High Resolution Audio Restoration & Enhancement Tool
for soundBlade
©2006-2017 Sonic Studio, LLC — All rights reserved
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Table of Contents
Chapter 1 Broadband DeNoise Native 4
Broadband DeNoise Native Option Installation — 4
Chapter 1 Broadband DeNoise Native
The Broadband DeNoise option is the highest fidelity single–ended noise reducer available today and can rescue both old and new recordings alike.
The Broadband DeNoise window
Broadband DeNoise Native Option Installation —
For options such as Quartet DynPEQ, Manual DeClick II, Sonic Studio Mastering EQ, Broadband DeNoise II, reNOVAtor, NoNOISE II FX, NoNOISE II FR or NoNOISE II SR to be enabled for use in soundBlade, the installation of certain software and a Sonic Studio Options File is required. Running the ‘Install Sonic Studio Options.mpkg’ located in your soundBlade app folder’s Sonic Options folder, installs the necessary software for each of these options and enables the options that you have licenses for on your iLok to be recognized by soundBlade.
Select the options you want to install in the Sonic Options Installer Window.
When you purchase any Sonic Studio option, you are delivered an Activation Code for each product via email. To active your licenses on your iLok, copy your Activation Code, launch your iLok License Manager app, select ‘Redeem License Code’ from the View menu, paste your code into the field proved, then follow the on-screen instructions to download your iLok license for soundBlade from their servers to your iLok. Repeat for any other purchased options
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Options Notes:. 1) Options are installed on the Boot Volume at: /Library/Application Support/Sonic Studio/Sonic Options 2.0/ 2) Use the Remove NoNOISE II Options utility for removing options. |
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NOTE: Only install options that you have licenses on your iLok for. Installing options that are not on your iLok will make soundBlade launch very slowly. |
Broadband noise, whether white, pink or brown in spectrum, is one of the most common forms of audio degradation. Noise can be introduced from any of a number of sources, including the modulation and asperity noise inherent in analog tape recording and Johnson or thermal noise from microphones, preamps, and other analog signal processing equipment. Broadband DeNoise is a single ended broadband noise reducer that, unlike less refined examples, can suppress or eliminate broadband noise with little or no audible artifacts, even at extreme settings.
To suppress such noises in your program, it is necessary to analyze the noise spectrum and adapt the denoising algorithm to the characteristics of the material. Broadband DeNoise operates by means of analysis and resynthesis, though it can be thought of as 2048 bandpass filters, each followed by a below–threshold expander. This is somewhat analogous to the classic analog Dolby and dbx multi–band, double–ended noise reduction systems of yore.
An FFT or Fast Fourier Transform analysis is performed on a user–specified sample of noise from the material to be processed. The average amplitude of noise in each of 2048 individual frequency bands or “bins” is determined. The result of this analysis is a “Noise Estimate,” which is used to set the average threshold of the noise reduction. The Estimate sets aggregate threshold for the expansion.
During processing, the source material is also subjected to a 2048 point FFT analysis. The average amplitude of signal in each bin is compared against the threshold value determined by the noise Estimate. Based on this comparison, the algorithm determines whether a given band at that particular instant contains audio signal or only noise.
If a frequency bin is found to be at or above threshold, its gain remains at unity. If it is determined that the signal amplitude in that band falls below threshold, then it is considered “noise” and the amplitude of that band is reduced by an amount determined by the Attenuation parameter, discussed later. The results of this comparison and amplitude compensation for all bands is a modified version of the original FFT frequency analysis. A reverse FFT is then performed using the new, adjusted version, reconstituting the audio signal with aggregate noise attenuated by the specified amount. Because the Broadband DeNoiser operates with high frequency resolution and at extended precision, the removal of noise is precise and artifact–free.
The first step in denoising is to derive a Noise Estimate from the material to be processed. The Noise Estimate, or simply Estimate, is an individual “fingerprint” of the noise and determines local threshold values for each frequency bin. The NoNOISE II menu provides a group of commands for creating, processing, editing and storing the Estimate. The Estimate determines the result of the entire denoising process, so it is important to ensure that the estimate taken is valid and represents the true noise floor of the source sound file.
1.2.2.1 Noise Estimates
The procedure for taking a usable Estimate has several steps. First, open the source sound file into a Project. Then, identify a short section of audio where there is only noise or predominantly noise. About 0.3 to 0.5 seconds is sufficient. Click–drag to create a time region selection of the noise. Section 1.2.2.2 below discusses where to take a Estimate in detail.
From the NoNOISE II menu, select the Take and Interpolate Estimate command to first create the Estimate, then automatically interpolate the Estimate, applying “Bin Controls,” which are individual threshold controls for separate regions of the frequency spectrum.
