Importing Single Audio Files
Unreal Engine currently imports uncompressed, little endian, 16-bit Wave (WAV) files at any sample rate (although, we recommend sample rates of 44.1 kHz or 22.05 kHz).
In the Content Browser, click the Import button.
![Click the Import Button]()
Locate and select your
.wavfile.![Import Audio File to the Project]()
Click Open to begin importing the audio file to your project.
After the import progress bar fills up, a sound asset appears inside of the Content Browser, indicating that Unreal Engine has successfully imported the audio file to your project.
![Unsaved Sound Asset]()
The unsaved sound asset is marked with an asterisk, prompting you to click the Save All button.
![Click the Save All Button]()
Once the Save Content dialog box appears, go ahead and click Save Selected to save your imported asset.
![Save Selected Asset]()
After clicking on the Save Selected button, Unreal Engine removes the asterisk, indicating that the audio file has been successfully saved.
![Successfully Saved Asset]()
Hover over the saved asset inside the Content Browser to view a summary of the sound asset's properties.
![Single Sound Asset's Properties]()
Multi-Channel Audio Extension Table
Prior to importing multi-channel audio, it's a good practice to reference the following table when naming your .WAV files.
|
Extension |
4.0 |
5.1 |
7.1 |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
FrontLeft |
_fl |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
|
FrontRight |
_fr |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
|
FrontCenter |
_fc |
✓ |
✓ |
|
|
LowFrequency |
_lf |
✓ |
✓ |
|
|
SideLeft |
_sl |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
|
SideRight |
_sr |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
|
BackLeft |
_bl |
✓ |
||
|
BackRight |
_br |
✓ |
The following steps demonstrate a specific use-case for importing a 4.0 surround sound asset into the editor. Refer to our Audio documentation for information on sample rates, audio specifications, and best practices when importing audio into Unreal Engine.
After exporting your multi-channel sound asset, verify that your audio files are named according to the Multi-Channel Audio Extension Table (4.0 example pictured below).
![Ensure that Audio Files are Named Properly]()
Extension requirements for 5.1, 6.1, and 7.1 channel surround sound are found in the Multi-Channel Audio Extension Table.
Importing Multi-Channel Audio
Exporting a multi-channel sound asset will create a mono .wav file for each channel, following the Multi-Channel Audio Extension naming convention.
In the Content Browser, click the Import button.
![Click the Import Button]()
Locate and select your
.wavfiles.![Import Multi-Channel Audio Files]()
Click Open to begin importing the audio files to your project.
After the import progress bar fills up, a four channel sound asset (named "Surround") appears inside of the Content Browser, indicating that Unreal Engine has successfully imported the audio file to your project.
![Unsaved Sound Asset]()
The unsaved sound asset is marked with an asterisk, prompting you to click the Save All button.
![Click the Save All Button]()
Once the Save Content dialog box appears, go ahead and click Save Selected to save your imported asset.
![Save Selected Asset]()
After clicking on the Save Selected button, Unreal Engine removes the asterisk, indicating that the assets have been successfully saved.
![Successfully Saved Asset]()
Hover over the saved asset inside the Content Browser to view a summary of the sound asset's properties.
![Multi-Channel Sound Asset's Properties]()
Verifying Imported Assets
It's good practice to verify that .uassetfiles were imported properly onto the hard disk.
Inside the editor, right-click the folder with imported files. Under Folder Options, click 'Show In Explorer'.
![Click Show in Explorer]()
With Explorer open, verify that Unreal Engine created the corresponding
.uasset filesfor your project.![Verify Files in Explorer]()
