These command configure and customize GoldWave.

Apps in the menu.

Use Apps Options to enable network communications with apps or change passwords and other settings.

Check Allow network connections to apps to enable apps to interact with GoldWave.

The app's device must be connected to the local wi-fi network. Your computer's firewall must allow the following connections:

If those ports are blocked or GoldWave is not permitted to access the network, apps will not be able to communicate with the program. A connection cannot be made through a cellular data connection.

Use Connection password to set a unique password to prevent unauthorized access. The same password must be set in the app.

If Manually confirm remote connections is checked, a message appears when a remote device attempts to connect to GoldWave so you can allow or block the connection.

Enable or disable apps by checking the corresponding checkbox.

Colour in the menu.

Use Colour Options to change the colour scheme of and set channel colours. A preview window shows the current colour scheme.

Use the Item or Channel drop down lists and the Colour buttons to change the colours or select a different scheme from the Schemes drop down list.

Clicking the mouse in the preview window selects an item to customize.

Colour Settings
Setting Description
Item Selects the graphical item to change, such as the grid lines, background, etc. Use the adjacent Colour box to select a different colour.
Channel Selects the channel to change. Use the adjacent Colour box to select a different colour.
Set all channels to the same colour Apply any channel colour change to all channels, so all channels have the same colour.
Automatically set unselected part to a darker colour Automatically sets the unselected channel colour to a lower intensity of the selected channel colour.
Add gradients to colours Makes the waveform and background colours gradients rather than plain, solid colours. Gradients are not shown in the preview window.
Overlap all channels using transparent colours Draws all channels in a single row so that they overlap. The colours selected are blended so that channel layers can be seen. This is not shown in the preview. Gradients cannot be used if this setting is checked.

Displays the window.

File Formats in the menu.

Use File Format Options to:

These options are contained under separate tabs.


Use this feature to set a default save format for new files when using the command. Use the File type drop down list to select the type first, then select the specific attributes from the list. Use the Filter controls to lists only certain attributes of interest.

Whenever a file is created and saved, this format will be selected by default. Note that when creating a new file, you can select attributes (sampling rate and number of channels) that differ from the default save format. Be sure to select appropriate attributes to avoid conversions later when saving.

Select Use this format for... to use the same format for all "save" related commands (, , etc.).

Select Do not allow other file types... to disable the file type and attributes boxes under "save" related commands to prevent them from being changed. It forces the use of the default format.

Tab
Use this feature to associate a filename extension with an audio type and specific attributes. This is useful for automatically opening files that do not contain any information describing their format (raw files). For example, if you work with Dialogic telephony files, you can associate the .vox extension with a specific plug-in type. In this case, you'd use the Dialogic type, usually with "ADPCM 4 bit, 8000Hz, 32 kbps, mono" attributes. Whenever you open a .vox file, GoldWave will assume that format without asking you to specify it each time. This must be done prior to using when working with raw files.

The list shows all current associations, if any. Use the Add button to create a new association. Use the Edit button to modify an existing association. Use the Remove button to remove an old association. To associate .vox with Dialogic ADPCM decoding:

  1. Choose File Formats from the Options menu.
  2. Choose the Undetectable Types tab.
  3. Choose the Add button.
  4. Enter "vox" in the Extension box. Do not enter a leading period.
  5. Select "Dialogic (vox)" from the File type drop down list.
  6. Select "ADPCM 4 bit, 8000 Hz, 32 kbps, mono" from the Attributes drop down list.
  7. Choose the OK button.

See for additional information about file attributes.

Tab
Use this feature to change the order that audio files are passed to plug-ins for opening, or to enable and disable plug-ins. By default all plug-ins found in the File plug-in folder are listed and enabled, with the built-in GoldWave plug-in listed first.

Select an item in the list and use the Lower and Higher buttons to change the order. The plug-in at the top of the list is the first one to be given the opportunity to open a file, if it recognizes the format. Otherwise, the file is passed to the next plug-in and so on until the file can be opened or no plug-ins are left. See for more information. Check or uncheck an item to enable or disable that plug-in module.

Tab
Use these settings to associate file types with GoldWave so that Windows lists GoldWave as one of the programs in the "Open With" menu. GoldWave is not set as the default program for the file types. You must use Windows "Default Programs" settings to change that.

