Syncing Sound in iMovie

How to sync sound from an external recorder with video footage in iMovie 11

[@AndrewFreschetta]

This appears to be a tutorial on how to *almost* sync audio.

[@DEANR0BERTS]

Is there a better more precise control option than dragging it, as it is close but not spot on? and i waste a lot of time going back and forth with it slightly missing the exact spot.

[@Xehanortheartless]

When I first used iMovie, I didn't really see all the possibilities that that app brings... iMovie is awesome!

[@TheKrrishD]

best tutorials EVR!!!! such a relief to people with only imovie!!!

[@TGITechday]

Oh my gosh I never knew iMovie even had the wave forms things and had to manually just move the audio clip back and forth until it sounded right =O Thanks so much! Definitely going to speed up my post production time!

[@ShaunMeilak]

Thanks so much Matthew Pearce! That was such a quick and easy way to sync my audio. Keep up the great work!

[@chatzi09]

@MattsMacintosh I was looking for an external mic you made a video about that, now I was looking how to sync sound up without using fcpx and you made a video about that too. You're too awesome.

[@FedericoStivan]

Thank you Matt! Today after seeing this video I've used the 3 clap trick...it's awesome!

[@BlueHouseBurning]

Awesome video. Wish I had seen this video a few months ago when I had to edit a wedding video for a friend.

[@MatthewPearce]

@MrBallmer If I did that, other people that love exclamation points would say, "make more iMovie videos!!!". So I'm just going to keep making the videos that I enjoying making.

[@MatthewPearce]

@rAaliasReal Well, you could always just look for a distinctive sound and match it to that if you wanted to do it manually. That being said, FCPX will actually auto-sync audio and video tracks. Just select your sound and video at the same time, right click, and select "synchronize clips".

[@JonathanAcosta1020]

Great tip, Matthew! I'd also suggest using something like DreamSync. It automates the whole "audio video sync" since iMovie doesn't have this feature.

[@ArnoldWatson]

Really cool tips for better editing...thanks Matt!

[@adrenalinerush92]

Thank you so much! You just helped a useless musician when it comes to video/audio editing. Love you :P

[@mspiyamas]

Wow Your really good man. Thanks god that KZbin world have a guy like you to help us. Big thanks! : )

[@ShortProMedia]

WHy didn't I think of that, oh well, keep up the great videos! Very helpful, easy, and to the point. Thanks again.

[@GRAHAMAUS]

A great series of tutorials - I learned a lot. Maybe you could consider doing one on iMovie audio basics? I find it certain things baffling, like what is the difference between a green and purple audio tracks? Why does dragging a track cause it to change and become "pinned" (what is that?), and why is it so difficult to drag audio music in and overlap it in a simple way?

[@aurelieviauTube]

Thank you for the crystal clear explanations !

[@ThHaukur]

What a great idea the 3 claps - I will be shure to use that tip - thank´s a million ;)

[@PaperGlazed]

Three claps - stroke of genius!

[@juliacloughley-sneddon244]

brilliant help - thank you. i will be watching a lot more of your tutorials. Thanks again.

[@PaperclipsAndPacis]

Thanks! I had no idea that I could sync audio in imovie. This will be very helpful!

[@tanuxox28]

The three claps trick saved my life xD Thank you so much!

[@MatthewPearce]

@TGITechday No problem. That's why I make videos like this, to help people out.

[@andrewpolitano]

Matt, this is a great idea. Thanks for the help!

[@kesagatame]

Looking forward to more. Thanks again.

[@tokitokiprii1750]

I didn't even know this was a thing... your videos are super helpful... wow.

[@KrisMcFarland]

I have been searching for a way to link the separate audio/video together, and so far I can offer this advice: Once they are synced, ADD A MARKER to some point early on - in both audio/video - and if they get moved around, you can just line up the markers (zooming in as much as possible). It's still not the quality answer or solution iMovie should provide, but at least it keeps the redundant work to a minimum!

