sox

Sox is a powerful command line tool used for audio conversion, editing, and manipulation on Unix-like systems. It stands for "Sound eXchange" and has been around since the 1980s.

With SoX, you can easily convert audio files from one format to another. It supports a wide range of formats, including mp3, WAV, FLAC, Ogg Vorbis, and many more.

The tool provides various editing capabilities, allowing you to trim audio files, adjust volume levels, change speed and pitch, and apply effects like reverb and echo. You can also combine multiple audio files into one, and split large audio files into smaller ones.

SoX supports scripting, making it highly flexible and suitable for batch processing tasks. It can be used with shell scripts, Perl, Python, or any other scripting language.

One notable feature of SoX is its support for audio effects plugins. These plugins provide additional functionalities and effects, ranging from dynamic range compression to noise reduction and equalization.

SoX is entirely command line driven, meaning that all its functions are performed through specific command-line options and arguments. This makes it ideal for automation and integration with other tools or processes.

It is an open-source tool available under the GNU General Public License, which means it's free to use, modify, and distribute.

SoX has extensive documentation, including a comprehensive manual, tutorials, and examples, making it easier for users to get started and make the most of its capabilities.

It has a large user community and is actively maintained, ensuring ongoing updates, bug fixes, and improvements.

Although primarily a command line tool, SoX also has several GUI wrappers available, allowing users who prefer graphical interfaces to utilize its functionality.