iOS 5: How to Create Custom Ringtones and Alerts For the iPhone

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If you aren’t satisfied with the default ringtones that came with the iPhone 4S, you can add to your collection. This guide will help you create your own iPhone ringtones and alerts for free.

Apple makes it easy to buy a collection of ringtones and alerts, but if you prefer to make your own ringers and text alerts from movie clips and music, you can do so pretty easily.

We’ll assume you have iTunes 10.5 and iOS 5 installed on your computer and on your iPhone. These new ringers can be set to alert you to new calls, texts and other iPhone sounds.

How To Create Custom Ringtones and Alerts for the iPhone

Find the song or audio clip you want to use. This needs to be a DRM free file. You can use DRM free songs you purchase on iTunes, movie clips you find online and even those you create with your voice.

1. Open up iTunes

2. Find your Song, in this example “santascoming”

3. Right click on it and click on Get Info

Click on Get Info to start making a iPhone Alert Tone

4, Click on Options

5. Set the time of your clip. The clip can be no longer than 30 seconds.

Choose the length of your iPhone Ringtone

6. Click OK

7. Right click on your song and choose Create ACC version. This makes a shortened version of the clip.

Convert your shortened clip to AAC

8. Right click on the new ACC file and choose Show in Finder or Show in Windows Explorer.

Rename your iPhone ringtone to .m4r.

9. Copy the file to your Desktop

10. Rename the file, changing the file extension to .m4r

Change the file type so iTunes knows this is a ringtone.

11.When prompted, click Use .m4r

12. Remove your converted ACC file from iTunes. (Right Click -> Delete)

13. Double click on the new .m4r file and iTunes will add it as a ringtone.

Once you have a Ringtone, iTunes will add this menu.

14. Sync your iPhone with iTunes and make sure you are syncing Ringtones in your iPhone Sync settings.

15. Assign the ringtone or alert in the Settings -> Sounds section of your iPhone.

How to choose your new iPhone ringtone.

Enjoy your new alerts. Make sure you keep your text alerts short and sweet, otherwise you’ll find yourself back at it in a few days. Even the 9 second clip I created is long for a text alert.

If you are on a Mac, you can also create free iPhone ringtones and alerts in Garageband.

About the Author (Author Profile)

Josh is technology enthusiast who enjoys pushing new gadgets to their limits and helping the average user make informed choices about technology. Josh has had technology articles appear on WalletPop and MSNBC as well as coverage from CNN.Josh also teaches business technology courses and is the Editor at Notebooks.com. He uses a Galaxy Nexus and a iPhone 4S and his Tablet is an iPad 2.Follow Josh on Twitter @Josh_Smith or email him josh@notebooks.com. You can findJosh Smith on Google+