Audio File Sound Skips During Image Transitions

When you add an MP3 music file to a Windows Movie Maker project, you may find that the sound skips or hesitates during image transitions.

This problem may occur if you are using an MP3 file that has a low bit rate. The problem may be more noticeable when you save the movie as a DV-AVI NTSC file.

Note: The bit rate for an audio file is the average number of bits that are transferred per second when the audio file is created. Bit rates for MP3 files are typically 64 kilobits per second (Kbps), 96 Kbps, 128 Kbps, or 160 Kbps. Tracks that have higher-quality sound use lower compression, have a higher bit rate, and require more disk space. Tracks with higher compression have a lower bit rate and lower-quality sound.

To work around this issue, use either of the following methods:

• Use an MP3 file that has a higher bit rate.
• Use a Windows Media Audio (WMA) file.

To determine the bit rate of an audio file, follow these steps:

1. Use Windows Explorer to find the file.
2. Right-click the file, and then click Properties.
3. Click the Summary tab, and then click Advanced.
   
   Bit Rate appears under the Audio section.

For more information about WMA and MP3 format files, visit the following Microsoft Web site: http://windowsmedia.com/9series/DemoCenter/AudioQuality.asp?page=6&lookup=AudioQuality (http://windowsmedia.com/9series/DemoCenter/AudioQuality.asp?page=6&lookup=AudioQuality)

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article.