5 Best Noise Cancellation Apps

We compare the 5 best noise cancelling apps on the market to help you make the best decision for removing background noise from customer calls and meetings.

27 Mar '24

Whether in a noisy call centre or a gaming chair, clear sound quality can make or break the experience. This guide explores the five best noise cancelling apps and background noise reduction tools, ensuring your calls, meetings, and recordings are the highest possible quality.

IRIS Clarity

IRIS Clarity is a leading AI noise removal app that has carved out a distinct place in digital communication — particularly in calls, meetings, and call centre environments. Using advanced noise cancelling software, IRIS Clarity focuses on enhancing speech clarity by isolating the speaker's voice from any background noise during calls using bidirectional voice isolation. This unique capability makes it the go-to noise cancellation app for professionals and organisations prioritising clear, effective communication (you can try it for free for 7 days).

Unmatched clarity in calls and meetings

IRIS Clarity addresses the problem of background noise through AI voice isolation, ensuring that the speaker's voice is heard clearly without interference from background noise. AI noise cancellation doesn’t just suppress; it enhances the speaker's voice, making it more prominent and easier to understand. For virtual meetings and calls, where clarity of speech can significantly impact productivity and comprehension, IRIS Clarity stands out.

Robust AI voice isolation

Call centres stand to benefit immensely from IRIS Clarity's AI technology. By removing background noise, call centre agents can communicate more effectively with customers, leading to improved customer satisfaction and reduced handling time. IRIS Clarity's technology also aids in enhancing the accuracy of speech analytics tools, which are vital for analysing call quality and agent performance. The ability to isolate the customer's voice from noise allows for more accurate transcription and analysis, providing valuable insights into customer interactions.

A testament to IRIS Clarity’s capabilities is its recent collaboration with IndyCar, IRIS Clarity has been instrumental in delivering crystal-clear radio transmissions during broadcasts, effectively removing background noise from one of the loudest sports environments. The removal of open wheel racing noise demonstrates how its AI voice isolation software can be applied in almost any situation.

Advanced AI for real-time noise suppression

At the heart of IRIS Clarity's effectiveness is its advanced AI algorithm, trained on thousands of hours of audio data to distinguish between the human voice and background noise accurately. This training enables the software to isolate and enhance the speaker's voice in real-time, providing a seamless and stress-free listening experience. Whether it's the hum of an air conditioner, chatter from a crowded room, or the keyboard typing, IRIS Clarity's AI efficiently filters out distractions, allowing the focus to remain on the conversation.

Integrations

IRIS Clarity offers simple integration options for both individual users and organisations. Its compatibility with a wide range of communication platforms ensures that businesses can implement the technology without disrupting their current operations. Moreover, the intuitive interface of IRIS Clarity makes it accessible to users of all technical skill levels, ensuring widespread usability across different sectors.

Best for calls, meetings, and call centres

  • Enhanced communication clarity: By isolating the speaker's voice from any background noise, IRIS Clarity ensures that every word is heard clearly.
  • Improved customer experience: In call centres, clearer communication leads to better customer service, higher satisfaction rates, and more efficient resolution of inquiries.
  • Increased productivity: For remote teams and virtual meetings, the elimination of background noise results in fewer repetitions, less miscommunication, and more productive discussions.
  • Speech analytics improvement: The accuracy of AI noise cancellation significantly benefits speech analytics accuracy and transcription services, providing clearer data for analysis and decision-making.

Audacity

Audacity is a good choice for musicians, podcasters, and post-production engineers searching for an open-source solution for audio editing and post-production. Its appeal largely lies in a comprehensive suite of features that allow for intricate manipulation of sound—it’s good for anyone wanting to achieve hyper-detailed editing effects.

Comprehensive editing toolkit

Audacity has a wide array of editing features that cater to the needs of post-production work. Users can cut, copy, splice, and mix sounds together with precision. It supports edits in music tracks, podcasts, and other audio projects. Multi-track editing is also possible, enabling users to work with multiple audio tracks simultaneously, a fundamental feature for complex productions.

Noise reduction capabilities

One of the standout features of Audacity is its noise reduction capability. This feature is particularly beneficial for musicians recording in less-than-ideal conditions and post-production engineers tasked with polishing audio to professional standards.

Effects and plugins

Audacity's extensive range of effects and plugins further extends its versatility. From equalisation and compression to reverb and pitch correction, these tools allow users to shape and refine their sound. Moreover, Audacity's support for VST (Virtual Studio Technology) plugins opens up a world of possibilities, enabling users to apply a wide variety of external effects and instruments to their projects.

Accessibility and community support

Available on multiple platforms, including Windows, macOS, and Linux, Audacity provides a consistent experience across different operating systems. Additionally, the software benefits from a robust community of users and developers. This community has created a wealth of tutorials, forums, and resources that offer support and guidance to both new and experienced users.

Best for post-production

  • Cost-effectiveness: As a free tool, Audacity presents a cost-effective solution for high-quality audio editing and post-production, making it accessible to individuals and studios of all sizes.
  • Flexibility: The toolkit gives users complete control over their audio, allowing for precise edits and creative sound manipulation.
  • High-quality audio processing: Audacity's noise reduction and effect capabilities ensure that users can achieve professional-grade audio quality.
  • Support: The strong community and collection of learning materials make Audacity an approachable option for beginners, while its deep feature set satisfies more advanced users.

Apple Voice Isolation

Apple's voice isolation technology is great for mobile phone users and a part of Apple's broader effort to improve the audio communication experience across its ecosystem of devices, including iPhones, iPads, and Macs.