Select the file types to associate with GoldWave, then choose the Apply button. Administrator privileges are required to update the associations in the Windows registry.

Use the Remove All button to remove all GoldWave associations from the registry. Administrator privileges are required.

Add button in the Undetectable Types tab in the window.

Use Associate Format settings to assign a specific plug-in module and attributes to a file type or filename extension.

Associate Format Settings
Setting Description
Extension Sets the file type extension to be association to a format, such as vox, snd, raw. Do not insert a leading period.
File type Sets the plug-in module to assign to the file type.
Attributes Sets the specific (channels, quality, rate, etc.) to assign to the file type.
Rate Sets the default sampling rate for the file type, if not already assigned in Attributes.

Some plug-in modules allow custom attributes to be set. If so, the Custom button will be enabled and can be used to set those attributes.

Keyboard in the menu.

Use Keyboard Options to set keyboard assignments (shortcuts) for functions in GoldWave. The list of the current assignments is given in the window with the function in the left column and the assigned shortcut in the right column. Use the arrow keys to move between items. To change a shortcut, move to right column for the function shortcut you want to change and type out the full text of the new combination of keystrokes, such as "Ctrl+Shift+Up", "X", "Ctrl+P", "Shift+Enter", etc.

Note that the Left, Right, Up, Down, Page Up, and Page Down keys are used for navigation and scrolling the view and should not be reassigned. The spacebar ("Space") is used to activate the buttons in the Control window when that window has the keyboard focus.

Choose OK to save and use keyboard assignments. Use the Defaults button to erase all keyboard assignments to restore them to their original, installed settings when GoldWave is restarted.

Use the Load and Save buttons to load or save keyboard assignments from or to a text file. These buttons allow you to backup assignments or load assignments created by others.

Use the Find box button to search for functions or shortcuts. Enter "Play", for example, to find playback related functions or "Ctrl+X" to find the function currently assigned to that shortcut. Press Ctrl+F to find the next match or Alt+F to change the search text.

The following table lists some of the names of keys that differ from their physical label.

Key Names
Key Text To Enter
Control Ctrl or ^
^X = Ctrl+X
Backspace BkSp
Return Enter
Left Arrow Left
Right Arrow Right
Up Arrow Up
Down Arrow Down
Page Up PgUp
Page Down PgDn
Insert Ins
Delete Del
Numeric Keypad 5 Num 5
Numeric Keypad / Num /
Numeric Keypad * Num *
Numeric Keypad - Num -
Numeric Keypad + Num +
System Request (not usable)
Scroll Lock (not usable)
Pause Pause
(may not work)
Escape Esc
Space Bar Space
+ (plus) Shift+=
(US Keyboards)
@ (at) Shift+2
(US Keyboards)
Media Control Buttons*
Play/Pause mxPlayPause
Stop mxStop
Previous track mxPreviousTrack
Next track mxNextTrack
Browser Back mxBrowserBack
Browser Forward mxBrowserForward
Browser Refresh mxBrowserRefresh
Browser Stop mxBrowserStop
Play mxPlay
Zoom mxZoom

* Note that using the media control buttons may cause the wrong shortcut text to appear in menus. Browser buttons many be assigned to other tasks by the operating system. Also some keyboards do not map keys properly.

Scan codes for keys can be entered directly by entering 0x followed by the hexadecimal scan code, such as 0x24 for the Home key. GoldWave shows key codes and names in the lower right corner of the window when possible. If nothing is shown or it doesn't change, then the key cannot be used.

See Also: ,

Language in the menu.

Use Language Options to set the language displayed in GoldWave. Choose a language from the drop down Active language list or the Open button to select a custom language file. Choose the Edit button to edit the selected language. Choose the New button to create a new language file.

Use the Language Editor to create a new language file for GoldWave or edit an existing one to improve the translation. On the left side of the window is the list of items that require translation. Use the Search controls to find a specific item or text. Use the Expand and Collapse buttons to fully expand or collapse the selected item in the list.

On the right side are text boxes showing the original English text and translated text. The Original English text box is read-only and cannot be changed. Enter the translated text into the Translation text box. Some items require special formatting. Please read the formatting table below. Choose the Next button to go to the next text item. Choose the Incomplete button to go to the next blank item that has not been translated yet.

