Topic: Post processing advice, re: hoots and hollers

[marksk]

working on a show i recorded a while back. i'm using audacity 2.0 (2.0.3?). the levels are low. my plan is use the envelope tool to cut down the hoots and hollers between songs, then amplify it. i've run into a few instances where the noise occurs just as a song is starting. what have others done regarding this? i can sacrifice those few seconds and use the envelope on the beginning of the song or just leave those untouched and raise the levels or just leave the levels and those particular noises alone.

thanks!

[page]

so you have crowd noise that exceeds music? Want to make sure what the situation is.

[marksk]

for the most part, yes. you can still hear the music in the background.

[page]

stuff between songs = limit to about 3db under where music peaks.

stuff during songs (trickier) = use a compressor to compress just the sounds that are above the musical threshhold. It's doable, but it requires some finesse at your depth/engage settings. Read up on general use of a compressor first and then play with it a lot. You're first couple of attempts will likely not sound good if you review them later, but thats part of the learning process. If you want to be easy cheesy, then you can just limit to just inside the where the music peaks but I'm not sure it will be quite as good.

[ilduclo]

I've had some fairly good luck doing hard limiting on the entire show, then amplifying it all, or amplifying using the envelope.

[marksk]

so, using compression, it would be preferable to work on the entire file rather than just those areas that need work?

[page]

so, using compression, it would be preferable to work on the entire file rather than just those areas that need work?

just those areas; cuts down on processing time during the render and reduces errors.

same can be said about the hard limiter unless you're just squeezing a little anyway.

[marksk]

i've used the hard limiter on shows where i have a clapper. i can see the spikes, select around it and then limit it to just above the level of the music around it. worked well.

i've also used the envelope for hollering between songs. select a second before and a second after. i then gradually decrease the offending portion to a comfortable level and use the time around it for a gradual increase/decrease.

i found the audacity compressor instructions and will play with that a bit to see how it compares to the envelope.

thanks!

[page]

i've used the hard limiter on shows where i have a clapper. i can see the spikes, select around it and then limit it to just above the level of the music around it. worked well.

i've also used the envelope for hollering between songs. select a second before and a second after. i then gradually decrease the offending portion to a comfortable level and use the time around it for a gradual increase/decrease.

i found the audacity compressor instructions and will play with that a bit to see how it compares to the envelope.

thanks!

I think the compressor is a lesser of two evils in that instance as I find the ducking effect to be more noticeable. (they both are, but one bothers me more is my point).