Why Digital Sound Restoration Matters for Poorly-Recorded Audio

1. What is Digital Sound Restoration?

When you listen to something online like a podcast, video, or streaming music, you want the sound to be clear and enjoyable. 

But sometimes, the audio is recorded in not-so-great conditions, like a noisy room or with not-so-good equipment. 

That's where digital sound restoration comes in to save the day!

Think of it like retouching a photo—digital sound restoration removes or fills in frequencies as-needed. It's a set of special computer tricks that help clean up the sound, so it's easier to hear and understand.

2. Noise, Noise Everywhere!

Imagine you're talking to a friend in a busy café, and there's a lot of background noise. This makes things harder to understand, and you have to keep asking your friend to repeat themselves.

Sometimes, recorded audio has background noise, too, especially when not recorded in a studio. There can be a distracting buzzing sound from a nearby computer or even a hiss generated by the microphone itself. 

Digital sound restoration is the process of finding this noise and trying to remove it, making the audio much clearer. The key is to make sure you keep as much of the good sound as possible.

3. Nobody's Perfect

Whether it's the equipment, environment, mic technique, or bad luck, most recordings will include some combination of mouth clicks, plosives, silibance, clipping, over-saturation, or mud.

While background noise can usually be removed with a couple of steps, more complicated issues like the above might require specialized algorithms, brush work, or EQ tricks. Thankfully, there's usually a solution.

4. Cleaning Up Mistakes

Have you ever stumbled over your words while speaking? It happens to everyone, and very often in recorded audio. 

Digital sound restoration can help smooth out these mistakes. It's like editing a video to remove the parts where you accidentally spilled your drink! 

Small stumbles, long "Ess" or "Eff" sounds, stomach growls, and vocal fry can usually all be removed without changing the length of a track. 

Of course you can also edit these out in a DAW but, sometimes, you're not allowed to change the length or format of certain audio.

5. Bringing Back the Original Sound

Imagine you're listening to an old song that's scratchy and crackly. Digital sound restoration can remove dust and scratches from an old recording, making it sound like new again.

On the other hand, more dust and scratches, or reverb, can be added in to make new recordings sound vintage or part of a specific space. It's like magic!

6. Making It Comfortable to Listen

Ever had to strain your ears to understand what someone is saying? Digital sound restoration can make sure audio is at a comfortable listening volume. It's like adjusting your seat so you can enjoy the movie without leaning in too close. Most streaming and podcasting platforms have their own standards, so having someone understand the difference is very important.

7. Why It Matters

Digital sound restoration helps us enjoy audio content without any distractions. When audio is clear, it's easier to focus on the message.

So, when you're listening to something online and it sounds really clear and pleasant, you can thank digital sound restoration!