Hey Dave. I read your article Audacity can’t save mp3 audio files and am still puzzled because I downloaded the LAME Mp3 converter but still cannot convert to mp3. Do I have to put the LAME library somewhere special?
Good followup question and it suggests that there might have been a lapse in my original article, actually. Audacity is a great audio editor and as freeware, well, you can’t complain about the price, that’s for sure. It’s not, however, the most intuitive interface and that does cause some hiccups.
In this instance, you do need to download a specific audio conversion library called LAME which has the codec needed to create Mp3 format audio files that you can then use with all sorts of apps like Windows Media Player and iTunes. Without it, as you know, Audacity just complains that it can’t work with Mp3 format.
Oh, don’t have Audacity yet? Grab a copy, Mac, Windows or Linux. It’s complex, but really cool: Download Audacity.
Now, in the program, choose “Preferences…”
Once you’re in Preferences, you’ll see there are a ton of options. Click on “Libraries” to get to the right place:
Now you’ve already downloaded the LAME library, but if you haven’t — or if you want to ensure you have the latest version — click on the “Download” button next to “LAME MP3 Library”. It’ll take you to a site in Argentina where the LAME library is hosted:
Scroll down just a bit and you’ll find the link you want to download the library for your Mac system (or whatever system you have):
What? You want a shortcut? Alright, as long as the library doesn’t change version number then this link’ll get you the LAME library too: download LAME library 3.98.2.
Now that you have the LAME MP3 library on your computer it turns out that it doesn’t matter where you save it on your computer. Just remember where you put it, because right above the “Download” button in Audacity’s preferences is another labeled “Locate…”.
Click on that button, find the library you just downloaded, and you’re ready to go. Now Audacity will work just fine with Mp3 format. See, not too hard after all.
Hello, I don’t know who will see this now, as the above posts are from a few years ago, but I’ve downloaded Lame several times, and couldn’t find it, time after time. After reading the above posts, I finally found it in my Macintosh HD Library area, but I don’t know what to do with that now. I can’t get Audacity to recognize it. Any suggestions from anyone reading these?
Getting really frustrated!
Thanks!
I finally figured it out.
1. go to /Library/Application I have Sierra installed but it may be there in other OS versions.
2. You’ll see the the blue highlighted application folder on the left support. On the right is the list of applications on your Mac.
3.Scroll down to the Audacity Folder
4. Open the Libs folder
5. libmp3lame.dylib is the file you are looking for.
6. Important!!! right click and scroll down to make alias. Otherwise its hard to browse in the audacity app to the folder.
7.Copy the alias.
8. Paste it to a convenient folder you can locate.
9 It works!
Hi Obviously a newbie to this one. I have located the the Lame library file in HD/Library/Application/Support/Audacity. It’s there all right. But what do I do now! Just go round in circles on the Export menu?
I have searched my iMac and cannot locate where the Lame Mp3 encoder was downloaded. I’m running Yosemite 10.10.5 Any idea where this file could be downloaded to? In my Library/Application/Support/ there is no Audacity file there. I’ve gone to finder and it will not locate it. However, it is installed and working on my Audacity 2.1.2
I’m trying to help my friend find his so he can get it connect to his Audacity, but he can’t find his either. Any Ideas?
In my experience, it’s way easier for you to let Audacity re-download the encoder because then it seems to automatically know where it’s located on the file system, so that’s what I’d try with your friend’s setup.
I’ve done the above, but when I try to locate the file in Audacity Preferences Library, the libmp3lame.dylib file is disabled (grayed out) and cannot be selected. I’ve tried locating it in several places.
What am I doing wrong?
It’s possible that you don’t need it any more: I noticed with the very latest version of Audacity that I downloaded onto my new computer that it didn’t seem to need the MP3 library file any more. What happens if you just try to export to MP3, Dave?
I have Lame 3.99.5 installed and Audacity doesn’t recognize it. Instead, you want me to download 3.99.3. What were you thinking?
I need help with this. Here’s what I have done.
Installed Audacity 2.1.2 on my Mac running OS X Yosemite 10.10.5
Downloaded the Lame_Library_v3.98.2_for_Audacity_on_OSX.dmg and that is in my “Downloads” folder. I double click that and it brings up a .pkg file in a window. I double click that and it asks me if i am sure I want to open it. I select “open” and it goes through the install process as a “Standard install on “Macintosh HD”. I select install and I get a notification that the installation was successful. At this point it i also see the “Lame Library v.3.98.2 for Audacity.kg” “mounted” as a device on the side of my finder widow. Should I “eject ” this after the install is done? I am sort of new to mac, so I’m not quite clear on this. I have done this process a number of times, so I also don’t know if I have six installations, or if it installed over the same each time?
Of course when I try to find the file needed to do the “Export to MP3” it asks me to search and thats where I hit the wall. I have looked in the suggested locations and can’t find it. I am not a lifelong mac user so maybe I am doing something wrong. The locations in the replies above: “the top-level (Macintosh HD) library, that is, at Library/Application/Support/Audacity.” and “Music>Audacity” don’t seem to exist on my machine, and I have done a search for the file “libmp3lame.dylib” and finder never seems to be able to locate it. And of course the default location (/usr/local/lib/audacity/libmp3lame.dylib that Audacity wants it to be in seems to be a mystery for me to find as well. I may post this as a new question here as well.
Please help.
Wednesday
19 Aug 2015
03:41 EDT
The standard installation process does not show you where the file is going, making it a challenge to browse and locate it for Audacity. In my case, at least, the file was not under my usr/Library, but at the top-level (Macintosh HD) library, that is, at Library/Application/Support/Audacity. There I found the obviously-named folder that Spotlight would not find for me: Lame_Library_v3.98.2_for_Audacity_on_OSX Folder
Hope this helps.
Bob Leedom
Glenwood, MD
Mac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, Late 2014), running Yosemite 10.10.4
Thanks Bob
This was really helpful. With your help I found the library and am now up and running with the Lame export.
thanks again
Phil
Bob,
Many thanks from me also. I had the same problem as Phil and found your discussion via google.
Very helpful, MIchael
GENIUS!!! You just saved my life. Thanks a million.
Winner Winner Chicken Dinner! Thanks so much for this worked perfectly. Finally!
Hi guys,
I was pulling my hair out with this one. Eventually (on MacOSX) i had to open finder, locate the libmp3lamedylib, and found that it had installed to Music>Audacity, not the usr/local/lib location that it was supposed to. I went to the prefs in audacity and pointed to the correct location. Really wanted to get this info out there if it could help anyone else.
Cheers,
Mat
Auckland, NZ.