Quickly Synchronize Audio in Adobe Premiere Pro CC

Recording audio and video separately is common in professional productions. Maybe you are using an external audio recorder for better sound quality, or the camera’s built-in mic is not good enough. Whatever the reason, you end up with two separate files that need to be synchronized before you can start editing. Premiere Pro makes this easy with a one-click auto-sync feature that matches the waveforms of the two audio tracks.

Today we are going to cover three methods to synchronize audio in Adobe Premiere Pro CC.

Method 1: Synchronize (One Click)

This is the fastest method and works well in most situations.

1. Drag both your video clip (with its camera audio) and your external audio file onto the timeline. Place them on separate tracks.
2. Trim the audio clip to just the usable portion if needed.
3. Select both clips on the timeline (click one, then Ctrl+click/Cmd+click the other).
4. Right click and select Synchronize.
5. In the dialog, select the Audio radio button. This tells Premiere to match the audio waveforms between the two clips.
6. Click OK. Premiere Pro will analyze both audio tracks and slide the clips into alignment.
7. Once synced, you can mute or delete the camera audio and keep the external recording.

Method 2: Merge Clips

This method creates a single, pre-synced clip in your Project panel that you can use throughout your edit.

1. In the Project panel, select both the video file and the external audio file (Ctrl+click/Cmd+click to select both).
2. Right click and select Merge Clips.
3. Select Audio as the synchronization method.
4. Check Remove Audio from AV Clip if you want the merged clip to only use the external audio (discarding the camera audio).
5. Click OK. A new merged clip is created in the Project panel.
6. Drag this merged clip onto the timeline. The audio and video are already synced and linked together.

This method is great when you have multiple takes that all need syncing. Merge them all in the Project panel first, then edit from the merged clips.

Method 3: Manual Synchronization

If the auto-sync fails (which happens occasionally with very different audio sources), you can sync manually.

1. Place both clips on the timeline and expand the track height so you can see the audio waveforms clearly.
2. Look for a distinctive peak in both waveforms. A clap, a door slam, or any sharp transient sound works. This is why slates (clapperboards) exist in film production.
3. Align the peaks by dragging one clip until the waveforms visually match up.
4. For fine-tuning, right click on the timeline ruler at the top and select Show Audio Time Units. This changes the timecode to audio samples, giving you much finer movement control.
5. Hold Alt (Option on Mac) and use the arrow keys to nudge the clip by tiny increments until the two waveforms are perfectly aligned.
6. Play it back and listen. If the two audio tracks are in sync, they should sound clear and present. If they are slightly off, you will hear a phasing or echo effect.

Tips

• Use a clap at the start of every take. A single loud clap creates a sharp spike in both audio waveforms that makes syncing (both manual and automatic) much easier and more reliable.
• Auto-sync works about 90% of the time. It matches the waveform shapes, so as long as both recordings captured the same sound, it will find the match.
• Merge Clips is best for organized workflows. If you are working with many takes, merging everything in the Project panel before editing keeps your timeline clean.
• After syncing, mute the camera audio. Right click the camera audio track and select Unlink, then delete it. Keep only the clean external recording.
• For more audio techniques, check out how to make voice and music sound good together and how to add echo and reverb.

That is how you synchronize audio in Premiere Pro. The one-click sync handles most situations, and manual alignment covers the rest. Either way, it is a process that can save you hours compared to doing it by ear.