An increasing number of powerful AI-driven tools are achieving the previously impossible. We look at just how easy AI denoising can be with a new product from one of the biggest names in plugins.
What Makes Noise?
Noise is any unwanted artefact in the wanted audio. Location recordists and dialogue editors will be well aware of the problems encountered when trying to capture and mix voices that are free of unwanted traffic sounds, overhead aircraft noise, or other extraneous elements. This problem is also something that musicians and producers working in less than ideal environments must contend with, and as gear gets cheaper and space more expensive, the problem of noise in music recordings isn’t going away any time soon.
The biggest noise-shaped enemy of the recording musician or engineer/producer is not external sounds that can be worked around, but more the sounds emanating from their own space and their own gear. Of these, computer or related peripheral equipment often contains fans that spin up when the load demands. Although this isn’t just limited to domestic recording spaces, the problem here can be worse simply because of the proximity of the offending noise to the mic.
How to Prevent Noise
Drying up a domestic dual purpose recording and mixing environment with acoustic treatment can help with this as it helps catch reflected noise hitting the mic. The rest comes down to simply putting as much distance between mic and noise as possible, and working as close as the source will allow. Also having an understanding of the mics being used will help greatly, as putting the noise in a mic’s deafest null point can reduce the amount of unwanted pickup by a surprising amount. In terms of the noise itself, investigating how to reduce the cause of the heat that your gear is fighting can help. Simply quitting background apps can reduce the load, with some very well-known web browsers and cloud backup tools being the worst for assuming you haven’t got anything else to do with your computer. Ensuring good ventilation around your gear can also equate to less fan noise on a recording. Sometimes, however, even an awareness of all these factors cannot get you out of jail…
Waves Clarity Vx
Audio plugin giant Waves is the latest developer to throw their hat into the AI denoiser ring, with two sister products in their brand new Clarity Vx and Clarity Vx Pro plugins. Both have one-knob denoising at their hearts, with the latter bringing deeper control of ambience and per-band processing to the table. Clarity Vx has been developed with devastating simplicity in mind, while keeping the same sound quality as its big sister. Of the Clarity range, Waves continue:
The highest-quality AND fastest way to clean any vocal or voice recording – whether in music production or in video, podcasting, etc.
Clarity Vx combines top quality and simplicity thanks to Waves’ new groundbreaking AI technology, Waves Neural Networks. The plugin knows to identify voice and separate it cleanly.
From even the harshest ambient/background noises: AC noise, computer fan noise, traffic noise – you name it, anything that might ruin an otherwise perfect vocal or voice recording.
All you need to do is turn the one big knob clockwise. The result is fast and at the highest fidelity: no artifacts, no damage to the source. Try it for yourself, on your worst vocal or voice recordings!
Watch in the video how we use Clarity Vx to slay fan noise forever that threatens to trash an entire vocal stack. The ease of use and the sound quality might surprise you.
The Best AI Vocal Cleanup?
With so many excellent AI tools out there, choosing the one that’s right for you might be down to what a potential candidate doesn’t give you. If you don’t want artefacts in the cleaned up audio, or tonnes of complex functionality to navigate, Clarity Vx makes a very interesting proposition indeed. For serious professionals and self-confirmed tweakheads Clarity Vx Pro completes a duo of fixers that might be the best yet.