How to de-noise and clean up vocal recordings on BandLab

Essential tips for podcasts and vlogging.

Vocal Recording De-noise
When you purchase through affiliate links on MusicTech.com, you may contribute to our site through commissions. Learn more.

In partnership with BandLab

Even for seasoned musicians, recording and processing a vocal can seem like some sort of dark audio art. From microphone placement to effects choices and plug-in settings, there’s a head-spinning amount of differentials to consider. Even for seemingly straightforward voiceovers, the sheer number of possibilities is bewildering. But no matter what kind of vocal you’re working towards, the first step is to capture the cleanest possible recording. Then, at the very least, it’s a case of applying noise reduction, reducing clicks and pops, and balancing the tone.

Here we’re going to record a simple voiceover, the kind you might require for a vlog narration or podcast. Then we’ll show you how BandLab’s suite of effects can be used to de-noise and smooth out the vocal to create a balanced tone ready for production.

1. Setting up

Fire up BandLab and hit Voice/Mic. Depending on your browser, your system’s security settings may initially prevent BandLab from accessing your microphone, so you might see a pop-up asking you to grant the programme access. Navigate to the mic icon in your toolbar, then click Always Allow and Done to finish the set-up.

Vocal Recording 1

2. Making gains

At the lower left of the BandLab window, click Source and then choose your microphone from the drop-down menu. We’re using a USB-connected Shure MV7. Click the Monitoring to hear the mic input. If your signal is running too hot and distorting, use the gain fader on the far left to reduce it. Click record to capture the microphone as a new audio region.

Vocal Recording 2

3. Lose the noise

De-noise your short voiceover clip to remove any low-level background hum. Doing so is easy thanks to BandLab’s built-in intelligent algorithm. Right-click the audio region and select de-noise. After a couple of seconds, the processing will remove the noise floor from the voiceover.

Vocal Recording 3

4. No more clicks

Your newly de-noised audio should be good enough for many applications but you can go further. Navigate to Fx Effects and add Dynamics > Noise Gate. Set the threshold dial so that the gate cuts out quiet clicks, pops and breath noises. A generous release time of about 300ms should prevent your syllables from being truncated too quickly.

Vocal Recording 4

5. Sneaky sibilance

Sibilance may still be an issue, with harsh S sounds still being too prominent. BandLab has an effect plug-in designed to deal with this. Add a new effect and choose Dynamics > DeEsser to smooth the fizziness of those sounds with a threshold of -15dB.

Vocal Recording 5

6. Tone it down

With the basics taken care of, smaller tweaks to the EQ can help to reduce the low-frequency pops of your voiceover. Add Tone > Multi Filter to shape your frequencies. You want to subtly roll off the low end without losing the weight of your voice recording. Choose the Lowshelf mode, set the frequency to 70Hz, and the gain -10dB. Your vocal should sound silky smooth.

Vocal Recording 6

About BandLab

BandLab 10 Logo

BandLab is the flagship digital product in BandLab Technologies’ portfolio of music brands, and a leading social music creation platform with a global reach of over 37 million users. Through its best-in-class digital audio workstation (DAW) and audio hardware division, BandLab empowers creators to make music and share their creative process with musicians and fans on an unprecedented level.

The BandLab product family also includes BandLab for Education, an award-winning music creation platform with classroom management tools, and Cakewalk by BandLab, a professional-level digital recording studio for career musicians and producers.

logo

Get the latest news, reviews and tutorials to your inbox.

Subscribe
Join Our Mailing List & Get Exclusive DealsSign Up Now
logo

The world’s leading media brand at the intersection of music and technology.

© 2024 MusicTech is part of NME Networks.