Remove Audio Noise from LPs, Cassettes, MP3s
Chris | Live Tech Support | Video Help | Add to iTunes
http://live.pirillo.com/ – Chris Proctor emailed to say he’s trying to salvage music off of old, damaged CDs but they’re full of static and fuzz and other scratchiness. He’s wondering if there are programs available to remove that audio “noise”.
The static and fuzz Chris is referring to is commonly known as “pops” and “hissing”. The pops are from vinyl albums, and the hissing sounds come from cassettes. Most of the software you’ll find to fix these problems is quite expensive.
One program I’ve found that isn’t so pricey is Spin It Again. You can get this for around $30.00, and they even have a 30 day free trial. Not only will the program make the whole recording and track dividing process easy, but it will also clean your recordings by getting rid of click and pop record noise, or by removing hiss and hum off old cassettes. You can also record your LP collection and cassettes to your iPod or portable MP3 player! Check out some of the samples on their site to hear the before and after difference yourself.
I still recommend using the Microsoft Plus! Digital Media Pack. Unfortunately, Microsoft has discontinued Plus! SuperPack for Windows XP and Plus! Digital Media Edition. Many of the features and tools that have been enjoyed for years now can be found in new Microsoft titles and services including Windows Vista. The Microsoft Plus titles will be available in retail outlets while supplies last… so get it while you can!
Another idea is WavePad. I haven’t tried this myself, but it was recommended by chatter UncleJohn. WavePad audio editing software is a sound editor program for Windows. This audio editing software lets you make and edit music, voice and other audio recordings. When editing audio you can cut, copy and paste parts of recordings and, if required, add effects like echo, amplification and noise reduction. WavePad also has a free trial.
Have you guys dealt with this before, and if so… what programs did you use? I’m interested in finding out what works, and what doesn’t.
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9 Comments
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October 13th, 2007
at 9:18am
Chris Proctor emailed to say he’s trying to salvage music off of old, damaged CDs but they’re full of static and fuzz and other scratchiness. He’s wondering if there are programs available to remove that audio “noise”.”Full Show Notes HereSubscribe Website RSS | iTunes http://live.pirillo.com
Windows Vista Torrent
October 11th, 2007
at 6:57am
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Chris Proctor
October 11th, 2007
at 12:19am
Thanks for the time you spent on my topic on your live service, Chris. I appreciate it. I’m going to try Spin It Again. Also, I already have a free version of WavePad that I’m pretty happy with, but I don’t have the version that will let me use the hiss and pop removal tool. The only qualm I have with the response is that the vinyl LP’s and cassettes are irrelevant to me. I’m sure that helps somebody else, so that’s cool, but I’m only interested in CD to MP3 fixes. But thanks, though, to you and to all who have responded so far. I’ll give this stuff a shot.
Phillip
October 11th, 2007
at 1:09am
Good info! I use Nero WaveEditor that came with the Nero Package – comes with just about every version I know of. It has a noise reduction option (hisses) and crackles and pops are taken care of by “Declicker”. audacity…maybe? hey, it’s free. also i run my turntable (from the 70’s) through an amplifier that you can adjust the bass and treble with, and filter the hisses and stuff like that. the better the needle – the much better it is. with cassettes, you can use Nero waveeditor and before hand see if your tape player has any equalizers
hope this means anything :)
George
October 11th, 2007
at 9:52am
I’d recommend Audacity. It’s 100% free, and has many, many, imbedded tools including a customizable declicking option. I run my USB turntable through it with great results.
Paul
October 11th, 2007
at 5:33pm
Just saw the video and found the blog.
I think if you have records especially that have got a bit of an age on them and you have some decent hardware, i would suggest to get some great needles, and some of the best leads you can get and connect to a DJ mixer to the pc. The higher quality the hardware the better the sound will be.
As Chris said check out the software via his blog that he mentioned in the film
on a side night i find it quiet ironic that vinyl is the last compressed of all music format and putting a side the size of vinyl, get really great needles and great equipment and it will sound as crisp as anything else.
I am a DJ, but i always loved music, i still buy vinyl albums and 7″ singles and i have always prefered them even to CD
Coby
October 12th, 2007
at 6:38am
I use Cool Edit and Cool Edit Pro which is now Adobe Audition. Audition is expensive, but Cool Edit can be found for virtually free on the web. These programs are geared for professional users, but they can give great results.
Al
October 13th, 2007
at 2:24am
Magix Audio Editor is great and it’s 45$ i think. I clean audio all the time with it.
Chris Proctor
October 20th, 2007
at 1:55am
Well, I can’t make heads or tails of Spin It Again. Maybe I didn’t try hard enough to figure it out, but … I’ll try something else. And, as it turns out, while I was looking for audio cleaners I stumbled upon exactly what Al up there was talking about, Magix Audio Editor. I’m seriously considering buying it. Seems it’s now $30 with $5 S/H when bought through the website. I think I just might do that. Thanks, Al.
My only alternative is to find new copies of all the songs that have been damaged, and I think it’s damn near impossible to do. I have some pretty obscure songs, songs you’ll never hear on the radio from artists you’ve never heard of, songs from bands that have probably long since disbanded.
Just for the record if anyone’s curious, here are some of the rare gems I need repaired:
-> Engrave – Recoil
-> Masters of Balance – Dreamworld
-> DJ Yan – Gear 3D
-> Raymond Wave – September
-> 303 Infinity – Liquid Bass
-> Electrostatic – Magnetic Pulse
-> Juno Reactor – High Energy Protons
For “Gear 3D” and “High Energy Protons”, I know that there are multiple mixes of the song, but I don’t remember the name of the mix I liked best.