[@kesagatame]

Excellent video as always. Please go back to your video basic series!! The aperture vid was spot on and

[@LiamBanfield]

i used my iPod instead of the macs mic when i use thewebcam and it sounded great thanks :D

[@2011HADRIAN]

no he actually made he's iMovie to look like final cut X he has a video on that but it does not changes the tools only where there are positioned he made a video on that is on the iMovie tutorials play list the second video of it and the name of the video is:"Turn iMovie to Final Cut X" if you want to search it up :)

[@dsha2006]

This is helpful. But, after I sync the audio and video, now how do I make edits that apply to both the video and the high quality audio so they don't get out of sync. I don't see an option to merge the audio and video tracks together (like in Premiere). Please help. Thanks.

[@dsha2006]

+NataliaLand I have been learning a bit. When you want to make a cut to both the video and high quality audio clip, make sure they are both highlighted and then slice (Command + B). To "trim" either the beginning or end of the video and audio at the same time, there is a way to drag both, but it doesn't always work for me. I think you have to highlight both and then click at the end/beginning of the clip "right in the middle of the two." Sometimes I see a little popup that seems to indicate both are selected. But, even if I can't trim them both at the same time, I have had success trimming them individually and still staying in sync, because they stay "locked." I'm still experimenting. Hope this helps.

[@dsha2006]

+NataliaLand O no. that will take a while. I hope you are able to find out how to trim both at the same time.

[@dsha2006]

+NataliaLand I have been able to edit without exporting and re-importing. I mute the original audio, sync the good audio. Then, to make cuts I highlight both first, then cut. To trim, I do the same, although it doesn't always trim both at the same time. But, I can trim them individually and still keep them in sync.

[@zureyamx]

+NataliaLand thanks!!!! I´m going to do this because i´m going crazy is like singing playback haha thanks guys! THIS was helpful

[@dsha2006]

+Rue Chic Royale After creating several videos for recording artist Amanda Vernon's new show, I gave up on iMovie and WeVideo. I am trying the free trial of Premiere Pro Creative Cloud, and I love it! It can do all the small things that were so annoying or impossible with with iMovie or WeVideo. And, the price of $30 per month is not too bad.

[@Runaroundtech]

Thanks for this one. I've always wanted to know how it's done.

[@sobefaith]

Thank you Matt! One request please, can you make a tutorial of the ipad app you mentioned at the end?

[@zampastico]

Matt, you rock man.

[@MatthewPearce]

@FedericoStivan Great! Glad I could help you out.

[@mtchnelson]

Three claps things is super clever.

[@asmrdelights4088]

Thanks! Just what I needed.

[@Petersonstudios]

NICE VIDEO MATT! THANKS THE TIPS!!

[@dailygrindbarber1177]

Hello Matt, i love your videos ,, i have a question in this video your background has kinda blurry effect,, can i do that with iMovie or is it done with your camera?

[@Engaza2]

thanks bro your vids really help

[@vincentsonoma]

This was super, super useful! Thank you.

[@hi2bonnie]

Exactly what I needed. Thank you so much!

[@topknottuesday8464]

Thanks so much Matthew! That definitely took care of the job. Now what's the next step if i want to edit the clips in between but not have the audio move around? Is there a way to lock it to the footage? Thanks in advance for your help!

[@navibits]

I'm looking forward for more videos like this one :D

[@fionasimagination]

10 I believe. Do you have to pay to update it to iMovie 11? And thanks for replying. I love your vids so much! :)

[@ericacooper8674]

Thank you so much for the tips! Saved me a lot of time:)

[@3clapslateboard49]

Excellent tutorial, 3 claps is a useful technique.

[@alexpalmer99]

mr, you are a magic

[@MatthewPearce]

@alexsheridan Yep, you can just drag it to your timeline.

[@richamoore]

Works for me. Thanks a bunch.

[@RyanSimonovich]

sweet tutorial!

[@DoronBond]

Nice vid!

[@NeandertalkPodcast]

Great video brother!! Thanks for that.

[@ryandidthis]

Thanks for this!

[@DaphenyPierre]

His was soooo helpful, thank you!

