How to Eliminate Background Noise in Your Recordings

At Streamworks Audio, we understand that achieving clean recordings is crucial for professional-quality sound. Background noise can undermine even the most polished performances, making your recordings feel less professional. Whether you’re capturing vocals, instruments, or podcasts, eliminating noise at the source and refining your audio in post-production are key to a pristine result. In this guide, Streamworks Audio shares expert recording tips to help you achieve the cleanest possible sound.

1. Optimize Your Recording Environment

A controlled recording space is the first step toward clean recordings.

Use a quiet room: Choose a location with minimal external noise, such as traffic, appliances, HVAC systems, people talking in the background, or pets like cats and dogs.
Acoustic treatment: Use foam panels, carpets, or curtains to reduce reflections and dampen unwanted noise. Consider using mic stand acoustic solutions, such as reflection filters, to further prevent reflective noise from reaching the microphone.
Isolate your microphone: A shock mount and pop filter can help minimize vibrations and plosive sounds. Additionally, consider the microphone’s polar pattern. When recording vocals or voiceovers, avoid microphones with a wide pickup pattern that capture more room noise. Instead, opt for a more directional microphone, such as a cardioid or supercardioid pattern, to focus on the singer or voiceover artist while reducing background noise.

2. Choose the Right Microphone and Settings

Different microphones capture sound differently, so selecting the right one can significantly reduce background noise.

Dynamic vs. Condenser microphones: Dynamic mics tend to reject more background noise, making them ideal for untreated spaces.
Cardioid pattern: As mentioned above, selecting the right microphone pattern is crucial for reducing background noise. Using a cardioid microphone helps focus on the direct sound source while rejecting noise from the sides and rear, making it an excellent choice for vocals and voiceovers.
Proper gain staging: Setting the right input levels prevents excessive noise and distortion. Keep gain low to avoid amplifying background sounds.

3. Reduce Noise at the Source

Before applying noise reduction tools, take steps to prevent unwanted noise from entering your recordings. As the saying goes in the recording industry, ‘garbage in, garbage out’—starting with a clean recording will always yield better results than trying to fix issues in post-production.

Turn off noisy devices: Fans, air conditioners, and other electronics can introduce background hum. This includes noises from people talking and making other sounds in the background, which can easily be picked up by the microphone.
Use a low-noise preamp: Some audio interfaces and mixers add unwanted noise; invest in high-quality gear.
Mic positioning: Place the microphone closer to the sound source while maintaining a balanced tone.

4. Use Noise Reduction Tools in Post-Production

Even with a well-treated environment, some noise may still make it into your recordings. Audio editing software offers tools to clean up recordings:

Noise gates: These eliminate low-level background noise when no audio signal is present.
EQ adjustments: Cutting unwanted frequencies, such as low hums or high hiss, can enhance clarity.
Dedicated noise reduction plugins: Software like iZotope RX, Waves NS1, and Accusonus ERA can help remove noise without degrading audio quality.

5. Monitor and Test Your Recordings

Regularly check your recordings to catch and address noise issues early.

Use high-quality headphones: Although there is an ongoing debate regarding mixing with headphones, it is undeniable that using high-quality headphones during tracking and working on audio in post helps identify and clean up unwanted background noises. Monitoring with closed-back headphones helps detect subtle noise issues.
Record test samples: Before recording a full take, test the setup to identify and fix potential problems.
Adjust as needed: Don’t be afraid to tweak settings and reposition your mic to achieve the best results.

Final Thoughts

Clean recordings start with the right preparation and techniques. By optimizing your environment, selecting the right gear, and using noise reduction tools wisely, you can eliminate noise and produce professional-sounding audio. With these recording tips, you’ll be well on your way to achieving pristine sound quality in every project.