Dialogue Editing - Advice?

[GMT]

I••™m working on a project that requires me to clean up the audio of archived radio programs that will be released on cd. It••™s unscripted, Q/A dialogue format, 2 male voices. One has some broadcast experience, the other has not.

Some of the recordings are pretty ••œdirty••

[Phil O]

Sounds like you've got a pretty good idea of what you're doing. May I suggest you take a look at Bias Soundsoap. There are two versions available. I think they're called Soundsoap and Soundsoap Pro, or something like that. Anyway the lesser priced Soundsoap does a really good job at dealing with things like air-conditioners, 60Hz hum, etc. I think there is a demo available. Definitely worth checking out.
I rarely use crossfades for edits. Most of the time I can get away with zooming into the waveform and making my edits at zero crossings (or some other level where I can get the waveform to line up correctly.) Pops often times consist of lots of low frequency energy. For those situations, I will sometimes automate DP's MWEQ to cut low frequencies for the duration of the pop. Works 90% of the time.

Hope I was some help.

Phil

[sdemott]

My only comment would be to edit first before you start the cleanup. In other words, why clean what you don't need.

I would also try to separate the voices to different tracks during the editing process. This will allow for a lot more consistency throughout the final mix. You'll be able to EQ/Compress/Gate/De-Ess separately with a lot less hassle.

Another thing to keep in mind is the mic change will effect the way you set your plugs. If the NT1-A is anything like the NT1 there will be a good amount of proximity effect. I'm wagering the cheaper mics will be thinner on the bottom end. Keeping the mics as similar sounding as possible will be a concern if they will end up on the same CD.

The MWEQ FFT display will be your best friend over the next few days (weeks?).

yes - I realize I said "my only comment" and then gave 3 comments...I suppose I could have said "amongst my many comments are..."

...and really nice red uniforms...

[GMT]

Thanks for your replies. I'll take a look at Soundsoap - I recall it being reviewed in the trades.

Editing first makes sense. I start off by listening through the program and dropping markers at places in need of attention; that's the hit list.

Yes, the voices are on separate tracks, and they're using 2 NT1-A's now. We'll be having a meeting as to how to improve and standardize the recording process. Inconsistency among archived programs results in each program (5 do far) having their own unique noise characteristics. Therein lies the challenge before me: lotsa variable at the outset.

The most beguiling problem is mouth or "smacking" soundsthat are numerous and not-so-subtle. I'm hoping to dial in the MW gate to make 'em go away as much as possible. If not, I resort to cutting them out manually. That's where the room tone/smooth audio edits will be necessary.

At any rate, repetition results in proficiency. So at some point, I'll be able to make that claim. Sooner the better.

Thanks,

Greg

[vier-personen]

The most beguiling problem is mouth or "smacking" soundsthat are numerous and not-so-subtle. I'm hoping to dial in the MW gate to make 'em go away as much as possible. If not, I resort to cutting them out manually. That's where the room tone/smooth audio edits will be necessary.

another hint (that I am sure you already know) is to use the pencil tool in the sound file window to smooth out mouth or other noises. this can be more work, but if there‘s a nasty pop at a place where it can‘t be cut out this is my method to go...

[Shooshie]

I use Soundsoap only because I haven't been able to force myself to spend the bucks for the Waves tools. Soundsoap is ok, but not the greatest. Part of the trick, however, is learning to use it correctly. Watch the video that comes with it (or maybe it's on their website, I forget) and learn the order in which you adjust it, and what each button is for. Once I started doing it in the right order, it got a lot better. But still, the best for this is the Waves Restoration and/or Z-Noise. Z-Noise has absolutely the best algorithm for tracking a noise that modulates. If the noise is steady and consistent, then you can use X-Noise from the Restoration Bundle. There are other plugins for clicks, pops, comb filter, and hum.

One other program that has noise-reducing features is Soundtrack 2 or Soundtrack Pro (I think the latter is the old name, I'm not sure) I don't know if the "lite" version (Soundtrack) has those features.

Good luck... hope you find something in your price range that works.

Shooshie

[Douglas Nagel]

Soundsoap is a good mid-level noise reduction plug. HOWEVER, one note of evil about it is that it will not run on Intel macs. And considering the update is past due by about one year, it may be abandonware as far as Bias Inc. is concerned.

For me, this enough of a pain in the ass to instead recommend spending the extra money on Waves. I certainly wish I had purchased Waves instead of Soundsoap.

[MT]

Soundtrack Pro also does a pretty good job of cleanup, though I found with clicks/pops analysis, you sometimes have to run it multiple times to get things under control. I used it a lot for some of the same issues you're describing for a low-budget horror movie I edited. Can't compare it to Soundsoap though. They may be about the same?

[GMT]

Thanks all for your input. I'll do some homework on these apps and see if I want to invest in one.

G

[Shooshie]

I don't know if Bias Soundsoap runs as a plugin, though it does show up in my plugin list. But it runs quite well as a stand-alone on my Intel Mac, and it IS a Universal Binary. I think they updated it while you weren't looking!

I had to reinstall it, and I may have had to buy the update; I don't remember now. But it does run natively on Intel Macs. Oh, one more thing. Now it's called Soundsoap 2.

Shooshie

[vier-personen]

wave arts are releasing (or have they already?) a restoration suite:

http://wavearts.com/MR.html

I haven‘t tried it, but it might be something you want to look at...

[chamelion]

Any advice on how not to reinvent the wheel would be appreciated. In the meantime, I will review articles from Mix & EM magazines.

Thanks!

I have Soundsoap 2, but almost always I get a better result with a free, cross-platform sound etitor called Audacity.
It has a noise reduction feature that I've found to produce excellent results with things like hum and airconditioners etc., without destroying the voice material with artifacts the way that Soundsoap 2 often does.
Tip: My weapon of choice for fixing pops is that little 2 band Para EQ Plug in DP. There's a bass rolloff preset that can easily adjusted to remove the pop and save the day. I just select the pop in the sequence window and do a destructive edit on the spot. You can always undo it if you're not happy. Fortunately the frequence range of most pops tends to be pretty much the same, so once you get one sounding OK, its easy to pick up all the others and zap 'em one at a time.

Cheers,

Geoff

[GMT]

Hmmm, the price is right on that one... I'll test drive it later, I have to write some bed material first.

For hum, I've used a lo end rolloff, or I've experimented with a parametric to notch out around 113 hz, maybe a 2nd notch 8va above that to get a handle on it.

One recording had a hiss - seemed like the sound of bacon frying or rain on pavement or a nice scratchy vynil LP disc. MWEQ parametrics worked well on that; applied carefully so as not to degrade the voice quality.

The most noticeable mouth noises were centered around 6.9k, lesser ones in a range of about 1.5-2k. So eq has helped in some instances. I'm hoping to set up tools and presets to work quickly with as I encounter the variety of noises from different recordings. The equipment and techniques have changed and evolved over time.

Performing spot edits via splitting, edge editing, and merging of resultant soundbites can sometimes leave a noticeable abscence of room tone. On the newer recordings, MW gate has worked rather well. Again, once I establish a set of tools and presets to work with, the work should go more smoothly/quickly.

Thanks for the heads up on Audacity.

Greg

[Douglas Nagel]

Shoosie,

I forgot to mention that I'm using Soundsoap Pro, which is the more expensive version. So ironically, if I had gotten the cheaper version, I would be all set, as Soundsoap 2 now runs on Intel macs, but the "pro" users are currently screwed.