How to Convert a Ringtone Into an MP3

When custom ringtones first came on the market in the late 1990s, there were not many ringtone formats. As the industry has grown over the years, so has the technology behind it. Today, some cellphones support polyphonic ringtones and realtone to make musical ringtones with superior sound quality. MP3 is the most popular audio format for storing music on the computer, and many newer phones can support MP3 ringtones as well. Many of the ringtones on the Internet are not in MP3 format, but you can convert them to another format to work with your phone.

Things You’ll Need:
-Conversion software
-Cellphone that supports MP3 ringtones
-Convert Ringtones to MP3

1. Search for conversion software for the particular ringtone format you are trying to convert to MP3. For example, if you are trying to convert MIDI into MP3, include MIDI and MP3 in your search criteria.

2. Download the software. Some conversion software is free, but others will cost money.

3. Upload the target ringtone to the software program, and run the conversion process.

4. Save the ringtone as a new file with the proper file extension. Create a folder on your hard drive for ringtones if you have many.

5. Transfer the MP3 ringtone to your phone using a data cable, Bluetooth, or email, and install it into the sound folder for use.

Use a Ringtone Conversion Service
1. Search for a free ringtone conversion service on the Internet. If you don't feel like you have the computer savvy to do the job yourself, this option can save time and hassle.

2. Subscribe to the conversion service. Typically, you will have to provide at least your name and email address to use the service.

3. Upload the ringtone you want to convert, either from your computer or from a file-storage link.

4. Choose MP3 from the list of formats, and execute the conversion.

5. Download the converted file to your desktop, and install it on your cellphone. Alternatively, you may receive the file directly to your cellphone via an SMS text message.

Creating Your Own MP3 Ringtones

MP3 ringtones are the now the hottest ringtones on cellular phones. They are considered real music in the sense that they play actual music although only in portions. Music ringtones can be found in different formats but MP3 is, by far, the most famous.

MP3, short for MPEG-1 Audio Layer 3, is a digital audio encoding compression format meant to reduce the amount of data required for audio files thereby taking up less space. It can compress big files into small ones for faster access over the internet.

Not all mobile phones, however, can support MP3 ringtones. But the good news is that as mobile technology continues to advance, more new phones are developed with an MP3 capability.

People with a creative mind and a great love for music can now make their own ringtones out of any MP3 music without paying anything. All you need are some free software and a few minutes and you can have that favorite ringtone on your cellphone.

For you to be able to create your unique ringtone, you should have a cellphone that plays MP3's and supports custom tones, a specific method to transfer the file to your phone such as through cable, Bluetooth or an email to your phone and a free sound-editing software like the highly-recommended Audacity.

You will have to edit your MP3 song first before transferring it to your phone. One song usually takes several minutes so you will only need to choose the part (at least 20 seconds) which you'd like to have as your ringtone. By using Audacity, you can cut your MP3 to the exact length you want and include any effects.

The first thing to do is download Audacity and install it. Go to www.audacity.sourceforge.net and download the audio editor. Once installed, open Audacity by clicking on the headphones icon on your desktop. You will also need the LAME compression library (lame_enc.dll) which you can also download and store permanently on your hard drive. Now from the edit menu of Audacity, choose preferences. Then on the file formats tab, under the MP3 Export Setup, click on the find library button and browse to the dll you downloaded.

From there, you can make a copy of your MP3 file and put it in a temporary folder. To open the file, drag and drop it onto Audacity. To start editing, browse through Audacity's editing tools and choose the effects you'd like to use. Highlight the part of the song you want as your ringtone. Once you're done, choose "export as MP3" from the file menu and save it as an MP3 format on your desktop or document folder.

Transfer the tone to your phone by cable, Bluetooth or flashcard connection or by sending it to your phone's address via email. Once your phone receives the edited music file, you can set it as a custom ringtone depending on the model of your cellphone.