoise functions to improve the quality of the audio. This includes the hiss reduction, reverb reduction, and voice enhancement. This will improve the overall quality of your audio.

Part 4. Tips and Tricks to Avoid Hiss and Reverb Noise

The problem of hissing sound and reverb noise usually comes from the equipment itself. However, some background noise may add to the problem. Making a few adjustments to the recording stage may help in reducing hiss and background noise:

• Optimize the Recording Space

The noise-producing items in your recording space may add to the hissing noise in your audio. While most of the noise may seem innocent, they may amplify themselves when listening to the recorded footage. Optimizing your space before you start, such as closing the windows and doors or turning off your electronic devices will help to reduce the noise.

• Reduce Subject-to-Microphone Distance

Keeping the microphone as close as possible to the subject will drastically improve the speech-to-noise ratio. The microphone will record more of the subject’s voice than the background noise, giving you a clearer audio output.

• Use a Microphone with Gain-Boost

An enhanced gain microphone preamp helps to reduce hiss and notice from the audio in an incredible way. Specifically, the camera’s preamplifier does not add gain because the volume setting is kept low.

• Use Directional Microphones

Usually, microphones signal outside their axis. This is often the case for cardioid polar and short gun patterns. This quality is great for reducing noise when you use directional microphones. The microphone will only focus on what you are interested in, ignoring the background noise.

• Turn Off Camera’s Auto-Gain

The AGC or Auto Gain Control feature is popular in modern cameras. It automatically adjusts the gain for low- and high-volume sounds to make them even. However, it can enhance everything for a quiet setting, causing hissing background noise. Turning the feature off gives you more control over what sounds to focus on.

• Reduce the Number of Open Microphones

Open microphones will continue recording audio even when you are not interested in that sound. Keeping this number low will help reduce hissing sound by focusing only on what you are recording.

Conclusion

Hiss and reverb background noise is an annoying problem. The unwanted sounds affect the quality of your audio and the level of engagement in your footage. While eliminating causes of hiss when recording is the best way to reduce it, sometimes you may notice when it is too late. Using the right editing software will help you reduce the noise and improve the quality of your audio. Wondershare Filmora allows you to do this with the AI Audio Denoise feature. The AI-powered feature will automatically reduce hiss noise and reverb in your clips, giving you clearer and more engaging audio.

Audiophile’s Handbook: Advanced iMovie Audio Editing Mastery

All You Need to Know About iMovie Audio Editing

Marion Dubois

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

iMovie offers a fantastic platform for video editing where you can merge multiple video clips to create something very phenomenal. Plus, it’s simply here to navigate between different scenes, edit video clips and save results directly to the digital format without making any videotape transformations.

It provides lots of things to beginners and professionals with its easy-to-use interface without any quality loss for your results even after adding lots of transitions, changes, and effects.

However, it is not accessible to master software, precisely when you’re not familiar with it, or you’re not its professional user. So today, we’d like to explore or pay attention to iMovie’s audio editing steps, tips, and tricks to help you become an iMovie master quickly.

What’s more, a practical yet professional iMovie alternative software is also advisable in this guide. So when the iMovie cannot fulfil your editing requirements, why don’t you hop on an iMovie alternative software?

Now, let’s get started!

Part 1: How to Edit Audio Clips in iMovie?

To learn how to edit audio clips in iMovie, you can use actions in the menu along with the quick shortcuts to make adjustments to your audio clips in iMovie on Mac. It’s a tip for your convenience!

Trim Audio Clips

There are a couple of options to trim an audio clip in iMovie.

#1. Trim to Playhead

You can place the playhead in your timeline. Now, trim an audio clip to that exact spot. Next, start moving the playhead and do one from the following.

• Select Modify > Trim to Playhead option in the menu bar.
• Right-click the audio clip and select the option of Trim to Playhead in the shortcut menu.

#2. Use the Clip Trimmer

You can use the Clip Trimmer to trim an exact section of the clip.

Step 1. Right-click the audio clip and select Show Clip Trimmer in the shortcut menu.

Step 2. After the Clip Trimmer shows, select a section you wish to trim by dragging the arrows right and left while holding the white lines. The area within those lines is what will get entirely deleted.

Move the entire clip but keep the trim area in place if arrows turn to a film strip icon.

Step 3. Click Close Clip Trimmer after you finish this section.

Shorten or Lengthen Audio Clips

You can easily shorten or lengthen an audio clip in iMovie. Just choose the pin in the timeline and drag one of its edges. The duration of the clip change will change as you carry. And a new course will be displayed after you finish in the upper left menu.

You can also set the clip’s duration to an exact time. Select the clip in the timeline and hit the Clip Information (small letter “i”) tab located above the Viewer. Put the value of the time you want in seconds in the Duration box on the right.

Change the Speed of an Audio Clip

You may want to speed up or slow down an audio clip while editing music in iMovie. So, here’s what you need to do!

Method 1. Click the Speed button above the Viewer. Next, select Custom in the Speed drop-down box and enter a percentage next to it. You can also set a different speed in that box if you prefer.

Method 2. Right-click the clip and select Show Speed Editor from the shortcut menu. A slider will then display at the top of the clip that you can move to change the speed.

Adjust the Volume of an Audio Clip

You can set the audio clip’s volume at higher or lower, or even mute it. Just select the clip and then do one of the following.

• Select the Volume tab above the Viewer option and move the slider to the percentage of volume. Hit the Mute button to mute the audio clip.
• Tap inside the clip, and when the two-sided arrow appears, drag up or down to adjust the volume.

Fade an Audio Clip

While editing audio in iMovie, you can also fade in or out the clip. Choose a clip in the timeline and then drag the fade handle (small circle) at either the ending or the beginning of the clip to make a fade-out or a fade-in effect.

As you drag, you will see the arcs displaying the shadow for the clips fade in or fade out.

How to Edit Audio Clips in iMovie on iOS?

The iMovie timeline is where you sort or organize all your audio clips, such as the special effects and background music. Audio clips are always present below the video clips in the timeline. To edit audio clips in iMovie on your iPhones or iPads, you can follow the guide belo

Move an Audio Clip

You can transfer the whole audio clip, except the background music, to another location.

• Touch and hold the purple or blue audio clip with your project open in the timeline until it comes over the timeline bar.
• Drag the clip to another place and release.

Adjust the Audio Clip’s Duration

Step 1. While the project is launched in the timeline, tap the audio clip (in blue or purple) or the background music clip you wish to adjust.

Step 2. Now, you can see the display of yellow trim handles. Drag them either at the end of the clip to the points where you wish the audio to start and end. If a trim handle won’t move left or right, it simply indicates there is no additional audio to work with on that clip’s end.

Step 3. Tap outside the audio clip and let the trim handles disappear.

Split an Audio Clip

There are around two options to split audio clips in iMovie. You can remove unwanted parts or adjust each section’s duration, volume, or speed while you split a clip.

Step 1. With your launched project in the timeline, scroll the timeline to the playhead’s position where you want to split the audio.

Step 2. Click the audio clip to display the inspector at the screen’s bottom.

Step 3. Now, click the Actions button, and select the Split tab.

Or, you can tap the clip (it becomes outlined in yellow), then swipe above the playhead as if you were placing your finger to slide over it.

Detach the Audio Part from a Video

You can detach the video clip’s audio to remove or edit it as a separate video clip.

Step 1. When the project is open in the timeline, select a video clip and display the inspector at the screen’s bottom.

Step 2. Tap the Actions button, then tap Detach.

Step 3. A new blue-colored audio clip will then appear below the video project. You can now move, edit, or delete the audio clip separately from its parent video clip.