The separate Take Noise Estimate and Interpolate Noise Estimate commands are for experimenting when creating an optimal Estimate and can usually be skipped in favor of the combined NoNOISE II > Take and Interpolate Estimate command. See section 1.2.2.3 below for a discussion of these individual commands and their function.
The Auto Noise Estimate… command combines the Take and Interpolate Estimate and Write Estimate commands for those jobs where you are in a hurry or cost takes precedence over quality. It is not recommended to use this shortcut if you desire the best result as it does not include the interim step of adjusting Bin Controls.
Figure 1.9: An interpolated Estimate at 96 kHz with Bin Controls
At this point, you now have a green “Interpolation,” with blue Bin Controls attached. Select the Write Estimate... command to save the Estimate as a file that will be used by the Broadband DeNoise processor.
1.2.2.2 Where to take an Estimate
Once the source sound file is opened into a Panel of a Project, the first step is to identify a suitable location from which to take the Estimate. Since the denoising algorithm depends on a constant amplitude and spectrum in the noise floor, try to listen and locate a time region with uniform noise. As to duration, optimum results are obtained when the Estimate is taken from a section of pure noise between about 0.3 and 0.5 seconds in length, with a worst case minimum of 100 milliseconds.
If a region of pure or “clean” noise, noise uncontaminated with program, is unavailable as is often the case with tightly edited material, then choose a region with minimal program. The resulting Estimate will require manual adjustment as discussed below. If an Estimate must be taken in presence of signal, it is advisable to avoid sections of spectrally complex or non–harmonic material as it makes manual adjustment more time consuming.
It is usually necessary to derive a separate Estimate for each cut or take. If these are contained in a consolidated sound file and the spectrum of the noise varies for each cut, then the consolidated file should be denoised in sections, so that the optimal combination of estimate and parameters can be applied to each cut.
Unless there is strong reason to believe that each cut in a compilation or consolidated file was:
then it is advisable to take separate estimates for each cut or take. When denoising stereo material, it is also recommended to derive a separate Estimate for each channel. Likewise, if the character or level of the noise floor can be heard to change at all during the recording, then the best results are be obtained by dividing that piece into sections to be denoised individually. After denoising, the individual sections can edited together and sequenced to create a seamless whole.
1.2.2.3 Post–processing an Estimate
After taking an estimate, the Panel changes to show the Estimate, a smoothed FFT. Before the Estimate can be used to provide threshold data for denoising, it must be additionally smoothed and, perhaps, manually adjusted to account for the presence of desired signal within the noise.
After deriving the Estimate, select the Interpolate Estimate command. soundBlade performs a best fit approximation from the composite FFT data, displaying it as a smooth green spline connecting a series of blue boxes, the Bin Controls mentioned above, superimposed on the composite FFT. You can toggle the Interpolation display by clicking on the checkbox located in the lower right corner of the Estimate display or with the Show/Hide Interpolation command.
If the Estimate is derived from a clean sample of noise, then Interpolate Estimate command produces an accurate measurement of the representative noise floor. In cases where a clean, program–free sample of the noise floor is not available, a smooth Interpolation can be derived from just a portion of the FFT display, provided that the noise in question is purely analog tape hiss, by using the Fit Estimate From Selection command.
Analog tape hiss has a characteristic noise curve or shape. Fit Estimate From Selection takes advantage of this property to produce a smooth Interpolation from any individual region of the Estimate based on that region’s average amplitude. Make a time region selection of a portion of the Estimate that appears to be outside the range of the contaminating audio program. Choose Fit Estimate From Selection from the NoNOISE II menu. soundBlade displays an Interpolation with a characteristic tape hiss curve using the average amplitude of the Estimate’s selected region.
The Fit Estimate From Selection technique works well for recordings containing typical tape hiss, but many recordings have other noise sources or peculiarities. In such cases, it is often necessary to manually adjust the Interpolation, differentiating between the desired program content and the noise floor.
As with a waveform display in a Panel, the same Zoom In/Out and Zoom To Selection commands work for an Estimate. This means you can zoom to a view that provides a comfortable level of detail.
To edit an Interpolation, hold down the option key and drag a Bin Control up or down. If, for example, a number of piano harmonics are contaminating the Estimate, the Bin Controls can be moved down so that the Interpolation follows the average amplitude rather than the local amplitude. Moving a Bin Control down will command a lower threshold and cause less sensitivity in that Bin, resulting in less noise reduction while moving a Bin Control up sets a higher threshold, causing more noise reduction.
