"Sound Recorder" do the files have to be saved as .wma, or can I change a setting and save them as .wav?

The answer to this question for .wav recording is:

Click Start, open the run window and and type the following command to force windows to record as a ---.wav file:

                       run \soundrecorder /file yourfilename.wav      

By entering the .wav at the end, the recorder will create .wav files instead of the default suffix.  I use this command very often to record my voice for OUTLOOK, so that OUTLOOK rules can play the wav file of my friends names to notify me of important incoming email from a friend.

PS: I save the recorded audio files under the music folder and label the recordings to start with Email_nameexample.wav when used for Outlook so that when creating rules in Outlook, I know the recording is for Email. Hope this helps.

Hi The White Bear,

By default, the recorded audio is saved as a Windows Media Audio (WMA) file.

If you are using Windows Vista Home Basic N or Windows Vista Business N, your Sound Recorder files are saved as .wav files rather than .wma files.

You can play your recording in a digital media player program that supports playback of WMA files.

You may refer the following link for more information:

Record sound

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-vista/Record-sound

You may use your favorite search engine to download a third party converter and check convert to .wav files

Note: Using Third Party Software, including hardware drivers can cause serious problems that may prevent your computer from booting properly. Microsoft cannot guarantee that any problems resulting from the use of Third Party Software can be solved. Using Third Party Software is at your own risk.

Hope this information is helpful.

Praseetha K

Microsoft Answers Support Engineer

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This is another case of the left hand at Microsoft not knowing what the RIght hand is doing and still ignoring field testing with us end users.  (I.E. no communication between departments). How can you create a product for sound recording which does NOT support your own company Outlook email sounds? This case has been happening for a few years yet it continues to be ignored. It is such an easy fix for the sound recorder to have a choice of either .wav or .wma. and make the technology easy for the end user to use. In fact, the outlook email rules should have just offered to record your custom voice message right in the rule box itself without needing to bring up a separate recording program.

You could use  Audacity instead, I'm pretty sure that that can record to WAV.

Tim De Baets

http://www.bm-productions.tk

Dear Mary:

Thanks for your reply. I am assuming that from your reply there is no way to change the file format, other than downloading some other type of program, which I do not like the idea of.

So thanks anyway. I will have to stick to boring old sounds, rather than customizing my computer. Can you tell one of the programmers that it would be nice if in future editions of windows that they could make the file format work with the customized sounds option for actions taken on the computer, like opening a file.

Thanks, The White Bear (Or Kevin to his friends.)