Audio editing
Make a clean audio excerpt without clipped words
Use the waveform to find a range, then use your ears to finish the cut.
Find the phrase, then the boundary
A waveform helps you locate sound and silence, but it cannot tell you where a sentence makes sense. Listen to the passage first and decide what the excerpt needs to communicate.
Place the start just before the first word, not on its loudest peak. At the end, leave the final consonant and a brief natural tail instead of cutting immediately after the last visible spike.
Keep or remove the range
The audio cutter can keep a selected range or remove it and join what remains. Choose keep for a sound bite. Choose remove for an interruption or unwanted section inside a longer recording.
- Load the source and let the waveform become available.
- Select the start and end points and listen to the range.
- Choose keep or remove and review the resulting boundary.
- Use a short fade when it helps avoid an abrupt edge.
- Select an available output format and save the result.
Listen to the saved version
Replay the exported beginning, end, and any join. Listen for a click, clipped breath, missing word, or sudden background change. An edit that looks clean on a waveform can still sound unnatural.
If it feels rushed, widen the range before changing other settings. A natural pause often makes an excerpt more understandable without adding much duration.
Keep the right master
MP3 is convenient for delivery. WAV can be useful for a subsequent edit, but a WAV made from an MP3 does not restore information the original compression removed.
Keep the original recording and edit from it when possible. Name excerpts with their subject and range so you can trace them back to the source later.
The cutter also accepts supported video files with an audio track. Browser playback support and export support are separate checks.
Sources & notes
Guidance follows the current ClipShrink workflow and the linked technical references. Keep an original file and verify the exported copy before sharing.
Content revised Oct 11, 2026. Product limits and available options can change; check the tool before starting.
Put it into practice
Trim an audio recording
Work with a copy of your file, review the export, and keep the original.