Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1544300
10 M PS E . O R G he evolution of software plugins in the realm of AAX/Audio units and VST formats (supporting industry standard applications like Pro Tools, Nuendo, Logic Pro & Soundminer has moved very quickly into tools which deliver unimaginable performance from even five years ago. This article will examine several more recent releases which might be of interest to the MPSE community. The plugins to be discussed are Accentize's dxRevive Pro, Acon's Extract:Dialogue 2, Supertone's CLEAR, Hush Audio's Hush Pro, Harrison's DeNoiser and finally, CEDAR's ICON Series DNS One. All of these would be considered dialogue enhancement tools, but they do have uses in recovering production audio which might otherwise be very difficult to separate from a more complex sound recording. The CEDAR and Harrison plugins are more classically designed for traditional workflows, as they are evolutions of the dynamic-noise-reduction processes which largely date back to the original Dolby Cat 43 and 430 processors, which used dynamic expansion to minimize noise floor to the targeted audio's level- The other plugins to be discussed are a bit different in the sense that Hush Pro, CLEAR, and Acon's Extract:Dialogue 2 are using machine learning to separate a recording into three band groups—Dialogue, Reverb, and "Noise" (audio which is NOT dialogue), and allows for levels to be independently controlled by the user. One facet of this which is of significant interest would be the ability to remove the dialogue component of a source recording, while allowing non-dialogue components to be used without significant artifacts—such capability for things like M&E usage is pretty amazing. Finally, Accentize's dxRevive Pro is a processing plugin which can "enhance" a voice recording by expanding its frequency response characteristics, so recordings which were recorded in less-than-ideal conditions can be "revived" into audio recordings which sound usable for a finished soundtrack. As our members who utilize these tools are well aware of—there is no "perfect" tool for every situation. It often is sensible to have several tools available for those recordings which require more time to fit into a soundtrack. For all these products, I will say I own them and use them often for work. One additional point with all this is that the prices for these are very reasonable compared to products even less than five years old. Some are fantastic values for the money, while others are great tools at "reasonable" prices. First up: CEDAR ICON Series DNS One current pricing: $335 USD CEDAR received an Academy Award® for transforming dialogue noise suppression in film post production with its flagship DNS hardware processor. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences stated that it could "be found on virtually all dubbing stages worldwide and has become the tool of choice for removing unwanted noise by re-recording mixers everywhere." The original DNS processor featured near-zero latency and was connected to stage via digital i/o—following its great success, CEDAR developed an AAX plugin version of the system which would run inside the Pro Tools application. Originally, that T EC H CO R N E R BY CHARLES MAYNES MPSE Rising Above the Noise Floor T A look at contemporary audio restoration tools for editors and mixers