A language learners’ forum

OK, sorry if I missed it. I searched so many different key words and combinations, and couldn't find the answer. Please guide me if there's already a thread for this.

I'm looking for an app in which I can open a sound file (podcasts, mostly) and manipulate the audio. I want to be able to do things like set the audio on a repeat of a duration I choose, or pick the start and stop points in the audio, play it normal speed, or any other speed, again of my choosing.

Apple app would be better than Android right now, but would love to here about apps for both/either platform.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Was going to link this:

http://workaudiobook.com/

"iPhone and iPad version is under development."

Maybe you're interested in knowing about it anyway.

This is Windows or Mac OS software, but maybe it might help: Express Scribe Free at http://www.nch.com.au/scribe/index.html. See the list of features. I've used it before for listening practice on a Windows machine, and liked it. You can even add a foot pedal for better control, though I never went that far.

For Android there is, at least, Transcription Software FTWT4A, though I haven't used it. Was "transcription" one of your search keywords? You can find a number of others as well, I think, though you'd need to check the feature list and verify what they do.

I was amused by some of the comments on this one - apparently some users didn't realize it wasn't going to transcribe for them via Google or something (it's not a speech-to-text app) but just made it easier for human transcribers to go through recorded speech. Users who actually knew what it was for seemed to like it. You might want to check app descriptions carefully, though, in case some developers also suffer from the same confusion about what transcription means.

Beware - there is at least one app that is only a front end for sending voice off to a commercial transcription company's transcribers, which is probably the last thing you want, unless you really need a sanity check badly.

FYI - There's a directory of tools like this at http://digitalresearchtools.pbworks.com ... tion-Tools. It includes Express Scribe, but quite a few others as well. This is an old version of the page, not recently updated; the current version, to which it links, is currently down for maintenance, but may be worth checking back on, since it's more likely to include smartphone apps than the version from several years ago. DiRT generally has a lot of information on various tools for processing language, and it's worth browsing their categories.

This tool sounds interesting for language learners: "VoiceWalker is a transcriber's tool, designed to help you transcribe audio or video recordings. VoiceWalker lets you play back the sound in a controlled way, with the benefit of being able to systematically step (or "walk") through a recording, repeating short segments for a specified number of repetitions, then moving on to the next segment. The segments overlap, so that the transcriber does not become disoriented.

"VoiceWalker assumes that you have digitized your recordings as computer files to work with them more easily (for information on how to digitize, see the VoiceWalker manual).

"VoiceWalker is free, available for Windows only." The link they give is still valid. (I thought that second paragraph was pretty funny, but maybe some might need to have that pointed out for them.)

F4 is a commercial transcription tool produced in Germany, I think only for desktops, and might be overkill for someone not doing this professionally, since licenses start at 99 pounds. It seems to get very good reviews, though.

Try these:

Hokusai Audio Editor
Overcast podcast player (skips silences and has a nice speeded up version)
Ferrite Recording Studio
Audacity (no iOS version AFAIK)

Speater is an iOS app that will do what you describe with both audio and video. It automatically segments the audio or video and you can set any segment on loop. It does a really good job with the segmentation - depending on the source audio/video. AND You can also manually define the length of the segments if you like.

Speater costs a few dollars but there is also Speaterlite for free - I think there is a time limit on the source file.

These apps don’t allow you to export segments as Audacity would - but that doesn’t seem to be what you are looking for anyway.

There are other similar iOS apps I discovered when I found Speater a while back - they are usually geared towards musicians who want to practice difficult passages of music. I can’t remember any other app names but Speater was highly considered.

Adrianslont wrote:Speater is an iOS app that will do what you describe with both audio and video. It automatically segments the audio or video and you can set any segment on loop. It does a really good job with the segmentation - depending on the source audio/video. AND You can also manually define the length of the segments if you like.

Speater costs a few dollars but there is also Speaterlite for free - I think there is a time limit on the source file.

I'm finally getting around to checking all these out and wanted to say thanks for this recommendation! I just tested it and like it. Will try it starting tomorrow and after a week if I'm still enjoying it will buy the full version. Thanks all and especially thanks @Adrianslont!

Well that was quick! Used Speater this morning, and ran into the 2-min limit.

But I like it. Will probably pay the $4.99 and buy the full version tonight. It was so nice listening to some Russian news at 0.8x speed. Still fast, but normal person fast, not newscaster fast!

IronMike wrote:

Adrianslont wrote:Speater is an iOS app that will do what you describe with both audio and video. It automatically segments the audio or video and you can set any segment on loop. It does a really good job with the segmentation - depending on the source audio/video. AND You can also manually define the length of the segments if you like.

Speater costs a few dollars but there is also Speaterlite for free - I think there is a time limit on the source file.

I'm finally getting around to checking all these out and wanted to say thanks for this recommendation! I just tested it and like it. Will try it starting tomorrow and after a week if I'm still enjoying it will buy the full version. Thanks all and especially thanks @Adrianslont!

I’m glad you like it Mike. I think it’s a good deal for the full version.

The looping is why I wanted it but the speed adjustment is great, too - i wish the default iOS music app did that too.

And one more thing I like is that it handles video.

I should probably use it more - I tend to forget about it!

I've found that I have to use my Chromebook for some of my Russian DLI work. Speater doesn't seem to have a Chromebook version, nor does Audacity. I just found TwistedWave, which seems pretty good so far. I've managed to figure out how to slow the speed down. I thought I figured out how to mark and loop certain audio sections, but it didn't work. (I've got a question in to the developer, so will report back.) So far the free version allows up to 5:00 of audio (per file?) so that's plenty, but I might end up paying for a subscription. I like the interface and the fact I can use it on my laptop.

Anyone else used this?