If the same English text is found in other items, choose the Replace All... button to replace all items with the exact same text. For example, if the current item contains the English text "Cancel", all other items containing that exact text will be replaced in the translated text. If another item contains the text "Cancel Now", that item won't be replaced because it is not an exact match.

Choose the Save button to save the translation. Choose the Save As button to save the translation in a different file. The current filename is shown at the top of the window. After saving the language, use the Open button in to use it in the program.

Formatting
Character Format
Percent (%) The percent character is a special character used to insert numbers and text. Examples: %d inserts a decimal number, %.2lf inserts a floating point number, and %ls inserts some text such as a filename or preset name. The translated text must include these exact sequences of characters and must not add extra percent characters. Failure to do so will result in program instability.

Note that text in the "Forms" section does not have this restriction. The percent character is used to denote a unit of percent.

Vertical Bar (|) The vertical bar character is a special character used to separate text into separate sections in message windows. Be sure to include the same number of vertical bars in the same relative positions in the translated text.
Newlines Text containing newlines should retain the same number of newlines in the same relative positions in the translated text. Be aware of any text ending in a newline and ensure that newline is retained. Also ensure that extra newlines are not added to the end of the translated text.

Some items are lists. Each list item is must be on a separate line. The number of lines of text required is give above the Translation text box on the right.

Plug-in in the menu.

The Plug-in menu contains a list of submenus for configuring , File, and Visual plug-ins, if any. Plug-ins may be created by different developers. Consult the documentation included with the plug-in for more information. GoldWave Inc. does not provide technical support for plug-ins developed by other companies or individuals.

DirectX in the menu.

If the DirectX plug-in is installed, this shows a list of compatible DirectX Audio Plug-ins currently installed on your system. Use this configuration to control what plug-ins GoldWave lists under the Effect | Plug-in | DirectX menu and to associate a different icon with a plug-in. Check the box next to an item in the Plug-in list to add it to the menu. Uncheck the box to remove it from the menu. Select an item, then choose an icon from the Icon list to associate that icon with the item. Note that GoldWave must be restarted before changes are acknowledged.

GoldWave requires plug-ins that process in IEEE 32 bit floating point audio (WAVE_FORMAT_IEEE_FLOAT) format. It will not list plug-ins that process only in PCM 16 bit audio format.

If you are unable to get a particular DirectX Audio Plug-in working, please contact the plug-in developer, not GoldWave Inc.

GoldWave* in the menu.

The GoldWave Audio Plug-in Configuration window configures the internal GoldWave file plug-in and controls general file and MP3 handling and 8 bit encoding.

Many file types are handled directly, but some are handled through external (operating system) decoders installed on the system. These system decoders may cause problems or errors for raw file data or non-standard or unusual audio types. Use the system options to control when the decoders should be used and what file types to avoid. DirectShow decoders were widely used in versions of Windows prior to Windows 7. Media Foundation has replaced DirectShow in Windows 7.

GoldWave can use FFmpeg or Libav decoders if installed. Those support a huge range of file types. Use the FFmpeg/Libav decoders box to specify the folders where the avcodec-56.dll and related modules are installed. Please note that GoldWave Inc. does not provide support for FFmpeg/Libav issues. Due to patent and licensing issues, FFmpeg modules cannot be included with GoldWave or even hosted on the website. Anyone installing those modules is responsible for all legal aspects related to their use.

The MP3 encoding settings control how MP3 files are encoded. Usually these do not need to be changed.

Use the dither setting to mask quantization distortion caused by converting high quality audio to low quality 8 bit. A triangular dither masks the distortion with white noise. Keep in mind that 8 bit quality is inherently noisy, so the white noise is quite audible, but usually less distracting than distortion.

Dithering only affects the quality of the audio saved to the file. GoldWave maintains high quality audio internally, so it is never dithered even after saving. You must close and reopen the file from storage to hear the 8 bit audio quality.

Use the ACM_STREAMCONVERTF_END setting to control how the Audio Compression Manager finishes encoding or decoding the last block of audio. If the last block is incomplete, check this option. This setting is necessary because of inconsistencies in ACM codecs.

Use the ACM MP3 decoder setting to enable MP3 decoding through the older ACM codec. The ACM codec incorrectly decodes MP3 files to silence in some cases, so this setting should not be used unless problems occur with the Media Foundation decoder.

