The Default compression option

You can select compression options for individual event sounds and export the sounds with those settings. You can also select compression options for individual stream sounds. However, all stream sounds in a document are exported as a single stream file, using the highest setting of all those applied to individual stream sounds. This includes stream sounds in video objects.

You select compression options for individual sounds in the Sound Properties dialog box. You can also select global compression settings for event sounds or stream sounds in the Publish Settings dialog box. These global settings are applied to individual event sounds or all stream sounds if you do not select compression settings for the sounds in the Sound Properties dialog box. See Publishing Flash documents.

You can also override export settings specified in the Sound Properties dialog box by selecting Override Sound Settings in the Publish Settings dialog box. This option is useful if you want to create a larger high-fidelity audio file for local use and a smaller low-fidelity version for the web. See Setting publish options for the Flash SWF file format.

The sampling rate and degree of compression make a significant difference in the quality and size of sounds in exported SWF files. The more you compress a sound and the lower the sampling rate, the smaller the size and the lower the quality. You should experiment to find the optimal balance between sound quality and file size.

When working with imported MP3 files, you can export the files in MP3 format using the same settings that the files had when imported.

Note: In Windows, you can also export all the sounds from a document as a WAV file using File > Export > Export Movie. See Exporting Flash content and images.

To set export properties for an individual sound:

Do one of the following:
- Double-click the sound's icon in the Library panel.
- Right-click (Windows) or Control-click (Macintosh) a sound file in the Library panel and select Properties from the context menu.
- Select a sound in the Library panel and select Properties from the options menu in the upper right corner of the panel.
- Select a sound in the Library panel and click the properties icon at the bottom of the Library panel.
If the sound file has been edited externally, click Update.
For Compression, select Default, ADPCM, MP3, Raw, or Speech. To select options for a compression format you choose, see the section corresponding to the selected format:
Set export settings.
Click Test to play the sound once. Click Stop if you want to stop testing the sound before it has finished playing.
Adjust export settings if necessary until the desired sound quality is achieved.
Click OK.

The Default compression option uses the global compression settings in the Publish Settings dialog box when you export your SWF file. If you select Default, no additional export settings are available.