Move Audio to the Foreground or Background

To ensure the sound in your video clips can listen above the background music, iMovie implies audio “ducking”. Ducking lowers the background music clips’ volume whenever there’s a video clip whose sound is playing simultaneously.

You can select which audio clips are in the foreground or the background.

Step 1. Select the timeline’s audio clip to display the inspector at the screen’s bottom.

Step 2. Hit the Actions tab and proceed with selecting the Foreground or Background.

The clip color changes to indicate whether it’s the background music (green) or foreground audio (blue or purple).

Part 2: An Easier Way to Edit Audio Clips

Windows users might be wandering for an alternative to iMovie as this software tool is only compatible with Mac and iOS devices. You will be thrilled to know that Wondershare Filmora can serve you with all synonymous and extra features more than the iMovie, and it works significantly in the Windows environment.

This latest software tool also assists users with easy video editing tricks and the intuitive interface that best serves quality editing to beginners and professionals.

Despite the basic video editing features, such as trimming, splitting, merging, cutting, and cropping, Filmora also offers various advanced editing elements that are far better than iMovie. And, with its video editing features, you can make a green screen effect, stabilize your video footage, reverse your video clip, and more.

Moreover, you can enjoy royalty-free music tracks for different themes, such as Young and Bright, Tender and Sentimental, Rock, Folk, Electronic Rock, and Hipster Folk, for selection.

All this will be available with a single program called Wondershare Filmora to take advantage of them for free. You do not have to search the background music files like a needle in a haystack. The program has nicely organized the music themes into six different folders. You can apply it for your video and make advanced editing, such as split/trim the clip, adjust the playback speed, pitch, volume, etc.

How to Edit Audio with Wondershare Filmora?

In Wondershare Filmora, you can insert background music and other files from the audio library or your computer. You can even record your voiceover using it.

Add Background Music

Filmora provides a royalty-free music library you can access or import your music within the program. You can select a song from the royalty-free audio library and use it for free.

The audio library has categorized into: YOUNG & BRIGHT, TENDER & SENTIMENTAL, ROCK, FOLK, and ELECTRONIC. The different kinds of sound effects are also available under the Sound Effects tab.

Once you find a sound effect or a song, either right-click on it and go with the Apply or drag and drop it into an audio track in the timeline.

Or, you can click the Import button above the Media Library panel to browse for audio files in your PC system. Then, select and import it into the Media Library when you find the song or other audio files you wish to add.

Once you place the song in the timeline, double-click to edit it in the Audio editing panel. You can apply fade-in or fade-out effects or adjust the pitch and volume. Filmora lets you add up to 100 audio tracks.

Split Audio Clips

Choose your audio clip and place the playhead where you want to split it, then right-click on the clip and choose the Split tab or click the Split icon right above on the toolbar.

Adjust Audio Settings

Double click on the audio clip to make adjustments to your audio. Open a panel with adjustment sliders in the timeline for pitch and volume.

Another element that you’ll find in this panel is Denoise, which is a feature that can remove background noise from your audio clips.

For a more professional audio editing experience, you can also access the Audio Equalizer from this panel. Select from presets or make manual adjustments by hitting the Customize tab.

Play it when you are done and, if you’re not happy with the results, tap the Reset button to start over.

Audio Equalizer (EQ)

All videos have plenty of sounds like speech, music, or sound effects. Changing the strength of sound waves will help you to mix these sounds within a coherent soundtrack.

Locate your audio clip in an audio track and double-click on it to open the Audio settings menu window. A drop-down menu next to the Equalizer feature will display presets such as Classic, Default, Rock’n’Roll, Techno, Sparkle, Bass, Hard Rock, Pop, Ska, Blues, Folk, Acoustic, Custom, or Country. Choose the preset that best fits your current needs and hit the OK tab to apply it.

Now, hit the Customize tab next to the drop-down bar to adjust the Audio Equalizer manually. Drag the sliders up or down and make the adjustments until you find their ideal value. Finally, hit OK and save your settings.

Besides the included music tracks and sound effects in Filmora initially, you can also find more audio files from Filmora’s effects store – Filmstock, and even get some free music and sound.

Part 3: iMovie Audio Editing Tips & Tricks

iMovie is a great video editor for Mac computers. After understanding the best alternative of iMovie sound editin g, let’s check out some tips on editing audio in iMovie best.

The explanations and screenshots below are for iMovie 10 only. However, the steps are a bit similar to older versions.

So, here we go!

1. Use Waveforms to See What You Hear

To properly edit the audio track in iMovie, you need a good pair of headphones and speakers to hear the sound, but you also need to check the sound.

You can check the sound in iMovie by considering the waveforms on each clip. If the waveforms can’t be seen, go to the View drop-down menu and choose the Show Waveforms option. The clip size for your project can also adjust to get an even better appearance for each video clip.

The waveforms will display the volume level of a clip and give you a good idea of what sections will require to turn up or down. You can also check how the levels of different clips compare to one another.

2. Audio Adjustments

With the help of Adjust tab in the top right, you can access some basic audio editing tools for changing your selected clip’s volume or changing the volume of other relative clips in the project.

The adjustment window of audio also provides basic audio equalization and noise reduction tools, along with a range of effects - from echo to robot - that will change the way people in your video sound.

3. Edit Audio with the Timeline

iMovie assists you in adjusting the audio within the clips themselves. Each pin has a volume bar, moving up and down to decrease or increase the audio level. The clips also contain Fade In and Fade Out tabs at the beginning and end, dragging to adjust the fade’s length.

By adding a short fade effect, whether in or out, the sound becomes relatively smoother and less conflicting to the ear when a new clip begins.

4. Detach the Audio

By default, iMovie keeps the video and audio sections of clips together for convenience. Yet, you want to use the video and audio sections of a clip separately sometimes.

For this purpose, choose your clip in the timeline, visit the Modify drop-down menu, and hit the Detach Audio button. You’ll now have two clips - one with the images and another with the sound.

A lot you can do with the detached audio. For instance, you could extend the audio clip to begin before the video plays, or so that it plays for a few seconds even after the video fades out. You could also cut out pieces from the audio’s middle portion while leaving the video intact.

Conclusion

Coming towards the end of the discussion, after understanding iMovie audio editingand going through an elaborated alternative of iMovie application, we decided that Wondershare Filmora sounds the best out of it. It allows you to flawlessly edit video and audio files on your desktop, with various inbuilt royalty-free music tracks to select from that can further improve your project’s presence.

Marion Dubois

Marion Dubois is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Marion Dubois

Marion Dubois

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

iMovie offers a fantastic platform for video editing where you can merge multiple video clips to create something very phenomenal. Plus, it’s simply here to navigate between different scenes, edit video clips and save results directly to the digital format without making any videotape transformations.

It provides lots of things to beginners and professionals with its easy-to-use interface without any quality loss for your results even after adding lots of transitions, changes, and effects.

However, it is not accessible to master software, precisely when you’re not familiar with it, or you’re not its professional user. So today, we’d like to explore or pay attention to iMovie’s audio editing steps, tips, and tricks to help you become an iMovie master quickly.

What’s more, a practical yet professional iMovie alternative software is also advisable in this guide. So when the iMovie cannot fulfil your editing requirements, why don’t you hop on an iMovie alternative software?

Now, let’s get started!

Part 1: How to Edit Audio Clips in iMovie?

To learn how to edit audio clips in iMovie, you can use actions in the menu along with the quick shortcuts to make adjustments to your audio clips in iMovie on Mac. It’s a tip for your convenience!

Trim Audio Clips

There are a couple of options to trim an audio clip in iMovie.

#1. Trim to Playhead

You can place the playhead in your timeline. Now, trim an audio clip to that exact spot. Next, start moving the playhead and do one from the following.