Record in the menu.Sets the input and for recording.

Storage in the menu.

Storage Options configure folders, file storage, and undo levels. See the section for additional information.

Storage Settings
Storage Setting Description
Open sound folder Sets the initial folder to use when GoldWave starts when opening files. lists files in this folder.

Select Remember folder used last session to automatically store the last used folder when GoldWave closes.

Select Use current file's folder to use the folder of the currently opened and active file. If no files are opened, then the last used folder is used.

Select Always start with this folder and use the folder button to select a specific folder to use.

Clear Recent File List Removes the list of recently opened files from the menu and the drop down menu on the toolbar button.
Save sound folder Sets the folder to use when saving a new file or using or .

Select Use file's current folder or folder last used (for new files) to save the file in the same folder where it currently resides. For new files, the most recently used folder is used.

Select Always use this folder and use the folder button to select a specific folder to use.

Memory,
Hard drive 		Sets where GoldWave stores audio, as explained in the section.

Select Memory to store files in memory.

Select Hard drive to store files on the hard drive. A folder where the temporary files will be saved can be set. The folder should be located on a large, local hard drive with plenty of free space. Changing the folder does not affect opened files already in temporary storage.

Undo levels Sets the number of edits/changes that can be . A value of 5 means you can undo the five most recent changes performed on the file. A value of 0 means that you cannot undo any changes. Larger values use much more storage to hold the previous audio data. When using Memory storage, this should be set to a small value. Otherwise memory may be depleted quickly and system performance will degrade.
Allow undo after save Allows changes to be undone after a file is saved. Normally when a file is saved, the undo and redo history are cleared to release temporary storage and clear any ties to other files that may have been used when editing. If this option is checked, then temporary storage is not cleared and all ties remain so undo and redo can occur. Note that if a file is reloaded due to a format change (stereo to mono, for example), undo and redo are not permitted.
Cue points storage Use Automatically import and export separate cue file to automatically save or load cue points from a separate when saving or opening a sound file. If you open a file named "music.mp3", cue points are imported from a "music.cue" file, if it exists. If you save a file named "music.mp3", cue points are saved in a "music.cue" file (overwriting any existing file). Automatic import and export is done only for file formats that cannot store cue point information internally. Cue files are not saved automatically for other file formats (such as .wav). Use the tool to manually import or export a cue file.

When automatically exporting cue files, any existing cue file with the same name will be overwritten without notification!

Theme in the menu.

Use Theme Options to change the appearance of GoldWave with a different theme and colour scheme. Choose any theme from the list to use it. GoldWave should be restarted after selecting a new theme to ensure it is applied properly to all windows.

Toolbar in the menu.

Use Toolbar Options to customize GoldWave's toolbars. Initially the top toolbar contains main menu commands, while the lower tool bar contains only effect commands. Select an item and use the Add and Remove buttons or drag-and-drop items between the Available and Current lists to control the layout of the toolbars. The order which items appear in the Current list is the same as the order they will appear on the toolbar. You can drag-and-drop items within the Current list to rearrange them.

Use the drop down list to set the size, captions, and visibility of the toolbar.

To arrange toolbars, drag-and-drop them within GoldWave's Main window by clicking on the vertical bumps near the left edge of the toolbar. Right-click on the toolbar to reset it or to allow the order of the toolbars to be changed. Figure: Toolbar Options
Toolbar Options

Window in the menu.

Use Window Options to configure the positions of , set axis options, specify preset and initial zoom values, and set miscellaneous options.

