How To Make Your Own Ringtones

Tens of thousands of websites will gladly help you add ringtones to your cell phone. But, you’ll either need to pay a few dollars for each tone or agree to pay a monthly membership fee. And millions of people do so without realizing that there’s a cheaper alternative. You can make your own ringtones for free. All you need is a cell phone that can play MP3s and a USB cord to transfer the files. Below, I’ll describe the steps involved for creating your own ringtones.

Step #1: Prepare The Song:

If the song from which you’d like to create your ringtone is on a CD, transfer it to your computer’s hard drive as an MP3. If it’s an iTune file (in MPEG4 format), you don’t need to do anything.

Step #2: Download Audacity And LAME:

Audacity is a free software package that allows you to edit your MP3s. LAME is a compression library (also free) that Audacity requires to do its job. Download both (you can find them easily on Google). Then, install Audacity and open it. Navigate to the tab that’s titled “File Formats” and click the button labeled “Find Library.” Browse until you find the LAME compression file.

Step #3: Edit Your MP3:

Your ringtone will only use 10 to 15 seconds of your MP3 file. Open your MP3 file in Audacity. Use the “Zoom” function to be able to edit your song in 5-second intervals. Find the small portion of the MP3 that you’d like to use for your ringtone and use Audacity’s “Trim” function (you’ll find it by accessing the “Edit” menu) to discard the rest. Once you’ve trimmed the part you don’t need, you’re effectively left with your ringtone. The only remaining step is to transfer it to your cell phone.

Step #4: Transfer The Trimmed MP3 To Your Cell Phone:

There are a number of easy ways to transfer the trimmed MP3 from your hard drive to your cell phone. You can use a USB cable, Bluetooth device, or simply email the file to your phone. After you’ve transferred the file to your cell phone, use your phone’s settings to archive the file as a customized ringtone. Every phone has a different navigation scheme, so refer to the manual that came with your phone for instructions.

Enjoying Your New (And Free) Ringtones:

Making your own custom ringtones is a simple process that uses free software. Once you have successfully created a few ringtones, experiment with Audacity’s editing tools. You’ll find a number of options under the “Effect” menu. You can choose an Echo or Phaser effect to add individuality to your ringtones. Or, you can change the Pitch and Tempo of a song.

Creating your own ringtones allows you to choose any song you wish for your cell phone. Plus, it’s completely free. You can still use any of the online services that charge a fee for ringtones. But, now you have an alternative that’s easier on your bank account.