• Select Modify > Trim to Playhead option in the menu bar.
• Right-click the audio clip and select the option of Trim to Playhead in the shortcut menu.

#2. Use the Clip Trimmer

You can use the Clip Trimmer to trim an exact section of the clip.

Step 1. Right-click the audio clip and select Show Clip Trimmer in the shortcut menu.

Step 2. After the Clip Trimmer shows, select a section you wish to trim by dragging the arrows right and left while holding the white lines. The area within those lines is what will get entirely deleted.

Move the entire clip but keep the trim area in place if arrows turn to a film strip icon.

Step 3. Click Close Clip Trimmer after you finish this section.

Shorten or Lengthen Audio Clips

You can easily shorten or lengthen an audio clip in iMovie. Just choose the pin in the timeline and drag one of its edges. The duration of the clip change will change as you carry. And a new course will be displayed after you finish in the upper left menu.

You can also set the clip’s duration to an exact time. Select the clip in the timeline and hit the Clip Information (small letter “i”) tab located above the Viewer. Put the value of the time you want in seconds in the Duration box on the right.

Change the Speed of an Audio Clip

You may want to speed up or slow down an audio clip while editing music in iMovie. So, here’s what you need to do!

Method 1. Click the Speed button above the Viewer. Next, select Custom in the Speed drop-down box and enter a percentage next to it. You can also set a different speed in that box if you prefer.

Method 2. Right-click the clip and select Show Speed Editor from the shortcut menu. A slider will then display at the top of the clip that you can move to change the speed.

Adjust the Volume of an Audio Clip

You can set the audio clip’s volume at higher or lower, or even mute it. Just select the clip and then do one of the following.

• Select the Volume tab above the Viewer option and move the slider to the percentage of volume. Hit the Mute button to mute the audio clip.
• Tap inside the clip, and when the two-sided arrow appears, drag up or down to adjust the volume.

Fade an Audio Clip

While editing audio in iMovie, you can also fade in or out the clip. Choose a clip in the timeline and then drag the fade handle (small circle) at either the ending or the beginning of the clip to make a fade-out or a fade-in effect.

As you drag, you will see the arcs displaying the shadow for the clips fade in or fade out.

How to Edit Audio Clips in iMovie on iOS?

The iMovie timeline is where you sort or organize all your audio clips, such as the special effects and background music. Audio clips are always present below the video clips in the timeline. To edit audio clips in iMovie on your iPhones or iPads, you can follow the guide belo

Move an Audio Clip

You can transfer the whole audio clip, except the background music, to another location.

• Touch and hold the purple or blue audio clip with your project open in the timeline until it comes over the timeline bar.
• Drag the clip to another place and release.

Adjust the Audio Clip’s Duration

Step 1. While the project is launched in the timeline, tap the audio clip (in blue or purple) or the background music clip you wish to adjust.

Step 2. Now, you can see the display of yellow trim handles. Drag them either at the end of the clip to the points where you wish the audio to start and end. If a trim handle won’t move left or right, it simply indicates there is no additional audio to work with on that clip’s end.

Step 3. Tap outside the audio clip and let the trim handles disappear.

Split an Audio Clip

There are around two options to split audio clips in iMovie. You can remove unwanted parts or adjust each section’s duration, volume, or speed while you split a clip.

Step 1. With your launched project in the timeline, scroll the timeline to the playhead’s position where you want to split the audio.

Step 2. Click the audio clip to display the inspector at the screen’s bottom.

Step 3. Now, click the Actions button, and select the Split tab.

Or, you can tap the clip (it becomes outlined in yellow), then swipe above the playhead as if you were placing your finger to slide over it.

Detach the Audio Part from a Video

You can detach the video clip’s audio to remove or edit it as a separate video clip.

Step 1. When the project is open in the timeline, select a video clip and display the inspector at the screen’s bottom.

Step 2. Tap the Actions button, then tap Detach.

Step 3. A new blue-colored audio clip will then appear below the video project. You can now move, edit, or delete the audio clip separately from its parent video clip.

Move Audio to the Foreground or Background

To ensure the sound in your video clips can listen above the background music, iMovie implies audio “ducking”. Ducking lowers the background music clips’ volume whenever there’s a video clip whose sound is playing simultaneously.

You can select which audio clips are in the foreground or the background.

Step 1. Select the timeline’s audio clip to display the inspector at the screen’s bottom.

Step 2. Hit the Actions tab and proceed with selecting the Foreground or Background.

The clip color changes to indicate whether it’s the background music (green) or foreground audio (blue or purple).

Part 2: An Easier Way to Edit Audio Clips

Windows users might be wandering for an alternative to iMovie as this software tool is only compatible with Mac and iOS devices. You will be thrilled to know that Wondershare Filmora can serve you with all synonymous and extra features more than the iMovie, and it works significantly in the Windows environment.

This latest software tool also assists users with easy video editing tricks and the intuitive interface that best serves quality editing to beginners and professionals.

Despite the basic video editing features, such as trimming, splitting, merging, cutting, and cropping, Filmora also offers various advanced editing elements that are far better than iMovie. And, with its video editing features, you can make a green screen effect, stabilize your video footage, reverse your video clip, and more.

Moreover, you can enjoy royalty-free music tracks for different themes, such as Young and Bright, Tender and Sentimental, Rock, Folk, Electronic Rock, and Hipster Folk, for selection.

All this will be available with a single program called Wondershare Filmora to take advantage of them for free. You do not have to search the background music files like a needle in a haystack. The program has nicely organized the music themes into six different folders. You can apply it for your video and make advanced editing, such as split/trim the clip, adjust the playback speed, pitch, volume, etc.

How to Edit Audio with Wondershare Filmora?

In Wondershare Filmora, you can insert background music and other files from the audio library or your computer. You can even record your voiceover using it.

Add Background Music

Filmora provides a royalty-free music library you can access or import your music within the program. You can select a song from the royalty-free audio library and use it for free.

The audio library has categorized into: YOUNG & BRIGHT, TENDER & SENTIMENTAL, ROCK, FOLK, and ELECTRONIC. The different kinds of sound effects are also available under the Sound Effects tab.

Once you find a sound effect or a song, either right-click on it and go with the Apply or drag and drop it into an audio track in the timeline.

Or, you can click the Import button above the Media Library panel to browse for audio files in your PC system. Then, select and import it into the Media Library when you find the song or other audio files you wish to add.

Once you place the song in the timeline, double-click to edit it in the Audio editing panel. You can apply fade-in or fade-out effects or adjust the pitch and volume. Filmora lets you add up to 100 audio tracks.

Split Audio Clips

Choose your audio clip and place the playhead where you want to split it, then right-click on the clip and choose the Split tab or click the Split icon right above on the toolbar.

Adjust Audio Settings

Double click on the audio clip to make adjustments to your audio. Open a panel with adjustment sliders in the timeline for pitch and volume.

Another element that you’ll find in this panel is Denoise, which is a feature that can remove background noise from your audio clips.

For a more professional audio editing experience, you can also access the Audio Equalizer from this panel. Select from presets or make manual adjustments by hitting the Customize tab.

Play it when you are done and, if you’re not happy with the results, tap the Reset button to start over.

Audio Equalizer (EQ)

All videos have plenty of sounds like speech, music, or sound effects. Changing the strength of sound waves will help you to mix these sounds within a coherent soundtrack.

Locate your audio clip in an audio track and double-click on it to open the Audio settings menu window. A drop-down menu next to the Equalizer feature will display presets such as Classic, Default, Rock’n’Roll, Techno, Sparkle, Bass, Hard Rock, Pop, Ska, Blues, Folk, Acoustic, Custom, or Country. Choose the preset that best fits your current needs and hit the OK tab to apply it.

