Samiksha Jaiswal (Editor)

WavePad Audio Editor Software

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Developer(s)
  
NCH Software

Written in
  
C++

Initial release
  
2004 (2004)

Stable release
  
6.47 / March 2016; 1 year ago (2016-03)

Operating system
  
Windows, macOS, Android, iOS

Available in
  
English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Japanese

Overview

WavePad Audio Editor Software is an audio and music editor for Windows and Mac (also available for iOS and Android). It lets users record and/or edit music, voice and other audio recordings. As an editor, users can cut, copy, paste, delete, insert, silence, and auto-trim recordings, then add effects like amplify, normalize, equalize, envelope, reverb, echo, reverse, and more with the help of VST plugin support and a free stock audio library.

Contents

NCH Software claims over 18 million users of the product, and as of March 2016, WavePad is listed as having over 4 million downloads on CNet's Download.com

Features

The primary functions and tools of WavePad are:

  • Sound editing functions: cut, copy, paste, delete, insert, silence, auto-trim and more
  • Audio effects: amplify, normalize, equalize, envelope, reverb, echo, reverse and many more with VST plugin compatibility
  • Batch processing allows users to apply effects and/or convert thousands of files as a single function
  • Scrub, search, and bookmark audio to find, recall and assemble segments of audio files
  • Spectral analysis (FFT), speech synthesis (text-to-speech), and voice changer
  • Audio restoration tools including noise reduction and click pop removal
  • Supports sample rates from 6 to 96 kHz, stereo or mono, 8, 16, 24 or 32 bits
  • Remove vocals from music tracks
  • Create ready to use ringtones for mobile phones

    • Use in Education

    As indicated by author Victor C.X. Wang/Florida Atlantic University in his book Handbook of Research on Education and Technology in a Changing Society, WavePad's Free Trialware Version is more than adequate for educational institution use. WavePad is linked or referenced for download on many notable university websites for students requiring complex audio manipulation (note 2016 WavePad is now a Free Trialware Version). NCH Software offers Academic pricing.

    Controversy

    Previously, WavePad and other NCH products came bundled with optional browser plugins like the Ask and Chrome toolbars, which sparked complaints from users and triggered malware warnings from antivirus software companies like Norton and McAfee. NCH has since unbundled all toolbars in all program versions released after July 2015.

    Compatible audio formats

    Input formats:

    aac (not .aacplus), 3gp, act/rcd/red (newer format versions not supported), aif/aiff/aifc, amr, ape, au, asf, avi, caf, cda, dct, ds2, dss, dvf (Not all dvf recorders are supported), flac, flv, gsm, m3u, m4a, m4r, mid(General MIDI only), moh, mov, mp2, mp3, mpc, mpga, mpg/mpeg, msv (Not all msv recorders are supported), ogg, pls, ra (ram, rm, rmj), raw, shn, spx, sri, voc, vox, wav (pcm, adpcm+, aLaw, uLaw, and others), wmv, wv

    Output formats:

    aac (not aacPlus), aif/aiff/aifc, amr, ape, au, caf, flac, gsm, m3u, m4a, m4r, mov, mp3 (mpeg layer 3), mpc, ogg, pls, raw, spx, vox, wav (pcm, adpcm+, aLaw, uLaw, and others), wma

    Notable users

    Notable users of WavePad include Boeing, CBS, and the Parliament of Victoria, Australia

    References

    WavePad Audio Editor Software Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA