This site runs best with JavaScript enabled.

Convert Audio Clip to Ringtone - Mac Automation


How turn MP3 files into ringtones with a simple right-click command on MacOS

Creating your own ringtones for your iPhone is a fairly simple process:

  1. Find your audio source
  2. Create a clip of that audio (I prefer Audacity)
  3. Convert that audio to and AAC m4a file
  4. Rename the file with an m4r extension
  5. Use iTunes to add the m4r file to your iPhone

This tutorial will only cover steps 3 and 4 to make it easier for you.

It will require having FFmpeg installed on your machine. You can easily install it with Homebrew:

1> brew install ffmpeg

You can now use FFmpeg to convert an mp3 file to m4a with the following command:

1> ffmpeg -i clip.mp3 -c:a aac -b:a 192k clip.m4a

Good luck remembering that though. You could add a nice function to your .zshrc or .bashrc file:

1ringtone() {
2 ffmpeg -i "$1" -c:a aac -b:a 192k temp_ringtone.m4a
3 mv temp_ringtone.m4a "${1%.mp3}.m4r"
4}

Now you could simply run the following:

1> ringtone clip.mp3

This would generate a file name clip.m4r

But, let's go one step further. Let's add an Automator service that will allow you to right-click on an audio file and give you an option to convert it to a ringtone.

Step 1: Open Automator

Step 2: Select File > New and then select "Quick Action"

Step 2 Screenshot

Step 3: Set the following options:

Workflow receives current: audio files
in: Finder.app
Image: Audio

Step 3 Screenshot

Step 4: Drag the Run Shell Script action into your workflow

Untitled  Quick Action  1

Step 5: Set the Shell and Input parameters

Shell: either /bin/bash or /bin/zsh
Pass input: as arguments

Step 6: Add the following script:

1/usr/local/bin/ffmpeg -i "$1" -c:a aac -b:a 192k temp_ringtone.m4a
2mv temp_ringtone.m4a "${1%.mp3}.m4r"

image

Step 7: Save the Automation

Press ⌘S to save. Name it something like "Create Ringtone"

Step 8: Test it out!

If you just want the workflow, you can download it here. Create-Ringtone.workflowDownload

Discuss on TwitterEdit post on GitHub

Share article
Dustin Davis

Dustin Davis is a software engineer, people manager, hacker, and entreprenuer. He loves to develop systems and automation. He lives with his wife and five kids in Utah.

Join the Newsletter



Dustin Davis