Machine learning

Apple's voice isolation technology uses machine learning to differentiate between the user's voice and ambient noise in real-time. By processing audio on the device, it ensures that the speaker's voice is clear and prominent, reducing or eliminating background sounds such as traffic, conversations, and other distractions.

Tech for socialising

The feature significantly improves the quality of personal calls, making it easier for participants to focus on the conversation without being distracted by background noise.

Best for Mobile Phone Users

  • Better call quality: Apple's voice isolation ensures that the user's voice is heard clearly, enhancing the overall call experience even in noisy environments.
  • Privacy and security: By focusing on the user's voice, voice isolation helps to keep sensitive conversations private, reducing the chance of eavesdropping from nearby noise sources.
  • Convenience: Integrated directly into iOS, the feature is easy to use and accessible, requiring no additional software or hardware. It's a built-in benefit for all users, enhancing the value of Apple's mobile devices.

NVIDIA RTX Voice

NVIDIA RTX Voice uses graphics cards to offer real-time noise suppression, enhancing the gaming and streaming experience by isolating the user's voice from background noise. This technology is built for gamers predominantly.

Great gaming experience

For gamers, clear audio communication elevates both the player communication and broadcasting experience. NVIDIA RTX Voice ensures that fellow players can hear the user's voice clearly, without distractions.

Ease of use

NVIDIA RTX Voice is designed to work with a broad range of communication and streaming software, including popular platforms like Discord, OBS, and Twitch. The setup process is straightforward, allowing users to quickly benefit from enhanced audio quality without needing extensive technical knowledge. While it's optimised for RTX GPUs, there are workarounds to enable its use on older NVIDIA cards, broadening its accessibility to a wider audience.

Best for gamers

  • Clear communication: By effectively removing background noise, gamers can communicate more effectively, enhancing both competitive play and cooperative experiences.
  • Streaming quality: Streamers can deliver higher quality content, free from audio distractions, which is essential for growing and maintaining an audience.
  • Cross-platform usage: The support for various communication and streaming applications means users can enjoy improved audio quality across all their favourite platforms.

Headsets with built-in noise cancellation

Headsets with built-in noise cancellation technology have become essential for individuals seeking high-quality audio experiences, whether for music listening, gaming, professional calls, or remote work. These devices employ advanced technology to eliminate unwanted background noise, allowing users to focus on their audio content without distractions. When combined with software solutions like IRIS Clarity, these headsets can offer an even more refined and immersive audio experience.

Noise control

Noise-cancelling headsets use active noise control (ANC) technology to reduce unwanted ambient sounds. This involves using built-in microphones to detect external noise and then generating sound waves that are the exact opposite (anti-noise) to cancel it out. The result is a significantly quieter listening environment, where the primary audio is clear and uninterrupted by background noise.

Isolated experience

Music enthusiasts and gamers alike appreciate the pure, immersive sound experience that noise-cancelling headsets provide. By isolating the audio content from any external noise, these headsets deliver rich, detailed sound quality, allowing users to hear their music or game audio as the creators intended.

Compatibie with IRIS Clarity

When paired with noise cancellation software like IRIS Clarity, noise-cancelling headsets become even more powerful. IRIS Clarity's advanced AI-driven technology works in tandem with the headset's noise cancellation to isolate and enhance speech during calls and meetings. This combination ensures that the user's voice is transmitted clearly, free from both background noise and distractions, making it an ideal setup for call centres, remote work, and any professional communication scenario.

Best for multi-purpose personal use

  • Concentration in noisy environments: They enable users to create a personal sense of calm, even in the busiest settings, enhancing concentration and task efficiency.
  • Clearer calls and meetings: In conjunction with IRIS Clarity, these headsets ensure that voice communications are crystal clear, improving the quality of professional interactions.
  • Immersive audio experience: Whether for music, gaming, or movies, noise-cancelling headsets provide an unrivalled audio experience by focusing solely on the sound you want to hear.

Whilst there is a lot of choice between apps for noise cancelling, it’s wise to think about use cases and the desired effect. Noise suppression apps aren’t all made equal. To explore AI noise cancelling tools further, get in touch with us or start your 7 day free trial.

Other factors to consider when choosing the best noise cancellation apps:

How can I reduce background noise in a call centre?

Implementing noise cancellation software like IRIS Clarity can significantly reduce background noise in call centres. It uses AI to isolate voices from background sounds, improving call quality. Also, equipping call centre agents with noise-cancelling headsets can enhance voice clarity for both agents and customers.

How do I reduce background noise when calling?

Use noise cancellation apps such as IRIS Clarity or enable built-in noise suppression features on your mobile device, like Apple's voice isolation. For hardware solutions, noise-cancelling headsets effectively minimise background noise, ensuring clearer calls.

How to avoid background noise when calling?

Position yourself in a quiet environment and use technology that supports noise reduction, like IRIS Clarity or NVIDIA RTX Voice for gamers and streamers. Devices with active noise cancellation (ANC) can also help avoid background noise by filtering it out before it reaches the call.

What are the best noise reduction tools for call centres?

Software solutions like IRIS Clarity, designed for AI voice isolation, are among the best tools for reducing background noise in call centres. They improve speech analytics accuracy and customer call experience by enhancing voice clarity and reducing unwanted sound.

What is the importance of sound proofing in call centres?

Sound proofing minimises external noise and internal echo, leading to clearer communication between agents and customers. It's essential for maintaining professionalism and ensuring privacy and accuracy in customer interactions.

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