While the Audacity audio editing software may not be a fully-fledged DAW, there’s little doubt it has immense popularity among those needing to work with audio, particularly as it’s free and open source.
Version 4 has just been released, offering an updated user interface, a Workspaces feature, and productivity improvements.
The developers have spent a lot of time streamlining the interface to make it more powerful and easier to navigate. There’s a new more modern look to the software, though the classic styling can still be selected.
Audio clips can now overlap each other non-destructively, which may not sound like much especially if you’re used to other DAWs but is quite a big step up for Audacity users.
Multiple clips can be selected, edited and grouped in various ways, and the envelope function is now more intuitive. There’s also a split tool.
Each track has its own meter, which doubles as a record input monitor, making it easier to see where clipping occurs. The main playback meter can now be viewed either vertically or horizontally.
Effects have also had a revamp, and are now easier to understand and use. Support for real-time effects has been improved, covering a wider range of VST3, Audio Units and LB2 plugins.
The playhead and loop feature has also been modernised, exporting has been updated, and track labelling has been improved.
The Workspace feature allows for different layouts to be switched instantly, and edited as required, which is a great feature if you tend to work on different types of audio projects which may need a different set of tools or user interface for productive working.