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LEARN: Moving Bin Controls down will decrease the amount of reduction. Moving a Bin Control up will increase the amount of reduction. |
You can move multiple Bin Controls at once. To do so, click–drag in the Panel to create a time region selection that contains the Bin Controls. The numeric display at the left side of the Panel shows the selection’s start frequency, end frequency and span in Hertz. To edit the boxes within the selection, hold both the shift and option keys and drag one of the included Bin Controls. All Bin Controls within the selection will move together.
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LEARN: You can move multiple Bin Controls at once. To do so, click–drag in the Panel to create a time region selection that contains the Bin Controls. |
Once you are satisfied with the Interpolation, you need to save it. To do so, select the Write Estimate... command from the NoNOISE II menu. soundBlade displays a Save File dialog. Choose a location for the Estimate file, rename it if you wish, then click OK. soundBlade saves the file, including the Interpolation and Bin Control state, to disk.
1.2.3 Running the Broadband DeNoiser
1.2.3.1 Overview
Once you have the Estimate file written, you can start the real–time process. From the NoNOISE II menu, select the DeNoise… command, which brings up the Broadband DeNoise window.
The window, with its six controls discussed below, also has buttons to open an Estimate file, to open and save the controls and their parameters, to bypass the process, and to toggle between the processed signal and the suppressed or removed portion of the signal.
Figure 1.10: The Broadband DeNoise window
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Note that BroadBand DeNoise is also available for use as a plug–in. This plug in can be used as a Desk Event in an EDL, as a plug in in the Mixer window or in the Meter window. This plug in is accessed from the contextual menu for plug ins. |
1.2.3.2 Button Functions
The Open Est button spawns a standard Mac browser that allows you to specify and open an Estimate file. This will set the threshold and sensitivity of each Bin.
The Save Param buttons allow you save all the current settings in the window, including the name and location of the currently selected Estimate file. The Open Param button allows you to open an existing Parameters file. These files are ASCII text and can be opened in TextEdit for inspection.
The last two buttons are the Bypass, which patches the process in or out of the signal flow, and the NoNOISE/Noise button, which allows you to hear either the processed signal or the portion of the signal that is being suppressed or reduced. When in the “Noise” mode, you can adjust the controls and hear the direct result of your actions.
The operation of the Broadband DeNoiser is a subjective process. In general though, if too much program is present in the suppressed signal, then you are probably using setting that are too aggressive or your Estimate requires adjustment. Also, it’s fairly easy to misinterpret noise as high frequency content so, critical listening with wideband reproducers are required for proper operation.
1.2.4 Broadband DeNoise Parameters
The following parameters are available as horizontal sliders:
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Parameter |
Range |
Default Value |
Recommended |
Extreme |
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Threshold |
-60 to 60 |
0 |
n/a |
n/a |
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Attenuation |
-60 to 0 |
0 |
-10 to -24 |
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Sharpness |
0.5 to 2.5 |
1.25 |
0.80 to 1.25 |
> 1.50 |
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Bandwidth |
0.5 to 3 |
1.50 |
1.8 to 2.2 |
< 1.0 |
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High Cutoff |
0 to 22050 |
22050 |
22050 |
n/a |
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Low Cutoff |
0 to 22050 |
500 |
50 to 2000 |
25 |
The Estimate defines the aggregate threshold applied to each of the over 2,000 individual Bins used by the denoise process. The Threshold parameter allows the entire curve, as a whole, to be moved up or down. Together with the Attenuation parameter, the Threshold parameter provides the basic control over how aggressively the process is applied.
As Threshold is raised, more of the signal at all frequencies is processed. At extremely high settings, a distinctive watery aliasing may be heard in the resulting audio. If the Threshold is set too low, little or no noise reduction is obtained. The Threshold can be thought of as the fine line between noise and music, globally raising or lowering the entire Estimate curve relative to its original position. Local adjustment of the threshold according to frequency bands is effected by adjusting the Interpolation curve and saving a new Estimate file.
The default Threshold is arbitrary. Threshold and Attenuation settings should generally be adjusted together for best results. The Noise/NoNOISE button can help to determine an acceptable compromise setting.
This value, in decibels, sets the maximum attenuation to be applied to any Bin. A setting of 0 produces no noise reduction. The higher or more negative this value is set, the greater the reduction in noise, but with increasing danger of producing audible artifacts in the audio signal. Again, Threshold and Attenuation settings should be adjusted together for best results. Critical listening and the Noise/NoNOISE button can help to determine an acceptable compromise setting. If the maximum attenuation setting is too extreme, ambience and/or high frequency content may be lost.
As mentioned earlier in the introduction, the denoising process works much like a multiband downward expander. As signal level in a particular band drops, the process reduces the gain in that band even further, using an internal attenuation curve. The Sharpness parameter sets the slope of this curve. Higher values cause quicker attenuation as instantaneous energy falls off from the Threshold value, resulting in a response similar to that of a noise gate.
