Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1469840
70 S U M M E R 2 0 2 2 I C A S Q U A R T E R L Y b y M a t t F o g l i a C A S Do you remember your reaction when you first heard of spectral editing? I recall thinking, "So, we can see time, amplitude, AND frequency all at once in our editor???" The first time I used spectral editing, a picture editor sent me a clip hoping there was something I could do to make it work. The clip had a cellphone ring which featured a song that couldn't be cleared—under and in-between dialogue (this was a sourced clip). I watched a couple iZotope RX tutorials, ran the demo, and was able to remove the offending song (which was more of a keyboard melody than a fully mixed song). No more getting crazy with multiple notch filters in an attempt to suppress unwanted sounds with, typically, poor results. The editor and producer were amazed with the result, and I gladly purchased my first copy of RX Advanced. The most recent technology in this vein features the ability to identify and separate elements within a complex music mix. While these features started popping up a couple of years ago, they're extremely impressive now. The ability of software to do this really flabbergasts me. I mean, sure, a chemist can separate elements out of a liquid, but separating audio into identifiable parts? Crazy! As was the case with spectral editing software, this technology became commercially available at just the right time for me to help a project I was scheduled to mix. Since moving from NYC to Nashville in 2008, most of the series I work on are generally fun, entertaining shows that feature sourced clips. Many clips are sourced from the internet and have music mixed in, since everyday users can add music to their video posts somewhat easily. A couple years ago, a client was producing a series that used lots of sourced clips, and most had embedded music. While I appreciated their faith in my abilities to salvage something usable, I was somewhat unsure. Fortunately, the Music Rebalance module was just released in RX7. Using a combination of Dialogue Isolate and Music Rebalance (along with some judicious sound design and Foley), we were able to get through 26 episodes—and deliver all the required network Music Rebalancing Plugins in Post The first clip I ever repaired using Spectral Repair.