Now, hit the Customize tab next to the drop-down bar to adjust the Audio Equalizer manually. Drag the sliders up or down and make the adjustments until you find their ideal value. Finally, hit OK and save your settings.

Besides the included music tracks and sound effects in Filmora initially, you can also find more audio files from Filmora’s effects store – Filmstock, and even get some free music and sound.

Part 3: iMovie Audio Editing Tips & Tricks

iMovie is a great video editor for Mac computers. After understanding the best alternative of iMovie sound editin g, let’s check out some tips on editing audio in iMovie best.

The explanations and screenshots below are for iMovie 10 only. However, the steps are a bit similar to older versions.

So, here we go!

1. Use Waveforms to See What You Hear

To properly edit the audio track in iMovie, you need a good pair of headphones and speakers to hear the sound, but you also need to check the sound.

You can check the sound in iMovie by considering the waveforms on each clip. If the waveforms can’t be seen, go to the View drop-down menu and choose the Show Waveforms option. The clip size for your project can also adjust to get an even better appearance for each video clip.

The waveforms will display the volume level of a clip and give you a good idea of what sections will require to turn up or down. You can also check how the levels of different clips compare to one another.

2. Audio Adjustments

With the help of Adjust tab in the top right, you can access some basic audio editing tools for changing your selected clip’s volume or changing the volume of other relative clips in the project.

The adjustment window of audio also provides basic audio equalization and noise reduction tools, along with a range of effects - from echo to robot - that will change the way people in your video sound.

3. Edit Audio with the Timeline

iMovie assists you in adjusting the audio within the clips themselves. Each pin has a volume bar, moving up and down to decrease or increase the audio level. The clips also contain Fade In and Fade Out tabs at the beginning and end, dragging to adjust the fade’s length.

By adding a short fade effect, whether in or out, the sound becomes relatively smoother and less conflicting to the ear when a new clip begins.

4. Detach the Audio

By default, iMovie keeps the video and audio sections of clips together for convenience. Yet, you want to use the video and audio sections of a clip separately sometimes.

For this purpose, choose your clip in the timeline, visit the Modify drop-down menu, and hit the Detach Audio button. You’ll now have two clips - one with the images and another with the sound.

A lot you can do with the detached audio. For instance, you could extend the audio clip to begin before the video plays, or so that it plays for a few seconds even after the video fades out. You could also cut out pieces from the audio’s middle portion while leaving the video intact.

Conclusion

Coming towards the end of the discussion, after understanding iMovie audio editingand going through an elaborated alternative of iMovie application, we decided that Wondershare Filmora sounds the best out of it. It allows you to flawlessly edit video and audio files on your desktop, with various inbuilt royalty-free music tracks to select from that can further improve your project’s presence.

Marion Dubois

Marion Dubois is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Marion Dubois

Marion Dubois

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

iMovie offers a fantastic platform for video editing where you can merge multiple video clips to create something very phenomenal. Plus, it’s simply here to navigate between different scenes, edit video clips and save results directly to the digital format without making any videotape transformations.

It provides lots of things to beginners and professionals with its easy-to-use interface without any quality loss for your results even after adding lots of transitions, changes, and effects.

However, it is not accessible to master software, precisely when you’re not familiar with it, or you’re not its professional user. So today, we’d like to explore or pay attention to iMovie’s audio editing steps, tips, and tricks to help you become an iMovie master quickly.

What’s more, a practical yet professional iMovie alternative software is also advisable in this guide. So when the iMovie cannot fulfil your editing requirements, why don’t you hop on an iMovie alternative software?

Now, let’s get started!

Part 1: How to Edit Audio Clips in iMovie?

To learn how to edit audio clips in iMovie, you can use actions in the menu along with the quick shortcuts to make adjustments to your audio clips in iMovie on Mac. It’s a tip for your convenience!

Trim Audio Clips

There are a couple of options to trim an audio clip in iMovie.

#1. Trim to Playhead

You can place the playhead in your timeline. Now, trim an audio clip to that exact spot. Next, start moving the playhead and do one from the following.

• Select Modify > Trim to Playhead option in the menu bar.
• Right-click the audio clip and select the option of Trim to Playhead in the shortcut menu.

#2. Use the Clip Trimmer

You can use the Clip Trimmer to trim an exact section of the clip.

Step 1. Right-click the audio clip and select Show Clip Trimmer in the shortcut menu.

Step 2. After the Clip Trimmer shows, select a section you wish to trim by dragging the arrows right and left while holding the white lines. The area within those lines is what will get entirely deleted.

Move the entire clip but keep the trim area in place if arrows turn to a film strip icon.

Step 3. Click Close Clip Trimmer after you finish this section.

Shorten or Lengthen Audio Clips

You can easily shorten or lengthen an audio clip in iMovie. Just choose the pin in the timeline and drag one of its edges. The duration of the clip change will change as you carry. And a new course will be displayed after you finish in the upper left menu.

You can also set the clip’s duration to an exact time. Select the clip in the timeline and hit the Clip Information (small letter “i”) tab located above the Viewer. Put the value of the time you want in seconds in the Duration box on the right.

Change the Speed of an Audio Clip

You may want to speed up or slow down an audio clip while editing music in iMovie. So, here’s what you need to do!

Method 1. Click the Speed button above the Viewer. Next, select Custom in the Speed drop-down box and enter a percentage next to it. You can also set a different speed in that box if you prefer.

Method 2. Right-click the clip and select Show Speed Editor from the shortcut menu. A slider will then display at the top of the clip that you can move to change the speed.

Adjust the Volume of an Audio Clip

You can set the audio clip’s volume at higher or lower, or even mute it. Just select the clip and then do one of the following.

• Select the Volume tab above the Viewer option and move the slider to the percentage of volume. Hit the Mute button to mute the audio clip.
• Tap inside the clip, and when the two-sided arrow appears, drag up or down to adjust the volume.

Fade an Audio Clip

While editing audio in iMovie, you can also fade in or out the clip. Choose a clip in the timeline and then drag the fade handle (small circle) at either the ending or the beginning of the clip to make a fade-out or a fade-in effect.

As you drag, you will see the arcs displaying the shadow for the clips fade in or fade out.

How to Edit Audio Clips in iMovie on iOS?

The iMovie timeline is where you sort or organize all your audio clips, such as the special effects and background music. Audio clips are always present below the video clips in the timeline. To edit audio clips in iMovie on your iPhones or iPads, you can follow the guide belo

Move an Audio Clip

You can transfer the whole audio clip, except the background music, to another location.

• Touch and hold the purple or blue audio clip with your project open in the timeline until it comes over the timeline bar.
• Drag the clip to another place and release.

Adjust the Audio Clip’s Duration

Step 1. While the project is launched in the timeline, tap the audio clip (in blue or purple) or the background music clip you wish to adjust.

Step 2. Now, you can see the display of yellow trim handles. Drag them either at the end of the clip to the points where you wish the audio to start and end. If a trim handle won’t move left or right, it simply indicates there is no additional audio to work with on that clip’s end.

Step 3. Tap outside the audio clip and let the trim handles disappear.

Split an Audio Clip

There are around two options to split audio clips in iMovie. You can remove unwanted parts or adjust each section’s duration, volume, or speed while you split a clip.

Step 1. With your launched project in the timeline, scroll the timeline to the playhead’s position where you want to split the audio.

Step 2. Click the audio clip to display the inspector at the screen’s bottom.

Step 3. Now, click the Actions button, and select the Split tab.

Or, you can tap the clip (it becomes outlined in yellow), then swipe above the playhead as if you were placing your finger to slide over it.

Detach the Audio Part from a Video

You can detach the video clip’s audio to remove or edit it as a separate video clip.

Step 1. When the project is open in the timeline, select a video clip and display the inspector at the screen’s bottom.