[@kkeshav74]

Great vidjeo

[@SophieTassignon]

hey Matt! I have the exact same question. Is there an answer somewhere on the net? This video was super clear already, thanks for that! Would love to know now how to cut and edit after having imported the new audio to my video.

[@DougRansom1]

I'll have to try this.

[@berdhanya]

hi Mat, I have a i movie 09 and can not find the audio wave form you mention. Where is it in I movie o9?

[@MatthewPearce]

@djcrawleravp Glad I could help!

[@hobocamptheater]

@zandvlootje I'm sorry to say that the waveform monitor was a feature first added in imovie 11

[@Mchelein]

Hi Matt. You're great. Can you make a video in wich you explain how to make a dubbing. I mean add a track with another language that traslate the original one?

[@TechRefreshed]

I love FCP because it does it automatically :) Thanks for this video tho!!

[@FancyShmansy]

Thanks man!

[@countrycottagelife4184]

Legend.

[@sortilegus]

Excellent video. Very helpful. But: What if you need to cut and edit the video? Is there a way to directly attach the audio to the clip so they'll both cut, or do you have to export the whole damn movie before you can cut it up? Ugh.

[@MatthewPearce]

@TheApplenewsguy Yep, that's easy to do.

[@KelseyDarragh]

how do you get your timeline on the bottom as opposed to the top left corner like imovie 08?

[@missymcdee]

Brilliant - thank you!

[@adamthemadman]

@yakmac0 you're mom and dad must be proud

[@vincentsonoma]

Now that I've actually tried it, however, it doesn't work as yours did (I'm using iMovie 11). The view waveform button displays the wave form for the blue audio, that's part of the original video, but the added audio (green) shows no wave form, so it's impossible to sync the two.

[@Madicrites]

Thank you so much!!!!!

[@emoboi311]

Awesome, except my video doesn't have that fucking button

[@farmersaidsa7085]

neither does mine. Where the hek does one get that freaking button???

[@MatthewPearce]

Which version of iMovie do you have?

[@cindyncole3999]

hey great video.. do you know how to Sync Sound in flimoria?

[@FutureTechNation]

Very good video but I do have two questions one is I do not want the claps to be in my video so what do you about about that with out disturbing the sink of sound and the second one is that in post production I make different clips from one video so I have one video and one audio but then I make separate clips from that. I know how to do the video but how to do that with audio? Thanks

[@sackkboyandy960]

woww men !! thanks !!! NEW SUB!\

[@aurelieviauTube]

New question though : I've clicked on the waveform button, approximately placed the sound I recorded with an external recorder under the approximate spot of the video. The problem remaining is that I can only be approximate… I can't seem to move the sound image by image enough to spot it right on the exact place so that it can all be perfectly sinced. Help ?

[@rAaliasReal]

Is there no other possibilities in final cut pro X? I think on long videos cought on an event or similar situations... Where you have to capture quick movies... If you everytime have to clap your hands... I hope it exist another easyer way... I bought the zoom h1 after you uploaded your rode/zoom video...

[@EmeraldXV]

Hey Matt, your iMovie looks a lot different from mine. Did you get the update for 15 dollars? I'm completely lost.

[@janavandenberg8554]

Thanx!!!

[@cjsviolin]

At 1:25 you mentioned "zooming in" . How do I zoom in? Thanks!

[@BrianPex]

Slide the slider to the right under preview screen...

[@CKSpoiler]

now all i need is iMovie.

[@dragonflysadler]

This doesnt' seem to exist in imovie 9. Can't figure out how to see wave forms on external audio and video sound so I can sync my external sound.

[@vincentsonoma]

By iMovie 11, I mean the version with iLife 11.

[@staticultra]

I have a long clip that I want to do some extensive editing to. I used a secondary audio source to record speech. With the amount of chopping and mixing up I want to do with the clip, is there a way I can sync audio once for the whole original clip, then attach the audio so it stays synced no matter how much I chop and move the footage around? Thanks!

[@abidingvillage]

I'm looking for the same answer and am wondering if you ever found one. I can't seem to find any way to attach the alternate audio. Help!?

