How to Preview Cuts and Edits in Audacity

Audacity includes a built-in "Cut Preview" feature that allows you to hear how an edit will sound before you actually delete any audio. By using pre-roll and post-roll playback, Audacity plays the audio immediately before your selected region, skips over the highlighted section, and continues playing immediately after it. This guide explains how to use this feature and how to customize the preview duration to ensure seamless transitions.

How to Use Cut Preview

  1. Highlight the Audio: Click and drag your cursor over the section of audio you intend to cut or delete.
  2. Press the Shortcut: Press the C key on your keyboard.
  3. Listen to the Transition: Audacity will automatically play the audio directly before the selection (pre-roll), jump over the selected area without playing it, and play the audio directly after the selection (post-roll).

If the edit sounds unnatural or cuts off a word or beat, adjust the boundaries of your selection and press C again to re-check the edit. Once the cut sounds smooth, press Delete or Ctrl + X (Windows) / Cmd + X (Mac) to finalize the removal.

How to Adjust Pre-Roll and Post-Roll Times

By default, Audacity plays two seconds before and two seconds after the cut region. You can adjust these lengths to fit your workflow:

  1. Open the Preferences menu:
    • Windows/Linux: Go to Edit > Preferences.
    • macOS: Go to Audacity > Preferences.
  2. Select the Playback section from the left-hand menu.
  3. In the Cut Preview settings area, locate:
    • Before cut region: Enter the number of seconds of pre-roll playback you want.
    • After cut region: Enter the number of seconds of post-roll playback you want.
  4. Click OK to save your changes.