Step 2. Tap the Actions button, then tap Detach.

Step 3. A new blue-colored audio clip will then appear below the video project. You can now move, edit, or delete the audio clip separately from its parent video clip.

Move Audio to the Foreground or Background

To ensure the sound in your video clips can listen above the background music, iMovie implies audio “ducking”. Ducking lowers the background music clips’ volume whenever there’s a video clip whose sound is playing simultaneously.

You can select which audio clips are in the foreground or the background.

Step 1. Select the timeline’s audio clip to display the inspector at the screen’s bottom.

Step 2. Hit the Actions tab and proceed with selecting the Foreground or Background.

The clip color changes to indicate whether it’s the background music (green) or foreground audio (blue or purple).

Part 2: An Easier Way to Edit Audio Clips

Windows users might be wandering for an alternative to iMovie as this software tool is only compatible with Mac and iOS devices. You will be thrilled to know that Wondershare Filmora can serve you with all synonymous and extra features more than the iMovie, and it works significantly in the Windows environment.

This latest software tool also assists users with easy video editing tricks and the intuitive interface that best serves quality editing to beginners and professionals.

Despite the basic video editing features, such as trimming, splitting, merging, cutting, and cropping, Filmora also offers various advanced editing elements that are far better than iMovie. And, with its video editing features, you can make a green screen effect, stabilize your video footage, reverse your video clip, and more.

Moreover, you can enjoy royalty-free music tracks for different themes, such as Young and Bright, Tender and Sentimental, Rock, Folk, Electronic Rock, and Hipster Folk, for selection.

All this will be available with a single program called Wondershare Filmora to take advantage of them for free. You do not have to search the background music files like a needle in a haystack. The program has nicely organized the music themes into six different folders. You can apply it for your video and make advanced editing, such as split/trim the clip, adjust the playback speed, pitch, volume, etc.

How to Edit Audio with Wondershare Filmora?

In Wondershare Filmora, you can insert background music and other files from the audio library or your computer. You can even record your voiceover using it.

Add Background Music

Filmora provides a royalty-free music library you can access or import your music within the program. You can select a song from the royalty-free audio library and use it for free.

The audio library has categorized into: YOUNG & BRIGHT, TENDER & SENTIMENTAL, ROCK, FOLK, and ELECTRONIC. The different kinds of sound effects are also available under the Sound Effects tab.

Once you find a sound effect or a song, either right-click on it and go with the Apply or drag and drop it into an audio track in the timeline.

Or, you can click the Import button above the Media Library panel to browse for audio files in your PC system. Then, select and import it into the Media Library when you find the song or other audio files you wish to add.

Once you place the song in the timeline, double-click to edit it in the Audio editing panel. You can apply fade-in or fade-out effects or adjust the pitch and volume. Filmora lets you add up to 100 audio tracks.

Split Audio Clips

Choose your audio clip and place the playhead where you want to split it, then right-click on the clip and choose the Split tab or click the Split icon right above on the toolbar.

Adjust Audio Settings

Double click on the audio clip to make adjustments to your audio. Open a panel with adjustment sliders in the timeline for pitch and volume.

Another element that you’ll find in this panel is Denoise, which is a feature that can remove background noise from your audio clips.

For a more professional audio editing experience, you can also access the Audio Equalizer from this panel. Select from presets or make manual adjustments by hitting the Customize tab.

Play it when you are done and, if you’re not happy with the results, tap the Reset button to start over.

Audio Equalizer (EQ)

All videos have plenty of sounds like speech, music, or sound effects. Changing the strength of sound waves will help you to mix these sounds within a coherent soundtrack.

Locate your audio clip in an audio track and double-click on it to open the Audio settings menu window. A drop-down menu next to the Equalizer feature will display presets such as Classic, Default, Rock’n’Roll, Techno, Sparkle, Bass, Hard Rock, Pop, Ska, Blues, Folk, Acoustic, Custom, or Country. Choose the preset that best fits your current needs and hit the OK tab to apply it.

Now, hit the Customize tab next to the drop-down bar to adjust the Audio Equalizer manually. Drag the sliders up or down and make the adjustments until you find their ideal value. Finally, hit OK and save your settings.

Besides the included music tracks and sound effects in Filmora initially, you can also find more audio files from Filmora’s effects store – Filmstock, and even get some free music and sound.

Part 3: iMovie Audio Editing Tips & Tricks

iMovie is a great video editor for Mac computers. After understanding the best alternative of iMovie sound editin g, let’s check out some tips on editing audio in iMovie best.

The explanations and screenshots below are for iMovie 10 only. However, the steps are a bit similar to older versions.

So, here we go!

1. Use Waveforms to See What You Hear

To properly edit the audio track in iMovie, you need a good pair of headphones and speakers to hear the sound, but you also need to check the sound.

You can check the sound in iMovie by considering the waveforms on each clip. If the waveforms can’t be seen, go to the View drop-down menu and choose the Show Waveforms option. The clip size for your project can also adjust to get an even better appearance for each video clip.

The waveforms will display the volume level of a clip and give you a good idea of what sections will require to turn up or down. You can also check how the levels of different clips compare to one another.

2. Audio Adjustments

With the help of Adjust tab in the top right, you can access some basic audio editing tools for changing your selected clip’s volume or changing the volume of other relative clips in the project.

The adjustment window of audio also provides basic audio equalization and noise reduction tools, along with a range of effects - from echo to robot - that will change the way people in your video sound.

3. Edit Audio with the Timeline

iMovie assists you in adjusting the audio within the clips themselves. Each pin has a volume bar, moving up and down to decrease or increase the audio level. The clips also contain Fade In and Fade Out tabs at the beginning and end, dragging to adjust the fade’s length.

By adding a short fade effect, whether in or out, the sound becomes relatively smoother and less conflicting to the ear when a new clip begins.

4. Detach the Audio

By default, iMovie keeps the video and audio sections of clips together for convenience. Yet, you want to use the video and audio sections of a clip separately sometimes.

For this purpose, choose your clip in the timeline, visit the Modify drop-down menu, and hit the Detach Audio button. You’ll now have two clips - one with the images and another with the sound.

A lot you can do with the detached audio. For instance, you could extend the audio clip to begin before the video plays, or so that it plays for a few seconds even after the video fades out. You could also cut out pieces from the audio’s middle portion while leaving the video intact.

Conclusion

Coming towards the end of the discussion, after understanding iMovie audio editingand going through an elaborated alternative of iMovie application, we decided that Wondershare Filmora sounds the best out of it. It allows you to flawlessly edit video and audio files on your desktop, with various inbuilt royalty-free music tracks to select from that can further improve your project’s presence.

Marion Dubois

Marion Dubois is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Marion Dubois

Marion Dubois

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

iMovie offers a fantastic platform for video editing where you can merge multiple video clips to create something very phenomenal. Plus, it’s simply here to navigate between different scenes, edit video clips and save results directly to the digital format without making any videotape transformations.

It provides lots of things to beginners and professionals with its easy-to-use interface without any quality loss for your results even after adding lots of transitions, changes, and effects.

However, it is not accessible to master software, precisely when you’re not familiar with it, or you’re not its professional user. So today, we’d like to explore or pay attention to iMovie’s audio editing steps, tips, and tricks to help you become an iMovie master quickly.

What’s more, a practical yet professional iMovie alternative software is also advisable in this guide. So when the iMovie cannot fulfil your editing requirements, why don’t you hop on an iMovie alternative software?

Now, let’s get started!

Part 1: How to Edit Audio Clips in iMovie?

To learn how to edit audio clips in iMovie, you can use actions in the menu along with the quick shortcuts to make adjustments to your audio clips in iMovie on Mac. It’s a tip for your convenience!

