The reason for the * after iTunes in the title of this post is because there are a few tricks to get this going. But don’t let that scare you away. Once you get the hang of it you’ll be making ringtones for all the (non-DRM) songs in your library.
Follow these steps to start creating ringtones:
1. Open iTunes
2. Find the song that you’d like to make into a ringtone.
3. Listen to the song and find the part of it you want to use. (The chorus may be a good place to start).
4. Write down the start and stop times of the clip.
5. Right-click the song in iTunes and select “Get Info.”
6. Click the “Options” tab.
7. Type in the start time of your ringtone in the text box next to “Start Time” in the minutes:seconds (i.e. 1:30) format.
8. Type in the end time of your ringtone in the text box next to “Stop Time.” Make sure the ringtone is no more than 40 seconds long.
9. Click “OK.”
10. (Older versions of iTunes) Right-click your song again and select “Convert Selection to AAC” (or “Create AAC Version”).
(Newer versions of iTunes) You will find this option under the “Advanced” menu in the toolbar.
Wait for iTunes to convert your song. It will create a duplicate version.
11. Right-click the ringtone and select “Delete.”
12. When asked if you want to keep the file select “Keep File”.
13. Now locate the file. It’s usually in your My Music folder under iTunes > iTunes Music and under the band’s name (or Unknown Artist). It will have an extension of “m4a.”
14. Replace the “m4a” extension of your ringtone with “m4r”. You can either double-click slowly to rename your file, or right-click and select “Rename” on a Windows PC.
15. Double-click the ringtone file. iTunes will automatically add it to your ringtones folder in your iTunes music library.
16. Connect your iPhone and sync your ringtones.
That’s it! Enjoy!
