Mp3 ringtone tutorial from Crueton.com
Ok, I've had a lot of requests about how I make these ringtones. So I thought I'd take a shot at making a tutorial. Now, I'm no genius, and there might be an easier way to make them, but this is how I do it. So, here we go......
First, you need the mp3 song file. You can get song files many different ways. I use 2 different programs to convert, edit, and save the ringtone mp3. First, open the program called "Music Match Jukebox". Many newer computers come with this program already pre-installed on your system, or you can download a free copy of it at www.musicmatch.com
Go to "file" in Music Match Jukebox (which I will refer to as "MM" from here on out) in the top left hand corner of the program. Under "file" go to "Convert file". This will pop up the "File conversion" window. The window will have 2 parts. In the left hand side of the window (called "source directory"), find the mp3 song file you'd like to use as a ringtone. Highlight that file. The right hand size of the window is the "Destination Directory", this is where you will be saving the converted mp3 file. It may make it easier to make a new directory (folder) on your hard drive called "Converted mp3 files" to store your converted files in, so that they will be easier to locate later. Make sure the "destination file type" on the right hand side is set to "WAV". We want to convert the mp3 song file into a wav file, so we can edit it. Now, hit the "start" button in the lower right hand side of the window.
Now that the mp3 song file is converted to WAV format, we want to edit the file. I usually make my ringtones between 20 and 30 seconds. You can make them longer or shorter, that's up to you. Ok, now we are going to use the second program to edit the WAV file. Go to the "START" button on your desktop's tool bar in the lower left hand side of your screen. Go to "All programs" then to "Accessories" and then to "Entertainment". You will then see a program called "Sound Recorder". Open that program. In "Sound Recorder" (which I will call SR from here on out), go to "file" and then to "Open". Locate the converted WAV file that you made using "MM". Highlight the WAV file and then click "Open". The WAV file will now be ready to edit. Click on the single arrow button that is pointing to the right (the PLAY button).. This will play the song file. Now, if you want the ringtone to start at a certain spot, like at the beginning of the chorus, let the song play until it gets to that point, then hit the single square button (the STOP button) to stop the song at that point. Now, go to "Edit" at the top of SR. You can choose either "Delete before current position" or "Delete after current position". Since you stopped the song file from playing mid-way through, if you choose "Delete before" it will delete all of the song that played up to that point. If you choose "Delete after" it will delete all of the song after that point. Use the length counter to time out how long you want to make your ringtone. I wouldn't recommend making them more that 45 seconds, we want to keep the file size reasonably low for when we upload it to our phone. Once you have the WAV song file editted the way you want, click on "file" and then on "Save". This will save changes you've made to the editted file. Now, close out SR.
Now, we need to use "MM" again, to convert the file from WAV format back to mp3 format. Open "MM", go to "file", then to "Convert file". Basicly, what we are going to do is the same thing as step #2 above, but in reverse. This time we will be converting from WAV to mp3. In the "Source directory" window, make sure you have the "Source data type" changed to "WAV", so you can locate the editted WAV file we made in step #3. In the "Destination Directory" window, make sure the "Destination Date type" is set to MP3. Also, this is important, make sure the "kbps" quality setting is set to "64", use the little slider bar to change the number to "64 kbps". You don't need a great quality sound file for a cell phone, because cell phone's have tiny little speakers, and a high quality mp3 will sound pretty much the same as a lower quality mp3. Also, using a 64 kbps file will make the file smaller and faster to upload to your phone and save space. Ok, you should now have your editted WAV file converted back to a 64kbps quality MP3 file, right?
Now, unless your phone has "Blue Tooth" technology, or you have a data cable to hook to your PC to transfer files directly to your phone, you will have to store the ringtone you just made online. You can use free webspace services like Yahoo, or whatever. I would also suggest that you change the name of the song file to something shorter. For instance, if the file is called "Too young to fall in love-Motley Crue.mp3" change it to something like "tytfil.mp3" or whatever. That way, when you type in the URL to the file on your phone, it won't take you forever.
I hope this has been helpfully. Although the instructions seem long and complicated, once you have done it, it will be pretty easy the next time. I just don't see the need to pay $2.00 or more for ringtones that usually suck anyhow. Now, you can make your own for free and share them with your friends. That rules, doesn't it? ~Lisa Crueton ; ) Back to Free Motley Crue Ringtones page