Having a good audio quality is a must-have for every content creator, streamer or podcaster. Unfortunately, one common problem that especially beginners are facing is background noise. This can really mess up your content and distract your listeners. There are certainly more expensive, higher quality microphones that are better at filtering the noise. However, there are certain measures and tools that you can use to minimize background noise in seconds without breaking the bank.
In this blog we have broken down the tools for two different types of recordings. The tools depend on whether you’re looking to remove the background noise from live audio recordings (streaming, podcasting, calls, etc.) or from prerecorded audio (Youtube, music, videos, etc.). Besides these tools, we will also quickly discuss some fundamental audio recording tips that could help improve any type of recording.
For a tl;dr of this article, you could simply check out this TikTok video about the software we’re using.
Why is it important to remove background noise?
Most big Youtubers and Twitch streamers pay a lot of attention to their audio quality because they know that it’s hugely important to maintain professionalism. Hearing background noise in a video or stream can be quite distracting from the content and end up being a turn-off for the audience. It’s also quite important to monitor your own audio from time to time to make sure that your audio quality is on the level it should be.
General tips to set up your microphone properly
Before we get into the software tools we would like to quickly go over the measures you can already take to get your setup ready for recording. We went over all the general audio improvement tips in more detail in this blog as well, so we will keep it short here.
1. Positioning
Positioning is one of the most important, yet underrated factors when it comes to audio quality. You want to keep your microphone between 6-12 inches away from your mouth at all times. Ideally you would want to keep the microphone off your desk as well so that all the vibrations from your desk are not able to travel to the microphone. Having a boom arm would be ideal, since it allows you to keep your mic at that sweet spot at all times. You can check out our Sensic boom arms from the links below, with the SA-30 being the latest one, featuring everything you need for a premium setup.
2. Set your mic gain correctly
Ideally you’d want to set your microphone gain relatively low, because more gain results in more noise. A lower gain will result in a lower volume though, which is why this goes hand-in-hand with the positioning. Try to find the sweet spot distance for your microphone where the volume is good while the gain remains relatively low.
3. Take into account the polar pattern of your microphone
Most microphones have a cardioïd polar pattern, which means it picks up sounds better from some directions, whilst blocking sound from other directions. You would first want to make sure which polar pattern your microphone is using (cardioïd, hypercardioïd, omnidirectional, bidirectional, etc.). After that you would have to make sure that the microphone is angled in a way that suits the polar pattern. You can make the back side of a cardioïd microphone face your speakers for example, so that these sounds won’t be picked up.
4. Turn off any noisy devices
This might be obvious, but make sure that you don’t have any fans pointed towards the microphone. Also make sure that other devices nearby are not causing interference. This could be from your phone, radios, TVs, etc. Make sure the audio cables are not touching any other electrical cables or magnets te reduce the risk of electromagnetic interference as well.
How to reduce background noise with software?
Prerecorded audio (Youtube, music, mp3, etc.)
Prerecorded audio includes any audio files that you have saved to your computer/phone, such as audio from Youtube videos, music or random mp3 files. It’s very easy to remove the background noise from these prerecorded audio files using completely free online AI software. We are using the Adobe Speech Enhancer to do this.
You only need to log in or create an account on the Adobe website to make use of this free tool. You simply drag and drop your audio file in the box and let the AI do its magic. The result will be an enhanced mp3 file which not only reduces the background noise, it also makes your voice much more crisp and clear.
Live audio (Twitch stream, podcast, voice calls, etc.)
Live audio includes anything that you’re recording in real time, such as audio in Twitch livestreams, live podcasts, on voice calls, etc. To remove background noise in these scenarios you have many different options, we will discuss them below.
Voicemeeter (Free)
We recommend Voicemeeter as the best free software to make adjustments to your audio recording. It has a lot of features, with a noise gate being one of them. While a noise filter isn’t as effective as AI software, it is can definitely get the job done with correct microphone placement as well. Another benefit is that it’s completely free to use and it should work on pretty much every device. It might require a little bit of work to set it up, but it is great software for those looking for an all in one audio enhancer and background remover.
AI software (Free)
Another great option would be Nvidia Broadcast, which is completely free to use as well. This software also uses AI to enhance audio and remove background noise, and the results are great. The only downside is that this app has a hard requirement of needed an Nvidia graphics card from the 2000-series or newer. Older computers or ones with a different graphics card will not be able to use this software unfortunately.
AI software (Paid)
There’s a lot of good software out there that specializes in removing background noise, Krisp being one of the most popular options. Krisp is basically AI software that enhances the audio quality for any live recording. The results seem to be great and there are no hardware requirements to use it. The only downside is that their free plan only allows you to use it for 1 hour a day. The cheapest subscription starts at $8 a month.
Conclusion
Our personal preference when it comes to removing background noise is to first off position your microphone properly as this often makes the biggest difference. The Sensic boom arms really help to keep your microphone at the optimal sweet spot at all times without being in the way of anything.
In addition to proper placement, we like to use Voicemeeter for further enhancement as it’s free and has a lot of functionality. It’s relatively easy to make yourself sound much better and the noise filter gets the job done, despite not being AI based.
If you’re in a more noisy environment, the AI based software could be a better option as the results will be better than simply a noise filter. Our preference here would go to Nvidia Broadcast if you have a supported GPU since it is free as well and simple to use.