Whilst the latest non-DRM audio tracks from online music stores, such as iTunes, are produced from the original masters, many of us still have tracks that we've sourced from other locations. We'll have live tracks taken from bootleg recordings, recorded from the radio or even tracks we've recorded ourselves from old LPs or cassettes. Either way, they'll be poor quality, with a lot of crackle, perhaps cheering at the start of the track and other parts that might need some editing.

WavePad for Windows 4.03 or for Mac are free audio mastering tools that will enable you to take a track and fade it in or out, perhaps remove some crackle, merge with another track and much more. Of course, if you need more than basic audio editing tools, there's a paid-for Mastering Edition available, too.

WavePad for Windows or for Mac links.

22 Jun 2009