Make a ringtone in GarageBand

What you need:  A song or other audio file and GarageBand ($79.99 bundled in iLife ‘08, www.apple.com)

1. Prepare a New File

Start with a new music project, unless you already have a GarageBand masterpiece.

Create a new GarageBand project. Locate a source song file that’s AAC, MP3 , WAV, or AIFF format.

2. Import the Audio

Ignore the other instrument tracks, unless you want to remix your original song.

Choose the perfect song or sound. Drag your chosen song onto the timeline of the newly created project.

3. Mark the In-Point

Find the perfect clip from your song that won’t get old.

Find the point within the song that you want to begin your ringtone. Place your mouse in the lower-left corner of the audio clip until the Resize pointer tool appears. Drag the Resize pointer right until you reach the point you want the ringtone to begin. Now move the shortened sound file to the beginning of the GarageBand timeline.

4. Mark the Out-Point

Time mode helps you keep the ringtone under 40 seconds.

Ringtones can only be only 40 seconds long. Select the note icon within the LCD display to change the LCD mode to time mode. Using the Resize pointer, slide the end of your sound file from right to left until you find a good ending. Find a spot with a natural break, in case a shorter ringtone has 
to repeat. 

5. Fit the Region Length

Drag the yellow region area right to match the length of the audio clip.

Click the Cycle Region button at the bottom of the window (the one with the loop icon). Adjust the yellow area so that it covers the entire span of the selected area of sound. Play the selected region to make sure you’re happy with your editing and the point it loops. 

6. Export the Ringtone

It’s ready for the iPhone. You can repeat the process to make the perfect ringtone for every contact.

Press Play. If you like what you hear, export the ringtone to iTunes. In the menu bar select Share > Send Ringtone to iTunes.

7. Sync the Ringtone

You’re all set. Now you just have to wait until someone calls.

Plug in your iPhone. Navigate to the ringtones tab. Make sure your new ringtone is set to sync. Then, on your iPhone, select a contact, and just tap the ringtone name (likely Default) to assign to your new masterpiece.

Make a Ringtone in iToner

iToner does just one thing, but it does it well.

If you already have a song that doesn’t need editing or you don’t have GarageBand, iToner is a good drag-and-drop ringtone creator. (It costs $15 from www.ambrosiasw.com.) While iToner will allow any length file be added to it, only the first 40 seconds will be made into a ringtone. If you need to edit the audio file but don’t have GarageBand, try an open-source audio editing application like, Audacity (audacity.sourceforge.net).

Plug in your iPhone and launch iTunes. Launch iToner and drag a sound file into the application window. Click the Sync button and iToner will process the audio into a ringtone, then automatically transfer it to the phone. The ringtone will never show up in iTunes, but it’ll be ready when you disconnect.