How to Get Rid of Background Noise in Logic Pro X

You can use the Denoiser, one of Logic’s Legacy plugins, to reduce background noise in Logic Pro X. This plugin gives you several adjustments to help reduce unwanted noise. You can also edit quiet space in tracks to eliminate noise. 

I’m Donovan, and I’ve been a music maker for most of my life. I love to write, record, and produce as often as possible, and I’m very familiar with all of the tools and features of Logic Pro X. I know how to use these to perform many editing tasks. 

This post will show you how to get rid of background noise in Logic Pro X. I’ll walk you through several methods you can use to help get rid of unwanted noise and make your recordings sound more polished. 

Let’s get started. 

Key Takeaways

• The Denoiser plugin in Logic Pro X is a great tool to help you eliminate unwanted background noise from your tracks and projects. This is a Legacy plugin, so you need to hold the Option key to access it in the plugin menu. 
• Background noise can also be dealt with before you start recording by using a quiet recording space and reducing the chance of interruptions or outside noise. 
• Editing empty space in tracks, like pauses between vocal lines, is another good method to help get rid of background noise. 

How to Get Rid of Background Noise

Background noise can be a big issue when you are recording audio. I’ve had more than one recording or editing session end in frustration because I couldn’t figure out how to get rid of a mysterious hum or other background noise. 

Luckily, there are some excellent methods you can use to help reduce or eliminate background noise in Logic Pro X, and I’ll walk you through all of the most common ways here. 

Solution 1: Reduce Noise Sources Before Recording

An initial step to get rid of background noise is to remove or reduce any potential noise sources before you start recording. This can include anything from electronics to house fans to lighting. 

Take a few minutes and just sit quietly in your recording space. Listen for anything and everything and try to locate its source. If you hear a noise, it will show up when you place a live microphone in the room. 

Remove any unnecessary electronics like computers or other tech with fans that could turn on randomly. Change or turn off lights that make a hum when turned on.

You can also use a windscreen on your mics to remove wind noise in Logic Pro X. These are good if you ever need to record in an outdoor environment or if you are working with a singer who tends to be wispy with their vocals.  

The more steps you take ahead of time to reduce background noise, the less you’ll have to deal with during the recording and editing process. 

Solution 2: Remove Background Noise Using Logic Plugins

Having a quiet recording space is the first step to reducing background noise, but there are also a few plugins in Logic that will help you remove it if it does show up on your track. Knowing what these plugins are and what they can do will help you with any pesky noise issues. 

The Denoiser is a great plugin option in Logic Pro X to use, and it can help quiet down noisy tracks without altering the recorded audio. 

Follow these steps to get rid of background noise in Logic Pro X using the Denoiser plugin. 

1. Open the Logic Pro project with the tracks you want to get rid of background noise on. 

2. Click on the specific track with background noise. 

3. Press X to display the mixer view. 

4. Hold the Option key and click on the Audio FX channel strip. This is where all of Logic’s plugins are located. You need to hold down the Option key because the Denoiser is a Legacy plugin, and these won’t show up unless you hold down that key. 

5. Select Legacy from the plugin menu. 

6. Select Denoiser. 

7. Select Stereo. The Denoiser will now appear on the channel for the track you want to reduce the noise on. 

The Denoiser plugin window has Threshold, Reduce, and Noise Type settings. All three of these give you the ability to reduce or get rid of background noise. Play around with the settings until it has the effect you are looking for. 

You can also use the Noise Gate plugin to help get rid of background noise. I don’t think this option works as effectively as the Denoiser, but it’s another tool worth trying if you are dealing with excess noise issues. 

Follow the same steps mentioned above to apply to Noise Gate plugin to the track with background noise. It is found in the plugin menu under Dynamics. And there are several adjustments you can make from the Noise Gate window to weed out background noise.

Solution 3: Reduce Background Noise During Editing

You can also eliminate background noise in Logic Pro X during the editing process. A live mic that isn’t being used is a primary culprit for creating background noise. 

You always want to edit out empty space in a vocal or instrument track. These are locations in the track where the singer isn’t singing, or the guitar player isn’t playing, for example. By deleting these sections of the track, you get rid of any possible background noise. 

Guitar amps are notorious for being noisy when turned on but not being played. So make sure to edit out any pauses in guitar tracks, so you don’t pick up the electrical hum of the amp. 

You can also apply the plugins mentioned above to these tracks to cut down background noise if it’s in the track. But deleting the parts of the track that don’t need to be in the project is a good habit because you eliminate any unwanted audio.  

Adjusting the EQ of a track can also help reduce background noise, so long as it doesn’t negatively affect the recorded audio. You can filter out the frequencies of the background noise to reduce its presence in the track. 

FAQs

Here are a few quick answers to some of the most commonly asked questions relating to how to get rid of background noise in Logic Pro X. 

Does Logic Pro have noise reduction? 

Yes, Logic Pro does have a noise reduction plugin that you can use to help eliminate background noise and other noisy tracks. This is a Legacy plugin that can be accessed in the plugin menu by holding down the option key. 

How do I clean up audio in Logic Pro X? 

One of the best ways to clean up audio in Logic Pro X is to delete any empty space from a track that might have background noise or static. Common locations for empty noise are in between phrases of vocal tracks and guitar amps when the guitar isn’t playing. 

How do I remove white noise from audio? 

There are various techniques for removing white noise from audio, including using plugins such as denoiser or EQ to filter out the noise. You can also try to limit the chances for white noise by recording in a quieter room that is relatively dead in terms of reverb and echo. 

Final Thoughts

The Logic noise reduction plugin, Denoiser, is one of the best tools in the app that you can use to help get rid of background noise. It’s a free Legacy plugin that comes built into Logic. Just be sure to hold down that Option key to access it in the plugins window. 

Getting rid of background noise doesn’t always have a simple fix. But if you use all of the tips and tricks in this post, you should be able to drastically reduce the amount of background noise on your Logic projects. 

Do you have any tips for getting rid of background noise that I didn’t mention here? Let me know in the comments below.