How to Play a Song Backwards
Download and install an audio editing program., Open Audacity., Select File > Import > Audio., Choose the audio file of the song you want to reverse., Highlight the portion you want to reverse., Click Effects > Reverse., Play the song., Visit...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Download and install an audio editing program.
Believe it or not, there are a wide variety of free programs available online that are designed to let you easily manipulate audio files.
Almost all of these will have some sort of "reverse" feature.
A search engine query for "audio editing" or something similar should give several good results.
You can also try browsing this list of free quality audio-editing software.For example purposes, we'll be using a program called Audacity that is free, easy to use, and works on Windows, Mac, and Linux.You can download Audacity here.
Other free audio-editing programs should work similarly. -
Step 2: Open Audacity.
The first time you open the program, you'll see a window directing you to various help resources.
Click "OK" to continue. , Use these menu bar options (located at the top of the window) to open the audio file import menu.
You can also hit Ctrl+Shift+I as a shortcut. , A window should pop up that allows you to browse your computer's files.
Pick the file of the song you want to reverse, then select "Open." The song's waveform should appear in the Audacity window.
Audacity supports many file formats, including .wav, .mp3, .ogg, and AIFF.
If you have an audio file that isn't supported, consider converting it. , Once the track has loaded into Audacity, you can select any portion of it by clicking on the wave form, holding down the mouse button, and dragging to another spot.
Do this so that the portion you want to edit is selected.
For reference, the left side of the waveform is the beginning of the song and the right side is the end.
To make a very precise selection, it can be helpful to zoom in on the waveform.To do this, use your middle mouse button or left-click on the narrow scale bar at the left end of the waveform (which shows
1.0 to
-1.0 by default.) Right click to zoom out.
If you want to reverse the entire song, click Edit > Select > All or simply hit Ctrl+A to select the entire waveform. , Audacity will automatically convert the waveform of the song so that it is reversed and can be listened to backwards.
Only the highlighted portion will be reversed — again, if you want to reverse the whole song, you need to select the entire waveform. , Simply click the "Play" button at the top of the window (which looks like a green triangle) in order to hear the portion that you've just reversed.
Note that, by default, only the highlighted portion of a song will play when you hit the play button in Audacity.
If none of the song is highlighted, the song will play from the beginning. , Don't want to download and install any third-party programs on your computer? Use this easy online method instead — all you'll need is a good internet connection and an audio file in the MP3 format.
Start by going to mp3-reverser.com.While mp3-reverser.com is quick and easy to use, there are other online programs that can reverse songs for you as well.
You can find these with a simple search engine query like "reverse a song" or "reverse an mp3." MP3 is a very common audio codec — most songs that you download will already be in this format.
If the song you want to reverse isn't an MP3, try an online format converter like online-convert.com., This option is in the top left of the page.
When you do this, a window will pop up that allows you to browse through your computer's files and find the file you want to reverse.
Do this and click "Open."
Your file will automatically begin to convert.
You can watch the progress bar at the top of the screen to monitor your file's progress.
Note that, depending on the size of your file and the quality of your internet connection, this process can take several minutes. , When your reversed file has finished downloading, you should be able to play it in your media player of choice (e.g., Windows Media Player, iTunes, etc.) Enjoy! If your file doesn't convert successfully, an error message will appear in red text.
The most common reason for problems is that the file is not in MP3 format. -
Step 3: Select File > Import > Audio.
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Step 4: Choose the audio file of the song you want to reverse.
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Step 5: Highlight the portion you want to reverse.
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Step 6: Click Effects > Reverse.
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Step 7: Play the song.
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Step 8: Visit mp3-reverser.com.
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Step 9: Select "Choose File."
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Step 10: Select "Reverse!"
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Step 11: Select "Download" and listen to your file.
Detailed Guide
Believe it or not, there are a wide variety of free programs available online that are designed to let you easily manipulate audio files.
Almost all of these will have some sort of "reverse" feature.
A search engine query for "audio editing" or something similar should give several good results.
You can also try browsing this list of free quality audio-editing software.For example purposes, we'll be using a program called Audacity that is free, easy to use, and works on Windows, Mac, and Linux.You can download Audacity here.
Other free audio-editing programs should work similarly.
The first time you open the program, you'll see a window directing you to various help resources.
Click "OK" to continue. , Use these menu bar options (located at the top of the window) to open the audio file import menu.
You can also hit Ctrl+Shift+I as a shortcut. , A window should pop up that allows you to browse your computer's files.
Pick the file of the song you want to reverse, then select "Open." The song's waveform should appear in the Audacity window.
Audacity supports many file formats, including .wav, .mp3, .ogg, and AIFF.
If you have an audio file that isn't supported, consider converting it. , Once the track has loaded into Audacity, you can select any portion of it by clicking on the wave form, holding down the mouse button, and dragging to another spot.
Do this so that the portion you want to edit is selected.
For reference, the left side of the waveform is the beginning of the song and the right side is the end.
To make a very precise selection, it can be helpful to zoom in on the waveform.To do this, use your middle mouse button or left-click on the narrow scale bar at the left end of the waveform (which shows
1.0 to
-1.0 by default.) Right click to zoom out.
If you want to reverse the entire song, click Edit > Select > All or simply hit Ctrl+A to select the entire waveform. , Audacity will automatically convert the waveform of the song so that it is reversed and can be listened to backwards.
Only the highlighted portion will be reversed — again, if you want to reverse the whole song, you need to select the entire waveform. , Simply click the "Play" button at the top of the window (which looks like a green triangle) in order to hear the portion that you've just reversed.
Note that, by default, only the highlighted portion of a song will play when you hit the play button in Audacity.
If none of the song is highlighted, the song will play from the beginning. , Don't want to download and install any third-party programs on your computer? Use this easy online method instead — all you'll need is a good internet connection and an audio file in the MP3 format.
Start by going to mp3-reverser.com.While mp3-reverser.com is quick and easy to use, there are other online programs that can reverse songs for you as well.
You can find these with a simple search engine query like "reverse a song" or "reverse an mp3." MP3 is a very common audio codec — most songs that you download will already be in this format.
If the song you want to reverse isn't an MP3, try an online format converter like online-convert.com., This option is in the top left of the page.
When you do this, a window will pop up that allows you to browse through your computer's files and find the file you want to reverse.
Do this and click "Open."
Your file will automatically begin to convert.
You can watch the progress bar at the top of the screen to monitor your file's progress.
Note that, depending on the size of your file and the quality of your internet connection, this process can take several minutes. , When your reversed file has finished downloading, you should be able to play it in your media player of choice (e.g., Windows Media Player, iTunes, etc.) Enjoy! If your file doesn't convert successfully, an error message will appear in red text.
The most common reason for problems is that the file is not in MP3 format.
About the Author
Charles Sullivan
Writer and educator with a focus on practical lifestyle knowledge.
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