Downloadable audio books (also called MP3 books) are timesaving, easily affordable, and portable. The flexible MP3 file format makes them useful in both entertaining and educating us when we are on-the-go. You probably already know it.

But did you know this?

You can save extra time when you listen to recorded-voice MP3 files by increasing the tempo of the MP3 file. And you can do it free to boot.

Why would you want to go the extra mile and speed up an MP3 file? If you are into listening to many MP3 voice recordings especially for education, cutting down on the time is takes to listen to them comes in handy.

Many advanced MP3 players have the options of varying the playback speed. But what if the choices change the tempo and pitch of the recording? You’ll hear a bunch of chipmunks as a result. And what about if you have a reliable MP3 player without the extra bells and whistles. Should you part with it and shell out some dough to buy a more advanced model? No worries. There’s a way around it.

In the following list of steps, learn how you can alter the playback speed of MP3 voice recordings without paying a dime for a new, fancy MP3 player, or … for anything else.

Here is the list of steps. Take a look:

1. Download the MP3 file and store it on your PC’s hard drive. Remember the file’s location.

2. If you already have the Audacity Program, great. If not, go to http://audacity.sourceforge.net/ and download it from there. Follow the downloading and installation instructions.

3. You will need LAME MP3 Encoder file on your computer. You can download it at http://audacity.sourceforge.net/download/beta_windows under the “Optional Downloads”. The encoder file allows you to export MP3 files.

4. Okay. You have your MP3 file, Audacity and the LAME MP3 Encoder file now ready to go. So, let’s …

5. Open the Audacity program. In the menu bar, under File, choose Open. Browse your hard drive and find the MP3 file. Once you find the file, choose it and click the Open button. It may take a short while for the file to export and open in the Audacity program.

6. Do you have the file open now? Excellent. Now, under Edit (left upper corner), choose Select … > All. Your action now selects the entire MP3 file.

7. Under EFFECT (in the same menu bar as before) … choose “Change Tempo…” (about 5th one down the column). A new window opens. You can see a slider bar with a window showing 0.0 percentage change. That’s the spot to alter the MP3’s tempo without changing the pitch.

8. Now, enter the percentage change you want and preview the playback. Usually, somewhere between 10 - 50% change does the trick. Start at 10% and go up. Preview the playback with every % change you make.

9. When you are happy with the playback speed, click OK. The rewriting process takes a few moments. Once it’s finished, you’ll see the original MP3 file duration display shorter by the % change you’ve chosen.

10. Now, click somewhere in the big gray rectangle below the new waveform of the MP3 file. Make sure this deselects any portions of the waveform.

11. Got it? Good. Now, go to File (left upper corner menu bar again) and choose “Export As MP3″. A new window opens and gives you the choices to name your new file and store it. Go ahead and do that. You can add the word “FAST” at the end of the file name to recognize it from the original file later.

12. Almost done. Close Audacity now. If you want to keep the original file intact “as it were”, click on “No” and Audacity closes.

13. Now, all you have to do is to download the “faster” MP3 file to your MP3 player and boogie down the road, so to speak. If you need help with transferring downloadable audio books, MP3 books, MP3 music or any MP3 voice recordings to your MP3 player, you’ll find http://www.mybigaudio.com/help.html video section useful .

You are done. Congratulations! Downloadable audio books on-the-go can go even faster. See, it’s easy to speed up MP3 books, teleconferences, or any other recorded voice in MP3 format.