Blog

Tips for Reducing the Background Noise with Blue Snowball Mics

It is possible to decrease background noise by properly configuring the Blue Snowball Mic. Because the Blue Snowball Mic has two polar patterns, Cardioid and Omni, you may pick between the two polar patterns to achieve the finest configuration possible for any application.

 

 

 

 

A sound filter placed between your lips and the microphone will also be beneficial. Alternatively, you may utilize noise-canceling software or plugins if background noise persists. If you’re utilizing the Blue Snowball Mic, there are numerous ways you may use to decrease background noise that include:

 

 

 

 

Noise Reduction Hardware Can Help You Reduce Noise

The Blue Snowball Mic is available in both cardioid and omnidirectional polar patterns, allowing you to choose the most appropriate pattern for your application at any point. To begin, you must choose which microphones are most suited for your particular microphone application(s).

 

 

 

If you’re streaming or podcasting, the Cardioid polar pattern is a good option to choose. Only sounds that are immediately in front of the microphone are picked up by this polar pattern. Using high gain, it captures front and side noises. But the sound coming from behind it is just somewhat better picked up by this microphone.

 

 

 

Selecting the Omni polar pattern is recommended if you want to capture numerous sound sources at once. Make sure to apply a sound filter when you’ve finished setting the polar pattern appropriately. 

 

 

 

This filter may be used to remove plosives and other unwanted noises that you don’t want to capture during your recording session. Furthermore, you should make certain that the recording location has been acoustically treated or is completely quiet throughout the recording process.

 

 

 

Using software, create a low-cut filter.

Acoustic treatment of your room is necessary if you want to reduce the amount of background noise in your workspace. acoustic therapy can only be done successfully up to a point. If you want to go any farther in eliminating low-frequency noises, you may utilize noise-canceling software to do that.

 

 

 

 It is possible to clean up your recording with the aid of competent software. Furthermore, with appropriate noise-canceling software, you can reduce the amount of background noise or rumbling.

 

 

 

 

When it comes to eliminating background noise, using noise-canceling software is the most effective method. With it, you may make use of plugins that can help you eliminate the undesirable background noise in your computer. 

 

 

Noise-canceling software is available for use with most digital audio workstations (DAWs). A large number of plug-ins for dealing with various sorts of background noise will be available to you.

 

 

 

It is ideal for music producers and artists to use this program. F.L Studios: Tracks may be mixed according to the highest standards with this application. Also included are several plugins that will make the recording process much easier for you and your colleagues. Moreover, it has several choices for lowering background noise levels.

 

 

 

Video editing software such as Adobe Audition (for example) is ideal for editing movies, animations, and still images. The ability to alter sound, on the other hand, is quite useful. 

 

 

 

You may manually alter sounds with this program, or you can utilize one of the numerous plugins available to you to do this task automatically. Automatic Click Remover, Adaptive Noise Reduction, DeHummer, and Automatic Phase Correction are just a few of the plugins you may use to improve your audio.

 

 

 

 

The digital audio workstation Pro Tools, which is available for both macOS and Windows, is another option for you. Both audio editing and mixing are possible with it. This program, on the other hand, is prohibitively costly. 

 

 

Although it is a free program, it has several tools and plugins that allow you to create a track or sound that is of good quality. Podcasting, audio mixing, and music creation are all possible with it.

 

 

 

Positioning the Microphones

As far as mic placement is concerned, there is no easy solution since it is dependent on what you are mic’ing and how you are going to mic it. Which instrument you wish to record will depend on your preference.

 

 

 

It is necessary to set the microphone on its tripod while using the Blue Snowball Mic, though. Base may be rotated to accommodate different viewing angles. Because of the swivel base, it’s simple to set the microphone on the tripod.

 

 

 

Using the Blue Ringer shock mount prior to mounting the microphone on the tripod will provide further isolation from low-frequency disturbances, which is beneficial. Next, at the rear of the snowball microphone, pick position “1” if you only want to record one sound source.

 

 

 

If you’re intending to record a loud sound source, you may use Position “2.” This mode is also seen in position “2.” You may utilize the Blue Snowball Mic’s Position “3,” the Omni mode, to capture numerous sound sources if you’re working with a lot of them.

 

 

 

Utilizing the proximity effect is another technique for reducing background noise. As you go closer to the microphone, your voice grows deeper, which allows low frequencies to become more prominent throughout the recording process.

 

 

 

 Other individuals are able to escape the proximity effect by moving away from the situation. Nonetheless, it may be a very effective method of reducing background noise during a recording session.

 

 

 

Remediation of the Room

Each room has its own personality; some are noisy, while others are quiet. In terms of room treatments, though, you may choose one of the three approaches outlined in this section. 

 

You may employ sound-absorbing materials, bass traps, and barriers to reduce the amount of noise that comes through. Using heavy drapes, acoustic foam, and rugs may help to reduce echoes and absorb noise in a space.

 

 

 They can prevent sound from bouncing off of hard surfaces such as ceilings and walls; you may start with the area behind the sound source and the space behind the microphone to see whether this is effective for your application.

 

 

 

 

In contrast, bass traps are capable of trapping lower frequency frequencies. Obstacles, on the other hand, are constructed of thick materials that prevent unwanted noise from entering the room where you are recording. Setup is a significant challenge with them. Despite this, they are the most effective method of reducing outside noise pollution.

 

 

 

Low-cut filters may be used to enhance the effectiveness of your acoustic room solutions. They are programs that may be used to decrease and eliminate low frequencies that are below the sound source’s frequency range.

 

 

 

Pop Filters should be used.

It is possible to decrease undesired noises in your recording with the use of hardware, and one such piece of equipment is the pop filter. 

Once installed, it has the potential to minimize high-frequency noise. In the shape of a foam ball that easily fits around the microphone, or a screen made of fabric, nylon mesh, or metal mesh that you place between the microphone and your lips, it may be quite effective.

 

 

 

In addition to minimizing plosive sounds that you would normally make while speaking, the pop filter is also helpful in reducing prominent plosive consonants such as “P.” Using a pop filter has the disadvantage of preventing you from recording high frequencies that you might otherwise capture.

 To complement the pop filter, a superior third-party Snowball mic stand is also a good choice for a robust configuration.

 

 

 

Place the pop filter between 2 and 6 inches away from the microphone for best results. Set your lips a few inches away from the pop filter, and you’re ready to go! Additionally, you may sing straight into the filter, although this may have little effect on how intense the plosives are.

 

 

Conclusion

A variety of frequency responses are available with various microphones. It is the range of sounds that the microphone can reproduce that is measured in frequency response. As a result, the sound character of the microphone may be considerably influenced by this element.

 

 

 In the case of the Blue Snowball Microphone, its frequency response ranges from 40 Hz to 18 kHz, which effectively covers the whole range of sounds that you would want the microphone to record.

 

 

 

When it comes to utilizing a Blue Snowball Mic and decreasing background noise, you may use the tactics listed above to help eliminate unwanted noise during your recording session. Otherwise, you may need to switch to a different kind of microphone if this does not resolve the problem.

 

 

 

Even so, the Blue Snowball is a fantastic choice for recording narration and other applications, among other things. To get the greatest results out of your Blue Snowball Microphone setup, you must experiment with it in order to discover the ideal configuration for your specific needs. 

 

 

 

Apart from that, if you follow the guidelines outlined above, you will never make a mistake while using the Blue Snowball Microphone.