Are you looking to set foot in the sound and music production industry? Then learning how to reduce noise in recorded tracks would be a very helpful thing to learn. Indeed, noise removal can be quite a difficult task for amateur sound recordists and sound mixers. The white noise that creeps into the background of a high quality music track at the time of recording can completely ruin the experience of listening to it.

So, where does this “noise” come from?

When you record an audio track, different kinds of sounds can be generated in the background. These include a constant hiss in the background, noise of general conversations going on, and sounds of moving equipment. Even if you carry out the recording in a soundproof room, there will still be noises from that are generated from the artist’s breath, noise generated by faulty microphones, and the sound of the artist’s feet if he/ she is moving around while singing. Does the last point sound weird? Trust me, it is not. Many budding artists have this habit, especially if they are in the habit of using a wireless microphone. Anyway, the result of all these disturbances is the introduction of noise in the background, which you would want to remove from the recorded audio clip so that the end product sounds more professional.

How to remove noise using software tools?

Perhaps one of the best software tools used for removing noise from digitally recorded audio streams is Adobe Audition. SoundForge was widely used in the past for editing audio files, but this great utility from Adobe has given it stiff competition. Here is how you can use Adobe Audition to remove noise:

1. Open the audio file, and highlight the first section where you encounter noise. It can be the pause time at the beginning of the file, when the vocalist is getting ready to sing. Highlight the portion, taking care not to select any portion of the actual vocals. You can use the “zoom in” function to make sure you are not making any mistakes.

2. Next, you will be using the noise reduction tool of the software. Click on the menu named “Effects”, and then on “Noise Reduction” in the menu that opens up. Now start reducing the noise level by moving the slider. Make sure you do not apply too much noise reduction though. Doing so can fade out even the little sounds in the background score. It is best to move the slider a little at a time, listening to the altered audio stream after each change. This may sound a little time consuming, but it is definitely a safer route to take, especially if you are inexperienced.

3. Once you are satisfied with the results, simply apply those settings to the remaining file. The background noise should be reduced to an acceptable volume. There are also other noises you might want to reduce, however, as the sound of the vocalist drawing in breath before starting a new section of the song.

Once you have removed all noises from the entire track in this manner, save the file. That’s it. You are done with noise removal. Your new masterpiece is ready to be circulated amongst your friends.