Trim Audio Clips

There are a couple of options to trim an audio clip in iMovie.

#1. Trim to Playhead

You can place the playhead in your timeline. Now, trim an audio clip to that exact spot. Next, start moving the playhead and do one from the following.

• Select Modify > Trim to Playhead option in the menu bar.
• Right-click the audio clip and select the option of Trim to Playhead in the shortcut menu.

#2. Use the Clip Trimmer

You can use the Clip Trimmer to trim an exact section of the clip.

Step 1. Right-click the audio clip and select Show Clip Trimmer in the shortcut menu.

Step 2. After the Clip Trimmer shows, select a section you wish to trim by dragging the arrows right and left while holding the white lines. The area within those lines is what will get entirely deleted.

Move the entire clip but keep the trim area in place if arrows turn to a film strip icon.

Step 3. Click Close Clip Trimmer after you finish this section.

Shorten or Lengthen Audio Clips

You can easily shorten or lengthen an audio clip in iMovie. Just choose the pin in the timeline and drag one of its edges. The duration of the clip change will change as you carry. And a new course will be displayed after you finish in the upper left menu.

You can also set the clip’s duration to an exact time. Select the clip in the timeline and hit the Clip Information (small letter “i”) tab located above the Viewer. Put the value of the time you want in seconds in the Duration box on the right.

Change the Speed of an Audio Clip

You may want to speed up or slow down an audio clip while editing music in iMovie. So, here’s what you need to do!

Method 1. Click the Speed button above the Viewer. Next, select Custom in the Speed drop-down box and enter a percentage next to it. You can also set a different speed in that box if you prefer.

Method 2. Right-click the clip and select Show Speed Editor from the shortcut menu. A slider will then display at the top of the clip that you can move to change the speed.

Adjust the Volume of an Audio Clip

You can set the audio clip’s volume at higher or lower, or even mute it. Just select the clip and then do one of the following.

• Select the Volume tab above the Viewer option and move the slider to the percentage of volume. Hit the Mute button to mute the audio clip.
• Tap inside the clip, and when the two-sided arrow appears, drag up or down to adjust the volume.

Fade an Audio Clip

While editing audio in iMovie, you can also fade in or out the clip. Choose a clip in the timeline and then drag the fade handle (small circle) at either the ending or the beginning of the clip to make a fade-out or a fade-in effect.

As you drag, you will see the arcs displaying the shadow for the clips fade in or fade out.

How to Edit Audio Clips in iMovie on iOS?

The iMovie timeline is where you sort or organize all your audio clips, such as the special effects and background music. Audio clips are always present below the video clips in the timeline. To edit audio clips in iMovie on your iPhones or iPads, you can follow the guide belo

Move an Audio Clip

You can transfer the whole audio clip, except the background music, to another location.

• Touch and hold the purple or blue audio clip with your project open in the timeline until it comes over the timeline bar.
• Drag the clip to another place and release.

Adjust the Audio Clip’s Duration

Step 1. While the project is launched in the timeline, tap the audio clip (in blue or purple) or the background music clip you wish to adjust.

Step 2. Now, you can see the display of yellow trim handles. Drag them either at the end of the clip to the points where you wish the audio to start and end. If a trim handle won’t move left or right, it simply indicates there is no additional audio to work with on that clip’s end.

Step 3. Tap outside the audio clip and let the trim handles disappear.

Split an Audio Clip

There are around two options to split audio clips in iMovie. You can remove unwanted parts or adjust each section’s duration, volume, or speed while you split a clip.

Step 1. With your launched project in the timeline, scroll the timeline to the playhead’s position where you want to split the audio.

Step 2. Click the audio clip to display the inspector at the screen’s bottom.

Step 3. Now, click the Actions button, and select the Split tab.

Or, you can tap the clip (it becomes outlined in yellow), then swipe above the playhead as if you were placing your finger to slide over it.

Detach the Audio Part from a Video

You can detach the video clip’s audio to remove or edit it as a separate video clip.

Step 1. When the project is open in the timeline, select a video clip and display the inspector at the screen’s bottom.

Step 2. Tap the Actions button, then tap Detach.

Step 3. A new blue-colored audio clip will then appear below the video project. You can now move, edit, or delete the audio clip separately from its parent video clip.

Move Audio to the Foreground or Background

To ensure the sound in your video clips can listen above the background music, iMovie implies audio “ducking”. Ducking lowers the background music clips’ volume whenever there’s a video clip whose sound is playing simultaneously.

You can select which audio clips are in the foreground or the background.

Step 1. Select the timeline’s audio clip to display the inspector at the screen’s bottom.

Step 2. Hit the Actions tab and proceed with selecting the Foreground or Background.

The clip color changes to indicate whether it’s the background music (green) or foreground audio (blue or purple).

Part 2: An Easier Way to Edit Audio Clips

Windows users might be wandering for an alternative to iMovie as this software tool is only compatible with Mac and iOS devices. You will be thrilled to know that Wondershare Filmora can serve you with all synonymous and extra features more than the iMovie, and it works significantly in the Windows environment.

This latest software tool also assists users with easy video editing tricks and the intuitive interface that best serves quality editing to beginners and professionals.

Despite the basic video editing features, such as trimming, splitting, merging, cutting, and cropping, Filmora also offers various advanced editing elements that are far better than iMovie. And, with its video editing features, you can make a green screen effect, stabilize your video footage, reverse your video clip, and more.

Moreover, you can enjoy royalty-free music tracks for different themes, such as Young and Bright, Tender and Sentimental, Rock, Folk, Electronic Rock, and Hipster Folk, for selection.

All this will be available with a single program called Wondershare Filmora to take advantage of them for free. You do not have to search the background music files like a needle in a haystack. The program has nicely organized the music themes into six different folders. You can apply it for your video and make advanced editing, such as split/trim the clip, adjust the playback speed, pitch, volume, etc.

How to Edit Audio with Wondershare Filmora?

In Wondershare Filmora, you can insert background music and other files from the audio library or your computer. You can even record your voiceover using it.

Add Background Music

Filmora provides a royalty-free music library you can access or import your music within the program. You can select a song from the royalty-free audio library and use it for free.

The audio library has categorized into: YOUNG & BRIGHT, TENDER & SENTIMENTAL, ROCK, FOLK, and ELECTRONIC. The different kinds of sound effects are also available under the Sound Effects tab.

Once you find a sound effect or a song, either right-click on it and go with the Apply or drag and drop it into an audio track in the timeline.

Or, you can click the Import button above the Media Library panel to browse for audio files in your PC system. Then, select and import it into the Media Library when you find the song or other audio files you wish to add.

Once you place the song in the timeline, double-click to edit it in the Audio editing panel. You can apply fade-in or fade-out effects or adjust the pitch and volume. Filmora lets you add up to 100 audio tracks.

Split Audio Clips

Choose your audio clip and place the playhead where you want to split it, then right-click on the clip and choose the Split tab or click the Split icon right above on the toolbar.

Adjust Audio Settings

Double click on the audio clip to make adjustments to your audio. Open a panel with adjustment sliders in the timeline for pitch and volume.

Another element that you’ll find in this panel is Denoise, which is a feature that can remove background noise from your audio clips.

For a more professional audio editing experience, you can also access the Audio Equalizer from this panel. Select from presets or make manual adjustments by hitting the Customize tab.

Play it when you are done and, if you’re not happy with the results, tap the Reset button to start over.

Audio Equalizer (EQ)

All videos have plenty of sounds like speech, music, or sound effects. Changing the strength of sound waves will help you to mix these sounds within a coherent soundtrack.

