Audio Engineering Chapter 11: Cleanup Techniques

Advanced Techniques

• Cleanup: In chapter 11, "cleanup" refers to the process of making audio tracks as clear as possible while minimizing distractions. This involves removing unwanted elements like noise, pops, clicks, and other imperfections.

• Noise on a Track: Noise on a track describes any unwanted sound, including background hiss, hum, or other spurious audio present during recording or processing.

• Removing Noise: Removing noise is a crucial step in audio post-production. Standard procedures include using noise reduction tools, filtering, and compression.

• Clicks and Pops: Clicks and pops in audio are momentary artifacts, often from glitches in the recording process. They occur in various situations like recording tape drops or bad connections.

• Fader Automation: Fader automation involves using software to adjust the volume of audio tracks over time during recording or editing.

• 5 Modes of Fader Automation: The 5 modes of fader automation might include:

  • Absolute:
  • Relative:
  • Follow:
  • Record:
  • Set:

• Dynamics Automation: Using automation to add dynamics to a mix usually involves adjusting fader levels, gains, or other audio parameters based on the signal's loudness or changes in the signal.

• Gain Staging: Gain staging means adjusting the signal level of audio equipment and tracks to avoid clipping. It's an essential practice for maintaining signal quality throughout the recording process.

• Pre-fader / After-fader: Pre-fader (PFL) and after-fader (AFL) monitoring features control how you hear the track's output. Pre-fader gives you the signal directly, while after-fader considers the output adjustments, like fader moves.

• Clip Level Adjustment: If software doesn't have clip level adjustment, alternative methods may include using automation, compressors, or EQ to prevent clipping.

• Bad Fade Fixes: Fixing bad fades often involves adjusting and re-editing those fades to achieve a smooth transition without any clicks, pops or jumps in volume

• Pitch Correction and Demo Recordings: Pitch correction has limitations. Though it's helpful, slight modifications are more effective and natural-sounding. A sure indicator of a demo recording may be evident issues with pitch correction (among others).

• Drum Replacement Techniques: Specific methods for drum replacement in the 1970's, notably Steely Dan recordings, were pioneers in techniques to improve the quality and nature of the audio.

• Drum Replacement for Natural Sound: Drum replacement improvements involve elements like adjusting EQ, compression, and reverb and filters for more realistic drum replacements.

• 24-bit Audio: Recording at lower levels (significantly below 0dBFS) with 24-bit audio is advantageous because it allows for more dynamic range, meaning more variation in loudness/quietness while retaining signal integrity.

• Bass / Kick & Bass Distinction: Methods for enhancing the clarity and distinctness of the bass, and kick drum tracks.

• Popular Track Tuning Programs: Listing the most common and popular track tuning programs currently used by professional audio engineers.

• Mixing Changes: Describing what actions were performed on mixes in the absence of automation to dynamically change certain aspects of the mix.

This quiz covers the advanced techniques discussed in Chapter 11, focusing on audio track cleanup. You'll learn about noise reduction, the removal of clicks and pops, and the use of fader automation. Test your understanding of these essential audio post-production skills.