--------------------------YALL. IMPORTANT QUESTIONONES---------------

*teeheehee* this is my first time posting down here, yall!!

welcome me!

anyway, my question is in reference to cleaning up a sound file.

I saved an audio to tape and then transfered the sound to a computer
using SoundForge. But, number one, the sound quality is God awful.

it sounds like it was recorded in a tin can.

what do I use in Soundforge to make the sound more "normal"?

God Awful could mean numerous things. If it si noisy, use that noise reduction thingy (i havent messed with SF in ages)

But it's possible that the noise frequencies are all in a similar place.

Fuck with the Equalizer setting (which should be under "Process" or "Effects" or something). Use the Parametric EQ. Try a low shelf. Then try a high shelf. Then try straight up bumping down a set of frequencies in the middle.

The goal with the EQ is to try to isolate a set of frequencies where the noise is, hopefully leaving the sound you want in tact. There's no guarantees it will work, though, since noise tends to cover the entire sound spectrum.

How long is the track you wanna clean up?

.........

http://www.divasincharge.com/SoundBite.mp3

u have to turn the volume down tho.

I actually think that THAT might be the primary problem...when I transferred the sound from tape to computer, I had the volume turned up high.

yes you had the recording volume too high, and it
caused clipping and distortion on the recorded medium.
next time you record, try to record so that the volume never
goes over unity i.e. goes over 0 db on the volume meter.
If it sounds quiet to you while MONITORING turn of the
volume of the MONITOR, NOT the input volume or recording volume.
I'm looking at the file in wavelab, and, even though the peak
volume is about -1 db, there is hardly ANY dynamic range
in this recording, it's all at the same volume through out
the whole recording, even the noise and other junk in there,
so somewhere you have a messed up process compressing and limiting
the life out of your recording.
Peace.

u know that iont understand anything that
u just said.

u gotta talk to me in "Thingy" terms...
u know like, "swigga, click the blue looking
thingy that is above the red circular looking thing"

like, that.


now, I'm sad. :-(

I don't understand where that resonance is coming from, but it's there,
and it's NASTY!

look at this spectrum

http://www.bazzworks.com/an/physical/soundbitespectrum.jpg

OUCH

200-300 hz = the mud zone.

here it is: http://www.divasincharge.com/SoundBite2.mp3

thanks yall for yalls help!

you can use a noise reduction plug in to clean up that
noise floor, it it will sound pretty decent.

u know that iont know what a
reduction plug is.

*pouts*

It sounded like she had a loop going in there...I bet the signal on this one was REDREDREDREDREDREDRED on the graphic meter

still red.

iont know why.

originally I had the sound up when moving
it to the computer because my voice sounds
so low most of the time, but this time
it was too much.

it seems better now tho.

One of the biggest myths of digital recording, and specifically digital archiving of an analog tape, is that digital will be able to fix or clean the flaws that are on there. When record labels were releasing non-classical recordings on CD, fans were hoping their favorite songs would sound modern. I remember when people were hoping that "Louie Louie" would sound like it was recorded in 1985. No.

What you put in, it will come out the same way. While you or someone will be able to clean it up a bit, a bad sounding tape will still be "bad sounding".


http://www.myspace.com/crutmusic
http://www.musicforamerica.org/node/104520
http://jbookmusic.blogspot.com
http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=johmbolaya
http://www.cafepress.com/mufalaka
http://www.cduniverse.com/default.asp?style=music&frm=lk_johnbook

There's only so much you can do with inferior starting material tho.

www.soul2020.com
www.myspace.com/chopsteak

Has nothing to do with music or it's production.