Locate your audio clip in an audio track and double-click on it to open the Audio settings menu window. A drop-down menu next to the Equalizer feature will display presets such as Classic, Default, Rock’n’Roll, Techno, Sparkle, Bass, Hard Rock, Pop, Ska, Blues, Folk, Acoustic, Custom, or Country. Choose the preset that best fits your current needs and hit the OK tab to apply it.

Now, hit the Customize tab next to the drop-down bar to adjust the Audio Equalizer manually. Drag the sliders up or down and make the adjustments until you find their ideal value. Finally, hit OK and save your settings.

Besides the included music tracks and sound effects in Filmora initially, you can also find more audio files from Filmora’s effects store – Filmstock, and even get some free music and sound.

Part 3: iMovie Audio Editing Tips & Tricks

iMovie is a great video editor for Mac computers. After understanding the best alternative of iMovie sound editin g, let’s check out some tips on editing audio in iMovie best.

The explanations and screenshots below are for iMovie 10 only. However, the steps are a bit similar to older versions.

So, here we go!

1. Use Waveforms to See What You Hear

To properly edit the audio track in iMovie, you need a good pair of headphones and speakers to hear the sound, but you also need to check the sound.

You can check the sound in iMovie by considering the waveforms on each clip. If the waveforms can’t be seen, go to the View drop-down menu and choose the Show Waveforms option. The clip size for your project can also adjust to get an even better appearance for each video clip.

The waveforms will display the volume level of a clip and give you a good idea of what sections will require to turn up or down. You can also check how the levels of different clips compare to one another.

2. Audio Adjustments

With the help of Adjust tab in the top right, you can access some basic audio editing tools for changing your selected clip’s volume or changing the volume of other relative clips in the project.

The adjustment window of audio also provides basic audio equalization and noise reduction tools, along with a range of effects - from echo to robot - that will change the way people in your video sound.

3. Edit Audio with the Timeline

iMovie assists you in adjusting the audio within the clips themselves. Each pin has a volume bar, moving up and down to decrease or increase the audio level. The clips also contain Fade In and Fade Out tabs at the beginning and end, dragging to adjust the fade’s length.

By adding a short fade effect, whether in or out, the sound becomes relatively smoother and less conflicting to the ear when a new clip begins.

4. Detach the Audio

By default, iMovie keeps the video and audio sections of clips together for convenience. Yet, you want to use the video and audio sections of a clip separately sometimes.

For this purpose, choose your clip in the timeline, visit the Modify drop-down menu, and hit the Detach Audio button. You’ll now have two clips - one with the images and another with the sound.

A lot you can do with the detached audio. For instance, you could extend the audio clip to begin before the video plays, or so that it plays for a few seconds even after the video fades out. You could also cut out pieces from the audio’s middle portion while leaving the video intact.

Conclusion

Coming towards the end of the discussion, after understanding iMovie audio editingand going through an elaborated alternative of iMovie application, we decided that Wondershare Filmora sounds the best out of it. It allows you to flawlessly edit video and audio files on your desktop, with various inbuilt royalty-free music tracks to select from that can further improve your project’s presence.

Marion Dubois

Marion Dubois is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Marion Dubois

Classical Background Music Options for Wedding Videos

When choosing classic background music for wedding videos, you need to be extra careful. You cannot choose regular songs to capture the emotions of the best moments of your life. The music should connect with your emotions, so whenever you watch the movie, you remember the time you got married. In this post, we will share some mind-blowing classical background music that will make your wedding special and memorable.

10 Best Classical Background Music for Wedding Videos in 2024

A wedding video contains a plethora of scenes and memories. If your video includes rehearsal dinner, photography session, and dinner, you should opt for music that blends with each set. Tears and smiles, every moment calls for a different classical background song. Here are some royalty-free classical background pieces that you can use for your wedding videos this year:

1. Rhythmic Piano

This is an incredible piano piece perfect for wedding videos. It contains beautiful piano with a calm and soothing melody. This classical background will evoke feelings and memories when you will watch your wedding videos in the future. You can use this music for highlights of the wedding in the introduction because it contains emotions for every wedding setting.

2. The Wedding Moment

Over the sky of hope is another masterpiece for wedding ceremony videos. It is bright and joyful classical background music with orchestral strings and bold grand piano. You can choose this song for the first dance at the wedding. The music will incredibly portray your love and emotion for your partner.

3. Happy Wedding Upbeat Background Sound

This classical background music has a clear message of love and affection. You can use this music for multiple scenes at the wedding. The funny elements in this masterpiece will perfectly blend with funny scenes at the wedding. Furthermore, you can use this music for scenes with the audience, enjoying the ceremony.

4. Piano and Strings Wedding

The emotional and mellow introduction of this classical background will beautifully blend with your wedding videos. This heartfelt and cinematic track has a bit of ambient touch that gives a joyful and loving feel. You can add this song when you and your life partners will walk down the aisle.

5. Old Time

Old Time is slow classical background music, which is perfectly designed for wedding ceremonies. It has a simple yet powerful composition that will make your loved ones cry with happiness.

6. Wedding Love Piano

You will enjoy this lovely background music aligned with your first dance as a wedded couple. This composition sounds breathtaking on the grand piano. This classical melody in your video is enough to make your family and friends cry tears of joy.

7. Piano Music Orchestra

You can add this classical background music in the ending to create touching moments filled with powerful feelings. When your wedding video will end with this music, your audience had to take some time to recover from their emotions.

8. The Season of Love

In this short romantic classical background music, the composer played different octaves to create romantic vibes. Thus, it will sound splendid with your wedding video. Although it is a short music piece, there are many versions . You can layer the versions one after another to play with the audience’s joy and feeling.

9. Mid Night Self Expression

This is a unique masterpiece that includes acoustic guitar, accordion, and other unique musical instruments. The song includes a folk melody that will leave your audience in joy and happiness. You can play this song in various wedding settings to add emotions to your video.

10. Wonderful Wedding

This lovely wedding classical background includes nice rhythms, melodies, and ballads that make it perfect for a summary. If you have a segment in your video with highlights of multiple settings, you can use this music for that part.

How to Create a Romantic Wedding Invitation?

If you design your wedding invitation, you can decide the element according to your preferences. Elements such as video clips, pictures, and music add emotions to your video. If even a single element is not perfect, your wedding invitation won’t look as good as you want. Therefore, you should take control and create a romantic wedding invitation on a user-friendly video editor, Wondershare Filmora . Here is the step-by-step guide to creating a romantic wedding invitation with classical background music:

Try It Free

For Win 7 or later (64-bit)

Try It Free

For macOS 10.12 or later

Step 1: Open Wondershare Filmora, create a new project and import your files to get started.

Step 2: Now drag video clips and photos on the timeline and arrange the sequences and clips.

Step 3: If the photo size doesn’t match the video size, you can change the ratio in the crop section. This changes the aspect ratio of the video.

Step 4: Set the ratio for all videos and images.

Step 5: Now open the titles tab and search weddings. You can choose from a myriad of wedding-style templates on Filmora.

Step 6: Once you choose the title, you can drag it on your timeline. The title tag will look incredible at the start and the ending. Thus, you have to choose two title tags.

Step 7: Double-click on the first title and click on the advanced buttons. This feature enables you to customize your tags add change color, text, and fonts.

Step 8: Make the same changes for the second title tag as well.

Step 9: After selecting the right title tag, you can include elements on your images or video clips.

Step 10: Go to the Effects tab and search wedding floral. A wide range of options will appear in the media section. Choose the tags that you like the most and drag them on a new track.

Step 11: Now it’s time to add the titles to introduce the bride and groom. Furthermore, this section will also include the wedding location and other details for the wedding.

Step 12: Move to the transition section add transition presets and search for the effects you like for your video. Choose the transition and drag between the clips.