Window Options Settings
Group Setting Description
Sound window layout Cascade Allows Windows to arrange Sound windows in layered, cascaded arrangement.
Maximize Makes a Sound window occupy the entire area within the Main window.
Auto-tile Resizes all Sound windows whenever a new sound is opened or closed so that all are visible. The arrangement is the same as using .
Tabs Makes Sound windows as large as possible, but with a tab for each file along the top for easier selection of opened files.
Miscellaneous Always confirm before saving Prompts to confirm saving a file whenever is used.
Update "Default" effect preset after each use Saves the current effect settings under the "Default" preset so those settings will be selected the next time the effect is used. The "Default" preset is updated only if the OK button is used.
Draw overview graph Draws the based on the audio waveform. If unselected, only lines are drawn, which is faster.
Hide playback marker Hides the playback marker whenever playback stops. See for more information about the playback marker.
Hide selection { } handle boxes and playback triangle Removes the selection handles { } from the start and finish markers and removes the green triangle from the playback marker. Use this setting when doing precise editing so that the waveform is not obscured by the markers.
Show full filenames in title Shows the full path and filename of the file in the title bar of the sound window (if there is sufficient space).
Retain current view and zoom when using Undo Does not change the view and zoom to back to the previous level when a modification is undone. The view and zoom level are unaffected by Undo, when possible. Note that the view may have to be changed if the duration of the file has changed and the view is outside the bounds of the file.
Axes Numbering Y Sets the units of the vertical axis in Sound windows.
  • Off hides the axis completely.
  • Normalized shows an axis with a range of -1.0 to 1.0.
  • Signed 16 bit shows an axis ranging from -32768 to 32767, which is the range of a 16 bit sample.
  • Unsigned 8 bit shows an axis with a range of 0 to 255.
X Sets the format for displaying the horizontal time axis near the bottom of Sound windows.
  • Hours : minutes : seconds gives the time as three sets of numbers separated by colons, such as 12:23:56.
  • Minutes : seconds gives the time as two sets of numbers separated by colons, such as 1234:56.
  • Seconds gives the time as a floating point number, such as 1234.56.
  • Samples gives a sample count.
Grid Grid Select Grid to display a custom, vertical grid over the waveform, which can be used to align markers. This can be used to show measures and beats in music. Use to add some silence to the beginning of the file to align the grid.
Spacing Sets the time between each grid line in seconds. The equivalent beats-per-minute (BPM) is shown.
Divisions Sets the number of divisions between each grid spacing line. These are shown as dotted lines.
Snap markers Ensures that whenever edit markers are moved, they are snapped to the closest grid line. Note that if is checked, markers are snapped to the grid first, then the nearest zero-crossing point.
Mouse Simple left and right mouse button selection method Moves the start marker when the left button is clicked and move the finish marker when the right mouse button is clicked. No context menu appears. You will not be able to use the new right-click-and-drag features. This is the way old versions of GoldWave worked.
Standard click-and-drag selection method with right-click menu Sets the selection uses a standard click-and-drag method and displays a context menu when the right mouse button is clicked. Allows the left mouse click to be assigned to a specific function.
Single click Sets the function for perform when the left mouse button is clicked. Available only if the standard method above is selected.
Ctrl click Sets the function for perform when the left mouse button is clicked while the Ctrl key is held down. Available only if the standard method above is selected.
View Time shown for the command Sets the amount of time to show in the View when using .
Initial time shown when sound opened Sets the amount of time shown in a Sound window when it is first opened. Choose All, to show the entire waveform. Using a value under 1 minute can speed up opening/drawing a large file.
Overview height Sets the default height (in pixels) of the area along the bottom of the Sound window. This setting does not change the height of the Overview in currently opened Sound windows, only new ones. Drag the splitter between the graphs to adjust the height manually.

Although the evaluation version is fully functional, GoldWave is not free software. The evaluation version will expire after a generous amount of use. Please see the for purchasing and pricing details.

Use Register License to enter a license into the program.
to retrieve a lost Lifetime license by e-mail. An One Year license cannot be replaced. A new license must be purchased.

GoldWave Setup in the Windows menu.

Use Setup Options to change the way GoldWave intializes (such as loading plug-in) and alters the way it runs. These settings should not be changed on most computers.

If certain plug-ins are causing division-by-zero or invalid floating point errors, check the Ignore floating point errors box to ignore the error. Note that this setting may cause distortion in some of the built-in effects in GoldWave, so it is better to contact the plug-in developer to correct the problem rather than ignore it.

Use the Backup Settings button to save all GoldWave settings and presets to a file (except keyboard assignments).

Use the Restore Settings button to load all the settings from the file.

Use the Transfer Settings From v5 button to get all settings and presets from GoldWave v5. Some settings in v5 are not compatible with more recent version of GoldWave. Use this buttom only if you have many custom presets or settings that have to be transferred. If you have only a few custom settings or presets, enter them manually instead. All settings in the current version of GoldWave will be lost. Backup current settings before using this command unless you just updated to the new version from v5.

To save keyboard assignments to a file, use the Save button on the window.