Figure 1.11: Sharpness Curves
If Sharpness is set too low, there may be no reasonable amount of noise reduction possible despite what the other parameters are set to. Generally this parameter should be set as high as possible without audible ill effects on the program. A value of 1.0 is recommended for common tape hiss problems, while a value of about 1.2 has been found useful for standard 78 RPM phonograph recordings. If the sharpness is too high, you may hear the noise floor become less uniform, producing a rapid modulation.
Denoising with each Bin adjusted separately produces an unnatural sounding result. In Broadband DeNoise, individual Bins share information for more pleasing subjective result. Bandwidth governs this process. Higher values produce more intra–Bin sharing of gain changes. Subjectively, a higher value will, in general, create a more natural sounding result but, with a risk of noise floor modulation. A low value for Bandwidth eliminates the possibility of noise pumping, but may sound more muffled. Low values command little sharing while higher values command more sharing. As with other Broadband DeNoise settings, experiment for the best compromise setting. This depends entirely on the program material and should be high enough to retain high frequency response but low enough to avoid pumping or distortion caused by the noise floor being modulated by the high order harmonics of a signal.
The denoiser lets signal in frequency bins above the high frequency cutoff point pass through the process untouched. That is, they are not processed. This limits processing to frequencies below the high cutoff point. This can be used in situations where noise is not objectionable above a certain frequency, but in most cases, this parameter is left set at 22,050 Hz.
In special cases, better results may be obtained by processing your program in two passes, with a low frequency pass and a high frequency pass run separately, using different parameter values. Run your program through Broadband DeNoise twice, using the low and high cutoff frequencies to define the two bandpass ranges to be noise reduced.
This parameter, the complement to the High Frequency Cutoff parameter discussed in section 1.2.4.5 above, allows signal below the specified frequency to pass through unchanged. This can be useful if noise is not objectionable below a certain frequency and you wish to leave it unprocessed. Low Frequency Cutoff is usually left set around 50-100 Hz though setting it at 2.5 kHz or above will ensure that the critical midband will remain untouched. If this parameter is lower than 25 Hz, there may be artifacts because program wavelengths will exceed the analysis “window.”
Presets
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^ (accent circumflex) |
set preset 1 |
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& (ampersand) |
set preset 2 |
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* (asterisk) |
set preset 3 |
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( |
set preset 4 |
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6 |
load preset 1 |
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7 |
load preset 2 |
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8 |
load preset 3 |
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9 |
load preset 4 |
Play Cursor Placement
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y |
set play cursor before selection, 6 sec. |
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u |
set play cursor before selection, 3 sec. |
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i |
set play cursor before selection, 1.5 sec. |
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o |
set play cursor before selection, 0.5 sec. |
Accuracy
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} |
select next accuracy |
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{ |
select previous accuracy |
Channel
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shift-l |
select left channel |
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shift-r |
select right channel |
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c |
select current channel |
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a |
select all channels |
Type
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h |
horz |
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v |
vert |
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l |
left |
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r |
right |
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t |
top |
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b |
bottom |
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d |
type 2-dim (2 dimensional) |
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g |
gain |
Block Size
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= |
select next block size |
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- |
select prev block size |
Note that, for the PDF version of this Index, only the page numbers, not the preceding descriptive subject text, are hyperlinked.
Broadband DeNoise Native User Manual Index
B
Broadband DeNoise 6
Broadband DeNoiser 10
D
dbx 6
Dolby 6
F
Fit Estimate From Selection 8
I
Interpolate Noise Estimate 7
N
Noise Estimate 6
NoNOISE II
Bin Control 9
Attenuation 12
Bandwidth 13
High Frequency Cutoff 13
Low Frequency Cutoff 13
NoNoise/Noise button 11
Open Est button 10
Open Param button 11
parameters 11
Sharpness 12
Threshold 11
editing the noise Estimate 9
Fit Estimate From Selection 8
Interpolate Noise Estimate 7
noise Estimate 6
post-processing the noise Estimate 8
saving a noise Estimate 9
Take Noise Estimate 7
Write Estimate... 9
P
Project
Panel 2
S
Sonic Studio Mastering EQ 4
T
Take Noise Estimate 7
© 2017 Sonic Studio, LLC • Fairfax, CA 94978 • 1-415-944-7642
soundBlade, soundBlade HD, soundBlade SE, soundBlade LE, sonicstudio.com, the Sonic Studio logo and type are trademarks of Sonic Studio, LLC in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks, trade names, service marks, and logos referenced herein belong to their respective companies.
Comments, corrections and suggestions regarding this manual are always welcome. Please contact us at <support@sonicstudiopro.com>. Broadband DeNOISE 3_UM_v01r03
