How to Make Ringtones Using iTunes

Your cell phone ring tone should be unique. Customized ring tones allow you to show off your individuality and express your personality. But you don’t have to pay a lot of money to have a cool ring tone.

By using iTunes you can create a free customized ring tone from the comfort of your home with just a few clicks of the mouse.

With iTunes you can create a unique ring tone and upload it to your cell phone using a Bluetooth connection or a USB cable. There are several steps in the process to creating your own ring tone. Here are a few things you’ll need before you can get started:

Changing the Song Length

How to Make Ringtones Using iTunesThe first step to creating your custom ring tone is to choose a song from your iTunes library that you want to be your ring tone. Find the part of the song that you want to use as your ring tone and write down the starting time and ending time. Make sure the clip is no longer than forty seconds so the file size is not too big.

In your iTunes library, right click on the song and select “Get Info” from the drop down menu. You will see a box with several tabs at the top. Click on the “Options” tab.

In the middle of the screen there should be a Start Time and a Stop Time. Set the start time to the desired time, and set the stop time to the desired time.

As you go through this process this short clip of song will create a duplicate file. It will not permanently change your original song file. Once you have completed your ring tone you don’t need to go back and fix any settings.

Create an AAC Version of Your Song

The next step is to configure your iTunes song clip to be compatible with the format used by cell phone ring tones. Right click on the song again and select “Create AAC Version”.

Wait while iTunes converts your song. It will then place the clip in your library as a duplicate song.

The next step is to right click on the song clip that was just duplicated and click “Delete”, and then click on “Keep File” when it prompts you. This is going to delete the clip from your library, but will still keep it in the iTunes media library.

Find the File and Change the Extension

The next step is to go find the song on your computer. If you are using a Mac you can open a new Finder window and look it up under iTunes and search for it by the artist. If you are using a PC you can go to My Computer and search for it there.

The file that you find should have the extension m4a. The final step is to change the extension of your song from “m4a” to “m4r”. To change the extension you can either double click slowly until the text is highlighted and then make the change, or you can right click on the name and change it then.

A warning dialog box will pop up and ask you if you are sure you want to change the file format. Click "proceed."

The dialog will differ depending on if you’re using a Mac or a PC. Double click on the ring tone file again. This file will automatically be added to your iTunes ring tones section and is now ready to be synced with your phone.

GarageBand

For an even more custom ring tone, you can use the GarageBand program available from Apple. GarageBand gives you the ability to record an original song using instruments, vocals, or both. You can add whatever sound effects you want, and edit the song to your liking.

GarageBand lets you connect multiple instruments through USB, record different tracks, and even change the key of a recorded song.

You can then export this original song to iTunes. To export your song from GarageBand click on Share at the top of the GarageBand screen, and then click “Send Song to iTunes”. Wait while the program creates the mixdown.

Within seconds your original recorded song should appear in your iTunes library. To change this song into a custom ring tone follow the same conversion process listed above.

Everyone can enjoy custom ring tones of their favorite songs through this step by step procedure. Let your personality shine and reflect the real you. Creating your own custom ring tone has never been easier.

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