DaVinci Resolve — clean podcast and interview audio

Overview

The four-step podcast audio cleanup chain: EQ out rumble -> kill any hum -> denoise -> level -> duck music. Done in this order. The principle: address frequency problems before dynamic problems. EQ is surgical; noise reduction is destructive. Use the surgical tool first so the destructive tool has less to do.

When to use

Symptoms:

• Recording has background hum (electrical 50/60 Hz interference)
• Air conditioning, refrigerator, or traffic noise floor under dialogue
• Voice levels vary from clip to clip (loud intros, quiet thoughtful moments)
• Music score drowns out the host when they start talking
• Sibilance ("ess" sounds) too harsh

When NOT to use:

• Multi-mic interview where you need to gate each mic separately — that needs the Track-level Dynamics workflow per mic (Fairlight Audio Post pp. 373-375).
• Audio is destroyed (clipped, severe wind noise, water damage) — there is a limit to what cleanup can do. Re-record if possible.
• You need surround/Atmos mixing — different chapter (Fairlight Audio Post pp. 643+).