I decided to record a conversation I was having with a girl recently in a coffee shop so that I could go back and listen to it again later to help remember what we talked about, her answers to questions, etc. (I really like her).
To do this, I used an app on my phone and just had the phone laying on the table. This recording was done in a coffee shop, so the background noise fluctuates, and though the phone started recording very well for the first third of the recording, it abruptly begins clipping at a constant rate (No idea why). I’m needing to eliminate as much of the clipping clicks as I can and there are spots where I need to equalize the volume of the voices — would like to automatically increase the volume at points where it gets hard to hear what is being said. I attempted to use the Equalizer, Compression, and Clip Fix tools, but it seems like I’m distorting more than I’m helping. Any help would be GREATLY appreciated.
I understand that there’s only so much that can be done with a poor recording, but it seems like since the clipping has a pattern to it, and is brief that this might be fixable. Doesn’t have to be perfect, just bearable to listen to.
On those settings processing-time is about the same as playback-time,
e.g. 5minutes to process (DeClick) 5minutes of audio using Paul-L’s DeClicker plugin.
After DeClicking, apply dynamic-range-compression to equalize volume levels, using the settings shown below …
If you follow those instructions this is the result …
A quicker method to make it louder is to apply Audacity’s limiter (repeatedly).
A Limiter won’t remove the clicks though , but the processing-time is much shorter by omitting DeClick.
An effects in Audacity can be quickly be applied repeatedly using the keys “Ctrl” +“R”.
An alternative to using it repeatedly for a stronger effect, you can increase the “Input gain” settings. The result will be only slightly different - experiment to see (hear) which you prefer,
