Adobe Podcast was originally released in January 2023 as an online application designed to enhance audio by removing background noise, balancing EQ and improving the overall sound quality of audio recordings using AI. At the time of release the system only offered an automated enhancement filter (noise reduction / improved clarity) and a simple file upload feature. Users uploaded audio, this was enhanced using cloud computing and a 44Khz WAV file of enhanced audio generated. Adobe have recently released Podcast Studio adding many more features and creating an incredibly useful tool for creators wanting to move away from traditional WAV editors. During Beta testing it is only available on the desktop version of Google Chrome.
Innovative Editor Interface
One appealing feature of Podcast Studio is the provision of a visual guide to your audio file using Adobe’s innovative mix of simple buttons and menus. These add fades, background music and other refinements along with transcription and editing tools that function similarly to a Word file – the app will cut or copy / paste the audio output without the need to use a WAV editor. It is also possible to add collaborators to a project enabling responses to questions or contributions to a topic remotely. Once audio file responses are uploaded to the cloud, these can be located in the correct places on the running order in the project file which streamlines the process.
The Studio app will allow up to 1Gb of audio data to be uploaded, bulk upload of files and enhancement strength adjustment. In addition, it will also check your microphone settings including gain, distance from microphone, background noise and reverb to help optimise your recording setup. For a demonstration of features see Mike Russell’s demonstration on the YouTube video above.
Enhancement Filter Issues
As with many AI enhancement tools, the results are impressive but it cannot work miracles. Increasing the enhancement strength does reduce noise but at higher levels can start to add artefacts and negatively impact speech. However, overall there is usually a noticeable improvement in clarity when compared to the input. The most impressive results can be heard when comparing noisy audio recorded with mobile phones. Try Adobe Podcast for yourself by uploading audio to https://podcast.adobe.com
Example use cases:
- Reducing background noise from mobile phone audio recordings
- Ensuring a home studio mic setup is optimal
- Removing traffic noise from an existing video
- Allowing several collaborators to upload responses on a podcast
- Transcribing audio allowing rapid removal of unwanted speech