[@TheUkuleleTeacher]

I'm in the same boat, just got my first MacBook today - would love an answer if poss :)

[@staticultra]

I just ended up rendering the separate audio and video together (which took like 5 hours because it was a lot of video) and save it to my desktop. Then I imported that rendered video back into a NEW imovie project so the alternate audio was attatched. Long and overly complicated process but it got the job done!

[@TheUkuleleTeacher]

thestarshiprenegade Ah cheers, it did occur to me that might be the solution, but I was hoping there was an easier way!

[@BrianPex]

thestarshiprenegade Actually that is a great way to do it. We are dealing with a $15 APP (Free for new Mac users) so we can't expect the best set of features. Thanks! I like that advice :-)

[@shondramarie]

I have been scouring KZbin to figure out how to get the audio from my Zoom H1 into iMovie 11. I'm still very unclear how to do so. Do I have to import it into iTunes first? When I use the USB to connect my H1 to my computer, that pops up on the left of iMovie 11, but it does not read any files at all - so there isn't anything I can just drag over. In fact, iMovie tells me "To view video, select one of more Events in in the Event Library on the left." This is when I have clicked on my H1. How did you get the audio to show up on the left-hand side and how did you get it to move over?

[@robertshiret5725]

I'm using iMovie 09 and I am having an issue locating the waveform button. It seems to be missing from this version of the program. Am I missing something very simple?

[@djtakinitback9717]

I have the video at the top and the audio below but I cant get them together as you did at the 0:39 mark of the video. I tried dragging but it didnt work

[@ImprovingAbility]

cute, but how to cut a clip?? as soon as you cut a piece out of the video, the audio will be out of sync, since the audio will not be cut. any way to handle that with imovie? Matthew Pearce

[@ImprovingAbility]

***** apparently the only way to do this with iMovie is: put video and new soundtrack in sync just like shown in the video. Then export, which will merge audio+video permanently. then make a new iMovie project with that video. A bit cumbersome but works! :-)

[@gregoriosoave9964]

+Feldenkrais with Alfons smart move thanks! saved me a lot of time!

[@iKnoRiiTe]

my song and video clip aren't syncing together, they are just placed next to each other i can't even connect it, any reason why?

[@ukuleleangela6153]

but how do you attach the new audio to the clip so that you can trim them both at the same time. because you have to cut out the clapping for the final video. but once you cut the video part you have to cut the other part separate and it messes it up again. how do you merge it?

[@EverythingFilmmaking]

Matthew..What is the best way to get my sound from my sennheiser lav from mono to stereo when recording strait into my D750 dslr camera? tnx

[@giorgiodomenici4513]

How can you zoom the audio track of the movie file, for example if the audio of the video is a bit low...

[@pracheeprabhat7136]

Hi Matthew, How do you do this on an iPhone. I am doing home music videos and having a hard time mixing my video (recorded with iPhone on iMovie) with the karaoke track (its a MP3 file). I tried importing it from iCloud and Google drive, but iMovie just doesn't import it. It shows the option to import from iCloud, it shows my MP3 there, but it doesn't do anything when I tap on it or anything. I don't have a Mac, so trying to do it on Iphone 5. Would appreciate any guidance. Thanks!

[@BMJFilmFX]

Hey on tutorials like this do you use the kens burn effect in iMovie to zoom in? If not may I ask what you do use to do so?

[@schizescribe]

how do i sync audio that i recorded with the built-in camera in imovie? i figure i should start by detaching the audio, but after that i am lost. i recorded the whole movie with the built-in camera and mic, then when i went to edit it the sound was off... i didn't realize the sound would be off so there aren't claps or anything. *newbie fail*

[@surferboyj]

Hey Matt, i'm trying to sync some drumming (recorded on video) with an original track, but i find 1/2 second isn't precise enough, is there a way of syncing more precisely, any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks, Jack

[@GH3K3]

Only problem. No "Show waveforms" button in iMovie 7.1.4. No "BOOM" here buddy. I can't drag the damn audio track to the timeline; I've watched five videos on syncing audio to video and no one can answer why I can't do this, it will only drag to the project window where syncing to waveform appears impossible; it must be in the timeline.