Music Production/Make Your Audio Sound Better - iZotope RX8 Giveaway
Make Your Audio Sound Better - iZotope RX8 Giveaway

Make Your Audio Sound Better - iZotope RX8 Giveaway

In The Mix16 minSep 5, 2020
A tutorial showing the audio repair tools used to fix completely broken audio
8 chapters
  • Introduction and Overview(0'001'44)
    Welcome back to the channel with a highly requested tutorial on audio repair tools, featuring examples of repairing broken audio and a software giveaway.
    • iZotope RX7 (recently updated to RX8) is the primary audio repair tool demonstrated • Can be used as standalone software or as modules within a DAW • Includes multiple repair modules for various audio problems
    • Guitar amplifier noise removal • Wind noise reduction from outdoor recordings • Reverb reduction and microphone handling noise removal • Mouth noise and whistle removal
    Drag-and-drop audio onto the interface, with transport controls at the bottom, selection and zoom tools, repair modules on the side, and choice between waveform or spectrogram view.
  • RX8 Interface and Repair Modules(1'442'50)
    Waveform view for sample-by-sample editing, or spectrogram view where low frequencies appear at the bottom and high frequencies (15-20kHz) at the top of the screen.
    • Breath reduction • Clipping removal • Crackle reduction • Wind removal • Noise reduction behind voice • Utility tools including EQ, gain, and polarity adjustment
    RX contains comprehensive repair modules for nearly all audio problems, with an intuitive interface that doesn't require extensive tutorials—users can load a module and listen to results while adjusting.
    Rendering is quick (1-2 seconds), allowing the processing to be baked in and freeing CPU resources, which is why the standalone version is preferred over DAW plugins.
  • Example 1: Guitar Amplifier Noise(2'505'30)
    Guitar amplifier noise is very loud and permeates throughout the recording, making it difficult to separate from the desired audio, especially at the start and end.
    • New guitar denoising module available with options for amp squeak and pick noise removal • Spectral denoise module is the most familiar and frequently used approach
    Select a portion containing only the noise, hit learn to capture the sound profile, select the entire recording, adjust reduction amount via preview listening, and render the result.
    Dramatic improvement with 'absolute night and day difference' between before and after, even when pushing the reduction far—the guitar remains natural sounding while noise is significantly eliminated.
  • Example 2: Wind Noise Reduction(5'307'16)
    Outdoor interview recorded with a phone or lavalier microphone where wind gusts severely distort the audio, making it difficult to understand the speaker.
    Use the de-wind module to reduce wind gusts while preserving speech clarity; adjust reduction amount through preview listening until the result sounds natural.
    • Add gain back to compensate for volume loss during wind reduction • Use EQ to restore low-end frequencies that were reduced during processing
    A severely wind-damaged recording can be transformed from potentially unusable to something acceptable for upload, making outdoor interviews salvageable with just a couple of clicks.
  • Giveaway Announcement(7'168'19)
    iZotope approached about providing copies of RX for giveaway with no strings attached—no mailing list, no sponsored content obligation.
    • Three copies total being given away • Available in three different tiers: elements, standard, and advanced versions
    Link provided in the video description for giveaway sign-up with no mailing list or unnecessary requirements.
    Goal is to get the product into the hands of people who need audio repair tools and benefit from using it.
  • Example 3: Reverb and Handling Noise(8'1912'09)
    Excessive reverb in a recording combined with microphone handling noise from fumbling with the boom microphone stand, creating severe distractions.
    Use the spectrogram view to identify the microphone bump as a large buildup of low and mid frequencies; use the lasso tool to select the problematic area and render silence into it.
    Dialogue isolate module works more effectively than the specific dialogue de-reverb module; adjust to preserve some ambience to maintain natural sound while removing excess reverb.
    One of the hardest skills is knowing when to stop processing; over-processing can make audio sound unnatural, and checking results in the context of a full production helps determine appropriate processing levels.
  • Example 4: Mouth Noises and Whistles(12'0915'36)
    Mouth de-click module removes clicks and pops from mouth noises and lip smacks; can preview clicks only to hear what is being removed, making speech much more pleasant to listen to.
    Specific whistling sound occurs when saying certain words (like 'rose granite'), creating a piercing 2.5-3kHz frequency visible in the spectrogram view.
    Use frequency selection tool to draw a box around the whistle in the spectrogram; select 'attenuate' option to reduce the frequency and fill surrounding areas to avoid volume dropouts.
    Transforms the piercing whistle from something that dominates the ears to something subdued and far in the background, allowing viewers to tolerate extended listening.
  • Conclusion and Key Takeaways(15'3616'04)
    Spectral selection and repair tools allow precise frequency and time-based editing for isolated problems, similar to automation but without needing DAW automation clips or worrying about latency.
    RX8 is not the only audio repair tool available, but it provides comprehensive capabilities for fixing various audio issues encountered in video and audio production.
    Processing audio in RX standalone and dragging the result back into the main editor provides a clean separation of concerns and allows for quick iteration.
    Viewers are encouraged to explore different audio repair tools and discover the right fit for their needs; reminder to enter the giveaway and see you next week.