Re: [ARSCLIST] vinyl noise

[Graham Newton <gn@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Steven Smolian wrote:

> I've been working on copying LPs of some string quartets with
> significant pauses between chords where the residual vinyl grunge
> is noticeable.
> I'm wondering what tools have been successful in getting rid of
> this noise.  This is not a cleaning issue.  Any thoughts?

There is nothing that will magically make the noise go away entirely, but there
are a few tools that can abate it significantly.  The choice depends on the
character of the noise which is quite variable and, as you observed, dependent
on the quality of the pressing compound used to make the record.

Some possible tools to attack this problem include:

1.  A noise gate with adjustable threshold, attack, decay and attenuation floor.

The TC Finalizer contains a good kit of digital tools that has an excellent
noise gate for this purpose, but it requires a lot of "tweaking" to optimize it
for specific source material.  The attenuation floor is usually set to
somewhere around -6 to -10 dB which will drop the noise sufficiently to be
acceptable.

2.  A program controlled low pass filter that closes down in absence of program
content.

The filter portion of the Roland SN-500 and SN-700 Digital Noise Eliminators
work very well for this purpose, although they are no longer made and may be
difficult to find.

The downside of using either of the above too aggressively is that you leave a
noise "aura" or envelope around the music.  A very light touch is called for,
and extensive testing with the pianissimo passages is a requirement to make
sure you don't over-do it!

3.  Lastly, fingerprint noise reduction software like CEDAR's NR-4 or similar
can provide a significant reduction in the LP noise floor.




... Graham Newton

--
Audio Restoration by Graham Newton, http://www.audio-restoration.com
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