Wind noise.

RRA wrote on 12/5/2009, 10:29 AM
How to get rid a wind noise ? Is there a plugin dedicated for this purpose ? I have checked some sound restoration plugins (dedicated to tape/vinyl restoration) but they are not very successful ...

My scenes was filmed on the top of the mountain. There was windy but not to such extent that it would disturb normal conversation. Actually sound of the wind was very pleasant.

Even though I have used a wind stoper for my mic, recorded effect is terrible. Wind signal is strong (overdrive) and comparable with level of conversation.

How can I repair that or avoid similar problem in the future ?

Best regards,

Comments

JohnnyRoy wrote on 12/5/2009, 11:30 AM
Go into the track FX and select the Track EQ that is already added for you. The first point is already set for Low Shelf, which is what you want. Set the Frequency (Hz) to 300 and the Gain (dB) to –Inf (all the way to the left). Now listen to a loop of your audio and adjust the frequency to filter more or less of the wind.

The trade-off is that other audio will sound a little thin because you've removed some bass. If you add some music softly playing in the background on another track, it will mask this because the music will have full fidelity and provide bottom to the mix. If adding music is inappropriate for your video then you have to live with the thin sound.

In the future, try and orient the microphone so that the wind is hitting the back of it where it is least sensitive. I assume you used a wind muff but you might also consider buying a blimp for the mic which will give you the best wind protection.

~jr
richard-amirault wrote on 12/5/2009, 12:33 PM
Even though I have used a wind stoper for my mic, recorded effect is terrible.

What type of "wind stopper" and what type of mic were you using?

A foam wind stopper is the least effective type. Better is the long furry type .. sometimes called a "dead cat" Even better is a blimp ... a fully enclosed tube with a fur cover.

What you can use depends on the type of shot, your budget and if you are working alone or with a crew.
farss wrote on 12/5/2009, 1:23 PM
"How to get rid a wind noise ?"

A low frequency shelf in the track EQ is your best shot but it's not that effective as the wind noise willhave the same frequencies as the speech, kill the wind noise and you kill the speech or the speech sounds horribly thin and you've still got some wind noise.

How to avoid this is tricky. A dead cat (furry) is good, a blimp is better. Get the mic as close to the person speaking, do NOT use AGC, if your mic or camera has a low cut or wind filter using that can avoid havine the low frequencies from the wind being clipped and really sounding aweful.

The thing to know is wind is silent. It only makes a sound due to turbulence as it flows over things. All the bits that make up a camera will make a sound as wind flows over them and the mic will pick that up no matter what so getting the mic away from the camera helps.
Even if you have a smoothy or a dead cat on the mic the XLR connector can make a noise. Make certain there's no tiny gap between the plug and the body of the mic. If there is tape it up with gaffe or electricians tape. Use very flexible mic lead. The rigid stuff can transmit sound into the mic.

Bob.
John_Cline wrote on 12/5/2009, 1:54 PM
Wind noise covers a wide range of frequencies and audio levels. Eliminating wind noise after the fact is essentially impossible. You can reduce it somewhat depending on how many compromises you're willing to make but you can't make it go away completely.

The advice on blimps and dead cats is the only way to go.
Grazie wrote on 12/6/2009, 1:38 AM
> "There was windy but not to such extent that it would disturb normal conversation.

There's your problem right there. You are comparing what a mic<>post can do with what you can do with a set of ears and millions of years of evolution to assess audio input. You can't and shouldn't do this. Not in this "craft". You can't apply what your body is telling you and apply this to what is doable with something as dumb as the devices we use.

We have all done it. I have expected to get what I see ( nice exposure in a scene - as per my eyesight), nice audio from a conversation ( even and clear audio - as p[er my ears) - it just don't work like that.

The more we can design-out errors, from a capturing/lit scenario, the better. Once we do that, THEN we have more of a chance to apply some remedial correction in post. Digital stuff, compared to our own amazing monitoring system (eyes & ears), can have a very VERY narrow corridor of acceptability. Reduce that by going over-board with any of the visual or audio and not only have you got a recipe for disaster, but you have reduced that all important organic dynamic which even the humblest of video/camera recorders can supply. Might I also request you get some headphones and THEN you will able to truly "hear" the input that your device is having to record.

Grazie

DGates wrote on 12/6/2009, 4:38 AM
I've used Audacity to some success. But as others have said, you can't really do much after the fact. The trade-off is always bad robot-like voices from your vocals.