Like a modern AI-based graphics suite, -Spectrelayer is a powerful tool – but for audio. When in the hands of a competent engineer – the end result can be far superior to the source file while maintaining the most important aspects of the sound – intact.
This is the new nexus of where art & technology meet. And the better the source file; – the better the result! “Perfect” still is a great place to start!
Perhaps an analogy using an image will help better understand what Spectrelayer does for audio.The image to the left is an actual scan of an extremely old photograph. It is magnified slightly here to show the imperfections in the original. Clearly visible are compression artifacts that resemble water damage as well as the lack of clear detail, no color & the image is a sepia tone (gray scale but with a bias towards yellow). Only a few years ago – very little could have been done to improve this.
However, with an AI system combined with the conventional tools of an accomplished graphics editor – stunning improvements are now possible – while keeping some of the “feel” of the original style the image was shot in. (Note: Not all AI’s are the same! Some system’s are dramatically different & outperform others. ‘AI’ is also marketing ‘buzz’!)
To view this “Spectre” in a new light, simply mouse over the image (or the equivalent gesture if you’re on a mouseless device). The improvement is stunning, yes?
Spectrelayer does for audio what sophisticated processing can do for visual information. Spectrelayer can even add harmonics (upper and lower) if the process detects evidence that they were not recorded properly (the equivalent of adding color to an image).
Distortions are reduced & additional information is often added – based on the heuristics of analyzing details that do exist (I.E: This demo AI more than quadrupled the resolution)! So, contrast is enhanced & details interpolated!
All of this processing is done with the end goal of making the finished product as good as possible without altering the style, or the proverbial “feel” of the original. Often, such subtleties are wonderfully enhanced.
Just as the advent of AI based image processing breathed a new level of clarity into older photographs; -So does the advent of newer technologies make it possible to analyze & improve most audio recordings while deeply respecting the artist’s vision.
Oh, and beware of the buzz around the term “AI”. AI can be a powerful tool but the alleged benefits are often overblown. As a hybrid; -Spectrelayer makes a very limited use of it – that can change over time as the nature of tech changes. No two AI’s are the same. Some are ineffective, unpleasantly distorting & outright bad! And those caveats are the very reasons why music-mills that advertise the use of AI are often milquetoast in their performance: File-In–> File Out: Oversight without!
Although for the reason stated above I can’t give you specifics – I can give you hints & those who are the “best guessers” may glean some genuine insight/s.
Lawyers: Humanity’s kill-joys!
To the right is an actual session dialog with the ChatGPT AI.
Read the question & the answer.
And then ask yourself if the same question may have been asked earlier (Because I have a witness to the fact that I posed such a scenario over 30 years ago)!
+30 years ago! What’s a person with such a question to do?
The answer is: Wait for technology to catch up.
And I did. How time flies!
Mouse-Over the text to the right…
Did you see Spectrelayer’s FREE Challenge?
HOWEVER. . .
I can show you some of the most awesome things AI is being used for in other media sciences …
And then, use your imagination! You might have some flashes of insight!
Also remember this: At the rate this technology is advancing; -What’s true today will likely change as the field matures!
And since time will change the nature of this technology’s use cases; -Let’s take a look at some video reference sources: