Filter Reverb and Echo at the time of recording in Audacity or any other software

Question

I am recording video lectures. The sound in those lectures must be clear from outside noises and also any echo/reverb. At my home I have only one room where the traffic sound and other sounds (barking or dogs etc) don't reach, but in that room there is reverb while recording. Today I found an online recording service Online Voice Recorder , while recording on through this service I noticed that in Adobe Flash Player settings there came the option of reducing echo while recording (Highligted in the picture)

I think Audacity is more powerful than any other free software of app for sound recording and editing, I would like to know if there is any setting in Audacity so that when we record through Audacity, we filter the reverb at the time of recording. (If someone know a solution other than Audacity, I would love to hear that also).

Thank You !

Answer 1

Yes, there are ways to try to reduce echo, but they also negatively impact the sound with artifacts. You can use features like gates to try to cut off when someone stops talking directly, but those are probably best applied after recording.

There is nothing that you can apply, in software, at the time of recording that you can't apply later. You don't want to make permanent alterations to the captured sound that may end up being mistakes down the road. Capture the cleanest audio you can and then clean it up in post as a last resort. Don't try doing your cleaning in software on capture.

Answer 2

See previous discussion here, SPL De-Verb is probably what you're looking for. You can watch a comparison between SPL, iZotope, Zynaptic in this YouTube video.

Answer 3

I'd be far more inclined to try fix it at source first.

There are several plugins I've tried that attempt to de-verb, but none anywhere near as successfully as just not recording it in the first place.

Simplest trick would be to hang a heavy blanket, duvet or similar on the wall behind you [or hang it over a spare boom stand etc, close up behind you], then put a sound shield in front. There are many varieties - this page shows a few, but I wouldn't say all - http://www.guitarcenter.com/Sound-Shields---Reflectors-Microphone-Accessories1.gc

^{promoted from comment}
The best plugin I've tried has been Unveil - SOS mag review - but I'd still go for the hardware solution every time.

^{From other answers & comments…}
I have used SPL, iZotope & Zynaptic, none of them managed to de-verb the peaks.
This was what I found when I recently had to try de-verb an old 70's vocal as part of a remix/remaster project [no names, no pack drill, but you know who you are Mr B] where the original vox had been bounced to a stereo pair, with the main verse vocal summed to mono - with a dense mono plate in the middle too.
Nothing... & I mean nothing, could get rid of enough of the verb. All could kill the tails easily enough but not the main density where the levels were peaking - the 'money notes' in essence. It was, as someone mentioned in the other thread, like trying to remove the egg from a cake.

Answer 4

I think I already found solution for my problem, I installed evaluation copy of REAPER v4.76, and than purchased two plugins for it.

1) [Acon Digital DeVerberate (Acon Digital)][1] for $99.90 USD.
and
2) DyVision Reverb Remover (DyVision Works) for $49.37 USD.

and both of these plugins are amazing.

Very easy to use and very powerful.