Audacity task: even a selected recording
Audacity applies its Compressor effect to selected track audio. Select a representative passage first, open the compressor from the effects area used by your Audacity version, and watch how much gain reduction occurs above the threshold.
Threshold decides which peaks are affected; ratio decides how strongly levels above that point are reduced. Attack and release shape the response over time. Audacity releases can change controls and labels, so use the effect help shown by the installed version instead of copying an old screenshot.
A repeatable audition loop
- Keep an untouched track or project copy.
- Start with a moderate ratio and move the threshold while listening to the loudest and quietest passages.
- Compare bypassed and processed audio at similar loudness; makeup gain can otherwise make “louder” seem automatically better.
- Undo and lengthen the timing if consonants or drum attacks lose too much definition.
Export size is a separate Audacity decision
The Compressor effect changes dynamics inside the project; it does not set the exported file size. Export Audio is the separate step where format, bitrate, channels, and duration determine megabytes.
For a speech delivery copy, mono MP3 at a moderate bitrate can be practical. Keep the Audacity project or lossless source when later editing matters, and measure the exported file rather than predicting size from the waveform.
Audacity-specific troubleshooting
- Only part of the track changed: check the time selection before applying the effect.
- The result pumps between phrases: lengthen release or reduce the amount of gain reduction.
- The export is still large: change export encoding or trim duration; another compressor pass is not the file-size control.
- The result clips after processing: reduce makeup/output gain and inspect the peak meter before export.