Step 13: Your wedding invitation is almost ready. All you need to add is classical background music. For that, you can search the music from the audio tab or choose from the above-mentioned options. Also, you can import music from your computer to use in the video

Step 14: You can export the video from the tool and send your friends and family on Whastapp or post it on Facebook.

Closing Words

The above-mentioned classical background music will enhance the sentiments in your wedding videos. Music helps the audience to connect with your emotions. Therefore, you should choose the classical background music carefully according to each segment. It would be best to list the video sections on a piece of paper and write the song’s name in front of it. That way, you will get a complete overview of your video’s layout.

You can use Filmora video editor to create your wedding videos and invitation. Filmora is a user-friendly video editing tool with advanced features. The effects and templates simplify the editing task and you can create emotional wedding videos in minutes. Filmora video editor includes features such as an audio mixer, advanced text editing, audio equalizer, and video stabilizer.

Try It Free

For Win 7 or later (64-bit)

Try It Free

For macOS 10.12 or later

Try It Free

For Win 7 or later (64-bit)

Try It Free

For macOS 10.12 or later

Step 1: Open Wondershare Filmora, create a new project and import your files to get started.

Step 2: Now drag video clips and photos on the timeline and arrange the sequences and clips.

Step 3: If the photo size doesn’t match the video size, you can change the ratio in the crop section. This changes the aspect ratio of the video.

Step 4: Set the ratio for all videos and images.

Step 5: Now open the titles tab and search weddings. You can choose from a myriad of wedding-style templates on Filmora.

Step 6: Once you choose the title, you can drag it on your timeline. The title tag will look incredible at the start and the ending. Thus, you have to choose two title tags.

Step 7: Double-click on the first title and click on the advanced buttons. This feature enables you to customize your tags add change color, text, and fonts.

Step 8: Make the same changes for the second title tag as well.

Step 9: After selecting the right title tag, you can include elements on your images or video clips.

Step 10: Go to the Effects tab and search wedding floral. A wide range of options will appear in the media section. Choose the tags that you like the most and drag them on a new track.

Step 11: Now it’s time to add the titles to introduce the bride and groom. Furthermore, this section will also include the wedding location and other details for the wedding.

Step 12: Move to the transition section add transition presets and search for the effects you like for your video. Choose the transition and drag between the clips.

Step 13: Your wedding invitation is almost ready. All you need to add is classical background music. For that, you can search the music from the audio tab or choose from the above-mentioned options. Also, you can import music from your computer to use in the video

Step 14: You can export the video from the tool and send your friends and family on Whastapp or post it on Facebook.

Closing Words

The above-mentioned classical background music will enhance the sentiments in your wedding videos. Music helps the audience to connect with your emotions. Therefore, you should choose the classical background music carefully according to each segment. It would be best to list the video sections on a piece of paper and write the song’s name in front of it. That way, you will get a complete overview of your video’s layout.

You can use Filmora video editor to create your wedding videos and invitation. Filmora is a user-friendly video editing tool with advanced features. The effects and templates simplify the editing task and you can create emotional wedding videos in minutes. Filmora video editor includes features such as an audio mixer, advanced text editing, audio equalizer, and video stabilizer.

Try It Free

For Win 7 or later (64-bit)

Try It Free

For macOS 10.12 or later

Try It Free

For Win 7 or later (64-bit)

Try It Free

For macOS 10.12 or later

Step 1: Open Wondershare Filmora, create a new project and import your files to get started.

Step 2: Now drag video clips and photos on the timeline and arrange the sequences and clips.

Step 3: If the photo size doesn’t match the video size, you can change the ratio in the crop section. This changes the aspect ratio of the video.

Step 4: Set the ratio for all videos and images.

Step 5: Now open the titles tab and search weddings. You can choose from a myriad of wedding-style templates on Filmora.

Step 6: Once you choose the title, you can drag it on your timeline. The title tag will look incredible at the start and the ending. Thus, you have to choose two title tags.

Step 7: Double-click on the first title and click on the advanced buttons. This feature enables you to customize your tags add change color, text, and fonts.

Step 8: Make the same changes for the second title tag as well.

Step 9: After selecting the right title tag, you can include elements on your images or video clips.

Step 10: Go to the Effects tab and search wedding floral. A wide range of options will appear in the media section. Choose the tags that you like the most and drag them on a new track.

Step 11: Now it’s time to add the titles to introduce the bride and groom. Furthermore, this section will also include the wedding location and other details for the wedding.

Step 12: Move to the transition section add transition presets and search for the effects you like for your video. Choose the transition and drag between the clips.

Step 13: Your wedding invitation is almost ready. All you need to add is classical background music. For that, you can search the music from the audio tab or choose from the above-mentioned options. Also, you can import music from your computer to use in the video

Step 14: You can export the video from the tool and send your friends and family on Whastapp or post it on Facebook.

Closing Words

The above-mentioned classical background music will enhance the sentiments in your wedding videos. Music helps the audience to connect with your emotions. Therefore, you should choose the classical background music carefully according to each segment. It would be best to list the video sections on a piece of paper and write the song’s name in front of it. That way, you will get a complete overview of your video’s layout.

You can use Filmora video editor to create your wedding videos and invitation. Filmora is a user-friendly video editing tool with advanced features. The effects and templates simplify the editing task and you can create emotional wedding videos in minutes. Filmora video editor includes features such as an audio mixer, advanced text editing, audio equalizer, and video stabilizer.

Try It Free

For Win 7 or later (64-bit)

Try It Free

For macOS 10.12 or later

Try It Free

For Win 7 or later (64-bit)

Try It Free

For macOS 10.12 or later

Step 1: Open Wondershare Filmora, create a new project and import your files to get started.

Step 2: Now drag video clips and photos on the timeline and arrange the sequences and clips.

Step 3: If the photo size doesn’t match the video size, you can change the ratio in the crop section. This changes the aspect ratio of the video.

Step 4: Set the ratio for all videos and images.

Step 5: Now open the titles tab and search weddings. You can choose from a myriad of wedding-style templates on Filmora.

Step 6: Once you choose the title, you can drag it on your timeline. The title tag will look incredible at the start and the ending. Thus, you have to choose two title tags.

Step 7: Double-click on the first title and click on the advanced buttons. This feature enables you to customize your tags add change color, text, and fonts.

Step 8: Make the same changes for the second title tag as well.

Step 9: After selecting the right title tag, you can include elements on your images or video clips.

Step 10: Go to the Effects tab and search wedding floral. A wide range of options will appear in the media section. Choose the tags that you like the most and drag them on a new track.

Step 11: Now it’s time to add the titles to introduce the bride and groom. Furthermore, this section will also include the wedding location and other details for the wedding.

Step 12: Move to the transition section add transition presets and search for the effects you like for your video. Choose the transition and drag between the clips.

Step 13: Your wedding invitation is almost ready. All you need to add is classical background music. For that, you can search the music from the audio tab or choose from the above-mentioned options. Also, you can import music from your computer to use in the video

Step 14: You can export the video from the tool and send your friends and family on Whastapp or post it on Facebook.

Closing Words

The above-mentioned classical background music will enhance the sentiments in your wedding videos. Music helps the audience to connect with your emotions. Therefore, you should choose the classical background music carefully according to each segment. It would be best to list the video sections on a piece of paper and write the song’s name in front of it. That way, you will get a complete overview of your video’s layout.

You can use Filmora video editor to create your wedding videos and invitation. Filmora is a user-friendly video editing tool with advanced features. The effects and templates simplify the editing task and you can create emotional wedding videos in minutes. Filmora video editor includes features such as an audio mixer, advanced text editing, audio equalizer, and video stabilizer.

Try It Free

For Win 7 or later (64-bit)

Try It Free

For macOS 10.12 or later

Also read: